Chapter 98: Chapter 98
Chapter 98
In just one day, the entourage of the First Prince had arrived at this remote village. This highlighted the importance of the issue, namely the soldiers’ mission to suppress the bandits. It also served as an excuse for the Third Prince and the Fifth Prince to journey to this distant place.
If it were said that they traveled here for carved jade to curry favor with the emperor, what would the villagers think? Therefore, the excuse for their arrival was their concern for the villagers being harassed by the bandits. They claimed to have come with close nobles to this place, and the carved jade was merely a souvenir. They could also claim that their good deeds led Heaven to bless them with this precious item to present to the emperor, who is seen as the son of Heaven.
Hmph!
All of this was to win their father’s favor and to show their ambition for important positions! Even the most foolish could see that. They rushed here to pressure the Young General to deal with the bandits quickly because they needed to hurry back and present the carved jade in time.
They never expected to encounter such an interesting situation. The more Yueqian thought about it, the more she couldn’t help but laugh.
"Little Qian’er seems very happy," Mu Heng teased as they walked back alone. The other villagers stayed behind, eager to see what would happen next. They had become witnesses to the affair between the general and the noble lady from the capital, which was certainly entertaining.
They didn’t realize that their curiosity could make them easily become targets. It seemed their desire to know had blinded them to how close they were to death.
"Of course, I’m happy. Soon, the people from the capital will start leaving, especially the Qin family, who won’t have the face to stay here," Yueqian said nonchalantly. Mu Heng gently stroked his beloved’s hair. Despite her expressed desire to sever ties with the Qin family, he couldn’t tell if she was sincere or just putting on a strong front.
"After the Qin family leaves this time, it’ll be a long while before they meddle again," the beautiful woman touched her chin thoughtfully.
"Mmm, so you can relax now," Mu Heng said. The slender eyebrows of the beautiful woman gradually eased. She had already planned everything; now, it was just a matter of letting things proceed as intended.
The Young General and Liu Sun—everything was going according to plan.
The remaining tasks in the process were teaching the naive villagers a lesson and punish the true wrongdoers.
The couple returned to their home. The children, waiting at home, rushed to ask questions when they saw their eldest sibling who was approaching. The children of the Mu family were also curious, as their parents and grandparents were still engrossed in the Young General’s affair.
Another day passed, and the matter of the Young General and Liu Sun was severely criticized by the Third Prince and Fifth Prince. The Qin family felt as though all their plans had crumbled. However, the reputation of the Young General and Lady Liu seemed to have temporarily saved the Qin family from criticism. Moreover, Yueqian had publicly declared that she was no longer part of the Qin family, so they couldn’t do anything.
The Qin family returned to the city without even stopping to check on Yueqian’s wellbeing. Soon, it was heard that they were preparing to return to the capital.
Well... who would stay and be laughed at? Returning to the capital early had its advantages. They wanted the villagers to see that the Qin family had almost allowed Yueqian to reunite with the Young General as he wished, but unfortunately, a scandalous incident occurred. Yueqian, heartbroken, refused to accept this love and sacrificed herself so that the Young General could be with the one he loved.
With such rumors, as long as no one spread strange news again, the Qin family would become the victims instead. Even the head of the family traveled to this remote village to keep the engagement promise, only to find the Young General had a relation with Lady Liu. Despite the Great General’s anger, he couldn’t sever ties with the Qin family.
Going forward, what the Qin family must do was to pressure Yueqian to rejoin the family, preventing any unforeseen future incidents.
However, the Young General’s disgrace was his own problem, and the plan to deal with the bandits still needed to proceed. Fortunately, the Third Prince and Fifth Prince were present. With their higher statuses, it was not difficult to replace the leader of this army.
The Young General was punished, his control over the military camp reduced, and the two princes received the credit for defeating the bandits.
"Alright, I will continue from here. I heard that a villager was caught poisoning the soldiers?" The authoritative voice of royalty echoed. It was only the second day of their arrival at this small village and the third day since the two princes came to this remote city, yet the information Third Prince had gathered from the soldiers was useful.
For the lowly villagers, it didn’t matter much. However, if he succeeded in uncovering the bandits’ spy while the Young General and the soldiers were still victims, his reputation would soar. Moreover, he and the Young General were allies. Even if he gained credit, the Young General wouldn’t hold a grudge. After all, the other party was bound to help him ascend the throne. Losing a bit of reputation was fine.
"Yes, Third Prince. Bring her in," the Young General said. Although his power had been stripped, he still had to perform his duties amid the gazes of people that seemed to conceal their thoughts. The Young General’s face had grown considerably darker over the past two days.
