History of Women in the Wei Dynasty

Chapter 266 Coming for Profit, Fleeing for Disaster

It will take some time for the Qihu warriors to find out how Gong Ai disappeared.

Meanwhile, Changsun Wuzhuo and his group, who were tracking down the fugitives registered in the prefecture, had just entered Hengzhou territory after taking a roundabout route.

The young men came from military families. Along the way, they captured fugitives and eliminated bandits. Every official post station they passed praised them highly, which meant they had already secured the credit. How could these young men not be full of pride and high spirits!

However, they were not blinded by joy and realized that there was something fishy about the escape of the criminals.

Before Changsun Wuzhuo and his group set off from Pingzhou, they already knew that all the fugitives had been instigated by a criminal named Gao Cong. Gao Cong told the other criminals that they would be exiled again by the government and sent to the most remote, water-scarce, and drought-stricken areas of Pingzhou to reclaim wasteland. If they went, their chances of survival would be slim!
After the criminals considered escaping, Gao Cong continued his inflammatory rhetoric.

He said that the court only cared about Luoyang and had long since stopped paying attention to Pingcheng. With the late emperor's death, the officials in Pingcheng would definitely be replaced. The strong soldiers and diligent officials would all leave with their former superiors or move to Luoyang. After that, the household registration in Pingcheng would inevitably become incomplete, chaotic, and damaged, and countless farmlands would be abandoned. Under such circumstances, it would be easy to settle down in Pingcheng.

Is that really the case?
Changsun Wuzhuo, who had lived in Pingcheng for many years, was the least convinced! But when he entered Hengzhou, he indeed saw many abandoned villages, and even the official road was overgrown with weeds.

So they paused their journey and Yuanbo and a few others went to Gaoliu County to investigate.

Yuan Bohe was the son of Yuan Zuan, the governor of Pingzhou, and the leader of this group of young warriors.

There was the sound of horses' hooves!

Yuanbo and the others returned. The young man dismounted first and told all his companions who were waiting there, "We passed two abandoned post stations and only found the post station official after entering Gaoliu County."

Changsun Wuzhuo was very surprised. He remembered very clearly that when he left Pingcheng last March, there were officials and soldiers stationed at the nearby post stations.

Yuan Bohe: "There is a notice outside the post station in Gaoliu County that General Yuan Zhi is no longer the governor of Hengzhou, but has been replaced by General Wei Yu. I asked the post station official if there were any refugees recently, and the official said that there are often refugees, some of whom rely on temples and some of whom rely on powerful families. If we want to find those who have fled from Pingzhou, the county government can't help us at all."

A young man surnamed Xue said worriedly, "We haven't caught any of the fugitives registered in the prefecture for quite a long time, and it seems unlikely that we'll be able to catch them again. Did the post station official say whether the prefectural magistrate is in Gaoliu Prefecture?"

Yuan Bohe's face darkened further. He replied to his companion, "I already asked them. Didn't you see how annoying those post station officials were? They said they could help, but we had to lend them our horses."

The boys were furious!
What "borrowing"? It's clearly extortion!
Changsun Wuzhuo was the most disappointed: "How could this be! They're as rampant as bandits!"

Yuan Bohe calmed everyone down, saying, "Quiet down and listen to me. Whether the changes in Hengzhou are good or bad, it has nothing to do with us."

He changed the subject and analyzed, "The situation in Hengzhou is exactly as the ringleader Gao Cong incited. Pingzhou and Hengzhou are so far apart, yet Gao Cong was able to accurately assess the situation here. In addition, his resume states that he is skilled in riding and archery and well-versed in classics and history, which shows that he is extremely dangerous! Every day he is on the run, who knows how many evil deeds and sins he will commit! What I am most worried about now is that we may have been tricked by him from the very beginning. He is inciting the criminals to flee to Pingcheng, but he himself may not come."

Yuan Bohe looked at Changsun Wuzhuo: "So we have to split up. Wuzhuo, you have old friends in Pingcheng. Find two companions and go straight into the city without delay. Ask the officials in Pingcheng County or Daijun County for directions."

