Chapter 66: Experts clash, every move deadly!

Smart.

Chinu is still clever, able to discern the significant from the subtle.

Du Shanü had previously had all her attention drawn away by the fire and Chen Weifang being trapped together.

Upon further reflection, today's events indeed have some unusual aspects.

Judging by the scale of the fire in the city and the extent of the damage, it must have started in the western part of the city, drawing away most of the townspeople's attention; a band of thieves then took advantage to head for the county office.

While looting, they happened to run into Chen Weifang, who was on duty all night at the county office without even taking off his clothes; Chen Weifang ordered the capture of one of them for interrogation, after which someone set fire to the county office, that person took the chance to flee, and Chen Weifang rushed back to rescue his parents.

Du Shanü and Chinu arrived at the county seat roughly when these events had just taken place.

According to what she herself saw, the bags carried and looted by the villagers who attacked the county office while fleeing were certainly not roughly similar in size and shape.

In other words......

These people basically found hardly anything in the storeroom.

What about the grain that was originally stored in the storeroom?

Moving that much stuff would require a major effort taking half a day; if thieves came to rob it, it would definitely be conspicuous!

Now that it's not conspicuous, it can only be……

"There's an insider in the county office."

After a moment's consideration, Du Shanü finally spat out these words with a grim expression.

Actually, she should have thought of this earlier.

When she previously visited Afang's home, she could see that the household was exceedingly secluded and somewhat sinister, a little strange; combined with Afang's tendency to be aloof toward those she wasn't close with....

To put it bluntly, one look at this person shows they have hardly any close friends.

How many obedient subordinates could a Chief Clerk with poor connections have? And how many people could they actually command?

As the saying goes, 'King Yama is easy to see, but little ghosts are hard to deal with.'

Just as Chinu said, what good does it do for Afang to handle official duties well?

The subordinates don't even know what they're doing!

Thinking of this, Du Shanü couldn't help but sigh, and then furtively glanced at Chinu——

You've got a good brain, too bad you've got such a big mouth......

Then, as she was staring at Chinu's lips, she was caught red‑handed.

In just a breath, the elegant hue between their lips shifted from pale to crimson.

Chinu narrowed his eyes slightly and spoke, word by word:

"Lust, woman."

Du Shanü gasped: "?!"

Afang, who was still vexing herself, also gasped: "?!"

Afang suddenly turned toward Du Shanü, who hastily waved her hands:

"Oh Clear Soup Grandfather above, this is truly unjust! I've only held hands with three or four five six seven eight men so far—how could I be called a lustful woman?!"

Chen Weifang let out a breath:

"All right, I thought...... wait, you said you've held hands with how many?"

Oh no!

How did you even react to that!

Du Shanü looked up at the sky without speaking, and Chinu let out another amused snort:

"If you directed your lust toward proper work, who knows what you could accomplish...... for instance, earlier, weren't you planning to help Afang settle this round of taxes, thereby using the affair to make a name for yourself in Cang Cheng?"

Du Shanü had been holding back, but upon hearing the latter half, she unconsciously turned her gaze toward Chinu.

Of course, this time her gaze didn't fall on his lips; she dared only to look at the upper half of his face.

However, for some reason......

No, that's not right either.

Their gazes suddenly locked, their dark pupils plunging into each other's depths as if sparks had explosively ignited.

Though it lasted only an instant, it was like oil flung into a blaze, making one's breath catch half a beat.

Du Shanü couldn't name the feeling, but instinctively thought to herself, 'This is not good.'

She shifted her gaze to the left as if nothing were wrong, and Chinu's glance likewise drifted to the right.

Thus they averted their eyes, and the atmosphere fell into an eerie silence for a breath.

The next instant, Chinu then continued:

"...... This approach won't work."

"There's an insider in the county office; no matter how much grain you try to rustle up, it's wasted effort. If you want to make a name for yourself, you can't have anyone harboring ulterior motives at your side."

Otherwise......

Everything amounts to empty talk.

Du Shanü's thoughts gradually settled, and she finally picked up the second thing she had wanted to say earlier, speaking frankly to the two before her:

"That's right, after all, my earlier idea was to present grain and thereby be granted a food fief."

