"Who is coming?" The carriage stopped at the gate of Youzhou Posthouse. The housekeeper hurriedly ordered the servants to carry out the sedan chair and carefully helped Chu Pei sit in the sedan chair. Just as they were about to step into Youzhou Posthouse, they were stopped by the guards at the door. Two long swords were crossed at the gate, blocking the way for several people!

"How dare you! You don't even recognize Lord Chu? How do you do your job? Lord Chu has been ill for such a short time, and you have already forgotten who your superior is?" Seeing the two guards sternly refusing them to enter, the butler scolded them in anger. He was about to brush away the two long swords in front of him, but he didn't expect that six guards rushed out from the door and stood at the gate of the inn, blocking the entire entrance. Anger suddenly appeared on the butler's face. Just as he was about to yell, Chu Pei's voice came from the sedan chair!

"Stop the sedan!" Chu Pei's voice came out from the sedan with a hint of dryness. When the two sedan bearers heard it, they immediately put down the sedan carefully and then lifted the curtain for Chu Pei!

Chu Pei's sharp eyes immediately swept over the eight guards standing at the door. Noticing that their attire was different from that of the Youzhou soldiers, he understood. A slight sneer appeared on his skinny face, and he then asked in a cold voice, "Who are you? Why are you guarding this Youzhou posthouse?"

The eight men had certainly seen Chu Pei before, and their eyes were filled with wonder. Wasn't this frontier official unconscious after being struck by a poisoned arrow? Why was he now sitting in a sedan chair, perfectly healthy? Although he looked a little frail, the cold glint in his eyes reminded them of the reality before them!

Just remembering that although General Hu Wei was hard to find at the moment, he had kept his deputy general behind, and now he was in control of Youzhou's military affairs, the eight guards suddenly spoke with full confidence, "We are General Hu Wei's guards, and we have been ordered to protect the King of Chu and the Queen! If you have nothing else to do, please return!"

Chu Pei's unyielding attitude made the coldness in his eyes even worse. The housekeeper beside him had already roared in anger, "How dare you! Since you knew it was Master Chu, you still dared to block his way? Have you forgotten that the King of Chu is his son? Or do you want to wait for the Prince to come back and deal with you? Where's Nanny Shi? Let her come out!"

"Your servant greets Master Chu!" The one who came out was an unfamiliar maid. She bowed respectfully and politely to Chu Pei, who was standing outside the door. Seeing that the patriarch of the Xie family, the richest family in Youzhou, was standing next to Chu Pei, she smiled and said, "Your Excellency has come at a bad time. The prince and princess have both gone south to seek their fortune!"

"Who are you?" Looking at the nanny in front of him who was smiling very experiencedly, Chu Pei half-closed his eyes and spoke with a hint of danger!

"I am Madam Guo, the servant left by the general to serve the prince and princess! Seeing your Excellency coming in person today, I hurried over to pay my respects to you! But your Excellency has made a wasted trip. The prince and princess are both in Nanxun right now, and I'm afraid it will take some time for them to come back! Why don't you wait until the prince and princess come back before coming over!" Seeing Chu Pei's unfriendly expression, Madam Guo's heart tightened slightly, and she dealt with the person in front of her even more carefully!

After all, with the example of the Princess of Chu, Madam Guo naturally understood that if a woman like that could be married into a family, the people in the family would definitely not be easy to deal with! Especially since Chu Pei seemed to be still ill, but his eyes were very captivating!

"Madam Guo? You are so courageous that you dared to stop me outside the door and even tried to send me away! Don't forget, this Youzhou is under my jurisdiction. Your General Huwei has committed a crime and I don't know if he can come back. But you are acting arrogantly in front of me. Do you want me to submit a memorial to the emperor and charge you with treason?" Chu Pei was not someone to be trifled with. He came to the remote Youzhou alone and established a firm foothold. How could he succeed without means and scheming? If he couldn't even intimidate a servant, then his twenty years as a frontier official would be in vain!

