Suddenly, a bowl flew out of the air, its speed leaving an afterimage as it struck the hand of the female soldier holding Ye Nuan. The rice inside spilled out, splashing all over the heads and faces of the officers and soldiers present.
Snap!
The bowl smashed at the feet of the proprietress and shattered. She was so scared that she stepped back repeatedly. Just as she raised her head, she saw a figure falling from the sky and kicking more than a dozen soldiers, making them lie on the ground and wailing.
In the blink of an eye, dozens of people were tied up tightly with vines, their mouths stuffed with cloths. The proprietress opened her eyes wide in shock for a moment, then immediately closed the door and retreated.
Then I heard muffled screams and the sound of the floor shaking from inside.
The couple looked elegant, handsome, and beautiful, but they were extremely brutal when they beat people. The proprietress adhered to the principle of talking less and doing more, and not listening or watching to ensure safety, went downstairs, closed the door, and went back to boil water.
After a long while, the second floor fell silent. Ye Nuan squatted in front of the leader and asked with a friendly smile, "Tell me, what is a general election?" She took the cloth out of the female official's mouth.
The female official was scared after being beaten and didn't dare to scream. She just answered whatever Ye Nuan asked.
"Five generals asked the young prince to choose a wife. The young prince said that if he wanted to choose, he should give other capable women a chance. Yesterday, a notice was posted in the city that all women aged seventeen to thirty could participate in the election. The winner would marry into the city lord's mansion and become the prince's wife."
"General Hu Li is in charge of everything at this time. All the women who registered went to her house to get their ID cards."
There is such a thing?
How could such a small city like Liuguang be in such chaos!
After she finished speaking, Ye Nuan stuffed the cloth back in. The dozen or so people struggled, fearing they would be torn to pieces in the next moment. Ye Nuan clapped her hands and said quietly, "I won't hurt you, but we need to rest now. You'd better not move, or the vines will get tighter and tighter until they strangle you to death."
Someone, unconvinced, moved. The vine seemed to come alive, tightening around him. The person collapsed to the ground in fear, like a frozen fish, unable to move.
"Lie quietly, and I'll let you go tomorrow morning."
Then, a dozen or so officers sat or lay on the ground, looking stiffly at the young couple lying on the high bed with warm pillows, whispering sweet nothings to each other, and falling asleep together.
In the autumn of Liuguang City, the nights are long and the days are short, and the nights are so cold that it makes people question life. In the morning, more than a dozen people were as still as fish eyes on a chopping block, and Ye Nuan helped them untie the vines for a long time before they recovered.
The subordinate asked: "What should we do? Should we chase him?"
The leader cursed, "Why are you chasing after me? Are you looking for trouble? Go back and report to the general and tell him he's missing."
In the early morning, Liuguang City had already woken up. Ye Nuan asked the landlady for two sets of clothes commonly worn by local people. After changing, she took Qi Wuze to the east of the city. When they passed by a bun shop, they bought two buns to fill their stomachs. In the meantime, they asked the owner about the location of General Hu's residence.
The further east we went, the more crowded the streets became. By the time we saw the plaque for the Hu Mansion, the main entrance was already crowded. Two teams of soldiers were blocking the entrance to register. Every woman who registered had to give her place of origin, age, and name before she could enter for further inspection.
Qi Wuze took Ye Nuan for a walk and discovered that many people were also circling the General's Mansion. Seeing Ye Nuan, they asked warily, "Are you trying to climb over the wall too?" Before Ye Nuan could answer, the woman closest to her said, "The Hu Mansion is surrounded by wolfhounds and patrols. Just now, two people tried to climb in and were immediately thrown out. Their legs and feet were bitten to pieces. You'd better go through the front door and register."
Ye Nuan asked suspiciously, "So you're still wandering around here?"
The woman chuckled and said, "Don't you want to watch the fun?"
Ye Nuan was speechless. She pulled Qi Wuze aside and said, "How about I go in and find Hu Li first, and you wait outside the mansion?"
Qi Wuze shook his head: "No, let's wait for fewer people to climb over the wall and get in."
Ye Nuan couldn't persuade the persistent City Lord Qi, and the two of them waited outside the Hu Mansion for an hour, but the crowd didn't show up. She simply said, "Let's walk around the city and ask if there's any news about Xiao Hu and A Ya."
"good."
The two walked back along the street, from East City to West City, from West City to North City, and when they reached South City they were spotted.
