I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 411 The one who seized the pass: Wei Yan of Yiyang!

Wuguan.

The garrison commander of Wuguan lazily propped his feet up on the table.

On the table, there were grapes from the Western Regions, sweet dates from Hedong, tangerines from Jingzhou, and sour plums from the Central Plains... piled together, colorful, fragrant and beautiful.

He leaned lazily against the couch, fanning himself with a bamboo and chicken feather fan to combat the last vestiges of summer heat, while complaining to his military advisor, "Why did you suddenly go into seclusion?"

"I was planning to make another million and then quit, but then this happened! What a pity! What a pity!"

The military commander also sighed, "Who can say otherwise?"

"General, you know me. My family isn't exactly wealthy, but I heard that working in Wuguan was a lucrative job, so I spent a lot of money to get transferred there... and after only two months, Wuguan was sealed off! I didn't even recoup my investment! Sigh..."

The garrison commander had initially thought his life was rather miserable, but upon hearing the military commander's words, he immediately burst into laughter!

Even at his worst, he had still amassed a considerable fortune in Wuguan. This wealth could easily buy thousands of acres of fertile land in Guanzhong or Hebei! Then his descendants would never have to worry about hardship again!
"What a pity~~~"

The garrison commander of Wuguan recalled the past, when countless caravans passed through Wuguan and would always bring him some benefits, more or less! But now? Not a single bird in sight! Who is he supposed to ask? Who is he supposed to take it from?

"I wonder when this customs and trade area will reopen!"

Just then, a scout suddenly came to report—

"General! A caravan has been spotted approaching from the south!"

"Damn it? How long has the border been closed? Why are there still caravans coming?"

The garrison commander of Wuguan didn't even bother to listen: "Tell them to get lost!"

"General! No!"

The military commander standing nearby suddenly became excited.

"The general was just talking about when to resume trade, but now that trade has come, why are you trying to drive them away?"

The military commander saw a deep green expanse.

"This is great! If no merchants went there, where would we get the money? Hmm?"

The garrison commander of Wuguan suddenly became interested as well.

From frugality to luxury is easy, from luxury to frugality.

Having grown accustomed to the profits of smuggling, having experienced the bustling smuggling scene and the days when the daily earnings had to be carried in sacks, now they are forced to live a life of meager fare.

The garrison commander of Wuguan glanced at the glistening grapes on the table.

Of all fruits, none can compare to the sweetness of grapes.

To preserve the grapes, he even built an ice cellar in Wuguan!
However, fruits and vegetables spoil easily.

No merchants have passed through for so long that even with an ice cellar, the grapes cannot be kept fresh. Fine black spots have appeared on them, and the taste is quite different from before. As for the texture... it is even more different!
As long as trade continues, he will not only have fresh grapes to eat, but he will also be able to earn the million dollars he's been eyeing!

But the garrison commander of Wuguan was still worried: "No! What if someone reports this to His Highness?"

"General, you're confused! Didn't His Highness summon troops to Hedong before? Now that he's not in Guanzhong, the only people in Guanzhong above you are Zhong Yao, Xiahou Dun, and Guo Huai, who His Highness left to guard Chang'an! What are you afraid of them for?"

"and……"

The military advisor tempted him, saying, "I heard that the general recently had another child. With so many children, how can you support them if you don't make more money?"

The garrison commander of Wuguan suddenly felt a little tempted!

However, he was also cautious: "I heard that the Emperor Liu Miao of the Han Dynasty has recently arrived in Xiangyang. We must be wary of whether this is a treacherous scheme by Liu Miao!"

"General, you are overthinking it! Given Liu Miao's status, if he really wanted to attack Wuguan, why would he need to go through all this trouble? He could simply send his troops directly; why would he send a merchant caravan to probe the enemy?"

Meanwhile, the military commander licked his lips and said, "And if it really was sent by Liu Miao, wouldn't that be even better?"

The Wuguan garrison commander didn't react at first, but after seeing the sinister smile on the other party's face, he immediately understood!
If it is found that they are related to Liu Miao, wouldn't it be better to just swallow their goods?
"Okay!"

The garrison commander of Wuguan put down his big foot, and his thick thumb groped and probed into the ground.

"I'll go see who's so reckless as to transport goods to Guanzhong at this time! Damn it! Sometimes I really admire those merchants; these guys are really willing to risk their lives for money!"

The garrison commander of Wuguan, fully armored and with his belly protruding, came to the city gate.

"My goodness! How come there are so many things?"

At a glance, there are probably dozens of large trucks!

Moreover, the tracks of those large trucks are clearly very distinct, indicating that they were loaded with heavy cargo!
"interesting!"

