Chasing Jade (Zhu Yu)

Changning recognized Fan Changyu's crying and was about to rush in on her short little legs when Gongsun Yin grabbed her by the collar.

She looked up in confusion to see Gongsun Yin putting a finger to his lips in a "shhh" gesture.

Gongsun Yin led her a few steps away before squatting down to her level. "Let your sister and brother-in-law talk for a while," he said.

Changning nodded obediently. The baby fat on her face had diminished considerably, making her eyes appear even larger. She spoke very little around unfamiliar people, and Gongsun Yin clearly still fell into the "unfamiliar" category.

Remembering Xie Zheng's plans, Gongsun Yin asked her, "Little one, do you remember how your brother-in-law rescued you?"

Changning's small face paled at the memory of that rainy night's violent struggle. It had been pitch black, and she'd been too terrified to think clearly. After struggling to recall, she answered, "Bad men wanted to hurt Ning Niang... brother-in-law fought the bad men..."

Gongsun Yin sighed softly. For such a young child to be dragged onto a battlefield and not be scared witless showed remarkable fortitude—how could she possibly remember the details? He patted Changning's head and said, "Don't be afraid, it's all over now. The bad men have been caught by your brother-in-law."

Only then did Changning's expression relax slightly. She nodded vigorously with an "Mm," then looked up again, nervously clutching her clothes as she asked Gongsun Yin, "Will my brother-in-law die?"

Gongsun Yin chuckled. "Little one, do you know the saying 'the wicked live a thousand years'?"

Changning shook her head.

Hiding a smile behind his fan, Gongsun Yin explained, "Your brother-in-law is exactly that kind of wicked man in others' eyes. His life is tough—he won't die so easily."

Reassured that Xie Zheng wouldn't die, Changning turned to gaze longingly at the tent flap.

Seizing the opportunity, Gongsun Yin asked, "Your sister and brother-in-law get along well, don't they?"

After thinking, Changning nodded.

Showing no shame at pumping a child for information, Gongsun Yin pressed on: "How well?"

Changning opened her clear, innocent eyes wide. "After Mama and Papa were gone, Ning Niang would cry in front of sister when hurt. But sister only cries in front of brother-in-law."

This gave Gongsun Yin pause.

Changning began counting on her fingers: "When troublemakers came to our house, brother-in-law broke their legs and chased them away. When sister earned money selling pork, she bought brother-in-law new clothes and hair ribbons. When brother-in-law took bitter medicine, sister bought him candy..."

Gongsun Yin's expression turned peculiar. So what that old man in Lu City had told him was true—Xie Jiuhang really had become a live-in son-in-law and was living off his wife's earnings!

He wanted to ask more when suddenly, despite the thick tent flap, he felt an icy chill down his back.

Gongsun Yin decisively told Changning, "Child, you wait here for your sister. I have matters to attend to and must take my leave."

With that, he stood to depart.

Inside the tent.

After venting her accumulated emotions through this bout of crying, Fan Changyu straightened up and wiped her eyes. "I think I heard Changning's voice."

Xie Zheng had long since noticed the commotion outside. He withdrew his cold gaze from the tent entrance and said, "She's outside. I didn't get to tell you earlier—while you were at the cookhouse camp, I had someone bring her to the army."Fan Changyu was taken aback. Without asking further questions, she quickly lifted the tent flap to look outside. Sure enough, she spotted Changning squatting obediently not far away, cupping her cheeks in her hands as she gazed in their direction, along with Gongsun Yin who had just taken a few furtive steps away, clearly guilty as a thief caught in the act.

"Changning!" Fan Changyu exclaimed in delight.

Changning's eyes instantly sparkled when she saw Fan Changyu. She rushed over and threw herself into her sister's arms, clinging tightly to Changyu's waist as she called out in a muffled voice, "Elder Sister..."

The moment those words escaped her lips, the tears welling up in her large eyes could no longer be held back, falling in big droplets.

"How did you get here?" Fan Changyu asked her, though her gaze involuntarily drifted toward Gongsun Yin, who was attempting to sneak away a few steps away.

Having been spotted, Gongsun Yin could no longer pretend to leave nonchalantly. He retracted his half-extended foot and, with a flick of his fan, resumed his usual debonair demeanor. "This child accidentally fell into enemy hands. After being rescued, she was temporarily sheltered in the military camp. Upon learning she was your brother-in-law's sister-in-law, I brought her here."

Fan Changyu quickly expressed her gratitude before squatting down to wipe Changning's tears. Seeing how much thinner her sister's cheeks had become, her heart ached. "I'm sorry I couldn't find you sooner. You've suffered so much."

