PROOFREAD BY AFREANA

Chapter 22.2

Big Long spoke up at this time: “Under normal circumstances, spies lurking in the city and the countryside use a single line of communication. To prevent the whole nest from getting caught because of one person. If there is no emergency, they will not commit crimes and won’t communicate frequently. The dangers that Your Lordship stated are indeed true. Maybe once Miss An shows up and says those words, the other side will know Miss An is lying. But there is still a chance. If the other side does not notice the lie, we can continue. On the other hand, if the other side does notice it, they will need to notify their leader. We can then follow the vine and find the trail leading to that person. By staying in the Purple Cloud House Miss An will have access to military officers at all levels. Access to military documents. For the spies that will be a great temptation. If they really have the Fourth Miss, it would be time to use her.”

“They will assume Miss An is already working for the General.” Yao Kun said.

“So they will be very cautious, but they also have to take a chance. This is the closest opportunity they have to gain access to the Long family army.” Big Long replied calmly. “As for whether someone wants to make use of the moment to mix in as a spy through the death of Xu Matchmaker, I will investigate it closely.” He said, staring at An Ruochen, obviously still having doubts about her confession.

An Ruochen bowed to the ground: ”My Lord, General, you know what I said is true. I only want to save my sister. I want to spend my life without marriage to discover the real culprits behind these events. I beg you, sir, please make it possible.”

“What nonsense again.” Big Long said lightly: ”You still can get married after entering the Purple Cloud House. Who said you can’t get married for the rest of your life?”

“……” these words An Ruochen does not know how to answer.

Zong Zeqing’s face collapsed. General, you’re being indecent again without warning. This disease is not appropriate to break at this time, okay?

Contrary to him, Yao Kun did not think Big Long acted indecently. He thought his words rang true. No one would rule that Miss An cannot get married for life, but after this engagement is dissolved, she will serve the court, and her future marriage will become that much more difficult. He was the one facing a problem as well. How should he explain it to  An Zhifu and Qian Pei?

Yao Kun sent someone to take An Ruochen away. After whispering and communicating with Jiang Hongqing for a while, he discussed with Big Long on how to proceed.

”General should think twice. There have been no women in the military since ancient times. Will it be against the military law to call a woman into the military?”

Big Long laughed lightly and said, ”You tell me, that General Luo, who defeated the Northern Chu, was he a man or a woman?”

Yao Kun was furious. That was the first dynasty, and there has only been one female General. Also, she was a general and could lead the army to battle. How could An Ruochen compare to her? Anyway, he said explicitly that he could not find him to take the blame when the time came. Yao Kun said: ”General, making a proper decision will be good. You know this is a military matter. If something goes wrong, even if I want to share the burden with the General, I am powerless.”

Big Long smiled again. That smile was warm, lighting his face up by a few points. His tone became gentle as well: “The Governor worries for me, I am very touched.”

Only then did Yao Kun react to Big Long’s change in attitude. It seemed the usual ice-cold pretense in the room where only the two of them remained abruptly melted.

 Yao Kun froze, and his mind drifted. He thought he had been harassed. He quickly fixed his mind as he heard Big Long lower his voice and say: “My Lord, with the current situation, you and I are sharing the same boat. Until the South Qin’s crisis is solved, Pingnan County will not be stable. Although I am a military officer, I do not want to see the war started. When the war starts, my men will be bleeding to death, and the people in the county will not be able to live in peace, so how can you and I have a better life? In the past, we had no clue and had to press hard against the Southern Qin, but now that we have a clue, how can we let it go? If we can capture the spy and stop the war, then I don’t have to fight for my life on the battlefield, and you can keep Pingnan County safe and sound. In the future, I will include you in my report to the court, so that your merit can be recognized. However, the current state of affairs requires you and me to work together to make things happen.”

Big Long voice was mellow, and every word entered Yao Kun’s heart. The more Yao Kun listened, the more pleasing to the ear and reasonable it sounded. Both of them discussed this and this and this and this, and they quickly agreed.

Yao Kun asked Jiang Hongqing to put An Zhifu and others in the room first and then sent someone to Fu’an County to invite Qian Pei over. When Jiang Hongqing asked what was going on, Yao Kun said he wanted to intervene in the marriage and instruct An Ruochen to leave the An family and join the army.

Jiang Hongqing reminded quietly: “My Lord, didn’t we agree earlier to let General Long do this? If he wants to call people to work, he will naturally handle the issue of suitable identity. It is reasonable. He naturally cannot refuse. Do not forget, My Lord, it’s okay with An Zhifu, but Qian Pei will be difficult to deal with.”

