The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 992 - 225: Pei Qin Passes Away Young_3

Chapter 992: Chapter 225: Pei Qin Passes Away Young_3

After deliberation, Ji Le issued a secret order.

Soon, rumors began to spread in Tongzhou: Deity General Pei Hansan had been assassinated and had long since died of his injuries.

Such news, like a heavy bomb, stirred up thousands of waves. The townsfolk returning to their hometowns were instantly thrown into panic, and the soldiers guarding the border towns also became uneasy.

If General Pei had indeed died, then would the remnants of Wa Ci and the cavalry of the Rong Clan once again step into the nation’s borders? The answer was definite, as Wa Ci was ambitious and the Rong Clan was covetously watching; their eyes on Great Chu were not a new development.

Tongzhou Harbour, with its access in all directions, allowed the news to quickly take wing and spread.

In no time, people everywhere were panicking, cursing the traitor who assassinated General Pei and cursing Wa Ci for killing their protector, the Deity General.

Some guessed that the one who assassinated Pei Qin wasn’t Wa Ci, but someone vying for the imperial throne. General Pei’s contributions were immense; he could create mortars and Thunder Cannons, hand grenades—these weapons were simply too powerful. Anyone wishing to vie for the throne would surely covet such weapons.

Then, people said that the Rong Clan had a divine medicine that could save General Pei, but the Emperor wasn’t willing to part with Liaodong, which delayed General Pei’s treatment. The severe poison attacked his heart, and only when it became a matter of urgency did he reluctantly agree, but by then, General Pei had been delayed on the road and died of his injuries.

The Emperor went on a southern hunt, abandoning the city and fleeing for his life, allowing Wa Ci’s iron cavalry to attack the Inner city, resulting in the loss of much of the land, with people in all regions suffering from the ravages of war. The Emperor was incompetent, yet he also delayed in saving General Pei, indirectly acting as the executioner, effectively killing the nation’s protector, General Pei! He had once defeated Wa Ci, but this time, he would certainly be defeated by the Rong Clan, putting them, the common folk, in dire straits!

As the rumors spread and intensified, Emperor Chu Wen, who had been trying hard to conceal his illness, had unwittingly incited public anger.

When Xiao Guangbi returned with the conscription of grain and fodder, he was even robbed; not only by bandits and mountain thieves but also by disorganized rebels and refugees.

With the Rong Clan not yet eliminated and the Crown Prince attempting to replace the throne while the people once again rose in rebellion.

The court officials, high and low, were also thrown into disarray.

Shen Bi, as the Second Auxiliary in the Cabinet, was already at his wits’ end. He did not wish to get involved in the struggle for the Crown Prince’s position, but to look only after himself was impossible. He took the initiative to take on the matter of confronting the Rong Clan, and now that the people were in rebellion, it was even more difficult. He had no choice but to find Mo Heng and ask about Pei Hansan, as he too had only heard that Pei Hansan had gone to be treated for his injuries and poison but hadn’t seen him since.

"She’s alive and well; such news is merely fabricated by those with ulterior motives to create civil unrest and to disturb us," Mo Heng said, his eyes darkening with a flash of severity. It seemed that many people wished for his Qinqin to die.

"When was the last time you saw General Pei? So much time has passed; his injuries should have improved. Why hasn’t he returned to court?" Shen Bi asked. This was the biggest issue. Injuries to muscles and bones take a hundred days to heal, but it had already been three months. Even if Pei Hansan’s injuries hadn’t fully healed, he should have been able to return to court by now, yet there was no sign of him. Shen Bi requested to see Pei Hansan, as without seeing him in person, he could not be at ease.

Mo Heng didn’t want Pei Qin to appear again; a woman should not show her face in public, and he knew that he could not have her after they met. What he dreaded was more people harboring intentions toward her, "The residual poison has not been cleared; she cannot appear publicly."

Shen Bi, however, suspected whether Pei Hansan had really died as the rumors claimed.

"If the Rong Clan indeed wants to incite public anger, then they should wait for me to lead the Mortar Barracks to confront them!" Mo Heng didn’t say much to him and went directly to the army barracks to stabilize the military’s morale.

The soldiers of the Mortar Barracks had already calmed down, after all, only their General knew how to mix the ammunition. Although Li Shun and Zhou Jian also knew how, the ammunition they produced was a mere waste, its effectiveness far too inferior.

Upheaval and banditry had broken out in the remote mountain areas, and all the dispatches were piled up in the Cabinet.

At last, grain and pay had arrived, and Mo Heng was appointed as the Fourth Rank Xianwu General, with An Liefeng as the Great General, leading an army of one hundred thousand to attack the Rong Clan and recover Liaodong.