The brothers' faces remained unchanged.
Hong Jie said calmly, "The enmity of the past is irreconcilable. If we wanted to accept the offer of appeasement, should we not have done so earlier? As for betrayal, even Qing Yi is a person of your Returning Spring Cult. Sect Leader, you are perhaps too sensitive."
Ye Qing Yi, standing beside him, also frowned slightly, "Sect Leader, the Great Heng Kingdom and the Returning Spring Cult are in the same boat. Your suspicion will surely chill your allies!"
Yan Jun swept her cold gaze over the two brothers and let out a cold snort, "No need to worry about the number of people. You are neither too many nor too few! If you wish to withdraw midway, don't blame me for not counting your contribution later."
Hong Jie chuckled softly and cupped his fists again, "Our Marshal has another request."
Yan Jun frowned, studying Hong Jie, and said in a serious tone, "Speak freely!"
"The two women by Liang Xiao's side, one is the peerless Qin Xian, a successor of the Three Sages. The other maid is a mole that the Marshal planted in the Liang manor years ago, but due to Liang Xiao's caution, this woman has been unable to contact us. She can only feign loyalty to Liang Xiao. Unless she sees the Marshal, she must not reveal any flaws and risk all past efforts..." Hong Jie trailed off at the end, handing over a full hundred silver notes of one hundred taels each.
After having the silver notes taken away, Yan Jun nodded, "Understood. Capture the Qin Xian alive, and spare your Great Heng Kingdom's people!"
Hong Jie nodded slightly, "Then our Great Heng Kingdom will surely go all out!"
After seeing the brothers off, Ye Qing Yi faced Yan Jun with displeasure.
Yan Jun removed her veil, revealing her stunning beauty, but her face was filled with coldness. "Qing Yi, although you are my equal, I am in charge of everything on this expedition. Rest for now."
Ye Qing Yi smiled, "Are you worried that I still have feelings for Liang Xiao and might try to protect him? You are truly overthinking!"
"Who knows? After all, your Marshal insisted on recruiting him and refused to kill him. But now that he is in Luzhou city, he deserves to die here. If he is lucky enough to survive, you must not expose yourself, as you wouldn't want to implicate your beloved Yi Rou, would you?" Yan Jun said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
Ye Qing Yi had no choice but to agree.
After Ye Qing Yi left, Yan Jun summoned her confidante and asked in a low voice, "The number of people who can attack the city is only fifty-six thousand?"
The white-haired confidante nodded, "Reporting to the Sect Leader, this is the maximum number of elites and rebels that can be mobilized from the surrounding areas. The rest are rabble who will only be a burden, even for logistics!"
"When the army moves, we will claim to have two hundred and eighty thousand!"
The brothers returned to their base. Zuo Wu Shang asked urgently, "How many people did that Yan Jun report?"
Hong Jie's eyes were sharp, and he replied, "She refused to disclose. However, we should still withdraw our compatriots from the city to avoid being caught in the crossfire. That Yan Jun has always been confident. If the numbers were sufficient to easily take Luzhou city, there would be no need to hide it. She must be short of troops, less than sixty thousand, which is why she is unwilling to reveal it, fearing we would not contribute."
Zuo Wu Shang nodded slightly, "Judging by my estimation, the forces she can mobilize for the attack should not exceed fifty-eight thousand. Even if these attacking troops are well-trained, they cannot enter Luzhou with overwhelming force. The stalemate will eventually lead to street fighting... Let's leave one hundred elites to guard the princess, and the rest will withdraw secretly to attend to matters in Jinling!"
Luzhou city was as prosperous as ever, with hundreds of thousands of people coming and going.
Li Xiu Yun was busy mobilizing and reinforcing the city walls.
Liang Xiao, with an unusual moment of leisure, walked through the streets with the three girls, observing the local customs and traditions, and by chance, visited his own bookshop.
Liang Mansion's people had arrived in Luzhou in advance, recruiting hundreds of workers to set up a branch here for printing books and newspapers. After all, transporting books and newspapers from the capital to Jiangnan incurred significant shipping costs.