The gates of Wuguan were opened.

The military commander led Yuan's soldiers out of the city and surrounded the carriage.

"Who's in charge?"

"Sir! It's me!"

A burly man with a Yiyang accent came up to him and bowed.

"My family name is Wei, my given name is Yan, and my courtesy name is Wenchang!"

Wei Yan bowed to the military commander, seemingly filled with trepidation.

"Wei Yan? Judging from your accent, you're from Yiyang?"

"Sir, your ears are truly remarkable!"

"Enough nonsense! Since you're from Yiyang, you should have known about the Wuguan Pass being sealed off! Why are you still leading so many people to try and enter the pass?"

The military commander's words already revealed a look of suspicion, and he put his hand on the hilt of his knife, ready to kill and rob at any moment!
"Sir, sir, please calm down! It's like this..."

Wei Yan continued to be obsequious, while a bitter expression appeared on his face.

"We are well aware that we cannot trade with Guanzhong!"

"But these goods were originally ordered by nobles in the north! Only by transporting the goods over can we receive the money."

Wei Yan pointed to the people behind him: "We've risked our lives for these goods! If we don't get the money, we'll all starve! Our wives and concubines might even be sold into slavery!"

Wei Yan calmly placed a very heavy gold ingot into the military commander's hand: "Please have pity on us merchants! If this deal falls through, we'll be dead soon!"

"Humph!"

Although the military commander snorted coldly, the coldness on his face had clearly melted away.

Clearly, he believed that merchants like Wei Yan, like himself, were victims of Yuan Tan's sudden policies.

However, the military commander remained extremely stern: "Enough! Rules are rules! Among scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, you merchants are the most cunning! That's why your status is so low! Who knows if you're lying?"

Wei Yan panicked and immediately opened his clothes.

This action startled General Sima! Just as he was about to order the soldiers to step forward, he discovered that Wei Yan was simply showing him the dense patches inside his clothes.

"Sir! If I were lying to you, I would surely die a horrible death!"

Even Wei Yan, a man as imposing as an iron tower, had tears welling up in his eyes.

“My family wasn’t wealthy before. I just wanted to leave more money for my descendants. I hesitated for a long time before choosing to go into business.”

"But unfortunately, because I didn't have enough capital, I had to talk myself hoarse and run myself ragged to find this job! Who knew I would run into this bad luck... Alas!" Hearing Wei Yan's words, the military commander felt an even stronger sense of empathy!
Soulmate!
He was the same! He finally managed to scrape together enough money to be transferred to Wuguan, thinking he could make a fortune with this lucrative post, but then Yuan Tan suddenly ordered the pass to be closed. Wasn't that going to get him killed?
The military commander's gaze toward Wei Yan suddenly filled with sympathy!

"I see……"

The military commander glanced back at the large carts following Wei Yan and asked, "Is this what you meant by 'things' for the high-ranking officials and nobles in the north?"

"Exactly."

"Open them all! I need to inspect them!"

"Sir! The things in here are extremely valuable! You mustn't touch them!"

bass!
The ring-pommel sword is drawn!

Enraged, the military commander pointed the tip of his knife at Wei Yan: "What I do is none of your business! Why don't you open it now?"

Wei Yan had no choice but to have the goods unloaded from the carts and inspected by the guards at Wuguan Pass.

"Ok!"

"hiss!"

"They even have this?"

"..."

As the inspection proceeded, gasps of surprise rang out. The Wuguan garrison commander above the hook, feeling a surge of excitement, disregarded his rank and personally went out of the city: "What's all this fuss about? Hmm?"

However, when the other party saw the goods unloaded from the vehicle, they were also stunned!
Precious silks and teas were packed together in crates! Items of equal value to gold were piled up like worthless junk!
There are also renowned Jingzhou white porcelain, Jiangdong pearls, and Jiaozhi gemstones, all available here!
In an instant! A fierce killing intent flashed in the eyes of the Wuguan garrison commander!
Murder and robbery!
If I can secure this shipment, I will immediately have enough capital to live a life of wealth!
The military commander beside him also sensed the killing intent of the Wuguan garrison commander and quickly whispered in his ear: "General, wait! Take a closer look at those porcelain pieces!"

porcelain?

What's so interesting about that?

Fine texture, bright color, and glossy! It's clearly a top-quality product!
However, when he saw the patterns on it, the garrison commander of Wuguan was completely dumbfounded!

There are words on those porcelain pieces!
The Bohai Gao clan, the Fanyang Lu clan, the Qinghe Cui clan...