Changning shook her head, burying her face in her sister's shoulder as she sobbed so hard she hiccuped.

Fan Changyu held Changning and invited Gongsun Yin to come inside the tent for a while. Gongsun Yin, realizing Xie Zheng already knew he was outside, figured it would be inappropriate to leave now. So, under the pretense of visiting the patient, he followed them in.

Once inside, Changning saw Xie Zheng half-lying on the military cot, his chest wrapped in blood-stained bandages. Her lips quivered as she called out, "Brother-in-law."

Then, wiping her tears, she said to Fan Changyu, "Brother-in-law got hurt saving me from the bad guys."

Fan Changyu turned to Xie Zheng, clearly puzzled. "You were injured saving Changning?"

Xie Zheng hadn't prepared to tell Fan Changyu everything at this moment. His lips pressed together slightly, unsure how to respond.

Even the usually silver-tongued Gongsun Yin found this lie difficult to spin and was beginning to feel a headache coming on. Then Changning, still sniffling, spoke up: "The bad guys thought I was some important official's daughter and took me away. They put me on a horse to kill people. It was so dark, raining hard, and the thunder was loud. I was so scared. Then I heard Brother-in-law's voice and called out to him. When Brother-in-law came to save me, the bad guy threw me into the air. Brother-in-law got stabbed trying to catch me, and there was so much blood..."

Recounting these events clearly still terrified her. Her little face turned pale, and she clutched Fan Changyu's clothes tightly, as if clinging to something solid to fend off the fear that night had instilled in her.

Fan Changyu had initially suspected Sui Yuanqing had abducted Changning, likely to seek private revenge against her. She never imagined Changning had endured so much. Just hearing about it made her wish she could tear the "bad guy" Changning mentioned into pieces.

She patted her sister's back soothingly. "Don't be afraid, Changning. It's all over now."

Yet she couldn't help but wonder why Changning had suddenly been mistaken for some high-ranking official's daughter.

Seeing Fan Changyu, Changning felt reassured. But then she remembered how Yu Bao'er had clung to her clothes, refusing to let go when she was being taken away. The servants had dragged him along, tearing off several of his fingernails in the process. Her eyes reddened again at the memory. "Bao'er was there too. Elder Sister, can we save Bao'er and his mother?"

Fan Changyu was confused. "You mean Shopkeeper Yu and Bao'er?"Changning nodded.

Fan Changyu asked, "Didn't Shopkeeper Yu and Bao'er go to Jiangnan? Where did you see them?"

Changning sobbed in reply, "Bao'er and his mother were locked up there by those bad people, just like Ning Niang."

Gongsun Yin didn't know who Yu Qianqian and her son were, looking puzzled. But Xie Zheng, who knew Changning had been in Sui Yuanqing's hands during her captivity, grew thoughtful.

Was that female shopkeeper connected to Changxin Prince Manor?

Being straightforward, Fan Changyu asked in confusion, "Could Shopkeeper Yu and Bao'er have been mistakenly taken as relatives of some high-ranking official too?"

She turned to Gongsun Yin, "Sir, may I ask how my sister was mistaken for a high official's daughter and taken away?"

Gongsun Yin glanced at Xie Zheng before giving an evasive answer: "After the disaster in Qingping County, the Jizhou Prefecture temporarily housed refugees in government post stations, which normally only accommodate visiting imperial officials. The rebels must have received incorrect information, leading to your sister's mistaken capture."

While this explanation sounded plausible, Fan Changyu still felt something was amiss when recalling the missing painting from her home.

Gongsun Yin tactfully suggested, "The military camp is full of rough men unsuited for childcare. We've arranged quarters next door for Miss Fan to settle with your younger sister."

Having just found her sister, Fan Changyu naturally had many questions. She glanced at Xie Zheng lying on the bed and said, "Rest well then. I'll take Ning Niang to clean up."

After her fever broke, Changning had been left with Gongsun Yin. The mountain conditions were harsh, and the personal guards were all rough men who knew nothing about childcare. They could barely coax her to eat meals. While Changning could wash her own face, her hair had become a complete bird's nest without proper care.

As soon as Fan Changyu left, Xie Zheng told Gongsun Yin, "Send a message via gyrfalcon to Yanzhou to investigate the Yu mother and son detained at Changxin Prince Manor."

Gongsun Yin asked in confusion, "Are they important?"

Xie Zheng replied, "When I first saw that child, I noticed some resemblance to the one currently sitting on the throne."

Gongsun Yin was startled, then frowned, "You suspect imperial lineage?"

The current emperor was the Late Emperor's youngest son, ascending at just eight years old. His mother had been a lowly palace maid without any influential relatives.

