Chapter 75: Bathtub (Added Some Plot)

Chapter 75: The Bathtub (Added Some Plot Details)

"Ruo Lan did mention the issue of insufficient manpower in her letter to me. The combined population of the Yuwen Tribe and the Dugu Tribe is less than 150,000 people, including many children. Additionally, they need to allocate some people to continue herding for their livelihood this year. The current one million acres of wheat fields are already a heavy burden for them, and they can only manage very basic farming... If the king could relocate more people to continue reclaiming land and have farmers teach them farming techniques, we could plant more fields next year and harvest a million shi of wheat."

Jiang Congyan calmly laid out the current situation in Tumochuan, analyzing the present conditions with clear logic and solid reasoning, making it easy for others to follow her train of thought.

The crowd was amazed. Could reclaiming more land next year really yield a million shi of wheat? Was such a thing possible?

A million shi of wheat—what did that mean? It meant they could sustain an army of 100,000.

Jiang Congyan was being conservative. If there were no severe natural disasters next year and with enough manpower, three million shi wouldn't be out of the question.

But the biggest problem for the Xianbei people now was their lack of population.

The grassland environment could only support a limited number of people. Although the population had been increasing under Tuo Baxiao's expansion over the years, the growth was minimal.

The entire Xianbei population was less than three million, and they controlled a territory similar in size to Liang State, yet their population was less than one-tenth of Liang's.

"Who do you think should be sent over?"

It seemed he agreed and was ready to hash out the details.

Tuo Baxiao took Jiang Congyan's hand and sat back on the throne. The throne was wide enough that her slender figure allowed both of them to sit comfortably.

Chancellor Diyan frowned deeply at Tuo Baxiao's move, but since he had just angered the king, it wasn't the right time to speak up again. As for the others, seeing that Chancellor Diyan remained silent, they naturally didn't want to be the first to object.

Jiang Congyan was also momentarily stunned, but the man's strength was too great for her to resist. Of course, she had no intention of resisting.

She hadn't actively pursued such honors before because her identity was sensitive and the timing wasn't right. But since he was willing to offer them, she naturally wouldn't refuse.

If she could sit on the throne with him today, she could do so in the future as well.

Once she sat in this position, she would have the right to decide Xianbei's affairs alongside them.

"I've heard that there are nearly 3,000 people in the royal slave barracks alone, and the number of slaves scattered among the other tribes is as high as tens of thousands. Why not send the royal slaves over first? Once this year's harvest is complete, when the tribal leaders see the bountiful results, they should be willing to send people to farm next year. Then, the king can allocate land to them based on their population. This way, Tumochuan could become a granary for the Xianbei people."

Tuo Baxiao's eyes sparkled. "That's a great idea!"

Tuo Baxiao had naturally considered the labor shortage before. He had originally planned to directly relocate people and command them to farm, but her approach was more gradual.

People naturally seek benefits and avoid harm. Once they saw such abundant harvests, they couldn't help but be tempted.

Tuo Baxiao agreed to her proposal right away. Others, like Tuoba Wuxi, didn't know what to say in opposition. She was sending royal slaves, not their own people.

If she had used royal slaves for her own personal affairs, they could have objected, but this was for the king's farming.

And so, the matter was settled.

Tuo Baxiao didn't even need to consult his subordinates and directly handed the task over to her.

Chancellor Diyan watched her with a lot of restraint, his deep blue eyes, lined with wrinkles, quickly flashing with a hint of wariness.

Jiang Congyan had chosen the slave barracks as her first target for a reason. The Xianbei people were not skilled in agriculture, and they would naturally be reluctant to allocate manpower for farming under normal circumstances. Under such conditions, the slave barracks became her first choice.

More importantly, if other tribes sent people, they'd inevitably have their own leaders, making it impossible for her to fully control them. Slaves, however, were different. Their low status meant they could only rely on her, allowing her to develop her own influence within the Xianbei.

By the second year, even if other tribes sent people over, she would already have a say in Tumochuan.

After discussing Tumochuan's matters, the sky darkened. Since the discussions were mostly concluded, Tuo Baxiao dismissed the crowd.

As the others left, the tent emptied out. The next moment, he pounced on her, wrapping his arms around her waist and pressing her into his embrace. His lips were already moving in to kiss her.

Jiang Congyan instinctively turned her head away to avoid him. "We're still in the front hall."

"There's no one around," the man said carelessly, with a hint of complaint. "You wouldn't even let me touch you earlier."

He had grabbed her hand earlier, but she had pried it away.

Jiang Congyan weakly pushed his face away. "...With so many people around, don't I have any pride? I came to discuss important matters with you, not..."

"So I held back until now, otherwise I..."

Jiang Congyan quickly covered his mouth; the man really didn't have a single decent thing to say.

"Besides, I helped you. Shouldn't you thank me?" the man added.

Her palm tingled from the warmth of his breath as he spoke, and she instinctively withdrew it.

Seizing the chance, the man moved his hand behind her head and turned her face back. His lips already pressed against hers, beginning to nibble.

