CH 5.23

Chapter 5.23 – Why Are You Sneaking About? (1)

Xue Qing Lin was still planning his next course of action when a subordinate suddenly reported that his brother-in-law had been taken away.

No one knew how Madam Xue learnt of this but she abruptly appeared and began to sob, giving him a headache. After driving his wife away, he turned to his subordinate to ask, “Who has such guts to dare to capture him? Where’s governor Zhao?”

“Commander, the order was given by General of Ding Yuan and the message was delivered by the men Governor Zhao sent. He said that the General of Ding Yuan took 50,000 troops so they had no way of resisting and had to seek you for help.”

“50,000 people?” Xue Qing Lin’s expression grew heavy. “How did he get so many people?”

“That… this subordinate does not know.”

“Don’t know? Then why aren’t you going to find out?” Xue Qing Lin suddenly roared. “Wait a minute, call Zhang Yong here.”

If it were 50,000 people, he had to consider things carefully. The emperor was really generous to spare no effort to make things difficult for him. However, Zhang Yong was most probably even more anxious than him since 10,000 of his men had just disappeared like this.

Xue Qing Lin thought, since there were 50,000 people, why not call Zhang Yong to have a share of the pie? First, they could restore their friendship and second, he could pull him over to his side and minimise his losses.

But he never expected that others were faster than him.

After Xu Yan Ze returned to the Jin Manor, he didn’t even have the time to sit down before leaving with Xiang Han to bring a gift to visit Zhang Yong.

When Zhang Yong saw them, his expression was not pretty. In any case, a third of his men had just been gifted away by the emperor just like this. His heart inevitably felt unwell.

Xu Yan Ze naturally understood this and decided to pay him a visit early on. In his opinion, the 10,000 people might as well not have been given to him since it offended Zhang Yong. In the event that he joined forces with Xue Qing Lin, he would have to face over 90,000 troops.

However, if he were to win his favour using Zhang Yong’s own men by returning these 10,000 men when the relationship between Zhang and Xue was still rocky, there was a chance of them cooperating. By then, it would be 70,000 men against 70,000 men.

Xue Qing Lin would definitely be cautious and even if he failed to pull Zhang Yong over to his side, it lowered the chance of him collaborating with Xue Qing Lin. With this unpredictable factor called Zhang Yong, Xue Qing Lin would have to think twice.

The two arrived at Zhang’s manor and explained their purpose. Once Zhang Yong heard it, he nearly flipped over his teacup. “Brother, are you joking?”

“Of course not.” Xu Yan Ze said, “These 10,000 men originally belonged to General Zhang. I dare not accept them. It was only because I was in the city and couldn’t defy the Emperor’s edict that I accepted them as a stop-gap measure. Now that I’m back in Jin Zhou, I’m merely returning them to their rightful owner.”

Zhang Yong was uncouth and rustic, but he wasn’t stupid. He still had his suspicions. “Why aren’t you afraid of His Majesty finding out now?”

“That…” Xu Yan Ze feigned hesitation, followed by a bitter laugh. “General Zhang, you should already know this subordinate’s difficulties. Ah, my only wish at that time was to protect Jin Zhou but was unexpectedly drawn into this conflict. Our visit this time is merely because we wish for peace.”

Saying so, he glanced at the other person from his peripheral and reiterated, “Moreover, Jin Zhou is not the city. Some things… can’t be helped.”

Zhang Yong immediately understood. That’s right, this lad was stuffed into Jin Zhou by the emperor and had to face both himself and the regional commander; his situation was much trickier. His visit today was evidently to save himself. After all, Jin Zhou was far from the emperor’s reach. He couldn’t interfere regardless of what happened.

He used to admire Xu Yan Ze but developed objections because of the emperor’s interference. Now that Xu Yan Ze was willing to return his troops, he was naturally overjoyed and after a round of civilities, he magnanimously expressed: In the future, we are all on the same team. Feel free to let me know if you need any help.

