Chapter 22

Yang Chenglie stood up instantly and said sternly, "You still know you were wrong, do you know...?"

"Wang wang wang wang..."

Before Yang Chenglie could finish his sentence, the ugly girl who was lying at the door suddenly stood up, her fur bristling, and she started barking fiercely at him.

"What's wrong with this dog?"

Yang Chenglie was taken aback.

Yang Shouwen quickly said, "Ugly girl, lie down, no barking."

Hearing Yang Shouwen's scolding, the ugly girl reluctantly stopped barking and lay down at the door again.

"Father, this is a stray dog I adopted. You don't know, but Ugly girl is really amazing... When I went to chase the murderer at noon, Ugly girl bit the murderer's wrist off. When I was at the yamen, she waited outside for me until I came out."

Yang Chenglie's expression softened a bit.

He glanced at Ugly girl, who was lying on the ground with her chin resting on her front paws, her eyes closed.

Four small puppies were gathered around her, each with a different color, but very cute.

"That's a Turkic mastiff, not bad!"

After saying this, Yang Chenglie slowly sat down and pointed at Yang Shouwen with his finger.

He noticed that when he extended his hand, Ugly girl suddenly opened her eyes and stared at him quietly...

What a loyal dog!

This is indeed a good dog.

Yang Chenglie put his hand down and said solemnly, "I've told you many times, the situation here in Guguzhu is complicated, don't cause trouble."

"Father, I didn't cause trouble. It's just that Lüzhu was a good person, and she even invited me to breakfast this morning... When she was killed, I instinctively wanted to chase after the murderer. I didn't expect someone to kill her in broad daylight! Fortunately, Ugly girl was smart and found the real culprit."

"I know you didn't cause trouble, but..."

Yang Chenglie suddenly didn't know what to say.

In this era, having a chivalrous spirit was considered a noble virtue.

Yang Shouwen's willingness to stand up for justice shows that he has good character. However, this chivalrous spirit might also be a family trait. His grandfather, Yang Dafang, had a chivalrous spirit that got him into big trouble, forcing Yang Chenglie to abandon his position as a Gu Yi Jiaowei and come to Changping to live incognito.

Now, it seems Yang Shouwen is the same.

The words of reprimand on the tip of his tongue, Yang Chenglie ultimately swallowed them.

He said solemnly, "I'm glad you can stand up for justice. However, in the future, you need to distinguish between what's important and what's not, and don't just act recklessly. Fortunately, no one here knows you, otherwise you would have exposed yourself. And it's also fortunate that I spoke to the county magistrate on your behalf, otherwise do you think you could be sitting here now?"

"Xizi, I talked with the county magistrate today, and the situation is not good. The Turks beyond the frontier are becoming restless. Prince Huaiyang was recently ordered to go north to Heisha, and it won't be smooth sailing. According to my informants in Guguzhu, a few days ago, the leader of the Mohe tribe, Dazhurong, sent envoys to secretly contact the Khitan people here. Do you know what this means? One misstep, and a major war might break out."

Yang Shouwen was stunned, not knowing what to say.

Actually, there isn't much information about the later years of Wu Zetian, especially from the time she ascended the throne to the time when Emperor Xuanzong ascended and ushered in the Kaiyuan era. Many people are not clear about what happened during this period.

Yang Shouwen does have some knowledge of this period, thanks to reading a few books from this era.

There is little research on this period of history.

Yang Shouwen vaguely remembers that during this time, due to Wu Zetian's military failures, the nomadic tribes beyond the frontier became extremely rampant, frequently launching rebellions, causing significant impact on the border and Central China.

The largest rebellion was the one led by the Khitan leaders Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong, whose forces once reached the banks of the Yellow River.

During this rebellion, Wu Zetian's most trusted general, Wang Xiaojie, died in battle. This happened last year, just a year ago. In the end, it was only through the intervention of the Uyghur leader, Mochuo, who attacked Sun Wanrong's base, forcing the rebels to retreat, that the war in Central China was resolved. Even so, the Hebei region suffered heavy losses, and the Tang army suffered significant casualties, which also made Wu Zetian wary of the nomadic tribes beyond the frontier.

