Chapter 55

"Is there still no news of Lord Wei?" Zhao Chen looked at Qin Ming, who had returned with his men after searching for Wei Hui, and asked worriedly. Seeing Qin Ming shake his head in disappointment, Zhao Chen clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

It had been almost half an hour. Lantian was just a small county, and even if Wei Hui had gotten lost for a while, he should have returned by now!

At this moment, night had completely fallen, and many shops on both sides of the street had hung up lanterns. The night wind blew, causing the lanterns to sway in the darkness, casting Zhao Chen's face in an uncertain light.

Qin Ming and the others stood silently in front of Zhao Chen. Each of their faces was frozen with a look of iron, and their beards were coated with a layer of ice. In this short time, they had almost searched the entire county of Lantian.

It can't be that something happened! Zhao Chen kept reassuring himself, but at this point, still not finding Wei Hui, even if he tried to comfort and convince himself, his thoughts couldn't help but drift to the worst-case scenario.

"The... the inspector has returned!" At this moment, a voice full of surprise came from a distance. Hearing this, Zhao Chen and the others turned their gazes in the direction of the voice. They saw Lantian's county magistrate, Wang Ning, running towards them, panting and shouting.

"Where is Lord Wei now?" When Wang Ning, out of breath, finally reached them, Zhao Chen asked anxiously.

"Lord Wei is now at the county office!" Wang Ning's excitement was no less than Zhao Chen's. Wei Hui's sudden disappearance had put him under immense pressure, and if anything had happened, he would have been held responsible. Now that Wei Hui had returned, he couldn't help but be overjoyed.

"Let's go back!" Upon hearing that Wei Hui was at the county office and that he was safe, though he had caught a cold, Zhao Chen felt a surge of anger.

At this time, various shops had set up porridge pots and were beginning to distribute porridge. The坊正 (head of the neighborhood) and 保长 (village chief) of each坊 (neighborhood) had also been summoned.

Zhao Chen promised that those who were willing to take in the refugees would receive a liter of grain as a reward. So, after eating the porridge, these people could return home with the坊正 and 保长.

Zhao Chen entrusted Liu Hui to handle the situation here and led Qin Ming and his men towards the county office. As soon as they entered the second hall of the county office, they saw Wei Hui sitting by a fire pot, warming himself.

"Lord Wei, you have been running around to help the people, and it seems you have caught a chill!" Upon seeing Wei Hui safe and sound, Zhao Chen's anger surged, and he began to sarcastically criticize him.

"It is my fault!" Wei Hui, hearing this, looked at Zhao Chen with a guilty expression and explained awkwardly.

He had just learned from Wang Ning that his sudden disappearance had frightened everyone, and Zhao Chen had sent people to search for him everywhere.

"Ha ha, what fault does Lord Wei have!" Zhao Chen sneered, trying to control his anger, and continued to mock: "Today in the court, Lord Wei spoke with great passion, showing deep concern for the people, which I admire greatly!"

"Now that you are in Lantian, Lord Wei has delved deep into the lives of the people to help them, making it impossible for me to even catch a glimpse of your noble figure!"

Wei Hui's face turned from green to white. Zhao Chen's relentless sarcasm left him speechless, and he realized that this young man was not only skilled in science but also in rhetoric.

"To be honest, this trip to Lantian was out of necessity!" Wei Hui, after a moment of silence, sighed and said to Zhao Chen: "A close friend of mine is in Lantian, and I went to visit him just now!"

"So, Lord Wei was out in the snow to visit a friend, what a delightful mood!" Zhao Chen suddenly laughed, clasped his hands, and said with a bright smile.

However, his anger was on the verge of erupting. At this time, everyone was busy dealing with the affairs of the people outside, and Wei Hui had quietly gone to visit his friend, causing everyone to search for him again.

"If I really had such leisure, I would deserve to be scolded to death here!" Wei Hui sighed and looked at Zhao Chen: "The truth is, my friend is in a very serious condition and is in constant danger of losing his life!"

"That doesn't mean you couldn't have said something or given a greeting!" Zhao Chen, upon hearing that Wei Hui's friend was seriously ill, felt his anger subside. It was a natural human reaction!