Yao Kun frowned, quite unhappy: “How can I not know the weight of the matter? Go on quickly.”

Jiang Hongqing went away. Yao Kun sat quietly in the room. As he waited, he began to regret it. Previously, he thought clearly, but after talking with Big Long, he changed his mind and felt like being dragged into the mud. But since things have already come to this point, there was no way to take it all back.

At this time, Big Long, Xie Gang, and Zong Zeqing were in another room. Big Long  gave orders for some arrangements to be made, and the two people proceeded to fulfil them.

Meanwhile, An Zhifu entered the office anxiously. He secretly slipped some silver to Jiang Hongqing and asked him what had happened. Jiang Hongqing put the silver into his sleeve quietly. He invited An Zhifu to sit and said: “Master An, this matter is considered a good thing, but it is also troublesome. It depends on how you look at it.”

An Zhifu said: “Please let me know.”

“Your eldest girl is smart, and General Long has taken a liking to her, intending to take her under his command to serve the country. This is a great thing, right? But, the wedding cannot happen if she wants to work with the General.”

An Zhifu froze but did not understand. His cheap, stupid, and naive daughter may have the heart of a thief but not the guts of a thief. Crying all day long to attract people’s boredom, she wants to join the military to serve the country now? An Zhifu thought for a long time, looked around, and cautiously asked in a low voice: “Sir, you and I have known each other for many years. There are no outsiders here, you might as well tell me straight. Has the General fallen in love with my daughter ……”

”What are you talking about?” Jiang Hongqing was furious. “Tell me, is your eldest girl beautiful or captivating? Where does the General come from? The capital! A young official of the second rank, is there another in the whole Great Xiao country? How many dignitaries want to climb into his family, how many families want to put girls in his arms, and what kind of beauties has he not seen? There are many rumors about him. Have you ever heard any gossip about his lust for sex? What is he doing here? He’s here to fight against the enemy! Does he have the time to be seduced by your girl? Moreover, is it your girl’s turn to flirt with General Long?”

An Zhifu was dumbfounded, unable to refute even half a point.

”Don’t think too much. This is an urgent military matter. It’s about the South Qin and about the matter of rebellion, I can’t say much to you. You only need to know that the Governor attaches great importance to it. It is a good thing that your eldest daughter can be useful. As for the marriage, His Lordship will not make things difficult for you. He invited Master Qian to come, and they will talk face to face. You can wait.”

After saying that Jiang Hongqing left An Zhifu, who began to panic. Thinking about the things he just heard, he felt the matter should be related to his batch of South Qin’s jade. He regretted now why he did not pressure Qian Pei more to let himself learn how to take out that batch of goods from customs. If it was a treasonous crime, how could he afford it?

An Zhifu called An Ping in and asked him how things were going. An Ping said he had sent someone to report to Master Qian with a fast horse, catching up with the government’s people. Master Qian should have a number in mind and strategies to deal with it. In any case, Master should say that he does not know what has happened.

An Zhifu blew his beard and stared. He really did not know, ah!

The Master and servant in the room were engaged in discussion and did not notice there was someone outside the room eavesdropping on them.

In a short while, Xie Gang and Big Long received the news. There was something strange about An Zhifu’s jade business. It seemed to be related to Qian Pei.

The night soon passed, the sky flooded with blue light, and it was almost dawn.

Yao Kun walked around the room. The more he waited, the more anxious he became. Jiang Hongqing returned to report: “Master Qian is almost here. The first fast horse returned and the messenger said Master Qian’s carriage followed behind.”

Yao Kun nodded and asked, “How is General Long’s side?”

“He went to Miss An’s room once for questioning and came out soon after. Nothing unusual. Then, he talked with Lord Xie and General Zong in the room. I had someone go in a few times in the name of serving tea to listen in, and all they talked about were countermeasures to catch spies.”

“Mm-hmm.” Yao Kun put his mind at ease. He deliberately let Big Long stay in another room to rest because he thought if they had any other thoughts, they would talk privately. Now it seems there should be no problem.

After waiting for a while, Qian Pei arrived.

He swaggered into the building. Although the county government office was an important place, he did not hide the anger on his face when he faced the Governor.

“Yao Kun.” He called Yao Kun by name and asked, “What’s all this fuss about? Today is a happy day for me.”

