It doesn't matter what the lord is.

Alayya didn't say anything, but just followed me obediently.

I remembered what He Yue said to me at that time.

First take the ten cities of Zhaochen, then attack the territory of Kelineng; or first take the territory of Kelineng, then go north to take the ten cities of Zhaochen. The final core purpose, the so-called ultimate goal of the first stage, is to swallow up the entire Yunyang. I still remember that at the riverside under the moon, He Yue told me that if you want to take Yunyang, it is not in the interests of justice now, and you will suffer a lot. Even if you take it, you will be criticized.

At that time he thought about it and finally added:

"Unless... Yunyang takes the initiative to break off relations with you."

33. The storm is coming

When I returned to Yuxi City, it was still relatively peaceful.

However, the fact that "Yuxi City will soon be separated from the Yunyang territory" is no longer a secret.

Because of its remote location and closed news, the main source of information for Yuxi City basically comes from the intelligence of traveling merchants. However, because Yuxi City was relatively poor in the past, traveling merchants were not willing to come to the city. Only after it became friendly with Yunhai recently, various intelligence began to flow into Yuxi City.

Because Yuxi City does not have a dedicated diplomatic role now, I am the one who deals with people in most cases. This also has some advantages, that is, some news that is not convenient to spread can be intercepted neatly by me. When I was away, the heavy responsibility of this matter also fell on He Yue. She is a far-sighted person and did not hide the fact that "Yuxi City is about to break away from Yunyang's rule", but chose to tell the people of Yuxi City openly.

"There is no need to hide the news in this situation. Unless we can assassinate Lord Yunyang's envoy on the road, the news will eventually be known to the people. Rather than being caught off guard, it is better to announce the news now, so that no matter what happens, the people will not be too panicked."

During the time I was away, He Yue looked a little thinner, with dark circles under her eyes, and a cup of tea on the table.

He Yue continued:

"But it's not a big problem. After all, for the people of Yuxi City, they have almost never regarded themselves as people of Yunyang Territory. For so many years, they have been living alone in the westernmost part of Yunyang, not only facing the fierce attacks of the demons, but also guarding against the pressure of Zhaochen in the north. For such a long time, Yunyang did not give them even a grain of support, and always let them fend for themselves. Especially Li Neng in the east... that is, your third brother did not allow them to take refuge. The land in the east is like a high wall in the east, blocking their way to the safe area. People are all made of flesh and blood. If I were a citizen of Yuxi City, I would not have any attachment to Yunyang."

He looked at me, smiled and said:

"But I didn't expect that Lord Yunyang would just say he didn't want you. Although it's not uncommon for a father to break off relations with his son, it's definitely not a glorious thing either."

Bai Huang put his hands on his waist and said proudly:

"Yeah yeah."

I said to Bai Huang unhappily:

"How dare you talk like that? Go to the kitchen and find a big pot to take on! If you hadn't stood me up in Yunhai, I wouldn't have had the nerve to go up on stage by myself..."

Before I finished, I suddenly realized that Alayya and Felita were all there. The matter of women's clothing was still a bit shocking in this era, so I tried not to mention it. So I coughed and said:

"You have a share of the pot anyway."

Bai Huang snorted, crossed his legs and said:

"If I tell you that Yunyang doesn't want you, then just come to our Yunhai. I guarantee that the little girl Zhaochen won't dare to come to you to show off again. When the time comes, my brother and I will protect you, and the three of us will punish the evil and clean up this turbid world together."

I think it's a good idea. Yunyang kicked me out, and I just hugged the thicker thigh. Can't I enjoy myself directly without construction? But when I think about Bai Feng, I can't trust him. I dare not say he is a hypocrite. After all, he followed the rules in Yunhai and didn't kill me. Instead, he chose to seek my help through the alliance. He is much higher than those hypocrites.

But if you say he is a true gentleman, what he did to He Yue was really not decent.

I finally shook my head and said to Bai Huang:

"A real man should stand tall and make a living on his own. How can he live by relying on others?"

