Le Premier ministre stupéfiant

Chapitre 87

"Northwest, it's been more than half a year since we last met. You're still as cheerful and humorous as ever." Mu Feinan smiled, the corners of his mouth turning up, which lifted the finely crafted mask on his face, finally giving it a human-like expression. However, if he hadn't silently released his hands and taken two steps back while speaking, Mo Northwest might have felt even better.

Volume 3, Chapter 14: Memories

"You haven't lost your memory, so why are you here? Why is someone calling you brother-in-law?" Mo Xibei quickly wiped away her tears; crying wasn't her preferred way of speaking.

“I haven’t lost my memory, which doesn’t mean I can’t get married. After all, I’m not young anymore, and I’m at the age to get married and have children, aren’t I?” Mu Feinan smiled again and said to Tiechui, “This sister is an old friend of mine. She came all the way from far away to see me. Go back and tell her to cook a few extra dishes for lunch to entertain our guest.” After saying that, she patted Tiechui’s head and urged the boy, who was looking at Mo Xibei with hostility, to go home first. Only after Tiechui turned back every three steps and slowly walked away did Mu Feinan smile again and say to Mo Xibei, “You must have come a long way. Since you’re here, why don’t you come to my house for a while? Sister Tiechui can cook a lot of dishes. Of course, she can’t compare to the famous chefs at Chunfeng Ruyi Restaurant, but her skills are still very good. What are you playing at?” Mo Xibei didn’t move. When Mu Feinan took two steps and turned back to look at her, she had already decided that she should ask what had happened. She was rather oblivious to matters of the heart. Many things, if not explained clearly, would only cause her too much distress if she just thought about them herself, and usually, there would be no conclusion. Moreover, given the current situation, if she is allowed to remain silent and continue in this inexplicable state, she will definitely become so frustrated that she goes crazy.

“I wasn’t playing around, you know. That explosion was so powerful, most of the mountain collapsed. I don’t know how I survived. I was unconscious for a long time, and only later did I gradually remember that my brothers who had risked their lives with me all rushed towards Murong Songtao without hesitation in the most dangerous moment, shielding me with their own flesh and blood.” Mu Feinan seemed to have anticipated Mo Xibei’s question, and spoke calmly and without emotion. “I must have fallen into the river along with many rocks. If I had been swept out to sea, I would have been dead, but I was rescued by Tiechui’s brother. My injuries were really severe at the time; I couldn’t move at all. The boat was a fishing boat that the village used to secretly go out to sea. Everyone on the boat said I wouldn’t survive, and it would be troublesome to bring me back and let me die at home. Only Tiechui’s brother disagreed; he insisted on saving me. That’s how I came to this small village.”

"And then what happened?" Mo Xibei's heart sank suddenly. Everything that happened in the cave that day had become a nightmare. She couldn't think about it, couldn't think about how she survived, because just thinking about what happened made her feel hopeless. And she didn't want to hear Mu Feinan's story anymore. What happened next? What else could happen? She always got deeply involved in rotten stories, unable to extricate herself. "Later..." Mu Feinan sighed with a half-smile, "What happened next... you'll probably scoff at the story, because you're so smart, money always seems to come to you on its own, while some people would risk their lives for a few strings of cash. My injuries were severe, and the doctor prescribed a lot of expensive medicine. If I could walk and run like I do now, that money would be a piece of cake, but at the time, I wasn't even thinking straight. To earn money to buy my medicine, Tiechui's brother secretly went fishing at sea. The imperial court had banned fishing for years to prevent Japanese pirates, and his boat was caught red-handed. Tiechui's father took his daughter to the county government, hoping the upright official would give them a chance to defend themselves, but... guess what happened?"

“They had no money, so naturally no one was willing to listen to their explanations.” Mo Xibei was somewhat numb, feeling as if his brain had stopped functioning for thinking. Fortunately, he could deduce the answer instinctively. “If it were just that they wouldn’t listen to their explanations, perhaps that would be alright. But then the county clerk came back from drinking and saw Sister Tiechui…” Mu Feinan paused, took a deep breath, “Brother Tiechui was mistaken for a Japanese pirate and was beheaded without any interrogation. Tiechui’s father, in grief and anger, smashed his head against the stone lion in front of the county yamen and died. A few days later, Sister Tiechui returned with two coffins. Do you know how my injuries were healed?” At this point, Mu Feinan’s voice rose slightly, a hoarse tone filled with grief and indignation. Fortunately, there were no more villagers watching the spectacle.

"Stop talking!" Mo Xibei took two steps back, turned around and wanted to leave, to walk far away.

“Northwest, are you scared?” Mu Feinan’s voice fell silent again. “The medicine used on me was bought by Sister Iron Hammer, the money…”

"I don't want to hear it, stop talking." Mo Xibei abruptly interrupted him, his heart pounding wildly in his chest, his agitation beyond control.

