Mountain and River Festival 315. Xiling Imperial Capital Relocation

After hearing what Xu Qingchen said, Nanhou and his son were also shocked. Even though Dingwang Mansion and Da Chu had broken up for so many years, there was still an ambush hidden in Da Chu. Even now that Da Chu was in chaos, it had not been exposed to the public. This made the two of them marvel at the strength of Dingwang Mansion. However, both of them knew their limits, so if Xu Qingchen didn't elaborate, they naturally wouldn't ask.

Nan Hou looked at the hunting flags not far outside the pass and asked, "What does Master Qingchen plan to do with the Beirong army and Xiling army outside the pass?"

Xu Qingchen said calmly: "The Northern Rong are only interested in conquering the territory of Great Chu and will not fight us head-on. As for Xiling, they are just following the Northern Rong troops and waving flags and shouting. In this case... we will take on these two groups of troops at once."

Nan Hou looked at Xu Qingchen and asked, "Master Qingchen, do you have such confidence?"

Xu Qingchen smiled and said, "Marching and fighting is the business of Nan Hou. How can you ask me if I have confidence? To be honest, I am not bad at making some plans, but I am not good at deploying troops and fighting." Nan Hou smiled and said, "You are too modest." Based on Xu Qingchen's plan just now, he cannot be regarded as someone who does not understand military affairs at all. However, compared with Master Qingchen's literary talent and talent in governing the world, this point is not so obvious.

"You are not being too modest. This battle will require the attention of Marquis Henan and General Lu." Xu Qingchen said seriously.

Knowing that he was entrusting Feihong Pass and these Mohist Army soldiers to him, Nan Hou's heart warmed up and he said solemnly, "Please rest assured, Master Qingchen. I will not dare to slack off in the slightest."

"That's great." Xu Qingchen nodded and smiled, "Why not let the Northern Rong people see if the Mohist Army is inferior to them after not fighting for many years."

This casual and light sentence made Nan Hou feel heroic. Although he had fought many battles in the first half of his life, he had never thought about leading the Mohist Army to fight against the two powerful enemies of Beirong and Xiling.

On this day, outside the Xiling Imperial City, there was a crowd of people and a grim atmosphere. The black-clad Mohist Army soldiers had replaced the original Xiling guards and stood on the top of the city. This also marked that the Xiling Imperial City was completely under the control of the Mohist Army. Outside the city gate, bright yellow flags with dragon patterns fluttered in the wind. Rows of various carriages lined up on the official road outside the Imperial City, waiting for the time to set off. Today was the day when the Xiling Emperor officially left the Imperial City for Ancheng, and there were many dignitaries and court officials who left with Xiling.

As for ordinary people, there were some who followed the Xiling Emperor, but not many. For ordinary people, loyalty to the emperor and patriotism was actually very far away from them, not to mention that the Xiling Imperial City was not forcibly conquered by the Mohist Army but was handed over by the Xiling Emperor. As a result, there were naturally fewer people willing to follow the Xiling Emperor. The Mohist Army has always had a good reputation. Instead of following the Xiling Emperor and abandoning the place where they have lived for generations to run to an unknown place, it is better to live a peaceful life under the Dingwang Mansion.

Therefore, among the crowd outside the city, there were many more people who came to see him off or to watch the excitement than those who wanted to follow him. This inevitably made the Xiling Emperor feel a little sad, but the majority of people in the world were ordinary people, so the Xiling Emperor naturally did not take these ordinary people seriously.

"Prince Ding, the princess is here."

The Xiling Emperor was leaving, so Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li had to come and see him off. Fortunately, Ye Li had recovered a lot after a few days of recuperation, but Xu Qingbai was still lying in bed and unable to move.

Mo Xiuyao put one hand around Ye Li's waist and held her in his arms, not avoiding the gazes of the people around him. But Ye Li was somewhat surprised to find that the expressions of the people around her, especially many high-ranking officials, were not respectful and flattering as usual, but were filled with extreme fear. Looking more carefully, she found that the fearful gazes of these people were not directed at her but at the people around her, and she looked up at Mo Xiuyao in confusion.

