Quick Transmigration: Why did you provoke him? He's love-struck!

Chapter 468 Relying on Favor (13)

"No!" Zhao Yuan showed no mercy and shoved Yan Zhen into the carriage.

The next moment, Yan Zhen lifted the carriage curtain, jumped down, and sat on the ground: "I'm not going anywhere if you don't let me ride a horse!"

Zhao Yuan scoffed: "If you don't leave, you'll stay here and feed the wolves."

Yan Zhen also sneered, mimicking his manner: "I'm not afraid. I'll go to Yunzhou as soon as you leave! I was able to find my way to Tingzhou with my maid back then, so I can naturally find my way to Yunzhou now."

Zhao Yuan stared at her, trying to figure out if she was just being stubborn.

However, although Yan Zhen looked angry, he was actually very serious.

"We can't kill him, but we can't leave him here either." Zhao Yuan remained silent for a few moments before giving in: "Get up."

On the way back, Yan Zhen successfully obtained a horse.

However, she was not a good rider and could only follow along at the back of the group.

To prevent her from falling behind, the group had to stop and wait for her every half hour.

After this happened two or three times, Zhao Yuan grew impatient.

Stopping again to wait for Yan Zhen, Zhao Yuan saw her riding past him with an air of nonchalance. Suddenly, he reached out and pulled Yan Zhen from her horse onto his own.

Before Yan Zhen could react, he went from riding a horse on his own to sharing a horse with Zhao Yuan.

Just as she was about to protest, Zhao Yuan draped his cloak over her head and spurred his horse, shouting, "Giddy up!"

Back in Tingzhou, Yan Zhen felt like his body was about to fall apart from the jostling.

After a quick wash, she went straight to sleep.

After several days of trekking through mountains and rivers, Yan Zhen slept soundly for days.

When she woke up again, she was so hungry that her stomach was practically sticking to her back.

As Yan Zhen crawled out of bed, he felt that his hands and feet were not quite right.

Looking down, I saw that the wounds on her hands and feet had been re-bandaged.

Well, at least Zhao Yuan has some conscience.

At this moment, Zhao Yuan, who "had a conscience," was discussing matters with his subordinates in his study.

Tingzhou's finances were already stretched thin, and it was about to be unable to pay military salaries.

The return of these burial goods immediately alleviated the predicament, and that evening the entire army opened its granaries to distribute food, allowing the soldiers to have a hearty meal.

Zhao Yuan was in a great mood.

But when his subordinates brought up the idea of ​​launching an offensive against Yunzhou again, he showed a rare hint of hesitation.

Both the Tingzhou Army and the Yunzhou Army rose up in rebellion and split apart under the dual oppression of continuous natural disasters and the incompetent monarch and tyrannical rule of the Great Liang Dynasty.

Given the already impoverished situation, as Dan Gun-tak said, if this war continues, the only way to sustain the military will be to skin the people alive and suck their blood.

Once the land is thoroughly ravaged, and the covetous foreign powers seize the opportunity to invade, it's hard to say who will ultimately control this land.

Should we adopt Tan Junzhuo's suggestion to first defend Tingzhou and allow it to recover, and then consider expanding our territory once the Tingzhou army and local people have recovered?

Zhao Yuan shared his thoughts with his subordinates, and one of his generals, surnamed Chen, immediately retorted: "My lord, the most important thing in war is to seize the initiative. The commander of Yunzhou is seriously injured. If we don't attack now, when will we?"

Even if we need to recuperate, we must first take Yunzhou! The situation outside changes every day. Qingzhou and Jingzhou are eyeing Yunzhou covetously. If other prefectures take Tingzhou and strengthen their power, our Tingzhou city will be the next target!

Zhao Yuan's expression was solemn, and he did not immediately express his opinion.

"Lord..."

General Chen wanted to persuade him further, but Zhao Yuan raised his hand and said, "Let me think about it some more."

At this point, Zhao Yuan recalled something: "Chen He, I remember you went to the Northern Jurchens six years ago."

General Chen was taken aback, not understanding why Zhao Yuan brought this up. He nodded and said, "Yes, at that time I was a commander of a thousand men under the command of the Liang army. When an envoy came from Liang to the Northern Jurchens, I was responsible for escorting him."

