After the interstellar female general died in battle, she transmigrated into the body of a dashing p

Zheng Zhian suddenly reached out with both hands towards Chu Mo's neck, viciously intending to snap it in two.

Chu Mo had anticipated this, so he leaned back to avoid being touched by her in her madness, and said calmly, "I don't even know him, why are you pinching me?!"

"Brother's debts must be repaid by the brother, who else should I pinch if not you!" Zheng Zhian's waist was blocked by the table and chair, so he could only pat his arm a few times haphazardly, just to vent his anger after being defeated twice at the Blood Oath Pavilion. He then withdrew his body and continued to slump down. "Does Master know about this?"

Chu Mo straightened his robes and replied, "The matter happened suddenly, and I haven't had time to tell him yet. I'll tell him in person when I return to the capital."

"If Master knew about this, he'd probably chop that Chu Xian to pieces." Zheng Zhian glanced at him sideways, then asked curiously, "How skilled is Chu Xian in martial arts?"

"Not inferior to me."

"So that means you're better than me?" Zheng Zhian raised an eyebrow and teasedly exposed her.

To be able to lure him out of the capital and still lose track of him, he must be no less skilled than him. Senior Brother's martial arts are on par with Ling Fei's. It seems that he will have to wait a few more years before he can personally beat up Chu Xian.

Chu Mo felt belittled, his lips pressed tightly together as he stared coldly at her. "Want to fight?"

"Senior brother, I was wrong." Zheng Zhian leaned back in his chair, clasped his hands together, nodded, and silently murmured to himself, 'A true man knows when to yield and when to stand firm!'

Chu Mo snorted and got up to walk out. "Instead of having time to laugh at others, you should think more about how to extricate yourself from that cesspool of filth in Luotian County."

"Do whatever you want," Zheng Zhian murmured.

Three days later——

The rain was continuous, and the twilight obscured the view, making it difficult to see into the distance. Zheng Zhi listened quietly to the shadow guard's report.

“When Magistrate Jia was first a registrar, he was recommended to the position by Kong Gaojun, the prefect of Jingnan, and was transferred to Baishan County. After arriving in Baishan County, he governed in a conventional manner, following the methods of his predecessor. There was nothing unusual about him. However, his wife and son were not here, but stayed in their hometown.”

"In addition, we discovered that another group of people are also investigating Magistrate Jia."

"There has been no unusual activity in Luotian County either."

Zheng Zhian flipped through the refugee expense booklet that Xia Chan had handed him. "Keep an eye on it."

"Yes."

He turned and left the house, glancing in a certain direction as if sensing something, before departing.

After the person had gone far away, a dark figure suddenly appeared inside the house, kneeling on one knee, "Master."

Zheng Zhian looked at Twelve, who was wearing a straw raincoat, raised an eyebrow, closed the booklet, and said seriously, "Why did you come here?"

"Since our master is here, we subordinates will naturally follow." If they had stayed by their master's side all along, the assassination attempt a few days ago would not have been like that.

If His Majesty truly investigates, none of them will escape.

"Get up." It's indeed more convenient for them to come over now.

"Thank you, Master." Twelve stood up and said, "General Liu asked me to pass on a message that she will have people keep a close eye on Wu Xuemin, so Master doesn't need to worry."

Zheng Zhian was momentarily confused before realizing that General Liu was referring to Danqin. After the ambush on Wuguwa that year, his original intention was to take the opportunity to transfer her and Ling Fei away from him so that she could pursue her own future. However, Ling Fei noticed the intention at the time and took the opportunity to refuse, so she knew Ling Fei's choice.

If Ling Fei had joined the army back then, he might be a general guarding a region now. Thinking of this, Zheng Zhian felt sorry for him.

However, this was Ling Fei's own choice, and she could only respect it.

Twelve suddenly disappeared, and footsteps approached from afar in the courtyard. Xia Chan and Zhu Zhiling entered together.

Zhu Zhiling held a stack of stationery in his hand. His back, which had been pretending to be that of an old man, straightened up, and a smile spread across his face. His fake beard, which looked like weeds, trembled. His excited appearance completely dispelled the solemnity in the room.

"Little An'an!" she said, waving the papers in her hand proudly. "Guess what this is?"

Infected by her excitement, Zheng Zhian smiled and asked, "Have you figured it out?"

"That's right." Zhu Zhiling's aged face was completely unrecognizable, her face full of a bright smile that didn't suit her image. "Don't you even know who I am?" She coughed twice, her back hunched, and handed over what she was holding.

