The fiercest soldier of the border army

"What? Two hundred and sixty coins per dou?! How can it be so expensive?"

"Wasn't it still 221 yesterday?"

In front of the rice shop, there was a ragged, hunched old man who had finally scraped together enough copper coins to buy rice, only to learn that the price had increased by forty coins!

How can anyone afford this!

"Get out if you're not buying! Don't interfere with our business! This is the price for the entire hot spring pool, no negotiation!"

The rice shopkeeper, impatient, chased the old man away and shouted, "Today's price for a bushel of rice is 260 coins! Tomorrow's price will be different!"

Several ragged men squeezed at the front, carrying empty cloth bags in their arms, their faces covered in dust.

They came to buy rice, but upon hearing the price, they could only look on with envy and hesitate.

Since Tang Shun ordered that the price of grain in Wenchi County should not be lower than 200 wen the day before yesterday, grain merchants have made a fortune, and the price of grain has risen three times a day and has continued to rise!

News of the grain price in Wenchi County spread like wildfire, and the surrounding prefectures and counties all knew that a pacification envoy who only knew how to enjoy himself and didn't care about people's livelihoods had arrived in Wenchi.

More and more merchants, hearing the news, risked everything, buying up cartloads of grain and flocking to Wenchi County.

All for making a fortune!

A price of 260 coins is enough to drive anyone crazy!

Ordinary people couldn't afford it, and even wealthy businessmen in the city found it a bit of a strain.

If most people didn't still have surplus grain in their homes, the overwhelming anger would have already engulfed the entire Wenchi County!

However, everyone inside and outside Wenchi knew that if grain prices continued to soar, an outbreak was only a matter of time.

At first, the people cursed in private, but with so many refugees everywhere, they could understand.

However, Cui Yuanlang, who was also a pacification commissioner, managed to make the price of grain in Lingwu County plummet to seventy-five coins in just one day!

When the news reached Wenchi, the people were almost in an uproar!

I heard that some chivalrous knights are lying in ambush around the county government office, just to take the dog's head off Tang Shun's neck.

Some people even turned Tang Shun's actions into folk songs.

Xie Anzhi walked through the streets and alleys, looking lost and dejected.

Not far from him, an old woman knelt on the ground, wailing, "My child ate tree bark, couldn't poop, and died from bloating!"

"If we had rice to eat, we wouldn't be like this!"

Xie An felt as if his heart was being torn apart. He quickly left and headed towards the county government office.

Halfway there, three children gathered in front of a dirt slope, stirring something in a bowl.

The older one stirred it with a wooden spoon and gave the thicker part to the youngest child.

Xie Anzhi looked around and assumed that these people had food to fill their stomachs.

To everyone's surprise, it turned out to be Guanyin soil!

The children mixed kaolin clay with water to make a paste.

Guanyin clay has the texture of food, but it is still clay.

If you don't eat, you'll starve to death; if you eat, you won't be able to digest it, your stomach will swell up so much you'll die from overeating!

Xie Anzhi's eyes were filled with tears. He wanted to stop it, but he also knew that the government granaries didn't have much grain left, and even if it was all distributed, the people would still die.

Unable to walk back to the county government office, he heard the sound of drums and music coming from the main hall.

Looking over, Xie Anzhi saw the melodious sounds of string and wind instruments playing in the main hall, mixed with the light laughter of women and the commotion of soldiers.

Inside the main hall of the county government office, the lights were on, with several oil lamps lit even during the day.

A long table was set up in the hall, with wine and meat prepared. Two dancers twirled and spun, their skirts billowing.

Tang Shun sat in the main seat, wearing a blue robe with the cuffs slightly rolled up. He held a gold cup in his left hand and tapped the table lightly with his right hand in time with the beat.

Several soldiers who had accompanied him sat at the lower end of the table, drinking heartily from their bowls. When the dance reached its most spectacular part, they clapped their hands and cheered.

Xie Anzhi clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his flesh!

My heart was burning with rage, with nowhere to vent it, and I couldn't help but feel a deep sadness!

"cough--"

He felt a metallic taste in his throat and quickly covered it with his hand.

Blood seeped from between his fingers.

Xie Anzhi strode back to his room, and without saying a word, he ground ink and picked up his brush!

He has yet to receive a reply to the letter he sent.

The military governor's office issued no reply, nor did the crown prince give any instructions.

At this moment, the streets of the city are littered with the corpses of the starving. Yesterday, a family of three on West Street died of hunger and cold. The mother held her young child, the father knelt on the threshold, and the stove inside the house was cold and covered with ashes.

There are even rumors that someone in Dongshi slaughtered and ate a sick and dead infant. The child's crying was heard to suddenly stop at night, and the next day half of the small body was found thrown into the stove.

He also heard that a family, having run out of food, traded their young daughter for half a bushel of rice, and the buyer left the city overnight with his people.