Xu Yan Ze also didn’t stand on ceremony. He pretended to feel distressed, “Speaking of which, this subordinate truly does have some troubling matters.”

Then, he shared about how the Jin manor had been surrounded and in a fit of anger, captured Xue Qing Lin’s brother-in-law. “The regional commander might have some misgivings about this subordinate. I heard that General and Regional Commander are good friends and hope you can help mediate this petty matter to resolve this misunderstanding.”

Although he said it as though he was requesting Zhang Yong for help, in reality, it was an indirect way of telling him to take a stand.

Since he had gotten a favour, Zhang Yong was naturally willing to lend him a hand. Furthermore, Xue Qing Lin had gone overboard recently and was growing more unpleasant to his eyes. So, he immediately said, “How is this a big matter? I’ll talk to the commander. Anyway, this matter is also that lad, Chen Ting Hong’s fault. It’s good to teach him a lesson.”

The implication in his words was that he would not help Xue Qing Lin.

Xu Yan Ze and Xiang Han were finally satisfied. But in order to prevent any unforeseeable event, Xiang Han added that to thank General Zhang, their Jin family would take care of the provisions for those 10,000 men.

After all, returning the troops was a private matter and to the public, Zhang Yong only had 20,000 men under him and could only feed 20,000 of them. Now that 10,000 more had appeared, food would become a problem.

Hearing Xiang Han’s words, Zhang Yong’s mood greatly improved. He personally sent them out of his manor and when he returned, he couldn’t help telling his wife, “These two young lads aren’t bad. They understand their circumstances well and know how to behave appropriately.”

After this event, Zhang Yong could be said to have come on board the Jin family’s ship. Apart from that 10,000 troops, the provisions were enough to sway his heart. In the past, he always had to seek Xue Qing Lin for rations, but because the latter was raising a private army, the rations he received were always lesser.

Now that he had joined the Jin family, Zhang Yong’s heart was blooming. Their Jin family could even feed Xue Qing Lin’s 50,000 men private army, how could he be afraid of not being able to feed his men?

Thus, when Xue Qing Lin’s subordinate requested for a visit, he simply feigned sickness and didn’t even bother to allow them in.

Now, Xue Qing Lin’s troubles were piling up. Apart from his brother-in-law’s arrest and Zhang Yong’s vague attitude, the Turks had begun to find trouble for him, saying that the crown prince was missing.”

Xue Qing Lin was angered to the point of laughing. “Fuck, what has their crown prince got to do with me?”

The advisor sitting by the side reminded him, “Commander, it was the crown prince’s troops that besieged Jin Zhou last time.”

Xue Qing Lin sat down and suppressed his fury. “Go and ask Zhang Yong. He was the one who captured them, see if they are in his prison cell. If they aren’t, they are probably dead. Damn it, what were they doing before this? The body has already been buried, but they’re only asking me this now.”

The advisor asked cautiously, “Commander, I heard that when the city was breached, it was the General of Ding Yuan who captured the Turk who tried to assassinate the emperor.”

“Where’s he?”

“His Majesty didn’t want to make it public. I’m afraid he’s already been brought to the capital.”

Xue Qing Lin fumed, “Why the hell didn’t you tell me this before?”

The advisor replied bitterly, “Your subordinate just found out…”

Xue Qing Lin’s liver hurt from excessive anger, yet Madam Xue was still sobbing and crying about how her brother must be suffering in Xu Yan Ze’s hands. Frustrated, Xue Qing Lin simply left to find Lady Mei for some peace and quiet. Once he learnt that she was pregnant, his mood greatly improved.

Lady Mei had long been bought over by Xu Yan Ze. Now that he was happy, she took this chance to pillow-talk him.

After careful consideration, he felt that her words made sense. What enmity did he have with the Jin family? Wasn’t it just because of those immoral deeds his brother-in-law had done years ago?

Now that things have already reached this stage with Xu Yan Ze in possession of 50,000 men, Zhang Yong’s refusal to cooperate with him and the emperor on the sidelines while the other neighbouring states were watching him like a prey, if they were to collide… tsk!

