Chapter 1305 – Subduing Huang Song, Unifying Dongqing (Forty-Seven)
This matter stirred quite a commotion, and it inevitably reached Nie Xun’s ears.
Nie Xun stared blankly ahead, his pupils vacant, while the little soldier reporting to him anxiously hung his head, feeling a knot of unease in his heart.
After a while, with no movement from Nie Xun, the soldier gathered his courage to steal a glance, only to see Nie Xun clutching his shoulder with one hand and leaning on the table with the other. His knuckles turned white from the effort, and beads of sweat formed on his pale forehead from blood loss. The soldier was frozen in shock, but his keen eyes caught the dark red blood seeping through Nie Xun’s shoulder garment. Without thinking, he rushed over to support him as Nie Xun sagged to one side.
“Military Doctor—Military Doctor—hurry!!”
Nie Xun’s old injury had flared up again; the recently healed wound on his shoulder had burst open, but thankfully, it wasn’t a long tear, otherwise, it would have been a real problem.
After the military doctor treated Nie Xun’s wound and prescribed medication for the apprentice to fetch, Nie Xun gradually regained consciousness.
“Is the Military Adviser awake?”
The Vice General standing by the bedside called out, and several others gathered around, all instantly relieved.
Nie Xun’s face was pale, a look of confusion in his eyes. It took him a while to recollect his memories from before his fainting spell.
His demeanor was calm, and in a weak tone, he reassured them, “I’m fine; just need to rest for two days.”
One of the Vice Generals huffed, “If it weren’t for those unscrupulous merchants profiting from disaster by wildly raising grain prices, how could the Military Adviser have fainted from anger?”
“Merchants pursue profit; few are those with good intentions. They are all small-minded profit-seekers, eager to make money without caring about anything else.”
The situation in Chenzhou was already dire, yet those merchants didn’t hesitate to muddy the waters and profit from the war—such heartless scoundrels!
“They are short-sighted, only knowing how to exploit a gain, with no thought for the consequences!”
The Vice Generals expressed their indignation, wishing they could send troops to eliminate the greedy merchants hiking grain prices within the city.
As their voices grew louder with anger, the military doctor interrupted them.
“Generals, the Military Adviser needs peace and quiet to recuperate; any loud noise is inappropriate. If you have matters to discuss, please come back tomorrow.”
Nie Xun weakly reached out from beneath the covers, waving his hand to indicate that the military doctor need not say more.
He feebly inquired, “What’s the situation outside?”
A certain Vice General stepped forward to report, “The rice shop is still unwilling to budge; grain prices have risen another ten percent.”
Ever since news of the grain shortage in Chenzhou spread, the hoarding rice merchants seized the opportunity to inflate prices, selling old rice for high prices.
The water troops dispatched by Feng Jin were few, while the rice merchants in Chenzhou voluntarily assisted, acting as free water supply.
They fanned the flames and caused a grain shortage, while simultaneously selling their stock of old rice at extortionate prices.
At this point, grain prices were several times higher than usual, practically reaching sky-high levels, far beyond the purchasing power of ordinary families.
Even still, grain remained in short supply, selling out almost the instant it hit the shelves as crazed commoners snatched it up.
Those without reserves rushed to buy, while those with stores also joined in the fray, attempting to grab more.
The streets near the rice shop were packed with anxious commoners, with stampedes occurring more than once.
It was because of this that Nie Xun’s old injury had flared up again.
Seeing Nie Xun silent, the Vice General couldn’t help but ask, “Military Adviser, what should we do now? Why not arrest those merchants—”
Nie Xun questioned him, “What reason do we have?”
If they didn’t have a proper reason to arrest someone, this would only indirectly acknowledge the grain shortage.
An unverified rumor had driven the commoners to such frenzy; if it were confirmed, Chenzhou would be truly doomed.
The Vice General’s face turned red under Nie Xun’s questioning, stammering for a moment without a word. He truly didn’t know what reason to use for an arrest.
Another person chimed in, “Aren’t these unscrupulous merchants causing chaos and inflating prices deserving of death?”
“Arresting them is indeed necessary, but we can’t use this reason.” Nie Xun weakly partially closed his eyes, speaking with little strength, “These merchants are selling old rice from previous years, so it’s better to use another reason—like, these merchants, to avoid losses from hoarding their old rice, spread rumors of a grain shortage in Chenzhou to trick the commoners into panic buying. What do you all think about this?”
The faces of the people brightened; this reason worked well, allowing them to openly deal with those merchants while shifting the blame for the rumors back onto them, softening the real situation of the grain shortage in Chenzhou. As long as public sentiment stabilized and the commoners didn’t cause trouble, Chenzhou could hold out for another month or two!
A certain Vice General remarked, “Holding off for a while is still useful; another month or two will be the autumn harvest. Once new rice comes in, the grain shortage will be resolved.”
Nie Xun weakly nodded slightly, and seeing the fatigue in his expression, everyone wisely chose to take their leave.
Once they were all gone, Nie Xun opened his eyes, a hint of mockery flashing in his gaze.
What good would dragging it out until the autumn harvest do?
Chenzhou had suffered years of war; the food yield could hardly be improved, and it could not fill such a massive grain gap.
If only Huang Song would send some support, there might still be hope.
Yet, Huang Song had abandoned Chenzhou; otherwise, why had Nie Xun sent someone to convey messages for so long without a reply?
As clever as he was, he had already guessed Huang Song’s decision but couldn’t reveal the truth to others.
Chenzhou was already on the brink; if the soldiers below were to know this, they would collapse in no time.
Nie Xun’s coping strategy reached Feng Jin’s ears, and he chuckled, “Nie Chengyun’s reaction isn’t slow at all.”
Meng Hunyun shook his head, “It’s said that he was so furious upon hearing the news that his old injury flared up again. I wonder how much longer this body of his can hold up.”
Feng Jin replied, “He still lacks a little heat.”
Meng Hunyun was puzzled, “Lacks heat?”
Feng Jin smiled, “Our opportunity has arrived.”
At this moment, one must naturally stoke the flames and create waves, leaving Nie Xun with no time to spare.
According to Nie Xun’s plan, the rice merchants raising prices and spreading rumors in Chenzhou would be arrested, and the confiscated grain would be sold cheaply to the commoners.
Many commoners managed to buy grain, and those still hesitant immediately lost the urge to panic buy when they saw this, effectively debunking the rumors.
Nie Xun knew full well that this was merely treating the symptoms, not the root cause; given time, the commoners would soon discover the truth.
To stabilize the political situation, Nie Xun had no choice but to handle state affairs while injured, getting less than two hours of rest each day.
The military doctor repeatedly advised against this to no avail, allowing Nie Xun to proceed as he wished.
Ever since the old wound burst open, Nie Xun’s health had been unstable.
It wasn’t that the military doctor lacked skills; it was simply that Nie Xun refused to heed the medical advice.
On this particular deep night, Nie Xun’s body began to burn again; after dozing off for half the night, when he awakened, the room was pitch dark.
He tried to call out for someone, but his parched throat could make no sound. He could only laboriously sit up and stagger out the door.
Nie Xun raised a hand to wipe his burning face, even his breath felt scorching.
“What is that—”
He struggled to open his weary eyes, discovering the distant sky illuminated with a layer of orange light.
“The water has broken—”