Fortunately, Qi Wuze was very skilled in martial arts and took Ye Nuan through many twists and turns, finally getting rid of her before nightfall. When they arrived at the Hu Mansion again, they found that the gate was closed and the guards outside were tight. When they saw them, they asked warily, "What are you doing here?"
Ye Nuan smiled gently: "Sir, I'm here to register for the election. Can I still go in now?"
Ye Nuan was so beautiful and heroic that she dazzled the guards against the backdrop of the sunset. His attitude softened slightly, "Today is over. Come back tomorrow at the end of the morning hour."
"Can you be flexible?" Ye Nuan peeked inside. "Are all the people participating in the election living inside?"
The guard said, "Of course. Rules are rules and cannot be compromised. You should get up early tomorrow."
When Ye Nuan wanted to say more, the guard became impatient. He unconsciously raised his voice a few notches: "Stop talking nonsense and leave!"
Ye Nuan smiled and pulled Qi Wuze back. The guard glanced at the two people's intimate backs for a few times and said to the person next to him, "This woman is good-looking, but she is a little greedy and vain. She already has a husband, but she still came to participate in the election. Her husband is also virtuous and accompanied her."
Qi Wuze, who has extraordinary hearing ability: “!” God is so virtuous.
The two of them walked around the Hu Mansion. Qi Wuze leaned against the wall and listened carefully. After a while, he said, "There are no guards here, but there are many dogs."
"Let's go in from here." Ye Nuan looked around in the moonlight, "Go up here, get me up first, those dogs won't bark when they see me."
Qi Wuze held Ye Nuan's waist and carefully slid her up the wall. Ye Nuan finally steadied herself and looked down. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven... a dozen pairs of dog eyes stared at her. She forced a laugh, extended her hand in greeting, and shushed the pack of wolfhounds.
After making sure that they wouldn't bark, he waved to Qi Wuze. Qi Wuze jumped onto the wall and saw the scene of seven dogs sitting in a row.
“Go down…”
Qi Wuze jumped down with Ye Nuan. The seven wolfhounds turned around and watched the two of them walk away, without making a sound.
During this special period, the number of patrolling guards in the Hu Mansion increased, with a guard passing through the backyard every half a minute. The two guessed that Hu Li must be staying in the study or his own room at this time. With his understanding of the house layout, Qi Wuze led Ye Nuan to the study.
The study was dark, and no one seemed to be moving around. The two looked at each other and decided to go to the bedroom. Along the way, they encountered several patrolling guards. After finally finding the bedroom, they were discovered by the servant who came to clean it up.
There was no way to find the man now, and the two were chased for a long time. Finally, they caught the servant and dragged him out of the house and into a deserted alley.
"Tell me, where is your General Hu?"
The servant was a young man with dark eyes, somewhat resembling Liu Yu. He shrank back in fear and stammered, "The general is worried about the young master, so he went to the city lord's mansion. He's not sure when he'll be back."
It's all in vain.
Seeing that Ye Nuan and Qi Wuze had no intention of killing him, the servant ran away crawling.
Night falls, the moon is dim and the stars are sparse.
Ye Nuan looked down the narrow, dark alleyway, thought for a moment, and said, "The Hu Mansion is heavily guarded, so there must be even more people at the City Lord's Mansion. I still remember the shape of the token Liu Yu gave me earlier. I'll draw it now and have someone carve it. How about sneaking into the City Lord's Mansion tomorrow?"
Qi Wuze felt regretful when he thought that he was the one who threw the token back.
He nodded and took Ye Nuan to find another inn to stay in. After Ye Nuan finished painting, he told her to be careful and went to find a shop to get the token.
When they were looking for someone earlier, they had seen two carving shops, and Qi Wuze found them easily. The shopkeeper had already closed the shop to rest, so he was picked up and put a knife to his neck while he carved.
The shopkeeper knew it was the Young Master's token, but his life was at stake, so he had to carve it. After two hours of hard work, the sandalwood token, painted with gold, was finally carved. Qi Wuze put the token in his pocket, took out a silver ingot, and placed it in front of the shopkeeper, threatening him, "Keep your mouth shut. Pretend what happened tonight never happened. If you dare tell anyone, I'll come after you."
The boss nodded repeatedly in fear, and waited until Qi Wuze climbed out of the house before he tremblingly muttered: "These days, if a man is not at home to take care of his wife and children, then no one will want him to come out and use knives and guns."
