228 Liaodong County
Yu Niaoniao returned to the guest room with a large bag of dry food and water.
She told Lo Pingsha and Dang Gui what she had asked.
“Little Lo, do you know about the bandits running rampant in Liaodong County?”
Lo Pingsha thought for a moment before speaking.
“The Justice Department originally had spies in Liaodong County. But for some reason, the spies had stopped sending back news three years ago. We later sent some people to Liaodong County to gather information, but it was useless. Because Liaodong County is too far from the Imperial Capital, it’s out of our reach to investigate even though we had doubts in our hearts.”
In other words, he did not know why there were so many bandits in Liaodong County.
Dang Gui asked eagerly, “What do we do next?”
Yu Niaoniao pondered for a moment. “Let’s see Lu Yao’s reaction first. He’s a local of Liaodong County and definitely knows more about it than us. If he also feels that we need to hire guards, we’ll pay some people.”
Dang Gui and Lo Pingsha nodded in agreement.
Lu Yao had something on his mind tonight and slept uneasily.
He finally made it to dawn. As soon as he got up, there was a knock on the door.
Lu Yao asked who it was.
Yu Niaoniao’s voice came through the door.
“It’s me. I have something to talk to Young Master Lu about.”
Lu Yao’s first reaction was whether would Dang Gui come with her sister. He quickly dressed and made sure his hair was neat before walking forward to open the door.
When he saw that only Yu Niaoniao was standing outside, the light in Lu Yao’s eyes dimmed at a visible speed.
Yu Niaoniao did not understand. “Young Master Lu doesn’t seem to be in a good mood. Did you not sleep well last night?”
Lu Yao nodded slightly. “Yes, why are you looking for me?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “It’s like this.
I heard that bandits were rampant in Liaodong County. I was afraid of danger and wondered if I should hire a few escorts to protect us. Since Young Master Lu knows Liaodong County better than us, I specially came to ask for your opinion.”
Lu Yao could not help but frown.
“I grew up in Liaodong County. It’s always been very peaceful there and there have never been any bandits. Who did you hear that from?”
Yu Niaoniao explained truthfully.
“The innkeeper of the guest house told me. He didn’t look like he was lying. Besides, he had no need to lie like this. Could it be that Young Master Lu has been studying overseas for many years and hasn’t returned home, so you don’t know about the changes in your hometown?”
Lu Yao answered without hesitation, “It’s impossible for there to be bandits. Liaodong County is guarded by the Eastern Expedition Army. General Zhengyuan is good at fighting and hates evil. If there were really bandits in Liaodong County, General Zheng Yuan would definitely send troops to extinguish them immediately. It’s impossible for bandits to run rampant.”
Yu Niaoniao whispered, “What if something happened to the Eastern Expedition Army too?”
Lu Yao did not hear clearly. “What did you say?”
Yu Niaoniao immediately shook her head. “It’s nothing. Since Young Master Lu said that there are no bandits in Liaodong County, we’ll listen to you. We’ll set off after breakfast.”
Lu Yao nodded.
“Then I’ll get going.”
With that, Yu Niaoniao turned around and left.
Lu Yao could not help but stop her. “Wait a moment.”
Yu Niaoniao turned to look at him. “What else, Young Master Lu?”
Lu Yao wanted to ask if Dang Gui was sad when she returned last night. He had been so cold last night that he must have broken Dang Gui’s heart.
But he forced the words back. Now that he had decided to keep his distance, he should be resolute about it.
He smiled. “Nothing. I just wanted to remind you that it’s getting cold. You guys have to remember to put on more clothes so you won’t freeze.”
Yu Niaoniao nodded. “Yes, thank you for the reminder.”
It was already the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. In addition, Liaodong County was in the north, so the temperature was indeed lower.
Fortunately, they had brought enough clothes for this trip and did not have to worry about not having thick clothes.
Yu Niaoniao, Dang Gui, and Lo Pingsha had eaten dinner before walking out of the guest house with bags of luggage.
The innkeeper took the initiative to ask, “Young lady, do you want to hire guards? If you do, I can introduce a few to you. The price is definitely fair.”
Before Yu Niaoniao could answer, Lu Yao, who was walking over, spoke first, “Thank you for your kindness, but there’s no need.”
The innkeeper was surprised. “Aren’t you afraid of being robbed by bandits?”
Lu Yao said, “We’re on the official road. We don’t have to worry about bandits. Even if we’re really unlucky, we can still report it to the authorities.”
The shopkeeper shook his head. “You’re still too young. If reporting to the officials was useful, there wouldn’t be so many bandits in Liaodong County now.”
