Speaking of which, no one would believe that Hua Yuan didn't come to Dongqing from Nansheng to cheat Yuan Xin, Huang Song, or Jiang Pengji. He came with sincerity to borrow grain. Yes, he was right. Hua Yuan's purpose was to lobby the feudal lords and borrow some grain for his lord.
The southern barbarians destroyed Nansheng. They also tried to establish a regime to rule over the remnant citizens of Nansheng. Unfortunately, their civilization was more barbaric than the northern borderline. They only knew how to destroy, but they didn't know how to appease the people or recuperate. When they lacked women, they robbed them. When they lacked food, they robbed them. When they lacked money, land, and manpower, they conquered them by force. The people of Nansheng suffered unspeakably. Various forces rose up to fight against the southern barbarians.
However, fighting required grain. It would also delay the spring plowing.
If the spring plowing was delayed, it meant that a year's harvest would be wasted. The grain shortage would become more severe, which would intensify the war.
It was a terrifying vicious cycle.
The grain shortage in Nansheng grew larger. Many feudal lords had to live frugally, let alone the small feudal lords who weren't doing very well.
An Cui had a firm foothold under Lu Zheng's plan. After annexing a few small feudal lords, his power began to expand.
Capital was needed to expand power. An Cui's conditions were too weak. Sometimes, he had to seek sponsorship and support to tide them over temporarily.
He had no choice but to borrow grain this time.
If he couldn't borrow grain, it would be difficult for the people under his rule to survive until the next autumn harvest, let alone recruit soldiers to increase his power.
What was "borrowing"?
Temporarily using other people's property.
Because of Nansheng's geographical location, they couldn't borrow grain from the southern barbarians. Zhongzhao was too far away. After much thought, they could only set their sights on Dongqing. Who knew that Dongqing would be turned upside down? Jiang Pengji and Huang Song, the plastic siblings, were at each other's throats. Neither of them looked like landlords with surplus grain. Even if they had surplus grain, they wouldn't give up easily. This was Hua Yuan's conclusion after studying their personalities.
Jiang Pengji was shrewd and cunning. She wouldn't be at a disadvantage no matter what. Deceiving her was far more difficult than Hua Yuan had imagined.
Ordinary people had to pay interest when they borrowed money. Unscrupulous merchants paid interest when they borrowed money. In troubled times, grain was rarer than gold.
It was easy to lend grain, but difficult to get it back.
Jiang Pengji and An Cui's friendship was limited to the cooperation of the Red Lotus Group and their brief meeting at the Huangshui Meeting. How could he expect her to lend An Cui a large batch of grain without interest? Before they arrived in Dongqing, Hua Yuan had some thoughts, but they were gone after that.
Before Hua Yuan went out to borrow food, Lu Zheng, the chief strategist in An Cui's tent, even gave him a sad poem.
"Huang Song might have a chance, but Liu Xi is out of the question," Lu Zheng said.
When Jiang Pengji was studying in Langya County, he and Jiang Pengji had interacted before. He knew very well how shrewd she was.
The thousand-year-old fox spirit could only be toyed with by her.
Even if Hua Yuan was powerful, he would probably be defeated by her.
Hua Yuan didn't know how difficult Jiang Pengji's strategy was. He said arrogantly, "How do you know it's impossible if you don't try? She occupied 70% of the places that produced grain in Dongqing. It was said that she had managed her business well these past few years. She had fought several big battles in other people's territories. The land under her rule had always been prosperous, and she had stored a lot of grain. Speaking of which, Liu Xi is the one who doesn't have to worry about food during the Spring Festival. "
Not to mention the assets that Jiang Pengji had earned herself, the funds that Liu Xi had prepared for her were not small.
Even if she hadn't reached out to Liu She, in the eyes of outsiders, the father and daughter were inseparable. The resources that Liu She had accumulated were all for his daughter.
Lu Zheng shook his head. "If you have the chance to see her, you'll know what kind of person she is."
Hua Yuan said, "You were friends with her when you were young. Why? Was she difficult to deal with in the past?"
"She was very difficult. When she was studying in Langya, she was the devil that everyone avoided. If you borrowed grain from her, you'd be in a good mood if you paid 90%. If you were more ruthless … "Lu Zheng paused at this point, and his expression became a little strange.
Hua Yuan was speechless.
90% paid 13%. This was not much different from money from the government.
The more Lu Zheng said this, the more curious Hua Yuan was about Jiang Pengji. After all, she was the first female lord in history who dared to fight for the world with the male lords. If a woman didn't have extraordinary abilities, how could she convince so many talents to willingly follow her orders?
In the end …
When Hua Yuan arrived in Dongqing, he found out that the two of them were locked in a fierce battle.
Fighting a war was an activity that burned money and food. They didn't even have enough food, so how could they lend it to others?
Even if Hua Yuan wanted to borrow money from the government, Huang Song and the others wouldn't let him go.
Since he couldn't do it through proper channels, he could only think of a roundabout way to save the country.
Hua Yuan carefully studied the entire situation of the war and keenly discovered that Chenzhou was profitable. He immediately rushed to Chenzhou.
Yuan Xin and Nie Xun didn't get along. The former hurt the latter with a knife, and he was forced to jump up and down by Jiang Pengji's 50,000 troops.
"God is helping me!"
A plan quickly formed in his mind.
Hua Yuan rubbed his hands excitedly. He knew how to get something without risking anything.
Nie Xun and Yuan Xin didn't get along, and his life was in danger. The possibility of Hua Yuan's identity being exposed was minimized.
Yuan Xin was arrogant and unruly. He refuted Nie Xun's suggestion and looked down on Hua Yuan at the same time. He was confident that Hua Yuan wouldn't dare to play tricks.
Little did he know that Hua Yuan's ability to manipulate people's hearts was even better than Nie Xun's.
He and Nie Xun both proposed to strengthen the defense and clear the field. The only difference was the final disposal of the grain.
Nie Xun suggested to send the grain to the border of Haozhou. Not only could it prevent Jiang Pengji from feeding her troops, but it could also support Huang Song's troops at the frontline. If Jiang Pengji had no choice but to retreat, the grain could also be transported back to Chenzhou at the fastest speed to appease the people.
Hua Yuan's suggestion was completely different. He suggested that Yuan Xin send the grain to the south of Chenzhou because the south was the rear.
The reason he gave was also very convincing. He used the grain as bait to lure Jiang Pengji's troops deeper into the enemy's rear. It would be too late for her to retreat. The grain carried by the 50,000 troops wouldn't be enough for them to rush out of Chenzhou. They could only be trapped in the hinterland of Chenzhou and die from a lack of food and water.
Little did they know that Hua Yuan gathered the grain to the south of Chenzhou just to make it easier for him to steal.
He didn't touch anything in Yuan Xin's letter when he left, but he imitated the notes and seals in Yuan Xin's letter and made a fake transfer order.
When Yuan Xin realized that something was wrong, Hua Yuan openly took the grain away.
If Jiang Pengji hadn't played her cards irrationally and disrupted the established plan, Yuan Xin might have reacted a few days later.
Nie Xun realized that something was wrong and hurriedly informed Yuan Xin to send troops to chase after the grain.
Yuan Xin didn't believe it at first. He thought that Nie Xun was deliberately looking for trouble. But when he thought of Hua Yuan's various actions, Yuan Xin was skeptical and sent troops to chase after the grain. It was a difference of two to three days. When Yuan Xin's troops arrived at the place where the grain was stored, they found that the grain depot was empty.
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