Seeing that Chu Pei was already angry, Nanny Guo naturally knew to block people outside the door with force. Chu Pei would definitely do what he said. Besides, it was indeed the general who had committed a crime. The King of Chu went to Nanxun this time to clean up the mess for the general!

Seeing the enraged Chu Pei, Madam Guo frowned slightly, secretly thinking it was bizarre. This person, who was clearly already incapable of doing anything, was actually standing right in front of her! However, the general had ordered that no one be allowed to enter the posthouse before leaving. If she let this Lord Chu in, she would be the one to be punished!

After thinking about it for a long time, Nanny Guo was blocking the door, and Chu Pei had lost his patience, especially in front of Xie Yingping. In just two months, Youzhou had changed so much. How could he let him swallow this?

Chu Pei sneered, ignoring Madam Guo's attempts to stop him, brushed aside the housekeeper's support, and stepped up the steps in front of the door, heading towards the nine people blocking his way...

"Lord Chu, aren't you making things difficult for me? How can I explain this to the general?" Seeing Chu Pei's figure approaching her, Nanny Guo took a step back in embarrassment. After all, Chu Pei's identity was special. He was not only a high-ranking official on the frontier, but also the biological father of the King of Chu. In addition, his body seemed not to have fully recovered yet. If he was bumped into something in the conflict, the general would definitely push her out in order to give an explanation to the King of Chu!

Therefore, Nanny Guo was smart. She just stopped him verbally while retreating. Even if she let Chu Pei in, she could say that it was Chu Pei who insisted on doing so. How could she, a small housekeeper, dare to block his way?

While speaking, Chu Pei had already stepped onto the last step with Xie Yingping. He glanced at the guards in front of him who still wanted to stop him, and saw that Madam Guo secretly shook her head at the eight people behind her, and then she winked at the housekeeper behind her!

Catching a glimpse from the corner of Chu Pei's eye, the butler immediately stepped forward, forcefully brushing aside the few people still standing in front of Chu Pei, and then helping his master walk inside...

Before leaving the front hall, a figure hurried over and immediately bowed when he saw Chu Pei. "This servant greets you, sir!"

The excitement of meeting again after a long separation made Nanny Shi's eyes red, and there was a slight tremor in her voice. She bowed respectfully to Chu Peifu!

Chu Pei glanced sideways at Madam Guo, who was standing behind him with an embarrassed expression. He then turned his attention to Madam Shi and said in a low voice with a hint of disappointment, "I told you to serve the prince and princess well, so how come this Youzhou Inn has become someone else's private villa?"

How could Madam Shi not hear Chu Pei's indirect criticism? Furthermore, she had been bullied and ostracized by Madam Guo and the others these days, and naturally she was filled with anger. Seeing Chu Pei coming today, she took the opportunity to complain, "My lord, you trust me and leave this Youzhou Posthouse to me! But I am alone and weak, and I can't stand up to four punches with my bare hands! I know I have failed in my duty and failed your high expectations. Please punish me!"

As she said that, Nanny Shi knelt down in front of Chu Pei with a plop. She stood with her back straight. Although she was in a posture of being punished, the look she gave to Nanny Guo was full of provocation, which made Nanny Guo immediately annoyed. She turned her gaze to Chu Pei nervously, a little worried that Chu Pei would take advantage of the situation to punish her!

"Get up, wait until I have seen the situation of the post house before making a decision! However, this post house really needs to be reorganized, so that some people won't occupy the house and forget their own status!" After saying that, Chu Pei no longer paid attention to Nanny Guo and others, and walked towards the backyard under the leadership of Nanny Shi!

"Go and notify them quickly..." Nanny Guo watched the few people walk into the backyard with concern, then whispered instructions to the two guards beside her, and then hurriedly followed Chu Pei into the backyard!

"Sir, after the prince and princess came to Youzhou, they lived in the South Garden of the post station, Prince Xiahou lived in the East Garden, Minister Han lived in the North Garden, and the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, Xia Ji, and Doctor Nie lived in the West Garden! The South Garden is now empty and no one lives there, but I take people there to clean it every day to ensure that the prince and princess don't have nowhere to stay when they suddenly come back!" Walking all the way to the backyard, Nanny Shi kept explaining the situation of the post station and counted all the outsiders in Youzhou to Chu Pei!