Seeing that Lu Yao’s attitude was firm, he knew that it was useless to say anything else. He would only know his mistake after experiencing the worst. Hence, he stopped talking about this and went forward to help them carry their luggage.
Lu Yao first looked at Dang Gui, who was putting the luggage on the carriage. Seeing that she did not look at him anymore, he looked away and said to Yu Niaoniao.
“You saw it just now, right? The shopkeeper said that bandits ran rampant in Liaodong County. He must have seen that you’re not from Liaodong County and wanted to use the excuse of introducing guards to you to cheat you of your money.”
Yu Niaoniao asked softly, “But what if he was speaking the truth?”
Lu Yao said in a low voice, “If there are really bandits, we’ll report it to the officials. Don’t worry, my family has some power in Liaodong County. The authorities won’t dare to neglect me.”
Yu Niaoniao had long guessed that his background was unusual. His words confirmed her guess.
The two carriages and a donkey set off again.
A day later, they finally entered Liaodong County.
Dang Gui leaned against the car window and looked out. As far as the eye could see, there was a large dense forest.
Liaodong County was located at the northeast border of the Dayan Dynasty. There were many forests here, and because of the terrain, it was not suitable for planting rice. Therefore, the people here mainly ate wheaten food.
At noon, they found a place with a water source and stopped to rest.
Lu Yao said to them, “We should see a village some distance ahead. We can stay in that village tonight and try the specialties of Liaodong County.”
As soon as she heard that there was good food, Dang Gui immediately perked up.
She had been eating dry food every meal for the past two days. Her mouth had no taste, and she really wanted to eat a hot meal.
Dang Gui asked expectantly as she nibbled on a steamed bun, “What delicious food is there in Liaodong County?”
Lu Yao wanted to introduce a few of his favorite dishes, but he swallowed his words.
He controlled his emotions and tried not to meet her eyes.
“You’ll know when the time comes.”
With that, he turned around and returned to his carriage.
No matter how slow Dang Gui was, she could feel Lu Yao’s coldness towards her.
Not only that, but Lu Yao had not spoken to her much for the past two days, as if he was deliberately avoiding her.
She could not help but ask, “Sister, does Young Master Lu have something against me?”
Yu Niaoniao did not understand what Lu Yao was thinking.
She began to hum softly.
“Don’t guess the boy’s thoughts. You won’t understand no matter how you guess.”
228 Liaodong County
Yu Niaoniao returned to the guest room with a large bag of dry food and water.
She told Lo Pingsha and Dang Gui what she had asked.
“Little Lo, do you know about the bandits running rampant in Liaodong County?”
Lo Pingsha thought for a moment before speaking.
“The Justice Department originally had spies in Liaodong County. But for some reason, the spies had stopped sending back news three years ago. We later sent some people to Liaodong County to gather information, but it was useless. Because Liaodong County is too far from the Imperial Capital, it’s out of our reach to investigate even though we had doubts in our hearts.”
In other words, he did not know why there were so many bandits in Liaodong County.
Dang Gui asked eagerly, “What do we do next?”
Yu Niaoniao pondered for a moment. “Let’s see Lu Yao’s reaction first. He’s a local of Liaodong County and definitely knows more about it than us. If he also feels that we need to hire guards, we’ll pay some people.”
Dang Gui and Lo Pingsha nodded in agreement.
Lu Yao had something on his mind tonight and slept uneasily.
He finally made it to dawn. As soon as he got up, there was a knock on the door.
Lu Yao asked who it was.
Yu Niaoniao’s voice came through the door.
“It’s me. I have something to talk to Young Master Lu about.”
Lu Yao’s first reaction was whether would Dang Gui come with her sister. He quickly dressed and made sure his hair was neat before walking forward to open the door.
When he saw that only Yu Niaoniao was standing outside, the light in Lu Yao’s eyes dimmed at a visible speed.
Yu Niaoniao did not understand. “Young Master Lu doesn’t seem to be in a good mood. Did you not sleep well last night?”
Lu Yao nodded slightly. “Yes, why are you looking for me?”
Yu Niaoniao said, “It’s like this.
I heard that bandits were rampant in Liaodong County. I was afraid of danger and wondered if I should hire a few escorts to protect us. Since Young Master Lu knows Liaodong County better than us, I specially came to ask for your opinion.”
Lu Yao could not help but frown.
“I grew up in Liaodong County. It’s always been very peaceful there and there have never been any bandits. Who did you hear that from?”
Yu Niaoniao explained truthfully.
“The innkeeper of the guest house told me. He didn’t look like he was lying. Besides, he had no need to lie like this. Could it be that Young Master Lu has been studying overseas for many years and hasn’t returned home, so you don’t know about the changes in your hometown?”
