Chapter 9: Turbulence in Youzhou

Youzhou, Xiaolianzi Mountain, Jin Mulan’s cave nest.

The blazing flames illuminated the cave, and Jin Mulan sat at the head of the hall.

The man below was holding a bamboo knife, wearing white clothes and a purple collar, and had his hair tied in a bun, which was unique to the Snake Spirits.

It was the Snake Spirit's number one master, Kui Wenzhong, who came to negotiate with Jin Mulan on behalf of some of the Snake Spirit's elders.

Since Yuan Tiangang was arrested, Snake Spirit has been in charge of the situation by his disciple Xiao Qingfang.

The reason why Yuan Tiangang arranged Xiao Qingfang to take charge of the overall situation was because he was impressed by her status as the leader of the Inner Guard Palace. The Snake Spirit could not do without this amulet.

The elders in the Snake Spirit, such as Kui Wenzhong, Huan Bin, Jin Mulan, Lu Cheng, etc., were originally not convinced by the inexperienced Xiao Qingfang, but the Snake Spirit needed Xiao Qingfang's identity as an internal guard for protection, so these people could only accept it.

This created a situation where everyone obeyed Xiao Qingfang on the surface, but secretly disobeyed her and tripped her up.

A powerful figure like Jin Mulan simply ignored orders and announcements, and with the support of Hu Jinghui, she bypassed Xiao Qingfang and acted alone.

But Xiao Qingfang is not a vegetarian either.

Because of her contribution in "eliminating" the snake spirit, Wu Zetian promoted her to the position of Grand Chamberlain of the Inner Guards, which raised her official status.

Within the Snake Spirit, she eliminated dissidents, promoted her cronies, and divided and disintegrated senior officials.

On the one hand, he actively won over the twin blood spirit sisters left by the old master, and on the other hand, he personally trained a number of masters including the spirit changer Su Xianer, Mo Ling, and Yingzi.

Xiao Qingfang recently established a new headquarters in the northern border area. Kui Wenzhong, Lu Cheng and others were left behind in their old place in Liuzhou, and they seemed to be marginalized.

Whether out of loyalty to Yuan Tiangang or out of concern for their own status, Kui Wenzhong and others must unite to fight against Xiao Qingfang.

During this operation, Jin Mulan was stationed in Youzhou, while Kui Wenzhong and others were responsible for negotiations on the Turkic side.

"Princess, I wonder what your plan is going on?" Kui Wenzhong asked with a half smile.

When Jin Mulan heard his question, she looked obviously displeased.

"What? Even you have completely sided with Xiao Qingfang? Are you here to blame me on her behalf?" Jin Mulan said disdainfully.

"Of course not. It's just that this time we are doing our best to support you and Jinghui, so I have to ask about the situation on behalf of Huanbin, Lu Cheng and others." Kui Wenzhong explained.

"You must know that if this operation fails, we will no longer be able to check and balance Xiao Qingfang." Kui Wenzhong reminded Jin Mulan.

Jin Mulan knew the importance of this operation. She refused to show weakness and acted very confidently: "Don't worry, everything will go smoothly."

"The only thing missing now is the list in Liu Jin's hand. He is still a little hesitant and refuses to hand it over."

"Oh? Liu Jin and I are old acquaintances, so I can help you with this." Kui Wenzhong said.

Kui Wen Zhong was a member of the clan of Li Ai, Duke of Huang. Ten years ago, Li Ai and Li Zhen, King of Yue, rebelled together, and he met Liu Jin at that time.
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On the other side of the cave, two guards were standing outside the door, and Liu Jin was under house arrest in the room.

Before being arrested, Liu Jin had made an agreement with Jin Mulan to give the list to Jin Mulan and to jointly rise up to rebel against Wu and restore Tang.

But now he has lost control of Youzhou and no longer has the capital to make a deal with Jin Mulan.

He was worried that he would be discarded after handing over the list, so he refused to hand it over.

Liu Jin sat at the table in a daze until Jin Mulan and Kui Wenzhong came together, and then his expression changed.

