Chapter 114 She is Madam Yao of the Prince Cheng's Mansion, what is Lord Zhou so angry about?
The Southwest Army was not good at mountain warfare.
Once the bandits entered the forest, no one could do anything to them.
Before they could come up with a feasible solution, the three thousand men sent by the King of Han arrived.
King Cheng's carriage arrived shortly afterward.
The dilapidated county government office was filled with people who were ready to fight.
His Majesty has already issued the decree to suppress the bandits, so the attribution of this achievement has become a problem.
The generals under the King of Han trained their troops in the mountains year-round, and their soldiers were skilled in forest warfare.
He Ran disagreed. The Southwest Army was the main force sent by imperial decree to suppress the bandits. They had just rescued Ding County, and now people were already reaping the benefits.
She's only just put in the effort, and now she wants to hand over the credit to someone else?
He's dreaming big!
She grabbed Jiang Xingyao by the collar and dragged him over, saying, "You're the magistrate, you tell me!"
She didn't forget to threaten him through gritted teeth, "If you don't stand by my side, I'll kill you."
Ever since Jiang Xingyao learned that General He was a woman, he dared not look directly at her.
He tried to ignore her threatening gaze.
"Under the vast heaven, all land belongs to the emperor; on the shores of the earth, all people are his subjects. Suppressing bandits is an imperial order; naturally, who can relieve His Majesty's worries?!"
Before he could even speak, someone pinched the soft flesh around his waist hard.
"Jiang Xingyao, speak properly if you don't want to die!"
Jiang Xingyao glared at her, unable to contain himself any longer, and said through gritted teeth in a low voice, "Miss He, don't you know what it means for men and women not to touch each other?"
He Ran's eyes flashed with anger. "All I know is that someone is despicable and shameless, trying to steal the fruits of others' labor!"
Xiao Shu smiled as he watched the two's subtle actions. "It seems that Lord Jiang and General He are quite familiar with each other."
“I understand that Lord Jiang wants to entrust him with an important task, but bandit suppression is no child’s play. General Wu is better at fighting in the mountains and forests, so I think it is better for General Wu to take the lead in this matter.”
He Ran grew up on the frontier and had never met Xiao Shu.
But she disliked the smiling but treacherous Prince Cheng from the very first glance.
He's even more annoying than Jiang Xingyao, that bookworm.
"Does Your Highness Prince Cheng believe that my southwestern army is inferior to a mere vassal's troops?"
General Wu's eyebrows were raised, and his dark face was full of displeasure.
"It seems General He looks down on me."
He Ran scoffed lightly, "Fan soldiers..."
"The troops under the jurisdiction of the vassal king shall not leave their territory without a transfer order."
Before she could finish speaking, she was pulled behind someone.
Jiang Xingyao said, "In the predicament of Ding County, the troops from Yuzhou did not come, but instead traveled thousands of miles to ask the troops from the neighboring prefecture for support. This is a dereliction of duty by Prefect Liu."
"However, I, as the magistrate of Ding County, would like to express my sincere gratitude to the two generals for leading their troops on a night raid."
He clasped his hands together and bowed deeply.
After a long while, he turned around and bowed to He Ran, saying, "I, Jiang, also thank Young Master He for his bravery in fighting and lifting the siege of Ding County."
After hearing this, General Wu could no longer retaliate.
General He, who had remained silent, glanced thoughtfully at the county magistrate, who was said to be the newly appointed top scholar in the imperial examination.
Xiao Shu's lips did not curve into a smile, but his eyes darkened.
With just two sentences, Jiang Xingyao exonerated General Wu from the crime of leaving his territory without orders, and also secured credit for the Southwest Army for relieving the siege of Ding County.
He was not mentioned as the most guilty of dereliction of duty, but as the Prince of Yuzhou, he would not escape responsibility if His Majesty pursued the matter.
His eyes narrowed slightly. "Lord Jiang is right. I have failed in my duty and will personally present the charges against me."
"In that case, we urge the Southwest Army to come up with a feasible solution as soon as possible."
Xiao Shu stood up and said, "I take my leave."
Only after leaving the county government office did he solemnly instruct, "Since they want to play, let Yao Zhengliang keep them company for a while."
"The merit of granting amnesty is something I promised to the King of Han; no one can take it away from me."
When General Wu saw that Xiao Shu had left, he also stood up.
"Goodbye."
Only the He family father and daughter and Jiang Xingyao remained in the council chamber.
He Ran then said somewhat awkwardly, "Don't think that just because you helped me I'll forgive you..."
Jiang Xingyao immediately thought of what happened at the foot of the mountain that day.
His ear tips turned red instantly.
In an instant, he didn't know what to do with his eyes, hands, and feet.
"I only do not want to dampen the spirits of the soldiers of the Southwest Army who fought and bled for the people of Ding County."
“I don’t care about other methods, but I will never agree to you burning the mountain.”
"This humble official will also take his leave."
After saying that, he hurriedly left.
I almost tripped and fell at the doorway while walking, my arms and legs moving in unison.
He Ran was amused by his appearance and laughed.
General He then spoke up, "You're the one who took on this mess, what's your plan?"
He Ran said with some dissatisfaction, "If it weren't for that bookworm stopping them, that group of bandits would have been forced out by the wildfire long ago!"
When General He was young, he was General Meng's deputy and also participated in the suppression of bandits.
Burning mountains is not a bad thing, but it's not allowed in Ding County.
