As soon as Magistrate Ke finished speaking, he saw Gu Yuzhi looking at him with bright eyes and urging him in a low voice, "Tell me quickly, tell me quickly."

He coughed lightly: "Does Your Highness still remember Jingxiang?"

Jingxiang?

Gu Yuzhi scratched his head and thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't remember. Where is Jingxiang? Is it in Quanzhou? Would there be such a place there?"

Upon hearing the words "Jingxiang," Chief Secretary Xie and Guard Qi exchanged a glance, their eyes revealing understanding.

Quanzhou Jingxiang, isn't that the origin of the name used by those mountain bandits who robbed and rewarded others?

If he remembered correctly, this well village should be deserted by now.

What is Your Highness looking for in a place like this?

Chief Secretary Xie glanced at Gu Yuzhi without making it obvious, feeling that the young prince's seemingly inexplicable ideas were actually very purposeful.

Sweet potatoes, cotton, and this time, the kind of flat wasteland we're looking for...

Could it be that someone is giving advice behind the young prince's back?

Chief Secretary Xie looked over again and saw the young prince staring expectantly at Prefect Ke, his face full of anticipation, without revealing a trace of anything amiss.

For a moment, Chief Secretary Xie began to doubt himself again. The young prince was such an inability to keep secrets; if someone was really giving him pointers behind his back, he would definitely slip up.

Moreover, the young prince has never lacked people around him, so if the young prince had come into contact with any strangers, it would be impossible for me not to know.

However, in the blink of an eye, Chief Secretary Xie dispelled his doubts.

Little did Xie Changshi know, he was just one step away from the truth...

At this moment, Prefect Ke said in a low voice, "Those mountain bandits who robbed the reward at the beginning claimed to be from Jingxiang in Quanzhou, didn't they?"

The moment the words "robbery reward" came out, Gu Yuzhi immediately remembered it and said angrily, "I knew why this Jingxiang sounded so familiar!"

He remembered that Guard Zhang had said these people were deserters, but no further investigation was ever conducted.

Gu Yuzhi pouted and snorted. These deserters were definitely arranged by his brother, the Prince of Chu.

During this time, while learning from Mr. Huo, he learned a lot about military camps and realized that this was a way for his brother, the King of Chu, to expand his military strength.

These soldiers, who were originally on the register, became the King of Chu's private army after his scheme.

Mr. Huo said that if it weren't for him capturing these private soldiers, their numbers would have increased considerably in two years, posing a significant threat to Changzhou.

Thinking about it this way, Gu Yuzhi felt that he was incredibly lucky!

If these bandits hadn't felt they weren't favored and dared to audaciously rob the reward, he wouldn't have been able to wipe them all out in one fell swoop!

Gu Yuzhi's angry expression instantly turned into a beaming smile: "And then? And then? Prefect Ke, please continue!"

Prefect Ke laughed and said, "So many years have passed, those fields in Jingxiang must have all turned into wasteland."

Seeing those fertile fields turn into wasteland, Magistrate Ke was heartbroken.

He had considered relocating some people there, but since the First Prince hadn't come, he was very restricted in what he did throughout the prefecture.

Secondly, all the people in Jingxiang died overnight, turning it into a forbidden area in the hearts of the people of the whole prefecture. Even if he were not restrained, the people of the whole prefecture would not dare to go there.

“Apart from Jingxiang, there is no other place in the whole prefecture with flat wasteland.”

Gu Yuzhi responded with an "oh," and silently pondered for a moment.

It's only been a few years since Quanzhou was wiped out. Will there be wheat like Teacher Shu mentioned?

He tilted his head and looked over: "Teacher Shu, Teacher Shu, is it okay?"

Shu Xiaohan nodded and said, "There's no other way. If we can't find it in the whole prefecture, we'll have to go further north."

However, while Chief Secretary Xie would agree to let Gu Yuzhi come to Quanzhou, he would absolutely not agree to him leaving Quanzhou and going further north.

But if we send someone to look for it, it would be difficult to explain.

Gu Yuzhi sighed, resting his chin on his hand, and muttered silently, "I hope I'm lucky this time and find wheat within the borders of Jingxiang..."

After he finished speaking, he quickly added, "Not only can we find wheat, but we can find a lot of it, so there won't be any problem saving seeds for next year!"

After finishing talking about the village, it was already getting dark. Looking out the window, you could see a sky full of stars.

The hawking noises downstairs have subsided considerably, but it's still quite lively.

Gu Yuzhi tiptoed out the window again and saw that the lanterns at the door of every household were lit up. Although it was night, the street was not dark at all.

He suddenly exclaimed, "Come and see! That person is wearing a mask!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw more and more people wearing masks. They were in groups of two or three, and each of them was burly.

Gu Yuzhi scratched his head and turned to ask, "Prefect Ke, Prefect Ke, are there any events in Quanzhou tonight? May we participate?"

It looks so lively!

Prefect Ke shook his head and said, "Your Highness, this is not an event. These masked people are the Northern Desert Army."

General Lu's face immediately darkened when these people were mentioned.

Since its founding, the Sang Dynasty has maintained particularly strict control over officials and soldiers' visits to prostitutes.

But this is something that can't be stopped at all.

Especially the Northern Desert Army.

Their lives were incredibly monotonous. Their days off were short, and they couldn't go home, so they could only wander around the city.

There are people specifically assigned to watch them, waiting for them to come out before taking them out to seek thrills.

It's either gambling or prostitution.

During the raid on Li Ji Trading Company by the Northern Barbarians, Prefect Ke was extremely ruthless. He shut down both of Li Ji Trading Company's brothels in the area and issued a strict order that no more brothels be opened in the entire prefecture.

While it's officially banned, it's not strictly prohibited in the shadows. There are even many alleys throughout the prefecture where prostitutes live.

These soldiers put on masks as soon as they came out, so that the prostitutes could tell them their identities and feel safe taking them back.

Prefect Ke and General Lu exchanged a glance and sighed deeply.

When the Northern Desert Army was still Huo's army, Marshal Huo was particularly strict in managing his troops. If anyone was caught patronizing prostitutes, no matter who they were, they would be given thirty lashes.

Those with good health can withstand it, but those with poor health simply cannot.

But General Bai Jiwu has never cared about these matters in all these years.

Not only did he ignore it, he was also a regular at brothels.

General Lu had just arrived, and although his sternness had intimidated the King of Chu's men, he couldn't quickly change their habits.

Gu Yuzhi was initially in high spirits, but when he turned around, he saw that Prefect Ke and General Lu both looked helpless.

He puffed out his cheeks and quickly figured it out.

These people are definitely not good people. Wearing masks means they're going to do bad things, just like they're hiding sacks behind their backs, afraid that others will discover their identities!

He was really curious about what bad thing had happened.

But judging from the way Prefect Ke and General Lu are acting, they definitely won't explain themselves to me...