The fiercest soldier of the border army

Tang Shun was unaware that Xie Anzhi had sent three letters in succession. At this moment, he led Xie Anzhi to a small courtyard with blue bricks.

I heard that Li Qing'an has two daughters. The elder daughter's husband died four or five years ago, and she has been living as a widow in Wenchi County with her granddaughter.

This trip is to deliver the package that Li Qing'an entrusted to me.

"They did not provide porridge or care for the disabled, but forced starving people to build temples and monasteries."

"Hungry, he gnawed on yellow mud until his intestines were blocked; an official sought pleasure in fishing in the mountains."

"The soldiers return with their killing intent waning, but the common people have 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!"

The children's soulful singing voices rang out in the courtyard.

"This...is this about me?" Tang Shun was about to knock on the door when he heard a little girl singing inside, and he was completely confused.

Beside him, Xie Anzhi touched his nose. "Probably... right?"

Since Tang Shun made things clear to him, Xie Anzhi was full of energy and had already begun to make plans.

Perhaps the sound of their conversation reached the courtyard, for there was a sudden moment of silence.

Then, with a creak, the door opened a crack.

A little girl with a round head, about five or six years old, peeked out. She had bright eyes, chubby cheeks, and was wearing a faded red jacket.

"Who are you looking for?" she asked.

"By order of the military governor, I have delivered this package." Tang Shun handed the package forward.

"Oh~" the little girl exclaimed, blinking, then closed the door again. She shouted, "Mommy! Grandpa sent someone to deliver something!"

Footsteps came from inside the house, the curtain was lifted, and a woman came out.

The woman was tall and slender with a full upper body. She wore a high-waisted ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) with the waist tied under her armpits, which accentuated her majestic breasts.

She looked to be in her early twenties, with no heavy makeup, yet she possessed a natural, radiant beauty.

Especially her pair of watery, almond-shaped eyes, with slightly upturned corners and a captivating, shimmering gaze, like spring water rippling with waves.

The woman was not very old, but perhaps because she had given birth to a daughter and been married, she exuded a mature charm. Coupled with the noble air that came with the family of a military governor, she was irresistibly captivating!

Tang Shun glanced over it, his heart skipped a beat, and then he lowered his head and handed over the bundle with both hands.

"Miss Li, this item was sent by the commander on my way here."

The woman took it; her fingertips were soft and boneless, pausing slightly when they touched his palm.

She glanced at Tang Shun, her voice clear and gentle, "How is my father?"

"The military governor is busy with countless affairs every day, but his health is still quite good," Tang Shun replied politely.

The woman nodded, took the bundle, skillfully fumbled around, and pulled out a letter from the side, which she then began to read.

Tang Shun and Xie Anzhi stood outside the door, neither of them moving.

A moment later, she folded the letter, beckoned to the little girl, and said, "Little dumpling, take the things inside."

The little girl skipped and hopped as she took the bundle and ran into the house, humming the same lullaby again.

"The Xiongnu are cruel, the north is cold..." It is clearly a song of cursing, but it is sung in a cheerful tune, as if it were a funny story.

Tang Shun heard it clearly, his face remained unchanged, but a sense of absurdity rose in his heart. It really was an insult to him!

Wenchi County is indeed not lacking in people with outstanding literary talent, who can curse so fluently and melodiously!

Just as Tang Shun was about to take his leave, footsteps sounded at the courtyard gate, and an elderly woman carrying a basket entered, her face full of anger, cursing as she walked:

"Miss Yingchu, you have no idea!"

"This rice price is insane! My God, two hundred and sixty yuan a bushel! Is this robbery?! That Tang fellow, the magistrate, deserves to die a horrible death; he'll get struck on the head by lightning sooner or later!"

The old woman looked up as she spoke, saw Tang Shun standing in the courtyard, and paused, "Who are you?"

It turns out that Li Qing'an's daughter is named Li Yingchu.

Li Yingchu chuckled softly, covering her mouth, her delicate eyebrows arching. "Grandma Zhou, this is something Father sent to deliver."

"Sent by the General? Perfect!" Granny Zhou continued to clamor, "Young man, go back and tell the General that things have gone mad at Wenchi!"

"That pacification commissioner surnamed Tang has done absolutely nothing good!"