Qi Wuze, who hadn't walked far, tripped and almost fell out.
What kind of a hellish place is Liuguang City? We have to find those two brats quickly and get out of here. It’s too scary!
Don't teach his daughter A Nuan bad things.
When Qi Wuze reached the inn, Ye Nuan hadn't woken up yet. She looked tired, obviously having not slept well for a long time. Seeing that she was sleeping soundly, he simply walked over to the table and lay down to take a nap.
The sun shone through the window, and outside, there was a bustling noise. Ye Nuan suddenly woke up, threw off the quilt and got out of bed. Seeing Qi Wuze, who had just woken up and was lying on the table, she asked anxiously, "Why didn't you wake me up?"
Qi Wuze stretched and walked over to tidy up her messy hair: "It doesn't matter now. Wash up, have breakfast, and then we will set off to the City Lord's Mansion."
The waiter brought hot water and food, and the two washed up and had a quick breakfast. They went downstairs and headed straight for the City Lord's Mansion. The guards there were indeed more strict than those at the Hu Mansion, with people guarding and checking everywhere.
Ye Nuan took the token from Qi Wuze and handed it to the guard at the main gate. The guard stared at the token for a long time and asked, "Where did you get this token?"
Ye Nuan answered truthfully, "I'm from the Wasteland. This token was given to me by the Young Master when he and General Hu went to the Wasteland years ago. My Lord, just take this token and go in and announce that Ye Nuan from the Wasteland is visiting. The Young Master will definitely see me."
The guards were skeptical, but the man, armed with the Young Master's Token and possessing such remarkable appearance and demeanor, seemed unlikely to lie. She ordered the guards to remain on guard while she took the token and went in to report.
In just a moment, Hu Li, dressed in red and covered in armor, hurried over. He was extremely surprised when he saw Ye Nuan and Qi Wuze, but then he calmed down and invited them in. As he walked in, he said, "I thought it was that desperate liar, but it turns out it's really Ye Changzhu and Qi Chengzhu."
The City Lord's Mansion of Liuguang City is obviously more prosperous than that of Luomu City. There is a pavilion every ten steps, a corridor every five rooms, and the eaves and green tiles are arranged in an orderly manner.
Ye Nuan asked, "Where's Liu Yu?"
Hu Li frowned: "Young Master is in the study. I think he was stopped by me." The situation in Liuguang City is serious at the moment, and there are dangers everywhere. Before we are sure who the person coming is, we must not let him run around.
The three of them quickly arrived at the study. Outside, Liu Yu was eagerly waiting. Seeing Ye Nuan, his eyes were filled with joy. He ran towards her happily and opened his hand. But when he saw Qi Wuze looking at her with a malicious look, he flinched and withdrew his hand, scratching his head awkwardly.
"Sister, I'm so happy that you're here!" Liu Yu surrounded Ye Nuan, his voice clear and crisp.
After not seeing him for a long time, he had grown quite a bit taller. After his excitement, he looked at the guards in the yard and his eyes became gloomy again. He curled his lips and said, "It's a pity that so many things have happened in the city recently, otherwise I could take my sister out for a walk."
After experiencing such a big thing, Liu Yu has matured a lot. He is no longer as stubborn as before, and is a little cautious and pretends to be strong.
After Liu Yu Anjing came, Hu Li asked, "What is the purpose of Master Ye and Master Qi's visit this time?"
Ye Nuan briefly explained the whole story and asked Hu Li, "Can you put up a notice in the city so that everyone in the city can help look for it?"
Hu Li looked embarrassed. "I'm afraid not. The situation in Liuguang City is turbulent right now. Aside from me, Generals Liu, and General Bai, the other two generals remain neutral. The remaining four generals obey the orders of General Wang Xue Xiaozhu. Young Master is in a weak position. If we post a notice now, it might be detrimental to the two young masters. Moreover, the City Lord Seal is in the hands of General Wang. Young Master must succeed to the throne smoothly before he can take the seal."
She paused and then asked, "Are you sure the two young masters have come to Liuguang City?"
Qi Wuze nodded: "We followed the hunting falcon here. The fact that it lingered around proved that the two people were in the city, but for some reason we couldn't find them." Liuguang City is so small, and if they can't find the people, something might have happened.