At this moment, Zhuo Xun was acting like a model daughter, afraid of causing any further trouble for Liang Xiao. It wasn't until she saw the movable type in the bookshop that her beautiful eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but exclaim, "Was Journey to the West really told by him?"
"Of course, the young master told it to us. Didn't I tell you last night?" Yue Lian said softly.
Zhuo Xun's gaze was intense, and she looked at Liang Xiao with longing, wishing she could fly to the capital immediately to see the latest content of Journey to the West.
"When you go to the capital, don't wander off. Stay with your sister Yue Lian, and sisters Qing Xue and Qin Wan. I will tell you stories when I have time," Liang Xiao reminded her.
"Okay! I definitely won't run away. I..."
Yue Lian smiled, "Little Xun, are you reluctant to run away?"
Zhuo Xun's face flushed red, and she nodded obediently, hiding behind Yue Lian and peeking at Liang Xiao.
He was nothing like the fierce and unreasonable devil from her dreams. He was so kind and accommodating, even tolerating her previous wilfulness!
Jian Qin Wan watched this, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
The most unruly and willful "Jinling Painting Immortal" had become obedient in front of this flower-stealing scoundrel, and she, the Qin Xian who once looked down on everyone, had also... It was all this flower-stealing scoundrel's fault!
Liang Xiao repeatedly instructed the bookshop manager to guard the technology well and not to leak it.
This old manager was also from the Liang Mansion. His entire family lived in the Liang Mansion, and he was also loyal.
"Second Young Master, rest assured. With the guards you've arranged, ordinary workers will absolutely not be able to access the process of manufacturing movable type!" the manager vowed.
Liang Xiao was finally relieved.
As long as the materials for mixing mud movable type and the potions could be kept secret for a while longer.
Returning to their residence, Liang Xiao personally cooked lunch.
Yue Lian and Zhuo Xun ate with relish, and even Jian Qin Wan was beaming.
Seeing the three girls gazing at him with eager eyes, Liang Xiao felt both amused and helpless.
Due to the high price of salt in normal times, ordinary people rarely cooked elaborate dishes, which had also led to the slow development of culinary arts in various regions.
Liang Xiao's cooking skills, compared to the renowned chefs he had encountered in hotels before, were indeed lacking. However, Liang Xiao's mind was agile, and he understood how to use local ingredients, making his cooking here a level-up!
Comprehensive! Delicious!
"A gentleman stays away from the kitchen. When the young master returns to the capital and has time, we must learn! Sister Qin Wan is already learning to cook with me!" Yue Lian said happily.
Even Jian Qin Wan and Zhuo Xun, who had never set foot in a kitchen before, nodded repeatedly.
Liang Xiao simply smiled and nodded, feeling a sense of dread.
The Bodhisattva and Little Xun might create some "dark cuisine" during their initial attempts at learning...
After lunch, Li Xiu Yun finally arrived with detailed intelligence.
Zhuo Zi Fang, having heard the news, also brought Zhuo Xiong out.
"In case of a sudden enemy attack, the city gates can be ensured to close in time, and the city's grain supply is sufficient to last for a year, awaiting rescue!"
Liang Xiao looked at Li Xiu Yun with doubt, "Why is there so much grain stored? I saw intelligence in the capital earlier that Luzhou had a poor harvest last year, and much of the grain reserve was depleted."
Li Xiu Yun replied, "His Majesty granted me, the Prefect of Luzhou, sufficient authority. I then requested large quantities of grain from other regions and stored them in Luzhou. At the same time, I moved the civilians living outside the city into the city. After all, Luzhou is a key strategic town in Jiangnan. Even if the possibility of an accident is only one in ten thousand, we must prepare for the unexpected. If Luzhou stands, then Jiangnan will not fall!"
Liang Xiao and Zhuo Zi Fang could not help but look at Li Xiu Yun with renewed respect.
Just then, Chen Shao Ling entered to report, "Marquis An Guo, there is an old man in ragged clothes outside who says he has an urgent matter to see someone called 'Young General'. After I inquired, he said his Young General is the Marquis An Guo!"