Accidentally dressed as an empress

Chapter 135 Going in the opposite direction

The reason for the Lu family's recent misfortune is clear. Yun Ji lurked in the Lu family to gather information and even teamed up with the remaining Beirong forces to secretly replace the Lu family's weapons.

Should I wade into this mess and tell Lu Bing, whom I have only known for less than three days, about this?

If she did this, Yun Ji would definitely lead the rebels in Mingxiao Mountain to surround her.

Last time, more than 2,000 Northern Rong prisoners were added. There are at least 5,000 people in Mingxiao Mountain and 500 people in Zhong Lu. If she does this, she really doesn't want to live.

The remaining forces of Beirong have revived and are plotting another uprising. Should she send a letter back to Lingyun City to remind Gu Zezhi?

The wolf has come once. The last time Su Qing reminded Gu Zezhi, he fell into the trap of the cunning Beirong people and lured the tiger away from the mountain.

Yun Xiu felt a throbbing pain in his head just thinking about it.

Yun Ji and I have different paths after all, so we can only go in opposite directions and drift further and further apart.

Yunxiu only hopes that she can let go of her hatred and live a good life, but Yun Ji still refuses to give up. Her path is a 50-50 chance of success or failure. Either she reaches the top or she ends up dead.

Yunxiu doesn't have her own army, so it's better for her to stay in her fiefdom and wait for Yun Ji and His Majesty to decide who is stronger. As long as Yun Ji doesn't bring his troops to attack her, it'll be fine.

At present, she is still investigating corruption and investigating whether the several prefects of Xiling have violated the law.

The hereditary system of prefects has no advantages but only disadvantages. If she can think of it, then Your Majesty must have thought of it too.

Judging from the fact that His Majesty transferred the Yunyang City governor to Baili City, His Majesty has changed to appointing governors. Next, the governors of each city will rotate. As long as they are not allowed to stay in one city for too long and form a complex local power structure, the foundation for the governors to cause trouble in the area will naturally collapse.

Yunxiu said to the system, [System, take a look at how many people are in Mingxiao Mountain?]

The system said, "There are a total of 5,600 people in Mingxiao Mountain. This is the largest iron ore mining site in Yun Country, and the rich iron ore reserves can be mined for another hundred years."

In late autumn, the forests of Mingxiao Mountain are dyed in all colors, and the maple leaves are as red as fire.

The mountains are quiet, with only the rustling of the autumn wind through the treetops, as if whispering the mountain's secrets. As the road deepens and turns a bend, the view suddenly opens up and a field of iron ore comes into view.

The miners were dressed in rags and had dark complexions. They hunched their backs, sweated profusely, and worked hard in the mines.

The defenders waved their whips, and the miners dodged the whips and lowered their heads to work, with numbness and despair written all over their faces.

Their hands were covered with calluses and scars, and their nails were embedded with dirt and black slag.

Walking into the mine, it is dim inside, with only a few flickering oil lamps emitting faint light. The walls of the cave are covered with marks made by iron pickaxes, and it is in such an environment that the miners dig iron ore day after day.

In ancient times, iron ore mining was inefficient, and each bucket of iron ore was earned by countless miners with their blood, sweat, and lives.

Yunxiu closed her eyes, put down her teacup, and sat there for a long, silent moment. It was already evening, the sun was setting, and the afterglow of the setting sun shone on her face, and a wave of sadness welled up in Yunxiu's heart.

Finally, Yunxiu took out the tea money and put it on the table. Without saying anything, she got up and went back to the guild hall.

Zhong Yi saw her come back and hurried over to greet her, "A Xiu is back? How's the progress on the sword forging?"

"Everything went well." Yun Xiu hugged Zhong Yi and said, "Tell Ren Li to send someone to get the sword. Tomorrow we will go outside the city to meet up with Zhong Lu and the others."

After such a long period of incognito visits, I have almost achieved my goal. The blacksmiths here live and work in peace and contentment, and business is thriving. Nothing seems to be wrong.

Next, she would go meet the governor of Wufeng City, hoping that nothing would happen. Actually, the governor of Baili City had no grudge against her, and she wanted to be kind to him, but unfortunately, he wouldn't let her.

The system shuddered, [Be kind to others? Host, that's enough.]

As night fell, the lights in the guild hall dimmed and Yunxiu turned off the lights and went to bed early.

The room was completely silent, with only the occasional sound of wind outside the window. Yunxiu lay on the bed, gazing at the wooden beams of the ceiling.

Zhong Yi also lay beside her, his eyes blinking in the night, his eyelashes fluttering constantly, showing no sign of sleep. Zhong Yi asked her, "A Xiu, should we leave Wufeng City early and hurry on our journey?"

Yunxiu reached out and hugged him, resting her face in the crook of his neck. "No, we must be escorted by the garrison troops and enter the prefectural government residence openly to meet the prefect. There's nothing to be gained from an incognito visit."

"Well. Then let's go directly to the prefectural government." Zhong Yi saw that Yunxiu was in a bad mood, "What are you still worried about, Xiu?" Zhong Yi raised his hand and gently smoothed the almost invisible wrinkles between Yunxiu's eyebrows.

The touch of his fingertips on Yunxiu's skin brought a sense of warmth and comfort.

"Nothing." Yunxiu's voice was low, and her tone was full of deep fatigue.

The chilly autumn wind blew through the cracks in the window, bringing in a bleak cloud of fallen leaves. Zhong Yi, listening to Yun Xiu's tone, also seemed a little lonely.

Zhong Yi didn't say much. He held Yunxiu tightly in his arms and patted her back gently, as if he was soothing a wounded beast. "Then wait until Ah Xiu is willing to talk. I'll always be here."

His voice was gentle yet firm, full of understanding and tolerance. In his arms, Yunxiu felt unprecedented comfort. She knew that no matter what she went through, Zhong Yi would be by her side, accompanying her to face it together.

Yunxiu temporarily put aside the thoughts that troubled her and immersed herself in this warm embrace. "What if we stay in the fiefdom from now on, away from the disputes in Lingyun City?"

Zhong Yi replied softly, "Okay. Wherever Ah Xiu is, I'll be there."

Yunxiu kissed his chin, "Luckily you're here."

Zhong Yi held Yunxiu carefully. He had never felt so needed and relied on before. Although Ah Xiu appeared so strong in front of others, she also needed his comfort in the middle of the night.

The two embraced each other tenderly, and the system interrupted in a disastrous tone, "Host, are you not going to complete your mission anymore?"

[I'm tired, mentally exhausted. Let's talk about the mission later.]

She didn't want to discover Yun Ji's plot. If only she didn't have a system, an omniscient perspective, and knew nothing. Now, the joy of reunion had completely turned into bitterness.