Taiping Rift 378. Going North and Returning

After leaving the Marquis Muyang's Mansion, Yun Ge walked back while carefully looking at Xu Qingchen. She didn't know why, but every time she saw Xu Qingchen not smiling, she felt scared, and when Xu Qingchen smiled, she felt even more scared. She looked down at her small hands, which were not particularly soft but still slender, and sighed with a bitter face. It was obviously not her fault this time, why did Xu Qingchen still get angry... her hands would break from writing... Why didn't she realize before that Xu Qingchen loved to get angry so much?

Of course, these words were just what Miss Yun Ge thought in her heart. Even if she said them out loud, no one would believe them. Does Master Qingchen like to get angry? The number of people in this world who have seen Master Qingchen get angry is simply too many to count on one hand. The demeanor and cultivation of the Immortal Master have always been praised. Who dared to slander Master Qingchen? Why don't you beat him out!

Of course Xu Qingchen saw Yun Ge's actions. He smiled faintly without explaining, and just asked: "Now that you can't find the person you are looking for, what are your plans, Yun Ge?" Yun Ge blinked and said a little depressed: "It doesn't matter. They are all dead. No wonder they didn't come to pick me up. I have grown up, and I can be alone."

Xu Qingchen shook his head and said, "It's not safe for you to go alone. I told you before that you should go to Licheng with me."

Yun Ge shook her head quickly. Although she grew up in the countryside, she had learned a lot in the past few days. The most important thing was that even the Muyang Marquis's Mansion made people feel very restrained as soon as they entered. The Xu family was bigger than the Muyang Marquis's Mansion, and they were all scholars, so they must have more rules.

Xu Qingchen smiled knowingly and said, "There aren't many people in the Xu family, and there aren't many rules. Everyone lives the life they like. The reason your father left a letter for someone to pick you up was because he was worried that you would be alone in the mountains in the future. Now that you can't find anyone and you go back to the mountains, isn't that making your father's worries come true? Come with me to Licheng, the people there are very nice. Be a good kid and listen to me."

"Hmm..." Yun Ge rolled her confused eyes, her bright watery eyes filled with uneasiness.

Xu Qingchen sighed softly, raised his hand to push a playful strand of hair on her cheek behind her ear, and said softly: "If you really don't like it, I can also help you find another place to live. But at least you can be taken care of in Licheng. You are my savior. Do you want others to say that I am ungrateful? Besides, didn't you say that I still need to take medicine for three months? Abandoning a patient who has been treated halfway is not the way to practice medicine. My grandfather lives in Lishan Academy outside Licheng, and there are people from Dingwang Mansion guarding there. You can move there when the time comes. Isn't it the same as living in the mountains?"

"Xu Qingchen..." Yun Ge bit her lips and looked at Xu Qingchen and said, "I know you were worried that I would have no one to take care of me if I lived alone in the mountains, so you insisted on asking me to go to Licheng. Thank you... You are such a good person."

"Then you have to be obedient, understand?" Xu Qingchen said with a smile.

"Well, then... I'll trouble you in the future. Can I give you all the things my father left for me?" Yun Ge's eyes lit up and she said happily. She had nothing, and it was embarrassing to eat and live with Xu Qingchen all the time. It would be better to give Xu Qingchen the things my father left behind, so that no one would suffer a loss. My father said those things were very good and important.

The corners of Master Qingchen's lips twitched slightly. He had also seen the things that Father Shen left for Yun Ge. There was not a single ounce of real gold or silver. But there was the deed of Chu Jing's house stuffed under the red sandalwood carving, the night-shining pearls that someone was said to have played with as marbles when he was a child, a box of authentic calligraphy and paintings that were coveted by scholars all over the world and that were ordered not to be thrown around, and many lost rare medical books and precious medicinal materials. Obviously, this was the dowry that Father Shen prepared for his daughter.

Miss Yun Ge, who thought she was poor but was actually rich, was guilty and planned to use these things as rent and living expenses. Xu Qingchen coughed lightly and said, "No need, those are souvenirs your father left for you. If I get hurt again in the future, just remember to save me and don't charge me."