He didn't want to think too much about it, he just thought that Xiaohu and Aya were so smart that they would be fine.
Hu Li said, "The most I can do is help you search secretly, but General Wang's power is too great. If her people capture him, I won't be able to do anything for a while."
"You two are staying at my house now. I will inform you as soon as there is any news."
Liu Yu felt a little down, and asked Hu Li, "Can't we let them stay in the City Lord's Mansion with me?"
Hu Li hesitated for a moment, then looked at Qi Wuze and suddenly relaxed. "Then I'll trouble City Lord Qi." Qi Wuze was so skilled in martial arts that he felt much more at ease. Hu Li trusted him more than the people of Liuguang City.
Qi Wuze understood what she said and chuckled, "It's not a bother. It's us, the couple, who are bothering you."
couple?
These two words were like thunder. Hu Li was surprised for a moment, then calmed down and said, "Congratulations!"
However, after being stunned for a while, Liu Yu anxiously approached Ye Nuan and asked, "Sister, are you married? How can you get married? What will I do if you get married?" He asked three questions in a row, feeling extremely sad.
It was he who picked up my sister, how could she marry someone else!
Qi Wuze stretched out his hand to separate him, then stood forward proudly and arrogantly, raising his eyebrows and said, "A Nuan likes me, and I like A Nuan too, so why don't you get married? Aren't you also looking for a wife now?"
Liu Yu's eyes turned red with anxiety: "I have no choice but to do this, but I still love my sister the most."
Qi Wuze started to talk dirty: "Your sister is married, so you should like your brother-in-law too. Come and call me brother-in-law, and I'll give you a red envelope."
Liu Yu ran away with tears in his eyes and a gloomy face.
"Is he okay?" Ye Nuan asked Hu Li.
Hu Li's eyes dimmed slightly, and then she shook her head and said, "It's nothing, he's just a kid and his temper will soon improve. Your rooms will be next to the young master's, so please City Lord Qi, please take care of him these days." She still had a lot of things to do here.
Qi Wuze nodded and bowed to her: "General Hu, please take care of Aya and Xiaohu's affairs."
When the servants of the City Lord's Mansion cleaned up the room and took the two of them to rest, Hu Li left first because of something.
The room was spacious, with soft, shimmering brocade draped everywhere. Walking in felt like entering a fantasy wonderland. Qi Wuze felt these things were in the way, so he tied together all the nearby brocades.
He kept muttering, "Scarcity makes things valuable."
Before they sat down, Liu Yu, who had originally run away, hid at the door and looked in. When Ye Nuan saw him, he immediately retreated. Qi Wuze sneered and walked over to reach out and pull the person at the door out.
Liu Yu still remembered the mixed doubles match between Qi Wuze and Chu Xuesong vividly. When he saw him coming, he immediately protected his head with his hands and begged for mercy, "Don't hit people in the face!"
"Who said I was going to hit you?" Qi Wuze brought him in front of him and pressed him to sit on a stool. "Come, tell your brother-in-law what's going on with that great general Wang?"
Liu Yu was furious, "You are not my brother-in-law."
Ye Nuan said, "Yu'er, stop making trouble and talk to your brother-in-law."
Liu Yu: “.”
Qi Wuze felt comfortable.
Liu Yu was angry for a while, then gradually became depressed. Finally, he said, "The Great General Wang is Xue Xiaozhu. Even my mother used to respect her. My mother died inexplicably, and she stood up and said that a man couldn't be the lord of Liuguang City. She wanted to be the lord herself."
"The City Lord's Mansion has always been named Liu. She has no chance of becoming the City Lord!"
Qi Wuze asked again: "What is the current situation of the election?"
Liu Yu raised his head, his eyes were cold for a moment: "Seven out of ten generals have daughters, and they all want me to marry their daughters. I don't like any of them, but I don't agree with their wishes. I would rather choose a commoner than their daughters." Aren't they just trying to sideline him and make the City Lord's Mansion change its surname?
impossible!
Ye Nuan was puzzled: "Seven out of ten generals have daughters, why is Hu Li so young?"
Liu Yu said, "Hu Liniang has always been in poor health. She passed away last year due to illness. She only succeeded to the throne last year. When I was studying at the City Lord's Mansion, my mother loved her the most and always liked her to take care of me. I used to hate her, but now that my mother is gone, she's the only one who treats me the best."
Hu Li is only three years older than him - he is twenty-one this year.
