80 Chapter 80
◎I'll exchange food for my mother and me◎
At this time, the second floor was being searched room by room, and every place that could hide a person was pierced with arrows by the Mongolian soldiers. Cheng Mi and other obedient people were herded downstairs like ducks.
When turning the corner, Cheng Xi brushed past someone. She paused and tried to confirm again.
"Master." Someone called him.
When Cheng Mu turned around, she saw two familiar faces.
The man was tall and imposing. His eyes met hers and he froze for a moment, obviously recognizing her. However, he ignored her and said coldly, "Take her away."
"Young Master Shangguan!"
Cheng Mu said loudly: "I hope you are well."
The one who called him master was Cong Xiao.
Shangguan Duan raised a hand, and the Mongolian soldiers kept her and drove the others downstairs.
Did the missing Shangguan Duan defect to the Mongols south of the desert? Cheng Mu wondered secretly.
Shangguan Duan stared at her indifferently, waiting for everyone on the second floor to leave.
"Since Madam Cheng still remembers me—" He took a few steps closer to her, a fierce look on his face, "I'd like to ask you about the past. Did you conspire with Lei Pingyou to kill me and seize the stable?"
Xiaoliu grabbed Cheng Mu's clothes tightly, and Cheng Mu squeezed her hand. Shangguan Duan's people all disappeared overnight, and all his hard work was destroyed in a day. Did he think it had anything to do with her?
"It was Young Master Shangguan who invited Chief Steward Lei to come that day. I wasn't feeling well, so I didn't even see him. How could I possibly conspire with him? What good would it do me to kill you? Besides, if the palace wanted to kill you, why would they need to conspire with me?"
"Oh? How did Madam Cheng know that I had offended them?"
Shangguan Duan's words were sharp. Cheng Mu didn't know if he knew the reason, so she said calmly, "My guess is that the palace took over your horse farm after you disappeared."
"That jade belt pendant," Shangguan Duan said, pressing closer to her. "Now think about it, where have you seen it before?"
Cheng Mu hugged Xiao Liu and silently took a half step back. When his clamping hands reached out, she said cheerfully, "Second Young Master Xu, the Second Young Master Xu of the old Yanyun Palace."
"Do you know Xu Er?" Shangguan Duan put his hands behind his back.
He didn't seem surprised, and judging by the way they addressed each other, it seemed like they were quite close. Cheng Mu said, "...I've met him once before."
"Do you have the same jade belt plate as me?"
The jade belt plate has hidden details and is unique. "The one in Master Shangguan's hand belongs to Master Xu II."
"Are you so sure?" Shangguan Duan sneered, "You even know the details of such an important item, which shows that you have a deep connection with the Xu family. It's definitely right to arrest you. Come here,
A soldier came forward and Shangguan Duan ordered, "Keep this Madam Cheng under good care."
"Young Master Shangguan..." Before Cheng Mu could raise her request, Shangguan Duan had already hurried downstairs before her. It was obvious that he only wanted to ask what he wanted to ask and did not want to listen to what Cheng Mu said.
Cheng Xi was taken downstairs.
On the first floor, all the guests in the inn were counted and driven into the hall, and then the property that the Mongolian soldiers had confiscated was brought out. Shangguan Duan sat on a bench with a big horse and a golden sword.
His men surrounded the inn when the Mongolian soldiers attacked the town. Although there was chaos and fighting outside, the inn was relatively calm.
Shangguan Duan's eyes swept over everyone, "If you all hand over your belongings, I will spare your lives."
Cheng Mu clutched the bag on her shoulder and asked why the Mongolian soldiers didn't rob them when they drove them out. It turned out they were waiting here.
At this time, the hall was silent, and no one was the first to realize the situation.
Shangguan Duan tilted his head, picked up a knife from Xiao, and rushed directly to the man standing in front. Before the knife reached his neck, his legs went limp, "I'll give it to you, I'll give it to you, all of it!"
He had a lot of silver bills hidden all over his body. Under the threat of the big knife, he hurriedly took off his clothes and shoes and socks.
As soon as Xiao pointed his knife, the others started to move. Under the instruction, they put all their belongings on the square tables. People who went out usually carried a lot of things with them, and soon the three square tables were filled with things.
Cheng Mu stood at the end. She walked forward slowly and placed her bag on the fourth square table.
With a poke from Xiao's knife, the bundle fell apart, revealing the silver ingots and seeds.
Yin Zi understood easily. When Shangguan Duan saw the seeds, he remembered something and looked at her.
Cheng Mu explained, "This is a high-yield alfalfa seed, which can produce 10 dan of fresh grass per mu. It grows wherever you sow it, regardless of the soil conditions."
Cheng Xi's words also attracted the attention of other people in the hall.
Shangguan Duan brushed off the non-existent dust on his clothes. "Madam Cheng is truly amazing. You've even managed to raise such a high yield. Why didn't the Xu family treat you as a distinguished guest? Why are you still living in Tianma Town? Hmm?"
Madam Cheng? Many people twitched their ears. They had heard of this woman before. So it was this person? Dozens of curious eyes turned to her.
Cheng Mu replied, "During the Lantern Festival, I went out with my family to see the lanterns."
"Where are your family members? Who are they?"
"I went out to visit a friend at the beginning of the year and have not returned yet."
Shangguan Duan twirled the jade ring on his finger. "It's a mess out there. Your family might not be as lucky as you."
"Master!" Shangguan Duan's men pulled out a person from somewhere and interrupted what Cheng Mu was about to say.
A woman with messy hair begged in a hoarse voice, "Let me go, please..."
"Where did it come from?"
The servant replied, "The woodshed."
Shangguan Duan glanced around, "Whose family?"
