After a heavy rain along the banks of the Two Rivers, there was no clear blue sky like in the north after the rain, but it became even more stuffy.

The Jiangbei garrison was originally a truly ragtag army, but under General Zhong's command for just over a year, they had already become quite capable. If the enemy camp that Gu Yun and his men had entered also had such quality, it probably wouldn't be so easy for them to turn the situation upside down.

Gu Yun and Zhong Chan walked side by side on horseback, neither of them wore armor, and neither complained about the other's slow pace.

"I haven't had much free time these years," Gu Yun said, "I don't know when was the last time I talked with Master."

Marquis Anding called him Master in private, and Zhong Chan was not polite. He accepted it without changing his expression and replied, "Young Marquis has become more calm. If the old Marquis were still alive and saw your achievements today, he would probably be able to..."

Gu Yun continued: "He beat me to death."

Zhong Chan was stunned, and a stingy smile appeared on his face, "No need to belittle yourself."

The river breeze blew from the south, and the air was slightly filled with moisture, making people feel that the surroundings were damp. Gu Yun brushed away his untied hair and looked towards the south bank without saying a word. Thinking of the deserted village and the white bones he had witnessed with his own eyes, the smile on his face gradually dimmed.

Zhong Chan followed his gaze and patted Gu Yun on the shoulder. "It's hard to describe fate. Not to mention mortals like us, even saints can hardly go against the will of the world. I'm taking advantage of my age to say something extremely treasonous. For now, let alone the old marquis, even if your grandfather Emperor Wu is still alive, it may not be of any benefit. We should do our best, leave the rest to fate, and have a clear conscience."

Gu Yun was stunned. His teacher was really well-versed in military books and was proficient in both civil and military affairs. When he taught him, he was really unkind. Unexpectedly, after wandering around the world for these years, he became a lot more open-minded.

Zhong Chan: "We are not afraid of fighting on land, but we are still short of navy. Look at the Westerners, they either go by sea or by river. They also know this. I have some ideas on how to fight naval battles these days, but they are not mature yet. You don't leave these days, so we can discuss it carefully when we have time."

Gu Yun nodded: "I know, our sea dragons are no good either. This time we just happened to seize a Western dragon. I'll ask Ge Chen to bring it back to the capital to see what Lingshuyuan thinks."

Zhong Chan sighed, "I can train the soldiers, but I really can't help with the battle preparations and the purple gold. I can only rely on you young people to deal with it as best as you can."

Gu Yun's eyebrows moved, vaguely knowing who General Zhong wanted to talk to him.

Sure enough, the next moment, Zhong Chan said, "King Yan stayed with me for a few years when he was young."

Gu Yun: "Yes, I know, I am sorry to bother you, Master."

Zhong Chan: "Then do you know that the Linyuan wooden sign is in his hand?"

Gu Yun paused, wanting to say "I don't know", but felt a little guilty, so he had to tell the truth: "He didn't mention it to me, but I probably have some guesses... I think if it weren't for Linyuan Pavilion, Du Caishen and others wouldn't support him so easily."

Zhong Chan hummed, and then continued: "When the King of Yan was young, he was not as arrogant as young people. He was calm and self-controlled, and a little stubborn, but he was not a self-pitying person. He knew what was good and what was bad, and understood that benevolence and righteousness came first - he was much better than you when you were a child."

Gu Yun: “…”

Zhong Chan glanced at him, narrowed her eyes, and smiled a little, which was barely noticeable, but it was fleeting. "But I think that being young and not frivolous is sometimes not a good thing. He matured too early, which is against human nature. It must be because he suffered too much in his childhood. I also heard about the matter of the barbarian witch from the girl of the Chen family. What are you going to do?"

Gu Yun did not answer quickly and pondered for a moment.

Zhong Chan said, "The entanglement of Wuergu was not his own will. Sometimes I think that my many doubts about him are actually unfair. If he was just an ordinary person from an ordinary family, I shouldn't say anything anyway, but he is not. He is connected to the fate of the country - Zixi. Now there is a Yan Wang in the court. One move affects the whole body. We can't do without him, but we can't rely on him completely. Do you understand?"

Gu Yun probably understood what General Zhong meant - to keep some power to himself, not to let Prince Yan have too much power, to use the military to control him when necessary, and to retreat when necessary.

