CHAPTER 290: CHAPTER 287: STABILITY

Old Mrs. Chen knew Old Mrs. Song was joking, but she was not one to be modest, especially about her granddaughter.

"To be honest with you," Old Mrs. Chen said, "I also think my Miss Chen is better than anyone else, so we need to keep her well protected."

Old Mrs. Song hadn’t spoken yet when Mrs. Gao laughed and said, "Auntie, that’s not right. Miss Chen will eventually get married and can’t stay by your side forever. Don’t you think so, Old Mrs. Song?"

As soon as Mrs. Gao said this, she suddenly felt she had spoken too hastily. What was originally a casual chat between Old Mrs. Chen and Old Mrs. Song had changed in tone with her added comment.

If she hadn’t thought deeply, she would have forgotten that Old Mrs. Song was General Song Xian’s grandmother, and General Song Xian was still unmarried. She had never considered this before.

Oh dear, General Song’s age is quite suitable for Miss Chen. What if Old Mrs. Song misinterprets this situation?

Mrs. Gao thought of this and quickly changed the subject: "I need to check if the medicine in the kitchen is ready. Mr. Xu specifically instructed that the old lady must take her medicine on time, and we must not be careless."

Old Mrs. Chen nodded.

Mrs. Gao took the opportunity to leave the room.

Old Mrs. Song intended to continue the topic when Chen Yongsheng entered the door.

"What’s the matter?" Old Mrs. Chen asked instinctively, "Is there any news?"

Chen Yongsheng said, "Cai Rong’s army encountered the National Guardian General’s forces again at Ding County. Some people fled from Ding County, saying Cai Rong brought a lot of troops. The government office received news that Cai Rong led at least three thousand elite soldiers, not counting the reinforcements behind."

Mrs. Gao came out of the kitchen, her heart pounding as she heard this.

Chen Yongsheng said, "County Magistrate Qu said, given the situation, it’s unlikely this military conflict will be easily resolved. At this point, Cai Rong will not surrender quietly."

Old Mrs. Song nodded. Once Cai Rong realized he was being plotted against, it became evident that his collusion with the Liao people would likely be exposed.

Previously, in Song Min’s case, the court was already suspicious of Cai Rong, and now, with this incident, even if Cai Rong stopped immediately, he wouldn’t have a good outcome.

Old Mrs. Song said, "After all, he has spent half his life leading soldiers into battle." Unlike Mrs. Rong and Song Yu, who had no chance to retaliate once their schemes were exposed.

Chen Yongsheng nodded, "County Magistrate Qu means to say Zhenzhou is short on manpower right now, so the village’s able-bodied men must go to the government office to follow orders."

Mrs. Gao took a sharp breath. This is what happens during wartime; when war comes, everything, from spinning yarn to preparing medicine, must be put aside. It’s not even about whether one can have enough to eat and stay warm; it’s about surviving safely.

Over the past year, following Miss Chen in business, Mrs. Gao had become much more composed than before, and she could see at a glance that County Magistrate Qu’s arrangements were correct.

The key is to hold Zhenzhou City. If Cai Rong made it here...

This is where General Song Xian was guarding, and Cai Rong was eager to attack Chen Family Village. What good could come of that?

Thinking of this, Mrs. Gao turned around to call Hei Dan and a few others so they could help Chen Yongsheng deliver the messages to nearby villages; the village chiefs needed to gather to discuss strategies.

Old Mrs. Song said, "We don’t know when Miss Chen and the others will be back; let’s hope they don’t encounter Cai Rong’s men on the road."

Chen Yongsheng was busy meeting several village chiefs to gather manpower to go to the government office. Those left behind couldn’t be idle—half-grown boys had to patrol around the village, and they had to ensure enough grain and medicine in the villages. If not, everyone needed to communicate and support each other to deal with the war.

As dawn was approaching, Old Mrs. Chen heard footsteps outside. Chen Zigeng, Hei Dan, and a few others who had been keeping watch at the village entrance came in with Xie Liangchen.

"Grandmother," Chen Zigeng’s face was full of joy, "my sister is back."

A slender figure appeared in the room.

Old Mrs. Chen involuntarily let out a sigh of relief.

"How did it go?" Old Mrs. Chen asked, "Is everything still going smoothly?"

Xie Liangchen nodded, "When we left, General Qin had taken over Yingzhou, and a troop went directly to the Juma River to intercept the Liao people."

"On our way back, we heard that Cai Rong didn’t enter Qi State City, and there were wounded soldiers retreating along the way. Chang Yue had people ask around, and fortunately, the casualties weren’t too many."

But this was just one day; new developments could arise at any moment in the coming days.

Xie Liangchen continued, "The National Guardian General sent a few hundred men to Zhenzhou, along with some supplies. If the situation changes, we will shut the city gates immediately."

"County Magistrate Qu’s intention is that if there’s news of Cai Rong heading towards Zhenzhou, we’ll all retreat into the city."

As they spoke, Chen Yongsheng and others gradually entered the room.

Xie Liangchen moved to the outer room to speak with everyone, and the room soon filled with people.

Old Mrs. Song had someone help her get up and dressed. She said to Old Mrs. Chen, "It’s cold outside; let everyone come in and speak!"

Old Mrs. Chen hesitated slightly.

Old Mrs. Song said, "Given the situation now, don’t worry about such things."

A moment later, everyone came into the room.

Xie Liangchen stepped forward to salute Old Mrs. Song, then was forcibly seated by Mrs. Gao, "You’ve been rushing around for days; take a rest and talk to everyone from here."

Xie Liangchen indeed felt tired and didn’t mind these formalities.

"The teacher is here."

Chen Zigeng’s voice came, and everyone turned to see Mr. Dongli.

Everyone hurried to move chairs out for Mr. Dongli to sit.

"Go on," Mr. Dongli said, "I just came to listen to what’s happening outside."

Xie Liangchen nodded, "After returning to Zhenzhou, I first went to the government office to see County Magistrate Qu. We discussed, and tomorrow we’ll send the villagers with mobility issues into the city first."

"Every household should pack up their belongings. Even if Cai Rong’s army arrives, everyone should just bring the essentials into the city. The chaos from the war won’t last long, and evidence of Cai Rong colluding with the enemy is being sent to the Capital City. The Dingyuan Army and officials in Dezhou will understand the situation here and send troops to assist."

"We just need to endure for these few days."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Xie Liangchen said, "What I truly worry about is Baimaling. The Liao people might seize this moment to act because General Song and the former dynasty’s war are at a critical point. If the North falls into chaos, it will surely impact General Song.

If there’s no grain from Xingzhou within three days, we need to transport some military supplies to Baimaling ourselves."

The road from Zhenzhou to Baimaling must not be cut off.

Old Mrs. Song watched Xie Liangchen and gradually understood why Miss Xie was called Sister Chen by the nearby villages. At critical moments, Sister Chen had solutions, and everyone listened to her.

Not only in the Chen Family Village, but the nearby villages also had no objections. As long as Zhenzhou didn’t disrupt its own ranks, they could pass through this difficult time smoothly.

Old Mrs. Song sighed inwardly. If Mrs. Rong could be as competent as Liangchen even by a fraction, things wouldn’t have reached this point. In this aspect, her grandson was a hundredfold, thousandfold stronger than her son.

Mr. Dongli stood up, "It’s getting late; I’ll head back to rest." With Liangchen around, nothing will go wrong. What he thought of, Miss Xie already thought of all those too.