"Xu Qingchen, you are really a good person." Yun Ge looked at him with tears in her eyes. She was so bad. How could she think Xu Qingchen was vicious? Miss Yun Ge happily followed Master Qingchen back to copy books, forgetting what happened in the Marquis Muyang's mansion. She also forgot that Master Qingchen had only suffered such a serious injury in his life, and she didn't know when she would be able to pay back her rent and living expenses.

Muyang Marquis Mansion

Mu Yang looked at his gloomy father in a strange way. Just by looking at his father's expression, he knew that he must know that Shen Fengru. Why didn't he admit it? What was even stranger was that Master Qingchen didn't ask any further questions, as if he couldn't tell at all that his father was lying. In other words, it was just a routine question, and he would leave no matter how his father answered. And the last sentence Master Qingchen said was even stranger... They are all dead, it seemed like he was talking about the Marquis Muyang Mansion. But would Master Qingchen curse others so unreservedly?

"Dad, what happened? Master Qingchen and Miss Yunge..."

Madam Mu frowned, "That girl's name is Yun Ge?"

Mu Yang nodded, and Madam Mu sighed softly, but stopped talking. Yao Ji said calmly, "It seems that Master Qingchen values ​​that girl very much. The old marquis is like this today..."

"You are smart." Because Yao Ji gave birth to the Mu family's only son, and she has been very decent in all aspects in the past few years. She also helps Mu Yang handle some affairs in the house and is even more considerate than a real daughter-in-law. . So Yaoji spoke rashly and Old Muyanghou was not angry, but said calmly. Obviously Yao Ji has guessed the reason why Xu Qingchen brought Yunge to Muyanghou Mansion.

Sighing, Marquis Muyang said, "Yes, we do know Shen Fengru. The girl named Yun Ge is your cousin."

"Cousin?" Mu Yang was surprised. He had never heard that he actually had a cousin. Come to think of it, he should have been almost twenty years old when the girl named Yun Ge was born. If there really was such a cousin, he would definitely remember her.

Madam Mu nodded and said, "The girl's mother is my biological sister, your biological aunt."

Mu Yang was a little confused. He remembered that he did have a biological aunt. But this aunt was only three or four years older than him, and she had been in very poor health since she was a child. She seemed to have died at the age of sixteen. He had only seen this aunt a few times, so he didn't have a deep impression of her. If his mother hadn't mentioned it, he would have forgotten it long ago.

Immediately, he understood why his father refused to acknowledge him. With the current relationship between Da Chu and Prince Ding's Mansion, how could his father dare to acknowledge someone that Young Master Qingchen personally sent to him? Wouldn't that make Prince Li suspect that the Marquis Muyang's Mansion was colluding with the Prince Ding's Mansion? However, if he could really establish a relationship with the Prince Ding's Mansion, it would not be bad. The problem was that the Prince Muyang's Mansion fell off the cliff that year, which could be regarded as the result of the Marquis Muyang's hand. How could Prince Ding not bear a grudge? For so many years, Prince Ding had not made a move against the Marquis Muyang's Mansion, which had already made the Marquis Muyang very uneasy. How could he dare to hope to be able to take refuge with the Prince Ding's Mansion? The Marquis Muyang's Mansion and the Prince Ding's Mansion were destined to be enemies.

But Mu Yang had never thought that the brave and skilled girl would be his cousin. Mu Yang, who had no siblings since childhood, could not help but feel a little regretful, but since the girl was being taken care of by Prince Ding's Mansion, they didn't need to be jealous.

Xu Qingchen brought Yun Ge back to the small courtyard and met Ye Li's smiling eyes without any surprise. Ye Li did not ask any more questions and took Yun Ge back to the room to pack up and prepare to leave Jiangnan.

That night, the group left Nanjing and sailed north again. The people in Nanjing were in a state of panic because the little emperor was critically ill. Most people didn't even know that Princess Ding and Prince Qingchen had come and gone, and took their little emperor away.

The ship was moving steadily on the water. On the deck, Xu Qingchen and Ye Li sat opposite each other, watching the waves of the sea that were unprecedented. In the cabin, Yun Ge was concentrating on taking care of Mo Suyun, who had been unconscious since boarding the ship.