Because Ye Li was pregnant, and Mo Xiuyao also vaguely discovered that Ye Li did not like his wanton killing, or maybe Mo Xiuyao himself did not want Ye Li to know his nature. A few days after Ye Li woke up, the people around her did not tell her what happened during her coma. Ye Li naturally did not know why these people were so afraid.

"Your Majesty, I wish you a safe journey." It was a rare occasion that Mo Xiuyao bowed to Emperor Xiling and laughed out loud.

The Xiling Emperor was stunned for a moment, and even felt a little flattered. He quickly responded, "I appreciate the good words from Prince Ding. I also congratulate Prince Ding and the Princess on the birth of their son." Ye Li nodded and smiled, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Take care."

Although it was very hard to have to smile at the person who occupied a large area of ​​his land and the imperial city, fortunately he would soon leave here and completely get away from Mo Xiuyao, the killer god. This made the Xiling Emperor smile more sincerely, and he said with a smile: "Thank you, Princess. I will take my leave now."

Mo Xiuyao smiled faintly and said, "No thanks."

The Xiling Emperor's dragon palanquin was parked in the middle of the official road not far away, surrounded by the original palace guards and eunuchs. Behind the dragon palanquin were the carriages of the concubines and princesses in the palace and the royal family. After watching the Xiling Emperor being helped onto the dragon palanquin, the others followed suit and prepared to set off.

After the dragon halberd was launched, Mo Xiuyao waved to the people who came to see him off and said, "Okay, let's go." He supported Ye Li and turned back to the city. The people behind him were silent. Your Highness, you should at least act more realistically. Not to mention watching you go away, at least don't turn around and leave before the Xiling Emperor's dragon halberd has even taken a step away.

However, the generals of the Mohist Army naturally had no objection to this, and the former Xiling dignitaries were in no mood to show respect to their old master in front of their new master, so they all dispersed after a moment of silence.

"Princess Ding...I want to see Princess Ding..." Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao were about to enter the city when they heard a sharp cry from behind. Ye Li turned around and saw Madam Bai rushing towards him with an anxious look on her face. Unfortunately, the assassination attempt had just happened, and the guards in front of Ye Li found that they had all been replaced by Qilin after Ye Li woke up. Although Ye Li was somewhat reluctant about this, she also knew that this incident must have scared a lot of people, so she did not object and just thought of it as reassuring those who cared about her.

When Madam Bai called out "Princess Ding" she was stopped by the guards of Prince Ding's mansion, and she was still a dozen steps away from Ye Li. Seeing that Ye Li was about to be supported by Mo Xiuyao to go into the city, Madam Bai was unwilling to let it go and shouted, "Princess... I have something to ask you..."

Everyone present was silent. They knew about the Bai family. The daughter of the Bai family was killed by Prince Ding that day. Many people were wondering when Prince Ding's mansion was going to attack the Bai family.

Ye Li frowned slightly, thought for a moment and said, "Please ask Madam Bai to go to the inn." The guard behind him responded, picked up Madam Bai and disappeared in front of everyone.

The Xiling Emperor left, leaving behind an empty palace. The Xiling Palace is smaller than the Dachu Palace and the old palace of the previous dynasty in the south of Dachu, but it is still a palace. And Mo Xiuyao obviously has no plan to move to Xiling, so the disposal of this palace has become a problem. In the past, the old palace of the previous dynasty was either used as a palace for the new dynasty or as a temporary palace, or it was left abandoned and gradually destroyed. But this was not in line with the behavior of the Dingwang Mansion. In the end, Mo Xiuyao thought about it and decided to abandon the things used exclusively by the emperor in the front half of the palace and use it as the highest office in the future of the Xiling Imperial City. The back half, which is the harem, will be closed for the time being, and plans will be made later.

Because they were leaving Xiling soon, Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li had no plans to move into the palace to satisfy their addiction to living there. After seeing off the Emperor of Xiling, they returned to the inn where they were staying temporarily. The first thing Ye Li did when they returned to the inn was to visit Xu Qingbai who was still recovering from his injuries.

