The squire rubbed his hands and replied, "Even if I have a few relatives who want to seek refuge in this county, I wonder if you are willing to take them in and let them enter the city to protect their lives and property in this chaotic time?"
Qiu Yizi was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "Why not? This shows your trust in me! As long as you are willing to seek refuge in Shanyin County, no matter if you are your relatives or friends, I will not refuse you. I am just afraid that the county is too small to accommodate more refugees. If there are not enough houses in the city, I would rather give up the government office..." He didn't know which words touched his heart, and he choked up at the end.
The squire was also very moved. He held Qiu Yizi's hand and said, "The county government is your honor. Even if we have to sleep on the streets, we can't occupy your nest! Several of us gentry have discussed it and agreed to pay for the renovation of the ancestral hall, theater and city god temple in the city. This way, if someone comes to seek refuge with you, they will have a roof over their heads. When the world is peaceful in the future, these places will be useful. It can also be regarded as leaving some achievements for you. In the future, it will be better to gain some face in front of the superiors and get promoted."
Having said this, Qiu Yizi's heart was even more moved: In fact, after he took over the position of Shanyin County Magistrate, he did not stay in the county for a long time, and did not do much to promote benefits and eliminate disadvantages. Instead, he caused many disasters, and even the Shanyin County was breached by government troops.
He looked up and suddenly saw Xu Rong standing far away at the city gate, as if to greet him, so he hurried forward, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Thanks to Mr. Xu for helping me sort out the county affairs, otherwise how could I have received such love from the people?"
Qiu Yizhi whispered in Xu Rong's ear: "I wonder if the great prince has promised Mr. Xu a bright future? If the great prince is too busy to remember this, I can recommend you to the court and Prime Minister Zhongli for your political skills."
Xu Rong was also very moved, and hurriedly bowed to Qiu Yizi and said countless words of thanks.
Qiu Yizhi saw that the sun was setting and it was getting late, so he bowed to the crowd coming out of the city to greet him and said loudly: "Thank you very much! My men are all from Shanyin County. After returning from the war, they should have been given a holiday to go home. However, we are facing a powerful enemy and cannot relax for a moment. We need to rest and train in the army. Please forgive me! When the war is over and the rebels are pacified, I will reward them generously and let them reunite with their fathers and wives."
At this point, the sound of crying could be heard from the crowd, making the atmosphere around them extremely heavy.
Qiu Yizi felt uncomfortable with the heavy atmosphere. He tried hard to calm his excitement and waved his hand high: "Brothers, cheer up, we will go into the city in glory!" After that, he did not even get on the horse. He held the reins of his Arabian horse with one hand and strode into the city gate.
Arriving at the gate of the county government office, Qiu Yizi looked up and saw that the entrance had been cleaned tidy. Even a few columns had been freshly painted, with a faint peculiar smell of paint. It was obvious that Xu Rong had arranged all this after he got the news that he was going back to the city a day ago.
When Qiu Yizi saw this, she sighed in her heart again and encouraged Xu Rong a few words.
After stepping into the door, he saw Wu Ruofei, Wen Lingjiao, Yang Ying'er, Yang Qiao'er and others standing inside the door to greet him. He also saw Wen Lingjiao's maid He'er standing timidly in the distance, with her head down and silent.
When Qiu Yizhi saw He'er from afar, she immediately thought of Wen Honghui, the Tianzun Sect Leader who sent her to monitor Wen Lingjiao. She felt disgusted, and the affection she should have felt when seeing these familiar people suddenly disappeared. She said with a sullen face, "Are all of you here?"
The women were obviously frightened by Qiu Yizi's lukewarm words. They all stood there in a daze, not knowing how to respond.
Wu Ruofei was considerate and smiled. She took a half step forward and said, "Maybe you are tired, sir? We sisters have prepared dinner for you to welcome you back!"
Qiu Yizi looked at Wu Ruofei's stunning face filled with smiles, and felt unable to vent any anger in her heart. She tilted her mouth and said, "I'm not hungry. You guys eat, and then went to your dormitory." Several people were left looking at each other in silence.
Qiu Yizi walked back to her bedroom, pushed the door open, and saw that the windows were clean and spotless. There was a newly-dried quilt on the bed, which gave off a refreshing scent from the warm sunshine. Most of her anger had dissipated. She then took off the sword from her waist and placed it casually on the table. She then dragged a stool over and sat down beside the table.
He saw a teapot and several upside-down tea bowls on the table. He reached out and found that the tea was still warm, so he poured himself a bowl and drank it all. Suddenly, a layer of sweat broke out all over his body. This sweat mixed with the dirt and grease accumulated from not taking a bath for several days, attached to Qiu Yizi's skin, making him feel uncomfortable all over again. He scratched his head and looked for a towel in the room to wipe his face.
But there was a gentle knock on the door, and a voice came from outside: "Sir, are you there?"
When Qiu Yizhi heard the voice, he knew it was Wen Lingjiao. He immediately thought of his brother Wen Honghui and answered unhappily, "If I'm not in the room, where else could I be? You're asking even though you know the answer!"
Wen Lingjiao stretched out her jade hand outside the door and gently pushed the door open. She smiled patiently and said, "Isn't it just a defeat? What's the big deal? You just put on such a sour face. Sister Wu heard that you were coming back, and she was busy preparing a whole table of delicious dishes since early morning. But you let her kindness go. If you lose the battle, you can reorganize the army and win again, right? Do you still need me to teach you this?"
