The speed of the convoy was not very fast, but it moved slowly and finally arrived at Nanping.
Only when he arrived in Nanping County did Wu Jie realize how serious the situation was.
There are refugees everywhere.
He thought for a long time and could only think of this sentence to describe it.
The only exit from Nanping Mountain to the south is a pass called "Zhennanguan". This pass was built during the Daqi era 500 years ago, and despite the passage of time and dynasty changes, it still clings to the road to the south.
.
The city wall built on the top of the cliff has a total height of more than 150 feet. The circular man-made slope leading downward is known as the "ladder to heaven". It is one of the famous scenic spots in Southern Chu. Wu Jie has always wanted to see it with his own eyes.
Look at this super large slope with a height of more than 500 meters and recall the great achievements of our ancestors. Today, we finally got our wish.
However, when he saw with his own eyes the large slope that was said to have been built with the help of immortals, the first thing he felt was not the magnificence of nature or the greatness of the ancestors, but deep shock and sympathy.
The long slope is full of disaster victims, and it's so dark at first glance that they can't be counted.
Because they were afraid that the victims would break through the pass, the gate was not opened. However, there were several large pots outside the city gate. A group of soldiers who were brave enough and had strong fists were guarding them. They cooked the food sent down from the pass in hanging baskets every day.
Thin porridge to maintain the minimum life of the victims.
They can only do this because their food is very limited.
Before the disaster relief team sent by the imperial court arrived, they could only rely on the food stored in the pass and the food sent by some enthusiastic people to provide relief to the victims. In order to use this food for as long as possible, the commander-in-chief Wang Qinian took the lead in drinking porridge every day.
After drinking the porridge for many months, his eyes turned green when he saw the grain truck.
"Brother Xu, you have always been in the capital and are well-informed. Do you know what happened in the capital recently?" After eating several portions of dry food in one go, Wang Qinian regained some energy. He asked in confusion and anger, "
What's going on with the court? When the disaster first appeared last month, I sent a courier to report it quickly, but the reply came back: "We'll wait until there is a disaster." When the disaster became serious this month, I sent a courier again and the reply was "Another time."
"It's something important." Later, all the victims gathered outside Zhennan Pass. I sent messengers every three days, but they were always just perfunctory... Are the big shots in the court crazy? Do they have to lead to a popular uprising?
”
Hearing this, everyone in the convoy was stunned except for Wu Jie, who was already suspicious. You looked at me, I looked at you, and everyone couldn't help but doubt their own ears.
"General Wang, you said...the disaster happened last month?" Shen Yi reacted first and asked hurriedly, "When was it last month?"
"The first time I sent a messenger was on the tenth day of September." Wang Qinian counted the time on his fingers. "The second time I sent a messenger was on September 28. The victims started to arrive at Zhennanguan on the sixth day of October. About ten
The situation became very serious on the 15th day of the lunar month...What happened? Don’t you know?"
"I'm afraid you won't believe me if I tell you. We really don't know. The news the court received is that there are hints of a disaster on the third day of October. If food cannot be delivered before late October, the disaster may expand. That's why we sent relief
Team, we are the first batch." Xu Hai frowned almost into a line, "The two sides of the story are completely inconsistent!"
Now it was Wang Qinian's turn to be stunned. After thinking about it, he ordered the messengers to be found and asked to find out.
Of course he didn't lie, and the people in the disaster relief team certainly wouldn't lie, so the problem probably lies with these messengers!
After a few minutes, the word "most likely" was crossed out.
"The four couriers at the front and back are all missing?" Wang Qinian almost jumped on the table and spit on the deputy commander's face, "Four big men were lost all at once, and you only found out now? You, deputy commander
How did you become a soldier!"
The situation is now very clear. This disaster is not only a natural disaster, but also a man-made disaster!
"Someone must be causing trouble, and this person is very powerful!" Xu Hai analyzed with a gloomy face, "It is not difficult to bribe the messenger, but those replies all have the seal of the imperial court, and it is not easy to forge those seals.
