We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Chapter 1081 The Unexploded Volcano

Inside the bamboo house, Qiu Bai poured Li Che a glass of water.

Although Yang Tong had prepared hot tea, Qiu Bai was always cautious and did not dare to let Li Che drink it.

Seeing Li Che's thoughtful expression, Yang Tong couldn't help but whisper, "His Majesty appointed Yang Tong as the Salt Commissioner, what about Wei Xiang?"

Li Che took the water glass, took a big gulp, and then said, "Wei Xiang is honest and hardworking, but he is too cautious and lacks decisiveness."

"The salt and iron affairs involve complex and intertwined interests, which cannot be clarified without a determined and resolute person. I intend to transfer him to the Prefectural Governor's Office in Chengdu, where the people's livelihood and administration need a down-to-earth person more."

Qiu Bai then said, "But this Yang Tong... he looks like a sycophantic villain. How could His Majesty employ him?"

Such questions touch upon the emperor's principles of personnel management, and only an old follower like Qiu Bai, who had followed Li Che, would dare to ask them.

"Little man?"

Li Che took a sip of water, looked up at Qiu Bai, and smiled: "Qiu Bai, you've been with me for so many years, how come your judgment of people is still only superficial?"

"What is a petty person? A petty person is someone who only knows how to flatter, harm others for personal gain, and has no sense of responsibility whatsoever! And what about Yang Tong?"

He put down his water glass, counted on his fingers, and said, "His family came from a minor official background. Is it stupid of him to spend money to take this hard job in the mountains?"

"After arriving, he faced Agula, the chieftain who was targeting him at every turn. He did not choose to go along with him or wait to die. Instead, he patiently plotted and eventually brought down the chieftain, seizing real power in the salt wells."

"Although the methods were somewhat ruthless, they actually helped the court collect several times more salt taxes."

"He also kept the Qing people away from the toxic smoke, saving the lives of the few remaining Qing people in the area."

"His methods of suppressing the Liao people were ruthless, but that was only how he treated the Liao people. He owed no debts to the Shu region or to Daqing."

"Is someone like that... still young?"

Qiu Bai frowned slightly, then slowly relaxed: "Does Your Majesty mean that although this person's conduct is despicable, he is of great use to the court?"

“Indeed,” Li Che nodded. “He was a cruel official, but also a capable one.”

"Right now, to integrate the chaotic salt administration in Sichuan, we need someone like him who is well-versed in the inside story and ruthless in his methods to break through the barriers."

"His intentions are indeed somewhat wicked, but he can be slowly tamed. Once the salt administration is settled, we can leave it to Third Brother to refine him slowly."

Li Che had long understood a principle: to govern the world, one cannot only have good people around him.

We only need a few gentlemen like Wen Zaiyin who uphold righteousness and keep their hearts pure.

Some dirty and tough jobs need to be done by people like Yang Tong; bad people are easier to control than good people.

"Alright, you've rested enough." Li Che stood up and said, "Let's go check out the salt wells in person."

"Here."

During this short rest, in addition to relieving the fatigue of the journey, Li Che also had Qiu Bai make some preparations.

Li Che didn't bring a mask on this trip, so he dared not just walk into the salt field.

Although the rising salt fumes weren't as poisonous as the chemical fumes of later generations, inhaling them too much was certainly not a good thing.

He then ordered someone to bring clean cotton cloth, cut it into long strips, soak it thoroughly in clean water, and distribute it to the people accompanying him.

This thing can at least cover the mouth and nose; although it's rather rudimentary, it can block some smoke and moisture.

Even Yang Tong received one. When he took the wet strip of cloth, he was clearly stunned for a moment, and then his face was filled with flattered gratitude.

He hurriedly tied it to his face, looking rather comical, with a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

Having entered the officialdom of Daqing as a minor official, he never experienced the slightest kindness.

And this first time actually came from the emperor.

The group, their faces still covered, walked down from the city gate and into the salt field.

Approaching the salt-boiling area, the strong smell, a mixture of salty brine, burnt bitterness, and sweat, seeped into my nostrils through the damp cloth.

The heat hit us in the face, and our vision was quickly obscured by the billowing white mist and blue smoke, becoming blurred.

A tremendous noise enveloped them: the bubbling of the boiling brine, the crackling of the burning firewood, the screeching of the iron spoon scraping the bottom of the pot...

The most frequent sound, however, was the violent coughing of the Liao craftsmen, which they simply couldn't suppress.

Li Che squinted, avoiding the direction of the hottest part of the stove, and scanned his surroundings.

He saw naked cooks moving between the scalding stoves, their skin eroded and blistered by salt stains, and an old cook with a purplish complexion huddled in a corner, struggling to breathe.

Yang Tong followed cautiously behind, occasionally explaining in his heavily accented Mandarin, but his eyes were always on the emperor's expression.

Li Che mostly just watched in silence, occasionally asking a question or two.

Yang Tong was able to answer some of the questions, while others looked embarrassed.

Clearly, while he was adept at checks and balances, he lacked expertise in the specialized aspects of salt production.

Li Che didn't blame him, after all, not everyone is a jack-of-all-trades.

The further you go into the heart of the salt-making area, the more alarming the environment becomes.

A wave of heat swept over them, enveloping them like a tangible, viscous wall.

