All Heavens: Starting with Yang Kang playing Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King

Chapter 5: The Overlord Lifts the Tripod, His Double Pupils Shock the World!

Yelü Chucai was forty years old, with a thin face and calm eyes. He did not kneel down, but simply bowed.

"I have long admired Mr. Jinqing's reputation."

Yang Kang said.

"You're too kind, Your Highness."

Yelü Chucai straightened up.

"I have come to Shandong with only one question: how long does Your Highness intend to stay here?"

Yang Kang looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

Yelü Chucai said calmly.

"If the young prince is just passing through, I have a quick and easy way to bring peace to Shandong in three months."

"Find a few scapegoats, kill some and reward others, and the people will be grateful. But once the young prince leaves, everything will return to normal in less than six months."

"If Your Highness wishes to settle down here, I have another method, which will take three years."

Yang Kang smiled.

"Settle down? How long to stay... that seems... not something I can decide."

Yelü Chucai did not speak, but simply looked at him.

"Use your three-year set."

Yelü Chucai bowed again.

With the assistance of Yelü Chucai, Yang Kang vigorously rectified the officialdom in Shandong, eliminated long-standing malpractices, provided disaster relief, and stabilized grain prices.

Yang Kang issued several new policies in Shandong, including tax exemptions, the return of forcibly seized land, and the reporting of corrupt officials. He also promised that Red Turban Army soldiers who returned to their hometowns would not be held accountable for their past misdeeds, would be given wasteland, and would be exempt from rent for three years.

These decrees were posted all over the city walls, street corners, and village entrances of Shandong prefectures. Literate people read them aloud to the illiterate people. After listening, most people remained silent, while a few shook their heads.

"That sounds nice, but can you actually do it?"

An old farmer squatted against the wall, smoking a pipe.

"The officials I've met all act like upright and just officials for the first month, but by the second month they're expected to pay tribute."

The people around him agreed.

"Exactly, just wait and see."

But some young people's eyes lit up.

"What if... what if it's really true this time?"

"I've heard that the young prince is a figure like Xiang Yu, the Hegemon of Western Chu. Surely he wouldn't fool us commoners."

The old farmer tapped his tobacco pipe on the sole of his shoe.

"The King of Western Chu despised us commoners the most!"

"If you believe it's true, then go and sign up for the land allocation and see if you get one."

That young man really went.

Three days later, he received a piece of barren land. Although it was infertile, the government actually issued him a land deed and stamped it with the official seal of Yidu Prefecture.

As the news spread, more people went to the government office to inquire. Some received land, some got back their forcibly occupied houses, and some brought back their daughters who had been taken away.

But some people still dare not go. The words "settling scores later" are like a thorn stuck in the hearts of the vast majority of people.

Yang Kang didn't care about this. He simply placed a large wooden box at the entrance of Yidu Prefecture with the words "Anonymous Report" written on it, and the box would be filled with it every night.

Yelü Chucai counted that in the first month, there were 371 letters of complaint, of which 209 were verified and 144 involved Jurchen nobles.

Yang Kang punished all the crimes according to the law. By the third month, the executioners at the Yidu Prefecture execution ground were insufficient, and soldiers had to be selected from the army to carry out the executions.

Impeachment memorials piled up like mountains in the Zhongdu court, but Yang Kang acted as if he knew nothing about them. Wanyan Yongji was happy to see Yang Kang impeached. In his eyes, the less favored Wanyan Kang was by the Jurchen core, the less he would threaten his position.

Of course, he was even happier to appear as someone who trusted his subordinates, not only not angry, but also issuing an imperial edict to praise Yang Kang highly.

In just six months, the storm of uprisings caused by the officials' exorbitant taxes and forced conscription of men under the guise of military service, which actually used Han Chinese as cannon fodder, gradually subsided. Even among the three established rebel armies, some people began to flee and return to their hometowns.

After all, when you're hungry, all talk and slogans are meaningless. You can't win a fight, and if you keep going, you'll just be trapped and die in the mountains.

A soldier named Zhao Dahong, a soldier in a red coat, secretly ran back to the village under the cover of night. He was a minor leader under Yang An'er.

He had thought the village had been burned down by the Jin soldiers, but the old locust tree at the village entrance was still there, the well at the village head was still there, and some houses were even lighting lamps.

He made his way to his door and knocked. An old voice came from inside.

"Who?"

"Father, it's me."

The door opened a crack, and his old father stared at him in the darkness.

"Why are you back? Are you out of your mind?!"

Zhao Da lowered his head.

"Dad, I don't want to fight anymore."

"They said... the young prince will allocate land to me and even give me tax exemptions. I want to come back and farm."

The old father pulled him into the yard.

"You believe it?"

"How do you know if it's true or false? What if it's a trap?"

"Can...."

Zhao Da hesitated for a moment.

"I saw with my own eyes the heads of those corrupt officials hanging on the walls of Yidu."

"Tian Zhuo, Ya Wuta, Tang Kuo Heda... it's all true. I have a brother in the city who saw it with his own eyes."