"Mr. Li, why are you here?" Liu Jin widened his eyes, as if in a dream.

"Brother Liu, I hope you are well. In order to recover the Li Tang artifact, the princess and I have joined the same organization." Kui Wenzhong said with a smile.

Due to his personality, Kui Wenzhong did not reminisce about the past with Liu Jin, but went straight to the point.

"Our goal is the same: to overthrow Wu and restore Tang. Now we need the list in your hand." Kui Wenzhong said.

Facing Kui Wenzhong's request, Liu Jin nodded, then shook his head: "In fact, I have used this list to cause trouble several times over the years. There are only a few people left who can be used."

"Brother Liu, don't worry. We have contacted the Turks this time and have Youzhou in our hands. As long as you are willing to hand over the list, I will ensure that you will be made a marquis and a prime minister, and enjoy endless wealth and glory." Jin Mulan promised.

Given the situation, Liu Jin knew that if he didn't hand over the list, these two might lose their patience and he might even be killed, so it was better to quit while he was ahead.

He suddenly took off his shirt and took out a bottle of potion: "Well, the list is on my back. Apply the special potion and it will become visible."

Jin Mulan showed surprise and signaled to the maid: "Do as he says."

After the maid applied the medicine on Liu Jin's back, several lines of tiny calligraphy appeared, which made Jin Mulan and Kui Wenzhong marvel at it.

At this moment, one of Jin Mulan's men suddenly came to report: "Master, Fang Qian and Wu Yizhi are coming."

Fang Qian is the current governor of Youzhou, the fake one sent by Jin Mulan to replace Liu Jin.

This man is not even an average person. He is cruel and ruthless. He bullies and oppresses the people in Youzhou.

Finally, the villagers of Daliushu Village were forced to rebel. Last night, in order to rescue their captured fellow villagers, they rushed into the city and broke into the Youzhou prison.

The whole prison was in chaos and a prisoner named "Li Er" escaped during the chaos.

Li Er's real identity is the Turkic Khan Jili, who was exiled to Youzhou due to domestic rebellion.

Fang Qian learned Li Er's true identity from his belongings and hurriedly reported to Jin Mulan.

Jin Mulan was filled with mixed feelings when she heard the news: "What? Jili Khan is actually in Youzhou?"

She paced excitedly: "God is helping me! Inform Fang Qian and make sure to catch him!"
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Fang Qian received Jin Mulan's order and did not dare to neglect it. He searched the whole city for Li Er. Zhao Ji and Di Renjie and his party of four traveled for days and finally arrived in Youzhou, where they happened to encounter the inspection at the city gate.

Zhao Ji stood at the front, Di Renjie was behind him, Li Yuanfang and Hu Jinghui were behind Di Renjie, one on the left and one on the right, the three of them guarded Di Renjie closely.

Although he was protected by Zhao Ji and three other people, it did not stop Di Renjie from looking around.

Zhao Ji looked at the soldiers at the gate and whispered, "Sir, it looks like something happened in Youzhou. The inspection at the gate is very strict."

Di Renjie just said "hmm" and said nothing.

Hu Jinghui said nervously, "Sir, this is too risky. If something unexpected happens, how can I explain it to the emperor? Let's wait for the imperial guards to arrive before entering the city."

Di Gong turned around and looked at Hu Jinghui in surprise: "We are just entering Youzhou City, not a dangerous place. How dangerous is it? Jinghui, are you a little too nervous?"

Hu Jinghui was a little speechless for a moment: "This, this, didn't Chengyuan say that something happened in Youzhou? It's better to be careful."

Di Renjie chuckled and said, "Don't worry, as long as you treat me as a doctor instead of an imperial envoy, nothing will happen."

At this time, the sergeant guarding the city had finished checking Zhao Ji and came over to check Di Renjie: "Old man, what do you do?"

Di Renjie quickly apologized with a smile, "Let's go, Doctor Fang."

The sergeant guarding the city looked him up and down, then glanced at Li Yuanfang and Hu Jinghui behind him and asked: "Are these people with you?"

Di Renjie replied: "Yes. This is our official pass." Then he handed over all the documents.