"The rest of you will travel with me through all the post stations in Gaoliu County, and then we will meet in Heisei!"

The boys quickly split up and went their separate ways.

At this moment, the sun's rays had just begun to shine upon the vast earth.

Since Luoyang became the capital of Wei, people from all directions came to submit to it. Every day, countless monks, nuns, and tile-making craftsmen passed through the city gates.

Some come for profit, while others flee to avoid trouble. Liu Teng's adopted son, Liu Hun, belonged to the latter. Sitting in the oxcart, he hated Su Xingshou to the core, but since he couldn't do anything about it, he turned his anger and frustration towards Wei Yao.

Liu Hun had no idea about his father's conversation with his elder brother the night before, nor did he know that Wei Yao's mother was the head guard of the Prince of Rencheng's mansion. "That wretched maid caused me to break my leg. If it weren't for seeing her, would I have gone to that street? And now my father hates me and has kicked me out of Luoyang."

"Hmph, it's only half a year. Once I've recovered from my injuries and come back, I'll first slash her face, then take her as my concubine. Hmph, hmph—" He chuckled smugly, lost in his own imagination.

As he laughed, his voice turned into one of pain.

This morning, not only did his legs hurt, but his groin also hurt. However, his father and brother wouldn't listen to his complaints, thinking he was just making excuses to delay his trip.

After traveling another mile, the oxcart lurched violently, and Liu Hun cried out in pain and fainted. The servants had no choice but to pull him back to Yannian Lane.

The doctor examined the patient for a long time, then shook his head and said, "You need to cut off the penis immediately, or your life will be in danger."

The eunuch Liu Teng would never raise a castrated man as his son for nothing, and the fate awaiting Liu Hun was predictable.

Some people know how to avoid disaster and seek survival, while others are like trapped beasts, willing to perish together to fight one more time.

Yuan Cha, the son of the former King of Jiangyang, was one such example.

Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. These past two days, he has been busy searching through his possessions for rare ancient books that are hard to find on the market. He neatly packed them into boxes and went to the Prince of Jingzhao's mansion early in the morning to request an audience.

Yuan Yu was punished by the emperor to stay at home and reflect on his mistakes. He had almost developed calluses on the back of his head from sleeping so much. When he heard that Yuan Cha had brought two cartloads of gifts, he had nothing better to do, so he asked the steward to bring the man in.

In terms of seniority, Yuan Cha is two generations older than Yuan Yu.

But now one is the king and the other is a commoner. Yuan Cha, knowing the situation, stepped forward and bowed deeply, crying before speaking: "I heard that the king is looking for ancient books, so I brought all the ancient books in my house. I beg the king to take me in and give me a place to stay."

Yuan Yu loved being respected, so she asked, "What's wrong? Who upset you?"

"The Prince of Guangling!"

Yuan Yu became suspicious and immediately got angry: "So you've also heard about my falling out with the Prince of Guangling and want to use me?"

"No!" Yuan Cha cried, "It's the Prince of Guangling who's gone too far! My family just moved out of Yongkang Lane, and he bought our old house and even kicked down the only plaque we hadn't had time to remove at the gate! How can there be such an impolite and wicked person in the world!"

He gritted his teeth and looked at the Prince of Jingzhao with hope: "Now that my family is in dire straits, everyone avoids us like the plague. Only Your Highness is not afraid of that scoundrel Yuan Yu. If I don't come to Your Highness for help, who else can I turn to?"

Yuan Yu felt a deep connection to these words; now, all the other princes and the Qingwang clan were avoiding him. He hummed in agreement, thinking that he and the Prince of Guangling were bound to continue their fierce battle, so having another ally was certainly a good thing. "Alright, stop crying. You can stay in my residence for now; I happen to be short of a chief clerk."

"Thank you for taking me in, Your Highness."

Yuan Yu waved his hand impatiently: "Taking you in is a small matter, but the Prince of Guangling is cunning and treacherous. We can't test him. We need a sure plan to kill him with one blow!"

Yuan Cha said grimly, "I have a sound plan."