He was excited because the other party was so formidable, meaning he didn't have to worry about his safety.
But he was also terrified for the exact same reason; such a small but exceptionally combat-capable team could easily wipe out the bandits, and they could just as easily wipe him out.
The battle ended quickly. Zhou Sui pinned down two survivors and began interrogating them.
The rest of the group cleaned up the battlefield.
The corpse-looting trio teamed up once again, determined not to miss a single copper coin.
Jiang Jin wiped the blood from her face, dismounted, and walked over to the middle-aged man's carriage.
The middle-aged man hurriedly jumped down from the carriage and bowed deeply to Jiang Jin. "Thank you for saving my life, my lady."
Jiang Jin waved her hand. "You're welcome. You paid for it."
The middle-aged man chuckled awkwardly. "Yes, yes, of course. My name is He Li. May I know my benefactor's honorable surname?"
Having just acquired so many things, Jiang Jin was in a good mood. "My surname is Jiang."
He Li paused for a moment; this was the royal surname. However, in the Yan Kingdom, there were quite a few people surnamed Jiang outside the royal family, so he didn't overthink it and bowed again in gratitude.
Jiang Jin nodded. "Then deal with your matters first, and we'll talk later."
Thinking of his guards who died in battle, He Li smiled bitterly. "Alright."
After Jiang Jin left, he ordered his guards to take a headcount, treat the wounded, bury the dead, and check the grain, among other things.
Only after finishing all this did he go to find Jiang Jin to detail the quantity and categories of his goods.
He wouldn't dare to renege on his debt; their strength was right there for all to see.
Besides, if it weren't for Jiang Jin today, they would undoubtedly be dead.
There were 55 grain carts in total, 40 of which carried rice and 15 carried wheat. Each cart held about 10 shi of grain.
Jiang Jin quickly calculated in her head. Eighty percent would be 44 carts, which meant around 440 shi of grain. This would be enough to feed the hundred or so people she currently supported for about a year.
Of course, her population would definitely grow in the future, but fortunately, she had hoarded a massive amount of grain in her spatial dimension.
He Li had also finished calculating. "Eighty percent of the grain is 44 carts, is that correct?"
Jiang Jin nodded. "That's correct."
He Li smiled and asked, "Then how will you transport this grain? Shall I unload it all for you?"
Jiang Jin raised an eyebrow. "Shopkeeper He, you are mistaken. I said goods and materials, which includes the carts and horses pulling the cargo. I didn't ask for your drivers or the horses your guards are riding, which is already very generous of me."
He Li was dumbfounded. "Wh-what?"
Jiang Jin shrugged. "Didn't Shopkeeper He hear me clearly? I have always been fair and honest in my business dealings."
He Li was speechless. It was his first time seeing such 'fair and honest' dealings.
But thinking carefully, it seemed she had a point. He felt a pang of heartache. The carts were one thing, but the horses were all good horses and quite expensive.
Seeing no resentment on his face, only helplessness and bitterness, Jiang Jin asked, "Where is Shopkeeper He planning to transport this grain? Are these goods spoken for?"
He Li shook his head. "Not spoken for. I originally planned to transport them to Shu County. I heard from a friend that they are short of grain and it can fetch a high price, so I wanted to go there to make a profit. I didn't expect..."
He still had some trust in territories controlled by the Han people, which was why he wanted to do business there.
Jiang Jin frowned. "Hasn't Shopkeeper He heard about what happened in Lin County?"
As a merchant who traveled extensively, He Li naturally had heard about Lin County. "Are you referring to the previous Lin County magistrate being controlled by Qu Zhao?"
Seeing Jiang Jin nod, he was somewhat puzzled, and a faint sense of unease rose in his heart. He asked, "What does this have to do with Shu County?"
Jiang Jin didn't hide it. "Shu County is actually also within Magistrate Gao's sphere of influence."
He Li was startled. "Is this true?"
Jiang Jin's expression was solemn. "Of course, and I'm afraid your being robbed this time is not simple."
He Li had seen much in his travels and immediately understood her meaning. "Are you saying that Shu County intentionally leaked the word to lure merchants like us into transporting supplies over, and then murdered us to loot our goods?"
Jiang Jin didn't give a direct answer but said, "If a city is frequently looted by bandits and mobs, it easily arouses suspicion."
If incidents happening in the city cause suspicion, then rob them on the road. With bandits and refugees running rampant now, who would know who did it?
The more He Li thought about it, the colder his back felt, and the more terrified he became in hindsight.
At this time, Zhou Sui came over to report. "My lady, those two have confessed. They said they are from Shu County, stationed in this area to rob any merchant caravans transporting large amounts of supplies."
Jiang Jin had already guessed this outcome. Shu County was just a front; attracting Han people to continuously transport supplies over was their true purpose.
The captain of the guards nodded to He Li. Zhou Sui had let him listen in during the interrogation just now, so he knew the information was true.
The last bit of hope in He Li's heart finally died. He felt terrified, desolate, and angry.
Jiang Jin said to Zhou Sui, "If there's nothing else to ask, kill them. Organize all their horses and bury the bodies."
"Oh, right, 44 carts of this grain belong to us now. Remember that the carts and horses are also ours. Arrange for some people to drive the carriages."
Zhou Sui was dumbfounded. If it weren't for the many dead bodies at the scene, he would have suspected that this shopkeeper was one of their own, intentionally delivering grain to their lady.
However, he didn't say anything and went off to do his tasks expressionlessly.
Jiang Jin turned back to He Li and asked, "Is Shopkeeper He selling the remaining 11 carts of grain?"
He Li's eyes lit up. He was just worrying about what to do with this grain, so he quickly replied, "Naturally, it's for sale. Does my lady want to buy it?"
Jiang Jin confirmed, "Yes, I wonder what the price is? It would be best if you could sell your carts and horses to me together with it."
He Li shook his head and sighed. The carts were negotiable, but horses were not that easy to buy. He only had this little bit of property, and today he had lost eighty percent of it in one go. However, he also felt fortunate to have escaped with his life.
"The carts and horses are not for sale. We grain transporters still need to get back."
After experiencing this, he just wanted to sell the grain on hand and go home as soon as possible. Without horses and carts, the drivers would have to walk back, which would be too slow.
Jiang Jin didn't press the issue. "Then you must help me transport it to my destination, otherwise it will be hard for me to take this grain with me."
After asking for the location, He Li hesitated. He was still traumatized by what had just happened, and now he had to go to a city controlled by Qu Zhao; it really cast a shadow over him.
Jiang Jin didn't make things difficult for him. "If you are truly worried, you don't have to deliver it into the city. Just leave it outside the city for me when the time comes. You can trust my character; if I really wanted to kill you, I would have done it just now. There's no need to go through all this trouble."
He Li hurriedly explained, "It's not that I don't trust my lady's character, it's just... sigh, alright."
Only then was Jiang Jin satisfied. She had no other choice either, as it was inconvenient to store things that were out in the open into her spatial dimension.
The price of the grain was quickly negotiated.
The price of grain was about 500 coins per shi. This was the price for processed grain. The yield of rice from paddy was about 60 to 70 percent, so the price was negotiated down to 300 coins per shi, which could be considered a friendly price.
Wheat had a higher flour yield, though of course, it depended on whether fine or coarse flour was produced.
It had to be said that grain was truly expensive at this time. Previously, processed grain was only about 200 coins per shi.
After calculating the price, Jiang Jin prepared to give half as a deposit.
But He Li refused. "There's no rush. You can pay me when we arrive."
