Chapter 226 – Lost a Son, Then Grain (Part 2)
The grain convoy was quite large, flanked by over two hundred soldiers disguised as officers. Each soldier held a glimmering spear, making anyone with a greedy eye think twice about trying to snatch the grain.
The cook transporting the grain was drenched in sweat, his face red as a ripe tomato, his clothes already soaked through.
Spotting a tea house beside the station ahead, he suddenly perked up.
“Milord, everyone has been hauling grain for so long! Let’s take a break ahead and then continue, shall we?”
The cook’s leader grinned as he approached the captain guarding the grain.
We’re all flesh and blood, not made of iron! After rushing so hard from Meng County with all this grain, the cooks were completely worn out, but these horse-riding soldiers didn’t seem to notice; anyone lagging behind got a whip across the back.
Fortunately, Hejian County was just around the corner—another half day’s journey and they’d be there.
Otherwise, at this rate, someone might just drop dead from exhaustion.
The soldier captain responsible for escorting the grain was actually the one spared by Jiang Pengji before.
Eager to redeem himself, he constantly pushed the cooks to their limits since taking on this grain transport mission, urging them to travel day and night, hoping to rescue Meng Liang as soon as possible… As days passed, his anxiety grew, feeling that if things were delayed, disaster would strike. Plus, in his desperate quest for glory, he didn’t even notice the exhaustion on the cooks’ faces.
Even if he did see it, he wouldn’t care.
Just a few cooks, how could they be compared with the Meng Clan’s Second Young Master?
If something happened to Meng Liang because these people were slow, who would take responsibility then?
Now, however, with Hejian County only half a day’s journey away, his anxiety eased a little. Feeling somewhat tired himself, he decided to follow the cook leader’s suggestion, waving his hand to allow the whole convoy to rest for half an hour.
Once granted permission, the cook leader felt as if he’d received a pardon and quickly shouted back to the cooks trailing behind.
“Move a bit quicker! The tea house is up ahead! Let’s go rest and have a bowl of tea!”
Hearing this, everyone suddenly felt re-energized, the long grain convoy moving like a wriggling worm as they slowly inched toward the tea house.
This tea house frequently hosted merchants traveling from north to south, so they had seen their share of grand events.
The landlady immediately put on a smiling face, welcoming a few soldiers who entered the tea house, while the others found a spot outside to sit.
Jiang Pengji, seeing the landlady busily running around, stood up with a friendly smile, even amidst Qi Guanrang’s incredulous eyes.
“Landlady, can I help you? Heh, I was in such a rush to leave that I forgot to bring any coins.”
The landlady glanced her over and broke into a warm smile. “Perfect timing! I need someone to serve a few bowls of tea to the gentlemen outside… Make sure to do it well; if you’re clumsy, you might owe double!”
Jiang Pengji chuckled, saying, “You don’t worry about that! I work in the fields every day, my hands are nimble.”
If it had been someone a bit harsher, they might have already started calculating; who can’t afford a petty penny for tea yet comes running over?
But Jiang Pengji could see that despite the landlady’s harsh appearance, she had a warm-hearted nature. Sometimes, if travelers lacked the means to pay for their tea, she would generously let them go.
In cold weather, she would even brew ginger soup to warm people up.
Qi Guanrang was left dumbfounded, watching as Jiang Pengji effortlessly blended into the grain convoy with a tray full of tea, all while flashing a friendly smile as she discreetly observed the contents of the grain carts.
Was this really the Liu Xi he knew, the son of the region’s governor?
Some would even believe she was a rough country bumpkin if they saw her now!
Meanwhile, on the other side, Jiang Pengji reaped substantial rewards.
Using the opportunity to serve tea, she casually complained and chatted, slowly extracting important information from a few cooks.
Naturally, the cooks who let slip these tidbits had no idea, especially with soldiers around, watching them closely.
“Hey, you little wildling, why are you so curious?” One soldier tilted his head back and downed a bowl of tea, still feeling thirsty and asked Jiang Pengji for another bowl. “Get me another one, I’m dying of thirst here…”
Another soldier laughed, saying, “He’s just a bit naive, asking a few questions isn’t a big deal.”
After all, none of the questions were too troubling, so they didn’t mind answering.
Jiang Pengji happily replied, “Two bowls of tea, just wait a moment!”
Qi Guanrang observed as Jiang Pengji swiftly moved about. If he didn’t know she had ulterior motives, he might have mistaken her for someone simply fulfilling a task… But for a scion of a noble family to go this far to gather intelligence, that really was something.
He couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. Half an hour later, after non-stop action, Jiang Pengji finally had a moment to sit down as the grain convoy resumed its journey.
“You really are… why go to all this trouble…” Qi Guanrang said, bemused.
“If I don’t do it this way, how else can I get close?” After being busy for so long, Jiang Pengji was a bit parched, downing a bowl of tea to cool down, then whispered to Qi Guanrang, “The grain in this convoy is all fine, and it’s not two thousand stones, but over three thousand! The Meng Clan is truly generous, but I wonder… will they still be laughing in a couple of days?”
Qi Guanrang raised an eyebrow, surprised, “I only saw you busy gathering information, but you never even got close to the grain carts being guarded by the soldiers. How could you know the grain was okay… and even the exact amount?”
Jiang Pengji replied, “That’s easy! Just look at how deep the cart wheels sink and compare the weight of the rice bags with and without sand. I also chatted with the cooks to roughly estimate the total grain amount…”
Although Jiang Pengji was bustling around, she was multitasking expertly.
She added quietly, “By the way, my reason for getting close to the convoy isn’t just to check the grain…”
Qi Guanrang raised his brows in suspicion. Approaching the grain convoy wasn’t primarily to check the grain?
Then for what?
He furrowed his brow slightly, recalling Jiang Pengji’s actions over this period, trying to guess her true intentions.
“No need to think too hard. I’m sending something over. If I don’t take this chance, doing it later would be inconvenient and could raise suspicion…” Jiang Pengji grinned as she sipped her tea, looking as relaxed as a scheming fox that had just succeeded.
Sending something… over?