“If you don’t want to hear it, I won’t say anything more.” Mu Feinan was silent for a while before continuing, “Northwest, I used to think I was omnipotent. I even thought that with my martial arts and intelligence, I could handle any situation with ease. Even after I learned your true identity—that you were actually a royal princess second only to the emperor—I didn’t think we couldn’t be together. But this time, I really feel powerless. Faced with the plight of such a kind person, all I could do was lie in bed and watch helplessly.”

"So, you married her." It wasn't a question, because Mo Xibei's body trembled slightly. Helplessness—yes, this was the first time she felt this way. What could she do? She could kill the magistrate, but could killing him bring back two lives? She could kill the beastly advisor, but could killing him restore a woman's chastity in this era? Could he stop the gossip? No. If nothing could change, then what else could she do?

"There were more and more rumors circulating in the village. Tiechui and his sister didn't dare to go out. When no one was around, the two siblings would secretly wipe away their tears. When my injuries were almost healed, one day Tiechui's sister came to beg me. She hoped that after I recovered, I could take Tiechui away from here and live somewhere where no one knew them." Mu Feinan's voice was devoid of joy or sorrow, just like his masked face, which showed no emotion.

“I felt something was wrong right away, so I secretly followed her. She ended up hanging herself on the mountain. I know she’d been planning this for a long time. But if you live a righteous life, what do people care about? So I…” Mu Feinan suddenly stopped, and after a long pause, said, “Northwest, I won’t say sorry, or ask for your forgiveness. I don’t know how you found this place, but the person who led you here is no ordinary person. You need to be careful. I might have to leave this place too. Also, I’m not the person I used to be anymore, not the person you liked. Just consider me dead, as if I died in that explosion, okay?”

Mo Xibei remained silent for a long time, just standing there with his head down, then turned around, looking slightly bewildered.

"It's getting late. Are you really not staying for lunch?" Mu Feinan suddenly asked as Mo Xibei turned around, his tone filled with disappointment.

Mu Feinan's current home is built next to an old banyan tree in the village, three thatched houses. Along the way, he told her that here, he is called Afei, and Tiechui's sister is called Rong.

Mo Xibei ate without tasting the food. In her memory, there was only Rong'er's timid and hesitant expression. She was very confused at the time and thought that her sudden appearance had made people wary. However, Mu Feinan's sudden appearance tonight made her uncontrollably recall the events of that day. Only then did she realize that there was something inexplicably wrong with the situation that day.

(To be continued. To find out what happens next, please log in to read more, support the author, and support the official version!)

Volume 3, Chapter 15: Confusion

The next morning, Mo Xibei was awakened by a soreness in her ankle. Although it wasn't a serious sprain, some redness and swelling were unavoidable. The bottle of liniment she had been fiddling with for almost half the night had long been tossed aside; thankfully, it was well-sealed and hadn't spilled all over the bed. She quickly got up, found the liniment she had left over from a while ago, rubbed it haphazardly for a while, and then, without eating, rushed to the stables like the wind to lead her horse out.

"So early in the morning, not even eating breakfast, where are you going?" Mo Xibei originally wanted to sneak out through the back door, but Xiu Wen and Mei'er were just passing by, having gotten up early to collect dew. Seeing her about to leave, he naturally had to ask.

"I have some urgent business to attend to. You all should have your meal. I'll be back this afternoon." Mo Xibei nodded hurriedly, leaped onto his horse, and rode out of the county town.

No matter how rugged the road, it would only take two hours to reach that small village in the neighboring county by fast horse. The pond at the village entrance was still there, but the three thatched houses under the old banyan tree were gone. Everything that Mo Xibei had seen that day, from the fence and courtyard walls to the thriving vegetable seedlings in the garden, along with the people in the houses, had all vanished completely.

Perhaps because Mo Xibei had lingered here for too long, some villagers who saw her came over and asked her with strange looks what she was looking for here.

"Where are the people who used to live under the banyan tree? When did they move away?" Mo Xibei checked repeatedly but found no clues or traces. She was about to ask someone when, unexpectedly, the villagers' faces changed color as soon as she spoke.

"Has something happened?" Mo Xibei was taken aback.

"No, no." The man shook his head frantically, then hurriedly walked away, ignoring Mo Xibei's calls.

As if there was some taboo that couldn't be spoken, Mo Xibei found that no matter who he asked, as long as he mentioned the banyan tree, the other person would always shake their head and avoid him, even looking terrified.

The more something is something that no one is willing to talk about, the more Mo Xibei wants to know, so she barged into the local constable's house.

To get information out of someone who refuses to talk about something you want to know, there are only two methods: coercion and enticement. First, enticement. The local bully shook his head vigorously, stubbornly insisting he knew nothing. So, coercion was the only option. Mo Xibei swiftly drew his longsword and, without looking, held it to the bully's neck. The man inexplicably shrank back, but still refused to speak. Helpless, Mo Xibei turned his gaze to the bully's wife, who was huddled on the kang (heated brick bed). With a flick of his finger, the bully's wife went limp and fainted. This made her secretly rejoice. Her master's technique of striking pressure points from a distance was truly remarkable. When she learned it, the furthest it could be effective was within ten feet. Today, it was nearly twenty feet away, yet it didn't miss. Rare indeed, it neither harmed nor failed to frighten.

