Chapter 111
At the end of the eighth lunar month, Huo Shu once again received news from the authorities. They were willing to allow Lin Village and Caochang Village to settle with a tax amount equivalent to that paid by regular commoners.
For the first year, they would need to pay fifty percent of their grain, and subsequently, barring any changes in court regulations, it would be collected at forty percent.
Huo Shu couldn't help but feel surprised by the authorities' sudden change in attitude.
The authorities had originally wanted to use military force to subdue their village, but had returned unsuccessful. After that, there had been no movement for a long time.
However, the war in the south had recently taken a turn. When the army returned to the court, achievements would be rewarded. The authorities in Yuchang County wanted to pacify and recruit them, hoping to share in the credit for relieving refugees and pacifying the populace.
But upon closer thought, it didn't make sense. If they were just putting on a show of face, merely recruiting them as commoners without any actual support, how could it demonstrate the authorities' care and reassurance for the refugees? Moreover, this year they still demanded fifty percent of the grain.
Sensing something amiss, Huo Shu decided to investigate personally.
Although the news was being suppressed and there was no open information in the city, money proved capable of making the devil turn the millstone. Huo Shu bribed a minor official in the yamen, he believed that where there was a will, nothing was impossible
[有錢卻使鬼推磨 (you qian que shi gui tui mo): lit. Having money can make a ghost turn a millstone.; fig. Money can accomplish anything, even the impossible.]
Upon investigating, he found out that military provisions sent south by the court for support had actually been robbed by bandits within Yuchang's borders! Military provisions were extremely critical. The war in Tongzhou had taken a favorable turn, and for the provisions to be lost at this juncture meant local officials wouldn't have enough heads to chop off even if they had ten.
The prefect of Yuchang was already extremely anxious, not yet daring to report back to the court. They were simultaneously tracking down the whereabouts of the grain and ordering all counties to scrape together a new shipment of grain.
However, the eighth and ninth months were exactly the time of the autumn harvest. Not only was it not yet the usual time for grain tax payment, but many farming households hadn't even finished drying and storing their grain. Gathering grain wasn't that easy.
Their border county near the southeast had a small population to begin with. The prefecture was demanding a large amount of grain, and the county probably couldn't scrape it together, hence the plan to pacify the refugee villages.
The ordinary villages here only had populations of a few dozen people, far less than villages in Tongzhou. Lin Village and Caochang Village, with over two hundred people, were already considered large villages.
Even if the authorities didn't know the exact numbers, it still meant increased tax revenue, so they lowered their stance and sent word of recruitment.
Huo Shu couldn't be bothered with the authorities, seeing them as a bunch of bullies who feared the strong. Right now, they were afraid of the refugees and didn't dare act rashly. Furthermore, with the lost military provisions causing extreme anxiety, they had no time to deal with them.
Bandits in Yuchang were only rampant in the east, there weren't many in the south. In the east, only Wayang Stronghold had the capability to rob military provisions. Ordinary bandits, even if fierce, knew the significance of military provisions and wouldn't be so bold as to throw an egg against a stone.
[以卵擊石 (yi luan ji shi): lit. To strike a stone with an egg.; fig. To attempt something impossible by overestimating one's own strength, inviting certain defeat.]
This indicated there was likely more to the story.
After discussing with Jiang Yunhou, they speculated that trouble had arisen in the capital.
It was eighty percent likely that someone in the court had taken action. The Sixth Prince's string of victories was boosting his influence, the other factions in the capital would never idly wait for him to secure an uncontested victory.
The military provisions were urgently needed. The process of sending word to the capital, reorganizing supplies, and dispatching new grain would take at least a month, even with the fastest horses. The southern army was likely already on the brink, burning with anxiety over the delay.
Huo Shu wasted no time. He immediately split his men, dispatching one team to investigate the whereabouts of the stolen provisions
Since they were lost within Yuchang, they must still be there, and most likely in the eastern part.
Having already pinned the blame on the mountain bandits, it would be full of holes if the grain was lost elsewhere. Moreover, the eastern wilderness was vast and ideal for hiding things.
Furthermore, grain and fodder were valuable goods and wouldn't be easily destroyed.
He personally led others to prepare grain. Although they had stored grain, several hundred dan of grain wouldn't be enough for a large army—they needed to purchase more.
Huo Shu first went to the surrounding villages.
Fortunately, Huo Shu's efforts to drive away bandits and rescue many oppressed refugees were not in vain. Upon learning that he needed to buy grain, the villagers were very enthusiastic.
They brought out all their grain, keeping only what was needed to pay the authorities, and gave as much as possible to Huo Shu.
Villagers also contacted relatives in other villages. Huo Shu quickly managed to purchase over five hundred dan of grain from the villages.
Additionally, he disguised himself as a grain merchant and bought grain in the county town at a price a few coins above the market rate.
More grain was acquired in the town.
All in all, Huo Shu managed to gather nearly one thousand dan of grain in a remarkably short period.
While this quantity was insufficient to sustain the army for the entire duration of the war, it was enough to provide a crucial stopgap.
Huo Shu calculated that by the time this emergency supply ran out, the situation would have been resolved—whether Yuchang Prefecture had recovered the original provisions, managed to assemble a replacement, or the court had successfully delivered new supplies. This delay would secure the necessary time for proper support to arrive.
"Brother Huo, a letter! There's a letter!"
Huo Shu was overseeing the batches of grain being transported back and had already summoned over ten more people from Wayang Stronghold to help.
Ge Liang had gone to the county town today. On his way back, he ran into the courier Duan Chi used specifically for delivering letters and picked it up for him.
Huo Shu immediately tore open the letter.
He read ten lines at a glance and after finishing, handed the letter to Ge Liang: "The military provisions haven't arrived on schedule. They know something has happened."
Duan Chi sent an urgent message, hoping Huo Shu could help raise some provisions to deal with the emergency, to lend a helping hand.
Not only that, this time Duan Chi didn't just send a letter—surprisingly, there was also a piece of jade pendant.
Ji Taoyu stepped closer for a look and saw the character "Zhou" inscribed on it.
His heart sank. The current royal family's surname was Zhou.
Although the letter didn't mention the Sixth Prince at all, seeing the token made everything clear without another word.
This time, even the Sixth Prince had sent a token, which showed how critical the situation was for the army.
Thank you for the updates!!!
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