Chapter 158: Not My Match
Chen Yu brought Gui Xiong back to the base, but how to arrange them became a problem. While she was thinking about it, Xiao Chuan asked to see her outside the tent.
Shen Yu thought for a moment and said, "Come in."
Xiao Chuan lifted the curtain and entered the tent.
There was not only Shen Yu in the tent, but also two guards, as well as Gui Xiong and his son.
Xiao Chuan's gaze lingered on Gui Xiong and his son for a moment, and he said to Shen Yu, "I am wrong."
"What's wrong?" Shen Yu sat behind the desk and looked at Xiao Chuan.
Xiao Chuan knelt on one knee and said, "I disobeyed your order and was worried about your safety, so I followed you to the place ten miles southwest of the Snipe Mountain without permission."
There was total silence in the tent.
Chen Yu looked at Xiao Chuan. She wasn't worried about her safety, but she didn't trust her as a person.
Xiao Chuan lowered his head and said nothing. Chen Yu looked at him for a long while, and suddenly praised him, "You are very good at hiding your breath."
The place was surrounded by flat plains, making it difficult to hide, and neither she nor the guards could find him.
Xiao Chuan said: "I used to be a scout in the Xiao family army."
"No wonder." Chen Yu nodded slightly, "But you didn't go to the front line in Chihe, but instead took orders in Beijing, why is that?"
A scout needs to have excellent hearing and eyesight, and he needs to go deep behind enemy lines to gather intelligence. Skills such as concealment, escape, and camouflage are not a problem. It is very difficult to train an excellent scout.
Xiao Chuan was silent for a long time before he raised his head, "I...I committed a crime in the army a few years ago."
"What's up?"
"I once let two southern Japanese go."
Xiao Chuan raised his head quickly after he finished speaking, "They are two women and children. I really can't bear it."
Military discipline is military discipline. No matter who is let go, they should be dealt with accordingly. The Xiao family has shown mercy. No wonder they have kept him in Beijing for all these years and only promoted him to the seventh-rank deputy commander of the Five Cities Army.
"Are you worried about how to arrange for them, sir?"
Chen Yu was not surprised. Since he had chased after them and overheard them, he should have a general idea of what was going on.
Xiao Chuan continued, "I know you don't trust me, and that's normal, but I have something to say. I, the Xiao family, have fought hard for this. I hate the factional struggles in the court the most. The civil officials fight each other, but they treat us as sacrifices."
Xiao Chuan spoke indignantly, not even noticing that he was using some of his usual colloquialisms.
Shen Yu had been in the army for so many years, and had long been accustomed to hearing, "Get up, sit down and talk."
Xiao Chuan stood up
He said, "I just thought about it. This trip is likely to be dangerous."
"What do you mean?" Shen Yu's eyes narrowed.
Xiao Chuan sat on his horse and said, "Those who stole the grain certainly didn't expect the Western Jue people to suddenly attack. They did this because they had no grain. They framed the bandits and thought that everything would be over after they wiped them out. They all thought this was a good job, but it was actually a quagmire."
He nodded slightly, and Shen Yu suddenly understood, "If we succeed in suppressing the bandits but fail to recover the goods, they can accuse me of embezzlement."
With such a large amount of food and fodder, who would believe that nothing was seized?
Chen Yu thought about it, it seems that the Minister of War might not be their man, but someone the other side wants to win over. Wen Lesheng succeeded in suppressing the bandits, and they have the handle in their hands. What a chain of tricks.
Xiao Chuan nodded and said, "In this case, there might be some of their people infiltrating the army."
"It's not a possibility, it's a certainty," said Chen Yu.
So this is what she is worried about: how to arrange the ghost family.
She would take back all the wanted criminals involved in grain transportation in the mountain stronghold. Xie Tingzhou's trick of bringing the wanted criminals to Beijing to replace one with another was no longer feasible. The other party had suffered such a big setback, how could they be completely unprepared this time.
Then we can only follow the army.
"I have an idea, but I don't know if it will work." Xiao Chuan said, "Normally the suspects should be detained alone. They are all good at martial arts, so I suggest that they be detained together or in two groups. This way, if they stick together, even if someone comes to silence them, it won't be that easy for them to succeed. We just need to be careful about poisoning the food."
This was the only solution. Chen Yu thought about it and said, "Let's do this first. Once the rest of the people arrive, I will set off back to Beijing tomorrow."
"Report——" the soldier outside the tent reported.
"Come in."
The soldier entered the tent and handed over a note, "The governor of Qichang is here to visit in person."
"You came so quickly." Chen Yu sneered, "Since you are here, please come in."
The father and son of the Gui family avoided the situation, and the prefect was invited into the tent by the soldiers.
Chen Yu had tea served and said straight to the point: "The prefect is a fifth-rank official, so it should be me who pays a visit to him."
Liu Songlin smiled and said, "Master Shi was appointed by His Majesty. He holds an important position and cannot leave easily. It doesn't matter who goes there."
Seeing Shi Yu just smiling but not saying anything, Liu Songlin asked, "I see that Lord Shi has been staying here for four days, but has not yet gone up the mountain to suppress the bandits, so I came to ask, is there any difficulty that requires our government?
Where can I help?”
It was said in a euphemistic way, just to urge her to silence the witness as soon as possible.
Chen Yu said, "No, to be honest, I have already recruited the bandits on the Snipe Mountain and will be leaving for Beijing tomorrow to report to the Emperor."
Xiao Chuan, who was standing aside, glanced at Chen Yu and hesitated to speak.
"Why is that?" Liu Songlin was horrified. "Master Shi, you don't know how rampant the bandits on the Hezi Mountain are. They burn, kill and rob in the territory, and even take away the food and grass allocated to the front line. Such a madman should be strangled on the spot. I heard that Master Shi was born in General Shen's army, so he should understand my indignation."
Chen Yu smiled wryly and said, "Master Liu is very well-informed."
Liu Songlin's face flashed with embarrassment. He took a sip of tea and said, "I am just worried about the people's livelihood. What to do specifically depends on your opinion."
Chen Yu lowered her eyes and glanced at his waist. She didn't respond to his words, but leaned forward. "Master Liu, this piece of white jade is very good. With my current salary, I don't know if I can save enough to retire and return home."
Liu Songlin's face changed, he stretched out his hand and pulled the jade pendant off, saying with a smile: "It's just a fake, if you like it, take it."
Chen Yu refused, "I can't bear it. We military officers wield swords and guns. It would be a pity if it was broken."
The smile on Liu Songlin's face became even more intense. He clapped his hands, and a servant came in. Liu Songlin took a wooden box and placed it on the table, then tapped on it with his fingers.
"A specialty of Qichang. How can you not bring some of it back to Beijing? This thing won't fall easily."
Chen Yu opened the box and saw a thick stack of silver bills, all with a face value of one thousand taels. It looked like there should be more than ten thousand taels. She was now a sixth-rank Lieutenant General, and her annual salary was only sixty taels of silver.
Chen Yu gave Liu Songlin a knowing smile and closed the box.
After seeing Liu Songlin off, Xiao Chuan was still in the tent, looking at Chen Yu with indignation on his face.
"How can your Excellency..."
Chen Yu glanced at him and said, "Just say what you want to say."
Xiao Chuan suppressed his anger and said, "Your Excellency told him about our itinerary and accepted his money. Are you ready to stand on their side?"
Chen Yu glanced at Xiao Chuan's hand on the knife. It seemed that as long as she said yes, he would kill her on the spot.
"I advise you not to do it, you are no match for me." Shen Yu said nonchalantly.
Xiao Chuan held the knife and said solemnly: "No, you should give it a try."
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