The rain was still dripping. If the team members were relaxed and happy to have a rest last night, they were a little worried today.
The ancients did not like rainy days, not only because it was troublesome to hold an umbrella and the roads were muddy, but more importantly, it was easy to get sick on rainy days.
Boom…
The rain was accompanied by thunder. The thunder was so strong that it hurt the ears of the listeners. However, the rain was getting heavier and the rain would not stop for a while. Fortunately, the place where they camped was relatively reliable. It was not flat ground, but slightly sloping, so water would not accumulate.
Qin Fang called Niu Da over: "How long will the rain last?" He frowned. Even if he didn't care about the weather, he was a farmer. He didn't like rainy days since he was a child. Every time it rained, the elders in the village would nag about it. As children, they understood it after hearing it many times. Moreover, when he was a child, he was also playful. When there were adults in the village on rainy days, they would restrict him from going out to play. Therefore, he really didn't like rainy days.
Niu Da looked at the rain and the weather. The sky was overcast and thunderstorm-filled, like the face of an old man in his seventies or eighties. It was really not good to look at. He thought for a moment and gave a rough estimate: "About four or five days."
Qin Fang's heart sank when he heard this.
Niu Da said again: "Maybe it doesn't have to rain all the time, maybe stop for a while, and then rain again."
Qin Fang nodded to show that he understood. Then, he went to look for Kunshi, but couldn't find him. He saw Tao Shan and asked, "Where's Kunshi?"
"My lord, Captain Kun took some people to the county town to buy ginger and brown sugar. Madam said that considering the situation, the little we bought yesterday will definitely not be enough, so we will give everyone three bowls a day." Tao Shan said, "Captain Kun said that considering the situation on rainy days, the ginger and brown sugar in the county town may not be able to meet our needs, so he may have to go to the neighboring county to purchase."
Qin Fang nodded and stopped asking about the matter. He turned around and went to find Captain Yang.
Captain Yang was helping the doctor in the tent. On rainy days, most of the people were in the tent, and the busiest person was the doctor's side.
Qin Fang looked at the busy doctors and the people waiting for medicine, and a trace of uneasiness flashed through his heart. He said to Captain Yang: "Niu Da said that the rain is expected to last for another four or five days. If it lasts for four or five days, the medicinal materials in the county may not be able to meet our needs. Old Yang, take people to purchase medicinal materials. Wait... How much military pay is left now?" Before they set off, the court allocated a sum of silver. This sum of silver was used to purchase food and medicinal materials, which was paid in advance. Of course, when the generals received food and medicine, they also paid on the spot.
However, the money allocated by the imperial court was not much, and there were large quantities of grain and medicinal materials stored, so the money could not be collected that quickly.
Captain Yang is in charge of a large amount of money. To be honest, he is a bit stingy with the money. Today, when Kun Shi went to buy ginger and brown sugar, he had already received a sum of money. The money they have on hand now is not enough to stock up on food and medicinal materials.
Captain Yang: "There are still about two hundred taels." The total amount given by the court was only one thousand taels. The one thousand taels of silver was the food expenses for the soldiers, but it did not include the barbarians. However, when they purchased food and medicinal materials in advance, they were all included.
Now there is not enough money, what should I do
Captain Yang left Qin Fang silent, then asked, "Sir, what should we do if we don't have enough silver?"
Qin Fang was silent for a while: "If the money is not enough, we have to raise money and find a way to raise it." But how to raise it? Expecting others to give it to him for free? Dreaming. Qin Fang thought for a while and went to find Yang Haiyan.
Yang Haiyan was embroidering a handkerchief in the tent. There was nothing for her to do in the tent, so she could only embroider the handkerchief to pass the time.
As Qin Fang came in, a corner of the curtain was lifted and a gust of cold wind came in.
Yang Haiyan was crying, and quickly asked Aunt Lian to bring a bowl of warm brown sugar water: "Drink it quickly, it will warm your body and replenish your energy."
Qin Fang took it and drank it in one breath. He gave the bowl to Nanny Lian and said, "Yan Yan, I have to go to the county town and will be back in the afternoon."
Yang Haiyan was stunned. Qin Fang would not leave the brigade unless it was necessary. After all, if something happened in the brigade, he, the person in charge, would be away, and the problem would be troublesome. So when Qin Fang said that he wanted to leave the brigade and go to the county town, Yang Haiyan was surprised. "What is your husband going to the county town for?"
Qin Fang did not hide it: "The court gave us 1,000 taels of silver to pay the soldiers for the resettlement of the barbarians, but now we only have 200 taels of silver left. The soldiers' ginger and brown sugar water and daily food expenses are all deducted from the military pay. If we continue to deduct them, I'm afraid the military pay will not be enough. According to Niu Da, we need to stay here for another four or five days, so I went to the county town to find a way to make money."
Upon hearing this, Yang Haiyan jokingly said, "Are you planning to take the soldiers to the county town to do hard labor and earn money?"
