Chapter 602 The dispute in Ye Mansion!

However, Murong Qingwu is indeed an exception. Whether she is the eldest daughter of the Murong family or the title of the most talented woman in the world, it is easy for people to have a strong interest in and unlimited reverie about her and Ye Mingsheng's combination...
Previously, because Murong Yuliang, the second master of the Murong family, held an important position in the Fengwu Army and was trusted by Ye Mingsheng, many people inside and outside the Fengwu Army speculated about what kind of tacit understanding and intricate connection there were between the Fengwu Army and the Murong family, and even the wealthy families in Guanzhong behind them.

If it was just speculation before, then after marrying Murong Qingwu, everyone had confirmed the existence of this matter. This also raised more questions. Among these questions, the most critical and most eye-catching one is undoubtedly the dispute over the Ye Mansion!

Although they were from Luoan, from the perspective of geographical bloodline, An Miaoyi and Murong Qingwu belonged to the same political group of Guanzhong dignitaries. However, due to the increasingly declining power of the An family and their relationship with the Cui family, An Miaoyi was regarded as a representative of the local faction within and outside the Fengwu Army. A group of local officials headed by Cui Shao were all supporters of An Miaoyi.

As for marrying Murong Qingwu, it was undoubtedly a manifestation of the power of the Guanzhong nobles in the Fengwu Army. Everyone was very clear about one thing, that is, the Murong family, with five generations and three cabinet ministers, was an extremely prominent family in the entire Great Zhou, and their legitimate daughters would never be allowed to be concubines.

This time they made an exception for Ye Mingsheng. On the one hand, this was enough to show how much they valued Ye Mingsheng and the Fengwu Army. On the other hand, it also raised a question in people's minds...

That is, whether Murong Qingwu's existence will pose a challenge to An Miaoyi's status as the eldest wife. Can the Murong family and the dignitaries in Guanzhong really tolerate Murong Qingwu being just a concubine of Ye Mingsheng?

Based on the consistent strong style of the Guanzhong nobles, most people's answer to this question is negative, so everyone thinks that the struggle between An Miaoyi and Murong Qingwu is inevitable.

Many people regard this incident as a weather vane of the Fengwu Army's politics. It depends on whether the powerful dragon of Guanzhong's dignitaries can suppress the local snakes represented by the Cui family.

It was at this critical juncture that the news of An Miaoyi's serious illness broke. Although Ye Mingsheng had tried his best to block the news and did not want it to cause too much waves in the Fengwu Army, as the actual controller of Liaoyang, Youyan, and half of Yunbing, countless people were watching Ye Mingsheng's every move.

Even if you want to block explosive news like your ex-wife being seriously ill and not let it spread, how long can you block it?
Soon the news that An Miaoyi was seriously ill spread quickly. Because An Miaoyi was recuperating at the time and did not appear in front of everyone, the rumor became more and more true. It spread from one person to ten people, and then to a hundred people. In the end, it had spread to the point that An Miaoyi was dead, the Governor's Office kept the death a secret, and Murong Qingwu was about to take over.

The power of rumors is enormous, causing many speculators to want to move closer to the Murong family...

"Madam, you said that the Marshal has issued a gag order in the mansion, how did the news get out? Is there someone behind this?" Looking at An Miaoyi, Qi Qige hesitated and asked:
An Miaoyi's eyes flashed with a gleam of light when she heard this, and she said calmly:

"It's normal for the news to spread, but the speed at which it spread was really too fast. No surprise, someone is behind this and fanning the flames!"

"That must be Murong Qingwu. This bitch was at odds with you, Madam, in Luoan back then, and now she is even more shameless. Even as a concubine, she wants to stick to the Marshal. Their Murong family is also a famous and prestigious family, how could they give birth to such a shameless bitch!" Qiqige said without hesitation

Although Qiqige's words were very satisfying, An Miaoyi still kept her head clear. She smiled and shook her head and said:

"Based on my understanding of Murong Qingwu and the Murong family, even if they think so in their hearts, they will not do it so blatantly and cheaply. My husband has always opposed women getting involved in politics. This is his bottom line. Last time, Guo Zhiping just asked the old lady for a favor, but he was dismissed and ordered to reflect at home. With the level of Murong father and daughter, they will never act like this. Doing so will only cause the Marshal's dissatisfaction!"

