The Enchanting Imperial Concubine (Book 2)

Chapter 297 - Utterly Foolish

Once progress had been made, the local officials wasted no time. Instead of waiting for all the grain to be gathered before transporting it, they began sending carts directly to the front lines as soon as they were loaded.

Originally, with only one or two days' worth of provisions left, the soldiers were starting to panic. But now, with cart after cart of military grain arriving continuously, morale quickly stabilized.

At this time, Ye Zhe led his troops out of the city to engage a veteran Liao general in battle. After a close and risky fight, he narrowly defeated the enemy, cutting him down from his horse, which further boosted the troops' morale.

This battle also made the Liao army finally take the young General Ye seriously. However, Ye Zhe was wounded in the fight, and his injuries were severe. His right shoulder, left lower back, and left thigh were all slashed by the Liao soldiers' curved blades.

The injury to his right shoulder was especially serious, so deep that the bone was visible.

Ye Zhe, known for his skill with weapons in his right hand, now faced a significant reduction in combat effectiveness. Without proper rest, it would be impossible for him to return to the battlefield anytime soon.

Fortunately, Huo Pingbei was equally skilled, both in martial arts and strategy, and could hold the line.

Meanwhile, Yao Xu, one of the strategists sent from the capital, felt both heavy-hearted and frustrated. It wasn't because of the amount of grain that had already been sent from nearby regions, but because his younger brother, Yao Xin, leading a regular army unit, had yet to arrive.

Although his sister, Yao Xiang, had hinted at making some delays, it was clear that Yao Xin had gone too far.

A ten-day delay in delivering military provisions could be explained by external interference, but with the entire nation working hard to supply the army with grain, why hadn't there been any news of his brother's unit making an effort to speed up their delivery?

If this continued, it would inevitably lead to accusations of incompetence and attract the Emperor's criticism.

But despite Yao Xu's worry, he had no choice but to secretly send a letter to his brother, urging him to speed up.

Ironically, Yao Xu was the only one feeling anxious. His "good" brother Yao Xin, on the other hand, was living quite comfortably.

As the second son who didn't need to inherit the title, Yao Xin wasn't subjected to the same strict upbringing as Yao Xu. Though intelligent, he was nowhere near his elder brother's level.

Upon receiving the hint to delay the grain delivery, Yao Xin executed the task quite well. But now, he failed to adapt to the situation, thinking that since grain from other regions had already arrived, his own delayed delivery would not be urgent.

In fact, he reasoned that if he delayed a few more days, it would seem that delivering the provisions had been difficult, and he would earn even greater credit for his efforts.

He even thought of making himself look disheveled and exhausted when he finally arrived, hoping to receive widespread praise.

If Yao Xu and Yao Xiang had known his thoughts, they would have been furious.

Luckily, the letter arrived in time, and the grain, which was originally expected to take twenty-five days to arrive, reached its destination in twenty.

Thus, disaster was averted.

Returning to the palace:

The issue of military provisions was finally resolved. Ye Zhe had broken the stalemate with another victory, and the other two generals had also made some progress. This allowed Ning Chen to relax a little, though he had been tense for some time.