Chapter 951: Heavy Snow

While Chen Xi enjoyed his leisurely days, the seeds that Jia Xu had planted in the north were already bearing fruit. His agents had bypassed Yuan Tan's territories and started delivering intelligence on the Wuhuan and Xianbei in the north back to Jia Xu.

"Heavy snow, huh?" Jia Xu muttered, frowning as he glanced over the report, which casually mentioned the weather.

"Fengxiao, do you have any information on the northern climate?" Jia Xu turned to Guo Jia and asked.

"I’m currently looking into the past fifteen years of Xianbei weather patterns," Fa Zheng responded, raising his head from a pile of bamboo slips. He was always sensitive to weather, as natural conditions were crucial to his strategies.

"No need to look further. If snow falls in September, it means the Xianbei, Wuhuan, and Xiongnu are bound to raid. And the intelligence we’re looking at is from a month ago, which means..." Guo Jia said, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

"Snow in August!" Fa Zheng rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. "But with all these fragmented pieces of information, it’s still unclear just how widespread the snowfall is."

"Prepare to request grain and supplies from Zijing for relief aid to the people of Youzhou," Jia Xu said after a brief pause. "We'll need to take in the people and secure the land. I had hoped to take things slower, but it looks like we’ll need to start preparing now."

"Let’s redirect all of our surplus intelligence agents to the north. We need to determine the extent of the snowfall and be ready to halt all grain and alcohol trades with the northern nomads," Guo Jia said calmly.

"Xiaoqi, send someone with my letter to inform Wei Shuo. Have a scholar who understands climate conditions head to the north and assess the snowfall. We need to find out where it hasn’t snowed yet, and how long it’s been snowing. Also, send people to the northern plains to collect wool and felt tents. Offer a high price if needed," Jia Xu instructed Chen Zhen, who was busy taking notes.

"Understood. I’ll send someone right away," Chen Zhen nodded and promptly left with his notes.

"Should we use the northern nomads to attack Yuan Tan?" Fa Zheng hesitated before asking.

"No need. On the contrary, we should send our intelligence to Yuan Tan and anyone else involved in this matter. There's no point in engaging in underhanded tactics," Guo Jia shook his head, dismissing the idea of using such schemes.

"Indeed, we are both loyal ministers of the Emperor. There's no need for us to engage in such actions," Jia Xu agreed with a sly smile, his face as thick-skinned as ever.

"Then let’s notify all Han officials in the north. As for Youzhou, we should prepare for disaster relief, and we can even consider allying with some of the Han officials there. If Yuan Tan is unable to manage, we can lend them grain," Fa Zheng suggested.

"That’s fine, but we’ll still need Zijing’s approval. Recently, Zijing has had to juggle numerous tasks, but relief efforts and development remain our top priorities," Guo Jia concurred.

Guan Yu had already been sent out to suppress bandits, but Guo Jia, due to health reasons, had stayed behind in Ye City. His role remained one of assistance, so he returned to his usual responsibilities, just like Fa Zheng.

"But if heavy snow does hit the north, what methods should we use?" Fa Zheng made a throat-cutting gesture before holding up a piece of pastry. The two gestures represented the dilemma faced by all the northern warlords—whether to use force or try a gentler approach.

"The second method is much harder, but it’s the one we must choose. Zichuan's inland river project is too ambitious; we can’t use all the people for it. We’ll have to figure this out. Let’s see if you and others with too much time on your hands can solve this," Jia Xu glanced at Fa Zheng with a cold smile, indicating his distaste for the Xianbei more than the Qiang.

"We still have four to five months of buffer time, so we’ll solve it somehow," Fa Zheng said dismissively.

"I fear we may only have two months left," Guo Jia said with a bitter smile. "If it’s really a heavy snowfall, I’ve heard that the Xianbei Chanyu and their leaders are arrogant and indulgent. If the snow affects their royal court..."

"They’ll definitely send troops," Li You said as he entered the room. "This is just like how Dong Zhuo acted later in his rule. He only cared about himself, so when it came to making decisions, he acted quickly and without consultation."

"If that happens, they might see significant success in the early stages of a surprise attack," Guo Jia continued, unfazed by Li You finishing his thoughts.

"Send this guess to everyone in the north as well. With Chen Gongtai and Shen Zhengnan’s wisdom, they’ll understand," Jia Xu summarized, then turned to Li You. "Wenru, any progress on the census?"

"The biggest discovery is how adept the Hebei aristocratic families are at hiding their population. I think I’ll need to halt the census until Zijing and I stabilize the region. Then we can resume," Li You said with a cold smile.

"Did the Zhen family also hide a large number of people?" Guo Jia quickly caught on to Li You's meaning. If they dug too deep into certain prominent families, it could cause a huge uproar, so preparations were needed.

"About twenty to thirty thousand people," Li You said, his tone flat. "I don’t know if there are more hidden behind the scenes. It seems like we’ll need to adjust our approach. Back when we dealt with Taishan and Qingzhou, there weren’t that many powerful families. Xuzhou had its share, but they made mistakes early on."

"Let’s halt the census for now," Lu Su said as he walked in. He had just finished reviewing some archives, which were full of problems. "We need to gather all the aristocratic families in Jizhou for a serious discussion."

It was no wonder Jizhou had been the most prosperous of the Nine Provinces. The aristocratic families there were numerous, and the land consolidation had reached alarming levels. The only reason uprisings hadn’t occurred yet was because the families hadn’t pushed the common people too far. But even so, the situation was getting dire.

"It’s easy now. Just send them a letter, and they’ll come on their own. It’s nothing like back in the day," Guo Jia, who had witnessed the chaos in Yingchuan, couldn’t help but marvel at the difference now.

"Indeed, we need to have a discussion. But let’s wait a bit. Soon, the families from Qingzhou and Xuzhou will also arrive. After all, it’s that time of year again," Lu Su said thoughtfully. "With those families here, we’ll be in a better position to deal with everything."

"Let’s wait, then. There are some things that need to be announced. Zichuan is planning to push forward with some initiatives, but he hasn’t finalized them yet," Li You agreed with Lu Su’s suggestion. He wasn’t incapable of solving the issue, but when there was an opportunity to leverage others' strength, only a fool wouldn’t take advantage of it.

"Zichuan makes minor adjustments at the end of each year. I wonder what he’s planning this time. He hasn’t told us yet," Fa Zheng sighed.

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