Chapter 9 Innocence
Yu Dayong was the leader of the villagers who escaped this time. He was originally a hunter, tall and strong, but with a generous and righteous character. He was involved this time to help others.
He is from Shu, has many friends, and is very familiar with the situation in Shu.
Yu Dayong came over and said, "For the past two years, Shu has been plagued by natural and man-made disasters. Last year, there was even a drought, and the harvest was poor. Not only did the court not provide disaster relief, but it also increased taxes. Many people can't even survive. Our town is relatively well off, but we can't survive this year either."
Yan Xing frowned and lowered his voice, saying, "The Liao Dynasty is eyeing us covetously. Since my father was recalled, he has suffered repeated defeats. It seems that Prince Nanyang is not very honest either."
Lu Chenyang knew what was going on. The Prince of Nanyang was the only vassal prince of a different surname in Dagan. He had always dominated Shu, and the imperial court had always been wary of him. So, when Shu suffered a disaster, the imperial court naturally wouldn't provide financial relief, leaving the Prince of Nanyang to deal with it himself.
The imperial court had been at war with the Liao Dynasty for years, and there wasn't enough money to give to Shu. The Prince of Nanyang was discontent. The emperor was suspicious of the Duke of Zhenguo, and the Prince of Nanyang took advantage of this opportunity to recruit troops and begin his rebellious plot.
The King of Nanyang imposed various taxes, and the people could not survive, so they all became bandits.
Yan Xing said, "We still have to go into the city, otherwise we will run out of food."
Lu Chenyang nodded. Fortunately, they encountered bandits again and the group entered the city smoothly.
Tan Feng first went to sell the jade pendant, but the price offered by the pawnshop was not high, so he decided to go to the big merchants in the city to sell it, and buy some food by the way, maybe he could get it at a cheaper price.
In front of Yan Xing, Lu Chenyang took out a silver note of one thousand taels and handed it to Tan Feng. Yan Xing stared at him intently.
Lu Chenyang pretended not to see it and said, "Buy more food, as much as you can. We still have a long way to go."
Yan Xing said, "I'll go with you. The Zhenguogong Mansion has some connections in Shu. It would save a lot of trouble if I went to them to make the first move."
Lu Chenyang agreed without changing his expression, "Tan Feng, you follow the prince, and everything is based on the prince's priority."
Tan Feng agreed in person and turned to Lu Chenyang, "You trust him so much? Aren't you afraid that he will run away? If a criminal escapes privately, it's a capital crime."
Lu Chenyang said without raising his head: "Don't worry, he won't run away. The Zhenguo Duke's family is still in the capital. If the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion really wanted to fight to the death, Yan Xing would not be exiled." Instead, he would directly rebel.
The 100,000-strong Yan army was stationed in the northwest, which was what frightened the emperor. But now the Yan army was resisting the Liao army, and the Duke of Zhenguo would not engage in internal strife at this time. For the Duke of Zhenguo, resisting foreign enemies was more important than internal strife.
Tan Feng didn't understand the twists and turns, but he trusted Lu Chenyang blindly, so he turned around and followed Yan Xingxing.
Lu Chenyang took Zhao Xi to walk around the city.
The situation in the city was not much better. The streets were full of beggars and people selling their children. Lu Chenyang felt very heavy-hearted.
Lu Chenyang returned to the inn in a depressed mood. Zhao Xi hated to see him unhappy the most.
Zhao Xi said, "Sir, please don't be sad. This is not your fault. Their parents want to sell their children. This shows that their parents don't love them. Why should you be sad?"
In Zhao Xi's opinion, the selling of children was not caused by Lu Chenyang, so what does it have to do with her? Those parents don't feel sad, so why should her family feel sad?
Of course, Zhao Xi felt that this was all because her master was too kind, too merciful, and too lenient. What was wrong with her master being kind? It was those corrupt officials and the court's inaction that had caused so many people to be displaced.
Lu Chenyang shook his head and simply said, "We'll leave when Tan Feng and the others come back."
Tan Feng was very capable. With a jade pendant and Lu Chenyang's banknotes, he brought back five carts of grain. This made the people who followed him feel much more at ease.
Tan Feng was also very happy: "The prince's connections are very useful. He introduced me to a large grain merchant. For the prince's sake, the price he offered was also very reasonable."
Lu Chenyang then asked, "What about the prince?"
Tan Feng said, "The prince is talking to his men. I just bought some food and was so happy that I sent it over first." He paused and lowered his voice, "But don't worry, sir. I have people watching him. The prince can't get away."
Lu Chenyang raised his eyebrows: "Did he find out?"
Tan Feng looked embarrassed, but still nodded: "Yeah, I think he knew. But he didn't shake us off and let us follow him. The prince is still very understanding."
Lu Chenyang looked at him with a complicated expression. He never understood why Tan Feng could still be so innocent after so many years in the martial arts world?
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