The old father fell silent.

"Father, I don't want anything else, I just want to live a peaceful life."

Zhao Da said that early the next morning, Zhao Da went to the Yidu Prefectural Government Office.

He wasn't arrested or beaten; instead, he actually received a land deed. He squatted at the entrance of the government office, holding the paper, and cried like a child.

Such stories are happening quietly throughout Shandong, without anyone celebrating with gongs and drums, and without anyone erecting a shrine for Yang Kang.

Those soldiers who escaped back silently picked up their hoes and began to farm, occasionally someone would say something at the village entrance.

"That Prince Zhao... seems a bit different from other Jurchens."

Then he was interrupted by the person next to him.

"The Jurchens are Jurchens, they're a little different, but he's still a Jurchen!!!"

"Keep your voice down, are you out of your mind?"

After struggling for a long time, Yang An'er and others finally agreed to negotiate with Yang Kang and be granted amnesty after being persuaded by their subordinates.

However, the prerequisite is that Yang Kang must go to the Red Turban Army headquarters alone to meet with the three of them as a sign of sincerity.

Yang Kang agreed to their request without even thinking about it.

When the first rays of sunlight ceased to carry a chill, Yang Kang, accompanied only by Wanyan Chenheshang, arrived at the Red Turban Army headquarters with two men and two horses.

Because they needed to discuss the matter of being granted amnesty, the leaders of the three Red Turban Army rebel groups were tacitly allowed to gather together.

The Red-Coat Army soldiers watched as Yang Kang rode into the camp, and for a moment they all felt as if they were in a dream.

Yang Kang was completely different from what they had imagined. They thought they would see a living overlord, but what they saw was clearly a handsome and young boy.

"You're Wanyan Kang? You're even younger than I imagined."

Li Quan, the leader of the Weizhou rebels, looked at Yang Kang and clicked his tongue in amazement.

Yang Kang, seated on his horse, glanced at the three rebel leaders and casually tossed a sack off the horse.

"Young Prince, what do you mean by this?"

Yang An'er's expression changed slightly, Li Quan's smile remained unchanged, but his eyes became sharp, while Liu Erzu placed his hand directly on the knife at his waist.

Inside the military camp, the soldiers were already on high alert when they saw Yang Kang riding in, and countless people gradually surrounded Yang Kang and his companion.

"You might as well open it and see for yourselves how sincere I am!"

Yang Kang said with great interest.

Yang An'er looked at Yang Kang suspiciously as she opened her pocket.

Inside were several heads, several heads that had been pickled and were covered in blood and stench.

"Tian Zhuo, the transport commissioner of Shandong East Road, is responsible for the fact that half of the Red Turban Army soldiers who are starving."

"Meng Anhe Shilie Yawuta, this man plundered land in Shandong and enslaved the people."

"And then there's Tang Kuo Heda, who forced you to go to the front lines as cannon fodder."

"I think I've shown the utmost sincerity."

Yang Kang sat upright on his horse and calmly looked at the three people in front of him.

Yang An'er and the other two looked at each other, feeling more and more like they were dreaming. A Jurchen prince was offering up the heads of his officials, clansmen and generals in order to win them over.

Is this an attempt to recruit them, or a surrender?

"Young Prince, are you really a Jurchen?"

Yang An'er's face was full of disbelief. All the Jurchens he had fought and bled against since the uprising were not as heavy as any of the heads Yang Kang had given them today.

Li Quan was born into a farming family and made a living by selling horses in his early years. While washing horses by the river, he accidentally found a 50-pound iron spear. He practiced striking and thrusting every day and his skills became more and more refined. He was known as Li the Iron Spear and became a notorious figure in the Shandong area.

His expression gradually turned serious, and his gaze swept over the heads before settling on Yang Kang, who was acting in an unconventional manner.

"Young Prince, what exactly do you want?"

"We're not worth that price."

"It's impossible for a Jurchen prince to kill so many nobles just to win over a group of rebellious Han Chinese!"

Li Quan asked seriously.

Liu Erzu silently pondered the power shifts represented by these heads, from transport commissioner to military pacification commissioner, from Han officials to Jurchen nobles, and then to special envoys of the military. Yang Kang had almost uprooted the Jin dynasty's ruling system in Shandong.

"You killed a high-ranking official of the Jin Dynasty. Do you think the Jin Dynasty will tolerate you?"

Finally, he calmly asked the most crucial question.

"They're just a few corrupt officials; killing them is no big deal!"

"Their lives, however precious, are not more valuable than the Wanyan surname I now bear!"

"The central government wouldn't do anything to me for the sake of a few good-for-nothings, at least not now!"

Yang Kang finally dismounted and came to the three of them.

"I don't like those empty words, and I believe none of you will either."

"Submit to me, and you will remain the same as you are now."

"I guarantee that there will be no more instances of Jurchens oppressing Han people."

"If there is one, I will cut off the head of any Jurchen for you."

Yang Kang slowly walked up to the three of them and said.

Only then did Yang An'er and the other two realize that Yang Kang, after dismounting, looked incredibly tall.