Although Xu Qingbai was not injured in any vital parts, he was still seriously injured. After several days of recuperation, he could only sit on the bed and talk to them with his head propped up high on the pillow. When Ye Li came in, Madam Xu was feeding Xu Qingbai medicine, which made Xu Qingbai feel a little uncomfortable. He was already so old, and it was not a hand injury, but he still felt a little uncomfortable to let his mother feed him medicine personally. When he saw Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao coming in, his eyes lit up as if he saw a savior. Madam Xu knew what he was thinking, and snorted unhappily and said, "No matter who comes, you have to finish the medicine first!"

Xu Qingbai said helplessly: "Mother, just pass me the bowl and I can drink it myself." He could also hold the bowl and gulp it down, drinking it mouthful by mouthful... You know, the taste of the medicine has never been better! Madam Xu looked at him with a smile and said: "You know the medicine is bitter? Then why don't you take good care of yourself? Do you think I don't know that you read those files again last night?"

These words made Ye Li feel a little guilty. If they hadn't been in a hurry to leave Xiling, Fourth Brother would have had no peace of mind when he needed to recuperate.

Finally, Madam Xu had enough of her son's handsome face turning into a bitter gourd, and handed him the pills. Xu Qingbai quickly took it and drank half a bowl of it, his brows furrowed with tears. Madam Xu stuffed a candied fruit into his mouth in a bad mood, then took the empty bowl and left.

Being seen in such an embarrassing situation by his cousin and cousin-in-law, the well-mannered Fourth Master Xu felt a little embarrassed. He smiled at the two of them and said, "Has the Emperor of Xiling left?"

Ye Li nodded, sat down beside the bed and looked at Xu Qingbai's face carefully. It looked better than yesterday, so she said, "We just sent him away, and you are in a hurry to look at those things again? Rest well if your injury hasn't healed yet. If there is anything, don't Xiu Yao and Feng San still have them?" Xu Qingbai smiled and said, "I have been lying in bed for so many days, and it's boring to do nothing. I just look around." Glancing at Mo Xiu Yao who sat on a stool beside him, Xu Qingbai asked, "When do you plan to go back?" Now that Da Chu is in chaos, it was originally a good time for them to annex Xiling. However, Xiling is vast, and although it was so easy to capture the Xiling Imperial City this time, there is indeed a component of luck in it. If you really want to take over the entire Xiling, three to five years is not too much. If Beirong Beijing and Lei Zhenting can gain a firm foothold in Dachu by then, it will be a win-win situation. After all, no matter how big Xiling is, it cannot compare to the rich and fertile land of Dachu.

Mo Xiuyao said seriously, "Half a month later. Ah Li is pregnant, so we have to travel slower, so we can't stay for long."

Xu Qingbai nodded, thought for a moment and said, "Half a month is enough. I should be able to get out of bed by then." Mo Xiuyao said, "I have sent a message to Shen Yang. He should be able to feel it before we leave."

Xu Qingbai was stunned, then shook his head and smiled, "That's not necessary, Mr. Shen still has to take care of Li'er."

Ye Li held him down and frowned, "Why not? I'm just pregnant, not injured. Giving birth is not something that a doctor can do, and how can there be no doctor in Li City? If you don't take good care of yourself and get sick, I don't know how sad your aunt will be." Xu Qingbai wanted to say something else, but Ye Li glared at him and said firmly, "Don't object! Mr. Shen has already said that he is a little annoyed to be trapped in Li City for the past few years, and it's a good thing to be able to go out for a walk. Besides, Xiling is a place that has just come into our hands. As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake. We will feel more at ease with a doctor with excellent medical skills."

Xu Qingbai knew that he couldn't win the argument with Ye Li, so he could only smile helplessly and agreed.

Mo Xiuyao continued, "Another 300,000 troops will stay in Xiling, and the commander is Zhang Qilan. Zhang Qilan has a straightforward personality but is not stubborn. You two, one civil and one military, will not have any problems. What do you think?" Xu Qingbai naturally did not have any opinions. Although the Mohist Army has now taken over a large area of ​​Xiling, Xu Qingbai did not think that everything would be peaceful. Zhang Qilan is also a veteran of the Mohist Army, with rich experience in leading troops. Xu Qingbai was naturally relieved to have him lead 300,000 troops to stay.

