He Xing stepped forward and said, "Then I request to go to the capital to welcome the new battle."
Yan Beimo leaned back in his chair, thought for a while, and then spoke.
Who led the troops from the Western Regions in the Battle of Yuehu Pass?
"He is Yuwen Jing, a great general of Northern Yan."
Northern Yan and Northern Liang share the same lineage. After Northern Liang was destroyed, many people fled to Northern Yan.
"I'll give you three months. Within three months, take Yuwen Jing's head and hang it on the city wall at the border to expose his corpse."
He Xing bowed and said, "Yes."
Upon hearing this, Xu Ling, who was kneeling on the ground, had a strange look in his eyes.
On the high hall, Yan Beimo glanced at him lazily and suddenly spoke.
"Xu Qing, who do you think should be sent to the battle of Moon Fox Pass?"
Xu Ling frowned and said respectfully, "I believe that Your Majesty should not rashly start a war with the Western Regions. Once the war breaks out, the Northern Capital will take advantage of the situation to disrupt our territory, and our Great Qi will be in danger."
"Oh? So, Minister Xu means that my Great Qi should cede territory to the Western Regions, and hand over all twelve cities along the Yan River, is that right?"
"Your Majesty, I am terrified. I only feel that fighting at this time—"
Before he could finish speaking, the man above him interrupted him in a deep voice.
"So what if the two countries are at war? Am I afraid? If any of the former officials dare to speak out again, I will kill you first."
Xu Ling was startled; the back of his official robes was soaked with sweat. No wonder they kept him here; it was a warning to him.
"Did you understand?"
"Your subject understands."
Yan Beimo's expression turned indifferent. "Go down."
"Your subject takes his leave."
Once the man left, several of the generals from the north also departed, leaving only Wang Hezhan behind.
"I'm not going to lead troops; I'm going back to Yandu."
Yan Beimo raised an eyebrow at his expression, "Why are you in such a hurry to go back?"
Wang Hezhan handed the dossier to the eunuch behind him and said, "Of course, it's like His Majesty, with a beautiful wife in his arms."
The young eunuch respectfully placed all the memorials on the imperial table and stepped aside.
Yan Beimo flipped through the documents, recalling what the Yan clan had said, and spoke softly.
"You don't like bird's nest?"
Wang Hezhan scoffed, "What does it matter whether I like her or not? She's my legal wife, that's all that matters."
"----"
Yan Beimo was too lazy to ask any more questions and simply chased them away.
Wang Hezhan had been traveling for several days and was exhausted. He thought he would go back to his private residence to rest for a night before returning to Yandu. However, as soon as he entered the residence, a servant handed him a letter.
"It's been coming from Yandu for two days now."
He was very sleepy, so he casually picked it up and put it on the table without looking at it, and went straight to the bathroom to shower and go to sleep.
Early the next morning, he took a horse-drawn carriage to the dock.
Jiankang is not far from Yandu; it takes only two days to reach it by water.
The weather in Yandu has been fine lately, with no wind and bright sunshine.
Upon entering the mansion, Wang Hezhan was invited to the main hall by the old lady, where the family sat around a long table for a meal, exchanging pleasantries and greetings.
"Stay home a little longer this time, have a baby with Ayuan, and your mother will be at ease."
Yan Yuan sat down next to him and glanced at him subconsciously when she heard this.
Wang Hezhan's expression remained indifferent, revealing no change in emotion.
“Take A-Yuan with you when you go out on business. What’s the point of leaving her at home with us old women? Your cousins who work outside also have wives with them and someone to serve them.”
"Alright, Grandmother, eat more."
The old lady laughed and scolded, "You child, you can't even be spoken to like that."
Wang Hezhan ate a few bites and then thought of getting up to return to Qingfeng Garden.
Seeing his expression, the First Madam recalled how that woman, even when locked in the woodshed, couldn't stay still and had run away on her own, and felt a surge of anger.
"What's the rush? You've come all this way, sit down and eat."
"---"
The third wife's face turned even uglier. "He stabbed my son and dared to run away!" she thought. She immediately started talking to the other wives of the fifth wife in a sarcastic tone.
Hearing their words, Wang Hezhan squinted and asked, "Who is Auntie talking about?"
"Who else could it be? That concubine you keep in your mansion has a terrible temper. She stabbed your fourth brother and ran away in the chaos. We still haven't found her."
"That's right, you're so restless, you vixen---"
Before he could finish speaking, Wang Hezhan stood up abruptly with a bang and strode out, startling everyone in the hall who looked at each other in surprise.
The old lady scolded unhappily, "Even eating can't shut your mouths. Why are you talking about this? That woman ran away, so what? Why are you bringing her up? We can't even have a proper meal now."
Yan Yuan glanced around a few times, then slowly put down her chopsticks and bowed to the old lady.
"Grandmother, Mother, I'm going to see my husband first."
"Okay, good boy, go ahead."
When Yan Yuan came out, she saw several people standing under the corridor, but she couldn't hear what they were saying.
She held the handkerchief in her hand and slowly walked over.
Wang Hezhan listened to the guards behind him, a flash of ferocity crossing his eyes. He heard the woman approaching but ignored her.
"My husband---"
Wang Hezhan turned around and asked calmly, "Who saw her off?"
Yan Yuan said, "There's a servant on the estate named Chang Biao."
"Where was it sent?"
"Chang Biao sent her out of the city and then left. No one knows where she will go."
Wang Hezhan frowned and said to the guards behind him, "Go and bring the person here."
Yan Yuan chimed in, "Chang Biao's wife gave birth and is not on the estate recently; she went back to her hometown."
As soon as he finished speaking, he glanced at her. She pursed her lips and tightened her grip on the handkerchief.
“Once she’s out of the city, Miss Xie can go anywhere. If you ask Chang Biao, he probably won’t know either. You might as well send more people to search around. Maybe she’s gone back to her hometown.”
A gentle breeze caressed my face, and all around was quiet, broken only by the occasional chirping of insects.
Wang Hezhan looked at her carefully for a few moments, then said in a deep voice, "I understand. You should go back and rest now."
Yan Yuan didn't say anything more, turned around and left.
Wang Silang lived in the magnificent West Garden, surrounded by wives and concubines. After being injured, he stayed in the mansion to recuperate and did not take up any post.
When Wang Hezhan arrived, he saw him lounging comfortably in a grand chair watching his beautiful concubines dance, with several concubines kneeling at his feet serving him, some bringing tea, some bringing fruit platters, and others giggling as they kneaded and massaged him.
The garden was filled with the melodious sound of zithers, and the winding stream was filled with the sounds of people playing wine cups—it was a truly delightful scene.
He stood outside the garden for a few moments, his expression cold and hard, a surge of murderous rage boiling within him.
A moment later, the sound of guards' footsteps came and stopped behind them.
"Sir, we've investigated. A few days ago, over by the artificial hill, it was the Fourth Young Master who tried to take advantage of Miss Xie. Miss Xie accidentally injured him."
How could Miss Xie possibly seduce the Fourth Young Master and be locked in the woodshed? That's all nonsense.
Wang Hezhan said coldly, "Go and bring that guy named Chang Biao back to the manor."
"Then thank you, Miss Xie---"
"Send more men to search." As he spoke, he turned and glanced into the archway. "Send a few more women to my good brother. Tomorrow morning, I want the scandal of him dying on a woman's belly to spread throughout Yandu."
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