Chapter 193 Li Yuanfang Arrives in Pingzhou
After experiencing the Su Honghui mutiny and the Khitan siege and breakout of the city, Pingzhou City was devastated and in a state of depression.

In view of the turbulent situation, Zhao Ji ordered martial law in the city and deployed more personnel to each city gate to conduct detailed checks and strictly control entry and exit.

As a result, Li Yuanfang, Ruyan and Qiu Jing, who had experienced some twists and turns, encountered trouble when entering the city.

Outside the south gate of Pingzhou City, due to the war, the number of people queuing to enter the city was sparse.

Li Yuanfang was riding on a horse, his face somewhat pale. Qiu Jing and Ruyan behind him were in disguise and hesitated to move forward.

Qiu Jing raised her hand to block the glaring sunlight and looked at the city gate from afar: "I heard passers-by say that Pingzhou City was surrounded by Khitan. Now it seems that the Khitan have retreated."

Ruyan frowned and said worriedly, "Looking at the situation at the gate, the inspection is very strict. Lord Qiu's identity is so sensitive, and many people know him. Even if he disguises himself, I'm afraid he can't hide from the guards who are checking."

"Yuan Fang, why don't we wait for my uncle and his men outside the city? If Lord Qiu falls into Wang Xiaojie's hands, I'm afraid there will be some trouble."

Zhao knew that the news of Wang Xiaojie, the supreme commander on the front line, surrendering to the enemy was false, so he certainly could not allow it to spread. Instead, he blocked the news immediately, so the general public remained unaware of it.

Li Yuanfang looked up at the top of the city wall and said thoughtfully, "It doesn't matter. We can just go into the city directly."

Qiu Jing was shocked when he heard this, and hurriedly tried to dissuade him, "General Li, Wang Xiaojie is vindictive and cruel. If he puts the crime of robbing and killing the Qianniu Guards on you, he has an army at his disposal, and he might just kill you to silence you!"

"Yes, Yuan Fang, you were just injured. If you clash with Wang Xiaojie's men again, you will probably suffer." Ruyan said worriedly.

Li Yuanfang smiled gently and pointed to the flag hanging high on the city wall: "Look, the flag on the city wall."

Ruyan followed Li Yuanfang's instructions and whispered, "The governor of Yingzhou... Zhao..."

Li Yuanfang said with a smile: "The flag on the top of the city has been replaced by Chengyuan's. With Chengyuan here, we will be safe."

Qiu Jing showed a delighted look on his face and asked, "General Li, are you and Governor Zhao old acquaintances?"

"Chengyuan and I have a life-long friendship." After Li Yuanfang finished speaking, he rode forward with indescribable confidence.

Ruyan and Qiu Jing looked at each other and quickly rode their horses to follow.

When they arrived at the city gate, the soldiers guarding the city were still doing their duty and on high alert, so they stopped them for routine inspection.

A sharp-eyed soldier suddenly recognized Qiu Jing and blurted out in surprise: "Master Qiu? Weren't you taken away by the Qianniu Guards? Why are you back in Pingzhou?"

Faced with this sudden inquiry, Li Yuanfang remained calm and introduced himself directly to the officer guarding the city: "I am Li Yuanfang, the General of the Qianniu Guards. I would like to see your General Zhao. Please inform him."

Upon hearing this, the city guard officer quickly glanced at Li Yuanfang. Noting that he had an extraordinary temperament and his words were filled with unquestionable authority, he quickly took the fish token he handed over and examined it carefully.

After confirming that it was correct, the officer's expression became more respectful. He quickly put away the fish token, bowed and saluted, saying, "It turns out to be General Li. My apologies! Please follow me. Commander Zhao is in the governor's mansion at the moment. I'll send two brothers to lead the way for you."

After saying this, he quickly ordered two soldiers to step forward and prepare to lead Li Yuanfang and his party.

Li Yuanfang nodded slightly, motioning Ruyan and Qiu Jing to follow, and under the awe-inspiring gazes of the defenders, the group passed through the city gate and rushed towards the governor's mansion.
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In the governor's mansion, Xiao Bao reported to Zhao Ji about Zong Huaichang's situation: "General, the remnants of Zong Huaichang have returned to Pingzhou one after another. I have asked the soldiers under Su Honghui and also went out of the city to investigate."

