The Slender Waist-Chapter 268 - 188 Knocking

"Buy land."

Feng Yun sat down beside him, picked up the tea cup he had placed on the table, and took a sip without any reserve; then she smiled and pulled out a piece of yellow paper from the food box.

"Please take a look, General, it’s a big deal."

It was the account she had calculated.

As well as the feasibility of buying land in Mingquan.

She was accustomed to clarifying every matter before presenting it to Pei Jue.

It was all crystal clear.

Pei Jue gave it a casual glance, his brows furrowing slightly.

"After the peace talks, Mingquan will be of no use. Wasteland does not yield grain, and it’s hard to make income. Lady Yun, why buy the land?"

In times of chaos, land was plentiful but people were few.

A large amount of abandoned land lay uncultivated.

She ought to have bought fertile land, her actions were puzzling indeed. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

"I am buying the land, not for farming," Feng Yun said with a cunning smile, "My mother’s book says, at the border between two countries, where both water and land routes meet, it’s called a trading port, an auspicious place for commerce... Before Jin Country occupied Xinzhou, Mingquan certainly wouldn’t count as a trading port, but afterwards it will be. To buy a coveted port site at the price of cabbages, if I don’t profit from it, who will?"

Pei Jue was silent.

The room was quiet; no fire was lit. Feng Yun, particularly sensitive to cold, felt chilly and moved closer to him, coiling her hands around his arm and leaning against him -- it looked very intimate, just like an ordinary couple discussing household finances.

"Initially, I was also hesitant, but after visiting the site today, I found Mingquan to be an excellent place. A direct official road, a river crossing, very convenient transportation... Additionally, an embassy straddling the two countries will, after the peace talks, evolve into a bustling market for traders. By then, those abandoned lands of mine will fetch a high price..."

Pei Jue stared at her, his eyes dark and gleaming.

Feng Yun nudged him gently, blinking excitedly:

"The most crucial point is, the land is remarkably cheap."

Pei Jue asked, "How cheap?"

After she finished speaking succinctly, he seemed reluctant to see her shiver from the cold, so he took off his cloak and draped it over her, wrapping her in it completely.

As warmth enveloped Feng Yun, her voice softened, and her eyes gleamed as she looked at him, "The price is less than a thousand coins per mu. Today in Xiaozhou, they were willing to negotiate at eight hundred coins, and that’s just the current price. In another couple of days, it will be even cheaper."

Pei Jue caught the certainty in her tone, taking a quick glance at her.

"Why do you say that?"

Feng Yun smiled and told him about what she had seen and heard in Mingquan today.

"There are spies from Qi Country infiltrating Mingquan, wouldn’t you want to remove them and then be at ease, General? If Xiao Cheng gets ahead of us, it would be quite unfavorable."

Pei Jue: "Oh? And what does that have to do with the price of land?"

Feng Yun grinned, her smile mysterious, "Once the General sends men to clean up, the people will become even more panicked at the sight of killing and arson, driving land prices down further, wouldn’t that make them even cheaper?"

She had calculated everything clearly.

Calculated and calculated, and now it came to his head.

Pei Jue fell silent for a moment, "I have no money."

Feng Yun coughed lightly, disappointedly looking at him.

"Where is the General’s money?"

Pei Jue looked at her: "Having been away from the Central Capital for so long, I possess nothing of value. The little personal wealth I had was all spent on the dowry."

The dowry!

Feng Yun was suddenly enlightened.

"Right, where is your dowry?"

Pei Jue viewed her nonchalance as if she had just remembered, and frowned slightly, "On the day we withdrew from Bingzhou, I had Tan Dajin load it onto the warship."

Feng Yun’s eyelid twitched, "And then?"

Pei Jue: "That’s it."

Feng Yun asked, "Where did it go?"

Pei Jue mused, "There was a shortage of winter clothes in the army, so I had Tan Dajin exchange the dowry for money to buy some from the civilians, to be prepared for emergencies..."

Were winter clothes for the army to be procured out of General Pei’s own pocket?

Thinking about those twelve loads of dowry gifts, Feng Yun felt a sting of loss. Among them, there were many valuable items that had been displayed before her just for a glance, and then taken away.

Indeed, the whole grand marriage was a farce.

Of course, she understood priorities. Although she felt a bit regretful, she didn’t think Pei Jue was wrong to do so. She would have done the same, prioritizing the basic needs of her subordinates. Without food or clothing, any talk of leading an army was futile.

She said nothing, pondering where to find money, but Pei Jue’s tone carried a tinge of guilt. He tightened his hand around her waist and murmured low:

"Once we return to the Central Capital, I’ll arrange for something better for you."

The room was dimly lit, his eyes appeared even more profound.

Feng Yun pursed her lips, looking over, her gaze intense.

"General, don’t you feel stifled?"

Sustaining such a huge army every day, eating, drinking, and everything else incurred colossal expenses. If the Imperial Court kept delaying, that could lead to a serious crisis.

When it was time to rub some salt in the wound, Feng Yun was unhesitating.

She leaned closer to Pei Jue, staring into his eyes.