Chapter 345: Delivering Food Home
Hundred Thousand Mountains, Li Tribe
Xue Xu went to the chief's house to say goodbye.
The chief looked at his younger brother and asked, "You're leaving after only three days?"
"Brother, it's been a long time since you came back three days."
Three days was enough for him to come back. He had come back for two reasons: first, to see his people, and second, to deliver some supplies to the tribe. Now that both goals had been achieved, and his family and tribe were safe, that was enough.
The most important thing is that Mr. Qin Liu left by land with a large group of 20,000 to 30,000 refugees.
If they leave now and hurry up, they may be able to catch up with Mr. Qin Liu and the others.
Yes, he was planning to return to Liaodong County by land.
Xue Xu refused to admit that he was afraid of death because Qin Liuye was not around, so he did not dare to take the waterway.
"What do you mean by 'long'? You have no conscience. Why don't you think about the fact that you were missing for three years and never returned to the tribe once!" The chief was dissatisfied.
"Brother, now is a good time to fight. Why waste time in the tribe?"
"You're an old man, so why don't you just enjoy your retirement in your clan? Why are you still making such a fuss? Also, you want to take people out this time? I won't allow it."
This time, Xue Xu selected a total of six tribesmen and prepared to take them out.
"Brother, you can read and have seen the outside world. Do you really want the children of our tribe to live in these mountains for the rest of their lives, living in ignorance?"
"It's too dangerous outside. I'm protecting them."
"But I believe everyone has the right to see the outside world. You think trapping them in the mountains is protecting them, but in fact, it's stifling their ability to grow."
"I don't care what you think, I care what I think!" the chief said stubbornly. "What's wrong with the mountains? At least they support our entire tribe. I heard that hundreds of thousands of people were affected by the disaster in the south, but everyone in our tribe is fine."
"Are the people in our tribe really doing well as you said? How many caves have collapsed due to water intrusion? How many people are injured? Missing? Or even dead?" Xue Xu exposed his self-deception bit by bit.
Xue Xu continued, "Yes, the outside world can be terrible at times, but the mountains aren't a paradise either. In bad years, we still face famine and disease. Relatively speaking, we, huddled in the mountains, are more helpless in the face of famine and disease than those outside."
The chief was silent, then waved his hand one last time. "Take Alice, Xian Feng, and the other children with you. As for what you mentioned, we'll see what happens later."
Liaodong County, Anxian Wharf
Wu Ren stood on the deck, watching the ship gradually approach the shore, and let out a long sigh from his chest.
After a safe journey, Wu Ren finally let go of his worries.
I heard that the largest bandit nest along their route has recently been involved in internal strife, which has even affected several other water strongholds, so their waterway has been relatively peaceful during this period of time.
Upon hearing this news, Wu Ren exclaimed that he was lucky. Otherwise, they would have had to frequently use the waterways to transport food during this period, and they would have been inevitably involved in one or two fierce battles.
Young Master Ji and Young Master Gu came to Wu Ren.
Young Master Ji looked at the spacious dock and asked, "Manager Wu, is this Liaodong County?"
"Yes, there are currently five docks in Liaodong County, and Anxian Dock is one of them. In addition to Anxian, Fangxian, Pingguo, Daxian, and Fanhan County all have docks." Wu Ren's voice was full of pride. Their Liaodong County has a very long coastline.
As they were talking, the first ship had already docked.
Wu Ren suggested, "Young Master Ji, Young Master Gu, how about I have someone select and send you to Houcheng for resettlement?"
Young Master Ji and Young Master Gu looked at each other and realized that Wu Ren wanted to get them away and deal with the things on the boat.
This is human nature, so the two of them readily agreed to his arrangement.
After sending off Young Master Ji, Young Master Gu and their men, Qin Zhao and Ma Jin boarded the ship together.
"Good guy! Manager Wu, you are awesome." Qin Zhao patted Wu Ren on the shoulder and looked at the ships full of grain with genuine joy.
After counting, they brought back 300,000 dan of grain from the south.
Wu Ren smiled shyly, "Thank you for the compliment, Third Master. This is all thanks to everyone."
