After Transmigration: Building a Kingdom in Turbulent Times-Chapter 726 - 716: Is He Handsome?

Zhao Xin and Wei Jie were both in Luoyang. They received orders and immediately packed up to head to Jizhou.

Zhao Hanzhang swiftly captured the counties and prefectures south of Pingyang County that were seized by the Xiongnu, as well as those that surrendered to the Xiongnu. Aside from the nine counties recovered by Fu Zhi from west to east, all the remaining areas now belong to her.

She connected Si Province and Yu Province together, making it possible to conduct seamless trade between the two places by clearing the bandits within the borders.

The merchants traveling between the two regions would be safer, Zhao Hanzhang’s territory would be more secure, and both the Zhao Family and Yu State would be safer as well.

The newly captured counties might require a change of Prefectural Governors, and the lower-ranking County Magistrates might also be replaced, with plenty of official documents being delivered every day.

Thanks to Ji Yuan’s help, Zhao Hanzhang managed to find time every day to inspect the military troops.

The food supplies for the military were managed by Fu Tinghan. The troops were currently stationed 80 miles from Pingyang City, and the daily consumption of provisions was a huge amount.

Luckily, their preparations were fairly adequate. Fu Tinghan glanced at the calculated figures and approached Wang Si Niang, who was in charge of logistics this time, and said, "Transfer another 5,000 stones of provisions from Hongnong."

Wang Si Niang was taken aback and hurriedly replied, "Hongnong County has just been pacified; they wouldn’t be able to provide such a large amount of provisions, right?"

"They can," Fu Tinghan raised his eyes to look at her, saying, "This figure is calculated from the ledger books seized from each county in Hongnong; they can definitely provide double this amount if needed."

Only then did Wang Si Niang agree and asked, "How long will the 5,000 stones of provisions last us here? Are we going to be stationed here for that long?"

This was confidential information, yet Wang Si Niang was a logistics officer, so it couldn’t be kept from her. Thus, Fu Tinghan murmured, "We need to wait here."

Wang Si Niang asked, "Waiting for what?"

She had no fondness for the Xiongnu or Shi Le and felt they were in an excellent situation currently, unable to resist saying, "We have won successive victories, why not take advantage of them and push forward to capture Pingyang County in one go?"

Fu Tinghan replied, "The timing is not right."

Wang Si Niang questioned, "How is the timing not right?"

Fu Tinghan paused for a moment. Although he knew the reasons, explaining them in detail was cumbersome. Seeing the position of the sun, he deemed it too time-consuming, so he said, "You should ask Hanzhang, I have other matters to attend to. Remember to issue the official documents to Hongnong County and recheck the food supplies, sign off on the verification, and bring the forms to me."

With that, he turned to leave.

Wang Si Niang stood silent for a moment before rushing to find Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang was squatting on the hillside, gazing towards Pingyang City, her soldiers camped there, with some training, some on alert, and scouts scouting near Pingyang City for intelligence.

She was deep in thought, pondering what Liu Yuan in Pingyang City was doing right at that moment.

At that exact time, he must certainly be indulging in a sumptuous lunch, while she had to squat on the hillside facing the northern wind, munching on dry bread.

Zhao Hanzhang mused as she tore off a piece of grey bread and stuffed it into her mouth, sighing in sorrow.

Upon seeing Wang Si Niang, she warmly invited her, "Joining me for lunch?"

Wang Si Niang glanced at the bread in her hand and shook her head. It was January, just after the New Year; the northern lands were devoid of any greenery, so they had no vegetables to eat and not much meat either.

Thus, their food supplies were strictly grains; even for Zhao Hanzhang at the front, money couldn’t easily procure vegetables and meat.

All because of her strict military orders.

In truth, there was a county just twenty miles east, which they had recently captured, but she issued strict orders prohibiting soldiers from disturbing the local people, and she herself didn’t move into the city, remaining camped with the soldiers under the northern wind.

The January northern wind was truly biting cold, freezing the ground solid, and Wang Si Niang, shedding her aristocratic air, stood there with her face pummeled by the wind. She squatted down with Zhao Hanzhang, inquiring why she hadn’t continued advancing to reclaim lost territories.

She grumbled, "Fu Dalang might seem gentle, but he’s not considerate at all. When I asked him, he, merely to avoid the trouble of answering, directed me to ask you. My brother never acts so discourteous toward women. How unfortunate it is that you don’t consider him; otherwise..."

Wang Si Niang shook her head, unable to comprehend why Zhao Hanzhang chose Fu Tinghan over her brother. "My brother is more handsome, more knowledgeable, broader-minded, and gentler than him..."

Zhao Hanzhang halted her praising of her brother, "Your brother is too old."

Wang Si Niang: ...

"Furthermore, in terms of knowledge, Brother Wen might excel him, yet beyond literary talent, I can assure you, Fu Tinghan surpasses your brother. As for appearances, well, beauty lies in the eye of the beholder; some prefer mighty, some prefer attractive, and others charming; this can’t be compared."

Zhao Hanzhang said, "Regarding temperament, I quite like his; I am already noisy enough. If he were as talkative as me, our household would become as noisy as two frogs croaking. How vexing it’d be."

"With him being rather cool and detached, even if I become tiresome, he wouldn’t be vexed by me." Zhao Hanzhang endeavored to finish gobbling her last morsel of bread, exhaled, and said, "What were you asking me just now?"

Wang Si Niang had a stubborn streak and insisted she agree with her, grabbing onto her question, "That’s unimportant. Explain to me clearly, how beauty is in the eye of the beholder? I ask you, do you think Wei Shubao is attractive?"

Zhao Hanzhang unhesitatingly nodded, "Attractive indeed."

"Do you fancy him?"

Zhao Hanzhang also didn’t hesitate, nodding, "I do."

"I also find him attractive and like him; I fear there’s no one in the world who doesn’t, thus proving the world’s sense of beauty is similar."

Zhao Hanzhang: "...Is it completely the same? Then let me ask you, isn’t Fu Tinghan attractive?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"Just average, not as good as my brother," Wang Si Niang said, "My brother could stand alongside Wei Shubao in reputation."

"And you’re gallant and poised, handsome, talented, virtuous, and renowned; who could not match you?"

To be frank, Wang Si Niang believed Fu Tinghan unworthy of Zhao Hanzhang, and only her brother might barely match.

Isn’t this the series where a best friend can’t stand the boyfriend?

This was a dilemma that hadn’t been solved a millennium later, and Zhao Hanzhang decided not to engage with it. She promptly shifted the topic, "You asked why I haven’t pursued the victory, correct?"

"Because of Shi Le," Zhao Hanzhang pointed towards Shangdang, saying, "I am certain, Shi Le is now watching me from Shangdang. Should I dare to assault Pingyang, he would march south to attack Luoyang and Yu State. By then, Liu Yuan and I would both be wounded, allowing him to reap the benefits."

"So, I cannot let him succeed," Zhao Hanzhang said, "Recovering the lost lands up to this point is already a success; we must not greedily advance, risking more losses."

"Then why should we expend provisions staying here? We now possess food for twenty-five days. Just now, Minister Fu asked me to requisition 5,000 stones from Hongnong County, sufficient for twelve days. Are we going to halt here for a month?"

Zhao Hanzhang said, "To give the counties we’ve captured later some stable time, and also to wait for Liu Cong’s army to return. Our deployment was mainly to contain the Xiongnu army; since Liu Cong hasn’t returned to Pingyang yet, we cannot leave."