Chapter 145 Another Rival in Love
Lu Jinlan's face darkened, and he ordered the third leader to lead the way, and the group hurried off.
Walking briskly along the way, Yan Wuxin quickly followed, quietly tugging at Lu Jinlan and whispering, "Didn't you say that Chi Cheng went home? Where did You Shuncong grab those two servants? There might be something fishy going on."
Lu Jinlan glanced at her, "It's probably true, the other one is most likely your Huaixing."
Yan Wuxin was stunned for a moment, then gritted her teeth and cursed, "Damn it! My husband dares to touch that bitch You Shun, I'll beat him to death!"
The two rushed to the hall in a rage and found Xu Runnian and Huai Xing tied up with ropes, their mouths gagged with towels, covered in dirt, their faces scraped and slightly injured.
Upon seeing Lu Jinlan and Yan Wuxin arrive, Xu Runnian and Huai Xing felt a lump in their throats, and tears almost welled up in their eyes.
You Shun was boasting to the other heads of the household about how he heard that two royal concubines had come to Xinping Prefecture, and how he followed them and led his men to capture them on the mountain.
Suddenly, a voice announced from outside the door: "The Alliance Leader has arrived."
You Shun quickly turned around and greeted him with a smile, "Alliance Leader, I've captured two of Lu Jinlan's husbands for you..."
Snap!
Before he could finish speaking, a loud slap landed on his face.
You Shun paused, covered her face, her eyes slightly red, and lowered her head unwillingly.
No one dared to speak. Lu Jinlan calmly took his seat in the center, his dark eyes as cold as ice, and said in a deep voice, "Kneel down."
You Shun immediately knelt down and said aggrievedly, "This subordinate does not know what mistake I have made to anger the Alliance Leader. Please enlighten me, Alliance Leader."
Lu Jinlan leaned forward slightly and asked coldly, "Tell me, who gave you permission to arrest someone on your own?"
You Shun hurriedly explained, "Reporting to the Alliance Leader, I was trying to share your burdens. After the government issued a notice, there has been no further news. Who knows if the government is deliberately delaying things?"
“I happened to come down the mountain today and learned that Lu Jinlan’s two concubines had already arrived in Xinping Prefecture, so I captured them and brought them up the mountain.”
"Alliance Leader, as long as we have these two hostages in our hands, we are not afraid that Lu Jinlan will not agree to our conditions."
Lu Jinlan frowned deeply. "Fool, who do you think Lu Jinlan is? She hates being threatened more than anything in her life. You think you can force her to submit by capturing two of her men? She has over twenty men like that, what's so special about them?"
“What you are doing will not only fail to help our negotiations with the government, but will also backfire.”
"As the second-in-command, you have disobeyed the leader's orders and acted recklessly. This leader cannot tolerate you. Hand over your leadership token immediately."
Upon hearing this, You Shun's eyes widened in surprise. "Alliance Leader, I meant well! Please be lenient and give me a chance to reform."
Lu Jinlan snorted coldly, "Whether it was out of good intentions or not, you know in your heart, and I, the alliance leader, will investigate. In the meantime, all your powers within the alliance are revoked. You should reflect on your actions; if you misbehave again, you will be punished according to the alliance rules."
Since the alliance of the eighteen tribes, the alliance rules have never been invoked. Stripping the hand warrant is a great disgrace, and even the tribe members who belong to it will be ashamed to face the consequences.
Thinking of the Yusang tribesmen, Ji Yunyao said softly, "The Second Master was probably just impatient and lost his composure. Although there was something wrong with him, his two servants only suffered minor injuries and did not commit any serious offenses. Could the Alliance Leader consider allowing him to atone for his sins through meritorious service?"
Lu Jinlan disagreed, "If he has already made a grave mistake, what I want now is not his warrant, but his head."
So Ji Yunyao kept silent. The fourth leader, who usually had a good relationship with You Shun, pleaded for him, saying, "The second leader's decision to act on his own is indeed punishable. But the man has already been arrested, and I'm afraid the authorities have already received the news and will come after us. Even if we compromise, we may not get away with it. We might as well give up on the path of surrender and just be rebels to the end."
Lu Jinlan glanced at her. "Fourth Master, who should make decisions regarding the Alliance Leader's affairs?"
The fourth leader hurriedly replied, "Naturally, it is up to the alliance leader to decide."
Lu Jinlan sneered, "Who is the leader?"
The fourth leader quickly lowered his head, "You are the leader of the alliance. I have no other intentions. All actions will be taken in accordance with your orders."
Upon seeing this, the others all declared, "We will all obey the leader's orders."
With things having come to this point, You Shun had no choice but to hand over the warrant with both hands.
Lu Jinlan said, "Submitting to the imperial court is a way to survive, and it's also for the long term. Don't be confused. If you have a way to live but choose to go down a dead end, aren't you just courting death?"
Everyone nodded in agreement. The third leader said worriedly, "But what do we do now, Second Leader... You Shun has already brought the man here. How should we explain this to the imperial court? Please give us a suggestion, Alliance Leader."
