After Being Abducted by the General

chapter 4

Chu Hechao raced day and night, and upon arriving in Luoyang, he received a report from Yang Zhongfa.

To his astonishment, the goods that Yang Zhongfa had been monitoring for almost half a month had been snatched away by another group of people.

Chu Hechao almost beheaded Yang Zhongfa on the spot in his anger, but he restrained himself and listened coldly to the clues Yang Zhongfa had found.

Yang Zhongfa had been keeping an eye on these goods since they were in Hanzhong. Along the way, he encountered nothing but refugees. Despite his disbelief, Yang Zhongfa concluded that the goods had been seized by the refugees fleeing from Hanzhong.

However, ordinary refugees wouldn't have the capability to pull off such a feat. There must be someone behind them. They were likely similar to Yang Zhongfa, targeting the goods from the moment they left Hanzhong. But the number of refugees from Hanzhong was enormous, scattered in all directions like eels in a river, making it difficult to trace their whereabouts.

However, in the past two days, Yang Zhongfa noticed a strange occurrence: many scattered refugees were slowly making their way to Ruyang County.

The day after the goods were stolen, the refugees started to show unusual movements. Yang Zhongfa didn't believe there was no connection between the two. He sent someone to secretly infiltrate Ruyang County and indeed discovered several pieces of cloth from Hanzhong in the market of Ruyang County.

These cloths were vibrant in color, adorned with intricate patterns outlined with gold thread, and were extremely precious. It was likely that the thieves knew they couldn't keep these cloths for themselves, so they sold them to cloth shops at very low prices.

This cunning and subtle approach irritated Yang Zhongfa to no end. However, precisely because of this, Yang Zhongfa was convinced that the culprits who stole their goods were in Ruyang. But Ruyang was a county with three competing factions: the Chen family, the Wei family, the Wang family, and the county magistrate, Yuan Mansion. In this small county, various forces intertwined, and no matter how hard Yang Zhongfa investigated, he couldn't determine the true mastermind behind it all.

Chu Hechao punished him with thirty cane strikes, and with a heavy air, he led his men straight to Chu Wang's mansion.Upon seeing Yuan Li dressed in wedding attire in the hall, Chu Hechao recalled his identity as the son of the county magistrate of Ruyang. Such a coincidence couldn't help but make Chu Hechao wonder. From the very first sentence, he began to deliberately probe this new "sister-in-law."

Chu Hechao was not a friendly visitor.

Yuan Li couldn't understand and spoke cautiously, "General, you must have remembered incorrectly. We have only just met, so I haven't sent you any significant gifts."

Chu Hechao smirked, "Sister-in-law, nobles often forget things."

Yuan Li had a face that could put others at ease.

He had a gentle temperament, clear eyes, and when he smiled, it was like spring grass and willow branches, full of vibrant vitality.

However, instead of dispelling Chu Hechao's suspicions, such a person made him more guarded.

Yuan Li's smile became stiff.

Chu Hechao was robust and, despite the weather in March, honey-colored sweat dripped from his temples. The contours of his face were deep and distinct. Although he was smiling, there was no trace of mirth in his eyes as he looked down at Yuan Li, his gaze as cold as ice in the twelfth lunar month.

Yuan Li suppressed his smile and said directly, "General, please speak your mind."

Chu Hechao gave a meaningless cold smile, then turned and saluted Chu Wang and Lady Yang. Lady Yang hadn't seen her second son for a long time, her eyes turned red, and she was about to say a few words when a maid beside her reminded her in a low voice, "Madam, the auspicious moment is approaching."