If it were him, he would have done the same. However, despite this, Zhao Chen still asked with some resentment.

"That is my fault!" Wei Hui, hearing this, sighed and bowed to Zhao Chen, apologizing.

"Is there anything I can do to help your friend?" Wei Hui, seeing Zhao Chen's difficult expression, asked.

"Well..." Zhao Chen hesitated: "Lord Wei, you must tell me what kind of injury your friend has!"

"An arrow wound!" Wei Hui, after a moment of hesitation, looked at Zhao Chen and said straightforwardly.

"No!" Zhao Chen, upon hearing this, immediately turned cold and refused: "I am very busy and have no time! Lord Wei, please find someone else!"

What a joke! He had left without a word, saying he was visiting a friend, and Zhao Chen had thought the friend was seriously ill and on the brink of death! It turned out it was just an arrow wound!

He had left without a word, not because he had forgotten to inform Zhao Chen, but because he had intentionally avoided everyone's attention and secretly visited this 'friend'.

If it weren't for the arrow wound that required his treatment, Wei Hui probably wouldn't have bothered to explain.

Suddenly, a thought flashed through Zhao Chen's mind. He remembered that this trip to Lantian was forced upon him by Wei Hui in the imperial court. Thinking about the man with the arrow wound, Zhao Chen looked at Wei Hui suspiciously and asked:

"Lord Wei, how long has your friend had the arrow wound?"

"About a few months!" Wei Hui, taken aback, thought Zhao Chen had changed his mind and answered instinctively.

"Ha ha!" Zhao Chen, upon hearing this, laughed coldly and said: "Lord Wei, you are truly devoted to your friend, forcing me to come to Lantian for your friend's sake! Very well, indeed!"

Zhao Chen's chest was about to explode with anger. Wei Hui had forced him to come to Lantian in front of Emperor Li, and now he wanted him to treat the man with the arrow wound, as if Zhao Chen were a mere pawn.

"This is indeed my fault!" Wei Hui, seeing Zhao Chen's fists clenched and his face pale with anger, quickly bowed and said: "I apologize to you!"

"Ha ha!" Zhao Chen laughed and then sneered: "Lord Wei, you can keep your apologies! I cannot bear them!"

Zhao Chen, without another word, turned and walked out the door. Qin Ming and the others, with a 'hey' to Wei Hui, followed Zhao Chen out.

"This might be troublesome!" As soon as they left the second hall, Zhao Chen frowned and said to Qin Ming: "Remember not to tell anyone what Lord Wei said in the second hall, or it will cause us trouble!"

It was clear that Wei Hui's trip to Lantian was for the man with the arrow wound, though his identity was unknown.

But given the lengths Wei Hui had gone to, even offending Lao Qin and Cheng Yaojin, to force Zhao Chen to Lantian, it was evident that the man's identity was highly problematic!

Considering Wei Hui's past, the man's identity became clear: a close associate of Crown Prince Li Jiancheng!

Was he crazy or tired of living to get involved in such a mess?

Qin Ming was not stupid. As a member of the Lao Qin family, he was not lacking in intelligence. Hearing Zhao Chen's warning, he quickly realized the man's identity and looked at Zhao Chen with surprise.

"Little Lord, should we pretend we know nothing about this?" Qin Ming, upon realizing the man's identity, became tense. This matter was serious, and if the emperor were to investigate, Qin Ming feared it would affect the family head, which was a concern as a family member.

"Know what?" Zhao Chen turned to Qin Ming, frowned, and asked: "We know nothing, and Lord Wei told us nothing!"

Qin Ming, hearing this, took a deep breath, his face serious, still somewhat worried.

"It's fine!" Zhao Chen, knowing Qin Ming's concerns, sighed and patted Qin Ming's shoulder, comforting him.

Since they did not want to get involved, they could only pretend to know nothing. If Emperor Li were to ask, they would deny everything.

"Let's go! We need to find Liu Zhubu to discuss how to resolve the housing issue. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can leave this troublesome place of Lantian!" Zhao Chen sighed, smiled bitterly, and walked out of the county office.