The soldier who received the order quickly went to fetch Mu Tian. Her body was filthy and reeked, even causing a look of disgust to cross the prince’s face. Her mouth and neck were smeared with her own vomit, and she seemed on the verge of losing consciousness at any moment.
"Throw some water on her to wake her up," Third Prince said. Although what he meant by throwing water on her was to cleanse some of the filth from her body. Otherwise, the stench would surely make him faint.
"Yes, Your Highness." The soldier who dragged Mu Tian here obediently followed the order. He ordered several buckets of water to be brought. While the punishment of making her stay in the vomit and excrement of sick soldiers had initially been satisfying for them, it now seemed like a mistake given the need to interrogate her like this.
Perhaps they should have questioned her first before punishing her, right?
"Ahhh!!" The morning air was still very chilly, so, once being splashed with the cold water, Mu Tian seemed to come back to her senses. She screamed as her body went numb because of the cold water that was thrown onto her. Her vacant eyes regaining some color but at the cost of shivering torment.
Mu Tian, already weak, could not keep any food down amid the soldiers’ excrement. Moreover, she had vomited repeatedly. Once she got to sit like this, her body was swaying till she collapsed, curling up on the ground. The ground here was dirty soil, yet it felt clean to her.
"Alright, answer my question. What did you put in the soldiers’ food, and what was your intention?" The Third Prince asked again, not wanting to look at her any longer because she was such an eyesore.
"I-I-I don’t know anything. I don’t know anything about this. I didn’t do it."
Mu Tian was trembling from the cold, yet she still knew how to deny.
"Whip her. Make her talk," the Third Prince saw the criminal who would not admit her fault. From what he had heard, she was caught red-handed.
"No, no, Your Highness. I only received two taels from some unknown man. He was a large man who approached me with a packet of medicine, telling me to do this job. That’s all, Your Highness. I don’t know anything else. I don’t even know what was in the packet." Mu Tian was crying as she spoke.
"Do you know that man? And what were you thinking when you accepted money to poison the soldiers?!" The Third Prince shouted. Mu Tian, knowing she had done wrong, cried and beat her chest. It seemed she realized this might be her only chance to explain herself. The eyes of the middle-aged women darted around, as if she was trying to think.
The Young General, seeing that the situation was now ripe, spoke up slyly.
Even though his reputation had taken a hit, it wasn’t too difficult to bring Yueqian back to being his woman. ...If this village was completely destroyed, what choice would she have left when she had nowhere to go?
"Your Highness, in my humble opinion and from how I’ve interacted with the villagers over the past few days, there is something unusual about this village," the Young General said.
"Unusual?" The Third Prince narrowed his eyes, looking at the Young General, who seemed to have a plan. The high-status man leaned back in his chair, appearing to wait for the entertainment the other was about to provide.
"Yes, Your Highness. If my assumptions are correct, it seems the people in this village are informants for bandits." As soon as the Young General finished speaking, the Third Prince’s eyes wavered intensely. He immediately understood the Young General’s intentions.
However... could this man, who seemed so honest and willing to help the people, truly have such a cruel heart? Even he, who had to plot against his own brothers, had never considered killing an entire village before.
Bang!
The Third Prince slammed his hand on the back of the chair, his expression seething with rage. He knew well that the villagers couldn’t possibly be as described. However... being in league with the Young General meant he had to play along. The general clearly had his own plan in mind, which was the reason why he said that.
"How dare you!" When the Prince displayed his anger, Mu Tian, who had no idea what was happening, began to tremble.
"I didn’t do it. I’ve been framed. Someone really did hire me," Mu Tian cried as she spoke, tears streaming down both sides of her face. Yet, her appearance, her heart, and her demeanor were all unattractive. Who would pay any heed to her?
"Bring them all here! These despicable villagers who dare to act as informants for the evil bandits and being this vicious, even when we’ve brought the army from the capital to aid them, must be eradicated completely!" The Third Prince declared fiercely. The soldiers quickly obeyed.
The villagers, already terrified, began to scream like a hen about to be slaughtered as soldiers arrived at their homes, even capturing their young children. The screams of one led to another, and soon the entire village was enveloped in a sorrowful wail.
Only the house of Mu Heng, Yueqian, Xiao Long, and Huan’er remained calm.
"B... Brave soldiers, why are you arresting everyone in the village?" The village leader asked after seeing that not only they were being captured, but the entire village as well. This aligned perfectly with Qin Yueqian’s predictions.Now, their situation was dire!
