Chapter 677 - Alliance Meeting at Huangshui (XIV)

I’m Xun Yu, not a dog: Do you think that the herders will let go of an opportunity to improve their families’ economies?

Obviously, that was impossible.

The northern borderline had originally farmed rabbits and sheep, but those operations were done on a small scale because the herders allocated most of their pastures to horses.

Now that horses had become scarce, the remaining empty pastures could not be wasted. Why not raise sheep and rabbits that could make money for them?

As long as she could instigate herdsmen of the northern borderline to raise more rabbits and sheep, Jiang Pengji’s plan would be half done.

With the way the ancient people thought, they were unable to understand the core of this “overt conspiracy.” They would only realize it after the damage was done.

Was this because ancient people were stupid?

Of course not, this was due to unequal information between the two eras.

To put it plainly, the core of this poisonous plan was to destroy the ecological balance.

What was an ecological balance?

In an ecological community of living creatures and their ecosystem, a variety of opposing factors restrict one another to achieve a relatively stable balance.

Small numbers of rabbits and sheep caused limited damage to the grassland ecology. The grassland could depend on its own ability to completely restore itself.

But what if a lot of rabbits and sheep appeared in a short time?

They were voracious grass eaters and could even devour the grass’s roots.

Once a massive flood occurred, the grasslands would degrade rapidly.

However, the three tribes of the northern borderline were not stupid.

Once the destructive power of the rabbits and sheep became an obvious threat to the survival of horses, there was no way they wouldn’t try to restrain them.

If they were really stupid, Jiang Pengji would remind them in due course.

In other words, when that time arrived, the tribes of the northern borderline would have no choice but to devote part of their energy toward curbing the flood of rabbits and sheep. Once this happened, Jiang Pengji would achieve her purpose.

Not only would it only minimally damage the ecology of the northern borderline, but it would also restrict the development of the northern tribes’ cavalries and distract them. It would be killing two birds with one stone.

“There is no need to disclose this matter first.” Jiang Pengji laughed. “You can treat it as ordinary business. Anyway, we consume a lot of wool every autumn and winter. Buying wool and stuff like that from the northern borderline will not raise any suspicion.”

Patience was a very important quality for hunters.

As an excellent hunter, she had no lack of patience.

Wei Ci lowered his eyelids. “I’ll comply with your arrangements.”

No matter how formidable it was, a plan that had its purpose revealed early and was made known to everyone was worthless.

Based on her recounting, Wei Ci knew that she was surrounded by crises and that there were few people who she could fully trust. How could he let her down?

Under the witness of 150,000 viewers, Jiang Pengji and Wei Ci reached a tacit agreement.

Being targeted by these two, one could well imagine what was to become of the northern borderline.

Before Wei Ci walked away, Jiang Pengji reminded him again, “Zixiao, don’t forget the painting that I want. Make it as beautiful as possible. I believe in your painting skills.”

Remember why Jiang Pengji asked Wei Ci to come over?

She had asked Wei Ci to do a painting for her, emphasizing the applications of flashed bricks. She wanted to market the firing technology for the flashed bricks to the princes and vassals who were also rescuing the emperor.

Wei Ci did not let her down. He presented a painting on a long scroll the next day.

“You completed the painting that quickly?” she asked as she unfolded the scroll, finding that the ink was not fresh. This was not a recent painting at all.

Jiang Pengji only found out that Wei Ci’s hobbies were of a more refined type after asking around carefully. Painting was just one of them.

There were people from all walks of life amongst the 150,000 viewers in the livestream. Many were engaged in drawing, painting, or related fields.

They felt a little perturbed at the first sight of Wei Ci’s painting and sent out comments on the bullet screen to express their doubts.

Cola chicken wings: I’ll give Cimeiren some praises first, he’s multi-talented and his talents do not lie. But does anyone think that something’s wrong?

Fried eggs and noodles: What’s wrong? I simply think that the painting is very beautiful. It’s as if an infinite number of filters have been added.

Sweet and sour pork: Hearing what you all have said, I think that this painting by Cimeiren is a bit strange… It seems too beautiful somehow…

Everyone had something to say, but at the same time, they did not forget to ask Jiang Pengji to unfold the scroll completely so that they could get a clear look.