But Gu Yun did not respond, and only said: "I will take care of him, Master, don't worry."

Zhong Chan frowned, "I know he grew up with you and we have a deep bond, but how long can you watch over him? The current head of the Chen family is that girl, who is only this young. We may not be able to count on her for another ten or eight years. Can King Yan's intelligence last that long?"

"As long as I live, I will keep him awake for one day," Gu Yun said, "Even if he really loses control one day, I can deal with him. There are tens of thousands of Black Iron Camp guarding the country's borders in the northwest, and they will not let him do anything wrong."

Zhong Chan was slightly stunned. For a moment, he felt that he heard a different meaning in Gu Yun's voice.

Just when the two of them were worrying behind their backs, Chang Geng and Xu Ling brought the twenty guards assigned to them by Gu Yun to Yangzhou in Jiangbei. It was difficult for them to pretend to be refugees, so they pretended to be businessmen, saying that they were the shopkeepers of a pawnshop branch in Lin'an Prefecture under Du Caishen. They were forced to move to Jiangbei because of the war and had nothing to do. This time, the Chamber of Commerce asked the emperor for permission to build a factory along the canal to settle the refugees. Although the court had not yet approved it, it was estimated that it was feasible, so they ordered them to go north for preliminary investigation.

The name of the Lin'an Pawnshop and the identity and age of the owner just matched Chang Geng's. Du Wanquan had already made arrangements. Even if someone investigated, they would not find any flaws. The story was so perfect that he came to Yangzhou in a swagger.

In any case, Du Caishen is now the God of Wealth of the whole country and is deliberately praised by Chang Geng. A memorial from the Grand Chamber of Commerce can go directly to the Military Affairs Council, which shows the style of a great imperial merchant, much better than a local minor official. The local government officials have to meet with Du Caishen's people out of courtesy and reason - even though Yang Ronggui, a member of the Lu family, actually does not get along with Du Wanquan, they still have to put on a show and host a banquet for Chang Geng and others in Feiyan Pavilion.

Since the invasion of foreigners, the country has been in turmoil. The palace banquets during the New Year have been greatly reduced. Qiyuan Tower has collapsed and has not been able to stand up again. Xu Ling feels that he has not seen such a place of extravagance for a long time. "Feian Pavilion" is well-known in this place, and is also called "Little Qiyuan Tower". Although it is not as magnificent as Zhaixingtai and Yunmeng Grand View, it is more exquisite and luxurious.

It has been a long time since pleasure-seeking was banned in the capital, but here the emperor is far away and no one cares at all. The sound of singing in the attic with flying eaves can be heard across the street, and all the people coming in and out are young men and women.

Xu Ling was so shocked that he said to Chang Geng in astonishment, "Wang... Shopkeeper, is there such a grand style in your house?"

Chang Geng shook his head and smiled, "No, it's just enough to have food and clothing. The man in my family has some money and he uses it to support a bunch of orphans and widows. He has no plan in mind. I think he will have to sell the ancestral home one day."

Xu Ling was stunned for a moment before he realized that he was not talking about the vacant Prince Yan's Mansion, but the Marquis Anding's Mansion. "Subsidy for orphans and widows" was probably compensation for the dead and wounded. In the past few years when there was no war, the treasury was in trouble, and the emperor intended to cut military spending. The little pension had been reduced again and again, and he didn't know how many times he had to argue with the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War. Those people always delayed and shirked their responsibilities, and even so, there were still times when they couldn't get the money. It would have been fine if the Marquis Anding came to ask for it in person, but Gu Yun might return to the capital once every few years, and it was always out of reach. He thought he would have to subsidize it himself.

They were so neglectful in peacetime, but now that war has broken out, the emperor has made a solemn statement that "all supplies throughout the country should be used first for the local troops", and they have put them on the spot again... I guess in a few years, if the lost territory is really recovered, the widows in the city will still have to rely on mending clothes under the lamp to support their families.

Xu Ling felt more and more confused.

Chang Geng whispered to him, "We two poor fellows may be embarrassed in a while. It doesn't matter. They just want to make us embarrassed and laugh at us. I have also prepared a joke for you to watch."

