Chapter 253: Current Situation (1)
Editor: Atlas Studios
Qi Haoran jumped onto the rock to take a look. He pointed at the huge rock and asked with a twitch of his lips, “Isn’t this the rock you were lying on? Did you shatter it with your palm just now?”
Mu Yangling opened her mouth wide and said, “I controlled my strength. Did my strength increase again?”
She lowered her head to look at the rocks, then picked them up and weighed them in her hand. “Why do I feel that these rocks look familiar?”
“You just lay on them. How can they not look familiar?” Qi Haoran reached out to pat the rocks. Seeing that none fell, he did not take it to heart and squatted down to continue roasting his pheasant.
Mu Yangling, who had wanted to help, pinched the rock and frowned in confusion. Rocks all looked similar, but why did this particular one piqued her interest?
Mu Yangling looked down at the black and red rock in her hand in a daze.
Fei Bai quickly brought back a rabbit and a pheasant and returned the sleeve arrow to Mu Yangling. “Miss Mu, thank you for lending me this sleeve arrow. The prey this year is much harder to hunt than last year. I chased after them for a long time before catching up to these two.”
“It hasn’t snowed this year and it was drought before, so the prey is harder to hunt than in the past.” Mu Yangling placed the few rocks aside and took the pheasant from Qi Haoran’s hand. “Let me do it.”
Qi Haoran was happy to relax and watch, so he threw it to Mu Yangling and sat at the side to wait. “There’s a large temple fair in Hanzhong Prefecture at the beginning of next month. Are you going?”
“Why would I go to the temple fair?” Mu Yangling said in a daze, “Moreover, Hanzhong Prefecture is so far from my house. I don’t feel at ease leaving them at home.”
“Then bring them along.” Qi Haoran said matter-of-factly, “There’s nothing much to do in the winter. You can also visit your father when you go to Hanzhong Prefecture.”
Mu Yangling’s eyes lit up and she asked, “My father is in Hanzhong Prefecture?”
Qi Haoran nodded.
Mu Yangling said angrily, “Then why can’t you let him rest normally? My father hasn’t been home for three months. Bosi and Kejia are going to forget how he looks soon.”
“He has a mission and can’t leave Hanzhong Prefecture easily. If you want to see him, I can arrange something for you when you go to Hanzhong Prefecture, but it’s impossible for him to come.”
Mu Yangling was silent for a moment before asking, “Is the temple fair in Hanzhong Prefecture very lively?”
Qi Haoran nodded. “Don’t you have a lot of leather goods at home? You can sell them at this temple fair. Don’t worry, if you go to Hanzhong Prefecture, I’ll be responsible for the food and accommodation.”
Mu Yangling looked at him strangely. “Why are you so keen on us going to Hanzhong Prefecture?”
Qi Haoran glanced at Fei Bai. The latter could only pick up the pheasant and rabbit and deal with them silently. Only then did Qi Haoran say in a low voice, “Let’s make another move before the new year?”
Mu Yangling replied equally softly, “Are you addicted to being a bandit?” Mu Yangling refused. “Aren’t you just asking to get caught if you act at this time? Don’t mess around. Big Brother Qi will be angry.”
“This time, we’ll rob the Jin soldiers.”
Mu Yangling snorted and said, “If you do it so soon, people will make associations. It won’t be good if it affects the Great Zhou. The Emperors of the Jin Kingdom and West Xia aren’t afraid of war, but our Great Zhou’s Emperor likes to seek peace. When the time comes, the money and salary you lose will be enough for you to buy a horse ranch.”
“Now that West Xia and the Jin Kingdom are fighting, they might not think of us,” Qi Haoran argued.
“All the more reason not to go. It’s rare for the border to be peaceful for a period of time. Not only do the civilians have to recuperate, but the soldiers also need it. In addition, it’s almost the new year. Can you bear to send a funeral report to someone’s family at this time?” Mu Yangling persuaded. “Besides, for the horse farm, stealing horses can only resolve the urgent need. The proper way is to use money to buy foals. In two to three years, the first batch of horses will be able to mate and the horse farm will achieve a decent scale.”
“But the Jin Kingdom and West Xia might not let us live in peace for two to three years.” Qi Haoran still felt that they should quickly take back the lost land.
On the other hand, Mu Yangling said, “Haste makes waste. General Yuan is almost 40 years old, but he’s not in a hurry. Big Brother Qi is not in a hurry either. Why are you in a hurry?” She looked to the north and said in a low voice, “The Great Zhou is not afraid of a prolonged war. Compared to West Xia and the Jin Kingdom, the Great Zhou can afford to waste more time. Moreover, even if you take back the lost land, the Emperor might make you lose it. Just look at what happened to General Yuan. When the time comes, not only will the price you pay for a quick battle not be worth it, but you will also lose even more. In that case, it’s better to take the land back slowly, a little every year. Hold on to the land you took it back and recuperate before another step forward. I don’t believe that after 10 or 20 years, you won’t be able to take back your homeland.”
Qi Haoran’s expression turned cold and solemn. “You’re coaxing me. Things change rapidly on the battlefield, and state affairs are ever-changing. Who knows what will happen tomorrow? Perhaps in a few years, the world will have changed.”
Mu Yangling looked at him in surprise and asked, “I’m surprised at your bluntness. I thought you’re loyal to the Emperor.”
“I’m loyal to the country and the world.” Qi Haoran looked at Mu Yangling with bright eyes. “I know that you’re the same as me. Even if you don’t say it, you can’t hide it from me.”
Mu Yangling smiled. Indeed, she had never said anything like “the Great Zhou might not last long” in front of them. This was because the commoners would scold the Emperor and ministers, but they would never speak of their country perishing. That was treason.
Mu Yangling lowered her voice and chuckled. “Then what do you think?”
Qi Haoran’s heart ached, but more than that, he was angry. “The Emperor is letting the officials leech off the commoners like this. He would rather build a huge building than pay the military salary. How many more years can Great Zhou continue like this?”
“It’s not the first or second day that the Great Zhou Dynasty has been like this. Hasn’t it been this way for a hundred years already?”
Qi Haoran said angrily, “That was achieved with money.”
Every year, Great Zhou’s annual exports of coins, silk, tea leaves, and porcelain to the neighboring countries accounted for a large portion of the national treasury. Then, the Imperial Court would transfer this burden to the commoners. Although Qi Haoran did not know much, he often heard the discussion between Zijin and his elder brother, so he knew a lot about how such things operated.
“Then do you think the Great Zhou will perish in the hands of other countries?”
Qi Haoran glanced at Mu Yangling. “What do you think?”
“I feel that the Great Zhou Dynasty will die in the hands of the common people and himself. Yes, there’s also what you commonly call the Heavens.” Mu Yangling said in a low voice, “In the five years after next year, the soldiers of the Great Zhou Dynasty will have to cross the most arduous hurdle. If they fail to cross it, the Great Zhou Dynasty will be gone.”
Qi Haoran gaped and he widened his eyes at her. Although he said that the Great Zhou Dynasty would perish, it was more of an outlet for anger and his expressing his uncertainty about the country’s future. Perhaps the Great Zhou Dynasty would perish one day, but Qi Haoran did not think that he would experience it in his lifetime.
He blinked, closed his mouth, and looked at Mu Yangling seriously for a moment. Seeing that she was serious, he moved closer to Mu Yangling. “Tell me about it.”