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Chapter 214: The Miao King's Intervention
Chapter 214: The Miao King's Intervention
The Miao King's gaze was stern and commanding, his aged eyes piercing like a burning flame. "Ao Rong, do you know the gravity of your offense?"
Manager Cen hadn't heard that name in many years.
He was momentarily dazed, and long-buried memories flooded his mind, assaulting his consciousness and weighing on his spine.
"Ao Rong..."
He muttered to himself, struggling through waves of heart-wrenching memories.
He had thought that after so many years, he would have forgotten everything, but to his surprise, the past was still etched deeply in his heart.
"So, you... knew all along."
Many Miaojiang people had come to the Governor's Mansion, but none had recognized him. He had thought he would never have to be Ao Rong again in this lifetime.
The Miao King's voice turned cold. "You are Lu Yuan's confidant. How could I let you stay by his side without thoroughly investigating you?"
He should have known the Miao King's methods; he shouldn't have harbored any hope.
Manager Cen knelt on the ground, not uttering a word in his defense.
In fact, from the moment he heard the name Ao Rong, he had given up resisting.
His judgment day had finally arrived.
The Miao King spoke, "You stole the Miao Kingdom's holy medicine and fled out of fear of punishment. Your crime is severe, and death would not be too heavy a punishment. However, considering your years of loyalty to Lu Yuan, I will spare your life."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your mercy," Manager Cen accepted his fate and raised his left hand, then snapped it towards his own arm.
The Miao King waved his hand, using his internal energy to release Manager Cen's hand, "Your arm is of no use to me. Keep it for yourself. Just remember, Lu Yuan saved your life. If you ever harbor disloyalty towards him, I will not only kill you but also dig up your sister's grave and scatter her ashes!"
Everyone has their Achilles' heel, and for Manager Cen, it was Ao Ling.
Their parents had passed away early, leaving the siblings to rely on each other. Later, his sister married and went to the Central Plains, but unfortunately, she contracted a plague.
To save his sister, he risked his life to steal the holy medicine, but sadly, he was too late. His sister and her family all perished in the plague.
Having lost his only family, he lost the will to live.
Just as he was about to end his life, he encountered the seven-year-old Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan offered him a steamed bun, "It's better to live on than to die. If you die, there won't even be anyone to collect your body. Give me the silver you have, and I'll take care of your remains."
He didn't know why, but he found himself saying, "What if you take the money and run? You look like a little beggar, and your words are not to be trusted."
Lu Yuan thought for a moment and nodded seriously, "You're right to be suspicious. Okay, I'll come every day to watch over you. When you die, the silver will be mine. Words are not enough, so let's make a written agreement. Wait for it!"
The little boy ran off, and Manager Cen didn't know where he got it, but he tore off a piece of paper with a couplet from someone's door and said to him, "Bite your finger and write a letter in blood."
Manager Cen couldn't help but laugh, "You want my silver, but you want me to bleed?"
Lu Yuan replied confidently, "I'm just a child. What if I get injured and become infected? I might not have the strength to collect your body. Anyway, you're going to die, so you don't have to worry about infection. Write!"
For a moment, Manager Cen was at a loss for words.
Unexpectedly, after several attempts, he couldn't bite through his finger.
Lu Yuan hummed, "See, you don't really want to die!"
"Little guy, what's your name?"
"My name is Lu Yuan."
From then on, Lu Yuan visited him daily, but suddenly one day, he stopped coming.
Manager Cen's heart grew heavy with concern, and he no longer wanted to die.
They were separated for six years.
When they met again, Lu Yuan had become the young master of the Xu family and had been given the surname 'Lu' by them.
The relationship between Manager Cen and Lu Yuan was never a simple one of master and servant. Manager Cen had lived the first twenty years of his life for his sister, but he was willing to die for Lu Yuan in the latter half of his life.
"Ao Rong, as you command!"
After Manager Cen left, the Miao King summoned two of his most trusted confidants.
These two were the only ones who had accompanied the Miao King to the capital. After the Miao King was captured, it was these two who went to inform Liu Qingyun.
The King of Miaojiang gave an order to one of them, "Ran Qing, go and do something for me."
