The Demon Lords-Chapter 605 - 99 Daily Life_1

Shengle City had four gates, each managed by a Gate Colonel—an official position that was, one might say, exceedingly common.

Zheng Fan used to complain repeatedly about Yan State's military system, especially in Beifeng Prefecture, where captaincies were as common as stray dogs. It was just like the Qing Dynasty practice of purchasing official posts; it reached a point where even overseas Chinese with a modicum of connections, by simply digging into their family coffers, could produce the trappings of so-called "beasts in robes" and "plumed official hats."

However, one's perspective often changes with one's position. When Zheng Fan was just a Gate Colonel, he naturally lambasted the devaluation of the rank. Yet the moment he became the City Commander, responsible for a city and the region it represented, his tune changed completely.

Soldiers' salaries, of course, came from the treasury. Common soldiers valued this silver greatly, but for those who had already made their mark, especially the local tyrants of the Jin land forts, such a sum was rather trivial.

This was when the "Gate Colonel" tactic was invoked.

One for you, one for him—no need to rush, no need to fight, there was one for everyone.

In an instant, everyone had an official role in Yan and, quite naturally, received their fair share of the benefits, much in the spirit of being "all in this together"—it was simply the way of things.

Thus, it was not at all surprising that a single city had four Gate Colonels just for guarding its gates.

However, the guards at these four city gates were primarily from Zheng Fan's original core team, with barbarian soldiers forming the vast majority.

Having painstakingly built this city to protect his hometown, Zheng Fan felt it was only right to entrust the "keys" to it to his most loyal followers.

Appointing others to guard the city made Zheng Fan and his Demon Kings uneasy. They themselves had been partial to sneaking through enemy city gates in the past; having committed so many misdeeds, they feared retribution might fall upon their own heads. If their subordinates were bribed into becoming inside agents, facilitating a coordinated attack from within and without, causing the painstakingly constructed, formidable city walls to become mere decorations, they would truly rival France of World War II in their depression.

「Early in the morning, just as dawn was breaking」

Yu Huaping donned a suit of leather armor. Instead of a sword, he carried a Yan-made knife and left the post station.

Breakfast was available in the post station.

There were steamed buns with various fillings—shredded radish filling, salted vegetable filling, and bean paste filling—as well as pure meat buns, porridge, and other items like shumai and pan-fried buns.

The adage of the King of Chu preferring slender waists was vividly demonstrated in Shengle City: the daily cuisine of the army headquarters gradually became the city's mainstream standard.

Tastes, however, are not so easily changed overnight. But there was little choice in the matter, as Shengle City had been under military control from its early days.

The post station was the property of the army headquarters. Leaving the post station and walking down the street, any business open was also owned by the army headquarters—effectively, they were all state-run.

The majority of Shengle City's population was military personnel, which, in effect, simplified management. Families residing in the city received monthly rations of rice, flour, grain, and oil, allocated according to the number of adults and children. Bachelors, meanwhile, had all their meals provided at the army barracks.

Merchant caravans traveling to and from Shengle City were all lodged and received at the trade emporium, another property of the army headquarters. For every transaction concluded, the army headquarters would levy a ten percent tax.

It wasn't that merchant caravans never considered tax evasion; in fact, it was almost an instinct for merchants.

However, ever since a fort lord who privately established a monopoly market within his own fort had his entire clan exterminated by troops dispatched from Shengle City, such incidents had drastically decreased.

According to the army headquarters, the reason everyone could conduct business here without disruption was that the army headquarters maintained peace and order. Therefore, it was only right and proper for the army headquarters to take a cut when people profited from their businesses.

There was a vegetable market in the city, but it too was the property of the army headquarters.

Originally, the sign at the vegetable market read "Shengle City Supply and Marketing Cooperative." Later, for some unknown reason, General Zheng found it unsatisfactory upon seeing it and ordered it changed to "Shengle Market."

If one wanted to buy vegetables, they could go to the market. Other daily necessities, from coal to cloth, were also sold at designated storefronts open to people from both inside and outside the city.

In other words, the army headquarters monopolized all viable industries in the city.

Yu Huaping instinctively felt uncomfortable about this. Walking the streets of this city, even he, the Sword Saint of his generation, felt a suffocating sensation, as if a hand were at his throat.

Indeed, government-run businesses had existed since ancient times and had always held a significant market share. However, a situation like Shengle City's, where the private economy was so comprehensively and directly stifled, was truly rare.

Even outside the Earl of North Border's Mansion, plenty of local commoners set up shops and conducted business. Zheng Fan and the Sixth Prince had once gone there for mutton soup.

However, the Earl of North Border's Mansion had the entire Yan State backing it with substantial support. As for Shengle City, truth be told, the aid it received from the imperial court each time could only be described as better than nothing.

According to the imperial court's official registers, Shengle City was allocated a maximum of three thousand troops. In reality, however, all told, Shengle City's forces had long surpassed ten thousand, approaching fifteen thousand.

Jin people constituted the majority of these forces. Factoring in the five thousand Jin troops Zheng Fan had recently brought over, his original forces, and the scions of powerful fort-owning families who had lately come to pledge their allegiance, the number of Jin soldiers in Shengle City was already close to ten thousand.

Of the remaining five thousand, barbarian soldiers formed the majority.