Rising Phoenix

Feng Zhiwei followed the stream of bodies for a distance. They could already spot the crowd in the distance, a gathering of seas and mountains of people with countless voices raised and yelling, and angry harpoons and sticks wielded in fury. The uproar was already deafening even half a mile away, and all the furor completely hid the Ancestral Temple and masked Ning Yi and his three thousand guards.

“Piss off!”

“Any who touches the Ancestral Temple will die!”

“Drag them away!”

The voices reached the sky as the crowd packed together. There was no way for them to proceed without killing.

But once the first lives were taken, the matter would become unresolvable.

“I’ll get him!” Ning Cheng called out, already deciding to jump over the crowd.

But Feng Zhiwei immediately pulled him back. “Wait!”

She stared at the crowd, her face deathly serious.

Gu Nanyi and Ning Cheng could rescue Ning Yi, but Feng Zhiwei was afraid that the Chang Family had saboteurs and spies planted in this huge crowd. Once the chaos began, even if they could not hurt Gu Nanyi or Ning Cheng, they only needed to kill the random bystanders and then the situation would spiral out of control. Then, not only would they fail to control South Sea, she and Ning Yi might not even make it out of South Sea alive.

Clearly Ning Yi had thought of this matter as well, so he had held back his guards and allowed the commoners to surround him.

“We cannot be reckless. There are too many people and we will lose control too easily.” She warned, thinking deeply before turning to Ning Cheng. “Let His Highness know we have arrived.”

Ning Cheng rolled his eyes in displeasure and unwillingness, and Feng Zhiwei narrowed her eyes, her voice cold: “Do you believe that if you disobey me, you’ll be on your way back to Dijing tomorrow?”

Ning Cheng could only send up a signal flare, and almost instantly a golden flare came up out of the center of the crowd in reply. Ning Yi’s flare angled out towards them, petering out in the air and falling.

“Brother Gu!”

At Feng Zhiwei’s call, Gu Nanyi floated forward and caught the falling missive.

The crowd of commoners noticed some movement, but before they could decipher what had happened Gu Nanyi had already returned to Feng Zhiwei’s side.

He handed a golden cylinder and the paper scroll inside to Feng Zhiwei. “Use gain to scatter.”

Feng Zhiwei’s eyes flashed.

His plan was identical to hers.

“Li Zheng,” She called out, turning to the man from Jiu Jie Village. “Where is the closest Chang Ping Granary?”

The Chang Ping Granary were storage sites owned and operated by the Imperial Court, normally only opened for disaster relief or managing grain price inflation.

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“Ping Ye County. There are two about thirty miles away.” Li Zheng replied, confused as he asked: “What does Your Honor intend? The Chang Ping Granary is controlled by the Du Liang Dao, the Commissioner’s immediate subordinate. In order to open the granary, Master Zhou must sign an order. The two granaries are under strict guard.”

Of course they under strict guard. With the raging fight between the families and the government, the grain price had continuously grown. Zhou Xizhong had secured the granaries as future strongholds to manage the grain inflation, establishing an unshakable tie to the stomachs of the people. Feng Zhiwei laughed coldly and waved Helian Zheng and Yao Yangyu forward. “Prince Hu Zhuo, Young Master Yao!”

After Feng Zhiwei explained their mission, Helian Zheng blinked and replied: “If they refuse, can we kill him?”

Feng Zhiwei laughed again, her smile biting as she answered: “These you can kill.”

Helian Zheng and Yao Yangyu departed with the Eight Valiants and two hundred guards, marching under Feng Zhiwei’s order. When they arrived at Ping Ye County, the two split to their respective granaries. They had agreed that whoever brought back less grain would need to wear a long tail of grass and crawl around on the ground like a dog.

“Butler.” Feng Zhiwei called, summoning the Xi Yard attendant. “Return to the Xi Yard and gather everyone. Bring all the liquid money to Ping Ye County. The quicker the better.”

The butler nodded and bowed hurriedly before dashing off without another word.

“Li Zheng, summon your villagers and bring out gongs and drums. Announce this:

The Imperial Court is opening the granaries in Ping Ye County to relieve the rising gran price disaster in Feng Zhou and those displaced by the rising tide. Any affected elders sixty and older living in Feng Zhou City and its suburbs can receive ten liters of rice and three tael of silver. The hired workers of every major boat and ship manufactory can receive ten liters of rice and one tael of silver with their identity tokens. The disaster rice and silver will only be given out for three days and requires the person to come sign in person. No leeway period.”

After those words, Feng Zhiwei procured a thick stack of silver notes and handed them to Li Zheng. “Forget about the gongs and drums, just make sure everyone hears the news. This silver is your fee, and once the crowd is scattered I will double this!”

Li Zheng’s hands trembled excitedly as he clutched the silver notes, but his mind remained clear: “Where will the rice come from? Your superior has not approved…”

“My words are approval.” Feng Zhiwei smiled icily. “All you need to worry about is spreading the news!”

“You.” Feng Zhiwei pointed to Ning Cheng and the remaining hundred guards. “Take off your uniform and go into the crowd. Wait, and when people refuse to leave as the crowd scatters, surround anyone suspicious!”

“Yes!”

Everyone went off to fulfill their tasks as Feng Zhiwei waited and planned, her hands clasped behind her back and she stared up into the sky. When the people arrived at Ping Ye County for the rice and silver, everything should be ready and waiting.

It is better to dodge than to block, and more effective to lure with gain than to disperse with reason. Instead of wasting energy explaining or causing trouble with force, it was more effective to offer up free food and silver in the distance so that the crowd would leave on their own.

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As for opening the granaries, the officers watching them would surely refuse, but Helian Zheng and Yao Yangyu’s identities would give them some leeway as they seized control.

Her plans in motion, she brought Gu Nanyi away and found two villagers willing to sell their cloth robes.

“Brother Gu.” Feng Zhiwei spoke again on a last matter. “Once the crowd begins to disperse, help me watch from above. If there’s anything wrong, point it out for me.”

Gu Nanyi did not reply, calmly eating his walnuts as he stood three steps away from her, leaving her in easy reach.

Soon, Li Zheng returned with twenty youths and a large gong in hand, all of them yelling as loudly as they could. Without enough gongs and drums, some had brought iron pans and large basins to bang and drum, and their long chaotic shouts immediately pressed through the noise of the crowd.