Furthermore, Xu Yan Ze was originally just a lowly villager who got lucky enough to reach where he was today. Those who were barefoot didn’t fear others who wore shoes. Even if he were to be defeated, he could simply flee Jin Wu and find a new family to serve.

But he was different. How much had he sacrificed in order to achieve his current position? He couldn’t afford to misjudge his situation and destroy his future, all because of his unworthy brother-in-law. Instead, why shouldn’t he give the Jin family this opportunity to vent their anger while he attempted to stabilise them? After all, he still needed them to provide rations for his army.

After coming to a decision, Xue Qing Lin immediately selected a couple of subordinates and personally paid a visit to the Jin manor.

Presently, Xu Yan Ze had just finished settling down the soldiers and pulled Xiang Han back to their chambers, intending to spend some time alone. However, once he heard about the visitor, his face immediately turned dark. He let go of Xiang Han and gloomily said, “He’s really an eyesore.”

Xiang Han narrowly escaped and quickly pushed him along, “Hurry up and go take a look. Who knows if he’s here to fish Chen Ting Hong out.”

“You’re right.” Xu Yan Ze got up and smoothed down his clothes. “We can’t hold Chen Ting Hong for long. If you want to take your revenge, it’s best to do so quickly but don’t kill him. We can’t afford to fall out with Xue Qing Lin now.”

“Don’t worry, I have my limits.” Xiang Han also got off the bed. After Xu Yan Ze left, he went alone to find Jin Xue Li.

It didn’t take long for Xiang Han and Jin Xue Li to arrive at the cell that held Chen Ting Hong. He’d been beaten black and blue. Once he saw them, he began to curse.

Especially when it came to Jin Xue Li, he’d scream ‘cuckold’ or ‘your wife was *** by me…” Jin Xue Li shook and suddenly rushed forward while brandishing a whip. He gripped Chen Ting Hong’s neck, eyes red. “I’ll kill you!”

Chapter 5.23 – Why Are You Sneaking About? (1)

Xue Qing Lin was still planning his next course of action when a subordinate suddenly reported that his brother-in-law had been taken away.

No one knew how Madam Xue learnt of this but she abruptly appeared and began to sob, giving him a headache. After driving his wife away, he turned to his subordinate to ask, “Who has such guts to dare to capture him? Where’s governor Zhao?”

“Commander, the order was given by General of Ding Yuan and the message was delivered by the men Governor Zhao sent. He said that the General of Ding Yuan took 50,000 troops so they had no way of resisting and had to seek you for help.”

“50,000 people?” Xue Qing Lin’s expression grew heavy. “How did he get so many people?”

“That… this subordinate does not know.”

“Don’t know? Then why aren’t you going to find out?” Xue Qing Lin suddenly roared. “Wait a minute, call Zhang Yong here.”

If it were 50,000 people, he had to consider things carefully. The emperor was really generous to spare no effort to make things difficult for him. However, Zhang Yong was most probably even more anxious than him since 10,000 of his men had just disappeared like this.

Xue Qing Lin thought, since there were 50,000 people, why not call Zhang Yong to have a share of the pie? First, they could restore their friendship and second, he could pull him over to his side and minimise his losses.

But he never expected that others were faster than him.

After Xu Yan Ze returned to the Jin Manor, he didn’t even have the time to sit down before leaving with Xiang Han to bring a gift to visit Zhang Yong.

When Zhang Yong saw them, his expression was not pretty. In any case, a third of his men had just been gifted away by the emperor just like this. His heart inevitably felt unwell.

Xu Yan Ze naturally understood this and decided to pay him a visit early on. In his opinion, the 10,000 people might as well not have been given to him since it offended Zhang Yong. In the event that he joined forces with Xue Qing Lin, he would have to face over 90,000 troops.

However, if he were to win his favour using Zhang Yong’s own men by returning these 10,000 men when the relationship between Zhang and Xue was still rocky, there was a chance of them cooperating. By then, it would be 70,000 men against 70,000 men.