Wen Lingjiao and Qiu Yizi have been getting along very closely over the past year, so they speak very casually.
But Qiu Yizi felt uncomfortable now, and said coldly: "Of course you don't need to teach me. Your good brother has already been taught a good lesson by me. The lesson is the lesson of 'Resurrection by Borrowing a Corpse' in the Thirty-Six Stratagems!"
Wen Lingjiao was stunned after hearing this. She chewed and ruminated over Qiu Yizi's short thirty-odd words several times before she asked in surprise, "What? My brother is still alive?"
Qiu Yizi replied: "Not only is he alive, but he is also alive and well. Not only is he alive and well, but he also lived under the command of the King of Lingnan. Not only was he treated as a distinguished guest by the King of Lingnan, but he also almost killed me..."
When Wen Lingjiao heard this, she was shocked and frightened, but also felt a little happy and relieved. A barely perceptible smile appeared on her face, but then it disappeared. She didn't know how to respond.
Wen Lingjiao had been an orphan since she was a child, and only had a brother like Wen Honghui alive. Although the two siblings were rarely together, the bond between them was hard to break, and of course she was happy to hear that her only relative was still alive.
However, Wen Lingjiao's vague joy made Qiu Yizi's heart surge with nameless anger, and she said unhappily, "Smile when you are happy, don't hide it. Your brother has taken over half of the Han Dynasty with the King of Lingnan, and is about to succeed and ascend the throne to become emperor. The King of Lingnan is very generous, and even a nobody like me dared to make me a general. Your brother is so talented that he will definitely ascend the altar and become a prime minister. Maybe he will even make your Tianzun Sect the state religion and appoint your brother as the national protector!"
Wen Lingjiao heard the increasingly obvious sarcasm in Qiu Yizi's words, as if she didn't recognize Qiu Yizi, who she had been with day and night. Her phoenix eyes were as big as a longan: "What do you mean by that?"
Qiu Yizi sneered: "Don't you understand what I mean? I'm telling you to go to your brother and enjoy endless wealth and glory. Why do you have to suffer with me in this small county in Shanyin?"
Although Wen Lingjiao usually speaks very gently and tactfully, her character is extremely strong and stubborn. When she heard Qiu Yizi say this, tears could not stop flowing down her eyes. She pouted and said, "Okay! Okay! How dare you look at me like this! I have already told you that I will never see my brother again, but you still don't believe me! It's good that he is alive, I might as well die in front of you. We are separated by the Yin and Yang, and we will never see each other again, right?"
As Wen Lingjiao spoke, she glanced at the precious sword on the table, jumped to the table, drew out the sword, and was about to cut her neck with it.
Qiu Yizhi just said words to vent his anger. He was unwilling to watch Wen Lingjiao commit suicide in front of him. He immediately hugged Wen Lingjiao, snatched the knife from his hand, threw it to the ground, and asked in surprise: "What are you going to do?"
Wen Lingjiao twisted her body to get rid of Qiu Yizi's arms, and said stubbornly: "It's not easy to live, is it hard to die? I don't have a knife, I can jump into the river, hang myself, or jump off a cliff, isn't it easy to die?"
As she spoke, Wen Lingjiao walked out the door without looking back.
Qiu Yizi was afraid that she would be depressed and want to commit suicide, so she became anxious, took two quick steps, and reached out to grab Wen Lingjiao's sleeve.
Wen Lingjiao walked resolutely, and Qiu Yizi pulled decisively, and with a tug, he actually pulled off half of her sleeve, revealing her arms as clean as lotus roots and her shoulders as slender as jade.
After a vigorous retro movement in the previous dynasty, the Han Dynasty has completely refuted the so-called male superiority and female inferiority concept of previous generations. However, the separation between men and women still exists. Today, there are people coming and going in the government office. How can Wen Lingjiao go out easily with half of her body naked like this
At this point, Wen Lingjiao finally lost her temper, her face flushed red like a ripe apple: "What are you doing? How can this be so disgraceful?" She quickly clasped her hands across her chest to protect her flawless skin.
When Qiu Yizi saw Wen Lingjiao's coquettish look, his mind suddenly went wild with anxiety and he threw away the rag in his hand, hugged Wen Lingjiao tightly in his arms, turned around with her in his arms, and threw her onto the quilt on the bed.
Wen Lingjiao was so frightened by Qiu Yizi's behavior that she stood still. She forgot to question, to shout, and even to struggle. She collapsed on the bed as if all her spirit had been drained away, and the tears in her eyes that had not yet dried flowed down her cheeks in two lines.
Seeing this, Qiu Yizi felt pity and love in her heart again. She wiped away Wen Lingjiao's tears. Suddenly, she saw the snow-white skin on her shoulder that was exposed without any protection. She couldn't help but feel amorous. She mustered up her courage and stroked down Wen Lingjiao's shoulder. She held one of her breasts in her hand and rubbed it non-stop.
Wen Lingjiao had been rubbed so hard by Qiu Yizhi that she could not muster any strength, but she still let him play with her for a while. Finally, she sighed and said, "Does it have to be like this for you to trust me?"
This made Qiu Yizhi feel a little guilty. He felt that if he did something like this now, it would be a bit of taking advantage of someone's misfortune. He sighed, reluctantly let go of her hand, and said with his eyes downcast: "I... I am rude... Please forgive me, Miss Wen..."
Wen Lingjiao slowly stood up, gradually took off her clothes, and gently called out: "Young Master, please come back. I will be yours sooner or later... You... You must be nicer to me in the future... better..."