"This matter is confidential; if outsiders learned of it, it would be disastrous."

Exactly, this was Du Shanü's original idea.

She truly wanted to protect the city's populace, but she wasn't foolishly expecting nothing in return.

Du Shanü originally thought that, by presenting the grain, she could fully establish her identity as 'the orphan of the deposed crown prince.'

For example——

The authorities (Afang) stepped forward, announcing that the storehouse had been damaged by fire and that taxes and grain must be levied anew.

And just then someone stepped forward to take on this matter!

Afterwards, everything unfolded just like in a storybook: the Imperial Court received the grain, was quite astonished, questioned the donor, and suddenly discovered that this girl was indeed the orphaned daughter of the Deposed Crown Prince Huan.

The Imperial Court pitied the orphan girl having no reliance, granted an imperial decree, and assigned this place of Cang Cheng to Du Shanü as a fief.

What the truth is, of course, doesn't matter.

But on the surface, Du Shanü hopes that the people of this land will have the aforementioned understanding, so that future affairs can proceed smoothly.

As for the 'astonishment' matter, it need not be taken seriously at all; as long as the reports say so, that's enough.

As for the imperial edict matter, one can find someone to forge a decree, then send someone away to return later with word.

Official seals and uniforms—then it's even easier to handle.

If the next county magistrate appointed here is a corrupt official, kill him and the seal will naturally go into one's pocket.

If he is an honest official, then both man and seal will be taken into the pocket.

Du Shanü explained her plan in detail; the two before her listened silently throughout, even the perpetually ill‑tempered Chinu did not interrupt.

This time Du Shanü had learned her lesson; she did not look at Chinu again, but turned her gaze to Chen Weifang.

Chen Weifang stood like a crane, tall in the still night.

He pondered a few breaths, his brows and eyes relaxed, and he nodded in agreement:

"In my view, this plan can work......"

Du Shanü let out a long sigh of relief, but before the breath was fully spent, she heard Chen Weifang say:

"It's merely that once other officials learn of it and report to the Imperial Court for verification...... As long as, when the time comes, the fellow Daoist perishes and not the poor Daoist, that's enough."

Good, good, good!

What a fine, thick‑browed, big‑eyed Chen Weifang!

Moreover, he began to mock her with a sarcastic tone.

What about that strategist earlier, whose eyes were like deep pools and visage like the ancient moon? And her mature, steady Afang!

Du Shanü endured the throbbing veins on her forehead, barely holding her temper:

"I've already thought of these, so I still need to wait for the right moment......"

Du Shanü paused in her speech, waited for the two before her to look at her, then spoke:

"Wait for the Northern Dynasty to move south and carry out a Strike Grass Valley raid."

The words "Strike Grass Valley" had barely been spoken when a cold wind suddenly rose in the still night.

Chinu's and Chen Weifang's faces instantly grew solemn.

Du Shanü drew a deep breath of night wind, let the cold wind pierce her throat, then spoke each word with a pause:

"The Imperial Court is raising taxes now solely to provide tribute to the Northern Dynasty."

"Our land is rich in produce, yet we still cannot meet the heavy tax; how could other places not be in turmoil?"

"Under this tax law, unrest will surely erupt in some places; should the Imperial Court fail to gather enough grain and grass for tribute, the barbarians' iron hooves will surely advance south to press upon us."

"By then the Imperial Court will be preoccupied with its own survival; who will care whether I am an orphan of the former dynasty?"

?? Forge Imperial Decree: to falsify or tamper with an emperor's edict.

? Strike Grass Valley: troops ostensibly sent to graze horses, four expeditions of plundering to serve as military provisions. According to the *New History of the Five Dynasties, Appendix on the Four Barbarians*: "After Deguang had destroyed Jin, he sent his tribal chieftains…… to borrow all the world's money and silk to reward the troops. The barbarian troops, lacking fodder for men and horses, dispatched several thousand cavalry to fan out across the four directions, to plunder the people, and this came to be called 'Strike Grass Valley'."