Jiang Jin took the letters and began to read them. There were two letters. She first picked up the one written by Liu Mi, which mainly talked about Wei Qingran and the Tenth Princess.
Seeing Jiang Jin frown, Dong Si quickly asked, “Has something happened?”
Jiang Jin handed him the letter: “Lady Liu says that Consort Wei and the Tenth Princess have arrived at Gefeng, along with Captain Meng Chong.”
She knew Wei Qingran. Most of the time, the original host would return to the palace during holidays or important occasions. As a favored consort of Emperor Yan, Wei Qingran was allowed to attend such events as long as they were proper.
Dong Si sighed. “I didn’t expect they’d been in Zhou County all along, not far from Gefeng.”
His expression then turned strange, as if he had figured something out. “I noticed long ago that Meng Chong looked at Consort Wei differently. Hmph, no wonder!”
Jiang Jin: “...”
Dong Si glanced around, lowered his voice, and said, “Even if they haven’t gone all the way, there’s definitely something between them. The Emperor, ah...”
Jiang Jin’s temple twitched unbearably. This young eunuch’s imagination was quite vivid; he had probably already woven hundreds of oddly shaped hats for Emperor Yan in his mind.
“The Empress is kind-hearted, allowing every woman in the harem to live comfortably,” he mused.
Afraid that Jiang Jin might feel upset, he quickly changed the subject. “Milord, how do you plan to deal with them?”
Jiang Jin looked up at him. “Let things take their natural course. As long as they have no other intentions, we can always find something suitable for them to do.”
Dong Si agreed. “Exactly. If nothing else, they can raise pigs. Surely, they know how to feed pigs.”
Jiang Jin: “...”
Making a consort raise pigs? That image was too bizarre.
She shook her head, tossing out the strange visuals, and switched topics. “How much grain was brought in this time?”
At this, Dong Si’s brow curved in a smile. “Over five thousand shi. Before that, they had collected about twenty thousand shi, but Qu Zhao never had time to move it out.”
The total harvest from the two counties in a whole year was less than thirty thousand shi—truly pitifully low.
Dong Si sighed again. “If we hadn’t taken these two counties, many of the people here would have starved to death this year.”
Jiang Jin nodded. Not only starvation, but many would have frozen to death in winter as well.
“The county magistrate sure knew how to collect wealth. Aside from everything else, there are over seven thousand gold coins, ten thousand silver coins, and plenty of gold and silver ornaments.”
Jiang Jin picked up the report Dong Si had written. “Over one thousand five hundred strings of copper coins in the treasury? And over twenty thousand bolts of cloth?”
Dong Si nodded. “The county government’s valuables don’t even compare to what the magistrate privately hoarded.”
Jiang Jin was no longer surprised by this. From the several times she had wiped out the Man Yi tribes, it was clear they were all skilled at enriching themselves.
“Register everything and store it in the treasury,” she said.
She then picked up the other letter. It was from Mu Qing, who wanted to try planting winter wheat.
For Mu Qing, leaving the land idle for even a moment felt like a sin. So, seeing so many empty fields, he wanted to plant winter wheat.
Moreover, with the two new counties Jiang Jin had taken, if all the land could be sown with winter wheat, it would feed many more people.
Normally, if planted now, it could be harvested around April or May next year. Then rice could be planted afterward, making it two harvests a year.
Jiang Jin thought it over and finally replied with a “no.”
Although her winter wheat seeds had been improved, they could only survive temperatures as low as minus 25 degrees Celsius. Any colder, and large areas would freeze to death.
Based on last year’s winter, it had been far colder than minus 25, with snow deeper than a person. This year the temperatures would likely be even lower.
Besides, she already had enough grain—there was no need to waste effort on it.
The morning breeze carried the scent of trees. On Yilan Peak, a sentry who had been on duty most of the night remained vigilant, staring into the distance. Suddenly, his eyes widened. “They’re coming!”
A rope ladder had been installed on Gefeng’s Yilan Peak, and a watchtower had been built above it, always manned during the day and night.
Another sentry also spotted the dust clouds rising in the distance. “That’s at least thirty to forty thousand troops. Hurry, report it!”