"Is it submission to you, or submission to Jinting?"

Liu Erzu keenly sensed the unusual nature of Yang Kang's words.

"Is there any difference?"

Yang Kang smiled at the three of them, but did not give a direct answer.

The three exchanged glances and understood Yang Kang's unspoken message.

"I've long heard that the young prince possesses the courage of ten thousand men and the strength of a reincarnated overlord!"

"May we have a look?"

After a long silence from Li Quan and Liu Erzu, Yang An'er suddenly spoke.

"How should one perceive it?"

Yang Kang exchanged a glance with Wanyan Chen, who was standing beside him, and said with a light laugh.

Li Quan was about to draw his spear and step forward to challenge Yang Kang when Yang Kang suddenly pointed to a large cauldron in the distance and couldn't help but laugh.

"You still keep the bronze tripod as an offering?"

Yang Kang suddenly said.

It was cast during the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, weighing three thousand catties. It has been worshipped for hundreds of years, and the body of the tripod is stained black with incense ash.

Amidst the curious gazes of the Red Coat Army soldiers, Yang Kang walked step by step toward the giant cauldron.

"No way!"

"What does this Jurchen prince want to do? Does he really think he's some kind of tyrant reincarnated?"

Liu Erzu immediately realized something and felt both amused and exasperated.

"Even if Xiang Yu were alive, he couldn't lift this tripod. Back then, Xiang Yu could only lift a tripod weighing a thousand catties."

"This cauldron was cast during the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty. It weighs more than three thousand catties, far surpassing the cauldron owned by Xiang Yu, the King of Chu."

"This young prince is probably overthinking things."

"Let's go over there, don't let him hurt himself."

Yang An'er was speechless, feeling that Yang Kang was just a young man who didn't know the immensity of the world.

Of the three, only Li Quan remained silent, and he suddenly had a feeling that the other party might actually be able to do it.

Li Quan gripped his iron spear tightly. He had seen many capable fighters, but he had heard of the Battle of Wild Fox Ridge, where a hundred men charged into a battlefield of one hundred thousand and nearly killed the Mongol Khan.

He wouldn't even consider doing something like that, let alone do it.

Yang Kang really could lift that cauldron!!

He glanced at the large, black cauldron in the distance, and a feeling of absurdity suddenly welled up in his heart.

That cauldron weighs three thousand catties. I tried to move it once, but even with all my strength, I could only move it less than a foot.

The soldiers watching watched Yang Kang walk up to the giant cauldron with a mixture of anticipation and doubt, whispering amongst themselves.

Yang Kang glanced at the large cauldron in front of him. Having been burned with incense for many years, it contained countless ashes, weighing well over three thousand catties.

Only Wanyan Chenheshang had no doubts about Yang Kang. Having experienced the terrifying ordeal of being surrounded by thousands of troops, he found nothing strange about his boss doing.

Yang Kang turned around and glanced disdainfully at the three people who were about to speak as they approached. Seeing Yang Kang's gaze, the three of them stopped themselves from speaking.

Yang Kang grabbed one of the legs of the cauldron and shouted loudly. The veins on his arm bulged and his bones cracked. The three-thousand-pound cauldron trembled first and then slowly lifted off the ground.

Yang An'er's pupils suddenly contracted; the cauldron passed above her knees, past her waist, and above her chest!

Then, Yang Kang lifted him above his head!

[System Notification: Historical Scene - Xiang Yu Lifting the Tripod Reenacted]

[Xiang Yu template integration rate: 60%]

[Overlord's Double Pupils - Extraordinary Perception - Unlocked]

To the astonishment of Yang An'er and the others, Yang Kang actually lifted the massive cauldron, weighing three or four thousand catties, above his head, as if history were repeating itself, shocking everyone's minds.

The soldiers were so amazed by this thrilling scene that they all shouted loudly.

[Host: Yang Kang]

[Current World: The Legend of the Condor Heroes]

[Character Template: Xiang Yu Template (60% fusion, Overlord Physique, Military Strategy, Overlord Divine Arrow, Overlord Double Pupils)]

Martial Arts: Quanzhen Internal Energy, Nine Yang Divine Skill, Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill

[Note: Destiny is in my own hands!]

The next moment, Yang Kang's strength surged again, and he threw the giant cauldron into an empty place, a golden light flashing involuntarily in his eyes.

The cauldron crashed to the ground, creating a deep crater. Amidst the rising dust, Yang Kang turned around.

The sunlight shone directly on his face, and Yang An'er, the other two, and Wanyan Chenheshang all stared at Yang Kang in horror, because Yang Kang's eyes were no longer those of a normal person.

Yang An'er first noticed those eyes. They weren't black or brown, but golden. They were the strange golden color that East Asian eyes display under sunlight. But what terrified Yang An'er and the others was not that golden color.

It was a slit that split open in the center of Yang Kang's pupils, turning one eye into two.

Double pupils!!!

Yang An'er's voice was trembling.

"The Overlord's Double Pupils!"