Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

After traveling for another two days, many people along the way looked at the cartloads of grain with longing, but when they saw the soldiers in armor beside the carts, most of them gave up their desire.

Not long after entering Ming'an County, they encountered the people of Zhangjia Village. Zhang Dayong led thirty strong men from the village, carrying shovels, hoes and other tools, and each carrying dry rations.

At first, the soldiers at the front, seeing this group of people, thought they were just some ignorant thieves coming to rob them. They immediately drew their swords and pointed them at the newcomers.

Upon seeing the scene before him, Zhang Dayong, who was in charge, quickly introduced himself.

"Greetings, sirs. We are from Zhangjia Village in Ming'an County. We are here to welcome the Baron and the Township Lord."

"Wait here, we'll go report back first." Although the other party said this, the soldiers still dared not relax their vigilance. Now that they had traveled this far, anyone with a bit of connections knew that this was grain purchased by the Baron of Zhongzhou. As for the Baron of Zhongzhou's family background, who in the world didn't know it? They were worried that these people might be imposters.

However, Zhang Youtie soon returned on horseback with the soldier who had reported back, accompanied by Deputy General Zhao.

"Dayong, what brings you here?" Zhang Youtie asked in surprise when he saw the newcomers.

His words instantly eased the tension among everyone present. It seemed the other party wasn't lying; they really had come to welcome the Duke.

"Third brother, we heard that you encountered robbers in Qi'an County. My father was worried, so he sent us out to meet you."

"Okay, Uncle Village Chief is very thoughtful. Let's go, this isn't the place to talk, let's go back and talk."

"it is good"

Then, Deputy General Zhao dispersed the thirty men and arranged for them to sit on the grain transport carts, so they could return with the main force.

Finally, at dusk, the convoy arrived at Zhangjia Village. Because Zhang Youtie had already sent someone back by fast horse to report the news, he ordered chickens and pigs to be slaughtered and a meal to be prepared for the soldiers and drivers who had traveled a long way.

So even from a long distance away from the village, they could smell the aroma of food wafting in the air.

"Third brother, you're finally back!" The village chief and his men, who were waiting outside the village with torches lit, were moved to tears as they saw the procession slowly entering the night.

“Uncle Village Chief, the river on the way was cut off, so we had to switch to the land route, which worried the villagers. Fortunately, with the escort of all the soldiers, all the grain was transported back,” Zhang Youtie said to the village chief who was supporting his arm.

"Sigh, at least we got home safely. Come on, everyone go home, the food is ready."

All the grain was unloaded at the village's drying ground, where Deputy General Zhao sent fifty men to guard it.

“My lord, we should distribute this grain as soon as possible. We’ve attracted a lot of attention along the way, and I’m afraid someone might try to take advantage of the village after we leave. The Huo Family Village incident serves as a cautionary tale. After we leave, the village should still send someone to keep watch at night.” At the dinner table, Deputy General Zhao expressed his thoughts to Zhang Youtie and the village chief.

"The general is right. I have already considered this issue, but I will have to trouble you brothers tonight."

"Oh, Your Excellency, there's no need to be so polite. We are all grateful for the amount of grain and fodder you donated to the army. These are just small things we could do." As he spoke, he raised his glass to Zhang Youtie.

Because there were so many people escorting them, the village chief had already discussed with the villagers how to settle the soldiers before Zhang Youtie returned. Depending on each family's circumstances, each family would take in three to five people.

Every household in the village lives on a kang (heated brick bed), and you can easily squeeze in a room for someone to sleep in.

So after dinner, everyone except the soldiers chosen to guard the drying grounds was taken back to their families. After several days of travel, they hadn't eaten or slept well. Now that the grain had been safely delivered and they had eaten a very sumptuous meal prepared by the Zhang family, and seeing that they could finally sleep in their own homes, everyone's tense emotions relaxed, and they fell into a deep sleep as soon as they touched the kang (heated brick bed).

The soldiers were asleep, but the villagers were still busy at work. Since the escorting soldiers were returning the next day, Zhang Youtie'an distributed grain and meat to every household in the village, instructing them to prepare enough rations for five people for three days. Whether they made steamed buns or something else was up to them. In addition, to allow the soldiers on the drying ground to rest a little longer, the village selected thirty men to guard the drying ground at night.

That very evening, Zhang Youtie and the village chief tallied up the grain needs of each household. "You asked for a thousand jin of corn flour, now we'll give you a thousand jin of corn. If you say a thousand jin of corn won't yield enough flour, well, that's just how it is. Getting the corn at all was already quite an achievement."

“Uncle, we originally agreed that corn flour would cost ten coins per pound, but since we’ve brought back corn, let’s charge everyone seven coins per pound,” Zhang Youtie said to the village chief under the oil lamp.

“No, third brother, it wasn’t easy for you to bring this grain back. Everyone saw how much manpower, resources, and favors you put in. The corn will still be ten coins a pound, and besides, the price of cornmeal in town has risen to eleven coins a pound. This price is more than fair to everyone.”

Upon hearing Zhang Youtie's plan, the village chief immediately refused. Just hearing about what had happened in Qi'an County made them realize how extremely dangerous it was. Luckily, the third brother had found help from the military; if it had been ordinary people transporting goods, hundreds of people might have perished.

"Uncle, like this..."

"Don't worry, I'll say those things. If anyone has any objections, let them come and talk to me," the village chief interrupted Zhang Youtie before he could finish speaking.

The next day, the soldiers, who had slept soundly all night, opened their eyes to a delightful aroma.

As soon as Deputy General Zhao stepped outside, he saw that each soldier had a bulging bundle hanging from his back.

"What are those things you're carrying on your backs?" Deputy General Zhao asked one of the soldiers.

"Um, Lieutenant General, this is the dry rations that the old lady at my place packed for me. There are fried dough sticks, steamed buns, and pickled vegetables. They all have the same stuff on them," the soldier said, pointing to his brothers beside him.

"Huh? It's all dry rations?" Deputy General Zhao found it somewhat unbelievable.

"Yes, it's all dry rations. I heard that the lord distributed grain and meat to them and had the villagers cook it for us. He said it's hard to buy food these days, and he was worried we'd go hungry on the way back," another soldier replied.

Deputy General Zhao rubbed his slightly sore nose and said to the soldiers beside him...

"The lord knows best how to cherish the soldiers in the camp."

“The general is right. We’ve escorted dignitaries before. But those dignitaries never treated us like human beings. Only Lord Zhao truly cared about our food and lodging, arranging everything with more care than we cared about ourselves,” said Zhao’s personal bodyguard with great emotion.

"Alright, that's enough. Everyone should remember Lord's kindness in their hearts. Don't spread it around and cause trouble for Lord for no reason," Vice General Zhao waved his hand and instructed.

"Yes, little one understands."