They felt as if they had discovered a secret.

Don’t forget your roots as a human being: I study fine arts and have some knowledge about traditional painting. Although the host’s era is different from our history, many trajectories are identical, including painting. In our ancient art of Chinese painting, style rarely conforms to surface resemblance. More attention is paid to the ‘wonder of likeness and dissimilarity’ and ‘likeness between dissimilarities.’ The style tends towards artistic conception rather than a realistic portrayal. But if you take a closer look at Cimeiren’s painting, there is a kind of three-dimensional feeling that is vividly portrayed. The style of painting tends towards realism, which is weird.

When this opinion was published, it was immediately acknowledged by most people. Of course, there was also a small number of people who expressed doubts.

Sixty-six does not forget to return to zero: Although it tends towards realism, the style has unique Chinese features. I don’t get a sense of incongruity when I look at it. On the contrary, I feel that it’s very harmonious… Your imagination must be really fertile if you suspect that Cimeiren is a cross-dimensional traveler.

Jiang Pengji frowned secretly and saved Wei Ci’s face.

Host V: We exchanged painting skills in Langya. I guess it influenced him at that time.

The viewers yelled “666” one after another, praising how Jiang Pengji could not only fight and argue competently, but she could also better the artistic talents of those around her.

Jiang Pengji smiled and rolled up Wei Ci’s painting scroll. Her eyes narrowed like those of a fox.

Wei Ci didn’t know what had happened, but he felt a faint chill crawling up his back.

On this day, the cold wind blew, and the sound of banners being whipped about by the wind was loud and shocking.

The army departed with Jiang Pengji leading the army as they set out. More than 10,000 soldiers and horses passed through the pure white snow and disappeared into the horizon.

Zhongzhao.

As the richest and most powerful country amongst the five nations of the Central Plains, it had a strong economy and a vast territory.

There were six provinces and twenty-one counties in Dongqing, but Zhongzhao had ten provinces and thirteen counties!

However, as the bellwether of the five powers, recent times had not been good to Zhongzhao.

The conflicts between various political parties and had grown fiercer with each passing day as the situation inside the royal court changed rapidly.

The aristocratic families, their foreign relatives, and the court eunuchs were in a constant struggle against one another. The blood that had been shed flowed like a river. The less powerful gentry were jittery and nervous. They did not dare to infringe on the authority of the royal family, or stand up for the people’s welfare, or delve into government administration… They were deathly afraid of losing their heads if they accidentally misspoke.

These struggles were a secondary concern. They were too distant for the common people, but there was one thing they all agreed on.

When many suffering commoners mentioned this person, everyone without exception would turn their heads and spit.

The Empress of Zhongzhao from the Du family, a noblewoman of high birth.

According to rumors, she was as beautiful as a fairy. Her talents and moral character were unparalleled in this world. Although she was a woman, she could debate with the greatest scholars of their time.

When she’d become empress, she’d set herself as an example to the nation and had announced her great ambition to educate and enlighten the women of the world as an influential person. After years of meticulous study, she’d finally written four classics and filled them with sacred words. The books were “Women’s Commandment”, “Admonishment for Imperial Harem”, “Analects for Women”, and “Records of Model and Virtuous Women”. These four books were highly esteemed by the great scholars of Zhongzhao and a vast number of literary students. They were collectively referred to as the “Four Self-Accomplishment Classics for Women”. It was all the rage for some time in Zhongzhao and was sought after by the noble ladies. Everyone had a copy. They trusted the books and highly recommended them.

Some people pursued and supported it, but there were naturally some who opposed it.

But in the face of the trend across the entire country, those opposing voices were tiny like mosquitoes. They were drowned out instantly.

Zhongzhao, in a small town outside the imperial city.

In a tea house, a man in a gray coat sat at a table. A long object wrapped in a cloth was clutched in his hand.

He heard someone talking about a shameless widow who’d stolen a man and was going to be caught and drowned in a pool. A mocking light flashed across his eyes as he threw down two copper coins. He got up and left. “Heh… it seems that too few have died. Every one of them is so idle…”