Chapter 460 Goodbye!

After the Yangchun piece was played, everyone in the theater gave applause and cheers to Shen Yutong on the stage without hesitation. Amid the applause, Shen Yutong bowed slightly to everyone and then retreated behind the scenes. As the protagonist of today's play, she would appear three times today, with other people in the theater interspersed with some performances in between. Therefore, this pipa piece Yangchun was just an appetizer...
After Shen Yutong left, Farewell My Concubine was played by Feng Ruowei, another famous actor from Dongting Theater. Although Feng Ruowei was also a character, she played Concubine Yu so pitiful that people felt pity for her. Unfortunately, she appeared on the stage at the wrong time, and everyone in the theater had not yet completely come out of the melodious melody of Shen Yutong!
The most representative of them is Murong Qingwu who is now beside Ye Mingsheng. Since Shen Yutong appeared, she has become much quieter than before, and she seems to have forgotten the questions she asked Ye Mingsheng. She lowered her head slightly as if she was thinking about something.

Seeing him like this, Ye Mingsheng seemed to be thinking about something. It seemed that there must be some story between Murong Qingwu and Shen Yutong...

The timeline seems to match. Murong Qingwu and Shen Yutong are about the same age, and they grew up in Luoan at the same time. Although Shen Yutong is now a prostitute, she was the daughter of the censor Shen Hui. The two might actually know each other!
Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng suddenly recalled something. If he remembered correctly, Shen Hui was a Jinshi in the early years of Anhe, and his examiner at that time was Murong Lun, the uncle of Murong Qingwu who later became the Minister of Revenue. This means that Shen Hui was Murong Lun's disciple and one of the Murong family's cronies in the court.

If that's the case, Murong Qingwu and Shen Yutong are most likely acquainted with each other. So what kind of story is there between these two people?

Although Ye Mingsheng didn't know why Shen Hui was beheaded and his property was confiscated, since he was one of the Murong family's followers, and with the power of the Murong family in the court, the fact that Shen Hui was beheaded and his property was confiscated undoubtedly meant that the Murong family had abandoned him!

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng looked at Murong Qingwu with a playful look in his eyes...
Just as Ye Mingsheng was pondering carefully, he heard another set of footsteps approaching him. Ye Mingsheng subconsciously looked up and saw that it was Chen Shengcai, the owner of Dongting Theater, whom he had met once in the Governor's Mansion!

Seeing Ye Mingsheng looking at him, Chen Shengcai immediately put on his signature smile and nodded repeatedly at Ye Mingsheng in a flattering manner.

Although Ye Mingsheng had no feelings towards Chen Shengcai, as the saying goes, one should not hit a smiling person. Moreover, when he brought the troupe to the Governor's Mansion to perform a few days ago, he also put in his best effort and made his old mother Ye Cui very happy. Therefore, Ye Mingsheng could not be said to hate him. When he saw that he had discovered him, Ye Mingsheng did not pretend not to know him but waved his hand and asked Ye Kui to let this person come over.

Coming to Ye Mingsheng, Chen Shengcai was about to say something, but Ye Mingsheng thought of himself and Murong Qingwu playing the game of lust, so he gave Chen Shengcai a look. Chen Shengcai had been in the opera world for so long, so of course he was a shrewd man. Looking at the man in white sitting next to Ye Mingsheng who looked more beautiful than a woman, he could understand that Ye Mingsheng did not want to reveal his identity. He smiled and bowed to Ye Mingsheng and said:

"My dear boss, there is a vacant seat in the private room upstairs. I wonder if you and this young master would be willing to move there..."

Seeing that Chen Shengcai was quite perceptive, Ye Mingsheng had some praise for him and said lightly:

"No need, we have a good location!"

Upon hearing what Ye Mingsheng said, Chen Shengcai's face was stunned. He had just been accompanying a distinguished guest in the private room upstairs, and suddenly he saw Ye Mingsheng in the audience. At first, because Ye Mingsheng was in casual clothes, Chen Shengcai thought he had seen it wrong. It was not until he looked at him for a long time that Chen Shengcai was sure that Ye Mingsheng was really here!

To be honest, Chen Shengcai was both surprised and delighted to see Ye Mingsheng appear. Their troupe had just performed at the Governor's Mansion not long ago, and Ye Mingsheng came to their theater in disguise. This naturally meant that the Governor liked the plays in their theater, which was naturally great news for him as the owner of the troupe!
This was a good news, but what surprised Chen Shengcai was that he couldn't figure out Ye Mingsheng's intention...
Chen Shengcai remembered clearly that Ye Mingsheng had asked him about Shen Yutong in the Governor's Mansion, and today was the day Shen Yutong would appear on stage!