As soon as these words came out, there was a burst of coughing in the conference room.

My face turned red, and I coughed twice, then said:

"In short, although the current situation is optimistic, we cannot give up our vigilance. Although Yunyang has never helped Yuxi City before, it can more or less bring a little hope to the people. 'If the situation is too bad, Lord Yunyang should also help us.' There must be many people who hold this idea."

He Yue nodded in agreement:

"We can only rely on propaganda to make them understand. Yunyang never wanted to control them from the beginning, I'm just a little worried. Bai Feng left a pawn in Yuxi City, so Yuxi City must have more than just Bai Feng's pawns. We are now advancing and retreating with Bai Feng, but those who are hostile to Bai Feng may also let their pawns take the opportunity to stir up trouble in Yuxi City. Fortunately, you are back, otherwise we can't control the situation with just a few of us."

I took a sip of tea and said:

"Go and inspect Yuxi City. A storm is about to come, and we must reassure the people."

34. Same doubts

When I was walking side by side with He Yue on the street, the first autumn rain was falling.

It was still summer when I went to Yunhai, but it was already the end of summer when I came back. Plus the time I spent in the Demon Clan, I could already feel a slight chill when I came back, and it was not strange to be in autumn after spending so much time in the Demon Clan. It is worth mentioning that Yuxi City is located in the southern part of Yongtian Kingdom, otherwise the rain would have fallen earlier.

I originally wanted to inspect the situation in Yuxi City with He Yue, but I didn't expect to encounter this rain.

We were both a little wet from the rain, so we randomly found a house and hid under their eaves.

He Yue put her hands in her sleeves, sneezed, rubbed her nose, and said:

“It’s going to be a good harvest this year.”

I smiled and said:

"I think you've gone crazy lately, and you talk about the harvest every three sentences. After taking charge of Yuxi City, your temperament has changed. In the past, you would find a branch by the river to think about world affairs, and you looked like a hermit. Now you only care about the daily necessities of life, and you feel like a middle-aged woman whose edges have been smoothed by life."

He Yue rolled her eyes at me and said:

"If you weren't such a hands-off boss, I wouldn't have to deal with so many people every day. I wouldn't have to worry about whether I could do it."

He Yue still stood shoulder to shoulder with me, with his hands in his pockets, and said slowly:

"Plans can't keep up with changes. If you hadn't torn your relationship with Yunyang, you should have first gone north to take the ten cities of Zhaochen as your base, and then slowly nibbled away at Yunyang's land, taking five inches and retreating two inches, using your identity as a young master of Yunyang to constantly get involved with the Yunyang lord. After all, the rule on the surface is that the younger generations in a territory must solve the internal conflicts between the younger generations. As long as you don't clearly tear your relationship apart, the Yunyang lord won't dare to do anything to you. Then store up food and build high walls, and when the world is in chaos, stir up the conflict between Yunyang and Tiancheng in the east, and take advantage of the Yunyang lord's direct army to move east, swallow up Yunyang, which has no reserves, in one breath, and capture Lingyun City. Then we can have a stable home."

I smiled and said:

"I understand the logic, but I don't want to break up with them. If I were to stick my face out to someone and get hit, they wouldn't care. They just kicked me out. How can I reason with them?"

He Yue frowned, also looking worried, and said as if talking to herself:

"Yes, that's why it's strange. I've read Lord Yunyang's information. Although he is extremely selfish, he is not stupid. Otherwise, when Lord Cangzhou started his rebellion, he would not have stood on the side of the royal family. That year, I don't know how many people thought that Yongtian Kingdom would change its name. After all, Lord Cangzhou could almost be said to have a hundred responses, and his momentum was so huge that it was unimaginable. But what was the result? Lord Yunyang still stood on the right side and followed the royal family to suppress the Cangzhou faction. Otherwise, why do you think the king was willing to marry the little princess to your brother."