After hearing this, Ye Nuan suddenly said, "Then why don't you just choose Hu Li as your wife?"
Liu Yu was stunned. He hadn't expected her to say that. When he realized what was happening, he stammered, "She, she doesn't like me, and I don't like her either. And neither of us has ever thought about this."
Ye Nuan analyzed it for him: "Look, Hu Li is powerful and loyal, he treats you well, and he's a young general. Isn't he better than those people who don't know his background?"
Liu Yu thought about it and it seemed to be true, but then he said, "That's not the case. Even rabbits don't eat grass near their burrows. Hu Li is my mother's student, and I can't harm her." It was a lie that he had to choose his wife in advance, and that his wife would be assassinated by General Wang.
Anyone can do it, except Hu Li!
Ye Nuan was about to say something, but Liu Yu covered his ears and ran away.
Qi Wuze asked in confusion: "Why are you so concerned about this? You're just messing around with couples!"
Ye Nuan chuckled: Her husband is really a straight man.
"Have you ever considered that Hu Li might like Liu Yu?"
Qi Wuze shook his head: "I didn't see that, I just saw that she disliked Liu Yu immensely. Women shouldn't like men with this kind of personality, right?"
Ye Nuan poked him: "You are wrong about this. I heard from Liu Yu that Hu Li's mother has been seriously ill since childhood. She must have been in charge of the family since she was very young and was not spoiled much. Liu Yu has been pampered since he was a child. This feeling is exactly what she has never experienced. If she keeps her eyes on him for a long time, maybe she wants to see him happy and worry-free forever." Some people are just saying one thing and doing another, just like her husband used to be.
Qi Wuze didn't quite understand: "I don't understand these."
Ye Nuan pushed him towards the bed, smiling as she did so, "If you don't understand, then you don't understand. You didn't sleep last night. Go get some sleep now. I'm going out for a walk."
"I'm not tired. Let me go shopping with you." Qi Wuze stood by the bed without moving. Ye Nuan shook her head: "No, it's time to go to sleep or not. I'm angry. Do you want me to take off your clothes?"
She pushed him down on the bed and reached out to pull his belt. Qi Wuze was helpless, "Okay, okay, I'm going to sleep, okay? Then you take the hunting falcon with you and come back to me if anything happens."
"Got it, go to sleep!" Ye Nuan pulled the quilt over him and kissed him on the lips again, "Don't get up secretly, you have to sleep for at least an hour."
Qi Wuze smiled lightly, looking helpless: "Okay, sleep for an hour."
Ye Nuan watched him close his eyes and fall asleep before she gently closed the door and went out. She had to ask Liu Yu for a pass token.
Ye Nuan went to the next door, but Liu Yu wasn't there. After asking, she found out he'd gone to the meeting room. It seemed General Wang had arrived. Hu Li had just left, and Aze was resting. She thought for a moment and asked someone to take her to the meeting room.
Before he got close, he heard a woman's roar coming from inside, followed by Liu Yu's weak voice. It was obvious that he was being bullied.
"Young Master, this is ridiculous. How can you choose your wife from among the commoners? Aren't the daughters of the other generals enough for you to choose from?" Xue Xiaozhu is thirty-three years old this year, at the age of youth and strength, and he is always aggressive when speaking.
Liu Yu sat at the top with his neck stiffened and remained silent.
The woman with heroic features became even angrier when she saw his cowardly look: How can such a person be the city lord, even if he is the only son of the old city lord?
"Young Master, please revoke your order and send away all those who signed up!"
"No..." Liu Yu only said one word, and Xue Xiaozhu stepped in front of him, staring at him with cold eyes. He shrank back, wanting to cry but unable to. Why didn't Hu Li come yet?
"Who is this? He is so bold and speaks so rudely. Is he ordering the future city lord to do something?" Ye Nuan stepped into the conference room, walked up to Liu Yu, and looked at Xue Xiaozhu with a cold face.
Xue Xiaozhu looked her up and down and asked unhappily, "Who are you?"
While she was looking at Ye Nuan, Ye Nuan was also looking at her.
This general was half a head taller than her. His facial features were sharp except for his slightly curved eyebrows, which concealed some of his fierceness.
Ye Nuan looked away from her and was caught off guard when she saw someone sitting on a wooden chair to her left. She asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"
The person sitting on the wooden chair was Baili Zhuo who was captured on the city wall yesterday.
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