Xu Ling decided to follow Prince Yan's lead at this time. Hearing this, he said nothing and followed Chang Geng in with great ambition to clean up the country.

This banquet was hosted in the name of Yang Ronggui.

Yang Ronggui, that is, Lu Shilang's brother-in-law, was named the Governor-General of Liangjiang. It sounded very impressive, but in fact, he did not have much power during this extraordinary period. First of all, he was not in charge of Jiangnan at all. The garrison in Jiangbei was autonomous, and most of Huainan was not under his jurisdiction. The area under his jurisdiction was just a few places near Yangzhou Prefecture. He was hastily promoted in the hope of using high-ranking officials to manage and coordinate the refugees from all directions and stabilize the front and rear. If he was capable, he would recover the lost territories in the future. Based on Yang Ronggui's merits, he would surely be able to serve as one of the eight governors-general for a long time.

Unfortunately, human greed is unsatisfactory. Yang Ronggui has been dissatisfied with the current situation in Jiangbei since he took office. He often complained to his confidants after getting drunk that he was the governor in title but was actually just a prefect.

However, even though Governor Yang had a lot of bruises on his head, he was still arrogant. In addition, the Lu family was behind him, and he was naturally incompatible with the upstarts in the court supported by Du Wanquan. Naturally, he would not come to meet the merchants in person, but only sent a few idle and slick officials from Yangzhou Prefecture to accompany him. During the banquet, the prefect of Yangzhou showed up out of respect, sat for less than an hour, and said some empty words. Before he could finish, an attendant came in and whispered something in his ear. The prefect of Yangzhou, Zheng Kun, suddenly changed his face, stood up and left.

Xu Ling used the pseudonym Zhang Dafu. He was born with a pale face, which turned red when he drank. He looked particularly honest and simple. He pretended to be a little drunk and asked intentionally or unintentionally, "Hey, we only had three rounds of drinks, why did Lord Zheng leave?"

Someone nearby laughed and said, "Brother Zhang, you don't know that Governor Yang was originally going to come to meet you in person, but you came at an unfortunate time. I heard that person..."

He stretched out his hand in a rather frivolous manner, making the gesture of a wild goose flapping its wings, and whispered, "It just so happened that we just arrived in Yangzhou Prefecture today, and Governor Yang brought a group of adults to pick us up in person."

Xu Ling thought he had misunderstood and asked in shock, "Who?"

"Why, Brother Zhang, don't you know?" The guest was drunk and his tongue was not very clear. He kept chattering, "Prince Yan, Prince Yan, that is... the younger brother of the current emperor! I really don't want to talk about this trivial matter. A while ago, a scoundrel filed a complaint and made a commotion in the capital. The emperor really took it seriously and sent Prince Yan down. He is a great ancestor. If we don't serve him well, we will be beheaded in public."

As he spoke, he shook his head and added, "We are innocent. We have nothing to fear. Let him investigate as he pleases. Haha... It's just that Lord Yang and the others accompanied us the whole time. It was too tiring."

Before Xu Ling finished listening, his eyes quickly turned to Chang Geng who was sitting at the table.

The real King Yan is here. Who did Yang Ronggui and the others bring back?

King Yan smiled at him gently, picked up a crystal dumpling and threw it into his mouth without hesitation, thinking it would be a waste if he didn't eat it.

First he broke into the enemy camp, and then he turned into a living person. Fortunately, although Lord Xu was just a scholar, he was flexible and adaptable, otherwise he would have been scared to death by King Yan.

After finishing a meal that neither the host nor the guest enjoyed, Xu Ling dismissed a few dancers who had come to cling to him and Prince Yan, and hurried back to the inn. After making sure that no one was around, he closed the door and whispered, "Prince, why is there another one..."

Chang Geng smiled and said, "Governor Yang has many eyes and ears, he must know when the imperial envoy left the capital. If we don't let him see the envoy from the capital, won't he become suspicious?"

Xu Ling thought about it, but still felt uneasy, so he said, "Yang Ronggui has met the prince before. What if he reveals a flaw?"

"We've only met once or twice, and we've never spoken within a hundred steps of each other, so we're not that familiar. My friend knows a few tricks in the underworld, so he can't pretend to be someone else, but he can still be reliable in pretending to be me, don't worry. Go to bed right away, we have plans for the evening."

