Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

Chapter 884 Recruitment

"Lord City Lord, something terrible has happened!" Before Lin Ping could take any action, a hurried voice came from outside the door.

Zhang Yuelu suddenly opened her eyes, as if she hadn't slept at all.

Clearly, she was pretending to be asleep. Even if she wanted to get close to Lin Ping, she didn't dare to rest her head on his shoulder without feeling guilty.

She might wake up severely injured, so she remained conscious and controlled the rate at which she absorbed energy.

"What is it? If your reason doesn't satisfy me today, you'll bear the consequences!" Zhang Yuelu walked up to the butler with a cold expression, her fierce eyes capable of devouring a person.

The butler stared blankly at Zhang Yuelu, his already tense heart nearly leaping out of his chest.

He really didn't know where he had offended the princess. Wasn't it his duty to deliver the message?

"The county magistrate..." the steward said tremblingly.

"What happened to the county magistrate?" Zhang Yuelu asked, grimacing.

Although they disliked the county magistrate, he hadn't caused any trouble for a long time, and Zhang Yuelu couldn't imagine what tricks he might play.

His greatest evil was his forced conscription, requiring all males over the age of fifteen to join the army.

However, there are very few men over the age of fifteen in Weinan City nowadays, so few that they can be counted on one hand. The county magistrate would not do anything unnecessary at this time.

"The magistrate is conscripting soldiers," the steward said, slurring his words.

"Conscript soldiers?" Zhang Yuelu's murderous intent intensified. This was her Achilles' heel. In the blink of an eye, her anger dissipated, and she said disdainfully, "Let him conscript. Anyway, there are no men over fifteen years old in Weinan City."

The butler kept shaking his head, his eyes filled with fear.

"This time, the age has been lowered to thirteen!"

The difference between being fifteen and thirteen years old may seem like only two years, but in reality, it makes a huge difference.

Clearly, there were quite a few men aged thirteen to fifteen in Weinan City, who constituted the main labor force in the city.

If men of this age were conscripted, it would undoubtedly worsen the situation in Weinan City.

Zhang Yuelu's eyes were filled with barely concealed murderous intent. Without hesitation, she drew a soft sword and strode out menacingly.

"How could the princess have a sword?" The steward broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly chased after her, shouting, "Your Highness, swords have no eyes! Please put down your weapon!"

"So you're finally going to reveal your hand? Cui Liangzhi, you really won't shed a tear until you see the coffin." Lin Ping sneered and quickly followed behind Zhang Yuelu.

To be honest, Lin Ping was a little worried if Cui Liangzhi didn't reveal his trump card.

"Slow down, wait for me." Lin Ping took Zhang Yuelu's hand and tried to help her feel weak.

"Don't stop me. Even if I'm seriously injured, I'll kill them." Zhang Yuelu's eyes flashed with an unprecedented killing intent. This time, she was truly enraged.

"Is holding hands just to weaken your strength?" Lin Ping said, sounding aggrieved. "Can't we hold hands normally?"

"Little brother, with your smooth talk, I wonder how many girls you've tricked into throwing themselves at you. Even I, your older sister, am having trouble resisting you," Zhang Yuelu said irritably.

Zhang Yuelu, being a woman, knew where a woman's weaknesses lay.

Whether it's Lin Ping's looks, talent, or flirting skills, they are enough to make countless girls infatuated, and even she, who has seen countless men, was defeated by him.

Just as the steward said, the county government's soldiers were arresting people everywhere, and the entire city of Weinan was in chaos.

Not only that, even the city lord's mansion was not spared.

"Zhang Jing, hand over the person right now, or you will be punished for obstructing my official duties," Wang Peng said viciously, showing no respect to the city lord of Weinan.

"I don't know what official business Your Excellency is carrying out," the Lord of Weinan said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

He couldn't hand over even the people from the city lord's mansion, let alone these ordinary people.

“It is naturally a conscription, this is the Emperor’s decree.” Wang Peng raised his hands above his head, adopting a respectful attitude.

"I suppose Magistrate Wang is not a competent official. There are fewer than five men over the age of fifteen in Weinan City, including your nephew. Surely you are aware of this?" the Weinan City Lord retorted.

As the county magistrate, Wang Peng should naturally be fully aware of the situation in the entire city of Weinan. Even so, he still insisted on conscripting soldiers, which only shows that he was not competent enough.

"Hmph, don't even think about insulting me." Wang Peng said with a smirk. "The border is in dire straits now, and a major battle is imminent. The conscription age has been changed to thirteen."

"Thirteen years old?" The city lord of Weinan gasped. "They're just children..."

The lord of Weinan City dared not disobey the emperor's decree; he only blamed himself for harming the people of the entire city.

If it weren't to suppress himself, why would the emperor make things difficult for all the people in the city?

"This may not necessarily be the Emperor's intention; it's more likely that some people just want to show off," Lin Ping whispered to the city lord of Weinan.

He had encountered similar situations before; the former lord of Huai'an was a prime example.

The city lord of Weinan nodded, having to admire Lin Ping's insight.

Ultimately, Weinan County never treated the people here as its own subjects, but rather as tools for promotion.

If he can successfully suppress the lord of Weinan City, he can claim credit from the imperial court and thus achieve his goal of promotion.

"Wang Peng, aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning?" the Weinan City Lord said viciously.

"I am acting under orders, why should I fear divine retribution?" Wang Peng said coldly. "Zhang Jing, hand over the man immediately."

"Hand over the people?" The Lord of Weinan suddenly gained confidence. "Don't forget, when I offered up my fiefdom, the Emperor allowed me to keep ten servants. Apart from these ten, there are no other males over the age of thirteen in the manor."

“I certainly won’t arrest your ten useless servants, but who is this person next to you? You’re not going to tell me he’s under thirteen years old, are you?” Wang Peng said, pointing at Lin Ping.

His purpose in recruiting soldiers was to capture Lin Ping; otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths to surround the city lord's mansion.

"This..." The city lord of Weinan was speechless for a moment. He had overlooked Lin Ping's presence. If he had known this would happen, he should have let him leave in advance.

“He is not from Weinan City, you have no right to arrest him,” the Weinan City Lord said, blocking Lin Ping’s path.

"Not from Weinan? What proof do you have? I think you're deliberately protecting him. Men, seize this kid!" Wang Peng wasn't going to give Lin Ping a chance to escape. With a wave of his hand, four soldiers wielding curved knives moved over.

"Wait!" Lin Ping spoke up. "As far as I know, one can be exempted from military service by spending two hundred taels of silver."

"With the nation in peril, no one is exempt from military service. Arrest him!" Wang Peng sneered, seemingly disregarding Lin Ping.

In this dog-eat-dog world, might makes right. Wang Peng has troops at his disposal, enough to easily crush Lin Ping.

"In that case, shouldn't your nephew also be conscripted into the army?" Lin Ping asked, pointing at Cui Liangzhi.