Before he could finish speaking, a report came from outside: "Reporting to the Alliance Leader, the government has sent another messenger. They want to deliver the letter to you in person."
Lu Jinlan guessed that Xiang Ruzhen had learned that Xu Runnian and Huai Xing had been captured and wondered what had happened on the mountain, so she hurriedly sent people to find out.
Lu Jinlan sighed, "Tell them to wait a moment."
She glanced at the two poor children bound together. "Gentlemen, this is a misunderstanding. Please rest on the mountain for the night, and I will personally send someone to take you back tomorrow. I hope you will cooperate and not tell any false stories when you get back, understand?"
The two exchanged a glance and nodded repeatedly.
Lu Jinlan glanced at Xu Lin, "Take them away, untie them, and treat them well with good food and drink."
Xu Lin accepted the order and led her men away, only then did Lu Jinlan allow the government officials to enter.
The visitor was Qiao Yi, Zhang Siyuan's advisor. Her sharp eyes were like an eagle's. She glanced at Lu Jinlan as she entered and, seeing that Lu Jinlan was alright, she felt relieved.
Following her previous plan, she delivered the letter and then gave a speech to the group of rebels. The gist of it was that the court was adjusting its policies, and as long as they cooperated actively and reformed, the Emperor was willing to show leniency.
Lu Jinlan quickly asked, hinting, "Does His Majesty mean we can let bygones be bygones?"
Qiao Yi was taken aback for a moment, but immediately understood Lu Jinlan's meaning and hurriedly said, "If everyone is sincere, His Majesty can forgive and forget."
Lu Jinlan added, "Today, my husband invited two men from the capital to the mountain as guests. I heard they are distinguished guests from your government. I'm informing you specifically to avoid any misunderstandings. They will be returning tomorrow, so there's no need to worry."
Qiao Yi said, "We are searching everywhere for those two distinguished guests. Since they are guests here with the Alliance Leader, my master is relieved."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and respectfully escorted Qiao Yi down the mountain. Upon their return, they praised her, saying, "The Alliance Leader really knows how to handle things!"
"This emperor is quite magnanimous!"
"Hey, where's the alliance leader?"
Yan Wuxin: "Uh, the alliance leader has to leave first, everyone can disperse."
Everyone started to leave, but Ji Yunliu grabbed Yan Wuxin and said, "Come on, let's have a drink together."
Yan Wuxin refused without hesitation: "Sixth Brother, I also have urgent business to attend to today. Let's do it another day. I'll treat you another day."
Ji Yunliu found it strange that both of them had urgent matters to attend to. The Emperor was already forgiving them for what they had done; what urgent matters could they possibly have?
Curious, she quietly followed behind and saw Yan Wuxin enter a room.
Ji Yunliu knew that Yan San's martial arts skills were not low, so he did not dare to get too close. He climbed up a tree and could vaguely see a man in the house. He could vaguely see two people embracing each other and behaving intimately.
"So it was an affair!" Ji Yunliu climbed down from the tree in a huff. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly saw Shuisheng carrying some snacks and heading towards the house.
She casually asked, "Who is the man inside?"
Shui Sheng said, "The man You Shun invited up the mountain, I heard, is the emperor's consort."
Ji Yunliu abruptly stopped, thinking to himself: This is terrible! It's one thing for Yan San to be a womanizer, but if he sleeps with the Emperor's man, won't that ruin the Alliance Leader's grand plan?
She hurriedly asked, "Where is the Alliance Leader? I have urgent business with him."
Shui Sheng pointed blankly to another room, "The Alliance Leader is comforting another concubine."
Ji Yunliu suddenly recalled the way one of the concubines looked at the leader earlier; it seemed like they were flirting, and their relationship wasn't entirely innocent.
Could it be... could it be that this man took a fancy to our leader after the alliance leader released them? Sigh, how can the emperor's man be so unfaithful?
Oh no! Yuanzhen has gained another rival in love!
Ji Yunliu hurriedly instructed, "Don't say I've been here," and then turned and ran.
Yuan Zhen was studying the recipe when Ji Yunliu burst in, pushing open the door. "You Shun has captured the Emperor's two concubines and taken them to the mountain. Go and see them quickly."
Yuan Zhen said strangely, "Why would I go see them? If my wife finds out, she might misunderstand and think I'm still thinking about the Emperor. Wouldn't I be asking for trouble?"
Ji Yunliu said urgently, "But your wife has gone."
Yuan Zhen said calmly, "She is the leader of the alliance, so of course she has to handle this kind of thing."
Ji Yunliu rolled her eyes at him, "Those two servants are as beautiful as paintings, and one of them is even flirting with the Alliance Leader. Right now, he's alone with the Alliance Leader."
Yuan Zhen quickly stood up. "Take me there quickly."
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Author's note: Ahhhhh, a million things happened today, I was so busy, I'm late.
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