Speaking of the little princess Lana, I almost forgot about her. If she hadn't secretly sent me a letter some time ago. The letter was full of nonsense, telling me everything, including some things that I didn't know if they were confidential. Including that the king had a new white-robed minister who was rising rapidly, including that the great swordsman taught her swordsmanship today, but she almost cut off her own foot, including many useful and useless things, but she was very happy.

I also wrote her a reply. Although I knew that this letter would most likely be intercepted outside the palace, it was still a heartfelt token.

Speaking of my father, I am actually a little dissatisfied with him for always targeting me.

At first I thought he might have trusted my brother too much, but later I found that it was not the case. He would occasionally show his disappointment to my brother, but he never felt any remorse towards me. If he hadn't still called me Lide, I would have even thought that this person had seen that I was a time traveler and not his biological son, so he deliberately messed with me.

Anyway, I am confused. He Yue doesn't understand this, and I don't understand it either.

He Yue let out a breath, relaxed his brows, and said:

"It's useless to think about these things. You're not sad at all, so why should I feel sad for you? I thought being kicked out of the family would make you feel depressed for a while, but now it seems that you really are shameless."

"is not that right."

I said this with a smile, but gradually, I couldn't smile anymore.

To be honest, if possible, I don't really want to have a direct conflict with Yunyang. In the past, at least before I left Yunyang, I had never had a formal conflict with my father and my brother. It's not that I couldn't beat them, in fact, there were plenty of opportunities to kill them at that time. But I didn't have any ideas, I just thought it was meaningless.

But I didn't expect that I gave up the chance to inherit Yunyang, left Yunyang with humiliation, and went to the westernmost Yuxi City. I survived a lot... Well, I didn't survive a lot, but I still suffered a lot. After finally settling down, they were really persistent. I don't know if the first thing they say when they wake up every day is to cheer themselves up, but they really won't give up until they reach their goal.

He Yue said softly:

"I used to envy you. I envied you for your noble birth, for not being sold to the nobles as a slave like me. I envied you for being able to live freely, for being able to do whatever you wanted, for having a lot of money, for having many friends around you, and for always being so optimistic..."

He Yue smiled and said:

"Of course, I envy you because you look better than me after putting on makeup."

I said helplessly:

"Brother, can we not talk about this anymore?"

35. Do something for the world

The rain was falling softly outside the eaves.

He Yue seemed to be in a rare mood to talk, and with me, a good listener, standing by, He Yue put her hands in her pockets and talked about the past. She was a very strict person, and she always told stories in a standard chronological order and in a very organized way, so she would think for a while before telling each story.

The tiles are covered with moss, the eaves are pointed, and raindrops are dripping on the steps.

He Yue sneezed and shrank back. She was born neutral, and it was hard to tell whether she was a man or a woman. Her skin was pale in the rain, but her lips were rosy, which made her look more delicate and charming. I took off my coat and put it on him. He Yue looked at me and said:

"Your clothes are wet too. You're not warm at all."

Even so, he didn't return my clothes to me. He just wrapped my coat around me and said slowly:

"Tiancheng is very poor, and the people live a hard life. I understood this when I was young. The working people in this world are the most hardworking. But these hardworking people get up early and work hard every day, but they can't even afford a full meal. There must be something wrong with such a territory."

"My family is poorer than other families. Other children can occasionally buy new clothes during the Chinese New Year, but I have never worn beautiful clothes. But one time, my mother bought me a new dress, a very beautiful one, colorful. When I put it on, I suddenly felt different, like a little princess. That day, my mother helped me bathe and comb my hair. After I was dressed, I sat in front of the bronze mirror, rubbing my bangs narcissistically, thinking happily that I would show off to my friends and let them see that I am not an ugly little pig, but a beautiful little red flower."

As he spoke, He Yue started laughing first.

She stretched out her hand, her delicate jade hand with five fingers spread out, and received the raindrops falling from the eaves. The smile on her face remained, but the smile was gone in her eyes.

