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There weren't many patrolling guards on the main street, but the Prefect's Mansion was heavily guarded.
"Who goes there?" A guard approached Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng.
Gu Jiao didn't speak. Instead, she casually tossed a token to him.
The guard was just a small soldier on the border and didn't recognize things from the capital. However, Gu Jiao exuded an imposing aura, and both she and Gu Chengfeng were wearing high-quality fox fur, clearly not ordinary citizens.
The guard took the token and entered the Prefect's Mansion.
About fifteen minutes later, a middle-aged man in official attire, holding his official cap at the top of his head and the hems of his robe, hurried over.
Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng were both dressed as men, and they wore masks over their faces.
The middle-aged man gave them a peculiar look but restrained his inner doubts. He bowed respectfully and said, "This humble one is surnamed Hu, known as Hu Hai, the advisor of the Prefect's Mansion. The Prefect is currently out on official business. This humble one is not aware of your esteemed arrival. Please forgive the oversight."
Gu Chengfeng waited for Gu Jiao to speak, but she remained silent.
Gu Chengfeng then recalled that this girl couldn't impersonate a man’s voice, so he cleared his throat and said, "No problem."
"May this humble one know how to address the two Lords?" Advisor Hu politely asked.
Gu Chengfeng adopted an authoritative tone and said, "We cannot reveal our identities. Please refrain from asking."
"Ah, understood!" Advisor Hu returned the token to Gu Chengfeng.
Gu Chengfeng thought for a moment and then accepted it on behalf of Gu Jiao.
Advisor Hu ushered the two people into the Prefect's Mansion.
Gu Chengfeng, with a confident tone, said, "Find a quiet courtyard. We may need to stay in Yuegu City for a few days."
"Yes! Yes! This humble one will arrange it right away!" Advisor Hu quickly responded and led them to a clean courtyard.
The courtyard had three rooms in total. Gu Chengfeng had Gu Jiao stay in the innermost room while he occupied the adjacent one.
"This humble one shall go pick a few clever servants to assist both Lords." Advisor Hu said with a smile.
Gu Chengfeng glanced at Gu Jiao. Noticing that she had no objections, he nodded in response and said, "Many thanks."
Advisor Hu respectfully exited the courtyard.
The steward, curious, followed and asked, "Advisor, who are those two people? Why are you treating them so politely? You even allowed them to stay in the Liuxiang Courtyard, which originally——"
He was interrupted by Advisor Hu, who spoke in a hushed tone, "What do you know? They have Empress Dowager Zhuang's token in their possession. They're people from the capital!"
The steward was left stunned.
…...
Gu Jiao paid little attention to the commotion their identity had caused at the Prefect's Mansion. She entered the room, removed her mask, and set down her red-tasseled spear and small back basket.
Outside, it was bitterly cold, but inside, the heated kang bed made the room warm and cozy.
Gu Chengfeng entered the room as well, removed his mask, and inquired, "It's strange. You've been keeping your identity hidden all along our journey, why stop now?"
Gu Jiao removed her deerskin gloves and replied, "There's no need to hide anymore. Our presence has already been exposed."
Gu Chengfeng's eyes narrowed, and he asked, "When were we exposed? How did I not know?"
Gu Jiao explained, "We were exposed when we entered Yuegu City."
In her dreams, Gu Chengfeng had been targeted while in Yuegu City.
Unless something unexpected happened, someone would likely come tonight to drug Gu Chengfeng.
The two of them entered the Prefect's Mansion in the afternoon, but the Prefect still hadn't returned even by late evening.
Advisor Hu had the kitchen prepare dinner, and he personally brought it over.
Gu Chengfeng was by Gu Jiao’s side, so Advisor Hu brought the food to her room.
At this moment, both Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng had removed their masks. When Advisor Hu saw Gu Chengfeng, he couldn't help but think that this young man had an excellent appearance, but he was simply too young. How could Empress Dowager Zhuang appoint such a young person to the border?
Then his gaze shifted to Gu Jiao beside him.
Advisor Hu was directly stunned by the birthmark on Gu Jiao's face. Did the imperial court really not care about the appearance of their officials?