”
"Not only is there a seal, but there is also a handwritten reply from the right minister of the Ministry of Revenue." Wang Qinian dug out a letter from the cabinet, "In the past few years, he has approved all the supplies and other things in Zhennanguan, and my handwriting is still the same.
We know each other."
"Then there is something wrong with this minister, or someone forged his documents." Xu Hai habitually touched the wine bottle at his waist, but found nothing. Then he remembered that he had already made up his mind to drink wine before the disaster relief was completed.
I didn’t touch it, and I didn’t even bring out the wine bottle.
He sighed and continued: "In addition, I have another question - you see, there are at least tens of thousands of victims gathered here. The disaster happened on September 28th, and so many people gathered here on October 15th.
Many victims, right?"
Wang Qinian nodded.
"From September 28th to October 15th, that is less than twenty days. Although Nanping County has always been relatively short of food, it is not as if a large number of disaster victims are short of food in just twenty days.
Let’s escape here! Don’t they have any food stored at home? Even if the food stored in their home is flooded, are the official warehouses everywhere just decorations?"
Xu Hai's question made Wang Qinian think deeply. Governments in various places have official warehouses and reserve a large amount of grain. These grains are not allowed to be used in normal times. They can only be used during wars and disaster relief - and now, it is said that these grains are used.
Time!
"What is the scale of the official warehouse in Zhennanguan?" Xu Hai asked again.
"It's relatively small. We have limited space here and can't build a big granary."
"But even the official warehouse in Zhennanguan has maintained the lives of the tens of thousands of victims here for almost ten days. What about the official warehouses in other places?" Xu Hai's face became more serious, "I remember that it is about two hundred miles south from Zhennanguan
, is an important town in Nanping County. The official warehouse there should be prepared based on the monthly consumption of 100,000 people, right?"
Wang Qinian was surprised that Xu Hai knew so much about the situation in Nanping County that he had nothing to say except nodding his head.
"Then let's talk to some victims and ask about the situation over there." Xu Hai sighed deeply, "I have a bad feeling. I'm afraid we'll get into big trouble this time!"
His hunch was indeed right. The victims unanimously said that the official warehouses in various places were almost empty, and the food that should have been piled up in mountains disappeared without a trace.
This news is really shocking. Not to mention people like Shen Yi who have never seen much of the world, even Wang Qinian, the commander-in-chief, and Xu Hai, a veteran from the battlefield, have never heard of it.
For a moment, the military hall was completely silent, and you could hear a pin drop clearly.
Seeing this situation, Wu Jie, who had already received the news from Wei Shu, finally couldn't help but speak.
"Master Xu, Master Wang, among the civil and military officials in Nanping County, who can have so much energy to move all the official warehouses from all over the country without a trace?" He asked in a "speculative" tone, but the underlying meaning was But it is clear.
Xu Hai and Wang Qinian looked at each other, and both saw distress and disbelief in each other's eyes.
It’s not that they don’t know the answer, but the weight of the answer is too heavy and they can’t bear the responsibility!
"Who is it?" Wu Jie raised his voice and asked again.
Xu Hai’s eyes flickered, and Wang Qinian’s eyes wandered.
"It's already this time, do you still want to cover up for him?" Shen Yi couldn't stand it anymore and said coldly, "Who else could it be besides Ning Wang Zhu Quan!"
Hearing the name "Zhu Quan", Wu Jie nodded slightly, took a step back, and returned the leading role of the discussion to Xu Hai, Wang Qinian and others.
The matter is already obvious and there is no need for him to remind you.
Ning Wang Zhu Quan is the only king with a different surname in Southern Chu who has real power.
