Chapter 00229: Heaven... Has Unforeseen Storm Clouds
# Heaven... Has Unforeseen Storm Clouds
Chapter 229
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 229: Heaven...
Has Unforeseen Storm Clouds
"I believe Commander Zhong would also be pleased to see them return."
Sun Fuling finished marking the last few words, "Since Weicheng has been reclaimed, someone must guard the city, and someone must farm the land. In three months, when spring arrives and the snow melts, the fields outside Weicheng are fertile and it would be a pity to leave them abandoned."
In the Panlong Wilderness, food has always been a significant issue.
"Will the Balin people try to seize Weicheng again?" In truth, He Lingchuan already knew the answer:
Yes.
"Yes."
Sun Fuling said lightly, "As long as the Balin Kingdom's desire to destroy us remains, they will certainly attack Weicheng again."
He Lingchuan couldn't help but let out a long sigh, and then he heard Sun Fuling say softly:
"The world is like this. You must choose between a good death and a miserable life."
She carefully blew dry the ink marks: "Alright, I've finished marking. Let's start our first lesson."
The sparrow hawk by the brazier immediately buried its head in its back feathers.
Hurry up and sleep.
The sunlight hitting the window frame grew increasingly slanted and hazy.
Sun Fuling explained earnestly, but He Lingchuan found himself a bit distracted.
The two sat very close, and from this angle, her jawline was exquisite, her lips perfect; although her complexion was pale, her nose was straight, and her almond-shaped eyes were particularly lively and expressive.
What was that saying? There are two black mercury balls hidden in white mercury?
Other beauties have watery eyes that seem to overflow with emotion; Sun Fuling, however, had eyes that sparkled with light, like cold stars twinkling in the night, captivating the heart.
Such a gaze, how could it appear in a young girl without some experience?
Even though he knew she was the younger sister of the Sun family, He Lingchuan's curiosity about her deepened.
"Did you understand?" Sun Fuling noticed his distraction and waved her pen in front of his eyes.
"Y-yes, I understand."
He Lingchuan forcibly suppressed the urge to yawn.
This lecture lasted for two hours!
How did she manage to talk for almost two hours without drinking water?
Truly a professional.
The sparrow hawk beside him had already started snoring, and he envied it to death.
In the first hour, he could still focus on the lecture, but by the second hour, the words crawled off the paper and twisted into little tadpoles in his mind.
Sun Fuling also noticed his unease and stood up, saying: "Let's stop here for today. If I say too much, you won't remember it anyway."
"Yes, yes, thank you for your hard work, Miss Sun!" He Lingchuan quickly got up and quietly stretched his stiff lower back.
"I'm going back now, you should rest early."
Sun Fuling nodded at him and walked out.
Since she was kind enough to help, shouldn't he show some appreciation? He Lingchuan glanced at the roasted chicken wrapped in oil paper on the stove and suddenly remembered the new item he had acquired.
"Please wait a moment!" He reached into the flower pot and pulled out a candy snail.
After leaving the warm and humid cave in the Yanshan Mountains, it had turned into a frozen treat in the icy air.
He Lingchuan used a toothpick to extract the snail meat, cleaned the shell, and then handed it to Sun Fuling.
"With nothing of value, let this be a token for Shu Xiu."
"Candy shell?" Sun Fuling took it, held it up to the light, and her voice became cheerful, "You really want to give this to me? This is quite expensive, enough to cover half a year's Shu Xiu fee!"
She actually knew its worth.
The candy snail he offered had a center spiral of grass green, an outer ring of pure black, and the largest outer circle was a vibrant gradient of apple red, beautiful and natural.
Candy snails can grow colorful shells depending on the food they consume, and sometimes even the order in which they eat.
He Lingchuan shrugged: "A precious sword for a hero, a rosy gift for a beauty."
Sun Fuling tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, her eyes shining even brighter, and her voice softened: "Thank you for your generous gift, I really like it."
After they bid farewell, Sun Fuling clutched the candy shell as she returned.
He Lingchuan couldn't help but marvel at the allure of jewels for women.
Even someone as reserved as Sun Fuling couldn't take her eyes off the candy snail shell.
He looked at the remaining snails and sighed.
If only he could find the cave where these things grow in reality, then he would have an endless source of funds.
When he returned to the kitchen, he discovered that a package of roasted chicken was missing, and the sparrow hawk by the brazier was also gone.
The next morning, the people of Dunyu City had just risen when they heard two significant pieces of news.
First, three more people from the Zhan family had died during the night.
Strictly speaking, it was three and a half.
Two of them had been severely injured the day before and had lingered until dawn but ultimately succumbed;
the last half was the most tragic: Zhan Siye's pregnant wife was gone.
Zhan Siye was already fifty years old, having married a younger wife four years ago, who was thirty-two years his junior.
An old man doting on a young wife, it was inevitable.
Yesterday, the Li family's private soldiers stormed into the Zhan residence and knocked down his seven-month-pregnant wife, causing her belly to crash hard against a rockery, resulting in immediate bleeding and loss of consciousness.
The doctor summoned by the authorities rushed to save her, but unfortunately, it was in vain.
By midnight, there was one corpse and two lives lost.
It was a baby boy, and Zhan Siye nearly went mad.
Anyone who heard this news would exclaim "Oh no," shaking their heads in lament.
However, in these times, the probability of childbirth ending in tragedy was high; out of ten births, there would always be one or two.
