Kong Yi subtly rolled her eyes, but her tone remained calm.
"Refugees flee only when they have no other choice. Have you considered how many could starve in just a few days? Since Ze'a Prefecture has decided to take them in, why not show some grace?"
"Besides, if Ge Feng is handing out free porridge and we offer nothing, why would the refugees choose to come to us in Ze'a?"
Huo Chun countered, "That sounds reasonable, but our grain reserves are tight this year. Even the soldiers are only half-fed, and the townsfolk often go hungry. Where would we find surplus grain?"
Zhang Tinghan snorted coldly. "Hmph, it's all that vile Princess Jinyang's doing, landing us in this mess. I suggest we demand she return our grain."
Kong Yi kept his head down and said nothing.
How naive. Since Princess Jinyang dared to take the grain, she never intended to give it back.
Sheng Chi rubbed his aching forehead. "Enough. Drop the matter. If refugees do come, we'll give them one meal of thin porridge a day, just enough to keep them alive."
By "thin porridge," he meant the kind with only two grains of rice per bowl—barely enough to sustain life.
"As for our thousands of plague-infected people," he sighed, "try a new prescription. If that doesn't work, send them to attack Qu Zhao's military camp."
Jiang Jin was still unaware that Ze'a Prefecture planned to compete with her for manpower. At this moment, she stared at Zhou Sui in shock. "Are you saying there are still Northeast Army soldiers alive?"
Zhou Sui nodded gravely. "According to the county magistrate and deputy magistrate, they captured several hundred Northeast soldiers back then. Around two hundred are still alive, all enslaved by Qu Zhao."
"Captured" actually referred to soldiers who were too injured to fight or had passed out on the battlefield.
The Northeast Army had fought a brutal battle, nearly wiped out entirely, with no one leaving the field standing.
Jiang Jin asked, "Have you verified this? Is the information accurate?"
Zhou Sui affirmed, "I've checked with several officials in Shanguan County. The information is reliable."
After days of hunger and torture, Qu Zhao's officials—especially the civilian ones—were far from unbreakable. They answered whatever was asked, and even volunteered information just for a morsel of food.
The news about the enslaved Northeast soldiers came from County Magistrate Qu Wenzhou himself, traded for a single meal.
Zhou Sui had since questioned the deputy magistrate and others, all confirming the same story.
Some Northeast soldiers were indeed still alive, though most were disabled—missing arms or crippled legs.
Jiang Jin frowned. "You want to rescue these Northeast soldiers?"
Zhou Sui hesitated, then nodded. "If possible, I'd like to bring them back, whether they're wounded or crippled."
Jiang Jin looked at him, seeing the pain in his eyes. As the Grand General of Yan, every soldier of Yan was theoretically his charge.
Yan's defeat, the slaughter of his family, his people displaced—he must have been drowning in guilt and despair all this time.
"Alright," she said.
Zhou Sui slowly raised his head to look at her, his throat tightening. The sense of security and care he had never felt from the Emperor of Yan, he was now sensing from Princess Jinyang.
My liege always holds profound compassion for the common people and the soldiers. Especially for those who fight for the nation, for the people, and for her—she thinks of everything for them. As long as it's within her power, even if it's difficult, she will find a way.
Now, these Northeast soldiers were already injured when captured, and have been abused under Qu Zhao's control for so long. It's clear they have few intact bodies left, yet she still agreed.
Rescuing them might come at a cost. They might even be useless burdens, wasting grain, but she is still willing to save them and support them.
How could anyone not be utterly loyal to such a liege?
He suddenly knelt and performed a solemn bow. "Your servant thanks the liege on behalf of these soldiers for your great kindness."
Jiang Jin quickly helped him up. "No need for this. They are the brave warriors of Yan. Rescuing them is only right."
Zhou Sui's heart swelled even more. What is "only right"?
The world chases after profit. Such a thankless, difficult venture—only my liege would undertake it.
Unaware of his thoughts, Jiang Jin was already planning. Rescuing these men might not be as hard as Zhou Sui imagined.
"What do you think about trading Qu Wenzhou and his men for the Northeast soldiers?" She voiced her idea.
She had never known what to do with the Qu Zhao prisoners from Shanguan and Chunrong Counties. Killing them seemed wasteful; using them for hard labor felt wasteful too—they hadn't been utilized to their full value.
Zhou Sui paused, then caught on quickly, finding the idea surprisingly feasible.
Jiang Jin mused, "But if we seem too eager, they might inflate the price. We need to make them come to us, begging for the exchange."
Zhou Sui thought for a moment. "Why not let Qu Wenzhou and the others think of something? They want to go back even more than we want to exchange them. They know Qu Zhao better."
Jiang Jin's eyes lit up. "That could work. If not, we'll strip them, hang them from the city walls to humiliate them, and make Qu Zhao come negotiate themselves."
Zhou Sui rubbed his forehead. Though the method was indeed feasible, hearing it from his liege's lips felt oddly jarring.
When Qu Wenzhou and the others learned of the chance to be traded back, they were ecstatic and eagerly offered their suggestions—everyone from officials to clerks.
Zhou Sui almost felt they were now on his side, so enthusiastic was their brainstorming, almost racking their brains from every angle.
If only they had shown such initiative when Jinyang's army was attacking the city, the city might not have fallen so quickly.
An unexpected discovery emerged: from the confessions of several officials, Qu Wenzhou turned out to be a distant relative of Qu Shi Lang, the Qu Zhao Grand General.
Moreover, Qu Wenzhou was held in high regard within the family.
The plan was quickly finalized. Qu Wenzhou and the deputy magistrate personally wrote two "pleas for rescue" to Tang Ti, the warden of East Lake Prefecture.
Soon, a squad of Dragon Shadow Guards, led by Xia Chanyi herself, departed from the city, heading straight for Dancheng County.
Jiang Jin didn't want to waste men delivering letters, so she simply sent Xia Chanyi to the nearest Dancheng—they would see the letters reached the right hands.
When Dancheng's garrison saw the black-and-red banners charging from afar, they were terrified, believing Jinyang's army had come to attack their city.
Without even counting the riders, they sounded the war drums, throwing the entire city into emergency combat readiness.
Shield soldiers on the wall formed ranks, and archers waited with arrows nocked.
But the Dragon Shadow Guards halted about three hundred meters from the city tower.
Xia Chanyi squinted at the Qu Zhao banners on the barbican. Raising a Dragon Feather Crossbow, he took aim and pulled the trigger.
A bolt shot through the air with a fearsome whistle, striking the Qu Zhao banner.
With a loud crack, splinters flew.
The bolt pierced the flagpole, impaling into the city wall behind it, the arrowhead buried several inches deep into the stone.
The Qu Zhao banner snapped at its base, crashed to the ground, and was swallowed by dust.