The wildfires that have spread for thousands of miles are sure to kill countless people.
"It's fortunate that Lord Jiang stopped you, otherwise you would have caused a major disaster."
General He paused for a moment, then asked, "You've fought against bandits before, what did you think of it?"
He Ran thought for a moment, "It's a bit better than the recruit camp of the Southwest Army, but my daughter finds it a bit strange."
"They've besieged Dingxian for so long, yet they have absolutely no sense of combat readiness. We've already broken out, and some of them are still sleeping under trees!"
"By the time they realized what was happening, we had already cut them down like butter."
General He chuckled. "They're all waiting to be granted amnesty; they never imagined they'd be strangled."
"Recruitment?"
"Otherwise, why do you think your father was kept behind to drink?"
He Ran curled his lip, "That Prince Cheng, he really is a scoundrel."
"Have you figured it out?" General He looked at his daughter with a rare sparkle in his eyes.
He Ran snorted, "What's so hard to understand?"
"They accepted the benefits, stalled Father, and waited for the vassal troops to arrive. The two sides shook hands peacefully, King Cheng got money, King Han got people, and only the people of Ding County lost their lives in vain."
"Oh, and that bookworm will also be accused of mismanagement."
General He sat back down in frustration. "Forget it, our family doesn't rely on you to achieve anything; it all depends on your brother."
He Ran suddenly remembered the brocade pouch her elder brother had given her when she set off.
She quickly flipped it over.
There were only three words on the small note.
hide and seek.
What does this mean?
General He thought about his eldest son's instructions, "Your elder brother said, figure it out yourself."
General He had three sons and only one daughter.
Because there are two nieces in the family, the daughter is the third child.
My daughter has been following her brother around fighting since she was little, and she doesn't act like a proper girl at all.
When she was little, General He thought it was good that his daughter wouldn't be bullied.
He only started to worry when his daughter grew up; now he's afraid she'll bully others.
But this girl only wants to be a female general.
The eldest son said that this was a good opportunity to teach her a lesson.
It just so happened that the person he had chosen for his daughter was also there, so they decided to watch it together.
Only then did he agree to bring her along.
"Weren't you supposed to see Zhou Congxian here? I don't see him at all."
He Ran casually sat down next to her father, saying, "I've only met you once before."
"He ignores you when you talk to him, and he's even more annoying than Jiang Xingyao, that bookworm."
General He, "You said you wanted to marry someone who could beat you, and your father has already found one for you. Just come back to the capital this autumn and get married obediently."
"No!" she instinctively refused.
General He glared at her. "Then what do you want, a celestial being or something?!"
For some reason, He Ran's mind flashed back to the moment when the bookworm pulled her behind him.
Her face stiffened slightly as she said, "Anyway, Zhou Congxian is no good; he's just annoying to look at."
General He had a lot of headaches about his spoiled daughter.
"I've introduced you to so many young men from prestigious families, and you find this one annoying and that one annoying too. Tell your father, who is the one you don't dislike?"
Jiang Xingyao's face flashed before He Ran's eyes.
Why would I think of a bookworm!
"I hate it! I hate it all!"
She gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, turned around, and ran out.
*
A meeting was being held in the front hall of the county government office, while Zhou Congxian was receiving treatment in the back hall.
Sun Bo's treatment method was quite unorthodox, but it was indeed effective.
Dr. Tang was filled with admiration upon seeing this, but he dared not do it for fear of causing someone's death.
The back office was so quiet because Zhou Congxian had already fainted from the pain before he could even utter a sound.
After three days of treatment by Sun Bo, Zhou Congxian had lost a significant amount of weight.
There's not a trace of the once dashing Lord Zhou left.
When Xiao Shu saw Zhou Congxian again, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"How did Lord Zhou end up in such a sorry state?"
Zhou Congxian pursed his pale lips, then glanced at him.
"When did Your Highness arrive in Ding County? Bandits are rampant in Ding County. Your Highness should hurry back to the Prince's Mansion in Yuzhou."
Just then, Yao Shisan walked over from the kitchen.
His gaze passed over Zhou Congxian's shoulder, and the corners of his lips slowly curved upwards. "I have come here, naturally to find someone else."
Zhou Congxian turned around following his gaze.
He suddenly turned to look at Xiao Shu, his eyes blazing with fury, "Xiao Shu!"
Xiao Shu smiled nonchalantly, "She is Madam Yao of the Prince Cheng's Mansion, what is Lord Zhou so angry about?"
"Otherwise, why would Lord Zhou think I would bring a woman all the way to Yuzhou?"
He swung a punch, which was accompanied by a strong wind, but Xiao Shu easily caught it.
Xiao Shu was slightly surprised for a moment, then his left hand, which had been used to attack, grabbed him.
Xiao Shu felt a sharp pain in his elbow and released his grip.
His gaze fell on Zhou Congxian's hands, and he smiled, "No wonder we haven't heard from Lord Zhou for so long, it turns out you were injured."
Zhou Congxian warned him with a cold face, "If Your Highness dares to touch her, don't blame me for showing no mercy."
Yao Shisan looked at the two people who were about to clash in the small square space.
She decisively turned around and went back to the kitchen.
Shuang'er saw her return and asked, "What's wrong?"
She said coolly, "I saw two people 'fighting'..."
She couldn't think of any adjectives.
Shuang'er, "A dog?"
Yao Shisan, “…Yes!”
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