She's skilled in medicine, martial arts, and even understands animal language—the abandoned dau

Mo Ji rushed to the palace gate with a burning heart, only to see the people surging like a tidal wave, shouting to rush into the palace to demand justice. The angry roar seemed to engulf the entire palace.

Mo Ji took a deep breath, suppressing his inner panic, stood on higher ground, and shouted loudly, "Fellow villagers, please calm down! Let me say a few words!"

The people's eyes immediately focused on him, and the previously noisy noise subsided slightly.

Someone in the crowd recognized Mo Ji and shouted, "That's Commander Mo who fought desperately against the Japanese before!"

Only then did everyone recall the scene of Mo Ji leading his guards in a desperate fight against the Japanese during the bloody massacre at the palace gate.

It was this impression that made them willing to let Mo Ji finish speaking for the time being.

Seeing this, Mo Ji quickly pressed his advantage: "Folks, Her Majesty the Empress was framed by Zi Luo and her gang of Japanese! She also hates the Japanese atrocities and has been trying to find a way to punish the murderers and give everyone an explanation!"

At this moment, a middle-aged man with tears streaming down his face rushed out and roared, "An explanation? My son is dead, what explanation do you have? We saw with our own eyes that the Japanese came out of the palace. If it wasn't the Empress who ordered them, who else could it be?"

The surrounding people also became restless, and their emotions were reignited.

Mo Ji quickly explained, "Fellow villagers, Zi Luo and the others have been acting mysteriously, which has indeed deceived everyone."

But the Empress is truly innocent. She has been investigating the matter with all her might, but those Japanese people disappeared so quickly that it's difficult to find any trace of them in time.

Someone in the crowd questioned, "Then what do you suggest we do? Are we just going to wait here like this?"

Mo Ji said sincerely, "Fellow villagers, I know that you have hatred and doubts in your hearts."

There must have been many witnesses to the Japanese atrocities. I implore everyone to help us recall if we saw anything unusual or heard anything the Japanese said. These could be key to finding their trail.

Just then, a young man stepped forward and said, "I saw a Japanese samurai with a strange tattoo on his arm, which looked like a black flower."

Then, another elderly man recalled, "I heard them mention some kind of 'code,' but I didn't hear the specifics."

The people offered their clues one after another.

Mo Ji was overjoyed and carefully noted down each of these clues. He knew that these scattered pieces of information might be the key to finding the Japanese.

At the same time, an old man stepped forward and said to the crowd, "Fellow villagers, Commander Mo seems to genuinely want to find those Japanese pirates, so let's give them some more time. If they just go through the motions, then it won't be too late for us to take action."

Everyone nodded in agreement and then left the palace one after another.

Seeing this, Mo Ji breathed a sigh of relief and then ordered his men to go to the prison and release the Qingyang Marquis and his family.

However, just as Mo Ji was leading his men to search for Zi Luo and the others, she had already led a group of Japanese warriors out of the city.

"Chief, are we just going to let this go?" a warrior asked, puzzled.

“Yesterday I received a letter from my father saying that a powerful army has suddenly appeared in Rongzhou and has killed many of our compatriots in recent days.”

My father told us to go back and help them deal with those people first, then we could come back later. Anyway, things are chaotic here right now, and they won't be able to sort things out anytime soon.

Meanwhile, Cui Jinrong rode at breakneck speed, traveling day and night, and after two horses died from exhaustion, he finally arrived at the border town.

To facilitate management, Shen Man prepared a wooden plaque with the name of the local people of Biancheng Prefecture for each person, and the person holding the plaque could freely enter and exit the city gate.

Those without a wooden plaque would be taken to the city gate guards for questioning. If there were no problems, the guards would issue them a plaque; if there were problems, they would be arrested or driven away.

Cui Jinrong was unaware of this regulation in Biancheng Prefecture, so his appearance at the city gate immediately attracted the attention of the guards.

"Who goes there? Do you have a sign?" a guard shouted, brandishing his spear and assuming a defensive stance.

Cui Jinrong reined in the reins, breathing heavily. His clothes were already soaked with sweat, and his handsome face was full of exhaustion from the journey.

Upon hearing the guard's question, he quickly dismounted and swiftly cupped his hands, saying, "Gentlemen, I am from the capital. I have come here specifically to see Lord Ding, and I have no official plaque."

The guards exchanged glances, their expressions immediately becoming alert. They gripped their spears slightly and quickly surrounded Cui Jinrong.

One of the older guards frowned, his eyes scrutinizing: "Without a wooden tag, you can't just enter the city. Come with us to the city gate, and we'll check you out first."

Cui Jinrong did not resist and obediently followed the guards to the city gate.

Along the way, he discreetly observed the scenery of the border town. He saw that the city walls were tall and thick, and various defensive weapons were hung on them.

The soldiers patrolling back and forth marched in unison, exuding a well-trained and spirited demeanor.

He nodded to himself, quite impressed with the defenses of the border town.

Upon arriving at the city gate, the guards asked Cui Jinrong to sit down and began to carefully inquire about his name, origin, purpose, and what he had seen and heard along the way.

Cui Jinrong patiently answered all the questions, but concealed some important matters, such as his escape from the Duke of Xingguo's mansion and his arrival in the border town with evidence concerning the Meng family's injustice.

The guards looked at each other, unsure whether what he said was true or false.

However, judging from his appearance and demeanor, he was not an ordinary person. Moreover, seeing that he came from the capital, they were worried that he was a spy sent by the imperial court, and dared not release him easily.

After a long while, an older guard said, "Since you are a friend of our city lord, please allow us to go to the government office to report to the city lord. Please sit here for a moment."

After saying this, he sent a young guard to rush to the government office to report.

Cui Jinrong nodded, inwardly appreciating the guards' responsible attitude, and did not make things difficult for them.

He sat in the chair, closed his eyes, and tried to recover some strength.

Because he had been rushing to get somewhere these past few days, he hadn't had time to rest and was extremely tired.

After a long while, a series of hurried footsteps came, and Shen Man hurriedly walked in surrounded by a group of guards.

When she saw Cui Jinrong, a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes, and she blurted out instinctively, "Third Young Master Cui, what brings you here?"

Cui Jinrong slowly opened his eyes, stood up, and gave a bitter smile: "Lord Ding, I have come here specifically to seek refuge with you. From now on, there is no more Cui Jinrong in this world, only Meng Zirong!"