Xu Qingchen drank tea leisurely, looked at Ye Li across from him and said, "Is it okay to let Qin Feng handle Dongfang You's affairs?" Ye Li looked at Xu Qingchen jokingly and said, "It seems that big brother is also scared by Dongfang You? Don't worry, Qin Feng is still calm and reliable in doing things, there will be no problems." As for how Qin Feng dealt with Dongfang You, no one cared. As long as they confirmed that Dongfang You was dead in the end, it would be fine.

"Li'er did accomplish a lot during her visit to Jiangnan this time." Xu Qingchen smiled faintly. Although she came to save Xu Qingchen, the extra gains were also considerable. Ye Ying's last attack was enough to keep Mo Jingli from leaving Nanjing for a month or two. He also had to deal with the problems after Mo Suyun left, and also had to plan how to ascend the throne. It would be difficult for Da Chu to send troops in a short period of time. Even if Mo Jingli agreed to form an alliance with Xiling Beirong, he would have to wait until next year before he could go to the north in person.

Ye Li smiled and said, "By then, one of the Northern Rong and the Western Ling should have retreated. Then when Mo Jingli sends out his troops again, the pressure on the Mo family army will be less."

Xu Qingchen nodded and said, "Li'er has thought it through very thoroughly. Moreover... Li'er has also planted a few nails in his military supplies. I'm afraid it's still unknown how much Mo Jingli's army can really contribute by then."

"Big brother, thank you for your compliments." Ye Li smiled, looking back at the busy girl in the half-open cabin and asked, "Big brother Yun Ge, what are you going to do? If Wu You was still in Li City, Yun Ge could have been with Wu You, but Wu You went to Xiling, so why don't you send her to Prince Ding's Mansion so that she can be with Madam Yang? Madam Yang's knowledge, manners and talents are all first-class, so she can be taught." Xu Qingchen glanced at her calmly and said, "No need, mother and second aunt can also teach her. Besides, second uncle's mansion is close to ours, so my sister-in-law can also be with her."

Ye Li blinked her eyes and smiled, "I'm afraid Zheng'er is so anxious to take care of these kids all day long. How can she have time? The same goes for my eldest aunt and my second aunt. Our two little ones are still in Xu's house." It takes a lot of effort to take care of two little kids who are not even a year old.

"I have my own arrangements." Xu Qingchen said.

Ye Li nodded and smiled, "Well, Yun Ge is Big Brother's savior anyway, so Big Brother has the final say on how to settle her."

Xu Qingchen pretended not to hear the teasing in his cousin's words, and calmly held the teacup to admire the scenery on the sea. Because they were worried about being intercepted by the Zhennan Palace on the way, they did not take the canal route, but went directly to the estuary, and headed north from the sea after entering the sea. The Xiling army has always been not good at naval battles.

After sailing for more than ten days, they finally landed at a port far from the original Changxing City of Chujing. Xu Qingchen took Yun Ge and Mo Suyun and walked slowly back to Li City, while Ye Li got on a fast horse as soon as he got off the boat and led his men to the battlefield.

Ye Li had been on the road to Jiangnan for nearly two months, and the north was already freezing cold with a world of ice and snow.

Lei Zhenting has led nearly a million troops to the border with the Mohist Army. This time, not only did Lei Zhenting lead the troops himself, but Lei Tengfeng also came with him. It is obvious that Lei Zhenting is trying his best to wipe out the Mohist Army. Because he knows in his heart that if he misses this opportunity, Lei Zhenting will never have a chance to defeat the Dingwang Mansion and the Mohist Army again in his lifetime. The three-nation coalition has a great chance of winning, but it's a pity that the start is not favorable. Before the official fight, Mo Jingli lost the chain. Lei Zhenting can do nothing except secretly scolding Mo Jingli in his heart.

Although they didn't have time to wait for the army of Da Chu to arrive, Xiling and Beirong combined had nearly two million soldiers. More importantly, these two families, one in the south and one in the north, just sandwiched the Mohist army in the middle. As a result, the Mohist army had to be attacked from both sides. If we only look at the geographical advantages, it is indeed much better than the alliance with the North.

