Chapter 218 Imperial Envoy
Thinking this, Qi Yuxuan moved the hand that was being held by Old Madam Lin and gripped it back.
In the past ten days or so, she had already noticed that the Lin family was very divided. The old lady Lin only held the title of ancestor, but in reality, the whole family had their own plans, and they only acted harmoniously and united in front of her.
“Grandmother, before we go to thoroughly investigate the government office, Yu Xuan has something she would like to ask you.”
After she finished speaking, she glanced at the servants standing in the room, and Old Madam Lin immediately understood and waved for them to go out and wait.
Once only the grandmother and granddaughter were left in the room, Qi Yuxuan released Madam Lin's hand, took a few steps back, and pretended to kneel down.
Old Madam Lin hurriedly pulled her up, saying, "What are you doing? Get up quickly..."
Avoiding Madam Lin's hand, Qi Yuxuan knelt firmly on the ground, head bowed, staring at the ground:
“Grandmother, if one day a tree has a diseased branch, should one cut off the branch to clear one’s name, or protect the rotten wood and let it sink with one’s life? Yu Xuan is still young and inexperienced, so please enlighten me, Grandmother.”
The room fell into a deathly silence.
After a long while, Madam Lin finally let out a long sigh.
"Get up, child."
This time, Qi Yuxuan nodded and stood up, but instead of sitting next to Madam Lin, she stood still, looking calmly at the tired old woman on the daybed.
Madam Lin stopped moving the sandalwood prayer beads in her hand.
"If that time truly comes... as the imperial envoy, you must naturally prioritize the well-being of the people. However, the law is not without human compassion. I hope that, considering your maternal grandfather's past dedication to the Qi Kingdom, you will spare the lives of those unworthy descendants..."
Madam Lin's voice trembled, tears welled in her eyes, and she could no longer continue speaking.
“Grandmother’s careful teachings have helped Yuxuan understand.”
Qi Yuxuan didn't say any more words of comfort, turned around and walked out of the house, stepping into the bleak winter sunlight.
Madam Lin may not have been in the know, but she must have guessed that the Lin family was doing some dishonorable things behind her back. Regardless of whether the members of the clan were successful or not, as long as the clan was deeply rooted and had many branches, there would always be a mix of good and bad people, and some unspeakable secrets.
The next day, a group of soldiers clad in gold armor arrived at the Lin residence. The leader claimed to be the only son of General Xiahou, who had been ordered by the Emperor and his father to lead troops to assist the Governor of Longxi in thoroughly investigating corrupt officials.
When the gatekeeper of the Lin residence saw this group of soldiers who had come down from the battlefield, each with piercing eyes and a strong aura of killing intent, even the young man in the lead, who looked delicate and tender, did not dare to waste any time and ran inside to report.
It was half an hour later when they met Xiahou Yin.
Qi Yuxuan did not allow anyone to enter the Lin residence, but instead came out directly by carriage.
The young boy I had seen more than half a year ago still had a cheerful and enthusiastic expression, only his eyebrows and eyes had become more deep-set, and he had grown taller. As soon as he dismounted, he knelt firmly on one knee on the ground:
"Xiahou Yin pays his respects to the Governor of Longxi!"
He didn't call her Princess Chang Le, but only the Governor of Longxi. Qi Yuxuan smiled, leaning against the carriage window curtain.
"It's kind of you to think that I'm still quite interested in this official title. Please rise and get in the carriage to talk."
"yes!"
Xiahou Yin boarded the carriage, his body covered in the frost of his overnight journey. It was clear that he had become much stronger after more than half a year of training, and the carriage seemed to sag as he stepped on.
Xiahou Yin boarded the carriage and saw Princess Chang Le sitting in the main seat, flanked by two meek maids. He readily moved to the other side and, as soon as he was seated, asked:
"Princess, did you notice anything amiss a few days ago? Shall we head to the Lancheng government office now?"
"We have discovered something... The Qilin Guards surrounded the government office yesterday, allowing all officers and personnel to enter but not leave, just waiting for us to search. However, we need to go to another place first."
Fortunately, Lancheng is a small city, and the fifty guards and ten Qilin Guards she brought were enough.
Qi Yuxuan briefly recounted her experiences in Lancheng, only briefly mentioning the backyard of the Lancheng government office, saying that when their bribery failed, she could only feign anger and escape until now. Xiahou Yin did not suspect anything, but his brows furrowed deeper and deeper.
"It seems that the troubles in Longxi are quite deep-rooted. The reason they can be so blatant is either that they are confident we will never find anything that can kill them, or that they have someone behind them that we cannot touch..."
Just as Xiahou Yin was about to continue speaking, an untimely "cooing" sound suddenly rang out from inside the carriage.
Qin Yuan and Cheng Yan saw that General Xiahou, who had just been speaking eloquently, now had a slight blush on his serious and handsome face.
The two exchanged a glance, suppressing their laughter and seeking permission from Princess Chang Le with their eyes.
Qi Yuxuan glanced sideways and asked, "Is there any snacks or pastries in the car that can fill your stomach?"
The two maids immediately opened the compartment under the chair, took out the spare snacks and water bottle, and handed them to General Xiahou opposite them.
Xiahou Yin whispered a thank you, then turned to the person in the main seat: "Princess, there's also..."
He looked out of the carriage with some embarrassment, the meaning of which was self-evident. Besides him, the soldiers he had brought outside were also starving. They hadn't had a hot meal since receiving the imperial edict to muster the troops last night.
Qi Yuxuan nodded knowingly: "I know, how many soldiers did you bring this time?"
Xiahou Yin: "I told my father that the Lancheng government office is small, and a thousand light cavalry would be enough to deter them. I was afraid that if the army rashly entered the city, it would cause panic among the people. So the other nine hundred or so people are still outside the city... The Longxi government office probably needs more people. He set off today and should be able to meet up with us tomorrow."
"Quickly prepare some food and send it over; we'll go to the abandoned mine first."
The abandoned mine is outside Lancheng, and it was a place that had been planned to be occupied for twenty-five years. Qi Yuxuan did not believe that after such a hasty relocation, there would be no trace of it. Ren Shun was alone and could not leave her for too long, so he did not search too thoroughly. Now that she had thousands of soldiers, she would dig out whatever was hidden underneath and let it see the light of day.
As the group headed out of the city, no one noticed that a gatekeeper from the Lin family mansion, seeing them leave, quickly turned and headed in another direction.
Half an hour later.
The group took a route that wouldn't disturb the common people and successfully left the city. Only then did Qi Yuxuan notice that even the guards stationed at the city gate had been replaced with soldiers in crimson armor from the Xiahou family's army.
Xiahou Yin nodded to her.
This is the worst-case scenario. If the people behind the scenes intend to completely isolate Longxi from Qi and threaten the lives of tens of thousands of people in the entire prefecture, then they will truly become a laughing stock.
"After all the defenses are withdrawn, how many troops are left?"
Qi Yuxuan was thinking about another problem.
A thousand men may seem like a lot, but if they are scattered, with some guarding the city, some imprisoning, some capturing, and some protecting, they may not be enough.
Xiahou Yin realized that he had been making assumptions, and slapped his thigh in frustration: "Not even eight hundred... I'll go ask my father for more troops."
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