When Xu Ling heard this, he thought that this must be a night visit to the refugee camp, and he immediately became excited.

In the middle of the night, the two men, along with two Xuantie personal guards, quietly left the city and headed straight for the refugee shelter on the outskirts of the city. The so-called refugee shelter was actually a few shacks outside the city that accommodated refugees. It was a hot summer day, and it was not cold to live in the open air. There was a team of soldiers guarding the city nearby who watched over them and prevented them from making trouble. There were also a few big pots facing the street, which must have been the place where porridge and meals were distributed on weekdays.

It was the middle of the night and the refugee camp was silent. A guard from the Black Iron Camp sneaked in first. His footsteps were so light that they didn't even disturb a stray cat sleeping under a tree.

Xu Ling whispered, "Your Highness, something is wrong. Places with epidemics are usually marked with lime and herbal soup is sprinkled on the ground. It shouldn't be so quiet."

Chang Geng's expression remained unchanged: "Since Yang Ronggui knows we are coming, he will not be completely unprepared. Just wait and see."

Before he finished speaking, the black iron guard who had just entered slid out like a dark shadow and said, "Your Highness, there are only about thirty people living in this refugee camp, most of them are young men and women, and there are no signs of an epidemic."

"There are 100,000 refugees in Jiangbei, but there are only 30 or so people in the refugee camp outside Yangzhou?" Xu Ling sneered, "Yang Ronggui is really taking people for granted. Are the people living there all so slick and well-fed, with a carefree look? I think they are probably hired fake refugees."

The guard asked, "My Lord, what should we do?"

"It's not a good idea to be in the dark," Chang Geng whispered, "First, find a way to contact Master Le Ran, and have the brothers look around the area for the next two days to see if there are any clues. There is no such thing as a wall that is impenetrable. I don't believe Yang Ronggui can cover up everything."

That night, a fast horse left Yangzhou City and headed north to Beijing with a secret letter, informing all the ambitious people in the capital that the King of Goose was already in the cage.

At the same time, local city defense officers and soldiers in the Jiangbei area received a dispatch from the Governor-General of Liangjiang overnight, and came in plain clothes to secretly reinforce Yangzhou Prefecture. The entire Yangzhou Prefecture was still peaceful and prosperous, but it seemed that the situation was tense inside while it was relaxed on the outside.

The poisonous snakes in the capital were waiting for a fatal blow, lurking patiently and being extremely quiet. Apart from the sudden serious illness of the old man of the Shen family, it seemed that nothing more serious had happened.

Old Master Shen had been bedridden for several days, with imperial physicians coming in and out like a stream, and even the Chen family's genius doctor came to visit in person. It was obvious that he was not getting better, so the servants of the Shen family ran to the coffin shop several times, as if they were preparing for his funeral. No matter how bad the Third Lady was, it was not appropriate for her to talk about marriage at this time, so the arranged marriage had to be dropped.

Shen Yi took a leave of absence to take care of his elderly father and refused to see visitors.

At dusk that day, Miss Chen, who came to the Shen Mansion every day to report for duty, left by car as usual and did not attract the attention of the secret stalkers. When they arrived at the secluded courtyard where Miss Chen stayed in the capital, the car door opened, and a string of piano sounds floated out from inside, and a man appeared - it was Shen Yi himself, who was supposed to be doing his filial duty at the bedside.

Shen Yi politely bowed to the people in the car and said, "Thank you, Miss Chen."

Chen Qingxu placed a zither on his knees and leaned forward to say, "General, please be careful. If you need any orders, just let me know."

Shen Yiduo glanced at her. He didn't know anything about Linyuan Pavilion. He just thought that this girl had no official position, no power, and was just an ordinary girl from the rivers and lakes. However, she was willing to follow them in the army and eat sand all the way. She responded to their requests. He was really grateful in his heart and said solemnly, "Miss Chen is noble and chivalrous. I really admire you. I am grateful for your kindness."

Chen Qingxu seemed to smile - it was not obvious when she smiled, nor when she was angry. It seemed that the honor and disgrace of the world could not shake her, and a string of piano notes came out from her fingertips.

Shen Yi didn't dare to delay any longer, so he mounted his horse and headed for the northern suburbs.