Chapter 2237 Cooperation Again
The situation inside the Great Wall was not good, and it was not much better outside the Great Wall. Gaochang was destroyed because it colluded with the Turks, spoke nonsense and was disrespectful to the emperor and the Jin Dynasty, and stopped paying tribute.
This shows that among the fleeing branches of the Turks there was a considerable force in the Western Regions.
The countries in the Western Regions were not very obedient to the Great Jin Dynasty to begin with, and they were forced to submit only because they were intimidated by the power of the Great Jin Dynasty and the emperor. Once bad news about the emperor spread, these people would rebel.
In response, General Meng said rudely, "These people are loyal to whoever feeds them. When Your Majesty is doing well, they cry poor and beg for money, and the court provides them with money and food to support them. But when Your Majesty is not doing well, they become restless with just a few provocative words from others. All their previous affection has become false."
"The smallpox rumors are still unconfirmed, but word of Xiazhou's improvement should spread quickly among the people," General Meng was much more candid than Inspector He on this point. He stated directly, "In a month, we will dispatch troops to quell the banditry all the way to Suzhou. By then, the bandits outside the Great Wall will be somewhat deterred. It will take about two or three months, and you can leave the Great Wall then."
He paused and said, "But the weather will be getting colder by then, and you'll need a fast horse to reach the Western Regions before the snow blocks the road."
Manbao calculated the time and frowned slightly.
There is nothing here that makes them interested in staying. Even if they are just taking a rest, they need to be interested to be happy. Otherwise, it would be too boring to stay in one place for two or three months just for the sake of staying.
Manbao and Baishan couldn't help but look at Mr. Zhuang and General Nie.
General Nie is responsible for protecting their safety, but he also has to consider efficiency, so he doesn't want to stay here, otherwise he will seem too incompetent.
Mr. Zhuang was also hesitant. He could see that Bai Shan and the others didn't want to stay here for too long, but he himself didn't want to take such a risk.
Bai Shan and Man Bao, who valued their lives, hesitated for this reason.
They asked General Meng, "Is there nothing else to do except wait?"
"Yes," General Meng said, "luck. Although fewer merchants are arriving at Yumen Pass now, there are still some. They are lucky or strong, so they haven't encountered any bandits."
Manbao perked up when he heard this and said modestly, "Actually, we're pretty lucky."
Bai Shan also nodded repeatedly, and after looking at Manbao, he said: "Manbao is the most blessed, this should be no problem."
Bai Erlang deeply agreed with this. After all, she was known as the reincarnation of a fairy, which showed how lucky she was.
Nie Canjun immediately said: "We are also quite strong."
Not to mention the guards from the Bai and Yin families, he alone had a hundred men under his command, and ordinary horse thieves might not have so many people.
It’s just that they are defending and the other side is charging, so the other side has the advantage.
Nie Canjun thought of something and whispered in Bai Shan's ear, "Mr. Bai, perhaps we can ask Dayu and the others to accompany us for a while."
This is the money...
General Nie looked at Bai Shan.
Bai Shan also remembered that if what Governor He and the others said was true, that there were many forces in the desert that wanted to plunder, then if they had made it all the way safely not because of luck, then it was because of their guidance and presence.
There is always some respect and fear between horse thieves, and there are so many of them that they are not just for show.
Bai Shan thought about it, and after returning, he found the five people to discuss, "Should we pay them to go with us again?"
Manbao and Bai Erlang are used to living in poverty. Even though they feel sorry for the money, they still think life is the most important.
Liu Huan hesitated. "That's going to cost a lot of money, right? I think we have enough people. Maybe we don't need these twenty people."
"Maybe it can be used." Bai Erlang said, "I don't care about money, why do you feel bad about it?"
Liu Huan glanced at him and said, "Am I simply worried about the money? I just feel it's not worth it. It's not worth paying such a high price for such a small risk."
After all, he is the grandson of the Minister of Revenue. Even if he is a bit lazy and a dandy, he will weigh these things under the influence of his surroundings.
Bai Erlang said, "That won't work. It would be fine if there were no risk, but since we know there are risks, how can we not be prepared? I am the only child of my parents, and I'm just engaged, not married yet. I can't harm Princess Mingda."
Bai Shan nodded in agreement, "I am the only son of my parents. What will happen to my grandmother and mother if I die? And Manbao is here too. If anything happens to the two of us, we will be the only ones left."
Manbao nodded repeatedly, "It's just money. If you lose it, you can still earn more. The jewelry we divided last time was worth a lot of money. If you take out two pieces at random, you can earn enough money to hire people when you return to the capital."
Yin Huo didn't care about money. He wasn't as cautious about his fate as Bai Shan and the others, but he wanted to go to the Western Regions. If that was the case, he had to stay alive, so he nodded and said, "Please."
Zhou Liru naturally followed her aunt. She said, "The spoils I divided last time... included two bolts of fine cloth. When we get to the Western Regions, that'll be enough for me, right?"
Manbao nodded and said, "That's enough, that's enough. Let's go and talk to them."
The people from the small town were all in charge of Dayu. When he heard that Zhou Man and his men were willing to pay 200 taels to hire them to accompany him to the Western Regions, he subconsciously bargained, "That won't work. Going to the Western Regions is much farther than coming here from the small town. It will cost at least 300 taels."
Manbao: "...We'll speed up this time and not make too many stops along the way. If the weather is good, we'll arrive in about 20 days, which will only take a few days longer than this time."
It's her fault if it rains heavily. Is it their fault that the journey is long this time?
Aren't you just walking and stopping, looking at this and that out of curiosity?
Manbao seemed to be feeling a bit guilty, so he coughed lightly and brought the subject back, "It can be cheaper. This time we have a time limit, and we want to reach our destination within a month if there are no accidents."
"What is an unexpected situation?"
Manbao listed them: "For example, we encountered bandits, someone in our team fell ill and had to stop, or we encountered a storm. In short, these are natural disasters or man-made disasters that cannot be changed by our will."
Upon hearing this, Dayu immediately said, "That's going to cost us a lot. You don't know, the Western Regions are so different from our inner regions. Not only is the weather different, but the food is also different. It's easy for people to get acclimatized. Doctor Zhou, you're so soft-hearted that you stop even if someone is sick. How much time will that delay us? Just three hundred taels, I won't ask for more."
He said, "This is because of our friendship, otherwise other caravans wouldn't be able to hire us with this much money."
Bai Shan asked, "Are you going to the Western Regions to bring any goods?"
Heavy rain's eyes became a little vague.
Bai Shan said: "If you bring goods, I can introduce you to Master You."
Da Yu, who was about to negotiate the price and then go find Master You: ...
In the end, the two parties reached a deal at a price of two hundred and sixty taels.
When the heavy rain sends people out the door, I always feel that I am at a disadvantage, but I have already agreed and there is no way to regret it.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