When the authorities learned of this, they did not investigate, only saying that "the transaction was voluntary and did not violate the law."

Xie Anzhi was writing furiously at his desk, the pages already stained with blood.

This letter contained no further admonition, but instead stated bluntly: "Emperor Shun indulged in unrestrained pleasure, causing grain prices to rise three times a day, reaching 260 coins per dou (a unit of dry measure) of rice! People resorted to cannibalism, and more than thirty people have already starved to death!"

"The people composed folk songs, vehemently criticizing Tang Shun! They said—"

"The Xiongnu are cruel, the north is cold, and the imperial envoy dismounts, causing hardship for the people."

A bushel of rice costs two hundred, yet it consumes lives; instead of saving the common people, it leads them to worship at the Buddhist altar.

They neither provide porridge nor care for the disabled, yet they force starving people to build temples and monasteries.

Hungry, he gnawed at the yellow mud, his intestines blocked; the official sought solace in fishing in the mountains.

The soldiers returned with their killing intent waning, but the common people had no way to enter the Yellow Springs.

In the past, they guarded the borders and drove out the barbarians; today, they wreak havoc on the road to Wenchi!

Finally, Xie Anzhi added:

"A rebellion is imminent at Wenchi; please dispatch a large army to quell it!"

He threw down the pen after writing, unaware that ink had splattered on his cheeks.

Without lengthy explanations, it simply presents the most authentic folk songs of the people on paper.

He grabbed the envelope, turned and went out, heading straight for the post station.

After delivering the document as usual, Xie Anzhi intended to ignore it, but when he returned to the county government office, he heard Tang Shun laughing loudly in the main hall, "Play another song, 'Spring on the Qinhuai River'!"

The dancer's fingertips lightly caressed the strings, and the melody began.

Xie Anzhi, unable to bear it any longer, smashed open the hall door!

The main hall fell silent for a moment.

Xie Anzhi rushed in, his eyes bloodshot and his clothes disheveled.

Without saying a word, he kicked the piano stand.

The zither player cried out in surprise, falling to the ground along with her zither. Her wrist struck the stone steps with a dull thud.

"What are you doing!" Cheng Feng was engrossed in listening when he suddenly flew into a rage, slammed his hand on the table, and stood up.

Xie Anzhi ignored him, took a few steps up the steps, faced Tang Shun, and forcefully overturned Tang Shun's desk with both hands.

Golden cups and bowls crashed to the ground, wine and meat spilled everywhere, and oily soup splashed onto the corner of Tang Shun's robe.

Xie Anzhi's chest heaved violently as he pointed at Tang Shun and roared hoarsely, "Are you really going to stand by and watch Wenchi become a living hell?!"

The hall was dead silent.

The dancer curled up on the ground, too afraid to move. Cheng Feng, his hand on the hilt of his knife, looked at Tang Shun with murderous intent.

Tang Shun slowly raised his eyes, waved for the dancers to leave, and looked at Xie Anzhi.

His eyes were calm, like deep water at the bottom of a well, without any ripples.

He reached out and wiped the oil stains that had splattered on his sleeve, his movements slow, as if everything that had just happened was nothing more than the wind blowing the curtains.

"Are you finished?" Tang Shun asked calmly.

"I'm done talking? Ha! Well, I'm done talking!"

Xie Anzhi laughed maniacally and roared, "More than thirty people in the city have already starved to death! Do you know that?!"

"Yesterday alone! A mother personally cooked the flesh of her youngest daughter and shared it with her eldest son! Just so that the family line could continue!"

"There's wailing and lamentation everywhere outside, and you're still here drinking and listening to music! The price of grain has already risen to two hundred and sixty coins! What exactly are you trying to do?!"

The main hall was in complete disarray.

Cheng Feng, Wei Zong, Liang Enyi, Zhu Hang, and Zhou Lin, who were sitting on both sides, all stood up.

Cheng Feng drew his knife and charged forward, yelling, "Damn it! I've been putting up with you for too long!"

"You've insulted my lord time and time again! You son of a bitch, go to hell!"

Enraged, Cheng Feng swung his blade, but Xie Anzhi neither dodged nor evaded, roaring, "Come on! Kill me!"

Blood was still seeping from the corner of his mouth.

"That's enough." Tang Shun glanced at Cheng Feng, who immediately stopped slashing.

The blade was no more than three inches from Xie Anzhi.

Tang Shun looked at Xie Anzhi, "Is Commander Xie losing his composure?"

"How can we remain calm!" Xie Anzhi's voice was hoarse. "To let the price of rice rise to two hundred and sixty coins! What is this any different from slaughter!"

Tang Shun pushed Cheng Feng's blade away and said softly, "Yesterday, I wanted to make things clear, but the magistrate suddenly arrived, and I didn't have time."

"Now, I'll tell you why we're raising prices!"

Xie Anzhi sneered, forcefully wiping away the bloodstains. "I'm all ears!"