"Have you ever seen anything called a potato in the Northern Jurchens?"

General Chen thought carefully for a while, then shook his head: "Never."

Zhao Yuan frowned and asked again, "How are the people's lives in the Northern Jurchens?"

General Chen said, "That place is rich in cattle and sheep, and the winters are much colder than those in Daliang. For half the year, it is covered in ice and snow. However, there are many merchants coming and going, exchanging medicinal herbs, blankets, furs and gems with the Northern Jurchens... By the way, the Northern Jurchens are beautiful women who can sing and dance, and they also produce Ferghana horses, each worth a thousand gold pieces."

Zhao Yuan pondered for a long time and came up with a plan.

He waved his hand, signaling General Chen to step down.

When Zhao Yuan returned to the backyard, Yan Zhen, who had slept in and missed dinner, was nagging the cook to make her some noodles.

The cook was a woman over forty years old, but she couldn't resist Yan Zhen's beauty and sweet talk. Even though she had already finished work, she rolled up her sleeves, started a fire, and cooked noodles for Yan Zhen.

As Yan Zhen squatted under the stove to help tend the fire, Zhao Yuan stepped into the kitchen and said, "Cook me a bowl of noodles too."

The cook was startled and quickly tried to bow.

Zhao Yuan waved his hand to indicate that she should not stand on ceremony, then walked to the stove, picked up Yan Zhen, and before leaving, he did not forget to instruct the cook: "When the noodles are cooked, bring them to the bedroom."

"……Yes."

Yan Zhen was dragged into the bedroom by Zhao Yuan, who grabbed him by the back of his collar. He got straight to the point: "Does the Northern Jurchens really have that potato-like thing you mentioned?"

Yan Zhen glanced at him: "If you don't believe me, then forget it."

"The journey to the Northern Jurchens is long and arduous. Even if we travel at full speed, covering two hundred li a day, it will still take several months. Before we go, I must ascertain whether what you said is true or false."

Yan Zhen understood his unspoken meaning: "So you're agreeing to let Hong Fu accompany me to Beijue?"

"Yes, provided you're not lying."

Yan Zhen thought for a moment, then put away his frivolous expression and said seriously, "The people of Beijue raise sheep and graze their livestock. The climate there is also suitable for growing medicinal herbs. Every year, they can produce a lot of furs and medicinal herbs for foreign trade, attracting many merchants from various countries to go there to trade. The potato seeds were brought to Beijue from distant overseas by these merchants."

However, potatoes have only recently been introduced to the Northern Jurchens, and the soil there produces limited yields. They haven't been widely cultivated yet, and the people of the Northern Jurchens haven't realized their benefits. If we can bring the seeds back before this winter, I guarantee you, within three years at most, potatoes will be enough to feed the entire Tingzhou.”

After listening to the first half of the story and comparing it with the information provided by General Chen, Zhao Yuan began to believe it to some extent.

But after listening to the second half, he felt that Yan Zhen was bragging—how could a princess who grew up in the deep palace and was pampered and precious know these things?

After pondering for a while, Zhao Yuan relented: "Make preparations. I will send you a team disguised as a merchant caravan. They will depart for Beijue in three days."

Yan Zhen's eyes lit up, and he began to make a request: "I want to bring my maid with me."

"can."

“Hongfu will come with me too.”

"Ah."

"Give me another order, and everyone who goes with me will obey my command."

Zhao Yuan: "...Okay, okay, okay!"

At this moment, the cook brought in two bowls of noodles. Yan Zhen took the chopsticks and ate while planning with Zhao Yuan.

"Since we're posing as a merchant caravan, let's bring some goods over to barter. Some of the gold and silver artifacts brought out from the imperial tombs have markings indicating they were burial goods, making them difficult to resell. It would be a waste to melt them down, so I'll take them to the Northern Kingdom to dispose of them."

Zhao Yuan thought for a moment and nodded: "Okay."

-

Over the next two days, Yan Zhen enthusiastically prepared for her long journey—she set off with the mindset of traveling, intending to take this opportunity to explore the scenery beyond the Great Wall.

On the day of departure, Yan Zhen looked left and right but couldn't find Hong Fu. Instead, he saw a familiar figure in black robes among the caravan that was all set to go.