The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 54 - 53

Chapter 53

As the entire procession of provisions entered Jingyuan City, everyone immediately crowded around. Mu Gongzhen and the principal commander descended from the city wall to inquire about the source.

The burly man leading the procession dismounted his horse and scanned the crowd for someone. When he saw Mu Gongzhen approaching, his eyes briefly lit up before he led nearly a hundred guards in the procession to pay their respects.

“Greetings, Eldest Young Master. The twenty wagons of provisions you ordered have arrived!”

His resonant voice echoed loudly, making everyone in the vicinity hear. The commoners and soldiers all turned to look at the man addressed as the Eldest Young Master.

Mu Gongzhen frowned slightly at the man’s words. These people were strangers to him, and he hadn’t sent any messages or given any orders. How could these twenty wagons of provisions have been sent in his name?

The leader of the procession, glancing at Mu Gongzhen’s confused look for a moment, continued, “After receiving urgent news from you, Young Master, I quickly gathered provisions from various shops as much as possible as per your orders. We then traveled day and night to deliver these supplies promptly.”

Although it seemed like he was reporting to Mu Gongzhen, his real intention was to announce that all the efforts and good intentions were credited to Mu Gongzhen alone. He also spoke loudly to ensure that the commoners and soldiers could clearly hear.

“Master Mu, your sacrifice is immense. Twenty wagons of provisions are no small amount. This time, you must have used a considerable portion of your personal wealth. I must thank you on behalf of everyone here,”

The principal commander, who was unaware of the truth, said sincerely, patting Mu Gongzhen on the shoulder several times.

The commander’s respect for the young official increased. Many times, processions of provisions were intercepted and destroyed, with few able to protect and deliver the remaining supplies successfully. Not only did Mu Gongzhen deliver the provisions on time, but he also used his personal wealth to send an additional twenty wagons.

Such sacrifice was...rare among officials!

“Thank you, Master Mu, for your sacrifice! Thank you, Master Mu, for your help! Thank you, Master Mu!”

Voices of gratitude from tens of thousands of commoners and numerous soldiers echoed as they shouted their heartfelt thanks to Mu Gongzhen. The eyes that looked at the young man were full of admiration and respect.

The sacrifice and goodness demonstrated by Mu Gongzhen were evident to everyone in Jingyuan City!

Hunger was one of the most tormenting sufferings. Over the years, who knew how many lives were dead because of starvation? Maybe ten, hundreds, or thousands of lives. And when the soldiers had to go out to fight the rebels, they often lacked the strength to wield their weapons due to starvation.

But that would no longer be the case!

Mu Gongzhen squinted at the guard in front of him with a stern expression. He didn’t refute anything because he understood that the one behind this plan had good intentions, benefiting him greatly. Regardless of who was behind this, he could inquire later.

"Unload the provisions, then cook and distribute food to the refugees,"

Mu Gongzhen ordered calmly. The guards and soldiers began unloading the provisions and storing them in the warehouse as instructed.

Once all the provisions were unloaded, everyone dispersed to their respective duties. Mu Gongzhen led the head of the guard from this new supply procession to the private lodging, which was prepared for him. Ding Yang, who followed behind, closed the door and stood guard outside.

Inside the room, only two men remained. Mu Gongzhen sat down at his desk and examined the burly man in front of him with an indifferent gaze.

"Who are you?"

"Young Master, I am a personal guard trained by Uncle Wang for external duties," he replied quickly, showing no sign of fear or nervousness.

"Uncle Wang?"

Mu Gongzhen immediately recalled that if this was Uncle Wang’s doing, it wasn’t surprising. But how did Uncle Wang learn of the trouble with his procession? "I didn’t send any news. How did Uncle Wang know that my procession was in trouble?"

"Uncle Wang had sent shadow guards to secretly follow and protect you, Young Master. When the trouble occurred, the shadow guards sent an urgent message via carrier pigeon to Uncle Wang."

