Imperial Cultivation

As for whether Li Haoyuan was wronged or if there was some inside story, it was not his concern. He was not in that position, so he would not meddle in its affairs.

The imperial court and the Supervisory Office would investigate, and the various ministries would handle it. He was just a secretary in the Ministry of Rites. All he could do was to do his job well and not interfere.

He didn't want to cause any unnecessary trouble.

Watching Li Haoyuan hand over the matters one by one to Chu Mingrui, he could feel his complex emotions, his deep affection for the soldiers of the Northern Border, and his hatred and remorse for the defeat. The faces of those twenty-three men became more and more grief-stricken, as if they had suffered a great injustice.

He pretended not to see it, and Chu Mingrui also pretended not to see it. The two red-robed eunuchs also pretended not to see it.

Chu Zhiyuan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

As expected of Huang Cheng's disciples and grandchildren, although they appeared arrogant, as if they didn't care about anyone. But they were so young, yet their minds were so calm.

They could restrain their arrogance, restrain their desire to show off, and did not rashly open their mouths to provoke those twenty-three men.

Although they all pretended not to know and pretended not to see, these people still couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, Your Grace, there is an inside story to this matter!"

"Shut up!" Li Haoyuan suddenly roared.

His expression, which had been as calm as water, changed drastically, his eyes widened in anger, and his aura was like a raging tiger. The men were immediately silenced.

Chu Zhiyuan glanced at him, not paying attention.

Regardless of whether there was an inside story or not, it was useless to tell the Ministry of War, the Emperor, or himself. These people should have known this, so why did they have to reveal the inside story?

After a while, someone spoke again, saying in a deep voice, "General, I can't sleep at night if I don't say it, I must say it!"

"Li Huchen, shut up!" Li Haoyuan shouted, pointing outside, "Get out, don't talk nonsense here!"

The middle-aged man, with a tiger-like head and eyes flashing with stubbornness, gritted his teeth and said, "General, I must speak!"

"Do you think I'm dying too slowly? Then speak!" Li Haoyuan said coldly, gritting his teeth, "Do you have to kill me?"

"General—!"

"Shut up, shut up if you don't want me to die!"

Chu Zhiyuan's curiosity was piqued, and he looked at Chu Mingrui.

But Chu Mingrui was staring indifferently at the roster in his hand, his expression solemn, and he was deaf to the outside world. This roster contained the names of the soldiers in Fuyuan Town and Gaoling Town.

Name, camp, position, age, and origin.

Chu Zhiyuan's eyes flickered, he lowered his eyes and said nothing, like a statue. The hall became quiet, so quiet that a pin could be heard dropping, and the atmosphere was oppressive.

Time passed very slowly.

Chu Mingrui finally finished flipping through the roster, looked up at Li Haoyuan, and sighed, "General Li, I admire you... I will report the truth."

After seeing these rosters, he could be sure that Li Haoyuan was not receiving emolument for nonexistent soldiers.

This was indeed an exception for the border army.

Having guarded the border for thirty years, Li Haoyuan did not receive emolument for nonexistent soldiers, which was an example for officials. It was a pity that this mistake was too great.

For the chief military officer of the border, receiving emolument for nonexistent soldiers was a stain, but it was not too big of a mistake. Everyone did it, so no one could say anything.

The key was still the ability and means of using troops.

If he was good at using troops and could win battles, even if he received emolument for nonexistent soldiers, the imperial court would turn a blind eye. If he was not good at using troops and his subordinates suffered too many losses, even if he did not receive emolument for nonexistent soldiers, it would still be a crime.

However, being honest and upright as an official could save his life, and he might have a chance to rise again in the future, depending on his luck. Li Haoyuan said in a deep voice, "Thank you, Your Highness. This subordinate will take his leave... Everything here is left to Your Highness!"

Chu Mingrui said, "Don't worry, when I come, I will first take back Fuyuan Town, then rebuild Fuyuan Town, and clear out the internal elements."

When Li Haoyuan heard his last words, he immediately understood that Chu Mingrui was a sensible person, and he didn't need to say more.

Thinking about it, how could the God of War of Great Jing be an ordinary person? How could Prince Ying not think of what he had thought of? Thinking of this, he showed a bitter expression, clasped his fist, and turned to leave.

"General!"

Those men stepped forward to block his path.

Li Haoyuan glared at them coldly, "If you want to live, shut your mouths obediently. I have said all I need to say. Take care, everyone, we will meet again in the Jianghu!" After saying that, he pushed aside the people blocking his way and strode out of the yamen.

Chu Zhiyuan looked at these men, wondering if they would reveal the inside story.

But he saw them exchange glances, hesitate for a moment, and finally say nothing, and bid farewell one after another.

After they left, Chu Zhiyuan withdrew his gaze.

Chu Mingrui looked at him with a smile, "Fourth Brother, aren't you curious?"

"It's best not to inquire about things you shouldn't be curious about," Chu Zhiyuan said, "You have to restrain yourself."

Chu Mingrui chuckled, finding what he said interesting, and said, "Then how do you know when to restrain yourself and when not to?"

"That depends on your own judgment," Chu Zhiyuan said, "Rely on your intuition."

Chu Mingrui laughed, "You're so old-fashioned, you don't look like a young man!... What they're talking about is the inside story of the fall of Fuyuan Town."

"Tenth Uncle is very curious, right?"

"There must be some inside story about internal and external collusion, but internal and external collusion is internal and external collusion. There must be secret agents infiltrating, and the secret agents must be purged."

"...Then Tenth Uncle, you have to be careful of the people around you."

"Of course, I will be careful," Chu Mingrui sneered, "This kind of insidious tactic, you can tell at a glance that some sects are involved."

Chu Zhiyuan raised his eyebrows.

Chu Mingrui said, "There aren't many sects that Li Haoyuan would be wary of."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded thoughtfully.

Li Haoyuan was the chief military officer of Zhenyuan, not an ordinary general. He had many guards around him, including Grandmaster experts. He was still wary, so it must involve a Great Grandmaster.

There aren't many sects with Great Grandmasters.

You can count them on your fingers, and there are probably even fewer who act so boldly and furtively.

"Tenth Uncle, it wouldn't be the Four Demonic Sects, would it?"

"They shouldn't be," Chu Zhiyuan said.

"Then...the Four Great Sects?"

"It shouldn't be either."

"Then it's the Evil Sect?... If it's the Evil Sect, they wouldn't be afraid to say it. I'm afraid it's still the Four Great Sects or the Four Demonic Sects."

Chu Zhiyuan pondered, counting on his fingers, "Yao... Wu... Nine Li Divine Sect... Yongling Divine..."

Would these Four Demonic Sects collude with Da Meng?

He shook his head, thinking it was unlikely. The Four Great Sects?

"White Cloud Sword Palace... Green Deer Cliff... Great Spirit Rock Peak... Flying Heaven Sect..." Chu Zhiyuan frowned.

It was difficult for him to determine if it was one of these Four Great Sects, and even more difficult to determine which one.

"Alright, the truth will eventually come out," Chu Mingrui said, "Go back to Yujing and inquire about it, and tell me the results."

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Tenth Uncle, you can get news from Yujing faster, it's much slower for us to communicate."

It's different.

"Alright," Chu Zhiyuan agreed.

He said goodbye to Chu Mingrui. When he returned to the post house, he saw a middle-aged man waiting outside. Chu Zhiyuan avoided him in advance and did not meet the middle-aged man.