Anyone with a brain knows who the buyers of these porcelain pieces are!
The garrison commander of Wuguan then remembered that there was indeed a custom of writing the surnames of powerful families on valuable porcelain.

It is said that it was caused by Liu Miao, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, who neglected his duties...

The garrison commander of Wuguan had never had the opportunity to come into contact with these things before, so he forgot that the porcelain was actually "marked with a name".

suddenly!

The other party had a bad feeling!
"Let's go look at something else!"

Not surprisingly.

On some high-end silks and on some precious utensils, the surnames of wealthy families from Hebei were inscribed.

Such a sophisticated approach was naturally intended to highlight the difference between the wealthy and the common peasants.

But this also made the garrison commander of Wuguan realize—

Damn! Even if we got our hands on these things, we probably wouldn't be able to sell them!

The ultimate goal of the Wuguan garrison commander in amassing wealth was to purchase land, become a new landlord and a new powerful clan, and then associate with established and influential clans.

If I were to commit murder and robbery today, and if I were discovered in the future, would I have any chance of survival?

"Grass!"

The general guarding Wuguan felt frustrated at the thought that he had no chance to possess so many treasures!

"Sir~"

Wei Yan was very sensible; he immediately ordered someone to bring over two boxes.

"These things have no names on them; they are specifically for offerings to the military officers!"

"If you, sir, let us pass and save our lives, we will be eternally grateful to you!"

The garrison commander of Wuguan was furious and immediately cursed, "What use is your gratitude to me, you born of concubines! Didn't you hear or see His Highness's orders? Get the hell out of here!"

Wei Yan trembled, but managed to recover and could only offer a bitter smile.

"I see. Then I won't bother you any longer, General."

As Wei Yan ordered his men to pack up their belongings, he sighed, "It seems we can only try our luck in the Hulao area!"

"Wait!"

The garrison commander of Wuguan stopped Wei Yan, looking suspicious, and asked, "What happened at Hulao Pass?"

"The general is unaware?"

Wei Yan looked surprised.

"Since the closure of the border, although trade has been officially prohibited, it is still possible to travel from Hulao Pass to Hebei in private."

"It's just that the fees there are extremely high, and it's also extremely dangerous, so we usually don't want to go. But now it seems we have no choice but to give it a try!"

The Wuguan garrison commander's face suddenly turned from red to white, then from white to green: "Damn you beast! I'm following the rules here, and you dare to disregard His Highness's orders at Hulao Pass? No wonder I wasn't collecting enough money for a while, turns out you were helping that beast rob me!"

With a determined heart, the garrison commander of Wuguan simply stopped worrying about everything else!
"In the past, that was fine! But..."

The other person's eyes darted around, and Wei Yan immediately realized what was happening. He quickly moved two more boxes of goods: "General, look..."

"Hmm! You're on the right track!"

Although the garrison commander of Wuguan was still dissatisfied, he held back because he thought that with the pass now closed, goods from the south could probably fetch a good price in Guanzhong.

"You guys really got a great deal this time! Be more considerate next time you pass by!"

"understand!"

Wei Yan agreed with a simple smile, and at the same time quickly called for his men to enter the pass as if afraid of delaying even a moment!
The military commander also came over to look at the contents of the box. Seeing that they were all high-quality tea leaves and pearls, he nodded with great satisfaction.

"General, see what I told you...~~~!"

The military commander's boastful voice suddenly trembled!
In an instant, the head of the Wuguan garrison commander appeared in the box, his eyes wide open, staring intently at him.

But when he looked up, he saw Wei Yan, who had been so amiable just moments before, now holding a ring-pommel sword, his face covered in blood, staring intently at him.

The military commander suddenly realized what was happening and hurriedly shouted, "Enemy attack—"

Hand up and down!
Wei Yan immediately beheaded the military commander, and carrying him and the head of the Wuguan garrison commander together, charged towards Wuguan!
"The enemy general is dead! Those who surrender will not be killed!"

"The enemy general is dead! Those who surrender will not be killed!"

The seemingly honest merchants behind Wei Yan suddenly transformed into fierce elites, charging into Wuguan Pass in a massive wave of attack!

Moments later, Wei Yan took the lead and seized control of the armory and city gates.

"Wuguan Pass is in our hands!"

Wei Yan shouted to his personal guards, "Quickly report to His Majesty! Tell him that Wu Pass has been breached! The one who seized the pass was Wei Yan of Yiyang!"

　My family members are mostly fine after their IV drips, so I rushed back to write and thankfully made it in time. However, I need to go to the hospital again tomorrow morning, so the update tomorrow noon might be delayed until the afternoon. Please forgive me, dear readers! ~~~(`) Sending love
　　
　
(End of this chapter)