New and dark light years

Chapter 382 The Tang Family Rebelled Ahead of Schedule
After leaving the underground palace, Chu Rengong was surprised by the sheer size of the Zhuxian Society's secret workshop.

On the one hand, she continued to disguise herself as the ugly middle-aged woman she had been before, and set up a street stall to sell knitted trinkets, such as handkerchiefs and cloth bags.

Meanwhile, he waited for Zeng Hongluo to come to him.

She is not worried that Zeng Hongluo will harm her. After all, if she really wanted to deal with her, she would have been put on the defensive if Zeng Hongluo had just shouted once that night in the hidden underground palace.

Of course... she wasn't without the power to fight back.

The gourd that Li Lin gave her was filled with a lot of spiritual liquid; it had only been used once, but could still be used at least twice more.

The move 'Tianjingsha' can be used against both single targets and groups.

She was confident that she could escape even if surrounded, given that she could use two men.

After all, she didn't just sit around doing nothing during the days she stayed at Li Lin's house. Although she didn't get to cultivate with Li Lin to improve her strength, she did drink a lot of spiritual liquid from the jade bowl.

Their strength has increased by at least 30% compared to before.

Once martial arts skills reach a certain level, it becomes very difficult to improve further.

After drinking a few bowls of spiritual liquid at the Li residence, her vital energy increased dramatically, which was simply unbelievable.

She dared not imagine how much she would improve if she could cultivate with Li Lin like Huang Qing and the other two.

After setting up her stall for a few more days, just when Chu Rengong was about to lose her temper and go to find Zeng Hongluo, the latter finally came to find her.

The other person was still dressed in red, but in a different style.

Zeng Honglu raised her chin at Chu Rengong from afar before leaving.

Chu Rengong tossed the items on his stall aside and said to another woman with a stall, "They're yours."

After saying that, he left.

The woman was left speechless, stunned by the bargain she had found.

Zeng Hongluo walked ahead, with Chu Rengong following behind. After walking for about half an incense stick's time, the two arrived at a secluded alley.

"You really have a lot of patience," Zeng Hongluo said with a smile. "I was afraid you'd left since I haven't come to see you for so long."

Chu Rengong replied truthfully, "I was just about to leave."

Zeng Hongluo smiled and handed over a piece of paper: "This is the recipe for the wine gourd. Keep it safe."

Chu Rengong took the box, opened it, and looked inside. It was full of various medicinal herbs. He then folded it up and put it into his clothes to store it.

"Aren't you going to double-check?"

Chu Rengong laughed and said, "I don't understand it anyway. Just take it back and give it to the man to see. He understands it."

"What if it's fake? Aren't you afraid your man will blame you?"

Chu Rengong had seemed indifferent before, but after hearing these words, she became genuinely worried.

Thinking of Li Lin's disappointed look, Chu Rengong felt a little anxious.

"Look at you, so anxious and indecisive. It seems you've really fallen for that man." Zeng Hongluo said helplessly, "Didn't you say you were ruined? I think you're just infatuated."

Chu Rengong rolled his eyes at the other person: "If you can't speak properly, then don't speak."

Zeng Hongluo smiled: "Remember your promise. If I need your help in the future, you can't refuse."

"That depends on the situation. I can't just do whatever I'm told to do, can I?"

"Don't worry, I won't do anything to harm you. I'm not that bad."

"Is there anything else?" Chu Rengong asked. "If not, I'll be leaving now."

"In such a hurry to leave?"

“It’s been three months…” Chu Rengong said helplessly, “I really want to go back.”

I miss the warm bed at home, the delicious food there, and the people there.

Zeng Honglu smiled and said, "Is that Paper Prince so good that you don't want to stay outside for even a moment longer?"

"I'll remember your favor." Chu Rengong didn't reply, but simply cupped his hands in greeting, turned around, and left.

Just as she herself said, she was indeed eager to return home.

Zeng Hongluo looked at Chu Rengong's retreating figure and shook her head helplessly.

Chu Rengong bought a horse and rode it all the way to Jin County.

The two silver notes Li Lin gave her were of a large face value, and she hasn't even used up a quarter of them yet.

This was the first time in her life that she had ever been so generous with money.

The Zhuxian Society sounds impressive and has a lot of 'resources', but when it comes to money, it doesn't have much.

At least she used to have to be careful with her money every month.

As she rode her horse, looking southwest, she thought that Li Lin and the others must be living very comfortably at home.

But actually, her guess was exactly the opposite, and Li Lin is now quite helpless.

Because he was not at home, but was stationed with the government troops in the southwestern border region, at the Xilin military town.

Banners were raised high, and tents stretched as far as the eye could see.

Just looking at it from afar, you can feel its menacing aura.

The reason is simple: the Tang family army rebelled, raised the banner of rebellion, and swallowed up almost half of the counties in Dianjun in one fell swoop.

As the chief military commander of Jin County and the local garrison commander, Li Lin naturally had to go to the front line and lead the battle.

Xilin Military Town is also a pass, located in the passage between two mountains, tightly blocking the connection between Dian County and Jin County.

In fact, there are three military towns between Jin County and Dian County. To prevent targeted breakthroughs, Li Lin stationed 10,000 troops in each of the three military towns.

"Fortunately, we expanded our army beforehand." Li Lin looked at the map, feeling a bit overwhelmed: "The Tang family army's rebellion started much earlier than I expected."

Many people had a vague idea that the Tang family army might rebel, but no one expected them to rebel so quickly.

