There is no wall that is impenetrable.
Although the commander ordered to keep the news secret, it was difficult to stop the public from talking. Gradually, the news of "Tu Ningwei's defeat" spread quickly. The people were either worried and speculative, or spread rumors, and the news became a hot topic, causing panic among the people.
Early Morning County Yamen
Every day, officials would sit in the meeting hall for a while, discussing matters if necessary or chatting casually if not, as if they were going to work. Then, the officials would go about their business, while the guards and yamen runners or wait for orders.
Jiang Yushu was in her study, discussing the reception for the prefect with several key subordinates. Her guards usually waited outside, enjoying the breeze, sipping tea, basking in the sun, and chatting. But lately, no one was in the mood for conversation, and sighs were the only sound.
At noon, a guard went to relieve himself. A moment later, he rushed back, tugged at his companion's arm, and called out, "Brother Chen, Zou Gui, let's go!"
"What are you doing?" Zou Gui leaned against the pillar in a daze, looking listless.
"Go and listen and you'll know, quick!"
So, the three of them tiptoed to a nearby garden, hid behind a rockery, and pricked up their ears to listen:
In the garden, several servants were pruning flowers and sweeping up dead branches and leaves, discussing among themselves, "Tsk, I'm not making this up! Rumors are spreading everywhere that the Tuning Guards suffered a heavy defeat, with over ten thousand dead."
"More than 10,000? No? I heard that more than 2,000 were sacrificed."
"Not only that, but I have a relative who's a friend of mine who's in the military and is well-informed. He says at least 5,000 people died. What a disaster! We've only just gotten some peace, and are we going to have to flee again?"
"You're all wrong! I clearly heard that thousands of people are missing."
"What do you mean by 'missing'? It's actually a defection! I heard that the leader of a major Beiqi tribe offered a large sum of money to lure out the Tuning Guards. The rebels pretended to be going to war, but in reality, they were rebelling. They fled deep into the grasslands and became Beiqi people."
"Rebellion?"
A servant asked in surprise, "No, impossible? I heard that Magistrate Jiang's husband is also missing. How could a lieutenant with a bright future defect to Beijiao?"
"That's right, I don't think it's possible."
"The Northern Apes are still uncivilized and savage. Captain Guo is powerful, but he refuses to eat fine food and drink spicy drinks, and instead eats raw meat and drinks blood? Is he crazy?"
The person who revealed the defection news curled his lips and chatted excitedly. While cutting branches, he described it vividly: "Have you forgotten? How did the prince of Jingyang Marquisate die? He died of corruption and greed. Brothers are brothers, and we have the same blood in our bones. Maybe Captain Guo was also very greedy. When he saw the Beiqi leader rewarding him with gold, silver and jewelry, he was tempted and defected." He said contemptuously:
"Haha, 'missing' is clearly a fig leaf. In reality, Guo is greedy and has committed treason."
Behind the rockery
Zou Gui and the others were furious, their faces livid, and they could no longer bear to hear a single word. They rushed out of the rockery at the same time, shouting angrily:
"nonsense!"
"Fuck you!"
"What did you guys just say? If you have the guts, try saying it again in front of me."
"You ungrateful bastard! If it weren't for the soldiers guarding the border, you would have been hacked to death by the Northern Qi people long ago."
"You, get out here!" Zou Gui was a son of the Marquis's family. He almost grew up with Guo Honglei, and the master and servant had a very deep relationship. He grabbed the servant who had just revealed the news of the defection, gritted his teeth, and punched the other person in the face!
"Ah—" the servant screamed in pain, falling to the ground after being beaten. He covered his face, his mouth bleeding. He knelt down and kowtowed, begging for mercy. "Master Zou, three masters, please spare me, please spare me. I know I was wrong, and I won't dare to say nonsense again."
The guard leader, Luo Chen, stepped forward, kicked him, and asked with a sneer, "And 'later'?"
The servant fell to the ground again, holding his stomach, curled up and rolled over, begging for mercy, "No, no, cough, cough, cough, I won't dare to do it again, I won't dare to do it again."
Luo Chen was particularly furious, his eyes wide open as he cursed, "I've been a soldier for twenty years, and was only persuaded to return home because I was seriously injured. Humph, you have no evidence, you're just gossiping and throwing dirty water on the border troops, which is like throwing dirty water on me. You really need a lesson!"
When the other servants saw the magistrate's confidant, they were immediately panicked, their faces turned pale, and they kowtowed and begged for mercy.
Immediately afterwards, there were continuous wailing and screaming. After a long time, the servants ran away trembling with fear and pissing their pants.
Night · Back Court
"What?"
"Traitor, defector?" Cuimei was stunned. First she was in disbelief, then she flew into a rage. "Bah! He's the one who defected! Gui'er, did you guys tear that nasty villain's mouth apart?"
Zou Gui observed the magistrate's expression and replied helplessly, "We overheard it and were furious, but this is the county government office, so we couldn't teach him a lesson for fear of affecting his wife's reputation. Well, we just took a broom and hit him a few times, that's all."
Jiang Yushu, always a hardworking woman, was tall and slender. When she sat upright, her back straight, her neck slender and white, her face like a jade-carved lady. She stared at the candlelight, expressionless for a long time. She was furious, almost losing her mind at the accusation of "treason." After a long pause, she gritted her teeth and asked softly, "Didn't you beat him seriously?"
"No! Although we were angry at the time, we didn't do anything ruthless." Zou Gui shook his head vigorously, his anger still lingering as he muttered, "If we hadn't been at the county government office, no one would have been able to stop Brother Luo. His good brother, who worked for the Second Master, was also missing. He was anxiously worried when he was suddenly stabbed in the lungs. He was so angry that his face turned pale."
