Chapter 358 Goodbye, Best Friend

After all, this was not their original stop, so they naturally couldn't stay any longer.

A few people packed their bags and continued on their way.

However, by evening, we arrived at our next stop, Baoning County.

As soon as you enter the city gate, you can see that unlike the previous Taijin County and De'an County, Baoning County is an exceptionally prosperous county.

It even surpassed De'an County, which was formerly De'an Prefecture.

As soon as we entered the county town, we could feel that there were more and more people on the streets, and the drivers' movements of steering their horses gradually slowed down.

Listening to the hawking sounds coming from outside, Song Qingyan couldn't help but lift the car curtain and look inside. Lu Xingwan naturally came up as well, busy trying to take a look at the scene outside.

【Finally, Father has chosen a good place! 】

[It sounds very prosperous. The two places we visited earlier didn’t seem like the emperor’s trip south for fun. Instead, it looked more like…]

【It seems more like they are going south to provide disaster relief.】

Having said this, Lu Xingwan let out a long sigh and looked out in the direction Song Qingyan was looking.

There is a lot of traffic outside, and it really looks lively.

Perhaps because it was getting nighttime, various vendors had already started setting up their stalls. Even the shops nearby had turned on their lights early, which looked very pretty.

"Master," Song Qingyan said as she looked at it, "Baoning County looks really prosperous, a bit like the capital city!"

Listening to what Song Qingyan said, the Great Chu Emperor couldn't help but stick his head out to take a look. Sure enough, the street was brightly lit and the vendors on the street also had joyful expressions on their faces.

The Great Chu Emperor heaved a sigh of relief. Indeed, such a scene looked more soothing.

Because there are so many people in the group, it is inconvenient for them to stay in the restaurant.

So Wei Cheng rented a house early on, and the group was heading for that house at this time.

The house is not that remote, it is even in the middle of a busy city, and there are neighbors around it, so it has been integrated into the city.

Although the yard is not big, it is decorated very warmly. There are even several wooden tables and chairs under the flower stand in the yard, which is a good place to relax.

Lu Xingwan was very satisfied with the place chosen by Wei Cheng.

[It seems that Commander Wei not only has military strength, but also brains! ]

[I don’t know if my father and mother are satisfied with the house that Commander Wei chose today, but I am very satisfied.]

The Great Chu Emperor walked into the courtyard with great strides, paced around, looked around, and nodded with satisfaction: "Wei Cheng did a good job."

Everyone started to unload their things.

The Emperor of Great Chu planned to stay in Baoning County for some time. In addition to his love for this place, one of his close friends lived in Baoning County.

The Great Chu Emperor turned his head and looked at Wei Cheng behind him: "Wei Cheng, take my token and go invite Xia Ning."

But when I turned around, I saw someone outside the door, peeking in stealthily.

"Who is it?" Pei Chuyan also noticed the person outside the door at this time. He quickly put down the things in his hands, walked quickly to the person, and brought him in.

"Chu Yan, be gentler!" Song Qingyan could tell at a glance that the person coming was a neighbor nearby. Pei Chuyan's big movements might have scared him.

He hurriedly walked up to the man and said, "Madam, please forgive me. It was my child who was reckless."

The woman was not polite either. She looked arrogant and patted the place where Pei Chuyan had just grabbed her. She was full of dissatisfaction in her words: "You are a unreasonable family. I just came to see you, but you..."

"Hmph!" After saying this, he turned his head away, as if he was angry.

When the Emperor of Great Chu heard her words, he frowned.

Lian Wei Cheng couldn't help but worry for the woman. If it had been any other situation, the woman would have probably been dead by now.

As if she was worried that His Majesty would be angry, Song Qingyan quickly turned around and pulled the Emperor of Great Chu's hand, signaling him not to be angry.

The Great Chu Emperor had already controlled his emotions by now. He lowered his head and smiled at him as a comfort.

It seemed as if he suddenly saw the Emperor of Great Chu, and saw that everyone in the courtyard was dressed in fancy clothes, even the maidservants beside the lady were dressed much better than those of ordinary people.

I wonder where this wealthy family came from.

Realizing this, the woman's expression changed instantly, and she looked at Song Qingyan in a flattering manner: "I guess this is the Madam."

"I heard some noises coming from the neighbor's house, so I came to check it out."

"You don't look like locals. You look like tourists." The woman smiled flatteringly. "I have some fruits and vegetables at home. I'll ask my daughter to bring them to you later."

After saying this, she began to back away, waving her hands as she did so: "Then I'll go back first."

Yue Guiren watched her leave from behind, and came up to the Great Chu Emperor and Song Qingyan and said, "Master, don't be angry, this is how women in the market are."

"I think he wanted to bully us just now, but when he saw that we were wealthy, he gave up the idea."

Lu Xingwan, however, curled her lips in disapproval.

【I don’t think so.】

The Great Chu Emperor and Song Qingyan were both waiting for Lu Xingwan's next words, but they saw that she had already jumped out of Jinyu's arms and ran to the recliner nearby.

After this little episode, Wei Cheng took the token of the Emperor of Great Chu and went to the government office of Baoning County to look for His Majesty's close friend, Xia Ning.

Song Qingyan had heard of Xia Ning's name before.

This person was once a descendant of the Xia family in the capital, and was also the childhood companion of the Emperor of Great Chu. He can be said to be a man of great talent and intelligence.

At that time, the Xia family also cultivated Xia Ning with great care.

According to Xia Ning's talent, he would definitely be granted a title of nobility and become a prime minister.

Your Majesty has regarded Xia Ning as his only close friend since childhood.

Unfortunately, the Xia family was later slandered for rebellion, and Xia Ning's father and mother both died at the hands of the previous emperor. It was also from that time that the Emperor of Great Chu became a man of violent temper.

As for Xia Ning, it was thanks to the protection of the Emperor of Great Chu that he was able to save his life.

But later, although His Majesty showed leniency to Xia Ning, Xia Ning was unwilling to stay with the Emperor of Great Chu, who was still the crown prince at that time, and felt that he was causing trouble for him.

He then asked for permission to go to his maternal grandparents' home in Baoning County.

Later, the Emperor of Great Chu succeeded to the throne and rehabilitated the Xia family. It was also the previous emperor who personally issued an imperial decree to announce the injustice of the Xia family to the world.

But Xia Ning was unwilling to return to the capital.

I just hope to be a minor official in Baoning County, which will be enough to keep the area safe.

So for all these years, the two never met again.

Therefore, Baoning County is a stop that the Emperor of Great Chu will visit no matter what.

Now, looking at Baoning County, which is so orderly and prosperous under Xia Ning's governance, he knows that Xia Ning is still the ambitious young man he used to be.