Qin Zhao didn't continue the small talk, but whispered to Ma Jin, "Let them get started."
They also had to secretly transport the grain to a specific newly built granary.
Ma Jin shouted, "Young men, get to work!"
Following the order, the soldiers in their regular uniforms began to work, each one working very hard. You have to know that part of this food is their rations, and food is so expensive nowadays, so what's wrong with them working hard for themselves?
While the soldiers were working, Qin Zhao pulled Wu Ren aside and asked him about Qin Sheng's situation.
Wu Ren had some time now, so he chatted with him about what happened during this trip to the South.
The more Qin Zhao listened, the more shocked he became.
By the time Wu Ren finished speaking, the first batch of grain had already been unloaded. The grain on the ship couldn't be transported in one trip, so it had to be transported in three or five trips.
Wu Ren and Qin Zhao said, "Send another team of people to escort us back to Houcheng." They earned a lot of silver in the south this time, and all of this silver had to be transported to Houcheng.
Facing Qin Zhao's puzzled look, Wu Ren mouthed the word "silver".
Qin Zhao understood that there was still silver to be sent back to Houcheng, "I'll call your Second Master Qin." The eldest brother needs to stay here to guard.
"Can."
Qin Heng had just returned from training his soldiers. When he heard about the situation here, he came over with Qin Yan.
When the three Qin brothers met, Qin Zhao couldn't help but share what he had learned with his two brothers.
Upon hearing this, brothers Qin Heng and Qin Yan were shocked by Xie Zhan's ruthlessness, yet they couldn't help but admire his methods. Xie Zhan and his clan were exiled to the Southland, of low status, held hostage and exploited by the Chen clan leader. Yet, he single-handedly stirred the Southland, leading his family to a meteoric rise, becoming the region's foremost aristocratic family.
Seeing his two brothers so surprised, Qin Zhao had to nod, "Big brother and second brother, Xie Zhan is amazing, but our sixth sister-in-law is even more amazing."
Qin Zhao's words brought Qin Heng and Qin Yan back to their senses instantly, "That's indeed the case."
When the chaos in the south just started, their sixth brother and sister-in-law anticipated the enemy and sent Mr. Xue and Xiaoliu over, followed by Wu Ren and others, who took advantage of the chaos to reap the benefits.
"Most importantly, their trip was very fruitful."
Although they don't know the exact harvest yet, they are responsible for receiving the grain shipped back from the south and transporting it to the secret granary, so they know the amount of grain.
The amount of grain that passed through their hands alone amounted to 200,000 dan.
Qin Zhao pointed out, "You know, if it weren't for Sixth Brother's wife's plan, most of this grain and silver would probably have fallen into Xie Zhan's pocket." If he were Xie Zhan, he would definitely be furious when he learned about the achievements of Sixth Brother's wife.
Qin Yan nodded, "That's right."
"You have forgotten one thing. There is someone standing vaguely behind Xie Zhan." Qin Heng pointed in the direction of Chang'an.
Qin Zhao: "Tsk tsk, this move by Sixth Brother's wife is like snatching food from a tiger's mouth. How brave."
"Brother, brother, there is one thing I haven't told you."
"What's up?"
"Xiao Liu met Xie Zhan in the Southland."
Qin Heng and Qin Yan both raised their voices unconsciously.
"What? Is Xiaoliu okay?"
"What happened next?"
The most dangerous situation for Xiaoliu when he goes to the South is that his identity is exposed, and meeting Xie Zhan makes it even more dangerous.
"Brother, don't worry, Xiaoliu is fine. He was facing Xie Zhan head-on. With the help of the lucky bag given by my sister-in-law, he not only escaped unscathed, but also took the opportunity to get away the 200,000 dan of grain that was trapped in the city and could not be transported out." Qin Zhao then told the story of Qin Sheng gathering the disaster victims to escort 100,000 dan of grain to the north.
Qin Yan praised, "Xiao Liu did a great job this time."
Qin Heng also praised him, "Xiao Liu's performance this time was very manly."
Of course, the most powerful one is their sixth brother's wife. Before she even threw a punch, she was already thinking about how to retract it. She really anticipated the enemy.
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