Qiqige was not discouraged by An Miaoyi's rejection of her idea. She thought for a moment and continued:
"If it's not Murong Qingwu, then it must be Pei Zhixiu! She must be even more proud now that she's pregnant!"

"On the surface, this woman appears to be indifferent to fame and gain, and she looks sad and cold all day long. In fact, I heard that she is just pretending to be reserved. In fact, she is more naughty than anyone else. She can do whatever tricks the Marshal wants to play. She is still not quiet now that she is pregnant. Otherwise, why would the Marshal be so obsessed with her and run to her every now and then?"

Listening to Qiqige's increasingly unreasonable remarks, An Miaoyi smiled and said:

"There are not many smart people in this mansion, and Pei Zhixiu is one of them. She knows that some things will never happen to her, so she is the most indifferent. What's more, she knows my physical condition best, so it's impossible for her to spread rumors in secret so that I can slap her in the face!"

Seeing that Qiqige wanted to say something, An Miaoyi shook her head and said:

"Don't think too much. It will only cause more trouble. Others have their own mouths. Just let them say whatever they want!"

"Well! As long as Madam and Master Jingren are healthy, others can only watch no matter how jealous they are. It is not their turn to stir up trouble in the Ye Mansion!" Qiqige nodded obediently and said:
Because her body had not fully recovered and she had said so many words, An Miaoyi was a little tired. She went back to her room with the help of Qiqige to take a nap. An Miaoyi slept very deeply and sweetly. Some things emerged in her mind in her dream, allowing An Miaoyi to grasp some clues that she had not noticed before.

After slowly waking up from her sleep, An Miaoyi thought carefully for a while before calling Qiqige to her side and whispering instructions.

After hearing An Miaoyi's instructions, Qiqige's eyes showed a hint of surprise, and she asked in confusion:
"Ma'am, you want me to investigate her?"

An Miaoyi nodded heavily and ordered:

"That's right, I want you to investigate her. This matter must be kept secret and no one else must know about it! And it must be done quickly!"

Although she didn't know what An Miaoyi wanted to do, under An Miaoyi's clear command, Qiqige did not dare to neglect and immediately followed the order.

After Qiqige left, An Miaoyi looked at the blue sky outside the window, sighed slightly, and murmured softly:
"I hope I guessed wrong, otherwise it would be really troublesome..."

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Jiyu, Sanchaling "Kill! Kill all these bandits!"

"There's an order from above! The first person to break into the enemy camp will be rewarded with 500 taels of silver!"

"Brothers, come on! Kill the bandit leader Feng Sanxi!"

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Although his soldiers were getting closer and closer to the enemy camp, the camp, which had become dilapidated after several days of different attacks, was like a lone boat on the rough sea. Although it might be destroyed, Gao Dingshan, who was standing on the watchtower watching the battle, did not have the slightest joy on his face!

At this time, Gao Dingshan's cheeks were sunken, his eyes were bloodshot, and his whole body was covered with dust. At this moment, he did not live up to the glory of Gao Zongchang's son. Although he realized at the moment he decided to attack Sanchaling that since the Fengwu Army had dug this pit in Sanchaling, they would naturally not let him pass easily, so from the beginning Gao Dingshan began to let his men go all out to launch an attack on the rebel army on Sanchaling, striving to capture this important transportation point as soon as possible and continue to return to Yujing.

However, Sancha Ridge was tougher than Gao Dingshan had imagined. As the leader of the rebel army, Zhu Sanshan had a very high reputation among the rebels. After learning that he had died tragically at the hands of the Henan Army, the rebels who had originally embarked on the road of rebellion because of the atrocities against the Gao family were now filled with righteous indignation. They all shared a common hatred and were holding their breath to take revenge on the Henan Army.

Therefore, in this blocking battle at Sanchaling, the morale of the rebel army was high, and the puppet Feng Sanxi, under the guidance of Tong Wen, took out generous rewards to stimulate everyone's fighting enthusiasm. With the morale of the army high, the rebel army built many defensive fortifications at Sanchaling, fully occupying the advantage of geographical location...

