Chapter 71
"How could this be... how could he... how could he..."
Seeing Tang Qi stagger and try to get out of bed, the two people beside him finally couldn't sit still any longer. Ye Qian stepped over and supported him, saying hurriedly, "Zhong Le? Zhong Le, don't rush."
Tang Qi ignored what he was saying, pushed him away, and tried to rush out the door. Ye Qian hurriedly grabbed his shoulder and shouted, "I was just kidding! He's fine, Zhong Le! He's fine!"
Tang Qi's gaze shifted blankly to Ye Qian, and he repeated, "He's alright, Zhong Le, he's alright."
“Swear it.” Tang Qi stared at him.
Ye Qian was startled by the seriousness in his eyes and quickly put away his playful thoughts, saying just as solemnly, "I swear he's fine, really. The moment I brought you back, the old doctor detoxified him. Don't worry, he's just weak now and will wake up in no time."
His tone was serious, and Tang Qi finally relaxed, collapsing to the ground again, clutching her chest and coughing several times.
Ye Qian helped him back to the bedside and said as he walked, "You need to rest. Don't be impatient; it's not good for your health."
Tang Qi lay back down and coughed several times before looking at Ye Qian: "I wasn't in a hurry, you lied to me."
Ye Qian choked, knowing he was in the wrong. He had only intended to tease him a little, but he hadn't expected it to turn out like this. So he could only say in a deep voice, "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry." Shen Zhiqing, standing beside her, also spoke apologetically, "I didn't expect you to react so strongly."
“It seems you care about him a lot,” Ye Qian said.
Tang Qi coughed and chuckled, glancing lightly at Ye Qian. He neither refuted nor admitted anything, but simply said slowly, "Life and death are not a joke. If I'm late, I don't want to see any of the people I cherish leave."
His voice was deep and muffled, yet the two people opposite him lowered their heads.
"What are you doing here?" Tang Qi broke the silence first, laughing, "Did Hu Xingche and his reinforcements come looking for you?"
"Have you found him?" Tang Qi asked again.
Ye Qian frowned and asked, "Who?"
"Wu Shun... General Wu." He coughed.
Ye Qian shook his head.
Now it was Tang Qi's turn to be stunned, asking incredulously, "You didn't find him? Then how did you find us?"
His voice was full of shock, and then Ye Qian said, "It wasn't us who found you, but Hu Xingche who led you to me and Qingqing."
Tang Qi was even more surprised, and a lot of questions popped into his mind, but he held them all in and listened to Ye Qian continue: "Jinan is suffering from a severe drought, and the people have no food to eat. I was ordered by His Majesty to open the granaries, and Qingqing came here with me."
Tang Qi stared in disbelief, then deliberately lowered his voice to ask, "You and her...? No way... Shen Zhiqing came for you?" His voice was filled with shock.
Ye Qian looked at Tang Qi with a helpless smile: "You underestimate her too much. Qingqing has some granaries here. She came here for the sake of the people. I... am not enough to be her reason for coming here."
Tang Qi glanced at Shen Zhiqing over there. She seemed not to have heard what they were saying. Noticing Tang Qi's gaze, Shen Zhiqing gave him a puzzled look. The latter just pursed his lips and spoke leisurely to Ye Qian again: "I don't mean to belittle her. She's not a god who has abandoned desires. Why confine her with the sake of the common people? Only those with selfish desires are 'human.' Besides, I don't think she's heartless towards you."
Ye Qian's eyes widened slightly, but Tang Qi smiled: "Human hearts are complicated. Who says that righteousness and personal feelings cannot coexist? Have you forgotten? Xiao Qing has been braver than all of us since she was a child. She will definitely have both fish and bear's paw."
Shen Zhiqing finally couldn't hold back any longer and came over, glancing at the two of them coldly, "What secret do you have that requires you to be so careful about revealing it?"
"It's nothing. We were just talking about General Wu. Did Hu Xingche mention anything about General Wu when he came to you?"
Shen Zhiqing shook his head helplessly: "They brought reinforcements into the mountains to rescue you and Cheng Shaoqing. When the main force arrived at the cave, it was already deserted, and no trace was left. After Hu Xingche entrusted you and Cheng Shaoqing to us, he went out to investigate again with the boy next to him."
"How did you get involved in such a dangerous thing?" Ye Qian asked from the side.
"This is a long story," Tang Qi said, still feeling frustrated. After explaining the whole story in a few simple words, he continued, "Since you opened a granary here, you must have dealt with the government. How could the bandits we encountered dare to harm General Wu and Cheng Wang, who held official positions, and even attempt to murder government officials? Is the local government really that incompetent?"
After waiting a while and seeing the varying degrees of silence between the two, he understood the underlying meaning. Ye Qianxian spoke first: "Jinan region has always been a headache for His Majesty. Dozens of officials have been sent here one after another, most of whom died on their way to their posts. The very few who took office did not last more than five years. In Jinan, it is not the people who depend on the officials, but the officials who depend on the people."
"His Majesty ordered me to open the granaries at Sishou. After contacting the local officials, I discovered that the real controllers of the granaries were not the government offices. The county government had very little control over them, which is the real reason why the people have been suffering from food shortages."
"But that doesn't make sense. How could someone control the local officials?" Tang Qi was still shocked.