In August, the Uyghur chieftain Mochuo requested a marriage alliance with Wu Zetian.

Wu Zetian, fearing these nomadic tribes, sent Prince Huaiyang, Wu Yanshou, the son of Wu Chengsi, to Heisha.

Wu Yanshou left Feihuxian on the day Yang Shouwen was struck by lightning.

Hearing Yang Chenglie's words, Yang Shouwen immediately realized that the era he was in was not as peaceful as he thought.

In other words, war could break out at any time!

Seeing that Yang Shouwen was silent, Yang Chenglie sighed.

"I'm telling you this not to scare you, but to let you know that our current situation is not good. The murder case in Changping is also very mysterious. I came to Guguzhu partly to communicate with the local authorities and partly to look for clues. If I were the culprit, I would hide here. There are so many foreigners here that it's hard to find any clues."

Yang Shouwen looked up and said softly, "Father, I was wrong!"

"However, what you did today was good. A man should use his martial skills to uphold justice and protect the people. Lüzhu was indeed a good person, it's a pity she died... Well, there's nothing else. Go wash the dog, I'll have someone prepare dinner."

"Sure!"

Yang Shouwen bowed and accepted the order, then took Ugly girl to a small stream outside the tent to wash her.

Ugly girl had probably been wandering for a long time and was very dirty.

After washing her, she jumped onto the shore and shook herself, splashing water all over Yang Shouwen, which made him laugh heartily.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

That night, nothing happened, and Yang Shouwen had a good sleep.

The next morning, he was about to get up when he heard footsteps outside the tent, followed by someone speaking in Turkish.

Yang Chenglie sat up with a start, glanced at Yang Shouwen, and then walked out.

Yang Shouwen followed closely behind and, when he reached the door, saw Ugly girl slowly lying down.

Mongolian mastiffs don't bark much, but they are very alert. Once they sense something unusual, they will hide and prepare to attack.

This dog truly fits the saying: a barking dog doesn't bite.

If kept at home, it would be a great guard dog.

Yang Shouwen signaled Ugly girl to stay lying down, then walked out of the tent.

Outside the tent, a thick fog was spreading.

Yang Shouwen vaguely saw that not far away, Yang Chenglie was talking to someone, then turned and walked back.

"Father, is that your man?"

Yang Chenglie didn't answer but looked at him and said softly, "Xizi, let's talk inside."

Yang Shouwen's heart sank, sensing something was wrong.

He walked back into the tent and saw Yang Chenglie light the oil lamp, sit on the bed, and wear a serious expression.

"I just got the news, the person you caught yesterday died in the yamen."

"What?"

Yang Shouwen's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively stood up.

"Sit down!"

Yang Chenglie glared at him and said sternly, "To panic over such a small matter, how can you accomplish great things in the future? It's just one person dead, what's the big deal! However, this person's death suggests that Lüzhu's murder might not be as simple as we thought. From yesterday to now, there have been three murders, and it seems...

Xizi, quickly pack up, we need to leave."

"Now?"

Yang Chenglie nodded and said, "The person died in the yamen, which means there's more than one person behind him, and there might be a larger force. You messed up their plans yesterday, forcing them to kill to cover their tracks, and they might take it out on you. This isn't our territory, and they managed to kill someone in the yamen, which shows they are powerful.

We need to leave before the fog clears... We'll be safe once we get back to Changping, otherwise, both of us will be in trouble."

Yang Shouwen nodded repeatedly, quickly put on his clothes, and picked up his spear.

He walked to Ugly girl, put the four puppies in a bag, and said softly, "Ugly girl, we're leaving here."

As he spoke, Yang Shouwen slung the bag over his shoulder, and Ugly girl followed him silently out of the inn.

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