Lu Yao answered without hesitation, “It’s impossible for there to be bandits. Liaodong County is guarded by the Eastern Expedition Army. General Zhengyuan is good at fighting and hates evil. If there were really bandits in Liaodong County, General Zheng Yuan would definitely send troops to extinguish them immediately. It’s impossible for bandits to run rampant.”
Yu Niaoniao whispered, “What if something happened to the Eastern Expedition Army too?”
Lu Yao did not hear clearly. “What did you say?”
Yu Niaoniao immediately shook her head. “It’s nothing. Since Young Master Lu said that there are no bandits in Liaodong County, we’ll listen to you. We’ll set off after breakfast.”
Lu Yao nodded.
“Then I’ll get going.”
With that, Yu Niaoniao turned around and left.
Lu Yao could not help but stop her. “Wait a moment.”
Yu Niaoniao turned to look at him. “What else, Young Master Lu?”
Lu Yao wanted to ask if Dang Gui was sad when she returned last night. He had been so cold last night that he must have broken Dang Gui’s heart.
But he forced the words back. Now that he had decided to keep his distance, he should be resolute about it.
He smiled. “Nothing. I just wanted to remind you that it’s getting cold. You guys have to remember to put on more clothes so you won’t freeze.”
Yu Niaoniao nodded. “Yes, thank you for the reminder.”
It was already the end of summer and the beginning of autumn. In addition, Liaodong County was in the north, so the temperature was indeed lower.
Fortunately, they had brought enough clothes for this trip and did not have to worry about not having thick clothes.
Yu Niaoniao, Dang Gui, and Lo Pingsha had eaten dinner before walking out of the guest house with bags of luggage.
The innkeeper took the initiative to ask, “Young lady, do you want to hire guards? If you do, I can introduce a few to you. The price is definitely fair.”
Before Yu Niaoniao could answer, Lu Yao, who was walking over, spoke first, “Thank you for your kindness, but there’s no need.”
The innkeeper was surprised. “Aren’t you afraid of being robbed by bandits?”
Lu Yao said, “We’re on the official road. We don’t have to worry about bandits. Even if we’re really unlucky, we can still report it to the authorities.”
The shopkeeper shook his head. “You’re still too young. If reporting to the officials was useful, there wouldn’t be so many bandits in Liaodong County now.”
Seeing that Lu Yao’s attitude was firm, he knew that it was useless to say anything else. He would only know his mistake after experiencing the worst. Hence, he stopped talking about this and went forward to help them carry their luggage.
Lu Yao first looked at Dang Gui, who was putting the luggage on the carriage. Seeing that she did not look at him anymore, he looked away and said to Yu Niaoniao.
“You saw it just now, right? The shopkeeper said that bandits ran rampant in Liaodong County. He must have seen that you’re not from Liaodong County and wanted to use the excuse of introducing guards to you to cheat you of your money.”
Yu Niaoniao asked softly, “But what if he was speaking the truth?”
Lu Yao said in a low voice, “If there are really bandits, we’ll report it to the officials. Don’t worry, my family has some power in Liaodong County. The authorities won’t dare to neglect me.”
Yu Niaoniao had long guessed that his background was unusual. His words confirmed her guess.
The two carriages and a donkey set off again.
A day later, they finally entered Liaodong County.
Dang Gui leaned against the car window and looked out. As far as the eye could see, there was a large dense forest.
Liaodong County was located at the northeast border of the Dayan Dynasty. There were many forests here, and because of the terrain, it was not suitable for planting rice. Therefore, the people here mainly ate wheaten food.
At noon, they found a place with a water source and stopped to rest.
Lu Yao said to them, “We should see a village some distance ahead. We can stay in that village tonight and try the specialties of Liaodong County.”
As soon as she heard that there was good food, Dang Gui immediately perked up.
She had been eating dry food every meal for the past two days. Her mouth had no taste, and she really wanted to eat a hot meal.
Dang Gui asked expectantly as she nibbled on a steamed bun, “What delicious food is there in Liaodong County?”
Lu Yao wanted to introduce a few of his favorite dishes, but he swallowed his words.
He controlled his emotions and tried not to meet her eyes.
“You’ll know when the time comes.”
With that, he turned around and returned to his carriage.
No matter how slow Dang Gui was, she could feel Lu Yao’s coldness towards her.
Not only that, but Lu Yao had not spoken to her much for the past two days, as if he was deliberately avoiding her.
She could not help but ask, “Sister, does Young Master Lu have something against me?”
Yu Niaoniao did not understand what Lu Yao was thinking.
She began to hum softly.
“Don’t guess the boy’s thoughts. You won’t understand no matter how you guess.”
