General’s Gown - CH 65

Yan Changqing noticed He Li’s surprised eyes. He glanced down at the coat on his body, took it off calmly, and handed it to the little guard beside him: “Take it. ”

The little guard hesitated, wanted to say something, then finally took the fox fur.

He Li glanced at Yan Changqing a little strangely, and saw that there was nothing wrong with him except for his pale face, so he had no time to think about it.

He was filled with other thoughts. He followed Yan Changqing into the main hall, and before his butt was seated, he shook the “Eighteen Principles of Earthquake and Epidemic Prevention” in his hand and said: “Master Yan, this official is really—”

Yan Changqing didn’t wait for He Li to finish, just waved his hand and said: “First drink some tea.”

Only then did He Li notice that there was a slightly steaming cup of tea on the table, as if it had been prepared in advance. But he was restless at this time, and he didn’t have the mind to drink tea, so he just picked it up and took a random sip, and continued: “Lord Yan’s eighteen principles, this official really… You see, just confiscating and burning the holy medicine will cause a lot of public anger, but considering the poison of this holy medicine, that’s fine. But if Daren actually want the entire Qinchuan people to shift locations!? Not mentioning the citizens, even…” He Li gritted his teeth , He simply said what he thought in his heart: “Even I have 1000, 10,000 reluctances in my heart. I don’t understand!”

Yan Changqing seemed to have not heard it, and said calmly: “Master He, how does the tea taste?”

How does it taste? How could He Li have the time to pay attention to this! Being looked at so calmly by Yan Changqing, his extremely beautiful black eyes were clear, and a strange feeling suddenly rose up in He Li.

Like a ghost, He Li picked up the tea cup again and took a sip.

Only this time, he discovered that this tea was clearly a bowl of boiled water!

He Li placed down the tea cup. He didn’t know what Yan Changqing meant, so he could only smile bitterly: “Why does Master Yan want to tease this lowly official?”

“Tease?” Yan Changqing glanced at the tea cup: “Do you know where the water came from?”

Where else could it be?

He Li opened his mouth and said, “Of course it’s the White Wolf River. But in summer, we people in Qinchuan like to drink the water directly from the river. It’s rare to boil it like this.”

Yan Changqing nodded: “There’s something in this water.”

“Something?” He Li was puzzled.

Yan Changqing lifted the lid of the tea cup and pointed at the clear water inside: “What did Lord He see?”

What else could there be? Crystal clear, a bowl of hot water?

He Li shook his head with a wry smile.

Yan Changqing said lightly : “Lord He can’t see the red human blood in it?”

He Li’s heart was shaken: “What does Master Yan mean?”

Yan Changqing sighed: “14 years ago, the group of people on top of Baicang mountain, were you among the group of people who digged up the lake?”

In the Meng Xiantan fantasy, the moment Fei Lan fell, Yan Changqing clearly saw within the dark crowd, a very young man dressed in an official uniform turning his head. The man looked at the blood all over the ground in shock, and seemed to want to stop it, but looking at the sharp bloody blade, he timidly shrank back.

The man’s face was clearly He Li when he was young.

He Li finally realized that Yan Changqing’s trip to Baicang Mountain must have led to some discovery. He said in a panic: “What does Master Yan mean?”

“I also know that after the White Wolf River was excavated, the imperial court issued a reward to all those who went up the mountain and dredged the river. Everyone was overjoyed, everyone was promoted and prosperous, only one person refused to receive the reward. He also took an indirect approach in the scholar examination every year, insinuating that the Qinchuan County magistrate was rejoicing in grandiose deeds by not hesitating to kill off people’s lives. The result was predictable. This person clearly had great ambitions and was full of passion, but he could only be a small master bookkeeper in Qinchuan’s government office.”

He Li trembled: “You…how do you know?” Every word Yan Changqing said was the deepest knot in his heart. On that day, the tragic death of the innocent boy in white on Baicang Mountain resurfaced in He Li’s mind like a nightmare every day. He only hated himself for being soft-spoken, and could only use such a cowardly and extremely limited method to relieve his inner guilt.

He just didn’t know what Yan Changqing meant by suddenly mentioning this at this time? Did he come to make trouble with himself?

He Li suddenly restrained his expression and tried to stabilize his mind: “Why did Master Yan suddenly mention this?”

“You don’t have to be nervous.” Yan Changqing looked at He Li’s cautious and serious expression, and said, “I just want to give you a way to make up for your fault. For all those who went up the mountain back then, to make up for a mistake.”

Yan Changqing spoke while unfolding the “Eighteen Principles of Earthquake and Epidemic Prevention.

……

The most surprising thing to He Li was that Yan Changqing wanted to fill up the beautiful White Wolf River. But then He Li saw the explanation on the “Eighteen Principles”, saying that the river was polluted by the corpses of beasts who died of thirst on Baicang Mountain and became the source of the plague, so he understood it a little bit.

But what shocked him even more was that Yan Changqing actually proposed to relocate all the people of Qinchuan. That’s tens of thousands of people. It’s easier said than done.

