Chapter 209: Lu Xian’s Hostility

Some people speak with such thoughtfulness that it feels like a spring breeze; others speak with nothing but harshness, every word and sentence hitting one’s reverse scale, making one uncomfortable and unhappy.

In the past, Xie Wei was the former.

After all, his demeanor inside and outside the court, with the ancient sage’s legacy of modesty and thoroughness, earned him a good reputation. However, in front of her, knowing each other’s background, once the mask was removed, his words became increasingly harsh, with no concealment at all.

For a moment, her anger almost overwhelmed her, giving her the impulse to loudly question him—

What do you know?

What does a cold-blooded and ruthless person like you know?

You know nothing.

But the nearly penetrating gaze Xie Wei gave her just now inexplicably dissolved her sudden surge of courage.

She didn’t dare.

Jiang Xuening sat at the table for quite a while before getting up and following him out.

Xie Wei stood under the eaves outside, looking at the sky.

The strong wind from the north blew away the floating clouds and gloom, clearing the sky as if washed clean, the blue so intoxicating, it was a rare good weather.

Dao Qin and Jian Shu saw her first.

Xie Wei then turned his head and noticed her slightly red eyes but said nothing, just waited for her to catch up before walking out of the mansion along the corridor.

The street was already bustling.

Soldiers from nearby garrisons were coming and going in the city, some in strong outfits, some in light armor, but all with the same excited expressions.

If you listen carefully, you will know they are talking about the grain and supplies coming from outside the city.

There were also many citizens heading towards the east gate, apparently gathering to watch the excitement.

Only then did Jiang Xuening feel the urgency of the impending war from this enthusiasm.

Some soldiers even stopped to salute Xie Wei.

It was clear that these days, he and Yan Lin had been inspecting the garrison, and they had indeed done something.

Yan Lin had just arrived in Xinzhou and immediately executed the general who originally commanded the army, named Wang Cheng.

You should know, this person was from the Xiao family.

Regardless of whether Yan Lin came with the imperial edict, the Xiao family had deep roots, and personnel changes at the border involved crucial military power. A transfer was fine, but to directly kill someone upon arrival, if the Xiao family knew, how could they let it go?

Most likely, they would not let it go easily.

Ordinary generals naturally did not dare to provoke the powerful Yan Lin, but they also feared the Xiao family, who originally held military power. They couldn’t afford to offend either side. Some people watched from the sidelines, observing the situation, temporarily not getting involved; others had vested interests, waiting for the court-appointed inspector to arrive and show Yan Lin a lesson.

But who could have expected Xie Wei to come?

A fantasy instantly turned into nothing.

Not only was he Yan Lin’s former teacher, but after arriving in Xinzhou, he showed no intention of balancing power. From the discussions and banquets in the past few days, one could see the clues. Someone at the banquet pretended to unintentionally mention Yan Lin’s execution of General Wang Cheng upon arrival, but Xie Wei had no reaction, did not pursue or inquire further, and even inspected the military camp with Yan Lin two days later, fully supporting Yan Lin.

Those secretly waiting to see a show, waiting for Yan Lin to suffer, were all disappointed.

The saying goes, “A wise man submits to circumstances.” If anyone still couldn’t see the situation clearly, they were blind.

So although only a few days had passed, the military atmosphere had completely changed.

Those who needed to focus did so, those who needed to train did so.

Moreover, some people had already secretly speculated whether the Xiao family had lost power, even the favored concubine in the palace couldn’t hold on, otherwise why send Xie Wei to supervise the army?

They didn’t know that from beginning to end, there was no imperial edict for Yan Lin to take over military power, and the original intention of sending Xie Wei was not to support Yan Lin, but to prevent a mutiny.

But this plan was too bold.

Bold enough that people didn’t even suspect the imperial edict was fake, especially with the presence of the current imperial teacher, which deepened the credibility.

Jiang Xuening walked and watched along the way, and it was false to say she wasn’t impressed.

But besides admiration, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

As they were about to reach the city gate, she remembered to ask, “Wasn’t it said that Lu Xian would pave the way first, and Fang Yin would arrive a few days later? But Lu Xian didn’t arrive earlier, and Fang Yin arrived today, a few days earlier than planned.”

Xie Wei replied, “The weather has been chaotic, the official roads are difficult to travel, and everything needs to be arranged. Perhaps something unexpected happened along the way.”

As long as the grain and supplies arrived, it didn’t matter to him what had happened.