The cook used a long hook to lift the huge pot lid and add new salt to the boiling brine. A burst of scalding steam, carrying a pungent, salty smell, shot out.

Even with a damp cloth covering it, the heat and particles stubbornly penetrated, choking people and making their throats feel tight, their lungs feeling salty and bitter.

In just a short while, everyone began to feel unwell.

The Liao people and kitchen workers almost melted away in this vast expanse of poisonous white miasma.

Their figures appeared and disappeared in the thick smoke, their movements mechanical and repetitive, accompanied by a constant, heart-wrenching cough.

Li Che witnessed a cook who was closer to the salt pot being covered in steam from a sudden surge while stirring the brine.

He immediately covered his face and curled up on the ground, letting out suppressed sobs of pain, but no one dared to come forward to help him up.

Soon, a foreman came over with a wooden bucket and splashed a ladle of cold water on his face.

Without thinking twice, she sternly shouted at him, kicked him up, and pushed him back to the stove.

Li Che's gaze fell upon the overseers who were located upwind.

They were also Liao people, but they were dressed relatively well, holding oil-soaked leather whips, their eyes sweeping over their compatriots below.

If any cook was even slightly slow, the whip would fall sharply with a whooshing sound, adding a fresh bloodstain to the cook's already battered back.

Most of the people who are beaten only twitch their bodies instinctively, unable to even cry out in pain, and then numbly continue with their work.

Li Che couldn't help but chuckle. Yang Tong had indeed learned the skill of using barbarians to control barbarians, and was even using it here.

It must be said that it did have some effect.

Using the Liao people to govern the Liao people was a much more ruthless approach than using the Qing people; Li Che himself had used this tactic quite often back then.

However, as the Liao people realized that a group of well-dressed outsiders had arrived, the atmosphere began to subtly change.

At first, only a few cooks stared straight at them.

There was no curiosity, no hatred, not even the emotional fluctuations of a living being in those eyes; only numbness.

They stopped what they were doing and just stared at it.

One, two, five, ten...

Like a spreading plague, more and more cooks stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to Li Che and his group.

The overseers noticed something amiss and roared at the cooks, wielding their whips like a raging storm.

The whip lashed the skin, drawing streaks of blood, but the person being beaten remained as numb as a wooden statue, stubbornly staring in this direction.

Hundreds of such eyes converged, creating a silent pressure, and the group immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Luo Yueniang rushed to Li Che's side, her hand already firmly on the hilt of her sword: "Your Majesty, something is wrong. Please move immediately!"

Qiu Bai, Ying Bu, and other guards had already folded into their formation, firmly protecting Li Che in the center.

Li Che also felt a chill coming from all directions.

I've been through many battles, but I've never felt such a desperate and numb gaze before. It just sends chills down my spine.

Without hesitation, he nodded slightly to Luo Yueniang: "Let's go."

Under the protection of their guards, the group slowly retreated towards the edge of the salt field.

Fortunately, the silent, staring stove workers did not make any further moves, but simply watched them leave until Li Che and the others were obscured by the smoke from the salt stove, at which point their empty eyes slowly turned back.

Leaving the salt-boiling area and returning to a relatively cool open space, Yang Tong was deathly pale, and his voice was trembling uncontrollably:

"Your Majesty...Your Majesty has been frightened! I deserve to die! It was my failure to properly discipline these lowly servants who dared to offend Your Majesty..."

Li Che raised his hand, stopping him from saying anything more.

He turned and looked at the salt field billowing with thick smoke.

After a long while, he finally let out a long sigh of relief.

"See? Your method might work for a while, but it won't last."

"Humans are not plants or trees, much less soil or stone. They have been oppressed to the extreme. Today they can only watch, but what about tomorrow?"

Even a rabbit will bite when cornered, let alone a person.

He thought of the Qiang and Man soldiers who were like madmen on the battlefield, and the Sheng Liao who were like wild beasts in the forest.

The saltworkers in the salt fields and the laborers who roamed the mountains and fields actually shared the same blood.

Continuing to exploit them to the point of exhaustion is tantamount to turning these familiar officials into wild beasts.

Yang Tong bowed his head deeply, cold sweat soaking through his back: "Your Majesty is wise, I am terrified."

“Let’s change it.” Li Che withdrew his gaze and looked at Yang Tong. “Not only the salt tax regulations need to be changed, but the salt-making methods and the way we treat these salt-making workers also need to be changed.”

"We cannot overwork people to death, and the salt administration in Sichuan cannot be built on a volcano that may erupt at any time."

Yang Tong's face showed bitterness, but he dared not refute it and only replied, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will remember."

Li Che pondered for a moment and asked, "Yang Tong, can you contact the other people in charge of the salt wells?"

Yang Tong was taken aback, then looked up cautiously and said, "Your Majesty, the salt wells are far apart, and the mountain roads are difficult to traverse, so we don't usually travel between them..."

But remembering His Majesty's first order to him, he still steeled himself and said:

"But if Your Majesty issues an order, I can try to send a message to invite them to come."

Li Che said calmly, "Do not mention that I am here. Try to invite the people who are in charge."

Yang Tong gritted his teeth and replied, "Your humble servant obeys! I will do my utmost to arrange it!"