Chapter 240 She's Not Quite the Ordinary Woman
Chi Heng's peach blossom eyes widened, and she slapped Lu Zhong on the back of the head: "How dare you speak to me like that?"
Lu Zhong rubbed his head: "Lord Duke, I really can't draw it."
Chi Heng rolled her eyes, picked up the dark wad of paper on the table, and threw it away: "Then tell me properly what she looks like."
Lu Zhong frowned, and remained silent for a long while.
Chi Heng stroked his chin: "A woman that Li Rong talks about so much must be extraordinary. Could she be one of those peerless beauties who could make fish sink and geese fall from the sky, and the moon hide its face in shame?"
Lu Zhong immediately shook his head: "No, no, no!"
Chi Heng: "That's... a slender, willow-waisted Xi Shi?"
Lu Zhong shook his head again: "No, no."
Chi Heng frowned: "That's a gentle and refined person, a true gentleman..."
"No, no! Neither!"
Lu Zhong shook his head like a rattle drum: "My sister-in-law... oh dear, I don't know how to say it, but it's not like that!"
Chi Heng stared wide-eyed: "What does she look like? She can't be an ugly woman, devoid of virtue and beauty, can she?"
"Hey, how can you talk like that? My sister-in-law is definitely not ugly!" Lu Zhong was still somewhat dissatisfied. "She's incredibly skilled in medicine. When the General was going through his most difficult time, he relied entirely on her. Even the General's leg was healed by her. In other words, even if she were an ugly woman, she would still be a worthy wife of the General! I, Lu Zhong, am single-minded; I only recognize her as this person! No beauty can compare to such affection! If the General ever wrongs her because of some other beauty, I will definitely seek justice for her!"
Chi Heng's eyes darted around as she listened: "So, she's not very good-looking, right?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Zhong's eyes widened, and after a long pause, he finally said, "Anyway, my sister-in-law is definitely not ugly; she's just a little different from ordinary women."
Upon hearing this, Chi Heng suddenly stood up: "Let's go, before your general arrives, let's go to his house to greet him."
Although Li Rong didn't allow him to go, he didn't say he couldn't go pick him up.
Lu Zhong frowned, but before he could speak, he spotted a figure and his eyes lit up: "General, you've arrived!"
Then, with a hint of guilt, she looked at Chi Heng and said, "Lord Duke, look, the general has arrived. Let's hurry up and leave."
Chi Heng frowned when she saw Li Rong: "Why are you out so early?"
Li Rong: "This matter should be handled sooner rather than later, let's hurry on our way."
Chi Heng was investigating an unauthorized gold mine in Pingning. Lu Zhong was returning to the capital, and the group, all heading in the same direction, had agreed to travel together that day. Even though Chi Cheng was reluctant, he had no choice but to secretly consider going back to take another look later.
“Arong, news has just come from the capital that the Emperor is not in the capital. I heard that he has come to the imperial estate in the Great Wilderness. I feel that there is something strange about this matter.”
During the midday break, after hearing his subordinates' reply, Chi Heng frowned and spoke to Li Rong.
Li Rong was putting instant noodles into a basin and pouring hot water, which the guards had just boiled, over them. Hearing this, he simply lowered his eyes and asked, "What are you saying to the outside world?"
Chi Heng: "What else can we say? It's nothing more than an incognito visit to observe the people's conditions. His Majesty's health has been poor these past few years, and he shouldn't be taking care of himself. Why is he going out like this? Isn't this exactly what Xiao Yuanshan wants!"
Li Rong opened the spice packet and added the spices, his voice still calm and collected: "His Majesty's trip must be for his health. There is probably nothing else that would make him take such a great risk to go out."
"You've hit the nail on the head. It's said that Physician Que accompanied them on the trip. However, leaving the palace is easy, but returning will be difficult. I'm afraid that by then the illness won't be cured, and they might fall into Xiao Yuanshan's trap instead."
As he spoke, he let out a long sigh. He took the fish that the guard had grilled and took a bite: "Xiao Yuanshan already held absolute power. Now that the Emperor has left the palace, who knows what the court will be like when he returns?"
