Chapter 70: Fulfilling Promises

  After a fierce battle in the afternoon, the military camp of Qingyuan County was breached.

  The city wall, arrow tower, barracks and drill ground all have burn marks, where the black smoke is rolling, corpses are piled up in a mess.

  "Clear the field." Li Peinan stood on the city wall and looked down at the entire plain, giving orders.

  Xiao Zhiqing, who had taken an arrow for him, had been sent back to the inn by the guards to tend to his wounds, which meant he no longer had to worry about what was behind him.

  Zhang Fang led the imperial guard to occupy the military camp's warehouse first, and carried out box after box of leather, satin, silver money and other wealth. The accountant organized the medical treatment of the wounded civilians in the corner of the wall, fortunately, those who were fighting at the forefront were regular troops, and their losses were not great.

  Cavalry troops continuously came out to check and count horses, weapons and other military supplies, numbering and sealing them in storage, but they didn't touch the boxes that had been carried out earlier.

  Li Peinan took Li Qun on a tour of inspection inside and outside the military camp, explaining each matter clearly, unfolding the already drawn layout map for Li Qun to see: "Understood?"

  "Understood." Lijun nodded, "The young master wants to build a military town in the suburbs here too."

  Like the big and small garrison stations in Hexi, they raised troops and horses to defend their territory. Then Gongzi Hui would entrust trusted officials with management, and firmly grasp military power in his hands.

  Lai Chun has been following Li Pei Nan for many years, how could she not understand her own son's thoughts.

  Li Peinan looked at the crowd of people resting under the city wall and said, "Qingquan County has many winding roads and frequent traffic. I am most worried about this place. You will distribute the reward and recruit local people to dig trenches and build walls on the spot. We must start building the outer city today."

  Li Peinan ordered the officials to carry out their duties, and soon a large amount of wealth was distributed. With heavy rewards, there must be brave men, and the people took up tools to repair the city walls. The chief clerk also followed Li Peinan's orders, returning to the county government office to issue public documents, mobilize the people to perform labor services, and explain that there would be silver money rewards.

  In the late afternoon, the construction work in the suburbs started in full swing.

  Inside the barracks, a lamp was lit. An old man with a book in his hand stood at the door, wearing a white robe and a cloth hat on his head. His eyebrows were clear and calm, without any look of panic. A person with such a serene air and demeanor must have had a world of their own within their heart.

  Li Peinan walked up to him and respectfully bowed: "I heard that Mr. has been transferred from Qiushui County? Why did you become the accountant of the camp?"

  The old man returned the courtesy: " Entrusted by the students, I came to the camp to discuss a treaty, but it didn't work out, and I felt guilty in my heart. So I stayed here for a long time to bother the military officer, and conveniently asked for a job to make a living."

  "Is it Zhu Muzi who was sent by Mr. Wei?"

  The old man was slightly surprised and replied: "That's right."

  Li Peinan said with his hands behind his back: "The military camp has blocked the salt and iron camps, affecting the business of Zhujiashan. Mr. also came from Qushui, it's easy for me to guess that he is related to Zhu Mushi. I only ask Mr. one question, where is Zhu Mushi now?"

  The old man rolled up his sleeves and remained silent.

  Li Peinan said in a low voice, "You are still the teacher of Wen An, the official in my mansion. You should be treated with courtesy by me. I hope you understand the situation and do not force me to take action, doing something that would harm our cultural norms."

  The old man thought for a long time and finally said, "Xuan Xu had entrusted me to negotiate with the Zhu family about the operation of their business. He came to see me at the military camp once, but I haven't heard from him since then."

  Li Peinan's voice suddenly turned cold: "Sir, are you saying that Zhu Muxi is also known as Xuan Xu?"

  The old man nodded: "Yes."

  Li Peinan immediately turned around and walked out of the military camp, calling for Li Qun to take over his duties. He then mounted his horse and sped towards the official road outside the county town like a flying dragon. Li Qun later sent a message to the governor's mansion, saying that the young master had urgent business and had returned to Changping Prefecture first, which made Li Jingzhuo angry.

