Longzang

Chapter 219 The host and guest enjoy themselves
This official was none other than Sun Chaoen, the former county magistrate who had now been promoted to assistant prefect of Bianning County. Wei Yuan only discovered this old acquaintance while collecting information on all the newly established prefectures and counties, and thus secretly came to visit him.

Bianning County's capital is only 1,100 li (approximately 675 kilometers) from Hanyang Pass. Due to its proximity to the border, it can receive support from the tens of thousands of troops stationed at Hanyang Pass at any time. If the Wu tribe wants to invade, they must first break through Ningxi County, where Wei Yuan is located, before they can reach Bianning County.

Sun Chaoen served as the Assistant Magistrate here, a position that was both safe and prosperous, making it one of the most lucrative posts among the four prefectures. He was very filial, so the Right Chancellor made good arrangements for him, which shows the Right Chancellor's character.

After several months apart, Magistrate Sun had gained weight and become fairer-skinned. He looked round and kind, like a good person.

Sun Chaoen sent the steward away to urge the preparation of the dishes, carefully closed the door to his study, and casually set up a magical barrier. The spell was cast with a wave of his hand, without any hesitation, which showed that although he had been promoted and gained weight, his cultivation had not declined but had actually improved significantly.

After everyone was seated, Sun Chaoen didn't speak, but first looked at the two people next to Wei Yuan.

Wei Yuan then said, "This is Wang Yu, born into the Wang family, with a Heavenly Rank Dao Foundation. This is Miss Xu Yi, a direct descendant of the Xu family, also with a Heavenly Rank Dao Foundation. These two have gone through life and death with me, and can be trusted."

Sun Chaoen relaxed a bit and said, "That's good. Since we parted, my brother has accomplished a great feat in such a short time. You dared to erect a boundary stone in this remote region, saving countless lives. It is truly a great merit! I have also studied the classics for decades, but whenever I ask myself, if I were in your position back then, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to make such a decision."

Wei Yuan smiled wryly and said, "Back then I was young and impulsive, and I acted rashly because I couldn't control my temper. Now I'm just struggling to hold on."

Sun Chaoen said, "When my worthy brother comes to see me at this time, I think it must be for one thing: grain."

"Lord Sun's predictions are truly prophetic."

Sun Chaoen smiled slightly and said, "Yuan Qingyan is quite shrewd. Since he went to such lengths to devise this plan to cut off our food supply, he must have anticipated this. Let me first tell you about the current situation, my brother."

Sun Chaoen spread out a map on the table, pointed to several places in the eastern part of Ningxi County, and said, "I just received news that Governor Chen has decided to block the grain supply route and rebuild the military fortifications. This matter is being personally overseen by Admiral Yue, who is preparing to set an ambush for you. However, I think you will not fall for it."

These points are all crucial; Yuan Qingyan's choice to build military fortifications in these locations on that day truly left no way out for the border region.

Wei Yuan frowned and said, "The Witch Domain is difficult to traverse, and the supply convoys need flat roads even more. These military fortifications are indeed perfectly positioned; even if we have grain, we can't get through unless we take one down. Does Lord Sun know where the ambush is located?"

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "If this were in the early days of the Great Tang Dynasty, we would probably really have to fight. But now the Great Tang Dynasty is divided among nine states, and we are in the Western Jin Dynasty. We should value peace above all else and avoid fighting if possible."

Wei Yuan's heart stirred, and he asked, "Then how can we have both grain and not have to fight?"

Sun Chaoen said, “I expected you to come in the next few days, and I have already made some preparations. Even if you don’t come, I will still send someone to find you. It is common knowledge in the officialdom of the Western Jin Dynasty that officials travel thousands of miles for money. The current Western Jin Dynasty is like a large ship that leaks everywhere. Even if Chen Dao wants to be a patch-up artist, he can only patch up a few leaks by himself. There will only be more leaks.”