"It is said that Deputy Commander Xia has not yet regained consciousness, and we don't know how serious his injuries are!" Upon hearing that Xia Ji lived in Xiyuan, Chu Pei paused slightly, and then slowly walked forward, but he had already asked the doubts in his heart!

When he was in Kyoto, he had also seen Xia Ji. People who practiced martial arts would naturally be in good health. Even if they were seriously injured, they would have recovered after such a long time. But Xia Ji was still unconscious. I'm afraid there must be something wrong!

"Your Excellency doesn't know that when the princess first stepped into this inn, she set a rule that our people are only responsible for three meals a day, and they cannot enter the four gardens without being summoned at other times. Although I am the manager of this inn, I cannot go against the princess's wishes! What's more, when we just met, I was beaten with a stick for not serving well, and I am even more afraid of the princess in my heart! From then on, I can only serve the masters' three meals a day with all my heart, and I don't know the situation of each courtyard very well! If the prince and princess hadn't gone to Nanxun, I would not be able to enter the Nanyuan!" Speaking of this issue, Nanny Shi was full of resentment in her heart. Seeing that Chu Pei also had a bad look on his face, she boldly said all her dissatisfaction, and then bowed her head and followed Chu Pei, walking in the garden of the inn!

"She is acting like a princess and even dares to hit the people I sent!" Chu Pei said this lightly as he looked at the flowers and leaves slowly waking up in the garden. His eyes seemed particularly gloomy in the bright sunshine, but because they were covered with a layer of golden sunlight, people could not figure out what he was thinking!

"Apart from these people, are there any other people coming in and out of this inn?" Seeing Chu Pei immersed in disgust for his daughter-in-law, Xie Yingping asked Nanny Shi!

Hearing Xie Yingping's question, Nanny Shi looked up at him, who had a solemn expression on his face. She then tried hard to recall all the people who had come in and out of the posthouse during this period. She then shook her head carefully, "No! Minister Han always leaves early and returns late every day to go to General Huwei's posthouse. The others rarely go out!"

Staring closely at Nanny Shi's expression and seeing that she answered very carefully, Xie Yingping knew that she was not lying!

But even though she didn't lie, it didn't mean the other party didn't use tricks!

He has checked all the restaurants, teahouses and inns in Youzhou, but he has not found anyone from the Rong family. The most likely possibility is that they are hiding in the Youzhou inn that ordinary people cannot reach!

Who would have thought that the Princess of Chu was so foresighted that she kept all the spies outside the four gardens, preventing anyone from seeing what was going on inside, so they could steal the show!

At this time, Han Shaomian was not in the North Garden, Xia Ji and Nie Huaiyuan lived in the West Garden, and the South Garden was empty. The most likely hiding place was the East Garden where Xia Houqin lived. And only Xia Houqin's identity could prevent the curious from visiting!

Thinking of this, Xie Yingping suggested, "Sir, Minister Han is away for the time being. Why don't we go visit Prince Xiahou first? He has come from afar and is related to the Chu family by marriage, so we naturally cannot neglect him!"

Chu Pei had the same idea in his mind. Among the four courts, only Xiahou Qin had the highest and most special status. In addition, he went to the Chu Mansion to visit him last night, so naturally he had to return the gift!

Nodding in agreement with Xie Yingping's words, Chu Pei led everyone towards the East Garden!

"Uncle has just recovered from his illness, why did he come here? Now the prince and princess are not here, I'm afraid uncle has made a trip in vain!" But Xiahou Qin seemed to have super hearing. Before Chu Pei and Xie Yingping entered the East Garden, his figure had already appeared at the gate of the courtyard. With a faint smile on his lips, he looked at the people with heavy faces, and a sneer appeared in his heart!

"The prince came to visit me yesterday, so of course I had to return the gift!" Seeing the contempt in Xiahou Qin's eyes, Chu Pei naturally knew why, but he suppressed his unhappiness and spoke lightly!