Yao Kun frowned, pressed down the dissatisfaction in his heart, and told him what had happened. He said Xu Matchmaker turned out to be a spy, and besides her, there were other people still lurking in the city spying on Zhonglan City for South Qin. An Ruochen happened to be involved in this incident. Considering the situation, he expressed hope that Qian Pei will be able to look at the big picture and withdraw from his marriage to the An family. This way it will be easier for everyone.

Qian Pei listened to Yao Kun with a black face and coldly snorted. “No matter what reason you try to pressure me with, An Ruochen will become my wife. I had three matchmakers and six brides. You, a great governor, and Big Long, a great general, stole An Ruochen before she got into the palanquin and now want to force me to withdraw from the marriage. Is there still an emperor’s law in this country? In this world, do your Yao Kun’s and Big Long’s words even count?”

Qian Pei’s tone was brutal, and Yao Kun’s anger rose.

“Qian Pei, these things are originally military affairs, not to be told to outsiders. Only because it is you, I explained it to you personally. I’ve thought about all the ways to deal with this issue. Including one where she marries you as planned and tricks the enemy, etc. But after carefully discussing it, that solution would indeed be problematic. Those spies are smart. After she goes to Fu’an County, if she behaves unreasonably, it would only arouse suspicion. If her life is in danger because of this, can you still have a better life? It is also for your own good. Please find a reason to take the initiative to withdraw from the marriage. For one, it is to ensure that your face is not hurt. Secondly, other arrangements can go smoothly this way. Thirdly, it is to protect your Qian family’s peace. The reasoning is clear. You only got the benefits. Where is it bad for you?”

“Ha!” Qian Pei laughed coldly, “I got benefits? Where do I get the benefits? Yao Kun, you are getting better at talking. Even the black could be changed into white with your speech.” He stared at Yao Kun, thought for a moment, and then suddenly said: ”Well, with the friendship between you and me, I naturally will not make things difficult for you. I have helped you so many times. This time is no different. However, marrying a wife is a big deal. For no reason, how can I withdraw from the marriage? Let An Ruochen marry me today as planned. Three days later, I would repudiate her back to the An family. When I repudiate my wife, it will be much easier to find a reason.”

Yao Kun’s face sank to the point of anger. These years, Qian Pei’s greed for sex and profit had led him to do a lot of sinful things, but so far he always suppressed the matter. Yao Kun turned a blind eye to it but was disgusted in his heart. Now, Qian Pei brazenly mentioned this request in front of him. These words, to put it bluntly, he would marry the girl and have his way with her for three days. Then throw out the rags, and after that, whether the government still wants to use her or not, it has nothing to do with him.

Yao Kun remembered how badly An Ruochen was beaten. His heart understood the girl was unwilling to marry Qian Pei. She would rather take a risk to serve in the military than marry this man. An Ruochen reported the case after encountering several difficulties but did not mention the aggravation and sorrow of being beaten at home and did not mention Qian Pei’s nastiness at all. On the other side, Qian Pei disregarded him, the Governor, by completely ignoring the situation and saying such disgusting words.

Yao Kun couldn’t hold back any longer and said: “Qian Pei, you don’t want to go too far. This marriage, everyone looks at it as a hilarious event. Do you think it is a decent thing? With your age, how much older than An Zhifu are you? You marrying his daughter, is it appropriate? You do not think for yourself. Do not think for the girl. But, think for the Qian County Magistrate. For every move you make, everyone will count them on the Qian County Magistrate’s head. You do not want to invite this kind of trouble for your son.”

Qian Pei sneered: ”You are trying to scare me? Do not talk about my son. Let’s talk about yourself. Yao Kun, without me, Qian Pei, would you be able to become the Governor of Pingnan County? How you climbed to this position, you know, and I know. Now after almost 20 years have passed, you became so powerful as the Governor and forgot the matter? You say my marriage is indecent, but is your marriage decent? You repudiated your wife, sent her back to the countryside, and then married the daughter of the Meng Governor as your wife. Do you think that by pretending to be deeply in love and full of righteousness all these years, you can erase the past? Your nasty dealings ……”

 “Qian Pei!” Yao Kun slapped the table angrily, blocked him from saying anything further. After holding his breath for a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, “You’re old and confused!”

Qian Pei narrowed his eyes and stared at him, not intending to give in to the pressure to submit.

Yao Kun glared at him for a long time and said: “I have spoken to you. When and how to deal with it, you think about it yourself.” After saying that, he brushed his sleeve and left.

The door of the room was heavily closed with a bang. Qian Pei’s face looked blue as he clenched his fist.