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In Qianyuan Hall, before the imperial desk of Emperor Hong, Zhong Yujing stood with his hands down. Emperor Hong sighed and said, "They are only good at talking big. What use are they to me? They always rely on their age and high position to put on airs and act pretentiously. I always have to intervene to mediate. They are useless."
Zhong Yujing just listened without saying a word.
Emperor Hong turned to look at Zhong Yujing and said, "I kept you here today because I have an important task to entrust to you." His eyes were full of worry and helplessness.
"The sudden change in the situation on the Nansai border was truly unexpected, and the infiltration of the remnants of the Dan Kingdom is even more bizarre. How did it become the main battlefield of Daqi as soon as our army arrived in Nansai? I have a feeling that there is something fishy going on."
He looked at Zhong Yujing, "General Shang Gong is brave and skilled in battle. He leads the army in person. I have great confidence in him. But they are so reluctant to fight, fighting a small battle every three days and a big battle every half a month. It keeps dragging on. I am afraid there is something fishy going on. I am now suspicious that Sai De Lai Da Qi's request for support is a trap, just to lure me in. If so, the general has already been caught in the trap, attacked from all sides. Isn't it dangerous!"
Zhong Yujing listened in silence.
Emperor Hong said, "So I want to send Yujing to support the general and fight alongside him. I know you and my brother have worked together on investigations and shared hardships, so you must understand each other. Moreover, with Yujing's resourcefulness, I will feel more at ease with her by my brother's side. However... Yujing is a woman after all. Sending you to the army, not to mention the long journey to Nansai, even if you successfully reach our camp, the life of fighting in the army will be really unfair to you..."
Zhong Yujing suddenly stepped forward and bowed. "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry about me. From the day I was appointed by Your Majesty as the Prime Minister of Daqi, I have vowed to serve the country for the rest of my life. I am a citizen of Daqi and a subject of Daqi. I will serve the country loyally, regardless of gender. I am willing to obey your order and go to support General Shanggong. I vow to help you eliminate the treacherous and criminal gangs and restore peace to the Nansai tribes."
Emperor Hong was deeply moved and stepped forward to help Zhong Yujing up. "Our Great Qi's Prime Minister Jing is indeed as capable as any man, and she is dedicated to women!"
Emperor Hong bestowed upon Zhong Yujing the Golden Sword, granting her full authority over all matters without having to report to the court. He then stated, "Prime Minister Jing's trip to Nansai is a secret operation and must not be disclosed. You must maintain your identity throughout your journey to Nansai. I will send Yi Shi to escort you to the camp to rendezvous with the general. Yi Shi is the general's deputy and has served him for many years. This time, he is delivering a secret report back to the court. I am relieved to have him escort Yu Jing."
After thinking it over, Zhong Yujing did not report what she heard from behind the window to Emperor Hong. Firstly, she had not yet fully determined the intentions of Prince Ping and Yifei, so it was not easy for her to make a hasty judgment. Secondly, she was ordered to go to Nansai to investigate the matter with Shangguan Yichen. Everything had to wait for the final conclusion before reporting to the emperor.
At night, Zhong Yujing quietly packed her belongings in her room. She borrowed a few ordinary clothes from the maid under the pretext of curiosity.
"What does Miss want these for?" the maid asked in confusion.
Zhong Yujing smiled and said, "In a few days, I will accompany the emperor to visit the common people in disguise. It is not appropriate to make it public, so I need some clothes from common women to make it easier for me to travel. You just need to bring me the clothes you wore when farming in the countryside." He winked at the maid.
The maidservant agreed in a daze and went to get her the clothes from the bottom of her box. Some of them were solid-colored cloth or cloth with small floral patterns. They were actually very simple and elegant.
Zhong Yujing found a few more of her own clothes from the closet and gave them to the maid, "I can't take your money for nothing."
The maidservant was extremely frightened and said she would never dare to accept it. Zhong Yujing said to the maidservant, "It is impolite not to reciprocate. You must accept it." The maidservant had no choice but to accept it and was very happy.
She thought of the way Shangguan Yichen said this to her that day and laughed to herself.
After nightfall, Zhong Yujing wrote a letter under the oil lamp. The letter only said that the emperor had sent her to handle an important matter and she would be away for a few days. Because it was a confidential matter, it could not be made public, so she could not tell the truth to her father, mother and uncle. She hoped for forgiveness. Her safety would be protected by people sent by the emperor, and her family was asked to rest assured. She left the letter on the table and went to bed.
Before dawn the next day, Zhong Yujing had already gotten up, dressed neatly, put on casual clothes, put on her bag, and quietly slipped out of the Zhong Mansion.
Yi Shi was already waiting at the door to meet her.
The two men greeted each other and Zhong Yujing said, "Thank you for your journey, Lieutenant General Yi."
Yi Shi hurriedly said, "Thank you for your courtesy, Prime Minister Jing. This is my duty."
Zhong Yujing looked at him. He was only in his early twenties, but he had an iron-willed demeanor, dark skin, and a handsome figure. It was obvious that he had been trained in the army for many years.
Shangguan Yichen's men are indeed well-trained.
They first left Linjun by road, then took the water route to the border of Nansai after reaching Jiangdu, and finally entered Nansai to find the military camp and meet up with Shangguan Yichen.
Yi Shi brought two war horses from the army, and the two of them galloped along the official road. The horses were so fast that Yi Shi was worried that Zhong Yujing couldn't handle it, so he asked from time to time, "Prime Minister Jing, do you need to rest for a while before continuing on your journey?"
Zhong Yujing said in a low voice, "It's alright! Lieutenant General Yi, don't worry about me. Just keep marching at a steady pace."