  Li Jingzhuo suppressed his anger and ordered the military doctor to drive a carriage, sending Xiao Zhiqin, who was unconscious, into the Crown Prince's mansion in Changping Prefecture. Afterwards, he stayed at the temporary residence to supervise the work and lingered for several days.

  Li Peinan rushed back to the Crown Prince's mansion overnight. The attendants in the mansion had not received any news, and when they saw him galloping straight into the main gate, they hastily sounded the alarm and summoned everyone.

  Before long, a thousand lanterns were hung in mid-air, and the maidservants were busy adjusting their dresses. Ziqi Hou was already standing at the gate.

  Li Peinan hastily entered the inner courtyard, washed and dressed in the attire of a young master, without even taking a sip of tea. He was about to meet with the prefectural judge and inspector who had come to discuss official business at the mansion. The attendants lit lanterns and rode horses to invite them, while Li Peinan took advantage of the brief respite to summon back the sentry guarding Wu Ren's residence and inquired about any movements over the past half month.

  The scout reported back: "Mr. Wu goes to the market to set up a fortune-telling stall during the day and listens to plays at night, with no unusual movements. There is another kitchen maid in the courtyard named Hua Cui, who is responsible for washing and cooking, also without any abnormalities. The young master ordered us to find that man named Xuan Xu, but he has never appeared, and we have also searched various tea houses and bookstores, but there is no sign of him."

  Li Peinan coldly said, "That person is hiding deeply and will not appear in an ordinary residence. You all go to the mouths of various officials' servants to investigate whether there are any newly arrived guests."

  The sentinel replied: "Yes sir."

  Li Peinan asked again: "Didn't Min An return to Wu Ren's side?"

  The sentinel replied, "In the afternoon, I passed by again, and the second young master was also by his side. I wanted to follow him, but was stopped by the second young master. After lighting the lamp, both the second young master and Xiao Xiang Gong disappeared without a trace."

  Li Peinan, sitting in the chair, was about to crush the armrest, and after barely controlling his expression, he said, "Go find again."

  Late at night, the provincial governor and a group of officials were invited into the main hall by the attendants of the prince's mansion, each with suspicion in their hearts. Li Peinan calmed them down with a few gentle words and directly stated his intention: to have them lead teams to patrol day and night within the inner city of Changping Prefecture and at various key points outside the city, searching for a wanted criminal of the imperial court.

  Li Peinan instructed: "Before the second trial of the Ducha Yuan, you must catch Zhu Muzi, and there will be a heavy reward. After catching him, bring the person to my mansion, and don't let the news leak out."

  The housekeeper led a group of people carrying trays and walked in, smiling and bowing to the officials, presenting them with large amounts of money, silver, and jewels.

  A moment later, the patrolmen with bows and arrows rushed to each gate, and the prefectural governor sent out yamen runners to knock open every door and investigate new lodgers.

  Wu Ren heard the noise in the alley, put on his clothes and came out to take a look. Hua Cui was standing aside with a lantern, saying in a low voice: "It seems like the yamen is searching for an escaped fugitive, but I couldn't find out their name. Only the officer has a small portrait of the fugitive, but it's unclear whether it's a man or a woman."

  Wu Ren rolled up his sleeves and let out a yawn: "That little stinker just got back, and now he's in such a hurry to run off again. I wonder if someone's after him?"

  "Shame on you, Father! Can't you say something nice for once? Anzi is now a registered name in the Crown Prince's residence, so let the yamen people go and catch him?"

  "Let's go back to sleep, even if the sky falls it has nothing to do with us." Wu Ren said and went back to his room to sleep, not worrying about the search outside at all. The things he cared about were making money, Xuan Xu had gone out of town to do business, saying that when he came back they would split the profits. Min An had gone to the government office to report for duty, and had already mixed in with the official identity, now was just waiting for the opportunity to slowly accumulate wealth, and later he could slowly save up for his future bride's dowry which hadn't been prepared yet.