Sun Chaoen left his study, summoned the steward, and instructed him: "Send someone to Yue Youji’s residence and tell him that I have prepared a fine meal for him tonight and would like to invite him to come and enjoy it."

The butler took the order and left.

Sun Chaoen then chatted with Wei Yuan about current affairs in the Western Jin court, and then recounted in detail the backgrounds, experiences, and personalities of the four prefectural governors. These were all extremely important, and Wei Yuan took notes of them one by one.

A moment later, a private banquet was set up in the back room, and General Yue also arrived.

Entering the room was a spirited general who appeared quite young and possessed considerable cultivation. Wei Yuan used his Qi Observation Technique to observe that this person's Dao Foundation was solid and bright, indicating that he was at the upper level of the Foundation stage and had already reached the later stage of cultivation.

After closing the door and setting up his magic, Sun Chaoen introduced, "This is General Yue Qilin, the current guerrilla general of Bianning County. All eight thousand people in our county are under General Yue's command."

Wei Yuan and the others rose to greet him, which surprised General Yue.

Although Wei Yuan and the other two had changed their appearances, Wang Yu and Xu Yi, both from aristocratic families, still exuded an undeniable composure and grandeur that was impossible for ordinary people to imitate. Wei Yuan, on the other hand, gave him the feeling of darkness; he could not sense Wei Yuan's presence as long as he closed his eyes, but his primordial spirit was constantly stinging slightly, as if he were being targeted by a natural enemy.

Yue Qilin completely suppressed the arrogance that had lingered on his face, greeted them with a smile, and then took his seat next to Sun Chaoen.

After a few rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became lively, and Sun Chaoen said with a smile, "Actually, General Yue has another identity, and that identity is even more important. Our Grand Admiral Yue is the General's uncle."

“My dear uncle,” Yue Qilin added with a smile.

Wei Yuan was filled with awe.

Sun Chaoen then pointed at Wei Yuan and said, "This Mr. Zhang is a big spender from the west. He only does profitable business and only does big business."

Yue Qilin then asked, "What does Mr. Zhang accept?"

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "Right now, in the west, no, in the entire Ningxi, there are only two things that are most profitable: livestock and grain."

Oxen are rare in the Western Regions. In this area, the term "livestock" used by the upper classes has a different meaning, specifically referring to human sacrifices. Wei Yuan, after all, is now one of the top bandits in the Broken Domain, and he knows the slang of the Western Regions like the back of his hand.

Yue Qilin was slightly moved and said, "Sir, you have quite the skill. I wonder how much you can collect?"

"I'll take whatever you have, and pay you with immortal silver." Yue Qilin tentatively asked, "Then, do you have any specialties from further west?"

"With the war going on, normal trade routes have been cut off, but we still have some stock. The general is also aware of the situation there. When the army passes through, it's all barren land, and no caravans dare to come."

Yue Qilin glanced at Sun Chaoen, who understood and said, "We do have a surplus of grain, but we don't know what price Mr. Zhang can offer."

Wei Yuan had already discussed this matter with Sun Chaoen beforehand, and immediately said, "The price of military rations within the Great Tang territory is one tael of silver for ten catties. But this is the border, so the price cannot be calculated that way. My price is one tael of silver for fifty catties!"

Yue Qilin's hand trembled, spilling some wine from his cup. Wei Yuan raised the price twentyfold in one go! The military rations he had were all allocated by the imperial court; he didn't have to spend a single penny.

Yue Qilin slammed his wine cup down and said, "Forty catties! I'll take care of delivering the grain to your door!"

Wei Yuan revealed a charming smile and said, "General Yue truly possesses extraordinary abilities!"

Yue Qilin said proudly, "I can handle this little thing. He's my own uncle!"

"Price is no problem, General Yue, how much grain can you provide?"

Yue Qilin pondered for a moment, then said fiercely, "I'll give you 1.2 million catties, all top-grade military rations! But you have to do one thing for me."