"No need! It was Doctor Nie who developed the antidote yesterday. We thought that your uncle's life was so precious that he needed medical treatment as soon as possible, so we rushed to the Chu Mansion! If your uncle wants to thank you, then thank Doctor Nie! This prince just showed you the way!" Xiahou Qin's words made Chu Pei and everyone else think that the poison in Chu Pei's body was cured by Nie Huaiyuan. The housekeeper frowned when he heard this, and looked at Xiahou Qin with a hint of probing in his eyes. Unfortunately, the other party smiled calmly, and no anxiety or anger could be detected at all, which made the housekeeper slightly disappointed, and then he turned his gaze to Chu Pei!

"Master, you must be tired after walking for so long. Why don't you go into the East Garden and rest for a while? Although it is March and it is very warm outside, your body is still recuperating, so you have to be careful!" The housekeeper supported Chu Pei's arm and led him step by step towards Xiahou Qin's East Garden!

However, Xiahou Qin stood at the entrance of the garden, not retreating a single step out of fear of Chu Pei's identity. The smile on his lips was impeccable, but the coldness in his eyes grew colder as Chu Pei approached. "This prince hates servants who make decisions for their masters the most! If this prince hadn't insisted on entering my uncle's inner chamber yesterday, I'm afraid my uncle wouldn't have been able to take Doctor Nie's antidote and would still be lying in bed now!"

With a cold light in his eyes, Xiahou Qin suddenly shot at the butler, but the words he said made the butler break out in a cold sweat. The hand that was holding Chu Pei tightened slightly. Although it was just a very small movement, it instantly caught Chu Pei's attention!

It was just that the person they were dealing with at this time was Xia Houqin, but Chu Pei did not show any dissatisfaction with the housekeeper. He walked to a position only one step away from Xia Houqin, then slowly stopped and said with a faint smile, "Let's go inside and talk!"

As he spoke, he was about to walk past Xia Houqin and into the East Garden...

Xiahou Qin turned around and stood in front of Chu Pei, sneering, "This prince hates others coming in and out of my place at will! If you are tired, please return to the Chu Mansion and rest well!"

"Prince Xiahou is so hesitant. Could there be something shameful hidden in the East Garden?" Xie Yingping stepped forward at this time and stood beside Chu Pei. He competed with Xiahou Qin with a powerful aura, but his words were extremely direct!

"Clan leader Xie, what do you think is hidden in the East Garden?" Xiahou Qin asked nonchalantly while yawning, leaning lazily against the archway. However, he stood firmly in front of the few people, not showing any sign of retreat!

"If there is nothing, why would Prince Xiahou be afraid of us going in? What's more, Lord Chu is already tired, the East Garden is right in front of us, but it will take some time to return to the Chu Mansion. Why should we go far away?" Although Xiahou Qin's body blocked the way, Xie Yingping's gaze had already passed Xiahou Qin and shot into the East Garden. She saw that every blade of grass and every tree in the yard was the same as before, but the door of the main house was closed, which made Xie Yingping even more suspicious!

Hearing this, Xiahou Qin slowly stood up straight and said sternly, "Don't say anything careless. If we don't see that shameful thing after entering, what are Patriarch Xie's plans?"

Seeing Xiahou Qin's expression suddenly become so serious and solemn, even with a hint of murderous intent, Xie Yingping's resolute eyes flashed with an ominous premonition. She felt that Xiahou Qin's words were full of hidden meanings, so she became more and more concerned about Xiahou Qin's every move and answered very carefully, "This clan leader is just worried that Prince Xiahou is not living comfortably, that's all!"

Seeing Xie Yingping being so cautious, Xiahou Qin shrugged nonchalantly and then stepped aside. "Since you insist on coming in, then please sit for a while, or you'll say I'm not hospitable enough!"

Chu Pei and Xie Yingping looked at each other, both showing surprise at Xiahou Qin's sudden good talk. Then they slowly walked into the East Garden. The housekeeper pushed open the door of the main house. The furnishings inside were the same as before. The inner room and the side room were all tidy and there was no trace of mess. Apart from Xiahou Qin, there was no one else. This made Xie Yingping frown for a moment, and she shot a sharp gaze at Xiahou Qin, as if she wanted to see a flaw from his expression!