  Hua Cui stood at the door, waiting for the official to come and ask questions. The brocade-clad guard whispered to the official in a hidden place: "That family doesn't need to be checked." And so they were dismissed. Hua Cui waited for a while without seeing any movement, and also went back to her room to sleep.

  Before going to sleep, she was still thinking that the Crown Prince's mansion had been sending people to spy on her all day. Could it be true that something happened to Anzi? However, it didn't seem quite like it either. Fei Yi was still following closely behind Anzi and hadn't said a word about anything important, as if he was keeping a close eye on Anzi.

  What a strange thing. Hua Cui turned over, just couldn't figure out the reason. She didn't think that Fei Yi was not by Min An's side at this moment, but was rushing to the Crown Prince's mansion.

  The grand gate of the Crown Prince's mansion was brightly lit, with sword-bearing guards standing watch on either side, their faces unsmiling yet intimidating.

  Fei Yi was the second person to ride straight into the gate, and the guards naturally didn't dare to stop him. After entering the courtyard, Fei Yi threw the reins of his horse to his attendant and, without waiting for the lanterns to light the way in front, he walked through the corridor, the flower gate, and the courtyard to arrive at Li Peinan's council hall.

  Li Peinan lit a solitary lamp, wearing a full body of cold and clear moonlight, standing by the window.

  Fei Yi had not returned to his own mansion, and his clothes were as they were yesterday. His whole body did not show any signs of fatigue.

  Li Peinan neither turned around to see Fei, nor spoke, leaving him standing aside. Hearing his footsteps hurrying away, Li Peinan also knew that he must have come for something important in the middle of the night, most likely related to Min An.

  Fei Yang turned to Li Peinan and raised his hand in a salute: "Does the young master still remember that when he swapped my jade pendant, he made two promises?"

  Li Peinan has now guessed the meaning of Lian Fei's words as well.

  Fei Yi said: "I want the young master to put his words into practice from this moment on."

  "Which two?"

  "I heard that Elder Xiao was injured for the sake of the Crown Prince, and Father has already sent her to the mansion. Therefore, I want the Crown Prince to agree to the first condition: take care of Elder Xiao for a month."

  Li Peinan did not respond. Fei Yang raised his voice and said, "Can't be done?"

  Li Peinan didn't say much and coldly said: "Alright."

  By the end of January, he will keep his promise.

  Fei Yi said: "The second is that this month, the Crown Prince must not inquire about any matters related to Min An."

  Li Peinan suddenly turned around, coldly staring at Fei Yu: "You usually don't ask about trivial matters, now you're making progress inch by inch. Could it be that in the half day I was late coming back, something has changed and stimulated you?"

  "I just need you to respond with one word, can you do it?"

  "The military doctor is still in the mansion, arriving as soon as he receives the news."

  Fei Leng's face turned cold: "Since the young master can't do it, he shouldn't have promised me in the first place and given me a chance to speak. At dawn tomorrow, I will spread the word about the young master's broken promise."

  Li Peinan said calmly: "Within a month, I can certainly do it. What I'm worried about is that with your brain, how can you protect Min An's safety?"

  Fei Yixiang coldly said: "No need for Shizi to worry, compared to those who are anxious and rude, I am still very clever."

  "It just so happens that the military doctor is an internist and specializes in treating headaches. When he has an attack, he comes back here to me."

  Fei Yi raised his hand and left with a flick of his sleeve. Li Peinan stood in front of the window, calming himself down, but ultimately still clapped his hands together, fearing that he would break the window frame.

  In the first month, there were too many changes. Nai An couldn't grasp the opportunity to win Mu Yan's heart, and he still had to worry about other things, such as Jun Zhen, the second trial of the Ducha Yuan, and even the whereabouts of Yi Jiu Dao from the Fu Li.

  Thank you, Huang Sang! Thank you, Little Xie (two of them)! Pig ears (two of them)! H (two of them)! I'm Momo (two of them)! Hehe, little white (two of them)! Tomorrow's little clothes! Coco's landmine (*^__^*)? One by one, hugs: )