Aoyama

Chapter 263 General Hu invites you

Li Xuan originally wanted to bring Qi Chenzhuo to sincerely apologize to Chen Ji, but when he saw the empty main hall of the inn, he didn't know what to do.

Qi Chenzhuo murmured quietly: "Will they just not come back?"

Li Xuan raised his eyebrows: "Not really."

Qi Chenzhuo analyzed in a low voice: "Brother-in-law, Chen Ji can't possibly find food every day. If he finds a few dozen kilograms of food, it will last for a long time for the four of them, but if we give a share to the Yulin Army, there won't be much left. If I were him, I would hide and eat secretly and not come back."

Li Xuan angrily asked, "Do you think everyone is the same as you?"

As he said this, he returned to the third floor and gently pushed open the door of Room C. He felt relieved when he saw that the luggage was still in the room.

Li Xuan turned around and saw Qi Zhuozhuo was still in a daze. He immediately urged him impatiently, "Why are you still in a daze? Call all our people to find food. Remember, when Chen Ji comes back, you must sincerely apologize to him. Don't act on impulse."

"Brother-in-law, don't worry. Chen Ji can find food, which means there must be someone in this city who has hidden food. If he can find it, I can definitely find it for you," Qi Chenzhuo ran to wake up the Yulin soldiers in the common room, and led a large group of people out to look for food.

The inn became quiet again, and Li Xuan sat at the eight-immortal table with a frown on his face.

After the 7th hour, Chen Liqin led Liang, Chen Wenzong, Chen Wenxiao, Wang Gui, and Dongzhi downstairs. He politely greeted Li Xuan, "Good morning, Lord Li."

Li Xuan bowed weakly, "Good morning, Master Chen."

Chen Liqin looked around the empty main hall and asked in confusion, "Why is Lord Li sitting here alone? Where are the others?"

Li Xuan explained: "They all went out to look for food."

Wang Gui smiled and asked, "Lord Li, I wonder if the Yulin Army still has food in stock. My master, mistress, and son haven't had breakfast yet."

Li Xuan shook his head: "No, the Yulin Army only left five days of rations for Your Highness, and this must not be touched."

Wang Gui was slightly startled, and then he became anxious: "What about the five catties of yellow flour that my Chen family took out yesterday?"

Li Xuan glanced at him and said, "It was all cooked in the porridge last night. Didn't you drink it?"

Wang Gui subconsciously glanced at Liang, and when he saw her blinking slightly, he immediately asked anxiously, "Cooked them all? Do you know how to live in the Yulin Army? How can you not leave any food at all!"

Li Xuan said in a deep voice: "The Yulin Army has been out looking for food for a whole day, and it's hard enough. If they can't even have a bowl of porridge, what will happen if their bodies collapse?"

Wang Gui was about to refute again when he heard Chen Liqin shout angrily: "That's enough, how dare a servant question Lord Li's decision?"

Wang Gui shrank his neck and stopped talking.

Li Xuan also softened his tone, "Master Chen, Madam Chen, please be patient. Qi Zhuanzhuo has already led people out to look for food, and they will be able to find some. Even if it's not as much as yesterday, it won't cause everyone to starve to death."

Just as he finished speaking, the cotton curtain was lifted and Qi Chenzhuo went into the house, brushing off the sand on his body.

Li Xuan hurriedly asked: "Have you found food?"

Qi Chenzhuo shook his head and said, "No, the local tyrants in Guyuan led their men to rob several neighborhoods last night and took away all the remaining food. The border troops killed many people at night and took away all the food they found."

Li Xuan was stunned: "You didn't find anything at all? When you left this morning, you swore that if Chen Ji could find it, you would be able to find it too. What about now?"

Qi Chenzhuo said awkwardly: "Indeed, there is nothing left..."

Li Xuan asked in a serious tone, "Why did you come back if you didn't find any food? Since you knew you didn't have Chen Ji's ability, you should have restrained yourself last night and not angered him away!"

"I don't have the ability?" Qi Zhuozhuo was angry and said, "Li Xuan! Don't forget how you got this position. If it weren't for my sister..."

"Qi, please consider this!" Li Xuan stood up suddenly and said coldly, "My Li family relies on the official career inherited from our ancestors to establish ourselves. I wanted to join the Wansui Army back then, but it was your Qi family that ruined my future and forced me to marry into your Qi family. I didn't cry and beg to marry into your Qi family myself!"

Qi Chenzhuo blushed, "You were able to advance to the Dao-seeking realm at the age of thirty, wasn't it because of the cultivation resources my Qi family provided? I gave you ginseng one by one, and bought you Yang-green jadeite one by one. If you had gone to the three major camps, who would have given you these cultivation resources? Your current Dao-seeking realm is all due to my sister's dowry, isn't it?"

Li Xuan was speechless for a long while, and finally waved his hand helplessly: "I can't control you, do whatever you want."