After saying that, he glanced at the fish with disdain and handed it back to the guard: "Could you get me something for human consumption?"
Holding the bowl of instant noodles, Li Rong said, "There's more than just Xiao Yuanshan in the court; there are four other ministers who assist in governing. They should be able to hold out for a while. If Xiao Yuanshan weren't so reckless, why would he raise an army on his own?"
As he finished speaking, he narrowed his eyes slightly: "We don't have much time left."
Chi Heng's brows were furrowed deeply. Neither of them spoke for a moment.
When Li Rong opened the lid of the instant noodles, a fragrant aroma wafted out.
Chi Heng had been frowning, but the next second, his pert nose twitched slightly, and his gaze searched around before finally landing on the bowl of instant noodles in Li Rong's arms: "What is this? Why does it smell so good?"
The group rested by the river. The guards were all skilled at catching fish, and they were gathered around grilling and eating it.
Lu Zhong was still gnawing on a large grilled fish, but after one bite, he frowned and said, "This fish is only good when it's made by my sister-in-law. One bite and you can't forget it. General, did your sister-in-law bring you these noodles? Do you have any more?"
He moved closer to Li Rong, staring at Li Rong's bowl of noodles, his saliva almost dripping into the bowl.
Li Rong had quite a few things in his bag, so he handed over the bowl. He figured he could make himself a bowl later.
Lu Zhong's eyes lit up, but before he could even feel happy, the bowl he hadn't even reached his hands was snatched away by Chi Heng.
"What kind of way is this to eat it? I saw you put a pancake in there and it turned into a bowl of noodles. This thing is amazing!"
Then, with a strange expression, he picked up his chopsticks and examined the noodles closely: "They smell really good!"
Then, he popped a mouthful into his mouth. He immediately nodded: "It tastes good too!"
As he spoke, he devoured the entire bowl of noodles, leaving not a drop of soup. After finishing, he patted his stomach and let out a long burp.
Everyone around was stunned by what they saw.
Everyone knows that this Duke has been extremely picky about food since childhood. Even if he likes something, he'll only eat a few bites before giving up. But now he's actually eaten such a large bowl of noodles, and his personal guards' eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when they saw it.
"Lord Duke, why are you stealing my noodles?"
Lu Zhong stared blankly, only belatedly realizing that his noodles were completely empty, even the soup was gone. He immediately gritted his teeth, but he also knew that this Duke was a shameless rogue, so he looked at Li Rong beside him with a wronged expression: "General, look at him!"
Li Rong, who was about to make his second pack of noodles: "..."
Faced with Lu Zhong's manly coquettishness, Li Rong's lips twitched: "I'll give you this bag later."
As he spoke, he opened the oil paper package as before and added things into the basin one by one.
Chi Heng put down her chopsticks and bowl, but stared intently at Li Rong's movements. She hadn't paid much attention before, but this time she directly sensed him putting a pancake in and pouring in boiling water.
When the time was almost up, Li Rong lifted the lid, and Chi Heng jumped up in surprise, circling the bowl of noodles several times, her eyes full of amazement: "Hey, this is amazing! Amazing! Rong, is there any more? Give me two more. I'm still not full!"
Li Rong handed the bowl to Lu Zhong, and seeing Chi Heng staring intently at his package, he immediately protected it, saying, "No, this was made for me by A Nuan! I didn't bring much. You can eat something else."
"Hey, don't be so stingy! We've been brothers for so many years!"
"No way!"
"Arong, one more, just one more."
Li Rong packed up his bundle, narrowed his eyes, and clenched his fist, which was as big as a bowl, so tightly that it cracked in front of the two of them.
Chi Heng glanced at his fist, then turned to look at Lu Zhong. He didn't want to actually get beaten up.
Lu Zhong immediately protected the bowl of noodles that Li Rong had given him. Seeing that Chi Heng was looking at him, he picked up his chopsticks and scooped up a large mouthful of noodles and stuffed it into his mouth.
He finished the food in two bites, then held the soup bowl and gulped down all the soup.
Then he wiped his mouth and exclaimed, "Delicious!"
(End of this chapter)
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