Chapter 261

Over the years, having established the influence of Feiyu, Xiaoran had also developed several of his own business ventures, such as grain and medicinal herbs. He believed that while fighting to the death on the battlefield was one thing, perishing due to a lack of food or medicine caused by the schemes of one’s own people would be utterly humiliating. Therefore, to prevent such a scenario, he had laid the groundwork early, hoping to guarantee the livelihood of the soldiers at the frontier. In several locations, Feiyu members had taken over farms and hired people to cultivate crops and herbs. Under the court's standard arrangements, they would sell the harvested produce in exchange for silver. After all, their primary goal was to ensure supplies for the frontier troops, not to turn a profit. As it stood, however, they had not yet needed to resort to these hidden contingencies. Since Xiaoran was scheduled to stay in Xuyang City for a period of time, he decided to visit the farms in Yuzhou to inspect the situation firsthand. He wanted to see for himself how the crops were growing and whether they could meet future demands. At the same time, he wanted to understand the farm's management and operations so he could make better decisions.