Could it be that Ye Mingsheng, the Liaoyang governor, is as obsessed with Shen Yutong as the previous Liaoyang governor Song Wenhui?

Chen Shengcai was overwhelmed when he realized this. Shen Yutong had threatened to commit suicide, so he had no choice but to act out a tuberculosis play with Shen Yutong. However, there is no wall that is impenetrable, and the news soon leaked out. Fortunately, Song Wenhui fell soon after, and they were not liquidated by Song Wenhui.

However, if Ye Mingsheng really wanted to get Shen Yutong, he could only use the trick of having tuberculosis once, but not a second time. If he used it a second time, wouldn't that be an insult to her intelligence?
Although he was extremely worried and had a headache, Chen Shengcai knew one thing clearly: it was a blessing in disguise, and disaster was unavoidable. His entire family and such a large Dongting Theater were all in Liaoyang and Dongning. He could not run away, so he took the initiative to find Ye Mingsheng, hoping to get some information from Ye Mingsheng...

Seeing Chen Shengcai not knowing what to do, Ye Mingsheng said calmly:

"Don't worry about us, just do what you need to do!"

"Yes!"

Although he still wanted to test Ye Mingsheng's attitude, since Ye Mingsheng had already given the order, Chen Shengcai could only retreat respectfully.

After Chen Shengcai left, Murong Qingwu, who had been lost in thought, came back to her senses, and with a hint of sarcasm in her eyes, she asked Ye Mingsheng:
"The owner of the Dongting Theater is rushing to curry favor with you, Brother Ye. I guess you must be a high-ranking official in the government..."

Ye Mingsheng said without comment:

"I am just an insignificant nobody. I am just a businessman like Chen Shengcai. He says one thing to one person and another to another. He wants to curry favor with an official and give him a few compliments!"

As soon as Ye Mingsheng finished speaking, the song Farewell My Concubine on the stage ended. Concubine Yu, played by Feng Ruowei, retreated to the stage. Then, a concubine with a pure appearance but full of charm slowly walked to the front of the stage. It was Shen Yutong who had returned to the stage!
Shen Yutong's reappearance immediately attracted the attention of everyone in the audience. Murong Qingwu didn't even bother to talk to Ye Mingsheng and stared at the "Royal Concubine" on the stage in a trance. At this time, Ye Mingsheng was also looking forward to it and wanted to appreciate Shen Yutong's famous Drunken Concubine in Liaoyang.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Shen Yutong sang leisurely:
The island's ice wheel begins to turn.
See the Jade Rabbit, it rises early in the east again.

The ice wheel left the island, and the world became exceptionally bright.

The bright moon in the sky is just like Chang'e leaving the Moon Palace.
I am like Chang'e leaving the Moon Palace, or just like Chang'e descending from the ninth heaven, lonely and desolate in the Guanghan Palace, ah, in the Guanghan Palace.

The Jade Bridge leans against the railing.

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Although he had seen Su Xiaolian act out The Drunken Concubine in the Governor's Mansion, and although Su Xiaolian's acting was also very good and charming, but when he watched it again at this moment, Ye Mingsheng felt that they were so different that Shen Yutong was on another level!
Picking up the teacup and taking a sip of tea, Ye Mingsheng was about to continue enjoying Shen Yutong's performance when Ye Kui came to him and whispered.

Ye Mingsheng narrowed his eyes when he heard this, and looked at the charming Shen Yutong on the stage with some regret, but he still chose to stand up. Ye Mingsheng's action also disturbed Murong Qingwu who was standing beside him. She asked with some doubt:
"What are you going to do?"

"There are some important official business that needs to be handled!" Ye Mingsheng replied:
"You haven't answered my question yet..." Murong Qingwu said with some disappointment:
Looking at Mu Qingqingwu's pretty face that had made the original owner toss and turn countless times and unable to sleep at night, Ye Mingsheng smiled and said:
"Don't worry, Brother Wang, we are destined to meet again! Next time, I will tell you what kind of person Ye Mingsheng is and whether his reform policies are for the people!"