He became emperor solely because Wei Yan chose him as a puppet ruler. But now the young puppet had grown up, supported by Grand Tutor Li's faction, inevitably wanting to overthrow Wei Yan and reclaim imperial power to restore governance.

However, it was obvious that even if the emperor used Grand Tutor Li's influence to topple Wei Yan, the Li faction would simply become the next Wei Faction in court.

The imperial authority of Great Yin had long been hollowed out by powerful families. Though the imperial exam system was implemented, commoners held negligible positions in court.

Moreover, the current emperor lacked regal bearing—cowardly before powerful ministers yet tyrannical toward palace servants, unfit for governance.

Xie Zheng said, "That merchant Zhao claimed to work for the deceased imperial grandson from the Eastern Palace. But in Qingping County, I discovered he owned a residence near the Yu shopkeeper's home. If the imperial grandson truly exists, investigating through the Yu mother and son might reveal something."

Gongsun Yin immediately responded, "I'll send the message right away."If that mother and son surnamed Yu were the Crown Prince's people, trapped in Changxin Prince Manor, perhaps Changxin Wang had captured them to threaten the Crown Prince?

He was almost out of the tent when he turned back to look at Xie Zheng: "Jiuheng, if the Crown Prince is truly still alive, you... would you support the bloodline of Chengde Crown Prince?"

The one on the dragon throne, upon learning of Xie Zheng's falling out with Wei Yan, had considered marrying off a princess to win Xie Zheng over. However, since Xie Zheng was still in the northwest, the capital couldn't make too big a show of it.

But the thoughts of an emperor have always been hard to guess.

Though the one on the dragon throne had long hinted to Xie Zheng that after overthrowing Wei Yan, Wei Yan's position would be his, who could say whether Xie Zheng would become the next target for elimination when the time came?

Moreover, by the emperor's side, Grand Tutor Li had long been firmly entrenched as the top advisor.

In terms of legitimacy, the bloodline of Chengde Crown Prince was more entitled to sit on that dragon throne than anyone else in the current royal family.

Taking a step back, just based on the Battle of Jinzhou years ago, Xie Zheng and the Crown Prince shared a common enemy, making them natural allies.

The tent fell silent for a long time before Xie Zheng's cold, deep voice finally sounded: "How do you think the emperor treats Wei Yan?"

With just that one sentence, Gongsun Yin realized the crux of the matter. Wei Yan had supported the one on the dragon throne, initially intending him to be a puppet emperor. But at some point, Wei Yan had indeed become the emperor's greatest backer.

If Xie Zheng supported the Crown Prince, the merit he could gain would be no less than Wei Yan's past favors to the emperor.

But Xie Zheng already held military power. If the Crown Prince ascended the throne, what more could he reward him with?

When rewards run dry, suspicion and wariness would only grow day by day.

Gongsun Yin put himself in Xie Zheng's shoes and suddenly frowned: "I've realized something. In your current situation, no matter who sits on the dragon throne, they'll go all out to win you over before securing power. But once everything's settled, you'll be among the first to be discarded like a bow after the birds are gone."

Xie Zheng remained silent.

Gongsun Yin walked back dejectedly and sat opposite Xie Zheng, throwing caution to the wind: "Just give me a straight answer—what exactly are you thinking? If you haven't planned an escape route for yourself, I might as well find another patron now to avoid being dragged down by you later."

Dusk had deepened. Xie Zheng gazed at the flickering lamp in the tent: "With the chaos in the northwest, nine out of ten households are empty, and good men lie buried in the yellow sand. Great Yin hasn't yet reached the point of needing to rebuild the nation. Fighting the Northern Turks is one thing, but waging war against our own people for selfish desires..."

He scoffed coldly: "It would be a betrayal of those soldiers who should have died beyond the frontier."

Clearly, he held Changxin Wang's actions in utter contempt.

Gongsun Yin raised an eyebrow: "You want to be a loyal minister?"

Xie Zheng glanced up indifferently: "Don't you think someone like me should be called a powerful minister instead?"

Gongsun Yin choked, then said, "Powerful or not, you should think about how to break the current siege first!"

Xie Zheng asked, "How long will the provisions we brought up the mountain last?"

Gongsun Yin replied, "Eating to fullness, half a month. Stretching it with wild vegetables in porridge, maybe a month."

After a moment's thought, Xie Zheng said, "We still have Sui Yuanqing in our hands. The mountain terrain is complex. Changxin Wang is besieging without attacking, hoping to starve us out. If they run out of provisions too, they won't be able to hold out."

Gongsun Yin was startled: "You're thinking of targeting Changxin Wang's supply lines?"