He Li didn’t realize it until he heard Yan Changqing’s explanation. They always thought that the earthquake in Qinchuan City was a natural disaster, but they did not expect that it was actually a “man-made disaster” — it was from digging the White Wolf River and draining hundreds of water veins under Qinchuan. As soon as the water veins dried up, countless cavities, large and small, were formed underground, and Qinchuan City stood above these countless cavities. Even if the White Wolf River was filled, these voids cannot be recovered. In order to prevent a larger disaster that may come at any time, the whole city needed to be relocated without delay.

Of course, this is also to make up for the mistakes made by the people of Qinchuan back then, and to return Feilan and Wuyi a piece of pure land to rest in peace.

——————————————————————

The sun finally rose up from the layers of fog, the dew was drying up, the grass was green, and it was a fine summer day again.

He Li stepped out of the door, raised his chest and took a deep breath of the morning air, only to feel that the heavy blockage in his chest for many years had finally swept away. However, his shoulders suddenly became heavier.

Yan Changqing stood by the door and solemnly instructed: “The matter of moving the people is imminent, and we cannot wait for the court’s approval. Therefore, all the orders will be stated as having been given by me, Yan Changqing. If the people are dissatisfied, you will put the blame all on me. I will carry it alone.”

He Li was shocked: “Sir…”

What Yan Changqing said dispelled the last trace of concern in his heart. He Li suddenly felt a little ashamed.

Yan Changqing continued: “If this is a success, you can hand this over to the imperial court, and you will be rewarded.”

He Li took the book handed to him by Yan Changqing in a daze and unfolded it. After a long while, his wrists trembled slightly, and he finally knelt down.

“Sir!”

He saw what was written in the booklet, all of which commended He Li’s achievements and merits over the years. The recommended words at the end, every word hit He Li’s heart with a burning heat.

The pearl of the officialdom, a virtuous official.

This is the recognition that He Li had been studying for years, and had been thinking about it day and night.

Yan Changqing sighed silently: “So, you don’t have to worry about anything, just do your best. If you do it well, you will definitely have everything you want.”

“So, Lord He, please—”

He Li leaned over and solemnly kowtowed, his voice trembled slightly: “Sir, don’t worry! This lowly official will… definitely do it!”

Yan Changqing nodded, said nothing, then turned and left.

With a creak, the wooden door slowly closed.

He Li raised his head and stared blankly at the corner of Yan Changqing’s clothes flashing through the crack of the door. After a while, his excitement subsided a little, and he suddenly realized a problem.

Yan Changqing was in Qinchuan City, why didn’t he do it himself? Why did he entrust everything to a small official like himself?

All good things would be counted as He Li’s accomplishments, and all possible hidden dangers would be borne by Yan Changqing alone?

It’s like the dying sacrifice in a play.

He Li suddenly thought of this for no reason, and was startled. Yan Changqing’s extremely pale picturesque and handsome face appeared in his mind.

He Li immediately shook his head and drove this inexplicable unfavorable idea out.

Hey, what is he thinking about? He Li held the memorial in Yan Changqing’s handwriting, and felt extremely at ease.

In brief, He Li has lived for 30 years, and now he has finally met a good judge of talent, and he must work hard!

At the same time, the door closed.

Yan Changqing held onto the door frame, his pale fingers gripped the door bolt tightly, gasping for breath. He closed his eyes tightly for a long time before he recovered from the dizziness.

It was so dangerous, he almost couldn’t support himself and fell down.

On the palm of his left hand, which was slowly opened, the bloodstains left by his four fingernails were deeply sunken.

It was a moment of dizziness, and he broke out in cold sweat and trembled uncontrollably. Facing He Li just now, he clenched his teeth and clenched his fists to stop the trembling.

But the cold feeling still seeped into every bone, as if using an ice blade for the ‘death of a thousand cuts’.

Cold. So cold.

The little guard just came out of the back kitchen, still holding the medicine fan in his hand. Seeing Yan Changqing like this, he hurriedly supported him, with a cry in his voice: “Sir, you… What’s the matter with you? I’m going to get the big clothes, hurry up and put them on?”

Yan Changqing slowly opened his eyes, and looked up at the sun with calm and clear eyes: “It’s time?”

The little guard nodded.

“Then he should be back soon.” Yan Changqing gritted his teeth, refused the little guard’s extra clothes, and said word by word, “You know what to say.”

With great determination, the little guard finally nodded. Just as he stepped into the house with his forefoot, Yan Changqing heard the sound of wind behind his ears, and something fell lightly.

There was someone there!

Yan Changqing was startled, but his body couldn’t keep up with the reaction.

Immediately afterwards, he was hugged from behind, and the warm and familiar breath sprayed on the side of his neck.

Helian Rongchuan smiled and hugged Yan Changqing, “Hey, why didn’t you resist this time? Did you realize that I was not an assassin without looking back?”

He quietly wiped the blood from the palm of his hand and said calmly: “You came back faster than I thought.”

“Because I missed you.” Helian Rongchuan sniffed the elegant and clean neck of Yan Changqing. His voice was low and hoarse, speaking in a teasing manner: “The task assigned by Lord Yan, this prince has completed it. Is there a reward?”

“Reward?” Yan Changqing still did not dare to look back at him, and only tried his best to control his own tremble in his voice and body.

“Nothing?” Helian Rongchuan still had a smirk in his voice: “Well, this prince is not very demanding, I just want some kisses and hugs.”