Chapter 362 "Why did Li Shiyue want to harm Liu Shu?"
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Ma San carefully recounted to Liu Tan everything he had said since meeting Li Shiyue, as well as Li Shiyue's behavior.
"...General, I can tell she is genuinely happy that you gave her this opportunity to undertake this escort mission."
However, General…
Ma San's hesitant manner prompted Zhao Da to say, "Alright, why are you putting on this act in front of the general?"
"Hehe," Ma San laughed twice at Zhao Da, who had teased him. Under Liu Tan's gaze, he then straightened his expression and said seriously to Liu Tan, "General, although it is a delegation led by Zhou Yiran, we all know that when Liu Shu was alive, Li Shiyue and Zhou Yiran did not get along very well."
This time, the general is having them work together again. Is that feasible?
"And then, General," Ma San swallowed hard, carefully choosing his words and looking at Liu Tan's expression before continuing, "Even though it's been more than three years, the fact that Li Shiyue single-handedly overthrew eight Turkic princes is still fresh in people's minds."
Is it appropriate to send Li Shiyue on this mission?
"Don't let Li Shiyue ruin our relationship with the Turks and affect the general's grand plan!"
Liu Tan smiled.
He raised his cup and drank all the tea in it. After putting the cup down, he shook his head and looked at Ma San with a smile.
Liu Tan pointed a finger at Ma San in the air and said, "You, you are so soft-hearted. She called you 'Third Brother' a few times, and you actually thought of her."
"General, I'm doing all this for the good of our Andong. If you say I'm biased, then I'm biased towards ourselves."
Li Shiyue is incredibly strong and skilled in martial arts; we all acknowledge that.
But this is the Turkic people representing our Andong. Can Li Shiyue, who has never been on the battlefield, handle it?
Her condition is a minor matter; don't let her ruin the general's important plans!
At this point, as if remembering something, Ma San suddenly lowered his head and whispered, "Also, General, Zhou Yiran was a strategist that the old princess specially found for Liu Shu."
Even if he surrenders to the general, who knows if his heart is red or black?
"And to send him on a diplomatic mission to the Turks with Li Shiyue... is that even feasible?"
Once Liu Tan made up his mind, he naturally wouldn't change it because of Ma San's few words.
Liu Tan, of course, didn't explain his inner scheming to Ma San. Instead, he changed the subject and started talking to Ma San and Zhao Da about the affairs of the garrison.
It wasn't until after midnight that Ma San and Zhao Da left Liu Tan's study.
Liu Tan sat alone in his chair, gazing at the map of Andong on the table by the bright candlelight, lost in thought.
After leaving the general's mansion, Ma San and Zhao Da did not go home. Instead, they went together to a small tavern with a lantern lit at the entrance and the character "Zhao" on the lantern.
This tavern was opened by a colleague surnamed Zhao with whom they had fought on the battlefield. That colleague was unlucky and lost his leg on the battlefield.
But his colleague was lucky; although he broke his leg and became a cripple, he survived.
How can you say that it's not good fortune to be able to come down from the battlefield, survive, and reunite with your family?
After all, many soldiers who went to the battlefield never came back.
Later, this colleague took the allowance from the Xuanjia Army and returned to the prefectural city, where he and his family opened a small tavern to make a living.
Because of the life-or-death bond they had forged, the soldiers of the Xuanjia Army spread the word, and the small tavern did fairly well.
Zhao Da and Ma San entered the tavern, greeted their colleague, and went to the side room in the backyard.
The small tavern had only five or six square tables in front, but the backyard had two spacious side rooms, one on the east and one on the west.
Zhao Dongjia and his family lived on the second floor of the tavern, while the two side rooms in the back courtyard were reserved specifically for the Xuanjia Army's own men to use.
If someone drank too much, they would simply sleep on the bed in the side room.
Ma San and Zhao Da came here intending not to go home tonight, but to sleep here instead.
The limping Zhao Dongjia brought the two men some food and wine, and lit a charcoal brazier for them to warm themselves by the window before considerately closing the door and leaving.
After three cups of wine, Zhao Da picked up his chopsticks to eat some side dishes on the table. Without looking at Ma San, he suddenly spoke up while eating the side dishes: "You shouldn't have said that."
Upon hearing this, Ma San, who was sitting opposite him drinking, was stunned for a moment. After a pause, he didn't speak, but instead raised his glass and drank all the wine in it.
"Ha... Hooah..."
With a satisfied sigh, Ma San put down his wine glass and picked up his chopsticks to eat some side dishes. After a few bites, Ma San said to Zhao Da in a serious tone, "Old Zhao's cooking skills are getting better and better. They're almost as good as the chefs at Yuelai Restaurant."
Seeing that Ma San didn't respond, Zhao Da got a little angry. He slammed his wrist down and the wine glass on the table with a 'thud!', almost spilling the wine.
Because of the "thump," Ma San paused for a moment while using his chopsticks to pick up the food before finally managing to do so.
Seeing that Ma San wouldn't take the bait, Zhao Da had no choice but to turn to Ma San and whisper to him earnestly, "We both know how the old prince died."
I personally sent the old princess on her way!
But what about Prince Liu Shu?
How exactly did Liu Shu die?
Upon hearing Zhao Da mention the name "Liu Shu," Ma San finally looked up at Zhao Da.
Zhao Da stared into Ma San's eyes and said, word by word, "How could it be such a coincidence?"
Master Li came to the mansion to deliver the news, and when he turned around, Liu Shu suddenly fell ill and fainted.
The man died in less than two days!
"......"
Ma San remained silent.
"Later, the general asked me to investigate Li Shiyue's whereabouts. Apart from that night, everything matched up!"
"That night, didn't you fail to find her whereabouts, elder brother?"
“Ma San, Ma San, there were five of us brothers back then. Old Zhao’s life was both good and bad, but at least he’s doing pretty well now.”
Aside from you and me, the grass on the graves of the fourth and fifth youngest children must be three feet high by now!
We brothers have a bond that transcends life and death!
If you call me "elder brother," then I'll have a few more heartfelt words with you!
Upon hearing this, Ma San quickly put down his wine cup and sat up straight.
"The snow was too heavy that night. No matter how skilled I am, I couldn't possibly find Li Shiyue's whereabouts."
But if we rule out all other possibilities, the only person who could possibly harm Liu Shu is her!
You don't admit it?
But the general, he's made up his mind about it!
"......"
"Don't soften your heart just because she calls you 'Third Brother' a few times with her sweet words!"
Yes, Li Shiyue is a good person!
During the New Year holidays, not to mention the general's mansion and the garrison, they also paid great attention to us, giving us things that we could use.
When you see her on a regular basis, she's quite talkative;
Although she was a woman, she was never particular about details and had great respect for those of us who served the general.
I could tell that she wasn't just being so kind to us because of the general; she genuinely felt that we were worthy of her.
But, San'er, who are we?
Our uniforms all come from the general!
The general wants to test Li Shiyue, so we have to obey.
What the general wants is none of your business!
You have truly overstepped your bounds today!
After a long silence, Ma San finally raised his head and asked Zhao Da, "Then why did Li Shiyue want to harm Liu Shu?"
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