CHAPTER 270: CHAPTER 267: IMPORTANT PERSON

Xiao Xingzong was not surprised.

Hiding things from the Daqi Court and secretly working against him, such actions were typical of those people from Prince Guangyang’s side.

As for why those people were relentlessly pursuing him, it should be because they were suspicious of him regarding the siege of Prince Guangyang’s territory back then.

After all, Feng Jiang had close interactions with Prince Guangyang, and Prince Guangyang, until his death, refused to believe it was Feng Jiang who opened the gate for the Liao people.

Xiao Xingzong stood up and walked towards the secret prison: "What else did he confess?"

The steward said, "He said that when Prince Guangyang died in battle, they wanted to avenge him, so they captured Xiao Chi."

It seemed to make sense.

Xiao Xingzong slightly curled his lips. He had a jade-like face, and though he was a military general, he possessed a certain scholarly demeanor. In the past, when he was in Daqi, some praised him as a literate son of General Zhao and said he was versatile, even receiving many rewards from the Emperor and once serving in the Palace Department. Unexpectedly, he easily betrayed Daqi.

Even until now, perhaps no one truly understood the schemes in his heart.

The cell door opened, and Xiao Xingzong looked at the prisoner, beaten to a pulp.

The prisoner, seemingly unable to hold on any longer, lowered his head and recounted everything he knew.

"We are in Yuezhou because the Huaiji County Magistrate had a heart for Prince Guangyang. With Prince Guangyang gone and no territory, the remnants of the previous dynasty took over the eight states, and without troops, we couldn’t handle them, so... we secretly dealt with spies infiltrated by Daqi."

"Killed many Liao people to avenge Prince Guangyang."

"I didn’t expect you to find out... everyone in Yuezhou is dead, all dead."

The officials conducting the interrogation saw Xiao Xingzong approach quickly and handed him the written records.

Little did they know, Xiao Xingzong, after receiving the records, tossed them aside without even a glance: "These are all useless lies, what’s the point of reading them?"

The official’s expression changed. After so much interrogation and coaxing, they finally achieved something, so why did Mr. Xiao say it was useless?

Xiao Xingzong walked forward, his official boots stepping on the damp ground, and stood before the torture rack.

"Are you tired?" Xiao Xingzong asked, "Can’t hold on anymore?"

The person on the rack lowered their head even more.

Xiao Xingzong lowered his voice: "You are wrong, there are still people alive in Yuezhou, and not only are they alive, but they have once again captured Xiao Chi."

The person on the rack moved slightly.

This subtle movement was completely caught by Xiao Xingzong’s eyes.

"Although Xiao Chi was captured, I once again learned of their whereabouts," Xiao Xingzong said, "Captured them again, they are in Zhenzhou, Chen Family Village, right?"

The person on the rack suddenly began to tremble uncontrollably, their body convulsing continuously, as inky black blood dribbled from the corner of their mouth.

The official quickly ordered the governmental officials: "Quick, get him down, don’t let him die."

Xiao Xingzong didn’t spare another glance at the figure on the rack, turned, and left the dungeon. After washing his hands, he accepted a cup of tea and took a sip.

"Go," Xiao Xingzong ordered, "go investigate Chen Family Village."

The person beside him responded.

Xiao Xingzong said: "This Xie Liangchen must be thoroughly investigated. I want to know her background, why she went to Yuezhou, how she returned to Zhenzhou, and what she did after returning."

It was she who traveled from Yuezhou to Chen Family Village, wasn’t it?

So many people died in Yuezhou, and only she escaped. These people could fully confess about Prince Guangyang, yet still tried to cover for her by all means.

It shows how important this Xie Liangchen is to them.

"Truly remarkable," Xiao Xingzong remarked, "One careless move, and we may have missed a big fish." You should know that recent events in Daqi were all connected to Song Xian, and by Song Xian’s side, there was always a Chen Family Village.

...

Zhenzhou, Chen Family Village.

The people of Chen Family Village had long been so busy they couldn’t feel the ground under their feet. A few spinning wheels in the village spun day and night, and the women, led by Zheng, simply slept in the weaving house. After yet another busy spell, Zheng felt like she would forget which way her front door opened.

Old Mrs. Chen distributed the Silver Coin made by selling thread tassels to everyone.

The men in the village, looking at the increasingly "thick-waisted" women, all showed envious expressions. Thick waists were good, as the pouches tied above them were filled with silver.

Finally, it was the men’s turn to receive Silver, though not as much as the women.

Chen Yongli tentatively asked Old Mrs. Chen: "Aunt, did you calculate it correctly?"

Old Mrs. Chen rolled her eyes: "What? Jealous? Think you’re worse off than your wife? The thread tassels you haul out all come from the weaving house, how much more do you want to earn?"

"Take good care of the mountain herbs, and when the autumn harvest comes, let’s see how you compare to the weaving house."

Chen Yongli was left speechless. The women in the village were increasingly formidable, determined both inside and outside the home. People outside now knew that the women of Chen Family Village were the most capable.

Mrs. Gao laughed and said: "We are not afraid of the autumn harvest, we have the Familiar Medicine Institute."

A chorus of laughter erupted among the women.

Old Mrs. Chen scanned a few with large bellies: "Those who are pregnant should not overwork themselves. Adding a child to Chen Family Village is also a major event."

Zheng said: "Rest assured, Old Lady, I have been keeping an eye on them, not allowing them to do heavy work, and I ensure they have good meals."

Old Mrs. Chen naturally felt at ease with Zheng.

Mrs. Gao came forward and said: "The Silver Coin has been mostly distributed; I will take the people to the kitchen to prepare meals."

Old Mrs. Chen nodded, her gaze drifting to Mrs. Gao’s belly: "You should hurry too, Hei Dan is already so big..."

Mrs. Gao’s face immediately turned red: "Aunt, where do I find time for these things?" Without waiting for Old Mrs. Chen to say another word, she hurried off with the others.

Chen Family Village was indeed getting better and better. Old Mrs. Chen looked at the scene before her, but still couldn’t help feeling a bit worried. Perhaps it was the many hard days she had endured, having gone through so much, every good thing that happened made her mind whirl, fearing something bad would follow.

Old Mrs. Chen picked up an empty money pouch and headed towards the Familiar Medicine Institute.

After finishing with the silk cocoons, Miss Chen had buried herself in work at the Familiar Medicine Institute, busy sending prepared medicines to the Official Medicine Bureau. Old Mrs. Chen pondered that there must be something going on at the Familiar Medicine Institute these days, as Miss Chen didn’t even return home yesterday and stayed directly with Mr. Xu.

Entering the courtyard of the Familiar Medicine Institute, she saw villagers selecting herbs.

Old Mrs. Chen looked around, frowned slightly, noticing that there were fewer herbs in the courtyard than usual.

"Grandmother."

Xie Liangchen’s voice came: "Have you finished distributing the Silver Coin to everyone?"

Old Mrs. Chen turned her head: "Yes, I have, and they all took it back happily."

After saying this, Old Mrs. Chen lowered her voice: "Why do I feel there are fewer herbs in the yard?"

"The Official Medicine Bureau in Xingzhou has been established," Xie Liangchen said, "Xingzhou currently needs a large amount of processed medicine, so many herbs have been sent there."

Old Mrs. Chen said: "Xingzhou has established an Official Medicine Bureau, don’t they need our processed medicine?"

Xie Liangchen shook her head: "The Xingzhou Official Medicine Bureau has selected a dozen pharmacies to assist, all within Xingzhou, so it’s more convenient."

Old Mrs. Chen felt a bit uneasy: "This... is it alright?"