The White-haired Queen

The shepherd's eyes involuntarily lifted up and met Wen Lanyue's. She was sitting quietly on the horse's back, as cold and majestic as an iceberg. Her eyes flashed with sharp light, like two sharp swords piercing people's hearts. Her expression was cold and serious, without the slightest emotional fluctuation, making people feel an invisible pressure.

Under her gaze, the shepherd felt as if he had become a helpless lamb, and he had completely lost the courage to resist. His throat was dry and his breathing became rapid, but he dared not make any sound, for fear that he would accidentally anger the cold messenger in front of him and bring disaster upon himself. He desperately suppressed his inner fear and tried to stay calm, but his legs began to tremble uncontrollably.

Wen Lanyue witnessed Chu Feiyang restraining the frightened sheep, and she couldn't help but feel an indescribable shock in her heart. The scene before her was so shocking that she couldn't help but start to re-examine Chu Feiyang.

Obviously, he has a high level of attainment and talent in getting along with animals. Not only can he easily tame sheep, but he must also have some experience with other animals, right? Wen Lanyue couldn't help but become curious. If it was a more difficult task like training horses or pigeons, would he be able to do it so well?

Just as Wen Lanyue was lost in thought, Hong He beside her suddenly shouted, breaking her thoughts like a bolt from the blue.

Hong He shouted, "You daring lunatic! Tell the truth now! Do these sheep belong to you?"

The shepherd was so frightened that he trembled all over, his face turned pale as paper, and he stammered, "This... this is really my sheep."

Hong He stared at the shepherd with a sharp gaze and continued to ask: "Since they are your sheep, how long have you been raising them?"

The shepherd rolled his eyes and answered cautiously, "It's been... three days."

Hong He frowned upon hearing this, and her tone became even more severe: "Three days? In just three days, why didn't you lock them up in the sheepfold and take good care of them? Instead, you let them wander around?"

The shepherd quickly explained, "I have some free time today, and I thought it would be good to let the sheep out for some fresh air."

Hong He sneered and retorted, "Humph! What a ridiculous excuse! Since you claim that you have kept it for three days, please show me the transaction receipt from three days ago. If you lie and dare to deceive the imperial officials, I will definitely let you have a taste of jail time!"

After saying this, she looked directly at the shepherd with sharp eyes, as if she wanted to see through his true thoughts.

The shepherd looked at Hong He with a helpless expression and said, "I'm so sorry, girl. I didn't bring the transaction receipts for the sheep with me. I left them at home."

When Hong He heard this, her face instantly turned serious. She stared at the shepherd with wide eyes and said firmly, "Humph! In that case, I will have no choice but to send you directly to the government office and let the people there handle this matter. Just wait and negotiate with them!"

At this moment, Jing Li, who had been silent all the time, suddenly cleared his throat and spoke slowly, signaling Hong He to be patient. Then, he said softly: "Hong He, we are now in Beicang Country. The government office here may not be as easy to talk to as the government office in Shangxie Country. So, whether to send this person to the government office or not, we need to consider it carefully." After that, he used his eyes to convey his worries and concerns to Hong He.

Jing Li's words made Hong He hesitate. She knew that in Shangxie Country, most of the officials in the government office were fair and honest, and they were very efficient. But this was Beicang Country, and the situation might be completely different. If she rashly sent the shepherd to the government office, she might run into some trouble.

"Then what should we do? Are we just going to let him go?" Hong He asked unwillingly.

Jing Li shook his head slightly, "Of course we can't let it go easily. However, before taking action, we need to first understand the laws and regulations of the Northern Cang Kingdom and the way the government works."

"That makes sense." Hong He agreed. "We can ask the local people, or consult someone who knows the business."

Wen Lanyue said: "Distant water cannot quench a nearby fire. At the moment, perhaps we can ask Chu Feiyang or Fang Zimo." After the words fell, Wen Lanyue locked his gaze on Chu Feiyang, and his eyes clearly revealed a message - whether to let this shepherd go or catch him, everything is up to Chu Feiyang.

Chu Feiyang clasped his fists and then stared at the shepherd, saying in an extremely firm tone: "These sheep do not belong to you."

Hearing this, the shepherd quickly turned to look at Hong He, and cried with tears in his voice: "I have been wronged! I indeed bought this batch of sheep three days ago. I just drove them back from the herdsmen's homes."

Chu Feiyang responded: "However, a moment ago, you said that you were just taking time out to herd sheep, but now you changed your words and said that you drove the sheep back from the herdsmen's home. So which one is true? Which one is false? Or is it that neither of them is true?"

The shepherd's eyes rolled around, and he immediately came up with an idea. He said quickly, "I bought these sheep only three days ago. Today I had some free time, so I hurried over to drive the sheep. I never thought that the sheep would be frightened and disturb you. I am really sorry. I apologize to you all."

Chu Feiyang was about to speak when he suddenly heard a burst of hurried horse hooves sounds coming from afar. Everyone hurriedly subdued the horses and then ran back in all directions.

Seeing that everyone was already there, Hong He turned to Wen Lanyue and said, "Everyone is here now. Since we can't get any information out of this, let's hurry up and get on with our journey."

Wen Lanyue did not respond, but just glanced at Chu Feiyang silently, as if waiting for him to make a decision.

Chu Feiyang squeezed his legs against the horse's back, and drove the horse slowly to Fang Zimo's side. He pointed at the shepherd and asked, "Brother Fang, in your opinion, is this man from the Northern Cang country?"

Fang Zimo drove the horse around the shepherd, then returned to Chu Feiyang and shook his head slightly, indicating that he also felt that he was not from the Beicang Kingdom.

Chu Feiyang looked at Fang Zimo with a puzzled look on his face, and continued to ask: "Brother Fang, why do you think so?" There was a hint of urgency in his voice, as if he wanted to know the answer immediately.

Fang Zimo did not answer Chu Feiyang's question directly, but raised his right hand slightly and gently pointed his index finger at his eyes. His eyes were deep and mysterious, as if hiding endless wisdom and secrets.