The soldier guarding the city took a look, nodded, stretched out his hand, and pulled down the bag that Di Renjie was carrying. Due to excessive force, Di Renjie staggered, and Li Yuanfang hurriedly reached out to support him.

Before Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang could react, Hu Jinghui raised his eyebrows and shouted, "How dare you!"

The sergeant was so frightened by the sight of him, who was tall and strong and came at him aggressively, that he trembled all over: "You, what are you going to do?"

Hu Jinghui took a step forward and took the package back from the sergeant: "How dare you, a mere sergeant, say such things to Qin..."

Hu Jinghui wanted to stir up trouble, but he couldn't do it too obviously, so he quickly changed his words: "Qin, Qin, you are so rude to my own father!"

Zhao Ji almost couldn't help laughing when he saw this scene. Hu Jinghui was a cold-faced killer, and his acting skills were superb, he was simply a drama queen. He obviously wanted to alert the enemy and report the news, but he made it so abstract.

After Hu Jinghui did this, the guards at the city gate surrounded him.

The captain shouted, "What's going on?"

The sergeant said: "I want to check the package, but he won't let me check it!"

The captain's eyes fell on Hu Jinghui and he looked him up and down: "What do you do?"

Hu Jinghui glanced at him, deliberately trying to make things worse, and sneered: "Just because you are a small lieutenant, you are qualified to talk to me?"

The captain was immediately furious and ordered all the soldiers to rush forward and capture Hu Jinghui.

When Hu Jinghui was about to be arrested by the soldiers and brought to the authorities to expose Di Renjie's whereabouts, he did not resist and allowed the soldiers to arrest him.

However, Di Renjie was an experienced man. He took out a few taels of silver to bribe the captain and said a few nice words, and the captain let Hu Jinghui go.

Hu Jinghui's plan failed, so he decided not to continue and just stopped.

After some twists and turns, the four of them finally entered the city and found a nearby tea stall to rest.

After the four of them sat down, Li Yuanfang burst out laughing.

Zhao Ji couldn't hold it anymore, but Hu Jinghui was still his immediate superior, so he couldn't laugh too much, as his nose and eyebrows were squeezed together and his face was distorted.

Hu Jinghui looked around and wondered, "What's wrong?"

Di Renjie also laughed and said, "They are laughing at you."

Hu Jinghui was stunned, as if he still didn't understand.

"General Hu is truly worthy of being the leader of the Royal Guards. He is truly a majestic general!" said Li Yuanfang.

Zhao Ji said sourly, "Brother Yuan Fang, please forgive me for making fun of you. This is how we are as Qianniu Guards. After being in the capital for a long time, it is inevitable that we are a little arrogant. It is normal that General Hu cannot change for the time being."

This is true. Most of the officers who join the Qianniu Guard come from prominent families, and many of them are children of wealthy families.

Hu Jinghui glanced at Zhao Ji and thought to himself, "What does this kid mean? I never give him any trouble on weekdays."

Di Renjie said half-jokingly and half-seriously: "Jinghui, this is not Chang'an, and you are not the General of the Central Army now. You are the son of a quack doctor, why are you glaring at me and showing off your power! You have caused me to lose a few taels of silver for no reason!"

Di Renjie probably really felt sorry for spending these few taels of silver. The old man was quite stingy.

The three of them took turns to make fun of Hu Jinghui. Finally, Di Renjie patted him on the shoulder and said earnestly: "Don't forget, I am not an imperial envoy, and you are not a general. We are all ordinary people now!"

Hu Jinghui was teased by the three people again and again, and he felt a little embarrassed, so he lowered his head and nodded repeatedly.

No one noticed that there was a beggar wearing a tattered straw hat next to the tea shed. It was Li Er who had escaped from prison! He listened quietly to what Di Renjie and his group were saying, with a look of surprise on his face.

　I will post one chapter first, and there is also a related work.

　　There is another chapter during the day, which may be posted at 5 or 6 pm. I am going to adjust the update time. Continue to ask for recommendation votes and comments.

(End of this chapter)