Xue Qing Lin would definitely be cautious and even if he failed to pull Zhang Yong over to his side, it lowered the chance of him collaborating with Xue Qing Lin. With this unpredictable factor called Zhang Yong, Xue Qing Lin would have to think twice.

The two arrived at Zhang’s manor and explained their purpose. Once Zhang Yong heard it, he nearly flipped over his teacup. “Brother, are you joking?”

“Of course not.” Xu Yan Ze said, “These 10,000 men originally belonged to General Zhang. I dare not accept them. It was only because I was in the city and couldn’t defy the Emperor’s edict that I accepted them as a stop-gap measure. Now that I’m back in Jin Zhou, I’m merely returning them to their rightful owner.”

Zhang Yong was uncouth and rustic, but he wasn’t stupid. He still had his suspicions. “Why aren’t you afraid of His Majesty finding out now?”

“That…” Xu Yan Ze feigned hesitation, followed by a bitter laugh. “General Zhang, you should already know this subordinate’s difficulties. Ah, my only wish at that time was to protect Jin Zhou but was unexpectedly drawn into this conflict. Our visit this time is merely because we wish for peace.”

Saying so, he glanced at the other person from his peripheral and reiterated, “Moreover, Jin Zhou is not the city. Some things… can’t be helped.”

Zhang Yong immediately understood. That’s right, this lad was stuffed into Jin Zhou by the emperor and had to face both himself and the regional commander; his situation was much trickier. His visit today was evidently to save himself. After all, Jin Zhou was far from the emperor’s reach. He couldn’t interfere regardless of what happened.

He used to admire Xu Yan Ze but developed objections because of the emperor’s interference. Now that Xu Yan Ze was willing to return his troops, he was naturally overjoyed and after a round of civilities, he magnanimously expressed: In the future, we are all on the same team. Feel free to let me know if you need any help.

Xu Yan Ze also didn’t stand on ceremony. He pretended to feel distressed, “Speaking of which, this subordinate truly does have some troubling matters.”

Then, he shared about how the Jin manor had been surrounded and in a fit of anger, captured Xue Qing Lin’s brother-in-law. “The regional commander might have some misgivings about this subordinate. I heard that General and Regional Commander are good friends and hope you can help mediate this petty matter to resolve this misunderstanding.”

Although he said it as though he was requesting Zhang Yong for help, in reality, it was an indirect way of telling him to take a stand.

Since he had gotten a favour, Zhang Yong was naturally willing to lend him a hand. Furthermore, Xue Qing Lin had gone overboard recently and was growing more unpleasant to his eyes. So, he immediately said, “How is this a big matter? I’ll talk to the commander. Anyway, this matter is also that lad, Chen Ting Hong’s fault. It’s good to teach him a lesson.”

The implication in his words was that he would not help Xue Qing Lin.

Xu Yan Ze and Xiang Han were finally satisfied. But in order to prevent any unforeseeable event, Xiang Han added that to thank General Zhang, their Jin family would take care of the provisions for those 10,000 men.

After all, returning the troops was a private matter and to the public, Zhang Yong only had 20,000 men under him and could only feed 20,000 of them. Now that 10,000 more had appeared, food would become a problem.

Hearing Xiang Han’s words, Zhang Yong’s mood greatly improved. He personally sent them out of his manor and when he returned, he couldn’t help telling his wife, “These two young lads aren’t bad. They understand their circumstances well and know how to behave appropriately.”

After this event, Zhang Yong could be said to have come on board the Jin family’s ship. Apart from that 10,000 troops, the provisions were enough to sway his heart. In the past, he always had to seek Xue Qing Lin for rations, but because the latter was raising a private army, the rations he received were always lesser.

Now that he had joined the Jin family, Zhang Yong’s heart was blooming. Their Jin family could even feed Xue Qing Lin’s 50,000 men private army, how could he be afraid of not being able to feed his men?