"That night, I didn't see my usual playmates. Instead, I saw all kinds of adults in the brightly lit mansion. My mother and father were servile to them, and I hid behind them. Now that I think about it, I already knew my fate at that time. My mother often praised me for being a smart child, but I never thought that the first time I felt that I was smart would be in a place like this."

He Yue raised his head, looked at the gray sky, and continued:

"Li De, have you ever seen the scene of eating human flesh? The fragrant human flesh cooked in the pot. I have seen it, and I have personally served it to the son of the Tiancheng family. It was a fine casserole with various seasonings, and hot steam came out from around the lid. I resisted the urge to vomit and served it to him. He loves to eat beautiful women's flesh, saying that it is the best taste in the world. A 28-year-old girl has thin skin and tender flesh, which is just right for eating."

“From that time on, I took off my skirts and put on men’s clothes.”

The wind blew, and the rain fell obliquely on the bluestone road, causing ripples in the puddles.

People holding oil-paper umbrellas on the street looked at us curiously. After all, it was a rare sight for two people in gorgeous clothes to stand side by side under someone else's house to avoid the rain. He Yue moved slightly towards me, and his shoulder touched mine. I didn't look at him, because he looked a little sad, and people probably don't want others to see their sad faces.

I asked in a low voice:

"Do you know why I rejected Bai Huang's proposal?"

It's not just Bai Huang this time.

When I was in Yunhai, when I got the Oiran, Lord Yunhai came forward and tried to use the city that Lord Tiancheng was auctioning here to arouse my desire and make me give up Heyue on my own initiative, but I refused at that time.

You can have as many cities as you want, but there is only one He Yue.

Also, I don't really like seeing people suffering around me, because that would make my enjoyment seem a little guilty.

I was about to explain when He Yue suddenly smiled and said:

"I know."

My words got stuck in my throat. I said helplessly:

"You should say you don't know, so I can have another chance to show off... or be cool."

He Yue smiled and said:

"Then I don't know."

I said seriously:

"You said that the people of Tiancheng suffered, but that's too far away for me. Perhaps I would be moved by the devastated scene, but I haven't seen it with my own eyes now, so I can't understand it. To put it in a broader sense, the world is so big, and I can't always be a god to save all living beings. I don't have that ability, nor do I have that mentality. In other words, no matter how I live, whether I am free and easy or suffer a little loss, as long as my life is still bearable, I can ignore the viciousness of human nature according to the situation. But there is one thing I can't do. Whether it's Alayya, Fileta, or you, I will find a way to repay you for the grievances you have suffered. I know I am useless and can't protect so many people. It is enough for me to protect you."

He Yue looked at me, his black hair was wet by the rain, his dark eyes stared at me without blinking, and I also looked at him frankly.

Should I say... She is indeed a strong contender for the title of Oiran. She is still so beautiful even in the rain.

He Yue raised the corner of his mouth:

"Oh, that's it?"

I said helplessly:

"That's it. Your reaction... well, actually you could be more surprised and touched, so that I can save face a little bit."

He Yue asked back:

"Why else do you think I would follow you so devotedly, working myself to death every day, doing all the dirty work? Just because you bought me? I could have lived an easier life, just idling around like you."

He Yue leaned on my shoulder, which was rare. He was a little shorter than me, so at best, we could only lean shoulder to shoulder, and couldn't lean his cheek against mine like Alayya did. There was a little warmth coming from his shoulder, which was completely different from the cold rain.

He Yue said:

"It was because you were dancing in women's clothes, and because you rejected the Lord of the Cloud Sea. You promised me that one day you would conquer Tiancheng and let the people there be happy. You wanted the source of my pain to be filled with flowers and become a paradise one day."

I nodded.

He Yue turned his head and said seriously:

"Li De. Yuxi City does not belong to any force, but in my heart, one day it will trample all forces under its feet. All living beings suffer, we should do something for them."

36. You have such great authority.

I don’t know whether all living beings suffer, but He Yue caught a cold when he went back because of being caught in the rain.