The crowd was silent for a moment, and some people looked at the innkeeper.
The innkeeper came crawling forward, "Sir, this is my wife. I beg you to spare us, considering how we have served you wholeheartedly over the past month. You can take the entire inn."
Shangguan stood up and walked over, "Where's your son?"
The shopkeeper lowered his body and said, "I went to Yunzhou City yesterday."
"What a coincidence, Shopkeeper Dou, could it be that you are secretly communicating with the Mongols?"
"How could it be! I'm an honest businessman who has run an inn for decades. How could I possibly be collaborating with the enemy and selling out my country?"
Xiaoliu rubbed her face against Cheng Mu's clothes. Cheng Mu pried open her face which she was trying to hide. Xiaoliu raised her head and looked at her with tears on her face.
Cheng Mu's heart ached. Xiao Liu had remained calm since the incident, partly because he wasn't fully awake yet. It had been so long, even if he was confused, he would have reacted, especially since Xiao Liu was so smart.
Cheng Mu took out a handkerchief to wipe her face and mouthed to her: Mother is here, don't be afraid.
Xiaoliu was undoubtedly a smart and sensible child. She could see that begging for mercy was useless, so she kept silent even when she was scared and crying.
From the conversation between the shopkeeper and Shangguan Duan, we learned that Shangguan Duan had lived in the inn years ago. It was because of his collusion with the Mongolians south of the desert that the Mongolian soldiers were able to march straight in. The shopkeeper did not want to be framed as a traitor.
"Stay?" Shangguan Duanzheng slapped Shopkeeper Dou's face. "Taking you away is giving you a chance to live, but staying here means you'll die."
Cheng Mu closed her eyes, probably anticipating the fate of these people. Those who didn't want to die would be taken to Mongolia like cattle and horses.
When men are enslaved, one can imagine what women will experience.
In the entire hall, there were only two women: she and the shopkeeper's wife.
She hugged Xiaoliu tightly and watched Shangguan Duan's men start to pick up valuables, until they took out ropes and wanted to tie everyone up, one by one, in a chain. Cheng Mu couldn't let herself be tied up like this.
"Excuse me, I need to see Master Shangguan. I have something to say to him."
To make her words more important, she added, "I can give you more food. Let me see Master Shangguan."
This sentence really brought her a turning point. Someone went to ask Shangguan Duan for instructions.
After a while, Xiao came over to replace her.
Cheng Mu pulled Xiaoliu, and a Mongolian soldier signaled them to leave the child behind.
Xiaoliu finally couldn't hold back any more and burst into tears, "Mom! Mom, please don't leave me!"
Cheng Mu held her in her arms and explained to others, "This is my daughter. We can't separate."
Cong Xiao waved to the Mongolian soldier, and the Mongolian soldier took a step back.
Shangguan Duan was standing at the door of the inn, talking to a leader on horseback.
As the leader rode away, he uttered a few words in Mongolian: "Retreat in a quarter of an hour."
Shangguan Duan put his hands behind his back and half turned around, "Madam Cheng, do you have any food?"
"I'll exchange food for us mother and daughter."
"How much food is Madam Cheng going to give in exchange for me?"
Cheng Mingming said, "Last year's snowstorm caused heavy losses in Yunzhou. The Mongols south of the desert must have suffered heavy losses as well, otherwise they wouldn't have chosen to launch a surprise attack in the first month of the lunar year. You want food, and I have it. I'm willing to trade it for myself. It's a good deal. Master Shangguan, name your price."
"How much can you give me?" Shangguan Duan sneered repeatedly, his face suddenly ferocious. "I want as much as the Great Yan Kingdom has. Can you afford it?"
The hatred was so intense that it was frightening. Cheng Mu felt a heavy heart.
Shangguan Duan almost died at the hands of the Xu family, and half of his life's work was taken away. The more he relied on the Xu family in the past, the more he hated them now. His feud with the Xu Dynasty was endless. The Mongolian tribes might have launched the invasion for their livelihood, but he was purely for revenge.
To impress him, she had to change her words. Cheng Mu pursed her lips and said, "Before Emperor Tianding seized the throne, he attached great importance to the army, horses, food, and grass. I believe you still remember that year when General Lei bought high-yield grain seeds from me. The harvest in just one year was enough for him to enter the capital from Yunzhou. If you have such ambitions, you should seriously consider exchanging food with me."
"I forgot about this. Madam Cheng is a good farmer."
Shangguan Duan's eyes suddenly became strange, and Cheng Mu felt uneasy. The next second after he winked, Cong Xiao on the side raised his hand and swung his knife.
Cheng Mu’s eyes went dark and she lost consciousness instantly.
After Cong Xiao took the person in, Shangguan Duan ordered, "Take her to see Master Xu."
Xiaoliu had tears on her face and held on to Cheng Mu's clothes tightly.
Shangguan Duan leaned forward and raised his hand, scaring Xiaoliu so much that he shrank back.
She was trembling all over, but she still mustered up the courage to say, "I want to follow my mother!"
Shangguan Duan put his hand on her head. As long as he exerted force and twisted her head, she would die instantly.
In Yunzhou City, Wuwei Escort Agency.
At dawn, Wu Tao listened to the report from his subordinates and became so angry that he kicked over the chair.
She rushed into Qingyuan Courtyard in a rage, rushed into Wu Zhi's room, and kicked him off the kang.
Wu Zhi suddenly woke up, the pain in his leg making him wail loudly. He had been nursing his leg for so long, but with this fall, all that nursing time was in vain.
"Aunt, you—"
Wu Tao pulled out his sword from the wall and held it across his neck. "Evil boy! When you were in Tianma Town, did you know that the Mongolian soldiers were going to attack the city? Why didn't you report it?"
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