Thus, when Xue Qing Lin’s subordinate requested for a visit, he simply feigned sickness and didn’t even bother to allow them in.

Now, Xue Qing Lin’s troubles were piling up. Apart from his brother-in-law’s arrest and Zhang Yong’s vague attitude, the Turks had begun to find trouble for him, saying that the crown prince was missing.”

Xue Qing Lin was angered to the point of laughing. “Fuck, what has their crown prince got to do with me?”

The advisor sitting by the side reminded him, “Commander, it was the crown prince’s troops that besieged Jin Zhou last time.”

Xue Qing Lin sat down and suppressed his fury. “Go and ask Zhang Yong. He was the one who captured them, see if they are in his prison cell. If they aren’t, they are probably dead. Damn it, what were they doing before this? The body has already been buried, but they’re only asking me this now.”

The advisor asked cautiously, “Commander, I heard that when the city was breached, it was the General of Ding Yuan who captured the Turk who tried to assassinate the emperor.”

“Where’s he?”

“His Majesty didn’t want to make it public. I’m afraid he’s already been brought to the capital.”

Xue Qing Lin fumed, “Why the hell didn’t you tell me this before?”

The advisor replied bitterly, “Your subordinate just found out…”

Xue Qing Lin’s liver hurt from excessive anger, yet Madam Xue was still sobbing and crying about how her brother must be suffering in Xu Yan Ze’s hands. Frustrated, Xue Qing Lin simply left to find Lady Mei for some peace and quiet. Once he learnt that she was pregnant, his mood greatly improved.

Lady Mei had long been bought over by Xu Yan Ze. Now that he was happy, she took this chance to pillow-talk him.

After careful consideration, he felt that her words made sense. What enmity did he have with the Jin family? Wasn’t it just because of those immoral deeds his brother-in-law had done years ago?

Now that things have already reached this stage with Xu Yan Ze in possession of 50,000 men, Zhang Yong’s refusal to cooperate with him and the emperor on the sidelines while the other neighbouring states were watching him like a prey, if they were to collide… tsk!

Furthermore, Xu Yan Ze was originally just a lowly villager who got lucky enough to reach where he was today. Those who were barefoot didn’t fear others who wore shoes. Even if he were to be defeated, he could simply flee Jin Wu and find a new family to serve.

But he was different. How much had he sacrificed in order to achieve his current position? He couldn’t afford to misjudge his situation and destroy his future, all because of his unworthy brother-in-law. Instead, why shouldn’t he give the Jin family this opportunity to vent their anger while he attempted to stabilise them? After all, he still needed them to provide rations for his army.

After coming to a decision, Xue Qing Lin immediately selected a couple of subordinates and personally paid a visit to the Jin manor.

Presently, Xu Yan Ze had just finished settling down the soldiers and pulled Xiang Han back to their chambers, intending to spend some time alone. However, once he heard about the visitor, his face immediately turned dark. He let go of Xiang Han and gloomily said, “He’s really an eyesore.”

Xiang Han narrowly escaped and quickly pushed him along, “Hurry up and go take a look. Who knows if he’s here to fish Chen Ting Hong out.”

“You’re right.” Xu Yan Ze got up and smoothed down his clothes. “We can’t hold Chen Ting Hong for long. If you want to take your revenge, it’s best to do so quickly but don’t kill him. We can’t afford to fall out with Xue Qing Lin now.”

“Don’t worry, I have my limits.” Xiang Han also got off the bed. After Xu Yan Ze left, he went alone to find Jin Xue Li.

It didn’t take long for Xiang Han and Jin Xue Li to arrive at the cell that held Chen Ting Hong. He’d been beaten black and blue. Once he saw them, he began to curse.

Especially when it came to Jin Xue Li, he’d scream ‘cuckold’ or ‘your wife was *** by me…” Jin Xue Li shook and suddenly rushed forward while brandishing a whip. He gripped Chen Ting Hong’s neck, eyes red. “I’ll kill you!”