Qin Fang felt that his wife looked down on him too much. Although doing hard labor to earn money was also a good job, could the few cents he earned solve the current situation
Yang Haiyan sensed Qin Fang's dissatisfaction, and she found him glaring at her interesting. She curled her lips and said, "How do you want to make money?"
Qin Fang didn't say: "I'm not sure yet, but I have some ideas in my mind. I'll talk about it after I go to the county. Yanyan, leave this to me for now. If you have anything, please find Captain Yang or Captain Lu. I'll be back soon."
Yang Haiyan didn't get to the bottom of it. A little mystery brings surprises. Besides, she was really curious about how Qin Fang wanted to make money. "Okay, don't worry, I'm here."
"Um."
Qin Fang led ten soldiers to the county. Compared to the wild mountains and ridges, the county was equally quiet. Speaking of which, at this moment, the county was not as lively as the brigade camp. After all, the brigade camp had 3,000 people gathered together, while the people in the county were scattered.
The rain was heavy, and even though Qin Fang and the others were wearing straw raincoats, they were still a little wet.
Normally, the county gate would be bustling with people coming in and out. But today, the county gate was deserted.
People entering and leaving the county are almost invisible.
Qin Fang and his companions arrived at the city gate and were stopped by the guards at the gate: "Who are you?" After all, they were a group of people, all riding horses, and they looked extraordinary.
Qin Fang took out his pass. He was going from the border to Yunxiang County, so he naturally had the pass.
The guard looked at the pass and let him pass.
Qin Fang led his men into the county, assigned tasks to five soldiers, and took the other five soldiers to the inn. He chose a more ordinary inn, which did not look as luxurious as ordinary restaurants, and was clean.
It was hard to find guests on a rainy day, so the waiter was very enthusiastic to greet them: "Welcome, guests. Would you like to stay overnight or have a meal?"
Qin Fang said: "Let's eat. One bowl of shredded pork noodles for each person. Please eat faster because we are in a hurry."
Waiter: "Okay, please wait a moment, we'll serve the food quickly." The waiter said, and shouted to the front, "Six bowls of shredded pork noodles."
Qin Fang continued, "Give me a few more side dishes. Oh, waiter, we ran into some robbers on the way here, and a lot of our money was stolen. May I ask where the county government office is? We'll go report it to the authorities later."
The waiter was startled when he heard what was said. He looked around and said, "Shh..." Fortunately, there was no one in the inn, otherwise what would happen if something happened
Qin Fang looked at the situation and couldn't help but wonder: "What are you doing?"
The waiter lowered his voice and said, "Gentlemen, it is forbidden to talk about robbers in our county. Once you mention robbers, be careful not to survive the night."
Are there other things? Qin Fang and several soldiers looked at each other. Everyone knew that this matter was too funny.
One of the soldiers said, "What are you talking about? This is a county town. Are the robbers that powerful? Can they enter the city and kill people? Besides, the nobles in the capital can be discussed, so why can't the robbers be discussed?"
Another soldier said, "That's right. Why can't we call them robbers? I won't say anything today. I'll kill them."
The waiter sighed and said helplessly, "Gentlemen, there is nothing I can do. In the past, there were people in our county who discussed robbers, but later, if anyone discussed robbers, they would be killed in serious cases, and their arms and legs would be broken in minor cases. Over time, no one dared to discuss robbers openly anymore."
Qin Fang asked: "Don't you think the county government will take care of it?"
The waiter said, "The county government was in charge at first, but they couldn't find anything. How could they be in charge?"
Qin Fang: "Did the county government find the robbers?"
The waiter smiled and said, "What's the point of looking for it? No one can prove that it was the robbers who did it. There are no witnesses or evidence, and the county government can't do anything. The county magistrate said that although he is an official, he is an official who has to act based on evidence. Without evidence, he can't do anything to the robbers. Moreover, there are nearly a hundred robbers, and our county government has only a few dozen people, less than a hundred people, so we can't beat the robbers. It's just...
To be honest with you, we all know that the robbers are evil and will kill without blinking an eye, but what can we do if we can't beat them? So we can only watch and wait. Fortunately, the robbers didn't come to the county town to cause trouble. "
What's the good thing
Qin Fang: "Won't the county magistrate ask the court for help?"
The waiter looked at Qin Fang several times, probably because he thought what Qin Fang said was a little funny: "Sir, this matter is not something that ordinary people like us can control."
Qin Fang thought about it and said, "Do you know where the robbers are hiding? We were robbed, we can't just let it go like this."
The waiter said, "I advise you to forget it. Look at us, there are only a few of us. How can we compete with others? Robbers are not easy to deal with."
The soldier said, "Just say what you are told to say. Why are you talking so much nonsense?"
The waiter was shocked and felt that the people were really angry. Since they were going to die, he was scolded for trying to stop them, so he didn't stop them. The waiter said unhappily, "It's at Qingyu Pass in Wulipu outside the city." Wulipu is five miles away from the county seat.
After Qin Fang finished eating the noodles, the five soldiers who had been separated also came. Qin Fang also ordered five bowls of noodles for them and asked about some situations. After they finished eating, Qin Fang took his men to leave.