Unlimited estates for rural beauty-Chapter 446 The Enemy at the Gates (4)
Wan Hun shook his head, "There’s no need for discussion, it’s all up to you to open the city gates." He was resolute in not letting the youngster go.
Xiaobai secretly rolled his eyes and took a deep breath, "Alright, then you be careful."
Wan Hun patted his head, but Xiaobai swatted his hand away, "I am already an adult, not a child."
Wan Hun chuckled, "Yes, little adult. You should rest well then, and after dinner, we’ll set off."
Without waiting for Xiaobai to retort, he lay back on the wooden plank and closed his eyes to recuperate his energy.
Xiaobai, seeing this, found nothing interesting to do and lay down on the wooden plank in his clothes to seek repose.
At that moment, in the Imperial Palace of Mingyi Country, the Emperor sat on the Dragon Throne, while the Crown Prince paced back and forth in the great hall.
"Your Majesty, the Governor of the Nine Gates requests an audience." The Emperor’s personal eunuch rushed back, his forehead sweating profusely as he bowed and reported to the Emperor seated at the top.
"Quick, bring him in," said Ming Hong, who was sitting on the throne, becoming somewhat restless. He perched forward, lifting his backside slightly and widened his eyes at the eunuch below.
"Yes." The eunuch, who had just steadied himself and had yet to wipe the sweat from his brow, hurried out again to invite the Governor, Shao Kang, to enter the hall. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
Following the eunuch’s direction, Shao Kang strode in with a stern face.
"Subject, Shao...,"
"Rise, what’s the situation outside now?" the Emperor asked Shao Kang with some urgency.
"Reporting to Your Majesty, they have all been blocked outside the city by your subject, and they won’t be able to breach for a while," Shao Kang said, straightening his bent body, speaking with a hint of pride about the morning’s achievements.
"Good, good, that’s very good," Emperor Ming Hong sighed in relief, his heart easing a bit.
Shao Kang cast a glance at the Emperor and then at the silent Crown Prince seated below, sighing softly, "Your Majesty, we must quickly figure out what to do. Even if they can’t enter, if the stored grain in the Capital City runs out, we will be sitting ducks."
"Let’s take it one step at a time. I’ll think of a solution," said Ming Hong wearily, waving his hand and supporting his forehead with one hand.
Seeing the Emperor wave him away, Shao Kang slowly retreated from the hall.
Ming Shang lifted his eyelids slightly and, seeing his father like that, he too felt great regret. It was too late for regrets, and although he had thought of many remedies, few were feasible. All the calls for help cast to other nations had sunk deep into the ocean without a response. Could it really be time to forget about my Mingyi Country?
As night fell, a damp chill wind brushed by, the guards on the city walls began their shift changes, and it was during this time that Xiaobai and Wan Hun took the chance to swiftly move to the foot of the city walls, sneak to the rear, adjust their bodies, take a deep breath, and submerge into the icy water below.
Being a Divine Beast, Xiaobai was impervious to the cold, and although Wan Hun had his Inner Strength to protect his body, after coming ashore, he still shivered uncontrollably. Xiaobai quickly shook off the chill river water from his body after climbing ashore, while Wan Hun slowly released his Inner Strength, and after a moment, steam rose from his body, drying his clothes. He then extended his hand and used his Inner Strength to dry Xiaobai’s clothes as well.
Xiaobai admired Wan Hun, vowing that upon their return, he too would muster all his Inner Strength.
The two of them crouched and approached the city wall cautiously. Seeing that the soldiers on the wall had finished changing shifts and those who had been relieved had gone to eat, they exchanged glances and split up. After seeing Wan Hun walk away, Xiaobai moved to an unattended corner and quickly transformed into a tiny cat as round as a full moon, wobbling along under the shadow of the wall towards the direction of the city gate.
Wan Hun circled around the Capital City, finding the streets deserted and all the shops big and small shuttered, the streets deathly silent.
"Look quickly, there’s a fire!" exclaimed a soldier guarding the city wall when he saw black smoke rising not too far away, and soon after, large swathes of red flames emerged.
The rest of the guard soldiers were also drawn to the sight, turning their attention en masse towards the blaze.
"Seems like that fire is at a grain store," a soldier hesitantly said.
"Seems like? That definitely is! That’s the largest grain store in the Capital City, called Qi Xi Grain Store," another soldier joined in, confirming with certainty as he watched the fire ahead.
The Governor watched the burning buildings and initially did not take much notice, but upon hearing that the site of the fire was a grain store, his heart skipped a beat. He hesitated over whether to organize a fire fighting effort, but after pondering for a moment, he ultimately decided that they must try to extinguish the fire. If the stored grain was insufficient, they would need to requisition grain from these large storehouses. At this moment, every pound of grain was crucial.
