Chapter 842: Really Sold

Chen Wuji set up a banquet in the small courtyard to welcome Yang Yu and his entourage who had come from afar.

After three rounds of wine and five flavors of dishes, following a round of mutual business praise, Chen Wuji and Yang Yu entered the main topic with great tacit understanding.

"Yang Gong, I don't like beating around the bush; let's get straight to the point!" Chen Wuji put down his cup, composed his expression, and spoke solemnly.

Just moments ago the banquet had been lively, but after Chen Wuji's words fell, everyone instantly switched to another demeanor, each becoming solemn.

Yang Yu flicked off the wine that had splashed onto his hand, stroked his beard, and said, "Commander Chen, you're blunt and to the point; I also dislike useless scheming. Let's just talk about matters—if we can talk, we talk; if we can't, we drop it. What's the point of saying so many useless things?"

Chen Wuji smiled and nodded.

He suddenly noticed a prominent trait in Yang Yu: this person adapts extremely quickly to others' speaking rhythm, often matching it after just a few words.

Earlier, when chatting with Xu Zengyi, it was all classical and abstruse, both in manner and content. But here with him it instantly became down-to-earth, giving the feeling of an old farmer sitting in the fields chatting idly.

"Yang Gong, you humbled yourself to come personally to Jie Jia Zui to see me—could it be that you simply came to look at me?" Chen Wuji asked bluntly; he truly speaks without nonsense, diving straight into the topic with no prelude.

Yang Yu laughed and said, "My apologies, I indeed didn't come specially to see Commander Chen, but to call myself 'humble' would be inappropriate; by rights I should address Commander Chen as 'sir'."

"To be ashamed, I've been leaning on my age and selling my seniority a bit; please forgive me, Commander Chen. I was used to the old way of addressing, and when I got excited I blurted it out; only then did I realize it was already too late."

Chen Wuji waved his hand with a smile, but silently cursed in his heart.

If this old geezer weren't doing it on purpose, he would have swallowed this bill whole.

Whether a title is a big deal or not depends on how you look at it.

Regardless of office or ability, Chen Wuji is far superior to Yang Yu, making equality in status impossible. This old geezer keeps leveraging their past friendship and titles, subtly trying to equate their positions.

"Yang Gong, there's no need for us to play these petty games between us." Chen Wuji said, "Of all the things that give me a headache, this ranks first."

"Commander Chen really is a remarkable person!" Yang Yu raised his cup and praised.

Chen Wuji raised his cup in response, "It's just that I dislike trouble; there's nothing remarkable about it."

"Yang Gong, let's get straight to the matter; after we finish discussing business, we'll drink and enjoy ourselves—we haven't seen each other in a long time, so today we must not return until drunk!"

After noticing Yang Yu's little ulterior motive, Chen Wuji began to seize the initiative.

Yang Yu pondered briefly and said, "In that case, I won't beat around the bush either. I don't know how Commander Chen plans to deal with Shendu next."

Chen Wuji exchanged a subtle glance with Xu Zengyi.

The Poisonist's skill is still high!

The guess was spot on.

"Frankly speaking, I haven't given much thought to Shendu for now; I'll play it by ear." Chen Wuji lowered his eyes slightly, weighed his words, and continued, "You must already know, Lord Yang, that the court has sent troops south to suppress me, this rebel and traitor; how far this war goes will determine how I deal with Shendu."

"The Shendu King shelters the Qiang people, disregarding the majesty of my Da Yu state; such wavering, harboring malicious intent—those types I will certainly not let off easy."

"But, having said all that, this is merely my tentative idea. The court is said to be mobilizing a huge army to march south; I, this so-called regional lord, am probably… as precarious as a stack of eggs!"

Upon saying this, Chen Wuji suddenly felt sorrow well up, his voice tinged with a hint of choking as he asked, "Yang Gong, I, Chen Wuji, have indeed ignored the court's orders, but this official robe I wear was bestowed by the emperor; this post was not self-appointed."

"To pacify the internal turmoil of Nan Jun and drive out the wicked Qiang people, I raised funds and recruited troops myself, receiving not a single coin from the court; I truly do not know what fault I have committed that would warrant the court sending a great army south to exterminate me."

"When the Qiang people ravaged the people of Da Yu, there was no sign of the court's troops; local chaos, bandits and rebels sprang up, and the populace could not make a living—still no court troops appeared. Now that I have finished everything, the court's great army arrives. This is probably the most laughable thing in the world!"

"Yang Gong, you know me—can you give me an answer? Where exactly have I failed the court and the world's people? I truly don't know!"

Chen Wuji's voice choked, and with that nearly perfect expression, a wave of sorrow suddenly spread through the hall; though it didn't reach the point of listeners beating their chests or shedding tears, it came infinitely close.

Xu Zengyi and the others, seeing Chen Wuji like this, twitched the corners of their mouths in unison.

None of those people had ever seen Chen Wuji in such a state.

Each of them was almost dumbstruck.

Yang Gong let out a long sigh, "Commander Chen, I deeply understand your feelings, but this isn't the emperor's fault. As for the inside story, I know a bit more: the person who earnestly pushed for the court's great army to march south is the Grand Secretary Yan Yan; although he holds the rank of prime minister, in my eyes he's nothing but a pile of dung!"

"Hmm?"

Chen Wuji stared for a moment; Yang Yu's words carried some hidden meaning.

"I have a few old friends in the capital; although I've been demoted to this place, some of the old affection remains." Yang Yu continued, "Not long ago, they sent me a message relaying what had happened at court."

"Although the emperor is still the emperor, I hear that edicts can't even leave the palace walls now; Ruan Yuchang, Yan Yan, and others have seized control of the government, merely maintaining the emperor's authority on the surface."

"The reason the court's great army is marching south is entirely Yan Yan's doing, with Ruan Yuchang and others backing him behind the scenes. As for why they have mobilized such forces, it's because they have already sold the Lingnan region to the Qiang people!"

Chen Wuji furrowed his brows sharply, "Did they really sell it?"

He had heard this countless times, yet never obtained a definite answer.

Chen Wuji doesn't disbelieve it; he believes it.

He just finds this whole thing somewhat absurd.

The Liu Jun territory—how much wealth would need to be sold to make it appropriate?

Can the Qiang people possibly come up with that money?!

Yang Yu let out a mournful sigh, lowered his eyes slightly, and nodded heavily, "It's indeed been sold, but I don't know the exact details of how it was done. This matter was spearheaded by Yan Yan, with Ruan Yuchang and others participating."

"I can guarantee this with my life—it's true. As for what compensation the Qiang people offered and the specifics of the transaction, I'm not entirely clear; what I know is mostly hearsay."

"I've heard that the Qiang people presented Yan Yan with a golden mountain in exchange for ten years of administrative rights over the Lingnan Six Commanderies!"

Chen Wuji:???