Upon hearing this, Mu Gongzhen began to understand the entire situation. Previously, it wasn’t just his imagination. Over the past few months, his martial skills had improved significantly, allowing him to sense a group of people following him. However, since they didn’t have malicious intentions, he didn’t pay much attention.

It turned out that this group was the shadow guards arranged by Uncle Wang to protect him...

Nevertheless, there were still points of suspicion. Although Uncle Wang had the authority to command, he couldn’t possibly have the ability to withdraw the funds to purchase twenty wagons of provisions in such a short time. So, who provided the large sum of money for Uncle Wang to use?

"Uncle Wang is in the capital and couldn’t have gathered these provisions in such a short time. Doing so would have caused a commotion in the capital. These provisions must have been gathered from other cities far from the capital, which would also take time to coordinate. Unless..."

Mu Gongzhen narrowed his eyes at the burly man in front of him, pausing for a long moment. "There was someone else coordinating from outside the capital." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"This...I’m sorry, but I can’t answer that question. Uncle Wang said it’s not too late to wait until you return to the capital to discuss it," the head guard replied with a troubled expression.

Actually, they had been following orders directly from the Seventh Young Miss. The urgent delivery of provisions was also under her orders. However, he couldn’t reveal this outright and thought it best for Mu Gongzhen to discuss it with Uncle Wang directly.

Seeing no deceit in the man’s eyes, Mu Gongzhen waved his hand. "Go rest. You must be exhausted from the long journey."

"Thank you, Young Master!" The guard replied and quickly exited the room.

Mu Gongzhen watched the man’s silhouette disappear, deep in thought. It seemed he had overlooked several matters. Once he returned to the capital, he would need to investigate thoroughly.

Left Side Chancellor Su’s Manor, Capital.

While the capital was in turmoil, the Su Manor remained eerily tranquil, as if isolated from the outside world. Father and son sat playing Weiqi in the pavilion by the water, seemingly at ease. The father’s face, in particular, was adorned with a constant smile.

"Jian Ping’s men reported success, Father. Though five wagons of provisions got away, most were destroyed by fire," Su Hankai reported while placing a black piece on the board.

Su Anming placed a white piece and leisurely picked up a teacup to sip his tea. "That’s good enough. Even with five wagons left, negligence charges for allowing the provisions to be destroyed still stand."

"Jian Ping handled this, so any investigation won’t lead back to us. Should we have Jian Ping go into hiding for now, Father?"

Su Hankai asked, looking up with curiosity. But Su Anming shook his head, a sly smile forming on his lips.

"No need to complicate matters."

"He’s just a small chief district official, isn’t he? Just eliminate the Jian family to ensure silence. Only the dead can keep secrets!"

Su Hankai paused momentarily but wasn’t surprised. His father had always been meticulous and ruthless. Any risk was to be nipped in the bud.

"Yes, Father."

"Oh, by the way,"

Su Anming set his teacup down, smiling wickedly. "Send someone to spread news of this. Before Mu Gongzhen returns to the capital, let’s blow this matter up."

Since Mu Gongzhen had repeatedly rejected his goodwill, then do not blame him for being cruel. If Su Anming couldn’t use him, then no one else could either!

Mu Manor, Qingyun City.

Over the past few days, Mu Yingying had been in a rather foul mood. Although she didn’t show it outwardly to avoid worrying those around her, deep down, her heart was colder than ever. She was both furious and anxious about her brother. Fortunately, she received a letter stating that the provisions had reached Jingyuan City on time, which gave her some relief.

In the afternoon, under a large tree, she sat in a rocking chair in silence. Mu Yingying closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sunlight filtering through the leaves, shining on her frail body. She tried to empty her mind and rest. However, when she sensed a shadow blocking the sunlight, she opened her eyes.

Standing before her was Lu Jiu, holding a tray of noodles. Her eyes lit up immediately at the sight of the bowl. As Lu Jiu handed it to her, she accepted it and ate with great enjoyment.