Cuimei's face also turned pale with rage, her brows furious, and she cursed bitterly, "You filthy-tongued, wicked thing, slandering people so carelessly, how despicable! The fate of over two thousand people is unknown—" She stopped abruptly, covering her face for a moment, and continued with red eyes, "The soldiers guarded the border, risking their lives. They are heroes, doing a great cause. Over two thousand people are missing, and their relatives and friends are already distressed. I didn't expect that someone would suspect Brother Rong of 'defecting'? I, I'm so angry!"
"Calm down, calm down quickly, you're pregnant." Zou Gui scratched his head in regret, "If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have said anything more, so you wouldn't be angry for nothing."
Cuimei suddenly became anxious, "No matter what the news is, don't hide it from me!"
"Okay, okay, okay." Zou Gui raised his hands. "I told you."
Jiang Yushu hadn't been able to sleep for days and nights, and her eye bags were blue. She rubbed her temples, feeling a headache and anxiety. She said solemnly, "As expected, the news will spread sooner or later, and there will be a lot of discussion and rumors. Because there are indeed more than 2,000 people missing, the military can't refute the rumors, and the government can't stop them from spreading. I hope Honglei and the others return safely soon, and the rumors will be self-defeating."
"Yes, come back quickly." Cuimei was exhausted and murmured, "I really hope to see Brother Rong tomorrow. The baby is about to be born... The child can't live without a father."
The wind suddenly blew outside the window, the candlelight shook violently, and the light was dim.
Jiang Yushu woke up from a dream, calmed down, and tried to persuade her confidant and comfort herself. "Look at you, you are imagining things again? Believe that good things will come to those who are lucky. I believe Honglei will be safe."
Zou Gui echoed, "I also believe that with Second Master's ability, he will definitely be able to turn misfortune into good fortune and turn disaster into blessing!"
Jiang Yushu said word for word, "Yes, turning misfortune into fortune, and facing disaster into blessing." She then decisively ordered, "I can't control the outside world's discussions, but I must take care of the affairs of the yamen. Without any evidence, you're just spreading rumors and making trouble. Shouting 'a soldier is a traitor' in public, how can this be tolerated? This kind of behavior must not be allowed to continue. Zou Gui, pass on my message. Tell Li Qigong to give the person who spread the rumor of 'defection' ten lashes and expel him from the yamen as a warning to others."
"Yes!" Zou Gui wished he could do it himself and give the servant a beating.
Cuimei felt relieved. "That kind of chatterbox loves to gossip. I can't let him stay."
At this moment, there was a knock on the half-open door. "Madam?"
Jiang Yushu forced herself to cheer up, "What's the matter?"
The door creaked open, and a guard hurried in, whispering, "Madam, the old marquis wishes to see you."
Jiang Yushu was stunned for a moment, "Oh? Let him in."
"yes!"
After a while, a secret guard with an unremarkable appearance and clothes entered and bowed respectfully, "Greetings to the Lord."
"No need to be so polite, just sit down. Gui'er, bring the tea." Jiang Yushu had to cheer up.
"Thank you, sir." The old marquis sat down.
Jiang Yushu asked with concern: "I haven't seen you for a while. How are you? How are things going?"
"Fortunately, I have fulfilled my mission," the old Hou said, wiping his sweat with his sleeve. A hint of pride and relief lingered on his face as he reported, "I have tried every possible means, both in the underworld and in the underworld, asking around, and pursuing him by land and sea. I finally tracked him down, all the way to the Central Plains, and finally apprehended the murderer who murdered Teacher Jing."
Jiang Yushu couldn't help but lean forward slightly, "You actually caught him?"
Cuimei and Zou Gui hurriedly asked, "Where are the people?"
"Why did the murderer want to kill Master Jing?"
Old Hou answered them one by one, "He was stubborn at first and refused to admit it. I was afraid I had arrested the wrong person, so I tried to interrogate him, and he finally admitted it. He is now in Xicheng, temporarily detained at the home of a friend of mine. I was just about to ask you to take over to prevent any further trouble."
"Good, good! Thank you for your hard work, you did a great job!"
"As I should. It is my honor to be able to serve you, sir."
Jiang Yushu took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and then gave a serious order: "Tell Luo Chen immediately to send two people to accompany the old marquis to strictly guard the suspect. Also, quietly invite County Magistrate Huang to come. I have something important to discuss with him."
So the group immediately took action and was so busy that they had no time to discuss the border army affairs.
The next day, Tuningwei
The generals gathered in the commander's tent. Song Jikun, his face dark, angrily demanded, "Who said we were defeated? And besides, defection, defection—that's outrageous. Nothing has been determined yet. Who is spreading rumors?"
The generals looked at each other in dismay, and offered comfort: "General, calm down, calm down. Those outside don't understand the situation and are just talking nonsense. It's just a rumor."
"Yes, rumors!"
"Outsiders' nonsense is not worth your anger."
"We didn't lose the battle."
…
"Humph, this is absolute nonsense! Pass on my words, whoever spreads rumors will be severely punished. The reputation of the soldiers guarding the border cannot be slandered." Song Jikun's face was gloomy. He threw down his pen and fell into deep thought without saying a word.
"Yes, yes, I will definitely give the order."
The commander rarely got angry, and the generals were cautious and dared not breathe.
There was complete silence and the atmosphere was solemn.
A moment later, a personal guard suddenly rushed in, unable to conceal his excitement, and shouted, "General!"
Song Jikun frowned and turned his head away, "What's the matter with all the yelling?"
"Captain Guo's three men have returned! They say they have something important to discuss and must see the general. You—"
Instantly, everyone's eyes lit up and their spirits lifted. Tong Jing blurted out, "Oh my God, there's finally news!"
Song Jikun's bloodshot eyes widened as he interrupted and shouted, "Bring them in immediately!"
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