Sun Zheng was still unwilling to accept it. “Are we really going to hand over the hundreds of thousands of people in Sizhou and Keyuan Island to the Jinyang Army for nothing?”
Hua Yuanyi shook his head. “This isn’t for nothing. The Jinyang Army is paying real money and providing food. That’s why the people are willing to leave with them.”
“As for Keyuan Island, it’s always been a barren island. Not to mention the current situation, with the barbarians invading and rival regimes dividing the land—even when our nation was at the height of its power, we still couldn’t develop or settle there.”
“So what difference does it make who the island belongs to now? It’s better in the hands of Princess Jinyang than in those of the Jiao Army.”
Sun Zheng was left speechless. He had discovered that this old bastard Hua Yuanyi was becoming more and more unpleasant to listen to.
Jiang Chun looked at the ministers below and asked with a dark expression, “What do you all think?”
Everyone lowered their heads, their eyes fixed on their noses and their noses fixed on their hearts. No one responded.
Jiang Chun felt something sweet and bloody rise in his throat, but he forcibly swallowed it back down.
With a bang, he stood up and swept out of the hall.
The ministers hurriedly bowed to see him off. Only after Jiang Chun’s back had disappeared from sight did they leave in twos and threes.
Hua Yuanyi held the newspaper in his hand, finding the whole thing extremely ironic. Yet his expression remained unchanged as he slowly walked out of the Zhenghe Hall.
“General Hua, wait.”
The voice came from behind him.
Hua Yuanyi turned around and saw that it was Luo Dezhong who had called out to him.
“General Luo, what is it?”
Luo Dezhong shook his head. “Nothing. Let’s walk together.”
Hua Yuanyi smiled and nodded. “All right.”
The two of them walked in silence. Just as they were leaving the palace and Hua Yuanyi was about to say goodbye, Luo Dezhong spoke.
“I wonder, General Hua, what do you think of the Jinyang Army?”
Hua Yuanyi replied concisely, “The Jinyang Army’s strength cannot be underestimated.”
Luo Dezhong stared at him for a moment before saying slowly, “Given the current situation, cooperating with the Jinyang Army would be our best option, especially when it comes to the navy.”
“Keyuan Island is the best pass for stopping the Jiao Army from heading south. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the foresight to recognize that.”
A hint of mockery and helplessness flashed through his eyes. “Nor did we have the energy or the funds.”
Sizhou was filled with wealthy clans, rich enough to swim in oil. How could they possibly lack the money?
It was simply that no one was willing to do it.
Hua Yuanyi frowned. “Then you should have argued your case with His Majesty just now and pushed for negotiations with the Jinyang Army.”
Luo Dezhong shook his head. “Do you think His Majesty would agree?”
Hua Yuanyi didn’t quite understand what he meant, but he had no intention of probing further. He replied perfunctorily, “His Majesty is wise and will make his own decision. I’m merely a garrison commander and don’t know much about naval affairs.”
Luo Dezhong raised his brows slightly. “At present, the forces of Sizhou, the Jiao Army, and the Jinyang Army are all active near the waters of Sizhou.”
“If the three of us were to encounter one another someday, do you think we could coordinate with the Jinyang Army and fight alongside them against the barbarian Jiao Army?”
Hua Yuanyi’s expression remained unchanged. “We are all Han Chinese, so I don’t see why not. If General Luo has such intentions, you could approach the Jinyang Army and discuss it with them.”
Luo Dezhong gave him a look. “That’s a good suggestion. Farewell.”
With that, he mounted his horse and quickly rode away.
Hua Yuanyi watched his retreating figure, his gaze deep and unreadable.
Keyuan Island.
The first group of civilians had already landed. The soldiers and civil officials who had been waiting on the island led them to the designated areas according to the plans that had already been drawn up.
The first facilities to be built were naturally the cement workshop and the brickworks.
The relevant supervisors and technicians had also arrived long ago, waiting only for the laborers to come so construction could begin.
On the Taou Commandery side, Wen Zixin and the others no longer tried to stop the civilians from boarding the ships and leaving. There was no way they could stop them.
Xie Nanxiao was quite pleased about this. However, there were simply too many people, and transporting all of them to the island would take quite some time.