Soon, several cavalry riders rushed out from the south gate, heading straight for Shanguan County.
Yun Yu pushed Yun Ci up to the south gate tower, where they stood quietly, waiting for Qu Zhao’s army to arrive.
“Are the crossbows all ready?” Yun Ci asked seriously.
Yun Yu nodded. “All prepared.”
The soldiers on the wall were in full battle formation.
“Have all the people outside the city come back inside?” Yun Ci asked again.
Yun Yu said, “The notice has been sent. Don’t worry.”
Beyond New City, aside from cotton that hadn’t matured yet, most of the crops had been harvested.
Inside New City, after the wheat and rice were gathered, large stretches of farmland lay empty.
Mu Qing couldn’t stand idleness and had people start plowing the land. If Jiang Jin didn’t approve planting winter wheat, he planned to grow short-cycle vegetables like cabbage and turnips.
Before long, Qu Zhao’s vanguard reached the official road in front of Gefeng.
Qu Bai sat on his horse, looking back at Gefeng from a distance, his expression complex.
On the walls stood fully armed Jinyang soldiers, large crossbows spaced every few zhang, their chillingly large arrows aimed at them.
The only difference was that Gefeng’s towers and ramparts now bore blood-red Jinyang Army banners, bathed in the golden light of dawn.
“So those are the Jinyang Army’s large crossbows?” a gruff voice interrupted Qu Bai’s thoughts.
It was General Yan Pu, who had been sent alongside him to reinforce Shanguan County.
“Yes. Their range reaches three li and they are extremely powerful,” Qu Bai replied truthfully.
Yan Pu squinted. “Such a range—it’s indeed formidable. The Jinyang Army must have used these crossbows when attacking Shanguan County. We’ll confiscate them later.”
Qu Bai was not so optimistic. “Shanguan County might already be taken. This time, we’ll likely be the ones attacking.”
“Hmph! Don’t speak defeat for the enemy. Even if they took it, I’ll beat them until they have no teeth left,” Lei Qian snorted coldly.
He had strongly demanded to join this campaign, and Qu Shilang agreed, appointing him as the vanguard.
Qu Bai didn’t argue with him. Facts would teach him a lesson. But by the time he learned that lesson would he still be alive?
With that thought, he let out a quiet sigh.
Yun Ci watched the Qu Zhao troops march straight past without stopping, heading at rapid pace toward Shanguan County, his face full of worry.
Yun Yu, however, was filled with excitement, regretting that he couldn’t join the battle himself.
He firmly believed that their lord would smash Qu Zhao’s forces, just like before.
Jiang Jin rode along the walls of Shanguan County for an inspection.
Just as she arrived at the south gate tower, she saw several horsemen galloping toward the county.
Jiang Jin’s heart tightened. Here they come!
The riders were messengers from Gefeng.
“Milord, the Qu Zhao army has arrived, about forty thousand men. Based on their speed, they’ll be here in about half an hour,” the messenger reported.
Jiang Jin narrowed her eyes. Forty thousand—no small number.
If she could swallow these forty thousand troops, it would significantly weaken Qu Zhao’s overall strength.
“Prepare for battle!” she ordered calmly.
Meanwhile, Qu Bai was listening to scouts reporting. “Shanguan County—it should have fallen. I saw a black-and-red banner on the tower with some writing, but it was too far to read.”
Yan Pu’s brows tightened deeply. “So it’s really been taken? In just a few days? Has Qu Tianshi already...?”
Lei Qian glared with fury: "Useless, all of you. Move, speed up. I want to see for myself if the Jinyang Army has three heads and six arms, to make you all so utterly helpless in battle."
Qu Bai pressed his lips together. He had long anticipated the fall of Shanguan County, for the Jinyang Army's combat prowess was indeed formidable.
As for whether Lei Qian's words were a veiled insult aimed at him, Qu Bai paid no mind. He simply ordered, "Speed up."
Half an hour later, the densely packed Qu Zhao troops halted two miles south of Shanguan County.
Jiang Jin caught sight of Qu Bai's familiar figure.
