Chapter 39 Chapter 39 "Would you like to write a letter to...
Ji Yang approached quickly, his clothes fluttering in the wind, his brows and eyes dark as the dusk. He took a few steps closer, his eyes so cold they could almost freeze into ice. "I'll spare you the trouble of worrying about my wife."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stepped forward without saying anything, stretched out his hands and took Jiang Ci off Lou Qi's back.
Jiang Ci was startled and subconsciously struggled: "I can get down by myself."
Ji Yang just glanced down at her with a stern expression, not allowing any objection. He carried her sideways and strode away with steady steps, not giving anyone else a chance to look at him again.
Lou Qi stood there, looking at their backs, without moving for a long time, but a smile with ambiguous meaning slowly appeared at the corner of his lips.
After a while, Ji Yang brought Jiang Ci to a resting rock at the foot of the mountain and slowly put her down.
He stood up straight, looking down at her, his voice low and filled with suppressed anger: "How could you ask another man to carry you? How can this be disgraceful? Jiang Ci, where can I put my face? Even if there is no love between us anymore, you shouldn't do this and embarrass me in front of the soldiers."
Jiang Ci looked up at him, his face weary, but his tone calm. "I didn't know you were here. He just said this path was quicker down the mountain. My foot is injured, and I can't ask someone to go back and look for you, right? Besides... you made it sound like if I really went to look for you, you'd carry me down the mountain."
Before she finished speaking, Ji Yang pursed his lips and whispered, "How do you know I can't?"
These words made Jiang Ci stunned for a moment. He stared at him blankly, speechless for a moment.
Ji Yang didn't say anything more. He half-knelt down and gently lifted her injured ankle. His fingertips gently touched the edge of her shoe and he frowned. "It's quite swollen."
He untied her shoes and socks, took out a small porcelain bottle from his bosom, unscrewed it and poured out some ointment.
Jiang Ci looked at him and asked in a low voice, "What are you doing?"
"Don't move."
He spoke calmly, but with a tone that brooked no rejection.
He dipped his fingertips in ointment and carefully applied it to the swollen ankle. His movements were skillful and gentle, and he even controlled the strength just enough so as not to cause too much pain.
Jiang Ci stared at his downcast brows, feeling a strange patience and gentleness in him. She couldn't help but reach out, brushing her fingertips across his forehead, gently wiping away the patch of plaster.
Ji Yang suddenly looked up and his eyes met hers.
At that moment, the wind stopped and the light became still.
He could still feel the lingering warmth of her fingertips on his forehead. It seemed as if only a thin line of breath separated the two of them, and no one spoke.
"Your face is dirty." She whispered, and then turned away, as if she didn't dare to look at him again.
After a long moment, Ji Yang lowered his head and continued applying medicine to her. After bandaging her wound and putting on her shoes and socks, he said, "Thank you for the epidemic... You didn't have to do this."
Jiang Ci interrupted him, his voice calm: "I wanted to do this myself."
He didn't say anything, just stared at her for a moment, lowered his head to continue applying the medicine for her, and then picked up her shoes and socks that had fallen aside.
He helped Jiang Ci put on shoes and socks, pressed her ankle from the heel, straightened her toes, tore off a strip of cloth from his body, picked up two wooden sticks from the roadside, fixed Jiang Ci's ankles, and wrapped them gently.
Jiang Ci wanted to hide at first, but he said calmly, "Don't move."
She had no choice but to let him do what he wanted.
"This medicine was specially prescribed by the military doctor. You'll be able to walk tomorrow. But don't even think about running around today."
After saying that, he picked her up again. Jiang Ci leaned in his arms, tilted his head slightly, and suddenly asked softly, "The bottle of medicine at my door a few days ago, was that also left by you, right?"
As soon as these words came out, Ji Yang felt like he was gently hit and was speechless for a moment.
He turned his face away and muttered softly, "What medicine? I don't understand what you are saying."
Jiang Ci didn't ask any more questions, but just buried his face gently in his shoulder, his eyelashes drooping, and a smile quietly curled up at the corner of his mouth.
Ji Yang carried Jiang Ci all the way back to the epidemic area. When they were near the area, he suddenly stopped, looked up at the vast western sky, and asked in a deep voice, "After the Ningling incident is over, do you want to go to Liangzhou?"
