Chapter 917: with translation of chapter title

Third Uncle is indeed still mighty! Chen Wuji exclaimed sincerely.

Third Uncle really did a beautiful job on this matter.

He solved his biggest trouble on this mountain in one go.

It doesn't matter if the eleventh-ranked princess ran away; catching her would be a bonus, and not catching her isn't anything to regret.

But since that scoundrel Liu Yan ran away, this battle can only be counted as half a victory.

In this area of Shenxian Ling, finding an army of twenty thousand is easy, and the traces they leave behind cannot be concealed at all.

But it's only a few hundred people; if one is careful, finding their traces is very difficult.

As long as we get past tonight, it will basically be impossible to find them.

Chen Wuji had previously planned to search the mountains for two days, but before making this decision, he had already prepared himself in his heart to give up.

"Third Uncle, you really handled this reliably!" Chen Wuji couldn't help but exclaim again.

Third Uncle hastily clasped his hands and said he didn't deserve it, "This is all what an old man like me should do; I don't deserve such praise from the Commander."

At that moment, an elder who had just walked to the edge of the woods, preparing to learn from Chen Li how to be a guard and perform well, suddenly had his heart broken.

Lao San's reliability, every stroke and line, seems to say he's unreliable, not putting in effort.

This made Lu Daye seriously doubt life.

He felt he was also quite diligent and responsible, so why did things change after Lao San came? Could the problem not be with him but with Lao San?

This old brat never seemed this clever before!

Lu Daye squatted down in a very standard manner, scratched his head, and after a deep thought, dismissed that earlier guess, feeling that his own problems were greater, indeed he hadn't done his job well enough.

In the woods, the keen-sensed Lu San Ye noticed Lu Daye's slight abnormal reaction, but didn't pay too much attention; the sight of someone squatting on the ground, scratching ears and cheeks, looking doubtful about life, was too common on the eldest, so at most it could only draw a glance.

"Commander, I suggest you later disguise yourself a bit, pretend to have made some deal with Yu Shu Mei, and Liu Yan should get anxious." Lu San Ye suggested.

Chen Wuji nodded, "Your idea is good. But I need to clarify something: does Yu Shu Mei just want freedom?"

"Yes, as a Prisoner of the Steps, at this time she shouldn't have any other outrageous aims." Lu San Ye said, "Even if she does, she'd have to wait until she escapes, and maybe then could try to contact me again."

Chen Wuji nodded thoughtfully, "I need to weigh this a bit; there's a lot to be done here. A princess appearing in such a place is inherently abnormal; perhaps through her we can get directly to Yan Yan's side."

"With Liu Yan's status, he probably isn't qualified to mingle with a princess, even if this princess might not be favored and bears some secrets."

Lu San Ye crossed his arms over his chest, habitually began to pick at his lips, and after a moment asked: "Commander, I've heard the Emperor is currently under soft house arrest by Yan Yan in the palace; is that true?"

"The Emperor himself wrote to me, so it shouldn't be wrong." Chen Wuji said.

Lu San Ye said solemnly: "The Emperor is under soft house arrest by Yan Yan in the palace, but the Eleventh Princess is mingling with Yan Yan's subordinate Great General on the front lines of the battlefield; between them, I don't see them being troubled by love, it's too mismatched."

Chen Wuji couldn't help but laugh, "Third Uncle, your idea is really far-fetched; how could you imagine them having that kind of relationship? At first glance it's impossible."

"If there isn't this kind of marital alliance..."

"Wait, you just said... marital alliance?"

Lu San Ye gave an embarrassed smile, "I'm used to speaking crudely, I couldn't think of a more fitting term right away."

Chen Wuji laughed heartily.

This elder, what a wonderful person!

Lu San Ye himself couldn't help but laugh, after holding back his laughter for a moment he said: "What I want to say is, if they don't have that kind of relationship, then there are probably only two possibilities left."

"Either this Eleventh Princess is lurking by Yan Yan's side, enduring humiliation and bearing burdens, or she is using Yan Yan's hand to take revenge on the imperial family; he truly is forming a marital alliance with Yan Yan..."

Mid-sentence, Lu San Ye hit the brakes suddenly, then couldn't help but laugh.

Although his words weren't finished, Chen Wuji already heard which word he meant: "Third Uncle, using marital alliance this time is correct, very fitting. Based on your initial judgment of this Eleventh Princess, which possibility do you lean toward?"

Lu San Ye shook his head, "I really can't judge this; we know too little so far, and this is our first meeting with the Eleventh Princess. Her words are ambiguous, no one knows if she's sincere or not! But perhaps the latter possibility is greater—being mutual enemies, few would speak the truth right away."

"Later I'll meet Liu Yan; this Eleventh Princess can continue to be handled by Third Uncle for negotiations." Chen Wuji said after a moment's thought, "But just bribing a few things is too superficial; I also need to add some of my own conditions."

"What conditions does the Commander want to add?"

"Third Uncle, just improvise when the time comes." Chen Wuji's answer was so rough it could be said to have no answer.

Upon hearing that, Lu San Ye was at a loss.

He gave a wry smile, "Commander, leaving it to me to improvise… I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it well."

"No problem, as long as there's profit to be made." Chen Wuji waved his hand, giving his reason: "First we need to find out the Eleventh Princess's background, then seize the opportunity to act. Whether it's the imperial family or Yan Yan, what we can currently use is actually very limited; frankly, right now the most we can use is just some information, but we have hardly any manpower in Jingcheng, so stirring up this pool of water is very difficult."

"Third Uncle, just improvise; get whatever benefits you can, to the greatest extent possible."

Chen Wuji actually thought of the Qin Family at this moment.

But even if it were for the face of Qin Zhanhong, it probably wouldn't have any effect.

A massive entity like the Qin Clan considers matters extremely cautiously, never making decisions lightly.

Lu San Ye nodded, "Since the Commander trusts me this old fellow so much, I'll go meet the Eleventh Princess again. However, I suggest the Commander first leave her be for a few days, wait until she can't sit still, then make calculations."

"Good!" Chen Wuji nodded, "The scope of this, Third Uncle, you handle it yourself; I'll go meet Liu Yan first."

"Yes!"

Lu San Ye responded with an affirmation.

"Shi Yi Shu, bring the person over." Chen Wuji ordered.

"Yes!"

Not long after, a dejected Liu Yan was brought over by the Personal Guard.

Chen Wuji didn't bother with the Song Jiang-style kowtow, coldly glanced at Liu Yan, and said, "This Head Trophy of yours looks not bad!"