At this time, Mo Xiuyao had already pushed forward from the border not far from the Northern Rong army to a large city in the north of Da Chu. Weicheng was less than a hundred miles away from Lingjiu Mountain, not far from Feihong Pass, and not far from Lei Zhenting's army. It was also the only way for the Northern Rong to go south from the northwest. Now that the war was about to begin, Mo Xiuyao, as the highest commander of the Mo family army, naturally could no longer charge into the battlefield as before. He needed to control the two battlefields of Xiling and Northern Rong at the same time, so he had to retreat from the front line silently.

When Ye Li arrived at Weicheng, she did not inform anyone, and went directly to the former General's Mansion where Mo Xiuyao was temporarily staying in Weicheng. These places that were recaptured by the Mo family army have gradually returned to normal over the past six months. The original best prefectural mansion in the city naturally still has an official office for Weicheng, so Mo Xiuyao had to bring his men to squeeze into the General's Mansion. Fortunately, most of the generals of the Mo family army were leading troops in the front line, and only Feng Zhiyao and Nan Hou were with Mo Xiuyao. Even Fu Zhao went out to lead the troops personally, so the not-so-big General's Mansion did not seem crowded at all.

When Ye Li arrived at the general's residence, the guards at the door were startled. After they came to their senses, they hurried forward to greet the princess and invite her in.

Ye Li didn't care about the guard's slight misconduct and asked with a smile, "Is the prince in the mansion?"

The guard nodded and said, "Princess, the prince and the third son of Feng, Marquis Nan, are both here."

After entering the mansion, I found out that Mo Xiuyao and others were discussing something in the study. Ye Li stood at the door and hesitated for a moment, and was about to leave first, but the people inside had already noticed her presence. The door of the study was opened from the inside, and Mo Xiuyao stood at the door and smiled at her and said, "Ali, why don't you come in now that you're back?" Ye Li looked inside in confusion, "Aren't they discussing something?"

Mo Xiuyao grabbed her hand and pulled her inside. "It's not an important matter. Besides, is there anything in the palace that you can't listen to?"

Inside, Feng Zhiyao and Nan Hou looked at Ye Li in surprise as she was pulled in by Mo Xiuyao. Feng Zhiyao was the quickest to react, grinning and teasing Mo Xiuyao, "The prince is indeed very skilled. He could tell that the princess had returned even when he was sitting in the study."

Nan Hou looked at Feng Zhiyao, who was smiling, and then looked at Mo Xiuyao, who glanced at Feng Zhiyao coldly but had a hint of warmth in his eyes. He shook his head helplessly and said, "The princess is back? Master Qingchen..."

So, older people are more reliable. These people didn't even ask about her trip to Jiangnan.

Ye Li smiled and said, "Thank you for your concern, Lord. I'm doing well. I'll be back to Licheng after two days of rest in Chujing." Feng Zhiyao looked at Ye Li with a smile and said, "Princess, I heard that Master Qingchen brought back a beautiful girl with strong martial arts skills?" The secret guards had naturally reported Ye Li's affairs in Jiangnan to Prince Ding's Mansion, and Yun Ge was inevitably mentioned in the report. As for the beautiful girl with strong martial arts skills, no one knew which secret guard was responsible.

Ye Li tilted his head and looked at Feng Zhiyuan quietly for a long while before nodding and saying, "She is indeed a beautiful and lovely girl, and her martial arts and medical skills are very good. Do you want me to ask my elder brother to introduce her to you?"

Feng Zhiyao quickly retracted his neck, raised his hand to rub his handsome face which was somewhat stiff with a smile and said with a wry smile: "Forget it. I dare not offend Master Qingchen." Master Qingchen took decades to bring back such a beautiful and lovely girl. If he rushed to get to know her, wouldn't he be killed by the group of people from the Xu family?

Mo Xiuyao was also quite curious. Xu Qingchen looked gentle and amiable, but in fact, he had very high standards. It was not easy for him to like her. "I heard that the girl is related to the Marquis Muyang Mansion?" If that was the case, it would be bad. If the girl was really related to the Marquis Muyang Mansion, Xu Qingchen should quickly find another one. He couldn't possibly have to consider Xu Qingchen's face when he wanted to take action against that old Marquis Muyang in the future, right?