This was an understatement, but it was like a bolt of lightning that suddenly struck Jiang Ci's heart.
She was startled, her body, half leaning against his embrace, tensed slightly. As soon as the word "Liangzhou" came out of her mouth, too many forgotten memories came flooding back like a tide.
She once thought that by marrying to Tingzhou, she would have severed all ties with Liangzhou and there would be no possibility of returning in this life.
She didn't expect that the words that had been lingering in her heart and that she was going to say solemnly in the future would be spoken by him first.
She had originally thought that once the epidemic was under control, she would ask him to go to Liangzhou. Even if Ji Yang might not be willing, he would not refuse too decisively because he appreciated her tireless work to treat the people during this period.
But now, he took the initiative to mention it.
Why did he say this? Was it out of a momentary feeling of gratitude? Or was it another test?
Jiang Ci's mind was filled with various thoughts, but the moment he looked at her, they all subsided. She raised her eyes to meet his and nodded slowly, "I think so. Is that okay?"
Ji Yang's tone was calm, as if he had just said something insignificant: "Of course."
He walked steadily, the person in his arms seemed light, but his arms were tightly clasped together, as if he was afraid she would fall again.
As soon as he stepped onto the edge of the epidemic area, Jiang Ci couldn't help but whisper, "Put me down quickly! This is an epidemic area. Don't come in. If I get sick and fall down, what will happen to those people working on the flood dam?"
Ji Yang, however, acted as if he hadn't heard anything and continued walking forward, his brows cold and serious, meticulous. He only slowly bent down and put her down after he had escorted her to the makeshift shed.
"You live in a place like this?" He said in a low voice, his eyes sweeping over the furnishings in the shed: straw mats, thin blankets, wooden basins, medicine cups, everything was simple. "It's too dangerous."
Jiang Ci was about to stand up, but he held his shoulders.
"You are not allowed to walk today. If you need anything, ask Yin Shuang to do it."
She was about to retort, but Ji Yang looked at her, his tone holding a rare hint of tenderness: "If you're not afraid, how can I be afraid? Besides... I believe you can cure them."
Jiang Ci was stunned, his heart slightly shaken.
His words contained neither sarcasm nor command. They were simply words of genuine trust.
She lowered her eyelashes slightly and nodded.
Ji Yang stood up, rubbed his shoulders, and lifted the curtain for her before saying, "If you need anything, ask Yin Shuang to do it. If you're short of manpower, tell me anytime and I'll get you some more."
After saying that, he turned and left, his back neat and tidy.
Jiang Ci looked at the direction he left, and his heart seemed to be touched by something.
At that moment, she suddenly felt that she was not alone.
The next morning, the sky was just getting light.
Just as Ji Yang stood up and put on his clothes, a commotion erupted outside the tent. At first, it was just a few scattered whispers, but in the blink of an eye, it grew louder and louder, interspersed with shouts and cries, a clamor like a tide.
He frowned slightly and asked someone to lift the door curtain. He saw that the outside of the camp was dark. The people crowded the road, holding wooden bowls and cloth bags in their hands, with anxious or angry expressions. They had surrounded the Dongyang Army’s base.
Pei Chengxu was standing in the outer circle with a wry smile on his face. He was comforting the crowd while whispering with several soldiers, beads of sweat on his forehead.
"Stop arguing, the governor is thinking of a solution. The food will definitely be distributed!"
"What are you sending me? My mother has been ill for three days and she's just waiting for this ration to keep her alive!"
"The city said they would distribute food on the fifth day, but it's been two days and we haven't even had a single hot meal. Are you planning to let us starve to death here, sir?"
"My mother ate wild grass paste for several meals in a row and vomited blood this morning. You have the life to eat military rations, but our lives are worthless?"
"Either distribute the food now, or we all go into the camp and rob it!"
The crowd was noisy and heated. A few villagers, wielding hoes, had already begun hammering at the fence posts. Soldiers stepped forward to stop them, and after several attempts at pushing and shoving, it looked as if a conflict was about to escalate.
Ji Yang walked out quickly, and seeing this scene, his eyes darkened. He walked straight to Pei Chengxu and asked in a cold voice, "What's going on?"