He knew what she was after, and he was willing to indulge her. He liked the bright look in her eyes, confident and radiant, as if she seemed to radiate. What she was doing was also what he wanted to do, but that didn't stop him from seizing the chance to get a little reward for himself.

Jiang Congyan couldn't break free from the man, so she reluctantly let him kiss her for a while, until she was gasping for breath, her lips slightly puffy, and her tongue somewhat numb before he finally let her go.

"It's time for dinner," she pushed against his chest, her eyes downcast, her long lashes hiding the moisture and spring in her eyes.

Tuo Baxiao was still lingering but, thinking of something, he suppressed the excitement in his body.

The man wanted to carry her back, but Jiang Congyan adamantly refused, her face red.

She realized that this man was shameless; he did whatever he wanted.

He was shameless and didn't care, but she couldn't accept it.

Returning to the bedchamber, after they had eaten, Jiang Congyan was embraced by him again, but instead of reading to him, she brought up the matter of the slaves.

"I heard from a foreign servant that there are many mixed-race people in the slave camp, and quite a few Han people?"

"Hmm," Tuo Baxiao responded absentmindedly, his fingers idly twirling her smooth, shiny long hair.

"Can I select some people?"

Jiang Congyan sat up straighter, intending to move away from the man's chest.

The weather was growing hotter, and even at night, it was a bit stifling. She was afraid of the cold but not the heat, and when she was alone, it was fine, but the man's chest was like a big furnace. After being pressed against it for a while, even someone like her who wasn't afraid of the heat started to feel uncomfortable, with a faint sheen of sweat on her back.

As soon as she created a small gap, the man's strong arm tightened, and she was forced back into his embrace.

"It's the height of summer. Aren't you hot? Do we have to stick together?" she murmured softly.

"This little heat is nothing, I don't mind," the man said, burying his face in her neck and taking a deep breath of her scent.

"..." You might not mind, but I do.

"I've given you the people from the slave camp; you can arrange them however you want."

Although he didn't care, Jiang Congyan still told him her plan. "I plan to have the injured Liangzhou Imperial Guards form a trade caravan. They don't have enough people, so I want to select some who can speak Chinese to go with them."

"The grasslands are resource-poor. If we have a trade caravan, we can establish more industries in the future, and everyone can exchange for more diverse goods. It should be a good thing," she said with a hint of inquiry. This wasn't a small matter, and it was better to inform him, giving her more security.

"Sure, we'll do it your way."

The man replied casually, as if he agreed with whatever she said, which made Jiang Congyan feel a bit dazed. Was her pillow talk really that effective?

Could this even be called pillow talk? She wasn't sure.

Jiang Congyan pondered for a while, then suddenly heard the man say, "Delay the merchant team's departure by two months. By then, we won't have to go through Guyuan."

"Huh? Then which route should we take?"

"I'm going to attack the Jie tribe."

His tone was calm, but the killing intent was unmistakable.

"What?!"

Jiang Congyan was genuinely shocked. She sat bolt upright and turned to face him. His expression wasn't dark; it was sharp and commanding.

"Have you made up your mind? Is this what you were discussing today?"

Tuo Baxiao nodded, "Huo Bineng had the nerve to ambush us halfway. I have to avenge this! Otherwise, people will think I, Tuo Baxiao, am a pushover."

"And open a new trade route while you're at it?" she asked.

"Autumn is just around the corner."

Jiang Congyan understood. Autumn was approaching, and the trade agreement between the Xianbei and Liang was about to begin.

Is it better to waste more resources by going around Guyuan, or to just cut through the Jie and open a new trade route? Clearly, the latter was more cost-effective.

From his tone, she could tell he didn't think much of the Jie—like they could be wiped out without a second thought, no chance of failure.

The Xianbei were strong, their cavalry fierce, and the Jie were no match—just a minor annoyance. Plus, Tuo Baxiao had never lost a battle—no one could touch him.

He wasn't just some reckless fighter. The Wudati Hou incident showed he was good at reading the enemy and wasn't afraid to take risks. He had a sharp mind for tactics and strategy, and he'd been hitting the military books hard lately.

For some, military books were just words on paper—no matter how much they read, they couldn't win. But not for Tuo Baxiao.

After years of battles, he had a wealth of experience. Reading military books now was like giving a tiger wings.

"When are you heading out?"

"In ten days."

"That soon...?"

If things went smoothly, they'd take the Jie's land before winter hit. While this was a good thing, Jiang Congyan couldn't help but feel a hidden worry.

Without the Jie as a buffer, how long would the Xianbei-Liang alliance hold?

With shared borders, friction was bound to happen.

After saying these words, the man didn't give her much time to think. He simply picked her up and carried her toward the bathroom.

As they passed the bedroom, they happened to run into A Fei, who had just finished setting up inside. Jiang Congyan felt a bit embarrassed to meet the maid's gaze, even though it wasn't the first time they had seen Tuo Baxiao carrying her like this.

She buried half her face in the man's chest, so she didn't notice the conflicted and hesitant look on A Fei's face.

It wasn't until they entered the bathroom and she saw the scene before her that Jiang Congyan was stunned.

Her old bathtub was gone, just like that. In its place stood a massive bathtub, two or three times larger than before.

"..."