"No matter what happens, you have become my wife, Meng Yuanqing's wife. I will not shirk my responsibility to you. Even if I have to leave, I will inform you in advance."
Hearing Meng Yuanqing's strong heartbeat as he spoke, and smelling his unique fragrance, Yu Honghua was overwhelmed with happiness. She had never imagined she would find such happiness; it felt like a dream.
“Meng Yuanqing, the happiest thing in my life is rescuing you from the foot of the mountain.”
What did you call me?
"My husband!"
"Um."
Qiao Qiu's soft "hmm" was incredibly magnetic, and Yu Honghua felt as if a feather had brushed against her heart, making her feel ticklish.
Yu Honghua's cooking was as delicious as ever. After Qiao Qiu finished eating, she took her to visit the villagers.
After walking for half the afternoon, Qiao Qiu learned about the villagers' income and living habits, and then went to a quiet place with Yu Honghua to talk.
“Honghua, Feihong Mountain is not very suitable for growing crops. Once a natural disaster occurs, it will almost certainly lead to annihilation. If I’m not mistaken, Feihong Mountain was experiencing this disaster before I arrived.”
Yu Honghua nodded, "My husband is right, that's true. Since last autumn, we've only harvested enough grain to feed us for four or five months. After the New Year, life has become increasingly difficult, so we have no choice but to rob those rich and heartless people to help the villagers."
“You need to plan for them early. Even if I can support them for the rest of my life, their descendants will not be able to survive after I pass away. By then, they will have been raised to the point of losing their basic survival skills,” Qiao Qiu said.
Yu Honghua took Qiao Qiu's arm and leaned against her, saying, "Actually, I already decided this morning that I will listen to whatever my husband says and do whatever he asks me to do. My husband is also thinking about the villagers. I am not a stubborn person and I can tell right from wrong. I can rest assured that they can work under my husband."
“Since you’ve made your decision, you should tell the villagers as soon as possible. Delay might cause unforeseen changes. Now that I’m not in Jincheng, many things are beyond my control,” Qiao Qiu said.
"Husband, are you hiding something from me?" Yu Honghua asked, sensing that Meng Yuanqing's identity was not so simple.
Qiao Qiu raised her hand and touched her temple. "Honghua, I can't tell you now. I'm afraid you can't handle the pressure. Don't worry, I'll take responsibility for anything that happens. Once this is over, you can just be a good wife to the richest man."
Yu Honghua nodded again. Qiao Qiu's words were now as effective as imperial edicts to her.
"Husband, when should we tell them?"
"There's no time like the present, let's do it today." Qiao Qiu was a little worried. Although she had only been at Feihong Mountain for two days, her younger brothers must have already arrived.
Finding out the situation here would be easy; she was just afraid they'd go back and spread rumors. It would be better for her to act first, stabilize the situation here, and then quickly return to the capital to settle things with her father.
"So fast." Yu Honghua thought that no matter what, she should wait until tomorrow to make preparations.
"The sooner the better. Someone wants to make a move against Feihong Village. I have to get ahead of them and stabilize the situation," Qiao Qiu said earnestly.
"Alright, I'll go and gather the villagers right away." Yu Honghua hadn't expected things to be so serious; it seemed there was no time to lose.
Half an incense stick later, all the villagers were gathered together.
Everyone had arrived, and Yu Honghua began to speak, “Fellow villagers, our village is now at its most dangerous moment. We must solve this predicament. Our harvest is getting worse year by year, and if we don’t find a solution, we will starve to death.”
Someone said, "Didn't the chieftain marry Young Master Meng? He's the richest man in the country, how could he possibly have a problem supporting us?"
"Who the hell said that? Come out here!" Yu Honghua rolled up her sleeves, so angry she wanted to hit someone.
The man shrank back, not daring to show his face.
Qiao Qiu tugged at her, signaling her not to be angry. Then she walked to the front, glanced at the crowd, and said, "I know most of you think the same as him. But have you thought about it? Fei Hong Village is, after all, a bandit stronghold. That's an indisputable fact. Don't object; it's a fact even if you do. If I were to support a bandit stronghold, what would the imperial court think? They would probably think I have rebellious intentions and would want to kill me. That would be the perfect excuse. I would be unable to defend myself then, and you would only live a few more days before the imperial court sends troops to wipe you out."
"Young Master Meng, our stronghold is impregnable. I'm not bragging, but even if the imperial court sends a lot of people, they won't be able to take Feihong Stronghold," the second brother said proudly, raising his head.
Qiao Qiu's lips curled into a smile. "Really?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she made a gesture, and more than a dozen men in black jumped out from various hidden corners and landed around the villagers.
Two of them lagged behind the second brother, which startled him. "How did these people get up here?"
“They are my secret guards. They’ve been following me ever since I was kidnapped, but you never realized they were all around you.” Qiao Qiu stepped forward, her gaze forcefully fixed on the second brother. “If I had a troop stationed down the mountain right now, and they were to coordinate with me from the inside, do you think your stronghold would still be impregnable?”
"This...this..." The second brother was speechless.
"These are just my secret guards. No matter how powerful I am, I'm just an ordinary citizen. You've already learned that the common people can't fight against the officials. If the imperial court's secret guards were here right now, how much of a chance do you think you would have left?" Qiao Qiu said coldly. "I'm not afraid to tell you, I've already received word that the imperial court has sent people to investigate whether the recent bandit activity in the Nanxia area is related to you. If it is, the imperial court will immediately send troops to attack Feihong Village."
"This has nothing to do with us."
"Yes, this has nothing to do with us."
The villagers were alarmed; if the imperial court attacked, they would surely perish.
Qiao Qiu waved her hand, and all the guards hid.
"Whether you believe it or not, there are people in the court who want you dead, and of course there are people who want you alive. If you want to live, do as I say. If you don't want to live, ha, do you really think I'm a kind man? Apart from Honghua, none of you will be taken care of by me."
"Young Master Meng, please don't be angry. After all, without any real evidence, we can't be sure whether what you said is true or false. How are we supposed to make a decision?" The third brother was also very anxious. If what Meng Yuanqing said was true, he absolutely couldn't offend him at this time.
"Several princes from the imperial court have arrived in Nanyang these past two days. Second and Third Masters, if you have the guts, I'll take you tonight to hear what they have to say." Qiao Qiu was too lazy to waste words. According to the original plan, the Sixth Prince would use Fei Hong Village to create false news that the Crown Prince was plotting to ascend the throne. In the end, he tried to steal a chicken but lost the rice instead, and was killed by Dongfang Wuche.
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