The Third Year of Yong'an, January 3rd.

Chen Mo led fifty thousand Chen Army soldiers, departing from Chongzhou, splitting into three divisions, and entered the Western River Land.

Chen Mo, along with Yue Ruyan and others, led the main force of forty thousand Chen Army as one division.

Xiao Jing and Wu Yanqing each led five thousand troops, forming two other divisions.

They finally converged at Luonan.

The reason for Xiao Jing and Wu Yanqing each leading only five thousand soldiers.

Was because, after the King of Chong fled, the Western River Land became disunited.

As the Vassal King of Chongzhou, the reason the King of Chong could muster tens of thousands of troops and had enough money and grain to support them.

Was entirely due to the support of the noble families behind the scenes, with the King of Chong also being their patron.

Now that the King of Chong was defeated by Chen Mo, fleeing to Luonan like a dog with a broken tail, he had also abandoned these noble families of the Western River Land.

Therefore, there was no need to use force to take over the Western River Land; Chen Mo intended to utilize the prestigious status of Xiao Jing and Wu Yanqing to peacefully take control of the area.

And these five thousand soldiers were to prevent any stubborn opposition.

...

January 4th.

The main forces of the Chen Army smoothly entered the crucial Tianjia Pass of the Western River Land.

What awaited them was not the determined resistance of officials from Weichang County but rather the County Magistrate of Weichang County, who, together with the city's gentry and noble families, came running with tears of joy to welcome the Chen Army.

Among them, the most esteemed Landlord Zhao of Weichang County, tearfully exclaimed, "Duke An, you have finally arrived. The traitor Chu Yan has been intimidating and coercing us, deceiving the court, using its name to impose tyranny and heavy taxes on us, forcibly recruiting strongmen. The people have suffered for so long. I, along with the gentry of Weichang, have endured humiliation for years, always waiting for the loyal ministers of our court to rescue the citizens of Weichang from disaster..."

The scene perplexed both Chen Mo and the soldiers of the Chen Army.

So, the Song Dynasty is truly unfazed by any blame, isn't it?

Evidently, it was you who supported the King of Chong from behind, and now you're saying the King of Chong coerced and forced you.

However, one does not strike a smiling face.

Moreover, Chen Mo had pitched the slogan of supporting the king in the capital.

Since the gentry and noble families of Weichang County were being sensible, Chen Mo decided not to pursue their previous actions.

Chen Mo said, "Such traitors like the King of Chong, who try to overthrow our Great Song, truly deserve a thousand cuts."

Upon hearing this, Landlord Zhao breathed a sigh of relief and fawningly said, "Duke An, having traveled a long way, I, along with the gentry, have set up a modest banquet at Hongyun Building to welcome Duke An, hoping you will grace us with your presence."

Chen Mo nodded.

At the banquet, Landlord Zhao and the local gentry and officials hurriedly pledged their loyalty to Chen Mo, offering beauties and grain.

Chen Mo accepted the grain but did not touch the beauties.

Later, Sun Meng informed that those ladies were actually the concubines of Landlord Zhao and the gentry.

Chen Mo's lips twitched as he had already noticed none of the beauties presented were virgins.

Chen Mo sighed, lamenting that the world misunderstood him deeply.

Lu Sheng and the King of Chong were yesterday's flowers, and to prevent any hiccups along the way.

While passing through the Western River Land, Chen Mo adopted a conciliatory approach.

Unlike in Fengzhou, there were no public trials in the Western River Land.

But not all noble families were like Landlord Zhao and others, as some failed to appreciate kindness.

January 11th.

Chen Mo received a message from Xiao Jing.

Stating that leading families such as the Zhang Family from Zhangquan County, the Yan Family from Jinze County, and the Gao Family from Wuyi City, among others, were uncooperative, asking how to proceed.

The reasons for their non-cooperation were several.

Upon arriving at each county, Chen Mo's first step was not to raid the city granary or treasury.

But rather the Document Library in the Government Office, to first take hold of the local household records, account books, and land deeds and sales.

To understand how many households there were locally and how many acres of land.

According to Xiao Jing's investigation, the Zhang Family in Zhangquan County, the Yan Family in Jinze County, and the Gao Family in Wuyi City controlled nearly ninety percent of the land, but Government Office records indicated each family held just over a hundred acres.

Xiao Jing immediately recognized that there was massive underreporting, with land nominally in the hands of the commoners, but the actual land deeds were held by these leading families.

As the patriarch of the Xiao Family, he knew very well how murky these waters ran.

So, he approached members of these leading families, hoping they would comply honestly.

But instead of cooperating, they engaged in secretive manipulations.

For example, transferring land to house servants, wives' families, and various distant relatives.

In short, they employed endless tactics to evade detection.

The reason for their actions.

Was because they knew of Chen Mo's actions against noble families in the states of Qing, Yu, Lin, and Huai, distributing land.

But this land was, to them, their lifeblood, and they certainly couldn't let Chen Mo take it all, thus they resisted in this way, aiming to negotiate with Chen Mo.

We know you, Duke An, wish to win people's hearts.

Okay, we are willing to cooperate.

So they plan to surrender thirty percent of their land to be distributed to the commoners.

But even this comes with conditions.

You, Duke An, must reduce taxes on the surface-level properties and lands.

Xiao Jing naturally understood this layer of meaning, so he included it in his letter.

Of course, if there were sufficient time, this matter could be handled slowly to minimize its impact.

But Chen Mo's main objective was to support the king in the capital.

The affairs of the Western River Land were merely dealt with in passing.

Are they proposing to give up thirty percent?

Are they trying to appease beggars?

After much effort, having eradicated Prince Huai, resolved King Anping, and defeated the King of Chong.

Expending such effort, with so many casualties, was it purely to gain your thirty percent?