Moreover, the Zhan family, being one of the four great families of Dunyu, had a rather poor reputation, and when the common folk spoke of this, they would always add, "The lord lacks virtue, and the descendants will face retribution," turning it into a topic for gossip.
The second major piece of news was that the Xunzhou army had breached Baichegang, tearing a long gap in General Zhao Pan's defenses.
In the past, when Yuan Gaozu attacked the Xiazhu, he received much assistance, and the gentry and noble families near Dunyu sent supplies and armor, so there were often hundreds of carts traveling along that path, hence the name.
But the current Yuan Kingdom army was clearly not as glorious as before; they lacked clothing and food, and morale was low, allowing Xunzhou to seize this strategic point.
The fall of Baichegang was a mockery of the Yuan court by Yan Zhanli.
More importantly, the terrain south of Baichegang was flat, with no defenses to guard, allowing the Xunzhou army to use it as a breakthrough point to advance southward.
When the news arrived, the entire Dunyu City was shaken.
The straight-line distance from Baichegang to Dunyu City was just over four hundred miles.
The most astonishing part was that from there, taking the official road, the marching speed could be even faster.
The storm clouds of war hovered clearly over the entire Dunyu City for the first time, perhaps also in the hearts of every Dunyu citizen.
As a result, the people of Dunyu paid more attention to the war than to the investigation of the three and a half lives lost in the Zhan family.
While having breakfast, Madam Ying informed He Chunhua of the news regarding the Zhan family, causing him to involuntarily slap the table:
"Heaven..."
He initially wanted to say "Heaven helps me," but seeing Madam Ying's astonished expression, he changed his words at the last moment: "Heaven has unforeseen storm clouds."
Yet his expression was still cheerful.
The deaths in the Zhan family would inherently intensify conflicts, and he wouldn't even need to use his backup radical measures.
Before long, the steward, Old Mo, also came to report on the situation in the north.
He Chunhua took a long breath; just as he was feeling drowsy, someone sent him a pillow, and he could hardly believe his good fortune.
These two major events were truly a double blessing for him.
What others saw as danger, he saw as a great opportunity.
His eldest son was indeed a bringer of fortune.
Facing the rising sun, He Chunhua couldn't help but feel ambitious:
His brand new chapter was finally about to begin.
Sure enough, just after he finished breakfast, Zhan family head Zhan Song arrived with several carts of heavy gifts, red-eyed as he added more charges against the Li family, asking the chief steward to uphold justice.
Since the case regarding the Li family's private soldiers committing murder wouldn't officially start until the suspects turned themselves in two days later, the Zhan family's current demand was that they must be severely punished when the time comes!
He Chunhua wore a face of pity and compassion, assuring that he would not let the perpetrators go unpunished.
The main event was coming.
Zhan Song was also a seasoned player; knowing he needed something from others, and wanting to investigate the Dunyu's top tyrant, the Li family, he realized that it wouldn't be easy without offering something in return.
Thus, he took out a redemption ticket from his pocket and placed it on the table:
"Knowing there are tigers in the mountains, yet Lord He insists on facing difficulties, the Zhan family is grateful and willing to donate this redemption ticket to the state. With this ticket, the authorities can collect five thousand stones of grain from the Zhan family's shop."
One stone equals one hundred and twenty pounds, so five thousand stones of grain is approximately six hundred thousand pounds, which would alleviate the urgent needs at the front lines.
He Chunhua smiled slightly: "The Zhan family is too polite."
He acted reserved, and Zhan Song immediately understood that this was seen as insufficient.
With over thirty thousand soldiers under Zhao Pan's command, even without fighting, five thousand stones would only last ten days at most.
"If heaven has eyes, and my Zhan family can receive justice, we are willing to donate another five thousand stones."
He Chunhua stood up: "Heaven's net is wide, but nothing escapes it; the Zhan family awaits good news."
This was a clear statement.
Zhan Song sighed in relief and took his leave.
In the past, he would never have believed that the authorities could investigate the Li family, but this new Chief Steward He had just taken office, and he had heard that he had achieved remarkable results while stationed in the west, successfully suppressing bandits, and had risen to prominence through the merit of killing Sun Fuping, having no connections with the high officials in the court.
As Zhan Song left He’s residence, he looked up at the sky and let out a soft sigh.
He had never desired so much for the authorities to handle cases impartially.
Of course, his actions were observed by spies lurking nearby, who quickly reported back to the Li family.
As for the conversation between the Xiazhu Chief Steward and Zhan family head, it didn't even require He Chunhua to spread the word; it would likely reach the ears of the Li brothers within two hours.
Li Rong sneered repeatedly: "Ten thousand stones, and the Zhan family only offers ten thousand stones of grain, thinking they can put us to death?"
Though he said this, his face was as pale as paper.
He had hardly slept over the past two days, and while the Li family was generally stable, since last night, he had stumbled at least three times, nearly falling.
At that moment, a servant came to report: "The Sixth Young Master has returned."
Li Rong immediately jumped up: "Quick, bring him in!"
...
Spring had long passed, yet the lakes outside Dunyu City were still frozen two feet thick.
He Lingchuan displayed the demeanor of a nobleman's son, changing from walking a bird on a leash to parading a monkey while leading a wolf, dressed in splendid robes, followed by four or five guards like Mao Tao.
He first went to the best restaurant in Dunyu for a lavish meal, then headed to Xiangyun Garden to listen to music.
Wherever he went, there was a show of grandeur.
In terms of prices, Dunyu was significantly more expensive than Heishui City.
(End of Chapter)