His ancestors were warlords in the south. When the Da Qi Dynasty was full of faint kings, General Zhu was the first to raise the flag of righteousness to resist the tyranny. He also defeated the Qi troops who came to attack several times, fundamentally shaking the Da Qi Dynasty. However, the hero was a super home-loving freak who refused to go north of Nanping Mountain. He only concentrated on running a territory like a paradise in troubled times, and at the same time provided logistical support to Taizu Taizu of Chu.< /p>
Later, when Da Chu was established, he was granted the title of King Ning. The Taizu of Da Chu erected a stele as an oath that King Ning would be hereditary and the Zhu family would inherit Tiannan forever. Zhu Quan was his descendant and the contemporary King Ning.
Zhu Quan had a reputation as a virtuous man. He practiced martial arts when he was young, but later claimed that "martial arts were not enough to stabilize the country." He gave up martial arts and followed literature, and became a disciple of a famous minister to learn how to govern the country. A few years later, he returned to Nanping County and served as the temporary regent of government affairs as the prince. , managed everything in an orderly manner. Not long ago, the previous generation King Ning died of poisonous insects while hunting. He officially succeeded him and received unanimous support from the court and the people.
In Nanping County, who can silently empty out the official warehouses in various places, can penetrate his own power into Zhennanguan, buy off all the messengers trusted by General Wang, and can also expose the secrets of others? It’s time to let them evacuate in time... No matter what, only he can do it!
"Why is King Ning doing these things?" Wang Qinian asked, "What good does it do to him? Can he still capture Zhennan Pass? As long as he cannot capture Zhennan Pass, everything he does will be in vain!"
"Why do you think he needs to attack Zhennanguan?" Xu Hai asked back, "Even your messenger is his, so what's the difficulty in trying to evade you and let him pass directly?"
Wang Qinian was suddenly speechless, grinning but speechless.
"It's really unreasonable! As a prince of a county, he deliberately trapped the people in fire and water. How can he be tolerated?" Shen Yi's eyes shone with cold light, and the murderous aura overflowing forced everyone except Wu Jie to stand. Unstable, they all retreated.
"If Master Shen wants to take action, count me in." Wu Jieze has already made up his mind to eliminate evildoers - if a heartless and crazy guy like Zhu Quan is not eliminated, God knows how many more people he will harm!
Looking at their attitudes, Wang Qinian suddenly felt as if his head was as big as a bucket.
The so-called state-owned legal family has family rules. King Ning Zhu Quan is the most important minister of the Southern Chu Kingdom. Even if he makes any mistakes, he must carefully find out and then the emperor will personally supervise the case-maybe even grant amnesty. After all, the lives of millions of people A life is not worth the life of a prince, not to mention that investigating Prince Ning will definitely have a huge impact and the risk is too high.
But he did not dare to stop Shen Yi and Wu Jie. Although Jiuzhou was large, there were not many innate martial arts experts. These experts did not need to rely on the country. On the contrary, countries were actively wooing them to fight against all kinds of monsters that were beyond the reach of manpower. And disaster. If the two innate masters were indignant and killed Prince Ning, the emperor would not only not be blamed, but would be happy.
This at least shows that these two innate masters have great intentions!
However... the emperor will not blame Shen Yi and Wu Jie, but he may not severely punish Wang Qinian!
If King Ning had not died and was pardoned by the emperor, he and Wang Qinian would also have been given a lighter sentence; but if King Ning had died and the case was completed, he would not be able to escape the charge of dereliction of duty, incompetence, and ineffectiveness in doing things. Removal from office would be a minor offense, maybe. To be designated as a member of Prince Ning's party... that would cost you your head!
"This matter is too big to be drawn to a conclusion easily. I think it is more important to provide disaster relief first." Seeing Wang Qinian's face turning pale, Xu Hai, who understood the reason, quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, "Two heroes! If it is really King Ning who did it, Then he can't escape the punishment of the national law. But Prince Ning can't escape anyway, and there is no rush to kill him in a day or two. The victims can't wait another day!"
What he said made sense. Everyone had to suppress the doubts and anger in their hearts and go about preparing for disaster relief.
The discussion in the Military Council was also silenced by Wang Qinian. This chapter has been completed!