As he caught a whiff of the increasingly foul stench from Taou Commandery, he couldn’t help reminding them, “You really aren’t going to deal with the bodies?”
Wen Zixin snorted coldly. “That’s a matter for Sizhou. It has nothing to do with you.”
Xie Nanxiao shrugged. “Naturally. I was only offering a kind reminder.”
“Oh, right.” He seemed to remember something. “If you want the prescription for the plague, remember to come and trade with me.”
Wen Zixin’s expression turned ugly. “Hmph. We won’t need it.”
Xie Nanxiao smiled and said nothing more. Instead, he entered the tent to discuss matters concerning the island with Zhou Leng and the others.
Wen Zixin looked at Qiu Dao, who had been sunburned so badly that he looked like a piece of charcoal.
“You got the prescription for the plague, didn’t you?”
Qiu Dao was stunned. “The prescription? How would I have the prescription for the plague?”
Wen Zixin frowned. “You’ve been following them for so long, and you still couldn’t get the prescription?”
Qiu Dao said helplessly, “They’ve been guarding against me. Every time they used the medicine, they made sure I wasn’t around. How could I know the prescription?”
Wen Zixin stared at him in disbelief. “You—you never thought of trying something? Even if you didn’t know the exact prescription, you should at least know the general ingredients, right?”
Qiu Dao nodded. “I have a general idea of the medicinal ingredients. But the proportions and quantities of each one vary, and the effects can differ tremendously. In any case, the Jinyang Army isn’t asking for much. I suggest we simply buy the prescription.”
Wen Zixin felt as though he was about to go mad. He had just adamantly told Xie Nanxiao that they wouldn’t buy it, and now he had to slap himself in the face?
He looked at Qiu Dao suspiciously. “Are you sure you don’t know the prescription?”
He was genuinely doubtful. The fact that Qiu Dao had been able to become an Assistant Imperial Physician proved that his medical skills were quite good. How could he possibly have failed to work out the prescription after such a long time?
Qiu Dao, however, was perfectly frank. “They have several different prescriptions. In short, they’re very complicated. You wouldn’t understand.”
Wen Zixin: “…”
Qiu Dao didn’t want to continue discussing the matter, so he asked instead, “Now that the refugees of Sizhou have all been taken to Keyuan Island by the Jinyang Army, there’s no point in us staying here. Are we returning to Jiu’an now?”
Wen Zixin: “…”
He looked Qiu Dao up and down. “Perhaps you could go with them to the island and investigate the situation there.”
Qiu Dao was startled. “Wouldn’t that be inappropriate? I’m a physician. I only know how to treat patients. What could I possibly investigate?”
The more Wen Zixin thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. It was impossible for people like them to follow the Jinyang Army onto the island, but Qiu Dao should be able to get in.
“It’s simple. Besides your assistant, I’ll assign you several dozen guards.”
Qiu Dao frowned. “Are you serious?”
Wen Zixin nodded. “Of course I’m serious. Once you arrive on the island, just focus on treating the Jinyang Army’s patients. You don’t need to worry about anything else. I have my own arrangements.”
Qiu Dao opened and closed his mouth. Seeing the determination in Wen Zixin’s eyes, he felt conflicted. After a long while, he sighed.
“I’ll go ask General Xie. If he agrees, I have no objection.”
Wen Zixin waved his hand. “Go ahead.”
Qiu Dao clenched his fists. After hesitating for a moment, he still walked over to the entrance of Xie Nanxiao’s tent and said to the soldiers guarding outside, “I, Qiu Dao, have something to discuss with General Xie. Could you please inform him?”
The soldier glanced at him, then quickly went inside to report. Not long afterward, the soldier invited him in.
Xie Nanxiao was somewhat puzzled by his arrival. “Is there something you need?”
Updated the map on July 31.
[I changed the colors on the map a little. I wonder if they’re easier to distinguish now? Please send me some love-powered support and five-heart reviews! My rating recently dropped from 9.6 to 9.5, and I have no idea why. To all the darlings who haven’t rated it yet, please remember to give me full marks. Love you all! (づ￣3￣)づ╭❤～]