After saying this, Ye Mingsheng didn't wait for Murong Qingwu to reply. He just bowed to her and turned around to leave with Ye Kui and others. Looking at Ye Mingsheng's free and easy back, Murong Qingwu's disappointment in her heart increased by three points. Although Ye Mingsheng said that they would meet again, after this separation, could they really meet again? And when could they meet again?
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Ye Mingsheng walked out of the Dongting Theater. Several fast horses had already been prepared outside the theater. Ye Mingsheng and his men mounted the horses and did not drive towards his own governor's mansion, but went straight to the Fengwu Army's General Staff Headquarters.

Half an incense stick later, Ye Mingsheng walked into the General Staff Headquarters. At this time, Fengwu Army Chief of Staff He Jingyun, Director of the General Coordination Office Huo San, General of the First Division Yuan Song, and Left Counselor of the Provincial Government Gu Sansi were already waiting for Ye Mingsheng in the hall.

"What's the situation now?" Ye Mingsheng asked Huo San:

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, Huo San said directly with a serious expression:

"Your Excellency, I just received news from Youyan that Shangguan Hongyuan had reached a ceasefire consensus with the King of Qin half a month ago. So even though the King of Qin had not withdrawn his troops from Chencang at that time, Shangguan Hongyuan secretly transferred 20,000 troops from Guanzhong to support Feng Han!"

“After obtaining these 20,000 soldiers and horses, Feng Han did not choose to hide in Jinyang City, but counterattacked Jinzhong and caught the Yan army off guard. The Yan army suffered more than 10,000 casualties, and Jinzhong was almost lost. In addition, I got the news that the assassins of the Supervisory Office also cooperated with Feng Han’s actions and attacked Zhao Fuqu in Jinzhong City. At present, I only heard that Zhao Fuqu was injured, but the specific situation of the injury is still unknown...”

As soon as these words came out, Ye Mingsheng's expression instantly became serious. He couldn't help but pray silently for Zhao Fuqu in his heart, hoping that nothing would happen to this old brother!
Ye Mingsheng's prayer for Zhao Fuqu was absolutely sincere. Although he had been preparing to give Zhao Fuqu a fatal blow and send him to heaven, now was not the time!

Now the main force of the Yan army is in the Yunbing area. If something really happens to Zhao Fuqu, even if he is not dead but just seriously injured, the Yan army will be in panic and leaderless. Then, to be on the safe side, the Yan army is likely to withdraw from Yunbing and return to Youyan. This will undoubtedly increase the difficulty for Ye Mingsheng to seize Youyan, so Ye Mingsheng sincerely hopes that Zhao Fuqu will not have any problems at this time!
Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng also admired Shangguan Hongyuan's decisiveness and boldness. Shangguan Hongyuan dared to withdraw troops from Guanzhong before the Qin Wang's old man Deng withdrew his troops. If the Qin Wang led the Xiliang Army to launch a surprise attack, Shangguan Hongyuan would most likely be defeated...
Although he was optimistic about Zhao Fuqu's injury, Ye Mingsheng also felt rational and thought that he should be prepared for both situations. He looked at He Jingyun and asked:

"Does the General Staff have a plan for the Yan army to withdraw to Youyan?"

Facing Ye Mingsheng's question, He Jingyun looked stern but still nodded and said:

"Yes, if the Yan army really withdraws to Youyan, then we plan to advance the raid time by half a month!"

"The seventh day of the first lunar month?" Ye Mingsheng asked in surprise:

"Yes!" He Jingyun nodded and explained:

“If the main force of the Yan army withdraws from Yunbing to Youyan, the difficulty of our army attacking Youyan will increase exponentially. If we don’t prolong the wait, then the best opportunity will be in the first month of the year. At this time, the Yan army will be immersed in the joy and peace of the New Year and will inevitably relax their vigilance...”

Ye Mingsheng thought about it and felt that what He Jingyun said made sense, but at the same time he also realized a problem, that is, even if it was the New Year, it was everyone celebrating together, not just the Yan Army. It was true that the Yan Army was immersed in a festive and peaceful atmosphere, but so was his Fengwu Army!

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng looked at Yuan Song and asked:

"Are your frontline troops ready to go into battle in the first month of the lunar year?"

Yuan Song hesitated for a moment, but still nodded heavily and said:

"Guaranteed to complete the mission!"

Yuan Song's words made Ye Mingsheng feel more at ease. He patted Yuan Song on the shoulder and said:
"Your unit has a heavy responsibility this time so please be careful. During this time, I will have the logistics department kill more chickens, ducks, pigs and sheep, and provide you with meat dishes every day, just like celebrating the New Year in advance!"

Yuan Song felt warm in his heart after he finished speaking, and he bowed to Ye Mingsheng and said:
“Thank you for your consideration…”

(End of this chapter)