"After leaving the city, Zong Huaichang fought with Su Honghui several times but failed to gain the upper hand. Later, when news of the Khitan invasion reached him, Zong Huaichang led his troops back to provide assistance, but was ambushed by the Khitan on the way back."

"It was night, dark, the battle was chaotic, the army was scattered and fleeing, and Zong Huaichang himself was missing. A few surviving soldiers claimed that when they last saw him, he was leading his personal guards to break out in the southwest direction."

Zhao Ji listened attentively, his eyes slowly moving southwest on the map. Suddenly, a familiar place name jumped into his eyes: "Dongliulin Town..." Just at this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps outside the door interrupted his meditation. Deputy General Sha rushed in: "Commander-in-chief, there is a general of the Qianniu Guard outside the governor's mansion. His name is Li Yuanfang. He said he is your old friend and wants to see you."

"Yuan Fang?" Zhao Ji stood up suddenly, his face showing joy: "Where is he now?"

"Well, he's still in front of the governor's mansion... he also brought..." replied Lieutenant General Sha.

"Oh, why don't you invite him in?" Zhao Ji said with a hint of reproach, and then without thinking too much, he quickly walked outside the mansion to greet him.

Zhao Ji's speed was so fast that Xiao Bao and Deputy General Sha behind him could not catch up with him, and he arrived in front of the gate in a flash.

"Yuan Fang!"

Zhao Ji called out with joy and hurried forward, about to give his old friend a warm hug, but when his eyes met Qiu Jing and Ruyan who were standing beside Li Yuanfang, he stopped involuntarily.

Li Yuanfang was much calmer, with a gentle smile on his face: "Chengyuan, how are you?"

Zhao Ji immediately put away his distracting thoughts and gently patted Li Yuanfang on the shoulder, but unexpectedly this action made him grimace.

"This... Yuanfang, are you injured?" Zhao Ji noticed Li Yuanfang's somewhat weak face.

Li Yuanfang smiled and said lightly: "It's just a minor injury."

"How did you get hurt?" Zhao Ji asked.

Li Yuanfang glanced at Ruyan casually, and then said: "Being hit by an enemy's hidden arrow is nothing. You will recover in a few days."

Ruyan felt a little weird as she watched Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang talking to each other, completely ignoring the people around them.

"Actually, it's all my fault. I fell into the hands of the enemy. Yuan Fang was injured while trying to save me." There was a hint of self-blame and guilt in Ruyan's voice, and her eyes were slightly red.

Zhao Ji nodded when he heard this, and understood in his heart. This time Li Yuanfang was not shot into a hedgehog, but he was still injured for Ruyan.

Judging from the way Ruyan addressed him, he was not General Li, but Yuan Fang. The relationship between these two people developed quite quickly.

"Oh? This girl is..." Zhao Ji brought the topic back in time and looked up and down at the dashing woman dressed as a man in front of him.

Seeing this, Ruyan immediately put away her weak attitude and said confidently, "I am Di Gong's niece, Di Ruyan. You must be the General Zhao that Uncle and Yuan Fang often mentioned, right?"

"It turns out to be Miss Ruyan, nice to meet you." Zhao Ji responded with a meaningful smile.

"After talking for so long, General Zhao still left us outside the gate. This is probably not the way to treat guests, right?" Ruyan joked generously.

Zhao Ji shook his head and laughed, waving his hands and said, "No hurry, no hurry, don't we have another guest? Governor Qiu, weren't you escorted to the capital by the Qianniu Guards? How come you are here?"

Qiu Jing was embarrassed when he heard this. He forced a smile and bowed deeply to Zhao Ji: "General Zhao..."

Seeing this, Li Yuanfang interrupted Qiu Jing's hesitation at the right time, stepped forward and said to Zhao Ji: "Chengyuan, I was the one who saved Mr. Qiu. It's hard to explain the twists and turns in a few words. There are so many people here, let's go in and talk."

Zhao Ji nodded: "In that case, everyone please follow me."

(End of this chapter)