"General Yue, please speak."

"Wang Kun, the commander of the second-to-last military camp in the south, is my sworn brother and can be trusted. I will have the grain transport team pass through him, ostensibly to deliver military supplies to him. When they reach the vicinity of the camp, have someone intercept the grain transport team. There will be a deputy commander in the grain transport team named Song Chao. I want this man dead!"

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "This General Song is a bit pedantic and has repeatedly ruined General Yue's plans. To make matters worse, he married a fair-skinned and beautiful young wife. General Yue already disliked him, and now he's taken a fancy to that young lady? This is a perfect opportunity to do both things at the same time."

Wei Yuan remained calm and said, "His appearance and Dao foundation information."

Sun Chaoen immediately took out a piece of jade paper and, with a flourish of his brush, drew a lifelike figure. The information below was written in tiny characters, not quite at the level of a master, but enough for an ordinary wealthy merchant to collect. In terms of the Six Arts of a Gentleman, Sun Chaoen's level was no less than Fang Hetong's.

"It's all here." Sun Chaoen pushed the jade paper over. Wei Yuan glanced at the words "late stage of Dao Foundation Establishment" and didn't look any further, handing the jade paper to Wang Yu to put away. Anyway, apart from his teacher, senior sister, and a few others, all those at the Dao Foundation Establishment stage were the same in Wei Yuan's eyes.

Oh, and we should also include that girl.

Now that the important matter was settled, the atmosphere changed. Wei Yuan said, "I came in a hurry this time, I didn't expect General Yue to be so generous. I only brought 10,000 taels of silver with me, which I will leave with Lord Sun for now. The remaining 20,000 will be delivered tomorrow."

Yue Qilin said, "Be careful on the road."

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "Although the Western Regions are vast, if we're talking about who can snatch things from Mr. Zhang, besides your uncle and Lord Chen, I really can't think of a third. I do hope that Lord Yuan can hear some rumors and intercept him alone."

Yue Qilin was immediately moved. He looked deeply at Wei Yuan and said slowly, "The Fifty Great Thieves of Zhantian are indeed worthy of their reputation. There have always been rumors that even Dharma Aspects have died at your hands. It seems that this is not unfounded."

Wei Yuan said calmly, "Indeed, there have been those who were blind enough to offer themselves up."

Yue Qilin immediately raised his glass: "Alright! Then I'll wait for Mr. Zhang's good news! I'll drink to that first!"

Sun Chaoen also raised his glass: "To General Yue finally win the heart of his beauty, I'll drink to that too!"

After several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere became even more lively. Sun Chaoen then said, "General Yue, the quantity this time is a bit large, so we'll need to be careful with the accounting."

Yue Qilin nodded: "Indeed, such a large amount of military rations cannot be solved by simply burning the granaries. Does Lord Sun have any better ideas?"

Sun Chaoen said confidently, "It's actually quite simple. The Western Regions are hot and humid, and military rations spoil easily. We'll divide the accounts into three parts. One part will be taken by Mr. Zhang, which is witnessed by everyone in the military camp. One part will be burned in the granary as is customary. The third part will be rotten. That's easy too. We'll pile sawdust at the bottom, put a layer of rotten grain on top, inspect it, and then burn it. The people inspecting the grain will all be our own people."

Yue Qilin was completely convinced: "Lord Sun is indeed very thoughtful!"

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "The key is to have Mr. Zhang as a big spender. He can take out tens of thousands of taels of silver without batting an eye. Only then can our system operate and all our knowledge be put to good use."

“Indeed, Mr. Zhang deserves three toasts!” Yue Qilin raised his cup and drank.

In the stillness of the night, the guests and hosts enjoyed themselves immensely.

The three riders left the county town under the cover of night and headed west.

Chen Dao's meticulously laid trap was thus sieved by his own people amidst the drinking and socializing.

(End of this chapter)