"I'll definitely pass it on later." Tang Shun's lips twitched, but he pretended not to hear and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Li Yingchu, saying, "I've troubled you for a long time, so I'll take my leave now."

He finished speaking and turned to leave.

Li Ying took two steps forward, swaying gracefully as she walked, and spoke softly, "Please wait, my lord."

"My father said in his letter that the road is not safe, with groups of refugees and bandits. When you finish your business here and return to Tingzhou, you can pick up my mother and me to go back together."

"Is this convenient?"

Tang Shun paused, turned around, and said, "It's convenient. I'll come pick you up personally after the matter is settled."

Li Yingchu's smile deepened. "Then thank you very much, sir."

Tang Shun bowed again and left with Xie Anzhi.

Tang Shun didn't look back, but he clearly felt that the beautiful woman behind him was staring straight at him, which was quite intriguing.

The courtyard gate behind us closed, but the nursery rhyme continued to play. The little girl's voice was clear and bright, and then a new version came through:

"The appeasement envoy, you heartless bastard..."

Xie Anzhi finally couldn't help but whisper, "My lord, she seems to know that you are the Pacification Commissioner."

Tang Shun didn't turn around. "So what if I know?"

"Since you know that, weren't the old woman's curses and the little girl's singing a veiled attack on you?"

Tang Shun raised his eyebrows. "So what if I did? Grain prices have gone up after all, it's normal to complain a bit."

The two remained silent the entire way, and by the time they returned to the county government office, it was already dusk.

Wei Zong has already begun conscripting laborers and is waiting for a report at the entrance of the inner hall.

Tang Shun had just stepped into the inner hall and hadn't even had a chance to sit down when Zheng Wenhan rushed in, his face pale and his forehead covered in sweat.

"Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened!" His voice trembled, and he almost jumped up.

Tang Shun looked up: "What is it?"

"My lord, why... has the imperial court... provided disaster relief?!" Zheng Wenhan gasped for breath. "Your... your subordinates, with over a hundred cartloads of grain, are parked at the county government office!"

"They said that the Crown Prince had specially approved the allocation of 10,000 shi of grain from the military governor's office!"

"Where did this food come from?!"

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Zheng Wenhan was extremely anxious. His words showed no joy at the arrival of the disaster relief supplies, only panic.

What is he afraid of? Is he afraid that food prices will plummet and he won't be able to make money through dishonest means?

Xie Anzhi narrowed his eyes and looked at Tang Shun.

It seems Tang Shun was absolutely right; the county magistrate had long been colluding with local grain merchants!

Tang Shun, sitting behind his desk, was stroking a bronze seal in his hand. Upon hearing this, he didn't stop his movements but laughed, "Magistrate Zheng, why don't you seem happy that the disaster relief grain has arrived?"

He leaned forward slightly. "Logically speaking, now that the disaster relief supplies have arrived, you should be able to breathe a sigh of relief."

Zheng Wenhan was slightly taken aback, his heart skipped a beat, and he clearly realized what was happening.

"You jest, Your Excellency," Zheng Wenhan said, glancing at Xie Anzhi out of the corner of his eye. "I am naturally delighted, but..."

"Inside the county government office, some local grain merchants questioned the authenticity of the disaster relief grain and demanded that the bags be opened to inspect the grain."

"Outside the county government office, crowds of people were gathered, eagerly awaiting the opening of the granaries to distribute grain."

Tang Shun put away the copper coins, stood up, and said, "Since we're all here, we should naturally open the granaries and distribute the grain."

His expression was grave as he gave the order: "Wei Zong!"

Wei Zong stood at the entrance to the inner hall, immediately cupped his hands in a bow, and said, "Your subordinate is here."

"Take your men and immediately take control of the county government's granary. If there is any resistance..."

Tang Shun's face was cold and stern as he looked at Zheng Wenhan and said, "Kill!"

"yes!"

Zheng Wenhan's face turned pale. "My lord, the county granary belongs to the granary official; this is against the rules..."

Tang Shun's lips curved into a very faint smile, revealing neither joy nor anger. "I have come under orders, and my words are the rule."

"Since they're all here, let's go take a look."

Tang Shun patted Zheng Wenhan on the shoulder, "Magistrate Zheng, you should be mentally prepared and not be frightened..."