"Lu Jiu, I’m serious, your longevity noodles are always delicious."

She wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and complimented him. Her mood improved significantly after eating, a cheerful smile appearing on her small face as usual.

Lu Jiu didn’t respond verbally, only smiled. His gaze towards her was filled with warmth and gentleness. He had noticed her bad mood lately and decided to make her favorite longevity noodles to cheer her up,

Which worked better than expected!

"So, how did it go? Have you found anything?" Mu Yingying asked while sipping her tea.

"Our men managed to capture one of the culprits while posing as a villager in a nearby village at the foot of the mountain where the incident occurred. Despite our efforts, he refused to confess. So, we investigated his family and background and discovered that he was one of Chief District Jian Ping."

"Chief District Jian Ping?"

Mu Yingying raised her eyebrows in surprise. She didn’t recognize the man named Jian Ping, but she knew that a mere chief district officer wouldn’t dare to act so boldly.

It’s impossible!

"Have you traced the mastermind behind this?"

She met his eyes. And as if anticipating her question, Lu Jiu replied without delay, "Our men have been monitoring Jian Ping’s movements for some time. We discovered that he sent a secret letter to the capital before his entire family was silenced."

"Such ruthless and brutal actions are not the work of ordinary officials."

Mu Yingying instantly revealed a malicious smile. She suspected that the mastermind behind the scenes was likely a high-ranking official from one of the major power factions.

"Another group you ordered to monitor the capital’s activities reported that the major factions were behaving normally and quietly, as if nothing had happened. However, one residence was unusually silent. They didn’t engage with anyone or leave their residence. Only their servants frequently went to the market, spending several hours there each time. A few days later, rumors about the ambush of the provisions procession started spreading, originating from the market..."

Mu Yingying frowned deeply. "Which residence?"

"The residence of the Left Side Chancellor, the Su family." Lu Jiu looked up, glancing at the child’s stern face and allowing her to ponder.

In her past life, Mu Yingying didn’t have much knowledge about political affairs. However, she remembered one thing about the Su family. In the eleventh year of the Xingping era, at the beginning of the year, Left Side Chancellor Su Anming was deposed, and his entire family was eradicated on charges of rebellion. By the end of the same year, her father was promoted to the position of Left Side Chancellor.

Su Anming was notoriously ruthless and was already under suspicion by the Emperor. When he was cornered and forced to rebel, the Emperor eradicated the Su family, erasing them from the land.

Even though the Su family wasn’t yet cornered by the Emperor during this period, both sides had been wary of each other for a long time. The Su family would be cautious and try to find ways to either escape or gather enough power to oppose the ruler of the land.

Her elder brother had recently topped the imperial exams and been appointed as a third-rank official in the Ministry of Works. Naturally, he attracted the attention of various power factions. Given that he hadn’t chosen a side and seemed close to the Emperor, it wasn’t surprising that the Su family would be wary of him.

"Do you think the Su family is behind the destruction of the provisions?"

Mu Yingying asked Lu Jiu for his opinion. The tall man raised his eyebrows slightly before responding. "I don’t think so. However, upon investigating Jian Ping’s background, we found that he was a war refugee as a child and that Su Anming saved his life decades ago."

Hearing this, Mu Yingying immediately smiled. So that was the connection!

If Jian Ping was indeed a man of the Su family, it would make sense for him to follow their orders. The Su family had a reason to act, as she had suspected. Although there was no concrete evidence, everything uncovered in the investigation and the emerging facts confirmed who the true mastermind behind this incident was!

"I never thought this time it would be the work of the Su family. They seem to be quite wealthy debtors!" Mu Yingying said with a laugh, her big, round eyes glinting coldly.

She had vowed that those responsible would pay. Now that she knew who was behind it, it was time to reclaim the debt, with interest, from her enemies!

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