The city gate was already crowded with people, packed tightly together. However, when Xie Wei brought Jiang Xuening to the gate, a sharp-eyed soldier on the gate tower saw them and immediately sent a team of soldiers down to clear the way for them.

Passing through the gate, the scene outside became clear.

The convoy transporting grain and supplies stretched from the end of the official road as far as the eye could see, clearly coming from different places. Jiang Xuening even saw the insignia of some Shanxi Datong businesses.

The army had specially dispatched a group of soldiers to count and verify the supplies with the ledger-keeper before pulling the carts into the city’s granary.

You Fangyin and Lu Xian were standing next to the ledger-keeper, each holding a ledger, seemingly discussing something. The elderly ledger-keeper, under their scrutiny, was trembling as he held his pen.

Lu Xian was almost glaring coldly.

You Fangyin, however, was frowning slightly, her fingers quickly scanning the lines of the ledger with a serious and solemn expression.

From a distance, Jiang Xuening saw that the hem of You Fangyin’s peacock blue pleated skirt was already splattered with mud. As she got closer, she noticed that You Fangyin’s fingers, flipping through the ledger, were red from the cold and even had some wounds.

She frowned and called out, “Fangyin.”

You Fangyin heard the familiar voice, turned her head, and upon seeing her, her expression immediately relaxed. She quickly walked over without even putting down the ledger, “Second Miss!”

Jiang Xuening took her hand and looked at her face, noticing that she had lost weight. A surge of anger rose within her, making her somewhat unhappy, “You were doing well in Jiangnan, why did you come to escort the grain and supplies? You should have let Ren Weizhi handle it. Why did you come yourself?”

You Fangyin was momentarily speechless.

She looked at her hesitantly and said, “After discussing with Boss Lu, we decided that some of the grain and supplies still needed to be allocated from nearby prefectures. I was afraid that just having the official seal wouldn’t be enough to persuade the businesses, so I decided to come personally. It rained in Datong a few days ago, making the roads slippery and difficult to travel, which is why I look so disheveled. Nothing serious happened, don’t worry.”

She was always so stubborn. Escorting grain and supplies meant danger, no safer than traveling to the border with Xie Wei. She had such a big business to manage, yet she didn’t even consider her own safety.

Jiang Xuening was angry with her, but seeing her like this, she couldn’t say anything harsh.

In the end, she could only lower her head and wipe the dirt off her hands, “Weren’t you supposed to arrive in a few days? Why did you arrive today?”

You Fangyin’s eyes sparkled as she looked at her, “The princess is trapped by the Tatars, and her situation worsens by the day. I know you’re worried, so I hurried to get everything ready as soon as possible, hoping we can start the battle sooner. Also, I heard you were attacked on your way to the border, and I was worried about you, so I wanted to come and see you as soon as possible.”

Jiang Xuening laughed at her foolishness, but her heart felt warm.

However, Lu Xian, standing not far away, overheard their conversation and let out a cold laugh.

Jiang Xuening heard it and looked over.

The once cunning merchant of the Youhuang Pavilion in the capital, Lu Xian, now looked disheveled, his long robe splattered with mud and even torn in several places by branches.

Seeing Jiang Xuening look over, he still wore a cold expression.

He even rolled his eyes, threw the ledger he was holding onto the trembling ledger-keeper’s table, and turned to leave.

Jiang Xuening couldn’t quite describe her feelings at that moment. Was it…

Hostility?

Why did Lu Xian have hostility towards her?

Xie Wei didn’t come over, just stood by watching.

Lu Xian approached and sneered, “Good intentions are taken as donkey’s liver and lungs, making a wedding dress for someone else!”

Xie Wei glanced at him.

Lu Xian became more impatient and cursed, “The ledgers for the grain and supplies in Xinzhou have never matched. Every year, there are bad accounts. The original Wang Cheng was a corrupt old bastard, and none of his people are useful. They’ve done who knows how much dirty work. I brought a lot of people with me, just in time to replace them all and clean it up!”

After saying this, he seemed even angrier and turned to walk into the city.

Xie Wei raised an eyebrow behind him, “Are your hands clean?”

Lu Xian almost jumped.

Turning around, his voice rose, “Xie Ju’an!”

Xie Wei seemed to have noticed something, smiled, and before Lu Xian could say “cut ties,” he waved his hand, “Fine, we’ll do as you say, replace them.”

The curses that were about to come out were blocked.

Lu Xian almost choked on his words, and after a long while, he forcefully shook his sleeve, “Why didn’t I realize before that you’re such a scoundrel!”

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