Gu Chengfeng noticed Advisor Hu's reaction. He didn't pay much attention when Advisor Hu scrutinized him. However, when Advisor Hu stared at Gu Jiao with such an unusual gaze, it made him inexplicably angry.
His expression turned cold, "Advisor Hu, is there something you need?"
"Ah! No, nothing!" Advisor Hu quickly came to his senses, sensing the other's displeasure. He smiled awkwardly and took a few steps forward with the tray, "My Lords, this is dinner. This humble one will place it here for you."
As he spoke, he placed the tray respectfully on the table in front of the two people.
Gu Chengfeng and Gu Jiao had experienced their fair share of hardships and rough living conditions during their travels. They had been to wealthy cities and impoverished towns, and as they headed north, the weather became colder, and the people's lives seemed to become more difficult.
However, Gu Chengfeng hadn't expected the food in the Prefect’s Mansion to be this poor!
After all, this was the residence of one of the highest-ranking local officials!
Gu Chengfeng stared dumbfounded at the miserable-looking millet buns in his bowl, along with two hard-boiled eggs and a plate of pickled vegetables.
As if sensing Gu Chengfeng's confusion, Advisor Hu awkwardly smiled and said, "The borderlands are a harsh and frigid place, not like the capital. May both Lords be understanding and patient."
"The Prefect's Mansion is this poor?"
Gu Chengfeng couldn't help but ask.
Wasn't there a saying among the common people about ‘Three years as a clean Prefect, ten thousand taels of snow-white silver’?
Only commoners were poor, where could there be poor officials?
Advisor Hu lowered his head and sighed helplessly, "The Lords may not be aware, but Yuegu City is impoverished, and the people here often go hungry. Our Prefect, who comes from a humble background, treats the people like his own children. He uses his own salary to provide relief to disaster-stricken people, and he eats what the common people eat. Today is a special occasion with the two Lords visiting, and that's why we brought out the eggs and pickled vegetables the Prefect would only eat on New Year. There is meat in the pickled vegetables."
The last sentence was quite the finishing touch.
A piece of meat was in there?
Was it the kind with diced meat?
Realizing something, Gu Chengfeng asked, "Doesn't the imperial court allocate funds to the borderlands every year? Where has that money gone?"
Advisor Hu sighed again, saying, "Our Yuegu City is just a small city, and the funds allocated to us are limited. They've all been used. Our Prefect doesn't take a single copper coin from the people or the court."
Gu Chengfeng fell silent.
Forget it. He was a great thief. Why should he concern himself with the welfare of the people?
His purpose in this journey was to rescue his grandfather, and nothing else mattered to him.
Advisor Hu, sensing the mood, said, "Please enjoy your meal, my Lords. This humble one will take my leave."
"Mm." Gu Chengfeng replied nonchalantly.
After Advisor Hu left, Gu Chengfeng picked up one of the millet buns. It had been hot when it came out of the pot, but by the time it was brought over, it had cooled down and become as stiff as a rock.
Gu Chengfeng took a bite, finding it so unpalatable that he furrowed his brow. He said to Gu Jiao, "If Princess Ning'an had known in advance that she'd be coming to a place like this, she probably wouldn't have come to the border, would she?"
"Who knows." Gu Jiao replied.
Gu Chengfeng made a disapproving face. She always had a way to end the conversation!
While his expression displayed his disapproval, his actions of picking the millet bun for Gu Jiao were quite careful.
He peeled off the dried outer layer and placed it in his own bowl, while the warm and soft core went into Gu Jiao's bowl. Similarly, he meticulously selected bits of meat from the pickled vegetables for Gu Jiao.
He wasn't always this natural about it. The first time was at the first post station after leaving the capital. The food there was relatively good, and they unexpectedly had a plate of shrimp. Since he had grown accustomed to taking care of his younger brother, he absentmindedly peeled one for Gu Jiao.
It wasn't until he had placed it in Gu Jiao's plate that he realized something was amiss.
Gu Jiao wasn't his brother, and certainly not his sister. He would never admit it!
Raz P.'s Thoughts
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