Jiang Bai began to think about it seriously.
The barbarian elite troops were blocked by Prince An's army, but given his resources, they probably wouldn't last long.
Now, not only is Jiangjia Village facing a food crisis, but Prince An is probably also worried about food supplies.
She has already offended the Prince Xin's Mansion, and the Eastern Palace and the Second Prince's Mansion are also coveting the treasure left by the Eldest Princess. Judging from the state of the Eldest Princess's tomb, their ultimate goal is probably the Imperial Seal of the State.
She found the Princess's tomb before them, and when she told them she didn't know the whereabouts of the Imperial Seal, they probably wouldn't believe her.
But speaking of which, did Prince An never consider passing on the imperial seal?
Jiang Bai pondered in his heart, but did not show anything on his face. He answered the questions asked by the clan chief and others, "He is not in the county school now. It may not be easy to get a travel permit from him."
Where is he?
"I don't know either."
"you do not know?"
The clan chief and the village head both frowned.
Speaking of this scholar, he is Jiang Bai's son-in-law. It's one thing for him to go to the county town to study, but why didn't he tell Jiang Bai where he went?
"Little Bai, now I have something to say to you."
The clan chief held back for a while, but then thought that Jiang Bai was young and might not have thought of this, so he spoke up and advised, "Ji Xiucai married into our Jiangjia Village. As his wife, you are willing to pay for his studies, so he should be grateful to you. You have a marriage certificate. How can you not even control your husband and not even know where he goes?"
Jiang Bai was slightly embarrassed.
They're just a fake couple, so what business is it of hers where they go?
But she quickly frowned, realizing that what he said sounded rather unpleasant, and retorted, "Grandpa, he's a person too. Where he wants to go, can I possibly tie him down?"
"Then you can't be so clueless as to not even know where the person went."
The clan chief still disagreed, but fortunately the village head realized they had gone off-topic and quickly pulled him back.
"Uncle, let's get back to the matter of grain."
The clan chief then realized what was happening, and his furrowed brows deepened.
"Is sending people into the city to buy grain the only solution?"
Seeing that he was no longer dwelling on Ji Yanwen's matter, Jiang Bai breathed a sigh of relief.
"If you have relatives in the city, visiting them would be the best way."
Jiang Bai also had no surplus grain, so he could only persuade him.
The two clan leaders looked rather grim. They had originally thought that with so many people under Jiang Bai's command, it would be best for her to handle the grain purchases.
However, this means that everyone will have to bear a lot of risks.
On the way back, the village head saw that the clan chief was frowning and advised, "Uncle, if you are really worried, have everyone report which city they have and which relatives they have. We can call more people to go out together, that way it will be safer."
"Easier said than done."
The clan chief glared at him, but the worry in his eyes did not lessen.
"The barbarians have breached the pass. I heard that neighboring villages have been wiped out. Our Nan'an County seems safe, but do you know if the barbarians' elite troops might attack?"
“Those barbarians are all tall and strong, one of them is as good as three. If the villagers encounter them, how can they survive?”
"Even if we called more people, or the whole village went out together, we still wouldn't be able to deal with them."
The clan chief was older and thought things through more.
The village head chuckled awkwardly and said, "Didn't Bai girl say there was some kind of chivalrous hero? With him around, what trouble could we possibly get into?"
"Foolish! Can one person fight against an army of thousands?"
The village head remained silent, feeling that whatever he said would be wrong.
"Chief Jiang."
The clan chief was extremely worried. Before he even reached the foot of Pingshan Mountain, he saw a group of houses under construction.
Scattered together, they formed a village, clustered together, and seemed to have more households than in Jiangjia Village.
Before they even arrived at their destination, a tall, slender scholar, who appeared to be around thirty years old, emerged from one of the houses. From a distance, he bowed to the clan chief and the village head.
"Village Chief Zhao."
The clan chief composed himself and gave a polite smile.
"Chief Jiang and Village Head Jiang, why don't you come in and have a seat?"
He extended a warm invitation, and the clan chief and village headman, unable to refuse, had no choice but to follow him into his courtyard.
His wife had already prepared stools and each of them carried half a bowl of water.
The clan chief and the village head felt a chill run down their spines, thinking that such politeness might indicate that the visitor had ill intentions.
This village chief, whose real name was Jiuchang, was from Zhao Family Village in Fengchuan County, Yingzhou. His parents died early, leaving him with only one wife and two sons. His family was originally quite well-off, able to afford the annual birth tax. Just then, barbarian troops invaded Fengchuan County. Being quick-witted, he immediately led half of the villagers to escape.
They fled in such a hurry that they didn't have much food left.
I brought a lot of money with me, but things are very chaotic everywhere now, so even if I have money, I can't buy food.
Among the families who settled at the foot of Pingshan Mountain, more than a dozen were originally from Zhao Family Village. Therefore, when facing Zhao Jiuchang, the clan chief and the village head adopted the attitude that they could neither befriend him nor offend him.
"Have you two just come down from Pingshan?"
Zhao Jiuchang smiled and offered the two men water. He picked up the bowl and saw the few tea leaves inside. The clan chief and the village head felt even more uneasy.
"Exactly."
Zhao Jiuchang smiled kindly and asked, "To be honest, I'm ashamed to say that we've settled down in Jiangjia Village, but we haven't been able to visit Chief Jiang and Village Head Jiang sooner. I really feel bad about it."
There's no need to visit.
The clan chief and the village head smiled awkwardly, not quite used to his way of speaking.
"I will now offer you both tea instead of wine as an apology."
The clan chief and the village headman didn't respond, but Zhao Jiuchang didn't care. He picked up his cup and drank it.
The clan chief and the village head were both on pins and needles by his actions. The clan chief put down his bowl and asked, "Zhao Village, we are straightforward people and don't understand your scholarly ways. You might as well just say what you have to say. There's no need for this."
Zhao Jiuchang didn't even flinch, and laughed, "Look at you, what are you thinking? I was just thinking that since our large group came to Jiangjia Village, we were fortunate to receive the village's care and were able to settle down here, so I wanted to thank you both. Why do you make it sound like you have some kind of scheme?"
He didn't respond, and a hint of displeasure flashed across the clan leader's brow.
"Since that's the case, and we've already thanked you, Village Chief Zhao, we won't stay any longer."
After saying that, he got up and started to walk out.
The village head also followed in his footsteps and walked outside.
A hint of displeasure flashed across Zhao Jiuchang's eyes. If they were still in Zhao Family Village, who would dare to give him such a hard time?
However, remembering that he needed someone's help, he had no choice but to suppress his dissatisfaction and quickly stood up to stop the clan chief, saying, "Clan Chief Jiang, please wait, please wait."
He's such a country bumpkin, he doesn't know any manners at all.
He cursed inwardly, but his smile only grew more genuine, making him appear harmless.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com