Ye Li thought of Madam Xu and asked quickly, "Aunt, do you want to go back with us?"

Xu Qingbai smiled bitterly and shook his head, saying, "Mother knows that I want to stay in Xiling, and I'm afraid she plans to live here for a while." In fact, Mrs. Xu's original words were, "I can't take care of your elder brother, and your younger brother is younger than you. I won't return to the Xu family unless I see you get married and have children!" Now Mrs. Xu's standard for her daughter-in-law has been lowered from being born into a scholarly family in Da Chu to not caring about her birth as long as her family background is clean and she is in a good mood.

Seeing Xu Qingbai's helpless look, Ye Li could imagine what Madam Xu had said. After a moment's hesitation, Ye Li agreed and said with a smile, "In that case, I think my aunt is worried about my fourth brother. It would be fine for him to stay in Xiling for a while. When my aunt misses us, we can send someone to pick us up." Mo Xiuyao didn't have any objections either, so he nodded and said, "That's great. Ah Li and I will return to Li City in half a month. Everything here is entrusted to you."

Xu Qingbai hesitated for a moment, but finally put his worries aside and said, "I don't have any experience before, I'm afraid it's..."

Mo Xiuyao frowned and thought for a moment, then he understood Xu Qingbai's worries. Xu Qingbai is only twenty-four or twenty-five this year, but he is in charge of a territory equivalent to one-third of the original Xiling. He can be said to be a frontier official among frontier officials. It is normal to be difficult to convince the public for a while. He believes in Xu Qingbai's ability, but ability takes time to show. After they leave the imperial city, I am afraid that Xu Qingbai's life will not be so easy. Before, he only considered ability and also because Dingwang Mansion is indeed short of people now, but forgot to consider Xu Qingbai's age.

Ye Li raised her eyebrows slightly and said with a smile: "I do have an idea, but I don't know what Fourth Brother thinks?"

Xu Qingbai looked at Ye Li with a smile, "Li'er always comes up with good ideas, tell me now so that Fourth Brother can hear them."

Ye Li said, "Fourth brother, why not try to invite Mr. Xiuting from Biancheng here. Mr. Xiuting's students are all over Xiling. If he can come out to help fourth brother, then I'm sure fourth brother's affairs in Xiling will be much smoother." Although Mr. Xiuting has expressed his intention to return to the palace, scholars, especially those with extraordinary achievements, always have some strange tempers. If Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao asked him to come, he would certainly come back, but I'm afraid he would inevitably have some grudges and contempt for Xu Qingbai, which would be detrimental to Xu Qingbai's actions.

As a descendant of the Xu family, Xu Qingbai naturally knew about the outstanding scholars in the world, not to mention that Mr. Xiuting was a person highly respected by his grandfather, father and uncle. After thinking for a moment, he nodded and said with a smile: "Li'er really won't let Fourth Brother down. Fourth Brother knows what to do." Ye Li smiled and said: "It's us who have worked hard for Fourth Brother. So, Li'er won't disturb Fourth Brother to rest. Fourth Brother should take good care of his injuries these days."

Mo Xiuyao helped Ye Li up and turned to leave, leaving a message before he left: "I'll ask Feng Huaiting to come over later to help you deal with the problem of the Xiling rich businessman."

Xu Qingbai was startled, then smiled and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

After watching the two leave, Xu Qingbai thought for a while and asked someone to bring pen and ink to write a sincere invitation letter and have it sent to Biancheng. He wondered if he had time to go to Biancheng in person, but unfortunately he was injured now, and he would have even less time after Mo Xiuyao and the others left.

After leaving Xu Qingbai's yard, Ye Li turned to Mo Xiuyao and smiled, "Xiuyao, thank you."