Chen Wenzong on the side said softly: "It's like this between people. When they are angry, they become a different person, and the words they say are the most hurtful. But some words, once spoken, cannot be taken back."

Qi Chenzhuo felt a little regretful after the quarrel, but he just couldn't bring himself to say sorry.

Li Xuan took a deep breath, calmed down, looked at Chen Wenzong, clasped his fists and said, "Mr. Chen, I know Chen Ji respects you. If he comes back later, I hope you can help us talk to him. The matter of finding food cannot be delayed any longer."

Chen Wenzong shook his head: "Sorry, I can't say it."

Li Xuan was stunned.

Chen Wenzong said seriously, "Lord Li, I am hungry too, but I cannot just let go of the injustice my brother suffered yesterday. As his elder brother, I cannot make decisions for him about who he is willing to forgive and who he is unwilling to forgive, nor can I be an accomplice in wrongfully accusing him. If he chooses to compromise for my sake, I will feel uneasy."

Li Xuan sighed heavily: "I understand what Brother Wenzong means, but..." Chen Wenzong bowed his hands: "Master Li, there is no need to say more. I will also go out to find food."

After saying that, he opened the door curtain and walked out of the inn.

Chen Wenxiao suddenly said beside Liang: "Master Li, don't worry. When Chen Ji comes back later, let my father talk to him."

Li Xuan glanced at Chen Wenxiao and ignored him.

Now in this room, only Chen Wenzong still has some weight in Chen Ji's eyes. As for Chen Liqin? Chen Liqin himself didn't dare to boast to persuade Chen Ji.

Everyone waited anxiously in the main hall until noon, when the Yulin Army returned one after another. Except for a few people who brought a few pieces of multi-grain cakes, all of them returned empty-handed.

These few pieces of multi-grain pancakes are not enough for one person to lick.

By the evening, Chen Wenxiao and the others were so hungry that their eyes were staring. Every time someone lifted the door curtain, they felt anticipation in their hearts, but their anticipation was dashed in an instant.

There is no food in Guyuan, really none.

The cotton curtain was lifted again, and the orange sunset shone in from outside, coating the edges of the visitor's body with a layer of gold.

Li Xuan stood up after seeing who was coming: "Chen Ji?"

Everyone stared at the door with burning eyes.

Chen Ji, holding Zaozao and Wuyun in his arms, crossed the threshold and calmly looked at the crowd in the main hall: "Are they all here?"

Li Xuan didn't care about anything else, he took two steps forward and asked anxiously: "Chen Ji, did you find any food today?"

Chen Ji shook his head: "No. Today, all the wealthy merchants in Guyuan City have been robbed. Only a few wealthy merchants with officials in charge can protect their property. Guyuan City is already in chaos, and the border troops can't control it."

The main hall fell silent again.

In this silence, Xiaoman suddenly burped.

Chen Ji: "..."

Li Xuan: “…”

Everyone looked at Xiaoman. Xiaoman covered her mouth with her hands in fear and looked at Zhang Xia for help.

Zhang Xia smiled and said, "What are you afraid of? We haven't done anything wrong. If some people don't want to eat the clean food, we won't force them. If we bring food back today and get framed, we'll be asking for trouble, don't you think so, Xiaoman?"

Xiaoman nodded vigorously: "Sister Axia is right!"

She rolled her eyes and said, "But Sister Axia, what about those people who have nothing to eat? They are so pitiful."

Zhang Xia smiled and echoed: "Bear with hardship. This is only the second day of the siege. There is still much hardship to endure."

Chen Wenxiao pointed at the two of them angrily: "You!"

Zhang Xia's face suddenly turned cold: "We? Chen Wenxiao, don't think I don't know how your Yakui passed the exam. If you dare to point fingers at us or say bad things about Chen Ji behind his back again, don't blame me for being rude!"

Zhang Zheng echoed, "That's right!"

A girl in red stood straight in the main hall, facing dozens of Yulin soldiers without fear. Xiaoman slightly raised her head and looked at Zhang Xia's profile, her eyes sparkling.

Li Xuan winked at Qi Zhuozhuo and said through his teeth: "Apologize!"

Qi Chenzhuo stood up reluctantly, but before he could apologize, he saw the curtain of the inn being lifted again.

Everyone looked over and saw a soldier from the border army come in and ask loudly, "Who is the young master of the Chen family?"

Chen Wenxiao replied: "I am."

The border soldier glanced at him and asked, "Excuse me, are you Master Chen Ji?"

Chen Wenxiao was choked.

Chen Ji asked curiously, "I am Chen Ji, what do you want from this general?"

The soldier of the border army said expressionlessly: "Mr. Chen, my General Hu wants to see you."

Li Xuan and Qi Chenzhuo looked at each other in confusion. What did Hu Junxian want to do with Chen Ji?
(End of this chapter)