Chapter 741: Chapter 722: The Granary is Empty (Additional Chapter 2)

“Okay, since everyone is fine, we shall proceed with the disaster relief.”

“General Han, you take ten thousand soldiers and follow Inspector Guo to Jiannan State for an inspection tour, to check for any damage or collapses that need assistance, and you must fulfill your duty to protect Jiannan State!”

“Everyone, gather your troops and prepare to set out!”

With Lin Yi’s order, he didn’t even bother to ask if the twenty thousand soldiers were willing to obey his command.

“Good! Set out for disaster relief, set out for disaster relief!” the soldiers shouted in unison.

They had already regarded Lin Yi, who distributed the Glazed Glass Wine bottles to them, as their sole master to be loyal to.

One Glazed Glass bottle is worth 800 taels, a substantial fortune for an ordinary soldier.

As the sun was about to set, General Meng hesitated and quietly said to General Han.

“General Han, didn’t we agree to report back to the Eighth Prince before sunset today?”

At this moment, the sober-minded General Meng reminded General Han.

General Han shook his head; he was not any less aware, but looking at the fifty Glazed Glass Wine bottles in front of him, he knew all too well what he should do.

“General Meng, a wise man submits to circumstances. The court has awarded us with rewards worth forty thousand taels of silver. We are generals appointed by the court, not by the Fourth Prince.”

“Besides, both of us have given military orders. Even if we go back, the Eighth Prince would likely break our legs.”

Hearing General Han’s words, General Meng felt a chill down his spine.

Indeed, the Eighth Prince detested betrayal above all, and none who betrayed him ever ended well.

Rather than returning to have one’s legs broken, it was better to accept the court’s reward of forty thousand taels in Glazed Glass bottles and serve the court.

After General Han and General Meng had discussed, they stepped forward and declared.

“We, the twenty thousand soldiers, will follow the arrangements of the Inspector, to provide relief to the people and serve the court!”

“Provide relief to the people, serve the court!” the soldiers shouted in unison, expressing their sincere loyalty to the court.

What a spectacle of serving the court; this was exactly what Lin Yi wanted.

He did not expect that without even producing the military orders of the two generals, everything would be settled.

“Good!”

“General Meng, you lead ten thousand soldiers with me to patrol and provide disaster relief.”

Having confirmed the loyalty of the two generals to the court, Lin Yi commenced with the disaster relief patrol.

Thus, the twenty thousand strong army poured into every corner of Jiannan State like a steady stream.

Fortunately, the earthquake was not too severe, and since it occurred during daylight, it caused no casualties, only serious house collapses that severely affected the lives of the people.

Lin Yi decided to open the granaries and distribute grain overnight.

First, to solve the food problems of the people affected by the earthquake, and second, to deal with the needs of the twenty thousand soldiers who suddenly appeared in Jiannan State overnight.

“Inspector Guo, where is the nearest granary? Lead us there right now.”

Upon hearing that they were heading to the nearest granary, Guo Huaimu became extremely cautious.

Fortunately, he had made preparations earlier and had secretly filled up the nearest granary to pass the inspection.

Moments later, Guo Huaimu led Lin Yi and the others to the granary that had been prepared in advance.

Upon opening the granary, it was packed to the brim, and Guo Huaimu was quite proud, believing he would pass the inspection of the Inspector smoothly.

Seeing the full granary, Lin Yi had no suspicions and immediately ordered the soldiers to move the grain for disaster relief.

Guo Huaimu was terrified, and he quickly stepped forward to stop the soldiers, stammering, “It’s already so late, let’s not disturb the people. How about we distribute the grain tomorrow?”

His words sounded fishy. Shouldn’t disaster relief for the people be done as soon as possible?

Why was Guo Huaimu now making excuses?

Lin Yi immediately exerted the authority of a distinguished Inspector, rebuking angrily, “Disaster relief must be prompt. Does Guo Huaimu not even understand such basic reasoning?”

“Come, clear out the grain here and deliver it to the disaster-stricken common folk. We must move on to the next granary.”

Seeing himself helpless to prevent the actions, Guo Huaimu’s legs turned to jelly, staring disconsolately at the sacks of grain.

A couple of soldiers stepped forward, hoisting the sacks of grain onto their shoulders, one after another.

But just as they placed them on their shoulders, they suddenly stopped in their tracks, everyone visibly shocked.

They outright threw sack after sack of grain onto the ground.

“What is the meaning of this?” Lin Yi was taken aback by the soldiers’ abnormal behavior.

Little did he know that in the next second, the one to give Lin Yi an explanation wouldn’t be the soldiers, but Guo Huaimu who kowtowed desperately on the ground, begging for mercy.

“Inspector, I beg you, spare my life—”

Hearing this, Lin Yi roughly understood why the soldiers had thrown the sacks off their shoulders.

“What in the world is this all about?” Lin Yi’s angry command demanded Guo Huaimu explain himself.

Perhaps Lin Yi’s voice was too commanding, it scared Guo Huaimu to the point of wetting himself.

“Ha-ha, just look at Guo Huaimu—”

It was unclear which sharp-eyed soldier noticed Guo Huaimu’s embarrassment first but he shouted it out, prompting laughter from everyone present.

Being mocked by a group of soldiers, Guo Huaimu felt utterly disgraced, his mouth unable to utter a word.

Lin Yi didn’t have the patience to wait.

“Silence!”

“Someone, open those sacks of grain for me!”

Following Lin Yi’s order, several soldiers used their swords to cut open the sacks.

What spilled out were bundles of twigs, leaves, and weeds.

“Preposterous!”

Lin Yi stood up in a fury!

It wasn’t grain in the storehouse but sacks of twigs and weeds, utterly useless for disaster relief.

Where was the grain? Where did it go? The disaster victims were depending on that grain to survive.

Guo Huaimu, as the Inspector of Jiannan State, dared to replace grain with twigs and weeds in the granary; his audacity was unheard of.

“Inspector, have mercy, this really isn’t the fault of this official, please inspect closely.”

But just at that moment, a soldier rushed in to report.

“Report, distinguished Inspector, the other thirteen granaries in Jiannan State are also completely empty, without a single grain to be found!”

Fuming with rage, Lin Yi drew his sword and pointed it at Guo Huaimu, berating him.

“You, as the Inspector of Jiannan State, have replaced the grain in the granaries with twigs and fallen leaves, and all the granaries in Jiannan State are empty! And you claim innocence!”

“Arrest this man! I will escort him back to the Imperial City, for Your Majesty to interrogate!”

Now, Guo Huaimu was thoroughly panicked, immediately confessing the whole chain of events.

It turned out, the granaries in both Jiannan State and Lingnan State were just for show; aside from the grain that the people had stored on their own, there was no extra food.

And all the official stockpiled grain, originally belonging to the Government, had been taken away by the Eighth Prince under the pretext of supplying these twenty thousand soldiers.

Not other than the Eighth Prince again! Amassing troops and stockpiling grain in private!

His ability to hoard, is it not all to hoard himself an imperial throne?

After some contemplation, Lin Yi decided to give Guo Huaimu a chance to atone for his mistakes, under the guise of granting Guo Huaimu the opportunity for redemption.

…End of Chapter…