Chapter 196: Chapter 196 Message

This person was indeed Ah Ji.

Ah Ji did not ride a horse, as horses are valuable assets, and without County Captain Jiang tagging along, riding a horse on these rural trails would attract too much attention.

He did not drive a mule cart either. Instead, he changed out of his brocade robe from the daytime and donned coarse clothing. Carrying a hemp sack on his back, he disguised himself as a farmer and made his way towards Da Feng Village.

As he neared Da Feng Village, he didn’t immediately enter the village. Instead, he hid in a forest with newly sprouted leaves until midnight before emerging from the forest, taking a shortcut to the Qin family residence.

Knock, knock, knock, knock~

Ah Ji knocked on the gate of the Qin family courtyard.

Inside the main hall, the three generations of the Qin family had long been waiting for him. Hearing the knock of three long and one short, Qin Er Lang’s heart lifted with joy as he whispered, “It’s the secret signal of the comrades from the border army.”

In the Northwest Border Army, they had their own secret signals, and three long knocks followed by a short one was one of them.

In case of a surprise attack at night, if they encountered an unfamiliar soldier, they would use the signal of three long and one short knocks. If the response came opposite—a long knock followed by three short ones—it would prove they were allies.

However, Elder Qin was not as reassured and said in a low voice, “This signal is well known to anyone who has participated in surprise attacks in the Northwest Border Army; it’s not new. Let’s not drop our guard just yet; we’ll see what he intends to do once he’s inside.”

Qin San Lang nodded, “Grandfather is right.”

He then told Elder Qin and Qin Er Lang, “I’ll go open the door. Grandfather and Er Ge follow the plan we agreed on.”

Upon hearing this, Qin Er Lang turned and entered the inner room, lying in ambush, ready to act immediately if anything went awry.

Elder Qin, serving as the negotiator and tester, remained waiting in the main hall.

Qin San Lang opened the house door, went to the courtyard gate, peeked through the crack, and, seeing that only one person was standing outside, pulled back the latch and opened the gate.

Ah Ji smiled at Qin San Lang, saying to him, “Rest assured, it is just Ah Ji alone, no second person has come.”

Saying so, he headed straight for the main hall.

Qin San Lang did not trust Ah Ji’s words. Concealing a dagger in his sleeve, he closely followed behind Ah Ji, stepping into the main hall with him.

Ah Ji glanced around the main hall, did not see Qin Er Lang, and without paying it any mind, he bowed to Elder Qin, “Junior Ah Ji, pays respect to General He.”

General He was quite legendary himself. Originally a house slave, he managed to build an illustrious military career after joining the battlefield with his master’s family, earning the privilege to remove his slave status and be conferred the title of General.

He was expected to have a distinguished life, but unfortunately, he lost his son in his prime years and in his old age, his adopted family and former master’s family were all executed.

“General He’s righteousness is admirable; Ah Ji respects you.”

General He could have stayed out of it all, but for the sake of his adopted family and his former master’s family, he faked his death on the battlefield, and fled with the children of both families.

Elder Qin looked at Ah Ji and said, “You’ve mistaken the person. This old man’s surname is Qin, of peasant origin, not some general.”

Ah Ji laughed, “General He, there’s no need for such wariness. Ah Ji comes representing himself, with no connection to the Ning Family.”

“What do you mean?” Elder Qin frowned, looking at Ning Ji.

The Ning Family had a rebellious youngest son, who ever since Lady Ning’s death, left the Ning family to travel the world. After roaming through Great Chu, he lived in Da Rong for several years, eventually forming a trading caravan to engage in business between Great Chu and Da Rong.

Great Chu and Da Rong have always been at war, and Old Man Ning was greatly angered by the actions of his youngest son.

Yet Old Man Ning has always cherished this youngest son. No matter how outrageous the son’s actions, Old Man Ning couldn’t bear to cast him out of the family. Moreover, Ah Ji returned to visit Old Man Ning every year.

The relationship between father and son wasn’t as bad as the outside world perceived, so Elder Qin dared not to take his words lightly.

Ah Ji said with a smile, “General He need not be so wary. Ah Ji is here only on his own behalf, unrelated to the Ning Family or my father. And Ah Ji has come only to deliver three pieces of news, nothing more.”

“What news?” Qin Er Lang could no longer hold back and walked out from the inner room, staring at Ah Ji and asking, “Is there news from Duke Ying Mansion?”

Qin San Lang and Elder Qin saw him come out, looking very displeased. Why was he always so impulsive?!

Ignoring the ’three generations’ feud among themselves, Ah Ji deepened his smile and said, “Yes, one of the messages is about Duke Ying Mansion.”

“Speak quickly!” Qin Er Lang couldn’t wait for a moment and urged Ah Ji, “Is Duke Ying Mansion safe? Has the Emperor blamed them?”

The third young lady of Duke Ying Mansion was betrothed to him, and although they were not yet married, the Emperor was petty and cruel. Should they be condemned because of this betrothal, he would be the culprit.

Seeing Qin Er Lang’s anxious expression, Ah Ji’s smile became unfathomable. First, he addressed Qin San Lang behind him, “Young Marquis, please put away the dagger. Ah Ji carries no weapons and is no match for you, so there’s no need for you to keep that dagger at Ning’s neck.”

Qin San Lang said nothing, the dagger in his hand did not retract.

Seeing this, Ah Ji had to pick up the thread of the conversation, telling Qin Er Lang, “The third young lady has entered the palace and has become Princess Consort Yu.”

So, there’s no need to think about Duke Ying Mansion anymore, nor the third young lady. To protect themselves, Duke Ying Mansion had sold them out.

“What did you say?!” Qin Er Lang’s eyes were about to split with fury as he rushed over and grabbed Ah Ji by the lapel, bellowing, “Nonsense and tyranny, that’s impossible! The elder daughter of Duke Ying Mansion is already Lady Shu, the same family would not send two legitimate daughters into the palace.”

Would not having two sisters serve one husband be a laughingstock?

Ah Ji wasn’t angered, allowing Qin Er Lang to grab his lapel, he slowly said, “Three months ago, Lady Shu passed away due to complications during childbirth.”

And he had received another piece of news that five months prior, Duke Ying Mansion had decided to send the third young lady to the palace.

The third young lady was betrothed to Qin Er Lang, and only by sending her to serve the Emperor could Duke Ying Mansion show their stance.

However, seeing how angry Qin Er Lang was, he decided not to deliver this piece of news, lest it be too much for him to bear.

“What’s the second message?” asked Qin San Lang from behind Ah Ji.

This time, Ah Ji’s smile was more cheerful, “The second is good news. Survivors exist in both your families, and like you, they have gone into hiding.”

“Who has survived?!” Both Qin Er Lang and Qin San Lang were thrilled. There were still people alive from both their families, that was wonderful.

Ah Ji shook his head, “This is a very secretive matter. I’ve only caught wind of it; as for who specifically has survived, I do not know.”

“However, it’s likely an uncle of you two.”

If the survivors were some insignificant women, the Emperor wouldn’t have been so outraged nor ordered a rigorous manhunt for men over thirty from both families.

“As long as someone’s survived, that’s good, as long as someone’s survived,” Elder Qin said in a choked voice, no matter who it was, having any survivors was a relief.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep