Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 405 Outbreak
Before dawn the next day, the area outside the government army's granary in the southwest corner of Hefei was already packed with people.

Besides the three thousand soldiers who came to collect their rations, there were also quite a few who were eager to cause trouble.

Seeing that the door remained closed, the crowd pounded on it and shouted, "Open the door! Open the door!"

"What are you yelling about so early?" The warehouse clerk, exhausted from the previous night's work, could only grumble as he opened the door. His breath reeked of alcohol, and his face still bore the traces of a woman's lipstick...

"Oh, you're playing pretty fancy tricks." This further fueled the soldiers' anger.

"Damn it! I can't even afford to eat, and you guys are still out partying and womanizing!"

"As if we've never done this before!" The warehouse clerks, seeing the supply battalion soldiers in charge of distributing the grain arrive, mustered their courage and shouted loudly, "If you want grain, line up quickly! If you crowd here, no one will get any!"

The soldiers began to line up angrily, while the warehouse officials opened the warehouses and carried out tables, grain measures, and other utensils while whispering amongst themselves.

"Something's not right today, everyone's so irritable."

"How could they not be big? They were the last batch to receive rations. Other troops had already received them and knew what they were getting."

"I see quite a few people who received their rations are here today. Could they be planning to cause trouble?" someone worriedly asked.
"How about we switch to the new grain today?"

"Whose decision is it, yours or mine?" The others disagreed: "The warehouse manager isn't here. If we make decisions on our own, and he makes you make up for the losses later, can you afford it?"

The man remained silent, feeling embarrassed. Making him pay out of his own pocket was worse than killing him.

"Distribute them as they see fit. If it gets to the higher-ups, they'll deal with them." After some discussion, the most senior warehouse clerk made the final decision.

And so everything proceeded as planned...

The warehouse officials directed the supply battalion soldiers to carry bags of 'military rations' from the outer warehouse to the eaves, and then remove a corner of the seal from the sacks.

They would then skillfully kick the sack, and the grain inside would flow accurately into the wooden grain bin.

The musty smell of stale millet mixed with the powder from millet worms rose from the grain container, making people cough.

The soldiers at the front of the line to receive their rations reached out and grabbed a handful of millet from the bin. The grains were a dull gray with a greenish tinge, and crumbled into powder with a pinch of their fingertips.

"Zhou Guanku, are you sure you didn't send the wrong amount?" the soldiers questioned, holding up the rice in their hands.

"No. Look closely at these big red characters—'Military, Grain'. You can't read, can you?" The warehouse clerk pointed to the red "Military Grain" markings on the grain sacks.

"This is the third time we've received rations this spring, and each time they're worse than the last. This time, we can't eat them at all!" More people joined the complaining crowd.

"Chen Su's method of reducing internal heat, what do you know! If you don't want to take it, then get out, there are thousands of mouths waiting for you!" The warehouse officials then resorted to their usual bullying tactics, trying to suppress the other party.

However, they came here today with a lot of energy, so this will only add fuel to the fire.

"I'll lead you to the Gobi Desert!" someone shouted, suddenly throwing the grain he had received heavily at the warehouse clerk's face. It scattered all over the ground, and you could clearly see many rice weevils crawling in it.

"You guys eat this stuff!"

"Stop acting tough! Look where you are! Anyone who dares cause trouble in the granary is dead!" The granary officials were also enraged, but they were all bark and no bite, relying only on the protection of the supply battalion soldiers. "They were driven to their deaths by you! You're deliberately trying to kill them!" The soldiers were filled with righteous indignation and surged into the courtyard like a tidal wave. "Kill them! Cut open their stomachs and see what kind of rice they ate!"

"Don't do anything reckless! We're just following orders. We'll distribute whatever rice they tell us to distribute!" The warehouse clerks panicked when the angry soldiers punched and kicked them. They ran away with their heads in their hands, shouting, "Go find the officials! What kind of skill is it to bully us?"

"The officials will definitely come looking for you, and you can't be spared either!" The angry soldiers chopped open the grain sacks in the courtyard with their knives, and the grain spilled out with a gurgling sound; it was all old millet that had been stored for who knows how many years.

"Stop! You're breaking the law!" the warehouse officials shouted, then ordered the supply corps soldiers, "Stop them!"

"Don't touch those who are our own brothers!" the soldiers shouted. "If you touch them, you're not one of our own brothers!"

The soldiers of the supply battalion all stood aside, watching helplessly as the rioting soldiers rushed into the warehouse.

The soldiers then divided the grain in the storehouse, and found that it was all new rice without any mold!

"You clearly have new rice, yet you only give us old rice. What are your intentions?!" This time, they completely lost their composure, grabbed the warehouse clerk who had been beaten beyond recognition, and questioned him loudly.

"It's the order from above..." The old official, his face bruised and swollen, was panting heavily.

"Which superior?"

"Ma, Ma, the military advisor..."

"As expected, it's a man surnamed Ma. Let's go find him!" The soldiers then escorted the warehouse clerk and marched in a grand procession to the central military camp.

"Kill the hamsters, eat the new grain!" Someone with talent came up with a short and powerful slogan, and everyone shouted it together, venting their dissatisfaction.

Soldiers along the way heard the shouts and joined the main force in an endless stream. By the time they arrived outside the central camp, nearly 20,000 men had gathered, a dense and intimidating sight.

After all this commotion, the central army camp had already received an urgent report. Wei Fang, the Marquis of Yongchang County and General Mingwei who was temporarily in command, hurriedly ordered the camp gates to be closed and a state of emergency to be declared. Archers climbed the camp walls, and soldiers donned their armor and prepared for battle!
"Can anyone tell me what happened?!" Wei Fang was the eldest son of Wei Rui, the number one general of the Great Liang. He was magnanimous and upright, and had the same style as his father. However, he was far inferior to Wei Rui in terms of strict military discipline.

The generals exchanged bewildered glances. For the past year, they had had neither a commander nor any missions, and their lives had been far too comfortable. Hearing of the soldiers' mutiny, they were utterly dumbfounded.

"What's going on here all of a sudden?"

"Exactly, why do you have to cause trouble when you can just enjoy life?!"

"We must strike hard to deter others!" some shouted angrily, but it was all just talk; no one was willing to deal with the mutinous soldiers. This could easily earn them the wrath of the entire army. It wouldn't be good to be stabbed in the back on the battlefield.

"Stop shouting and find out what's going on!" Wei Fang ordered with a dark face.

"I'll go take a look." His fourth brother, Wei An, hurried out and went to the arrow tower next to the gate. He shouted at the chaotic soldiers outside, "What are you all doing here? Why are you all gathered here?"

"It's General Wei."

"Let General Wei know!" The soldiers then used bamboo poles to lift up several dying granary officials, shouting, "The newly issued military rations are all stale millet that even rats wouldn't eat! The people in the granary say it's the order from above. We've come to ask who really gave the order!"

(End of this chapter)