Yi Shi recalled that he had seen her from afar in front of the main hall on the day of the expedition. Zhong Yujing was the heir of the Zhong family. In addition to being the prime minister, she was also a celestial official. Therefore, she never wore official uniforms, only plain clothes. Therefore, she was extremely eye-catching among the hundreds of officials. Yi Shi remembered that she was cold and aloof, with an elegant and extraordinary demeanor, and a kind of indifference of an immortal. Such a woman would not know the sufferings of the world, but he did not expect that she would look like this today, riding a horse, as majestic as a meteor, and he could not help but admire her.
Zhong Yujing said to him in a casual tone, "Deputy General Yi, the journey to Nansai is long, and we don't know what we will experience along the way. Since His Majesty has ordered you and me to hide our identities, we should not be bound by the etiquette of superiors and subordinates. It would be better for us to address each other as brother and sister to conceal our identities. What do you think?" After saying that, she turned around and looked at him brightly.
Yi Shi laughed heartily, "Okay! I'll listen to Jing Xiang. You and I are a pair of siblings who want to go south to find our parents."
Zhong Yujing readily agreed.
The breeze blew past her ears, lifting the loose hair on her temples. The handkerchief that Zhong Yujing used to tie her hair was blown away by the wind and flew to the branches beside the road, where it got caught. She looked back, smiled, and continued to run forward without looking back. She was dressed so simply, and even the names on the passes and certificates issued by the emperor were fake. It was as if she had taken off her identity, thrown away her burden, and thrown away the shackles of fate. She took off all the masks that Shangguan Yichen had mentioned. She felt extremely relaxed and comfortable in her heart. No matter how dangerous the obstacles were ahead, she was fearless and was willing to move forward bravely.
In order to save distance and reach their destination as quickly as possible, they had to travel a mixture of official roads, main roads, and small roads. Small roads were different from official roads and could easily lead to robbers, making them very dangerous. To ensure their safety, and also to prevent Zhong Yujing from having trouble eating, they only sought supplies at regular inns when they were hungry and thirsty. Zhong Yujing saw Yi Shi's intentions and said, "Brother, don't worry about me. I can fill my stomach just as well wherever I eat. Simple meals are just as delicious."
This is much more convenient and saves a lot of effort and time.
As it grew dark, they finally found an inn. It was a desolate wilderness with no one around except for the lonely inn. Zhong Yujing couldn't help but recall a scene from her uncle's martial arts novels when she was a child. A knight slept in an inn late at night, and was greeted by a beautiful proprietress and a one-eyed, ferocious waiter. On a dark and windy night, they sneaked into the knight's room, stole his silver, and intended to kill him to silence him... She couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine.
Zhong Yujing and Yi Shi pushed the door open and walked in. There was no proprietress, nor a one-eyed, fierce-looking waiter. Instead, there was an elderly, hunched, silver-haired old man and a teenage girl waiting inside. Upon seeing them enter, the young girl hurried forward to greet them, "Sir, are you looking for a quick meal or to stay the night?"
"Stay in a hotel and prepare some dinner." Yi Shi said.
The girl responded and happily led them upstairs.
The shop was neatly furnished. Apart from them and the old man and the young boy, there was no one else there. It was obvious that the shop was located in a remote area with few people. Occasionally, there were merchants passing by who stopped to rest on their way and asked the old man and the young boy to earn some money to make a living.
"Sir, how many rooms would you like to stay in?" asked the girl in a childish voice.
Yi Shi said, "Two rooms, preferably cleaner ones, facing the sun."
After going up to the second floor, the corridor was a bit narrow. The inn was not big, so it was reasonable that the corridor was a bit crowded.
The girl pushed open a door and asked, "Sir, what do you think of this room?"
Unlike the crowded and dark corridor, the room was very bright, perhaps because of the morning sun. The afterglow of the setting sun shone through the window paper, giving people a warm and comfortable feeling. Although the room was not large, it seemed spacious. There was a wooden bed, a wardrobe, and a square table. The bedding on the bed was clean and there was no dust on the table. Zhong Yujing relaxed all her fatigue and just wanted to have a good sleep.
"This is it." Zhong Yujing said with satisfaction.
Yi Shi's room was next to hers, with the same layout.
"I'll fetch you some water," the young woman said cheerfully, going downstairs. A moment later, she returned with two large buckets, the water in them splashing slightly. She placed a towel over the washbasin and said, "Please wash up and refresh yourself."
"How old are you, girl?" Zhong Yujing sat on a round stool and watched the girl busying herself.
"I am Seventeen, and I just celebrated my birthday a few days ago." The girl wiped the sweat from her forehead with her hand.
"Who is that old man downstairs?" Zhong Yujing asked.
The girl turned her head, revealing a round face, a full forehead, a pair of big almond-shaped eyes that were slightly red, a round nose, and a smile that showed her pearly teeth. "It's my grandfather." She put the bathtub, washbasin and bucket in order, stood up, and said to Zhong Yujing, "Sir, please take a rest first. I will fetch water for the guest and then go to cook. I will call you when the meal is ready." After that, she hurried downstairs.
Zhong Yujing opened the window of the room. The cool evening breeze blew in, ruffling her long hair. Outside the window was a vast expanse of land, with no shelter and no signs of human life. The last point of the sun sank below the horizon, and the afterglow also disappeared bit by bit. The entire wilderness was shrouded in darkness. Even if someone was staring at you from a distance, you wouldn't be able to tell. A sense of fear welled up in her heart, and Zhong Yujing suddenly felt a chill on her back, as if a cold wind had blown past. Her hair stood on end, she shuddered, and closed the window.
She lay down on the bed fully dressed and took a short nap until the door was knocked again. "Sir, the meal is ready. Come down and enjoy it."
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