It caught Dian County completely off guard.

Fortunately, Li Lin had already investigated and eliminated any spies within the Tang family army in Jin County, and was extremely wary of them. Therefore, the Tang family army had no choice but to head north and launch an attack on Dian County.

Thanks to the Tang family army's previous operations in Dian County, they only spent ten days capturing half of the county towns in Dian County.

However, the local military commander and pacification commissioner of Dian Prefecture also realized the situation and organized troops to engage in a stalemate with the Tang army in the central Yunnan region.

Overall, however, Tang's army still has the advantage.

Guo Yuan stood next to Li Lin and said, "According to our scouts, the Tang family army has placed its main force in the central Yunnan area, while our side is only being watched by their auxiliary troops, who are afraid that we will launch a surprise attack on their flank."

Do you think we should launch a surprise attack?

Guo Yuan shook his head: "The Tang family army will definitely be on guard against us, so a sneak attack won't work."

Li Lin laughed and said, "You're right, but if Dian County falls completely, we'll be under a lot of pressure. It's a matter of mutual dependence."

Guo Yuan didn't respond, because Li Lin was right.

"If Dian Prefecture falls, we will be surrounded by Tang rebels on our left, Qin rebels on our right, and barbarians on our south... At that point, we will be doomed."

"Therefore, Dian Prefecture cannot fall," Li Lin said. "What do you think?"

"I'll listen to the Chief Inspector."

Li Lin said, "We don't need to attack directly; we just need to put pressure on the Tang family army."

Guo Yuan immediately stood up straight, ready to receive orders.

"Send orders to the commanders of the other two military towns, instructing them to send out their troops to pressure the Tang family army into engaging us. If the enemy outnumbers us, they should retreat back to their respective towns. If the enemy is outnumbered, they should make their own decisions. I need them to hold back at least 50,000 Tang family troops to relieve some pressure on the Yunnan army."

"Yes!"

Immediately, a dozen or so fine horses carrying messengers galloped away.

Li Lin looked at the map and sighed softly.

The plan can't keep up with the changes.

He originally planned to go to the capital in three months to obtain the position of Jiedushi (military governor)... so that he could return to manage the local area and develop it gradually.

Unexpectedly, the Tang family army rebelled ahead of schedule, which immediately put the plan on hold.

He had no choice but to lead his troops to the front lines and guard the checkpoints.

News of the Tang family army's rebellion quickly spread throughout the entire Great Qi.

The imperial court naturally received the news the next day.

This was a huge matter. The emperor, who usually disliked attending court and only loved alchemy, made an unprecedented appearance in the court and gave the ministers a good scolding.

After he finished cursing, he asked when they would form a large army to march south, but... no one answered.

The fact that almost the entire army that marched south more than half a year ago was wiped out was already a heavy blow to the imperial court.

If the southern expeditionary army hadn't disappeared, the Tang family army probably wouldn't have dared to rebel now; it would likely have dragged on for several more years.

No one spoke in the court, and no one was willing to offer any advice, which angered the emperor so much that he adjourned the court session.

After the court session, Fang Fengyi returned home.

As the Inner Palace Attendant, he was qualified to stand in the court.

Although they do not have the power to participate in political affairs.

Sitting in the main seat of the main hall, he frowned, pondering how the Fang family could profit from the Tang family's rebellion.

At that moment, Huang Ling walked over from the side.

Huang Ling had her long hair tied up, and although her face still showed some immaturity, she already had the air of a married woman.

"My lord, rumors are circulating outside that the Tang family army has rebelled and is attacking Dian County, and then Jin County, is that true?"

She seemed very anxious.

Fang Fengyi nodded and said, "Why is my wife in such a hurry?"

"How can I not be anxious? My father is the prefect of Jin County. What if the Tang family army attacks..."

Fang Fengyi smiled and said, "Don't worry, Taishan will definitely leave Jin County and return to the capital at that time."

When does the imperial court plan to send a large army to quell the rebellion?

Fang Fengyi laughed: "Suppress the rebellion? How can we suppress it! The Southern Expeditionary Army was wiped out half a year ago. It's almost impossible to organize another large army in a short time. Besides, the Imperial Treasury probably doesn't have much money left!"

"How could this be..." Huang Ling's expression was one of shock.

"I've heard that the Governor of Dian Prefecture is also skilled in leading troops. He should be able to hold out for a long time, and may even be able to repel the rebels."

Huang Ling wept: "But that's the Tang family army."

It is a generally accepted fact that the border troops are naturally more capable of fighting than the local troops.

"Go and get some rest," Fang Fengyi said.

Huang Ling held Fang Fengyi's hand: "My lord, can you find a way to bring Father back from Jin County?"

"How can I lead them!" Fang Fengyi raised his voice considerably: "Although I am the Inner Palace Attendant, and I am said to be a military officer, I do not have any command of troops. It is just a nominal position, which is convenient for me to become familiar to the ministers."

"There are other people in the Fang family..."

"We can't help. It depends on whether the Huang family is willing to put in the effort."

Huang Ling wiped away her tears: "Then I'll go back to the Huang family and see what my mother has to say."

Fang Fengyi initially wanted to refuse, but after thinking for a while, he said, "Go ahead. Tell me what the Huang family is thinking when you get back."

Huang Ling looked at him in surprise.

"Remember, you are now a woman of the Fang family, and from now on, you must put the Fang family first in everything."

Huang Ling was stunned for a moment, then her face turned pale.

(End of this chapter)