"What are you looking for, Patriarch Xie? You don't think there is something hidden in this prince's East Garden, right?" After glancing at Xie Yingping's expression, Xiahou Qin sat down and poured himself a cup of hot tea. He sipped the tea carefully while asking questions, looking relaxed, as if he was not dealing with an enemy!

However, Xiahou Qin's questions were so flawless that Xie Yingping couldn't find any fault. She could only relax her expression and slowly said, "Prince, you misunderstood! I am just a little curious. How could you keep the East Garden so neat and tidy?"

"Of course! If you can't even clean up your own residence, how can you lead the Xiahou clan in the future? It's like a person who can't even handle his own family affairs, how can he accomplish something big? Uncle, don't you agree?" After saying that, Xiahou Mian showed a very kind smile and looked at Chu Pei!

But his words with a hint of meaning made Chu Pei's eyes darken, and then he took the teacup handed to him by the housekeeper and drank the tea by himself!

"Your humble servant greets Lord Chu!" Unexpectedly, at this moment, Lu Xin's adjutant walked in from outside the door. He was dressed in armor and strode in with a long sword in his hand. When he saw Chu Pei, he just bowed symbolically!

"I sat down just as you guys came! General Hu Wei has planted quite a few spies in my Youzhou! Does he really regard Youzhou as his own military camp? Or does he want to stir up some trouble and hurt me again?" Seeing the adjutant stepping into the main room aggressively, Chu Pei put down the teacup in his hand with a bang and spoke with an extremely ugly expression!

Xiahou Qin kept smiling, but the disgust that flashed across his eyes showed his disapproval of the adjutant for barging in without notifying the officer!

"Lord Chu, you're joking! I'm here only to report something to you, sir!" Unafraid of Chu Pei's sudden anger, the deputy general remained calm. "Since you were injured, you've been under the control of Lord Lu. Now, we are responsible for the security of Youzhou. Especially since Prince Xiahou and Deputy Commander Xia Ji are staying at the Youzhou Posthouse, we cannot allow anyone to come in or out at will! Please don't make things difficult for me, sir!"

"If I remember correctly, the Emperor has already issued an order that all affairs of Youzhou, big or small, be handled by Minister Han! When will it be Lu Xin's turn? And when will it be your turn?" Chu Pei shrewdly counterattacked! If he hadn't figured everything out, how could he have casually walked out of the Chu Mansion to meet those who took advantage of his serious injury to start dividing up Youzhou's power?

"With Lord Chu's words, I will do my best to take care of everything in Youzhou for you!" Unexpectedly, before Chu Pei's words faded from everyone's ears, Han Shaomian's upright and clear voice came from outside the door!

Hearing this, Chu Pei frowned immediately and watched Han Shaomian, dressed in official uniform, step into the main house. He had not yet handed the whip in his hand to the servant, which showed that he was rushing back to Youzhou Posthouse!

Han Shaomian's face was as gloomy as water, and he looked more calm and reserved than when he met him in Kyoto. The first thing he saw when he entered the house was Xiahou Qin. This made Chu Pei feel something was wrong. He was afraid that Han Shaomian had been bewitched by Xiahou Qin. Once he turned his attention to the Xiahou clan, Prince Duan's attitude would become subtle!

"Your humble servant greets Lord Chu!" Compared to the adjutant's recklessness, Han Shaomian, although a military candidate, was very polite. His good upbringing was undoubtedly revealed in his every move, which made people admire and respect him!

"Minister Han, you've worked hard these days!" The other party was so polite, Chu Pei naturally couldn't be rude, so he forced a smile and dealt with Han Shaomian. "Why did Minister Han come back at this time?"

Hearing Chu Pei's question, Han Shaomian turned his firm and upright gaze towards Xie Yingping...

－－－－－－Digression－－－－－－

The story of Nanxun is almost over, and the plot is broadcast: Next it will be Sister Rong’s turn. If you like Sister Rong, don’t miss it!

14000 more to come tomorrow!