Chapter 165: Fake Pearls

"My dear husband, is there anything I can help you with?"

Cheng Weiyao fanned herself with a fan, but her eyes were fixed on Wen Chengyun on the wooden stake. She was a little worried about his condition. Looking at his fair skin, she was afraid he wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.

Hearing Cheng Weiyao's voice, Wen Chengyun slowly opened his eyes. He glanced at the yamen runners who were deliberately avoiding him and said softly, "Madam, please take good care of the family."

These were the words on the surface, but his lips moved silently, saying another four words: Keep your troops in place.

The heavy stone in Cheng Weiyao's heart relaxed. Wen Chengyun was not the kind of person who would take things one step at a time. Since he could give this answer, he must have a backup plan.

She stopped asking questions and just stayed quietly for a while. She left reluctantly only when the yamen runners urged her to.

Wen Chengyun's backup was Wu Qi, who was well-informed about the news in the restaurant. As soon as he knew that Wen Chengyun had been arrested, he had already sent a letter back to the capital by flying eagle to request rescue.

But the capital is far away from Qingshi Town, and while waiting for rescue, Wu Qi couldn't just watch his master suffer.

It was the middle of the night and the downtown area was deserted. Apart from Wen Chengyun who was tied to a wooden stake, there were only two unlucky yamen runners who were on night duty.

"We didn't capture this guy, but we're supposed to guard him. That's why they say being a soldier is more comfortable than being a yamen runner. Hiss~ It's so cold out here, why don't you get married? Someone would be so kind as to send you some clothes at this time..."

Qingshi Town is located in the south, with a large temperature difference between day and night. When the yamen runners arrived for duty, it was still broad daylight, under the scorching sun, so they naturally wore light clothing. But once night fell, the night wind blew, and their bodies did shiver.

"You're still blaming me? Why don't you marry one? How can we Fengyin afford a wife? Even matchmakers have to avoid me..."

The yamen runner chatted intermittently to divert attention, but talking wouldn't make him warm. After chatting for a while, the two of them decided to let one of them go back to get the tools for sleeping on the floor.

"Hurry up and come back soon. My eyelids are drooping. After you get it back, you'll be on duty for the first half of the night, and I'll be on duty for the second half. We'll take turns..."

When one of the two yamen runners left, Wu Qi seized the opportunity and blew a needle into the neck of the guarding yamen runner.

The bailiff touched his neck, muttered that there were still a lot of mosquitoes in the middle of the night, and then fainted.

"Master, the capital has replied. They have dispatched a provincial governor to investigate the case. He should arrive tomorrow at the latest..."

Wu Qi approached quickly and put the yamen runner on the chair as he spoke, pretending to be naturally asleep.

Inspectorate officials are mainly divided into two parts. One part is in the central government, which is often called the Grand Censor, and serves as the highest supervisory official.

This position was second only to the left and right prime ministers in power and status in the previous dynasty. The emperor would discuss and decide most military and national affairs and major strategic decisions with the prime minister and the censors.

The other group consisted of the Inspectors Wu Qi had just mentioned. They were assigned to various prefecture and county governments to oversee the princes, county magistrates, and local tyrants who were enfeoffed elsewhere.

It is no exaggeration to say that the Inspectors are the emperor's eyes and ears scattered throughout the country. The selection requirements are very strict, and they are all true royalists and loyal.

"Um."

Wen Chengyun responded softly, and it was not difficult to hear that his throat was still a little hoarse. Wu Qiliankang moved forward with the water bag and prepared to untie Wen Chengyun.

"Master, have a good rest tonight. I'll take care of it here."

Wu Qi was very thoughtful and even came with a human skin mask. He thought that he would tie Wen Chengyun up here and switch the dragon with the phoenix. Judging from the casual look of these yamen runners, they should not be discovered.

Wen Chengyun nodded, half agreeing. He did intend to let Wu Qi stay here for a while, but he had to come back at least before daybreak.

Since Lieutenant Li and his men felt they had secured victory, they would likely relax their defenses a bit. He had considered scouting the barracks at night during his time in Qingshi Town, but the defenses were tight, and even when he managed to sneak in, he didn't gain anything substantial.

Wu Qi specially picked the same white clothes as Wen Chengyun and stood there wearing a human skin mask under the cover of night. It was really hard to tell the difference between the real and the fake.

Wen Chengyun left the scene as quickly as possible and rushed to the military camp outside the city. Climbing over the city wall was already a piece of cake for him.

It is impossible for the troops to be stationed in towns and counties. The military camps are all set up in border areas, and it is also a fact that they are not far from Qingshi Town.

Inside the military tent, there was a scene of singing and dancing. Prostitutes twisted their waists and flirted with all their might, each trying to cling to the man in command. General Liao Yu was organizing a few of his trusted men to relax.

"General, you haven't seen the cowardly look of Prince Qingping. According to the current weather, he will be dead the day after tomorrow at the latest. Poor prince, tsk tsk..."

Lieutenant Li's cheeks flushed from drinking, and he smacked his lips in disdain when he mentioned Wen Chengyun. So what if he was of the Emperor's blood? In the end, he still had to die in this barren land.

"Drink less. Tomorrow morning, you should personally take people to check it out. I don't trust those good-for-nothings in Qingshi Town to do their job."

Liao Yu frowned slightly and gave a few gentle reminders, but his brothers were all happy this year and he didn't want to spoil the fun.

"How about we just do something big and use Prince Qingping to make a killing? Even if the old emperor doesn't care about his reputation, at least he won't let his bloodline fall into the hands of bandits, right?"

A drunken confidant stood up and made a proposal in a daze. This proposal was very bold. It was reasonable to extort money from the court in the name of bandits, and it could also make up for the shortfall in military pay.

Liao Yu picked up the wine glass and squinted slightly, as if considering the credibility of this plan. Wen Chengyun was currently in exile, and the court probably didn't know about his situation.

He could take advantage of the fact that this place was far away from the capital and had no access to information, and accuse Wen Chengyun of colluding with bandits and preparing to escape from Qingshi Town after killing someone in a fit of rage. As for blackmailing the court, it was naturally because he had not reached an agreement with the bandits and the talks broke down.

"How much money is missing from the account? I've noticed the morale of the soldiers has been unstable lately, and most of them are worried about the issue of their salaries not being paid regularly..."

This is a big matter and cannot be decided lightly. If you want to do it, you have to do it well. Liao Yu decided to first see how big the loopholes in the account are that need to be filled.

If it was still within the controllable range, he would rather quietly eliminate Wen Chengyun, his mortal enemy, without alerting the old emperor...