Chapter 504 – Attack on Fengyi County (12)
On another side, Cheng’an County was in a state of agitation.
The Green Garment Army had grown too powerful in a short time. Each member was hungry for food, but they couldn’t provide enough to fill everyone’s stomachs. Instead, they resorted to looting and pillaging everywhere, but the amount of grain obtained through such means was limited, leading many to still go hungry.
The Green Garment Army had members but no one to manage such a huge “business.” They were shortsighted and had no idea how to operate.
In simpler terms, they were just a group of undisciplined and morally bankrupt bandits.
Even though their initial momentum was grander than that of the Red Lotus Sect, one harsh winter later, the Green Garment Army’s influence shrank while the Red Lotus Sect flourished, expanding their territory bit by bit and further diminishing the Green Garment Army’s survival space.
Now, Cheng’an County was desolate, with common people staying behind closed doors and only a few wandering the streets.
No one dared to show their grain; merchants who could escape had fled long ago, while those who couldn’t were completely stripped bare by the Green Garment Army, their life savings seized by force—those lucky enough to survive kept their lives, while others were killed on the spot.
The common people were in a state of grievance, secretly mocking the Green Garment Army, suggesting they should change their name to Bandit Army.
Last autumn, a severe earthquake in the capital led to a drastically low harvest, compounded by the Green Garment Army’s rampant chaos. The farming households in Cheng’an County lost an entire year’s worth of crops. After spring, there were no quality seeds to plant, and the little grain they had left was plundered by the Green Garment Army.
Many common folk couldn’t bear the hunger and the tyranny of the Green Garment Army, fearing for their lives. Those who could escape had fled.
The elderly, sick, and weak had to stay behind, surviving day by day on the grain they’d carefully saved.
Some even feared the smoke from cooking rice would attract the Green Garment Army, so they only dared to soak the rice in water and then eat it straight.
Last winter, countless common people froze to death, and now, every day in Cheng’an County, people were starving to death in plain view.
The county government had been occupied by the Green Garment Army, serving as one of their strongholds, yet it still retained its lavish decorations.
Outside, common folk were cold and starving, dying from frost and hunger, while the leaders of the Green Garment Army feasted like kings, devouring meat and drinking heavily.
However, they had no heart to enjoy such a lavish lifestyle, as Cheng’an County’s food supplies had dwindled.
If the food supply continued to run dry, not only would the common folk suffer, but they too would taste hunger.
“Damn it, weren’t we supposed to have a shipment of supplies? By now, even if they had to crawl, they should have arrived—why haven’t they shown up yet?”
After half a year, many of the rough leaders had put on weight, and this one was no exception—his fingers were stuffed with flesh, his knuckles bulging, looking like chubby sausages. His originally bronze skin had also turned paler.
“Could there have been a problem on the road?” The men in the county government were at least of a lower leadership level, each one with a rosy complexation, indicating they had lived quite well, “After all, those Red Lotus Sect demons are quite troublesome…”
The plump general pondered for a moment and said, “How about we send someone out to check…”
This shipment of supplies was crucial for the Green Garment Army in Cheng’an County. Without enough food, who knew what chaos would break out below—they might not even be able to control it themselves. The plump general furrowed his brow deeply, thinking about this.
A small leader went down to take orders, while another nefarious-looking small leader took the opportunity to suggest.
“General, don’t everyone say that Xiangyang County next door is rich beyond measure? If we truly run out of food, why don’t we go raid them? Seize that territory and never worry about food again?” As he said this, he recalled what the scout had reported.
According to the scout’s description, Xiangyang County was a place comparable to heaven, clean and orderly, with all new, beautiful houses that looked more like they fell from the sky than came from the human realm. Every common person there dressed like nobility, with no one starving or freezing to death…
At that time, the small leader had scoffed at such claims—there was no such good place in the world!
But now, with Cheng’an County facing a dire shortage and the promised supplies delayed, this suggestion made him anxious.
Initially thinking this proposal would earn him praise, and at the very least redirect the general’s attention, he instead received a scolding.
“If Xiangyang County were easy pickings, I would’ve raided it ages ago. Do you need to sit here and play captain after the battle?”
The general seethed, his jiggling flesh quaking as his eyes nearly disappeared behind the fat.
Not long after, a messenger burst in, panting heavily, “N-No—this is bad—”
“What is ‘bad’?” The general’s heart tightened.
The messenger caught his breath and said, “Our supplies have been raided—”
What!
Everyone in the hall was stunned, even the general stood up angrily, grabbing the messenger by the collar and lifting him off the ground, shouting, “Say it again—what was raided? Who the hell had the audacity to steal my food?”
The messenger struggled and said, “It was the transport cook… They ran back, saying they were ambushed but couldn’t see who the enemy was…”
The general’s face darkened, his cheeks trembling with heavy breaths.
“Too much!” He tossed the messenger aside, “Those pathetic transport cooks couldn’t even see who the enemy was….”
Just as the general was about to order the transport cooks to be executed to eliminate extra mouths wasting food, another shout came from outside.
“Report—”
The general took a deep breath and asked, “What now?”
“There are thousands of troops surrounding the city!”
What?
Everyone’s faces turned ashen, their expressions unreadable.
Food was stolen, and now enemies came knocking—it was just like adding rain to a leaky roof, bad luck all around.
“Is it those Red Lotus Sect demons again?”
The messenger said, “No, their banner reads ‘Liu,’ and they’ve started to challenge us.”
Liu?
Whose army was that?
Jiang Pengji expressed her unwillingness to engage in any kind of call-outs—when they were already at the enemy’s gates, why not just start fighting?
“What if they don’t come out?” Jiang Pengji turned to Wei Ci, asking, “Don’t you think that’s rather childish?”
Why must they engage in such a verbal showdown before fighting? Like a bunch of kids playing house!
Wei Ci, with a cold expression, said, “This is about morale, my lord, please don’t jest.”
Jiang Pengji hummed softly, quieting for a moment before playfully challenging Wei Ci with a teasing smile, “But what if some soldiers only speak dialect and can’t understand the official language, much less any other regional dialect? If the challengers don’t speak the same language, wouldn’t it be like a duck talking to a chicken?”
Wei Ci: “…”
Xu Ke, who had just finished organizing supplies and ensuring all siege equipment was ready, rode in just in time to hear this tricky question and nearly fell off his horse… This wasn’t something he could trouble Wei Zixiao with, let alone hold a conversation about to Mr. Yuanjing, who probably wouldn’t have an answer either.
Jiang Pengji mused aloud, “What if both sides had to agree on translations first, sending a fluent dialect translator each?”
After she finished speaking, Wei Ci looked at her with a melancholy gaze, his eyes brimming with despair.
