Chapter 180: The Cloud Boat Returns to Submission

Being too eager to make a sale is not a good thing. Yunzhou deliberately raised his own status, "Miss, may I see General Huo?"

Su Zhenzhen readily agreed, "Of course."

General Huo then released it from the storage compartment.

However, when General Huo appeared, Yunzhou remained silent.

The man and the ghost looked at each other in silence. General Huo broke the silence first, but he spoke to Hensheng.

"Your Highness, what is the situation now?"

Hensheng briefly mentioned the recent events, emphasizing that he was about to return to Yangcheng and lead Chunzhi's troops eastward.

General Huo nodded with satisfaction, "In that case, my Huo family army has a worthy successor."

Yunzhou was surprised that General Huo didn't even ask about his plans. Didn't he want to know how much food and troops Chuannan City had? Although it wasn't enough to provide timely help, it would definitely be a welcome addition.

"Ahem—" Yun Zhou coughed lightly, trying to draw General Huo's attention.

General Huo looked at Yunzhou, "Are you sick?"

Yunzhou: "..."

You're the one who's sick.

Su Zhenzhen looked at the teacup on the table with a leisurely air, as if trying to find something interesting in it.

Hensheng, on the other hand, wore a faint smile and did not say anything, appearing to be listening attentively.

General Huo floated in the air without saying a word.

Yunzhou swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue several times. If he took the initiative to talk about bringing the city and its people to surrender at this time, it would inevitably be suspected of being eager to please.

Su Zhenzhen truly understood his thoughts. When Yun Zhou went south before, he was arrogant because he hadn't figured out the situation yet, and the locust plague had little impact on Chuannan City.

However, Youhen was stationed south of Fenglin County to deal with the disaster, and the livelihoods of people south of Fenglin County were basically stabilized.

Although Chen Wa was not a handsome man, he had a knack for managing people's livelihoods. He was able to use Fenglin County as a center to attract people from the surrounding areas who were looking for a way out.

Fenglin County is not far from Chuannan City. When Chuannan City is hit by another locust plague, it is hard to guarantee that some people with shallow families will not run to Fenglin County.

Meanwhile, news of Hensheng's efforts to control the locust plague in the south reached Yunzhou's ears to some extent, and at this time, he should consider the long-term path.

Today, Su Zhenzhen dropped another bombshell on him: the entire line from Bianzhou to Yangcheng is in Hensheng's hands, and he also has the military strength of the Huo family army as a base.

Whether Yunzhou wants to earn merit by following the emperor's lead or find a powerful ally, this is the time to extend an olive branch.

However, Su Zhenzhen would not tolerate his arrogant attitude. The current situation is that the enemy is weak and we are strong. We have already won over Chen Wa in Fenglin County. If we attack from the north and south and destroy Chuannan City, it is not impossible. It's just that troop deployment will be a bit troublesome.

Negotiation is business; whoever reveals their bottom line first loses.

The less Su Zhenzhen tried to steer the conversation toward this point, the more anxious Yunzhou became.

The three people and the ghost each had their own thoughts, and none of them spoke.

In the end, Su Zhenzhen was more composed.

Seeing that the road was blocked, Yunzhou bowed to Hensheng, who was sitting below him.

“Yunzhou, the magistrate of Chuannan County, pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince. I have offended you in the past, and I beg Your Highness’s forgiveness.”

Su Zhenzhen scoffed first, "Magistrate Yun has already offended us all the way, what are you talking about now? His Highness the Crown Prince is here, yet you sit here so calmly, don't you even care that the chair is too hot for you?"

When Su Zhenzhen and Hensheng were invited into the county government office, Yunzhou was sitting at the head of the table. Upon seeing this, the two of them found a seat on either side of them and sat down.

If Yunzhou truly resented this Crown Prince Hensheng, she should have given up the seat of honor the moment he entered.

Yunzhou was flexible and adaptable; he descended from the hall and personally welcomed Hensheng back to the main hall.

Unable to refuse, he eventually sat in the high hall.

"Yunzhou, the magistrate of Chuannan County, pays his respects to His Highness the Crown Prince. May His Highness live a thousand years!" Yunzhou performed a formal kneeling bow.

He personally helped the person up after he was born, and then sat back down in the hall. It was truly a scene of affection between the ruler and his subject.

Su Zhenzhen watched coldly, without saying a word.

Ultimately, Jiang Chao is a Jiang Chao born out of hatred, and her mission is to save 100 wronged souls.

Strangely enough, after the boatman from the seaside entered my dream, the number 48 in my consciousness changed to 47.

It's unclear how the 1 was subtracted. Su Zhenzhen doesn't believe she has the ability to convert the boatman, especially since it was clearly the boatman who ferried her across.

Moreover, some things cannot be thought about too deeply; what seems false may become true, and what seems true may become false.

When Yunzhou saw Hensheng come to help him, his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, instantly settled down.

Although Su Zhenzhen was always at the forefront, wasn't it still the person sitting on the throne who ultimately made the final decisions on important political matters?

A young woman spoke a bit harshly; just ignore her. He was blinded by his own limited perspective before.

"Chuannan City currently has more than 5,000 soldiers and 50,000 registered citizens. I am willing to lead them and Chuannan City to submit to His Highness the Crown Prince."

Given the current fragmented political system, there are definitely still some unregistered individuals who haven't been registered with the county government.

However, this group will not be large. Due to the poor economic environment, the birth rate will naturally decrease. In addition, medical conditions were backward in this era, and the average lifespan was only fifty or sixty years.

Su Zhenzhen guessed that most of these 50,000 people were in their thirties or forties, an age group that could serve in the military. However, Yunzhou did not expand its army, so she didn't know whether it was because they couldn't afford to support them or because these people were not physically fit enough.

However, Chuannan City, a large city, only has 50,000 people. One can imagine how sparsely populated the surrounding small towns must be.

Natural disasters were frequent in the south. Whenever a natural disaster struck, the young and strong people were the first to flee. They knew exactly where to go: the vicinity of the capital. After all, even a little bit of wealth from a powerful family was enough to ensure they would never have to worry about food and clothing.

Therefore, in the entire territory of the Jiang Dynasty, the eastern part was densely populated, followed by the north and south, while the northwest was the most sparsely populated.

I wonder if the total population of the entire South is greater than that of the capital.

Su Zhenzhen just thought to herself that such important national and family matters should be left to Hensheng to worry about.

She was incredibly bored. The answers to some mysteries were right in front of her, but she couldn't think about them, lest the person behind the scenes discover her thoughts.

The official pleasantries between Hensheng and Yunzhou were too boring, so they tested each other back and forth, eventually agreeing to the surrender based on each other's bottom lines.

Three days later, Yunzhou and Chenwa simultaneously issued a proclamation, acknowledging Jiang Ruheng, the crown prince of the Jiang Dynasty, as their leader. Anyone willing to travel with them could send a letter of surrender bearing the official seal to Chuannan City or Fenglin County.

With this move, Hensheng openly began to provoke the imperial court in the capital.

In cities large and small in the south, some wise men rushed to deliver surrender documents bearing official seals overnight.

There are also those who don't understand the situation and want to continue to be local tyrants in their own little corner of the world.

Meanwhile, the vanguard army dispatched by Chunzhi had already stationed its troops outside the city of Chuanbei.