"You're infuriating me! Infuriating me! Infuriating me!"
As soon as Liu Qingyun entered the room, she burst into a fit of rage.
Nurse Wan, Du Madam, and Hu Mumu looked at each other, puzzled as to who had offended their ancestor. Nurse Wan rolled up her sleeves, "Let this old lady find out who it is, and I'll make them pay!"
Liu Qingyun slammed the table, "Is it my father? I can't even recognize my own son!"
Thud! Nurse Wan knelt.
"You few, come in!"
At Liu Qingyun's command, several people entered the room with trembling steps.
Liu Qingyun slapped a portrait onto the table, "Take a look, who is this?"
The group gathered around, looking left and right.
Hu Mumu said, "This... looks vaguely familiar."
Nurse Wan added, "I've seen this clothing somewhere, hey, doesn't our son-in-law also have a similar set of clothes?"
Du Madam said, "What? This is our son-in-law!"
Liu Qingyun asked in surprise, "Is it really that hard to recognize him?"
The three of them nodded in unison.
Portraits and real people are inherently different, not to mention that they didn't stare at their son-in-law's face all the time.
Du Madam smiled, "But after looking at it a few times, it does look more and more like him."
Nurse Wan and Hu Mumu nodded repeatedly.
"What are you looking at?"
Meng Qianqian's voice came from the doorway.
The three of them turned their heads in unison, about to pay their respects, but suddenly caught sight of the 'farmer' beside her, as if he had just plowed ten miles of land, and they were all startled.
"Oh my goodness! Who is this?"
Nurse Wan picked up a stool nearby.
Meng Qianqian looked bewildered, "My husband."
Even the servants who served Lu Yuan daily couldn't recognize him, and her father had never seen her son before. It was only natural that she couldn't recognize him from just a portrait.
Liu Qingyun decided to forgive the old man this once.
Meanwhile, after Xun Yu and Bai Yuwei had missed their chance with the King of Miaojiang, they hurried back the way they came, searching high and low until they reached the city gate without finding any trace of the king.
Xun Yu asked the guards at the gate, and they saw an old man entering the city alone.
The guards shook their heads.
"Think carefully," Xun Yu urged.
The lead guard replied, "Young Master Xun, not many people entered the city this afternoon, and there really wasn't an old man like you described."
Xun Yu pondered for a moment and said to Bai Yuwei, "Could it be that the King of Miaojiang has acquaintances in the capital and was picked up by someone else?"
Bai Yuwei replied, "I've never heard my grandfather mention anything like that!"
Xun Yu comforted her, "How about this, let's return to the mansion first. Later, I'll send the Jin Yi Wei to look for him. In the capital, there's no one the Jin Yi Wei can't find."
Bai Yuwei agreed.
Just as they arrived at the Xun family mansion, the King of Miaojiang's guard found them.
"Miss!"
The guard saluted Bai Yuwei.
"Ran Qing?" Bai Yuwei's eyes lit up, "Where's my grandfather?"
Ran Qing replied, "The King of Miaojiang is at the Governor's Mansion."
Xun Yu's expression changed.
Bai Yuwei was also surprised, "Why would my grandfather go there?"
Ran Qing explained about the King of Miaojiang waiting by the roadside for a carriage.
Xun Yu regretted it deeply.
That old farmer... was indeed the King of Miaojiang!
Xun Yu said, "Lu Yuan must have recognized the King of Miaojiang."
Ran Qing shook his head, "The King of Miaojiang did not reveal his identity."
Xun Yu asked suspiciously, "Are you saying that Lu Yuan doesn't know he brought back the King of Miaojiang?"
Ran Qing confirmed, "That's right."
Xun Yu pondered secretly, as long as Lu Yuan didn't know the King of Miaojiang's true identity, it wouldn't be too late to bring him over.
Bai Yuwei couldn't wait to say, "I'm going to find my grandfather!"
Xun Yu's eyes flashed, and he smiled lightly, "It's getting late, and since the old King of Miaojiang has already rested, why don't we go together tomorrow to invite him?"
King of Miaojiang: If you are not proficient in martial arts, I also have some understanding of strategy.
(End of Chapter)
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