Faced with such a tough nut to crack, Gao Dingshan had no good solution but to fill the hole with the blood and lives of the Henan Army soldiers. After being attacked continuously for several days by the Henan Army regardless of casualties, although Tong Wen and others tried their best to resist, the rebel army on Sancha Ridge also suffered heavy losses, and the village might be destroyed today.

"Master Baihu, everything is ready. You can leave at any time!" Ye Zhen walked to Tong Wen and whispered:
Tong Wen did not answer Ye Zhen's words immediately, but continued to observe the battle situation outside the camp. After a while, he slowly said:

"Today is the first day we have been defending Sanchaling?"

Ye Zhen said without hesitation:
"ninth day!"

Hearing this answer, Tong Wen turned to look at Ye Zhen and said calmly:

"How many days did the Marshal order us to hold out?"

After hearing this, Ye Zhen was speechless. After hesitating for a moment, he lowered his voice and persuaded:
"Captain, the Henan Army is attacking like a tide. We may not be able to hold this camp today. After all, there is only one day left. The First Army commanded by Yuan may have surrounded Yujing by now. You should stop being so dogmatic..."

Patting Ye Zhen's shoulder, Tong Wen said calmly:

"Brother, I know you are doing this for my own good, but as people from the Coordination Office, we must carry out the orders given by the Marshal to the letter!"

"Ten days is ten days, nine days is nine days, there can be no slacking off!"

Tong Wen's statement made Ye Zhen admire him even more, but he continued to persuade him:

"All the affairs of my Coordination Office in Hebei and Henan are in the hands of the Captain. For the sake of the overall situation, you should evacuate to a safe place. We will be watching here as well. Please rest assured, we will hold on until the last moment!"

Tong Wen waved his hand and said:

"I have already arranged everything before coming to Sanchaling. Even if I die here, the work of the Coordination Office in Hebei and Henan will continue. I have made up my mind, brother, so you don't need to say more. Just guard these last two days well, and I will treat you to a drink when we return to Youyan!"

Seeing that Tong Wen had made up his mind, Ye Zhen could only shake his head helplessly, and then continued:
"Feng Sanxi is a coward. Seeing that the situation was not good, he tried to escape again. However, our people were watching them the whole time. He was caught before he could take two steps. Now he is locked in the cellar!"

Tong Wen nodded and ordered:
“You did a great job. Feng Sanxi will be of great use in the future. We need to keep him alive now. You have to keep an eye on him. But if the worst comes to the worst, don’t let him fall into the hands of the Henan Army…”

"I understand!" Ye Zhen nodded and said

As soon as these words fell, under the cover of a rain of arrows, the Yu Army used a battering ram to create a gap in the camp. Countless Yu Army soldiers tried to rush into the camp through the gap. Seeing this, Ye Zhen had no time to say more to Tong Wen, so he rushed over with his men, trying to block the gap.

The fierce battle lasted until noon, when the Henan Army, which had been unable to capture the camp for a long time, slowly retreated like a tide, allowing the rebels in the camp to finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Looking at the mess in the camp and the exhausted rebel soldiers, Tong Wen's expression suddenly became extremely solemn. He knew that if the Henan Army continued to maintain such intensity of attack in the afternoon, then Sanchaling would probably change hands tonight.

Thinking of this, Tong Wen became anxious. He was also a human being, and of course he was afraid of death, but he was more afraid of failing to complete the task assigned by Ye Mingsheng, which would lead to some flaws in the Fengwu army's plan to encircle Yujing. If that happened, Tong Wen would be doomed and would be unworthy of the trust of his superiors!
Just when Tong Wen was thinking hard about whether there was any good way to delay the war and hold Gao Dingshan’s troops at Sanchaling, a white dove suddenly flew from the north and kept circling over Sanchaling, arousing the curiosity and discussion of the rebel soldiers. Tong Wen, whose train of thought was interrupted by the discussion, also noticed the appearance of the white dove. He was stunned at first, and then his eyes lit up instantly...

(End of this chapter)