In Rong Siyuan, Ling Weiyuan, who had just recovered from his leg injury and was able to walk a few steps, heard that his second brother was so brave and wanted to try the power of the tiger whip soup.
Geng Suhua had a mouthful of old blood stuck in his throat, neither going up nor down.
She poked Ling Weiyuan's forehead with her index finger and said, "Just be quiet! You've finally healed your legs, don't break them again!"
A wonderful day began, but unfortunately Ling Jiheng was not there, so there was no one to accompany Chi Xingyue to enjoy the show.
***
After a long journey, Ling Jiheng finally arrived at the military camp. However, due to the urgent fighting situation at the front line, no one paid attention to him and he was arranged to stay in a tent.
However, the mushrooms on the ox cart were taken away, and Fu Huanping paid ninety-five taels of silver as agreed.
There were also two tiger bones and a jar of wine, which he gave for one hundred taels.
Ling Jiheng calmly handed the silver to Jinbao for safekeeping, and gave it to Song Lizheng and Chi Xingyue when he returned.
Hearing the sounds of swords and guns clashing in the distance, he felt a bit eager to try, but unfortunately he had to stick to his duty.
The battle lasted from dawn to dusk before the winner was barely decided.
Because the Zhou army had good food and was well prepared, they were able to inflict heavy damage on the enemy's 10,000 soldiers with only 5,000 soldiers. Although there were casualties, it was within an acceptable range.
It was freezing cold, and with the battlefield to clean up, General Zhou completely forgot about Ling Jiheng.
Even Zhou Chengyu was so tired that he just wanted to have a good sleep.
Fu Huanping did remember it, but seeing that the two generals were almost unable to hold on, he suppressed the news and reported it after dawn.
So, Ling Jiheng, Ling Yi and Jin Bao squeezed into a big bed, listened to each other's heavy breathing, and slowly fell asleep.
I didn't even realize that heavy snow was falling outside again.
Before dawn the next day, Ling Jiheng heard the sound of soldiers training.
Snow was falling heavily, and water was freezing. To cultivate one's body under such conditions showed one's immense perseverance. No wonder the Zhou family army was so unstoppable.
He did not venture out to check, but lay in bed and thought about life.
The Great Yong Dynasty is about to end. In the future, will he continue to do business or take this opportunity to join the army?
Three grown men shared one quilt, and the cold air in the tent seeped in through the gaps, making him shiver.
Ling Jiheng gradually came to his senses amidst the groans and haws. Being a soldier in ancient times was different from being a soldier in modern times. Not only did he have to guard the border all year round, but he was also easily suspected.
He had barely managed to survive exile, where his entire clan was executed and his entire body was beheaded, and he couldn't afford to be imprisoned again.
The future is not important, it’s good enough to be a rich and idle person.
Ling Jiheng closed his eyes again and when he opened them again, it was already dawn.
The soldiers in uniform brought the food - three mixed-wheat steamed buns, a plate of pickles, and three bowls of rice porridge.
Ling Jiheng did not despise it. After thanking him, he ate the pork jerky and vegetable buns prepared by Chi Xingyue and ate until his stomach was full.
After a quick wash, he sat on the bed and waited. Around noon, Fu Huanping came over and said, "General Zhou wants to see you!"
Ling Jiheng nodded, tidied up his appearance, and brought Ling Yi and Jin Bao to General Zhou's tent.
"Grandfather, this is the Second Young Master Ling whom I mentioned to you!" Zhou Chengyu saw the familiar figure and introduced him to General Zhou with a smile.
Ling Jiheng hurriedly saluted: "Greetings to General Zhou, Master Zhou!"
General Zhou looked at Ling Jiheng and said, "He is indeed a handsome man!"
After saying that, he pointed to the seat next to him and said, "Sit down, don't be shy!"
Ling Jiheng nodded slightly and sat down next to General Zhou, opposite Zhou Chengyu.
He smiled and said to the two of them, "I never thought that one day I would be able to witness General Zhou's splendor with my own eyes. It is such an honor for me!"
General Zhou raised his hand and stroked the tiger bone on the table: "I heard that you are quite skilled and can hunt tigers?"
Ling Jiheng chuckled: "You're too kind. We were forced to fight back. More than 30 people fought for several hours before we killed the tiger.
Two people also paid the price of serious injuries.”
General Zhou nodded, admiring Ling Jiheng's composure.
Next, he asked about the situation at Ling Jiheng's home, and finally turned to the purpose of this meeting.
General Zhou sent away all the irrelevant people and left Zhou Chengyu to guard the account outside.
"I heard that you discovered something in Black Wind Village?"
Ling Jiheng didn't hide anything and recounted his experience with exaggerated details: "If I hadn't been alert, I would have been killed by that knife long ago!"
He then took out the letter that he had hidden in Chi Xingyue's space and said, "General Zhou, you see, this is an organized and premeditated robbery."
General Zhou took the letter, opened the envelope and read it one by one.
The more he looked, the more serious his expression became. Finally, he slapped the table and cursed, "Beast!"
Ling Jiheng thought, what a beast! They actually killed their own people for a little money. No wonder natural and man-made disasters keep happening.
But he did not dare to agree. After all, the Great Yong Dynasty had not collapsed yet, and he was just a commoner, so he would not get involved in such "national affairs".
Of course, General Zhou didn't completely believe Ling Jiheng. He pressed him with a few questions and asked, "Master Ling, can you guarantee that what you said is true?"
Ling Jiheng immediately raised his hand and swore, "I promise that none of my findings about Black Wind Village are false and I will tell General Zhou everything. If I break my promise, I will..."
Before Ling Jiheng could finish, General Zhou interrupted him.
He asked that question simply to find some psychological comfort. After all, no one wanted to be loyal to the royal family, and there would be such a cruel person.
Ling Jiheng said with a serious expression: "Don't worry, General. Since I dare to say it, there must be some basis for it.
Also besieged at the time were the Jiangning Prefecture yamen runners. It's said they've remained in the prefecture until now because of the floods and extreme cold in Jiangnan. General, could you please ask them over?
Ling Jiheng's voice was sonorous and powerful, and he spoke slowly and steadily, making people feel that he was extremely sincere.
In fact, it was just a gamble that the Zhou family would not dare to make a big deal out of it, and that the Zhou family would not even ask Zhou Changsong and others to verify it.
Of course, he wasn't afraid even if it was verified. Those gold, silver, and jade items weren't given away for free. Hush money, if it leaked, no one would be in trouble!
Sure enough, General Zhou believed his promise. After all, the two sides had little in common, and Ling Jiheng would not harm them for no reason.
What's more, the information they conveyed helped them a lot.
General Zhou then turned to ask something else: "I heard from Yu'er that you have something else you want to tell me?"
"Yes!" Ling Jiheng looked around cautiously, then gradually approached General Zhou under his curious gaze and whispered in his ear, "Old General, to be honest, we heard something in Black Wind Village.
That is, there is a gold mine in the back mountain of Black Wind Village!"
"What?" General Zhou was quite shocked, because individuals were not allowed to mine gold mines, and once discovered, they had to be reported to the court.
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