Chapter 398

When Chen Wuji was preparing to continue military operations against southern Yunan to pursue Gu Wenjie, several pieces of information arrived one after another at his desk.

The first to arrive happened to be news about Gu Wenjie.

That old bastard ran away.

He abandoned letting his troops continue to loot southern Yunan, and after joining forces with the Hezhou troops stationed in Qing County, he marched straight to Hezhou.

Although the information Chen Wuji received was that Gu Wenjie had joined forces with that Hezhou troop, their outward conduct was more particular: they first feigned a stalemate for two days, then feigned a battle, after which the Hezhou troops fled ahead while Gu Wenjie chased from behind.

What he and Xu Zengyi had previously discussed became a stark reality.

The Gu family's true objective was Hezhou.

They indeed had an insider in Hezhou.

What has been revealed so far is the Hezhou commander who launched the mutiny.

Gu Wenjie fled, so Chen Wuji naturally had no need to continue pursuing him.

By the time he catches up there, that brat, with his endless poisonous schemes, will probably already have seized Hezhou City.

Hezhou is the largest city in the northern part of Nan Jun.

Although Chen Wuji now has over nine thousand Bīngmǎ, facing that sturdy city this force is insufficient; it's unthinkable, and he definitely cannot take it.

After receiving the information, Xu Zengyi and Li Run gave opinions identical to Chen Wuji's.

Withdraw the troops, and observe the situation.

The second piece of news came along with the able-bodied youths from Yunan City.

They didn't come together; it was merely a coincidence that they ended up together.

Qin Feng sent someone with an urgent letter; the Li family increased their stakes again, hoping to exchange for their relatives detained by Chen Wuji, and this time they added Li Xun to the conditions.

This news left Chen Wuji and the others bewildered for a while.

"Is Li Linguo this old bastard looking down on me?" Chen Wuji leaned against the bed, looking displeased. "He clearly knows I'm currently at Sifang Shan, and Li Xun has led troops here to besiege me, yet he sent the negotiation letter to Yunan City? He must be looking down on me."

Li Run glanced at Chen Wuji, wanting to speak but holding back.

"Speak up if you have something to say; why are you hemming and hawing like a little girl?" Chen Wuji shouted.

Li Run's expression stiffened; he rose and cupped his hands, saying: "Commander, could it be that Li Linguo actually wants Lord Qin to act as an intermediary, persuading you to accept these terms?"

"After all, Commander, your methods have been brutal; one look and it's clear you're not easy to talk to. If we hand the negotiation terms to Lord Qin, he won't have to face you directly."

Chen Wuji:...

He looked somewhat speechlessly at Xu Zengyi: "Is that possible?"

"Most likely it's definite." Xu Zengyi nodded with a smile.

"Even if Li Linguo were even more stupid, he'd surely know who calls the shots in Yunan now; he couldn't possibly do this back-to-front thing for no reason."

Chen Wuji rubbed his chin: "Am I really that fierce?"

Xu Zengyi smiled without speaking.

Li Run lowered his head silently; he had something to say but didn't dare.

He couldn't gauge just how fierce Chen Wuji was, but when his subordinates learned that Chen Wuji had arrived at Sifang Shan that day, the troops fell into panic and unrest.

All the soldiers talked about were Chen Wuji's corpses hanging from trees, and various cruel methods heard through rumor.

"Well then, tell me, should I accept these terms?" Chen Wuji asked.

"Li Linguo followed Gu Wenjie to Hezhou, yet he offered me such tempting terms—could this old bastard be trying to feed me empty promises here?"

"It's possible, but not likely." Xu Zengyi said.

"The only possibility is likely a delaying tactic: he's using his own clansmen as a means to delay the Commander's advance and suppression, buying them time to seize Hezhou."

"But the Gu family has an insider in the Hezhou troops; even without any other means, they could already trick open the Hezhou city gates—no need for this extra step."

"I think the Li family's condition is probably genuine. Among those detained by the Commander, there should be someone Li Linguo highly values."

Li Run suggested: "Why not ask Xiao Ershu? He might know which Li family members reside in the city."

Chen Wuji laughed: "Let's go ask him; how did I forget this living map?"

Given Xiao Ershu's talent for gossip, he might actually know.

"Commander, I think we should accept Li Linguo's condition; keeping those people is actually useless, and it would be more profitable to exchange them for some grain and supplies." Xu Zengyi advised.

Chen Wuji had the same thought.

By now the war has reached this point; the hostages' threat value is negligible.

The Xue family is gone, and the Gu family clearly doesn't care about their clansmen either.

Now the only one still struggling is Li Linguo alone.

Chen Wuji tossed Li Linguo's negotiation letter to Li Run: "Reply to your uncle, tell him I've agreed, and have him promptly deliver the grain and supplies to Yunan City to complete the handover."

Also, prepare to withdraw the troops and return to Yunan.

Li Run stared for a moment, then cupped his hands and accepted the order.

He was somewhat surprised that Chen Wuji would entrust him with this task.

Five days later.

Chen Wuji led the troops back to Yunan City.

After the army returned to Lìng, and the captured grain and supplies were all stored, Chen Wuji ordered a grand feast for the Three Armies, with all soldiers taking turns resting for five days.

Once this order was issued, the somewhat lifeless Yunan City, due to the war, instantly became lively.

These soldiers now each had a large sum of money on them; for a time, brothels and taverns were packed to overflowing, and some lower-class establishments even had their maids working.

Taverns, restaurants, clothing shops, grain stores, and the like all did booming business.

Several thousand major customers instantly raised Yunan City's commercial atmosphere to a new height.

The moment Chen Wuji saw this scene, he immediately ordered Qin Feng to investigate taxes.

The key is those windy places.

He strictly collected taxes according to Da Yu's law, neither adding nor reducing, but if anyone tried to evade tax, they had better prepare to empty their coffers; he didn't kill people, only fined them Silver.

His maneuver made Qin Feng directly call it 'not acting like a person', but his actions were extremely swift.

It was arranged that same day.

At a time when the whole Yunan City was booming, Chen Wuji brought two jars of fine wine he'd extorted from Qin Feng and walked into Ciji Hall.

The spots where the old man basking in the sun would regularly appear, both at the entrance and inside, were devoid of Zhang Lao's figure; only Xiaoyu, with drooping eyelids, wiped the medicine cabinet intermittently.

Chen Wuji glanced, his heart suddenly gave a thump, 'Xiaoyu, Master…'

Xiaoyu heard the voice and instantly sprang to life, propping himself on the counter with his left hand and flipping over nimbly, 'Hey, Senior Brother, you're back! I heard yesterday that you returned from duty, and I wanted to come see you, but the guards at the Xianya entrance are just too many.'

'Where is the Master?' Chen Wuji asked in a lowered voice.

He dreaded hearing that news.

Xiaoyu chuckled, 'I'm giving Lao Kong a beating in the back courtyard.'