Ye Li smiled faintly and said, "It doesn't matter now."

"What do you mean?" Feng Zhiyao and Nan Hou also looked at Ye Li. Feng Zhiyao wanted to hear gossip, and Nan Hou had some problems with Mu Yanghou Mansion, so he wanted to consider how to treat the girl if they met in the future.

Ye Li told him about how Xu Qingchen personally brought Yun Ge to the Marquis Muyang's mansion and brought her back. Feng Zhiyao stared at Ye Li with wide eyes, and asked in disbelief: "So, Master Qingchen cursed the whole family to death in front of Marquis Muyang and the entire Mu family? Why didn't Marquis Muyang stab him a few times?" Master Qingchen is really an extraordinary person. He usually looks gentle and well-educated, but I didn't expect that when he scolds people, he would poison them to death without mercy.

Ye Li shrugged and smiled, "I heard this from Miss Yun Ge."

Feng Zhiyao silently decided in his heart that he must not provoke the little girl named Yun Ge.

Nan Hou thought for a moment and said, "That girl should be the niece of Marquis Muyang's wife. Speaking of which, she has some relationship with Doctor Shen."

Huh? The other three looked at Nan Hou curiously. Nan Hou shook his head and smiled, "These are all old things in the capital. The prince and princess will naturally not care about these things. But our family and Mu Yang Hou Mansion..." Nan Hou Mansion and Mu Yang Hou Mansion have never been on good terms with each other, so they are naturally very clear about some not-so-good things that happened to other people's families. Nan Hou said, "The wife of Marquis Muyang has a much younger sister who has been in poor health since she was a child. Not many people in Chujing know her. But when she asked a doctor to see her, she ran away with a young doctor. The wife of Marquis Muyang's family naturally couldn't afford to lose face, so they just said that the girl died of illness. The doctor was Shen Yang's cousin. Although Shen Yang was a famous doctor of his generation and the Shen family was also a family of famous doctors, the wife of Marquis Muyang's family was also a high-ranking family. How could they agree to marry their daughter to a doctor? I heard from the princess that the girl's surname was Shen and she was related to the Marquis Muyang's mansion, so she should be this one."

Ye Li asked curiously, "When Madam Shen eloped, how could Mr. Shen be sure to entrust his daughter to the Marquis of Muyang Mansion before he passed away?" Although the Marquis of Muyang Mansion did refuse to take care of Yun Ge, that was actually due in large part to Xu Qingchen and Prince Ding's Mansion.

Nan Hou smiled and said, "Well, I heard that Marquis Muyang's wife and Madam Shen had a very good relationship in the past. The two of them were very different in age, and they were sisters but they were as close as mother and daughter. Moreover, Shen Fengru once saved Marquis Muyang's life. It wouldn't be difficult for him to take care of the descendants of the Shen family, and he would naturally agree. But this time... Marquis Muyang has always been a man who changes his attitude according to the situation. It is his instinct to seek good fortune and avoid danger. Since Miss Shen is related to Master Qingchen, Marquis Muyang will never dare to keep her."

"As long as it has nothing to do with the Marquis Muyang's Mansion." Mo Xiuyao nodded with satisfaction. As for whose daughter Shen Yunge was, it didn't matter at all. "Ali, it looks like the Xu family will have a lot of weddings next year." Except for the youngest Xu Qingyan, several young masters of the Xu family already have a partner.

Ye Li pursed her lips and smiled, "That's not necessarily true." In her opinion, Shen Yunge has no idea about Master Qingchen at the moment. Although Yunge is already fifteen or sixteen years old, it's already the age for a girl to fall in love, but she has lived in the mountains since she was a child and has not come into contact with many people. I'm afraid it will take her a while to understand these aspects. If you want to talk about how she feels about Xu Qingchen. In Yunge's words, it's: a good person, very smart, very powerful, very fierce...

Therefore, Master Qingchen's future is worrying. Moreover, Ye Li didn't really understand what Master Qingchen meant to Miss Yunge.