"What kind of sorcery do you know?" The local constable trembled, unable to form coherent sentences.

"This has nothing to do with you. Answer my question and your wife will wake up again, otherwise..." She snorted twice, shook her head, and looked very regretful.

“It has nothing to do with her, I’ll talk, I’ll talk…” Seeing his wife remain motionless for a long time, the local constable grew increasingly frightened and had no choice but to say, “There used to be a family under the banyan tree, but later their son went out to sea to fish without permission, which violated the imperial law. He was beheaded. His father and sister went to the county government to appeal for justice. Who would have thought that in court, his sister would catch the eye of the clerk? Later… alas! It was pitiful. His father, in a fit of rage, smashed his head against the stone lion at the entrance of the county government. His sister, having been violated, also hanged herself. After the family was gone, people kept saying they heard someone crying in that house. Later, the villagers were afraid, so they simply demolished the house. This all happened several years ago, and no one wants to talk about it anymore.”

"You mean several years ago?" Mo Xibei was taken aback. "What about recently? Has no one come to live there in the last few months?"

“Girl, in broad daylight, can you please stop scaring people? The house was demolished years ago, how could anyone still be living there recently? Who would dare to live there?” The local constable trembled even more violently after hearing Mo Xibei’s words. Mo Xibei was afraid of frightening him, so he sighed, sheathed his sword, walked over and patted the constable’s wife to release her pressure points, and then turned and left.

There was indeed no trace of any houses under the banyan tree. Mo Xibei thought the local security guard was probably telling the truth. However, she didn't believe what she had seen was an illusion. Therefore, the only explanation was that someone had exploited the residents' fear to create a false alarm. Of course, such an illusion wasn't easy to create; it required a certain amount of mental confusion among the villagers. Although there weren't many villagers—only a dozen or so households—confusing them would take considerable time and effort. She wondered what purpose this person was trying to achieve by going to such lengths.

Volume 3, Chapter 15: Confusion (Part 2)

In fact, Mo Xibei didn't find much time to think about everything in front of him.

On the leisurely return journey, from a great distance, we saw the beacon fires used by the people of Tongxian to signal the approach of the Japanese pirates.

The battle plan against the Japanese pirates was decided by Mo Xibei and Chu Junfeng. Although she was no longer in Tongxian, Chu Junfeng was still there. Thinking this way, Mo Xibei felt much more at ease. Therefore, after seeing the beacon fire, she did not rush back to the county town immediately. Instead, she went directly to the foot of Zilang Mountain, gathered the people who had come to the scene after seeing the beacon fire, and activated the mechanism that was originally set up there.

"Sister Mo, the Japanese pirates have entered the county. Why don't we go and help them?" That day, he spoke very boldly. A child named A Guang had somehow gotten close to Mo Xibei. His eyes were bright and he was holding a small sword in his hand.

“There are people over there calling out to them. Let’s block them here and make sure they don’t come back. That way they won’t be able to harass the local people anymore. Wouldn’t that be better?” Mo Xibei stood on a small hill, looking out into the distance under the cover of the trees. Thick smoke rose from several places in Tongxian County. This was no longer a signal fire used to transmit information, but real houses were on fire. He guessed that the battle inside the city must be very intense at this moment.

“But my father said that these Japanese pirates are insatiable. If the imperial court doesn’t send a large army to wipe them out completely, we can kill one group, but soon another group will come.” A-Guang raised his little head. From Mo Xibei’s perspective, the child was frowning and blinking his eyes, looking very confused.

“Getting to the root of the matter, your father is right. But times change, and words change with the times. Right now, we don’t have the imperial army to rely on, so we can only have a quick and decisive fight. If the Japanese pirates don’t come, they won’t come at all. If they do come like this, we’ll kill them one by one, or two by two.” Mo Xibei looked at the commotion in the city. The shouts of battle in the distance were gradually becoming clearer, and it seemed that the Japanese pirates were retreating. So he made a gesture to the person in charge of command on another tree. As soon as the small red flag waved, the gathered people immediately grabbed axes, halberds, hooks, and sickles, and hid in the bushes on both sides of the road. The tripwires they had prepared were also in place.

"Sister Mo, what should I do?" The boy, A-Guang, was anxious. He had come to visit relatives and was quite young, so Mo Xibei had never arranged a formal job for him. He had come today by clinging to his neighbor, but now that he saw everyone else had something to do, he felt like he was in the way no matter where he stood, so he couldn't help but stomp his feet repeatedly.

“You’ll come with me. You’ll do whatever I tell you to do, but you have to be obedient.” Mo Xibei looked ahead again and asked him, “Can you climb trees?”

"Yes." Ah Guang solemnly straightened his little face and nodded vigorously.

"Then, come up here." Mo Xibei waved his hand.

Although Ah Guang was still a child, he was very agile. He climbed to Mo Xibei's side in a few moments and even hid his body in the branches. The whole set of movements was well-organized and extremely smooth, without any hesitation.