The prefect bowed, his face troubled. "General, it's my fault. Heavy rains a few days ago destroyed two granaries. Right now, the people of Ningling, along with the surrounding villages for dozens of miles, are relying on the remaining grain in the government treasury. When you came, I checked the accounts, and the grain and fodder would last for six days at most. Yesterday was the seventh day, and today the food supply is gone. The people are starving, so naturally... naturally, I came."
“You didn’t send it yesterday, why haven’t you sent it today?”
"Because we have no more food to distribute."
Ji Yang said in a cold tone, "What about the food sent from Fengdu? When will it arrive?"
Pei Chengxu looked hesitant and seemed to be hesitant to speak.
At this time, Lu Linchuan also came out from the military tent after hearing the noise. He frowned and said, "My lord, I observed the sky last night and saw dark stars gathering energy in the northwest. I'm afraid there will be heavy rain in the next few days. If the dikes are not built soon, not only will the fertile fields be flooded, but even the city will be in danger."
Ji Yang nodded coldly: "Call the commander of the army."
A moment later, the commander hurried over and whispered in his ear, "My lord, the army has enough food and fodder to last three days, but if we distribute it all to the people today, I'm afraid the soldiers won't even have enough to eat tonight."
Ji Yang's expression changed slightly, and just as he was about to speak, another pair of hurried footsteps came from a distance.
"Lord!" Du Mengqiu rushed over, his face full of dust. As soon as he entered the camp, he bowed and whispered, "I just received a secret report that the grain and fodder sent from Fengdu was ambushed while passing through Xiling. Seventy percent of the grain was looted. Only a small amount remains, and I'm afraid it won't last long."
"What did you say?" Ji Yang's voice was sharp as a sword. "Who dares to rob our Dongyang army's disaster relief food?"
Du Mengqiu said, "We don't know where we came from yet. Because the original bridge in Ningling was destroyed, Fengdu changed the route to Xiling. The location is remote, so the news was blocked late."
The series of blows left everyone silent.
In the distance, the people were still roaring, "My Lord, you promised to give us grain, but now you've broken your promise. We're all quitting, and no one can repair the dike! Why should we obey your orders if you won't even give us grain?"
"My family of four is still relying on these rations to survive! If you don't send them now, we will storm this military camp today!"
The situation escalated, and even the soldiers began to discuss in low voices. The situation was like a candle in the wind, ready to fall into chaos at any moment.
Lu Linchuan gritted his teeth and said, "If we don't start construction right now, Ningling City will be trapped in the water. But if the people are in chaos, it will be difficult to mobilize manpower."
Ji Yang's eyes fixed, and he asked in a low voice, "Where's Yue Bai?"
Yue Bai heard the voice and came over, bowing: "My lord."
Ji Yang said in a deep voice, "Ride back to Fengdu immediately and transfer a batch of military rations. At the same time, investigate who robbed our food supplies. Whether it's bandits or some other faction, we must find out who came from them."
Yue Bai clasped his fists and left after receiving the order.
Ji Yang looked at the people who were gathering more and more closely, and said in a deep voice: "Give half of the general's dry food to the people first to calm their hearts."
Du Mengqiu was startled: "My lord, today our soldiers will..."
Ji Yang said coldly, "We still have enough food for the march, so we can hold out for a day! If the soldiers have nothing to eat, it's better than the whole city being in chaos."
His eyes turned and said, "As long as the dike construction fails, we will be drowned in the Ningling swamp along with the people in a few days."
The generals in the army all looked nervous. Lu Linchuan immediately clasped his fists and said, "I understand. We must start half of the work before tonight."
Ji Yang nodded, turned around, mounted his horse, and shouted, "Everyone, listen up! The camp will distribute the grain. The county magistrate will assist with registration. The surrounding village chiefs and officials will be mobilized to allocate the grain according to the household ratio. It must be distributed fairly."
After he finished speaking, he looked back at the people surging outside the camp gate, his eyes as sharp as a knife: "From this moment on, the people and soldiers will live in the same city and eat from the same pot."
The crowd was completely silent. Tears welled up in the eyes of an old woman, a man dropped his hoe handle, and someone sobbed, "Since the governor is willing to endure this with us... then we will obey your orders and build the dike!"
Then someone whispered, "After you finish eating, follow the governor to build the canal."