“Jinan is different from other places. Although it is divided into five counties, it is centered around Jinshou. These five areas share resources and can be simply regarded as a whole. How can a local county government fight against the entire Jinan?” Shen Zhiqing said slowly.
"You mean someone is controlling the entire Jinan region? Isn't that considered having an army to support oneself? How can His Majesty turn a blind eye?" Tang Qi's eyes widened as if he couldn't believe his ears. How could such a thing happen right under the emperor's nose?
“Even a mighty dragon can’t suppress a local snake. Besides, Jinan is rich in minerals. If we were to truly oppose this place, not to mention the issue of military supplies, the entire Jinan region would be at odds. If we were to use force to suppress them, although we could certainly quell the internal strife, it would only give the enemy an opportunity to take advantage of the current Shuo Dynasty. His Majesty’s intention has always been peaceful governance,” Ye Qian said.
"Peaceful control? They've got a knife to their throats, and His Majesty is still fantasizing about peace and ending the war. I think he's really lost his mind!"
Tang Qi's chest ached with anger.
This isn't about wanting peace and stopping war; it's about being too afraid to fight. Their emperor is still dreaming of a peaceful and prosperous world.
“However, you just mentioned that the Jinan area is under someone’s control, which reminds me of something,” Tang Qi suddenly said.
Two pairs of eyes looked over, and Tang Qi told them about the dark figure he had seen earlier. After listening, the two frowned. This time, Shen Zhiqing spoke first: "To be able to mobilize so many people by one person, and considering that there were government officials among the group that chased you, this person's identity must be extraordinary."
Tang Qi responded and continued, "Jiao Niang once said that not only were the girls she caught 'goods,' but the people who came to her door were also 'goods' that were selected. I'm wondering if it's possible that the reason why the Jinan area is so big, yet information can circulate so quickly and can be integrated into one place, is because of these girls that Jiao Niang 'sold' out."
"What do you mean?" Shen Zhiqing asked.
"If we consider all the news from different places as a large network, then aren't these girls the key points connecting this network?"
"You mean those girls were actually providing information to the mastermind behind it all?"
“Not only girls, but Jiao Niang said that they don’t only sell women.”
"It seems their business scope is quite broad," Shen Zhiqing said.
"That means the net is also very large," Tang Qi said.
"That's why the mastermind behind it all has the ability to control the entire Jinan," Ye Qian continued.
“But how are we going to deal with the entire Jinan, especially when His Majesty doesn’t even care?” Tang Qi said.
“His Majesty is not indifferent,” Shen Zhiqing said, looking at him.
Tang Qi looked up with a puzzled expression.
"Have you ever wondered why, out of so many people in the court, His Majesty specifically chose Ye Qian to come here to open the granary?"
As soon as Shen Zhiqing finished speaking, not only Tang Qi but also Ye Qian were stunned for a moment. Then the two of them turned their gazes to him at the same time. Shen Zhiqing calmly continued: "Because Ye Qian has Uncle Ye behind him."
"His Majesty values not only Ye Qian himself, but also the power behind him. Formal military suppression is naturally out of the question, but Ye Qian has Li Guang's backing. His mobilization of troops in his own name is not military suppression, but rather 'helping.' Since the Eastern Hunt, Ye An has been constantly transferred to distant posts. I believe His Majesty had already considered this, which is why he created an official position for Ye Qian and summoned him to Jinnan to open the granaries at this time. As his first official task, this granary opening is crucial for both Ye Qian and the Ye family; failure is not an option. I think His Majesty understands the implications better than anyone else, especially—"
Shen Zhiqing suddenly stopped, then changed his demeanor and said mysteriously to them, "Guess why His Majesty demoted Cheng Shaoqing to this place, given how vast the world is?"
"You mean?" Tang Qi suddenly realized, his eyes widening as he asked, "His Majesty did this on purpose? He wants Cheng Wang to be involved in this as well?"
"His Majesty is well aware of Cheng Shaoqing's character and knows that if he comes here, he will definitely join forces with Ye Qian. This demotion is actually paving the way for him."
"Taking Jinan will be an opportunity for Shaoqing to be promoted. Since the Bingzhou money and grain case, Shaoqing has been promoted twice. His smooth career path will naturally attract the jealousy of petty people. Moreover, Shaoqing is still young and will inevitably hear some bad things. If this case is successful, it will be a great help to him."
"His Majesty has treated him with the utmost benevolence and righteousness," Tang Qi said after a moment of silence.
"But for you and me, there's only the word 'use'." Ye Qian lowered his eyes.
"Disheartening?" Tang Qi suddenly laughed.
Ye Qian looked up and saw that he, like Tang Qi, was laughing, and threw the question back at him: "And you? Are you heartbroken?"
"I have no expectations of His Majesty, so why should I be disheartened?" Tang Qi said in a calm tone.
Ye Qian looked at him in silence, and after a long while, he finally said, "So, if... you really want to oppose him later?"
“If that really comes to that, I believe he will stand with me,” Tang Qi said.
"You're so confident in yourself?" Ye Qian looked at him and suddenly burst into laughter.
“I have confidence in him,” Tang Qi said, looking at Ye Qian. “He is not someone who cannot distinguish right from wrong. Compared to Cheng Wang, I think we should worry about someone else.”
"who?"
"Yun'an," Shen Zhiqing said slowly.
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