Zheng Zhian took it and looked at it. She recognized all the characters, but she was completely clueless about the effects of the medicinal herbs. She returned the item and praised with a smile, "As expected of Elder Shi, this will save those people from suffering." After saying that, she stood up and clasped her hands in a fist and fist salute, "On behalf of those villagers, I thank Elder Shi."

"You...you're exaggerating." Zhu Zhiling's breath hitched, embarrassed and unsure how to put the things she had just obtained.

Zheng Zhian waved his hand, "Sit down." He then picked up the booklet on the table and looked at Xia Chan, saying in a low voice, "The weather is getting colder these days, so you should make sure to prepare some warm clothes."

"Yes." Xia Chan took the booklet with both hands and was about to leave when she saw a guard walking quickly towards her in the courtyard, so she stopped in her tracks.

The guards dared not enter the room, but stopped at the door frame, bowing their heads and clasping their hands, saying, "Princess, Lord Jia requests an audience."

"Let him in." Zheng Zhian sat back down in the main seat.

Jia Yifang straightened his robes outside the courtyard, entered the room, and respectfully bowed, saying, "Greetings, Princess."

"Get up."

Jia Yifang stood up and then noticed an old man sitting below. He paused for a moment.

"What business does Lord Jia have with me?" Zheng Zhian asked in a calm voice.

Jia Yifang composed himself and respectfully replied, "The Crown Prince of Luotian County sent a letter informing me that he is aware of the refugees here and has already dispatched an imperial physician." Seeing that the person above only nodded slightly, he lowered his voice and said, "The Crown Prince said that the princess has been concerned about the refugees for some time now. Your coming-of-age ceremony is approaching, and the Emperor in the capital hopes that you will return to the capital soon, so... so I will take over the affairs here."

He was extremely reluctant to take on the refugee issue, which is why he had kept quiet about it. Unexpectedly, his superiors personally ordered him to take on the task, and now he had no choice but to accept it.

“This matter should have been handled by Lord Jia.” A hint of mockery flashed across Zheng Zhian’s face, but it was gone in an instant. “In that case, I’ll leave the rest to Lord Jia.”

Zheng Zixi was just afraid that if he handled things here, he would go to Luotian County and mess things up. Now, seeing that things here were nearing their end, he was being sent back to Kyoto. In that case, the credit for the refugees in Baishan County would not fall on him.

Zhu Zhiling, standing beside him, glanced at Jia Yifang with an air of nonchalance before lowering her eyes, looking as if she were about to fall asleep.

Jia Yifang hadn't expected it to be so easy. He was well aware of the refugees' situation here, which was why he thought the princess wouldn't agree to give up the credit she had earned. He thought he was just going through the motions, but he hadn't expected to actually get a lucky break.

However, given the prestige of this master, he was not lacking in merit, so he respectfully replied, "Your humble servant obeys."

Zheng Zhian looked at Xia Chan and said, "You go and hand over the reins with Lord Jia."

"Yes."

As the two were about to leave, Zheng Zhian glanced at Zhu Zhiling, who was almost asleep, and said helplessly, "You should come too."

Zhu Zhiling raised her eyes, a hint of resentment in them, and said in a muffled voice, "Yes." She knew she was to go and make contact with the imperial physician, but she didn't want to deal with those people at all, especially given her current sensitive position.

Luotian County Post Station —

Seated at the head of the table, Zheng Zixi held a teacup, gently swirling it and blowing on the steam. Below him sat several men dressed in brocade robes, each with a different expression.

The man on the left, who was holding the teacup, paused for a moment, but did not bring it to his lips. He glanced at the people around him, and finally put down the teacup and couldn't help but speak: "Your Highness."

"Does Lord Kong have something to say?" Zheng Zixi took a sip of his cigarette, looked up at Kong Gaojun, who was past the age of fifty, but lacked his usual composure and steadiness.

Kong Gaojun opened his mouth in a troubled manner, then closed it again.

Zheng Zixi put down his teacup and looked at the people behind him with a normal expression. "You can all go and get back to work."

The people behind them exchanged glances, stood up, bowed respectfully, and withdrew.

After the unrelated people left, Kong Gaojun stood up, clasped his hands, and said nervously, "Your Highness, while I was here with you to provide disaster relief, Yu Xiuzhu secretly investigated the silver allocated by the court in Jingnan. The governor of Jingnan has been detained. I...I..."

With a thud, Kong Gaojun knelt down, his hoarse voice trembling as he said, "Please, Your Highness, show me the way."

Zheng Zixi glanced at the figure on the ground with a look of disappointment, then pretended to help the person up, saying earnestly, "It's not like you were the only one who took it. The third brother and the others aren't worried, so why is Lord Kong so anxious?"