Chapter 414: Chapter 415: Sending People

"It was merely a single act of saving a life, and the favor has already been repaid. There is no need for you, Empress, to be so concerned." Hua Shunming felt a bit displeased seeing his empress make a special trip for a man outside the family.

However, he showed no hint of it on his face, quietly waiting for the Empress to explain.

"That may be so, but my brother is the only male heir of the Zhou Family. By saving him, he effectively became our family’s savior.

The Holy Emperor is well aware of the vast difference between scholars and military generals. A household like Mr. Gu’s would only have servants and common guards. The journey is long and perilous. Without adequate protection, my brother would only end up worrying about him.

Rather than have my brother assign his own elite guards to protect him, it would be better to let my idle personnel serve a final, useful purpose."

Hua Shunming understood upon hearing this. It seemed the Empress was more concerned about her brother and didn’t want Ancient Wen Heng to become a burden to Zhou Shixiong.

Besides, it was just a matter of a few men. He was unwilling to offend the Empress over it, lest she fall ill from distress again and let the women in the harem run amok.

At the thought of those coquettish, posturing women, Hua Shunming immediately said, "What the Empress says is reasonable. In that case, you may arrange it as you see fit."

"Thank you, Holy Emperor!"

Having received his approval, Empress Zhou didn’t linger to disturb him further. She had to use this time to prepare more things for her brother.

This time, besides the official reason for sending men, she also intended to dispatch some of her covert agents to her brother’s side to ensure his safety.

&

After a day, Ancient Wen Heng learned who would be accompanying him on this assignment.

Besides him, the Magistrate of Lu City, the court had also assigned a Deputy, He Gaofei; a Minister of Communication, Lu Shenggen; and an Assistant Magistrate, Wu Yichen.

Although he had yet to meet them, He Nan had already filled him in on what he needed to know.

All three men had not obtained their positions through the standard imperial examinations, but rather through appointments of grace and favor. Each had a mediocre track record and was already past thirty years of age.

Ancient Wen Heng rubbed his aching head. The only piece of good news was that none of the three were known to be greedy or lecherous; they had always dutifully performed their roles without incident.

But it was precisely these types of officials that frustrated him. Their passivity and inaction—a complete "lie-flat" attitude—made him worry. ’I just hope they don’t hold me back,’ he thought.

Just then, an imperial edict from the Empress was delivered directly to the Hanlin Academy, accompanied by two fully armed guards.

This stunned everyone in the Hanlin Academy. They had assumed Ancient Wen Heng had no connections, but it turned out he had a backer powerful enough to reach the heavens.

To think she had even prepared guards for his journey.

Ancient Wen Heng was unsure of Empress Zhou’s intentions, but he could only accept the edict and express his gratitude.

Seeing the two guards standing at his door, those who wished to fish for information could only stop in their tracks.

Empress Zhou’s gesture had an unintended benefit: the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law of the Huang family, who had been itching to "deal with" Jin Qianqian while Ancient Wen Heng was away to leave the capital, were forced to retract their claws.

Perhaps realizing there was no point in holding on, Xiao Shi Yu hastily had her steward sell off all her continuously unprofitable shops. She then took the money and bought several estates in remote areas, which would at least generate some income.

Jin Qianqian had long had people keeping a secret watch on them. Even though she was incredibly busy, she had the ever-eager-to-help Hu Dong step in and acquire all of the shops for her.

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However, after this string of acquisitions, Jin Qianqian was left with only a few tens of thousands of taels in silver notes, giving her a sense of financial crisis for the first time.

Ancient Wen Heng stared at the box on his desk, then looked up at Liu Shijiang in surprise.

"Don’t stare at me like that. This isn’t from me.

I don’t know when you met my uncle, but he insisted I pass this on to you. He also asked me to give you a message: he’s waiting for you to come back so you can enjoy that all-fish banquet together."

Without waiting for Ancient Wen Heng to ask any questions, he turned and left with his usual aloofness.

The moment he heard the mention of an all-fish banquet, Ancient Wen Heng knew who had sent it.

Ever since they caught that large fish in Luohu Village, Liu Donglai had been trying persistently for months to land another river fish weighing over ten pounds, all to no avail. He had mentioned numerous times that as soon as he did, he would treat Ancient Wenheng’s entire family to an all-fish banquet.

He opened the box. To his surprise, inside was a detailed chronicle of Lu City, and underneath it lay a geographical map—exactly what he needed most right now.

This timely assistance was a godsend, giving Ancient Wen Heng much more confidence for the journey to Lu City. He carefully returned the items to the box and set it aside securely.

In the days to come, he would keep these items on his person at all times, intending to memorize their contents.

Seeing Liu Shijiang emerge empty-handed, Ning Yuchen couldn’t resist asking, "Mr. Liu, what did you give to Mr. Gu?"

The question was loaded. If those present hadn’t known that Liu Shijiang outranked Ancient Wen Heng, they might have mistaken the exchange for an attempt at bribery.

Liu Shijiang sneered. "My uncle asked me to pass that along to a friend of his. I have no idea what’s inside. Why don’t you go ask him yourself?"

Everyone present fell silent. Even Ning Yuchen, the one who had spoken out, shrank back like a quail.

After spending so much time in the Hanlin Academy, everyone knew that Liu Shijiang’s uncle was the Old Prime Minister, Liu Donglai.

They couldn’t believe it. The Empress had just sent guards, and right after, the Old Prime Minister had sent a mysterious gift. This Ancient Wen Heng was clearly no simple character.

In a way, it was a blessing in disguise for Ancient Wen Heng. Things quieted down completely. When he left, even a few officials who normally wouldn’t greet him gave him a friendly nod.

Ancient Wen Heng caught sight of the two imposing guards following silently beside him out of the corner of his eye. After returning the nods of acknowledgment, he hastily departed with his men.

On the way, Ancient Wen Heng finally learned the two guards’ names. Like Ye Yi and the others, their names were very simple.

The names—Qi and Ah Ba—left Ancient Wen Heng sitting stunned in his carriage, speechless for a long moment. It took him a while to come to a conclusion: ’Well, they’re certainly easy to remember.’

The other three officials had already sent messengers with notes asking for the specific time of departure.

Ancient Wen Heng arranged to meet them at the city gate, from where they would all depart together.

Time passed quickly, and the day of their departure arrived.

Jin Qianqian personally brought their two children to see him off at the city gate. Seeing that the other three carriages each had only two or three attendants, she couldn’t help but frown.

Using the pretext of tidying his clothes, she whispered, "When you’re away from home, just focus on taking care of yourself.

I’ve already prepared your food for the first few days and given instructions to Jiang Shiniu and Ming Feng. If you need anything, just ask them."

Ancient Wen Heng glanced over at the other families saying their farewells. Noticing his gaze, they all nodded as a form of greeting.

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