The atmosphere changed in an instant. The previous clamor of anger gradually subsided, and some people began to line up on their own initiative.
Inside the city inn, the night was dark.
A green lamp flickered gently on the table, casting a flickering light in the room. Lou Qi stood by the window with his hands behind his back, his eyes as dark as ink as he gazed at the dark horizon in the distance, as if he were thinking, or perhaps waiting.
The wind blew through the window lattice, ruffling his hair.
Suddenly, the door opened softly, and a man wearing a bamboo hat and a short brown robe quietly pushed the door open and walked in. He lowered his head and closed the door, then knelt on one knee with a "bang" and whispered:
"Your Highness, Prince of Yan, I have followed your orders. We ambushed the Dongyang army's cavalry on the Western Ridge and captured their grain transport. Most of the supplies have been moved and stored, but... their escort was larger than anticipated, so we were unable to intercept them all."
"But..." He paused, "the remaining food and supplies are just a drop in the bucket. Even if they were delivered, they wouldn't last more than three days. Even if more food and supplies arrived, it would only barely alleviate the crisis, but it wouldn't last long."
Before he finished speaking, Lou Qi turned around abruptly with a grim expression.
The next moment, he kicked out, hitting the man in the chest and knocking him to the ground.
The man groaned, and a bloody smell came out of his mouth.
"Couldn't stop them all? Do you think I asked you to go to Xiling just to go through the motions?"
Lou Qi leaned forward, his voice extremely cold: "What I need is to make Ji Yang unable to move even a step due to lack of food, rather than letting him survive with only a little food left."
The man on the ground didn't dare to look up, but only lay on the ground and whispered: "This subordinate is incompetent, please punish me, Your Highness."
Lou Qi had already turned around and stood back in front of the window. A dark, sharp light flashed in the depths of his eyes. He sneered:
"You useless thing, go and accept your punishment."
The night was dark, the clouds were as thick as lead, but the lights were still on by the dam.
Ji Yang was covered in dust, his collar stained with sweat and mud, his color almost unrecognizable. He clutched a hoe and worked alongside the Dongyang army to move earth and build the embankment. The common people followed suit, shoveling the earth one shovel at a time. Though their movements were slow, they persevered silently.
Time quietly pushed into the late night.
There was silence on the embankment, with only the sound of shovels digging into the mud and earth and rocks being turned over.
Suddenly, someone murmured in the dim light, "We're so tired... We've been working all day, and we can't even straighten our backs."
"Yeah... didn't the governor say we'd stop after this section? Why haven't we stopped yet?"
Tiny complaints grew quietly in the darkness like water weeds.
Ji Yang was standing on a stone and heard everything clearly. He frowned slightly and glanced at the crowd. He saw that some of them were holding their waists and gasping for breath, while others were squatting on the ground and unwilling to move.
He was silent for a moment, then finally spoke: "That's all for today. Everyone, return to camp and rest."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone felt relieved. They put down their tools and supported each other as they walked back.
Back inside the tent, the brazier was packed with people. Soldiers and civilians sat on the ground, each holding a small piece of dry rations, which they softened by soaking in hot water before sharing. Some choked on the water while swallowing, but could only grin.
Ji Yang also held a bowl and sat in front of the tent, not saying a word for a moment.
A vein throbbed in his forehead, and he pressed his fingers against his temples, a sharp pain in his head. He hadn't rested properly for several nights. The city's food supplies, the epidemic, the dikes, the people's complaints... everything hung before his eyes.
Suddenly, a soldier stepped through the curtain, clasping his fists and saying, "Governor, Madam has reported that most of the patients in the epidemic area have recovered from their fevers and are in better condition. The death toll is now zero."
Ji Yang raised his eyes, was stunned for a moment, and seemed to suddenly breathe a sigh of relief. He leaned back on the wooden chair, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
"finally……"
At this time, Lu Linchuan walked in, holding a roll of freshly drawn sketches in his hand, and sat next to Ji Yang.
He took a sip of tea and said in a deep voice, "Zisu."
"Um?"
"Do you want to write a letter to Liangzhou?" Lu Linchuan looked at him with deep eyes.
"Liangzhou is just across the river, and it only takes three days to get there by water. If you write a letter, grain from Liangzhou will be delivered within five days."
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