Mo Xiuyao was startled, and looked down at Ye Li with gentle eyes, "Thank me for what?" Ye Li said, "Thank you for what you did for my fourth brother." Whether it was inviting Shen Yang to Xiling or Feng Huai Ting, it was definitely not in Mo Xiuyao's plan. Especially Feng Huai Ting, now Feng Huai Ting is busy integrating the industries under the name of Ding Wangfu and the business in the northwest. Mo Xiuyao lowered his head and leaned his forehead against Ye Li's forehead, rubbed it and said softly: "Xu Qingbai is your fourth brother, isn't he? And he saved yours and our children. I should be nicer to him."

Ye Li smiled and said, "You have always been very good to them, I know." Although Mo Xiuyao always exploited his eldest brother to the utmost, it was only limited to his eldest brother. He was really good to the other cousins. Just like this time, before attacking Xiling, Mo Xiuyao had already considered letting Xu Qingbai stay in Xiling, which could be regarded as paving the way for Xu Qingbai's future. Xu Qingbai was still too young, and he had almost never participated in the core affairs of Dingwang Mansion. But if he could handle the affairs of Xiling properly, his future would be no less promising than any of the core confidants of Dingwang Mansion.

"Ali likes it, so I have to be nice to them." Mo Xiuyao smiled, lowered his head and gently bit her pink lips. Ye Li glared at him helplessly and said, "Then can you also be nice to big brother?" I really don't want to be stuck between you two as cannon fodder. Mo Xiuyao smiled softly, "Well...Ali, how can you bear to embarrass your husband like this? Your husband is very sad."

Ye Li rolled her eyes. "What kind of difficulty is this? Do you really have to confront Big Brother?"

"Well... who made him look so disgusting? Look... he can't even find a wife now, isn't that evidence?" Mo Xiu Yao rubbed her hair that was emitting a light and subtle fragrance, and said lazily.

“……”So, are you jealous that your elder brother is more handsome than you?

"Prince, Princess..." After leaving Xu Qingbai's courtyard, the two were about to return to their rooms when Ye Li remembered that there was another woman, Mrs. Bai, who had been brought back and was waiting to see her. So Mo Xiuyao had no choice but to accompany Ye Li to meet the people with resentment. As soon as they stepped into the flower hall, Mrs. Bai, who was about to greet them, immediately froze. She looked at Mo Xiuyao with a pale face as he helped Ye Li in, and even forgot to greet him.

Ye Li raised her eyebrows, not caring too much about Mrs. Bai's impoliteness, and smiled faintly: "Mrs. Bai, do you have anything to say to me?"

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty..." Madam Bai looked at Mo Xiuyao whose limbs were stiff as if they were frozen. She seemed to remember the countless screams from that day and the miserable cries of her daughter when she was dragged away. Her face became even uglier and her whole body was shaking as if she was about to fall.

"Madam Bai?" Ye Li frowned and asked, "Madam, are you feeling unwell?"

Madam Bai was startled, but she came to her senses and said quickly, "I...I'm fine. Thank you for your concern, Princess. I'm fine..."

Ye Li remained silent, but Mrs. Bai didn't look like she was fine.

"Mrs. Bai is here to see me, but what do you want to say?"

Madam Bai's face turned pale and she secretly groaned in her heart. Prince Ding was right in front of her. Not to mention asking for mercy, she couldn't even say the usual words of greeting.

Seeing this, Ye Li turned sideways to look at Mo Xiuyao. However, she saw that Mo Xiuyao's expression was calm and his words could be described as gentle. It was obvious that he was in a good mood and should not scare people.

"Xiu Yao?" After thinking for a while, Ye Li decided to quickly send Madam Bai away. "It seems that Madam Bai wants to tell me something alone. Why don't you go back first?" Mo Xiu Yao put one hand on Ye Li and said, "Of course not. If you have something to say, just say it. If you don't say it, it means you have nothing to say. Right, Madam Bai?"

Madam Bai shuddered and nodded quickly, saying, "Your Highness is right. I was confused and disturbed the princess! I...I will take my leave now!" After saying that, she ran out without waiting for Ye Li to say anything. Ye Li looked at Mo Xiuyao in confusion, "What happened?"

Mo Xiuyao shrugged, "Who knows?"