Oh no! Seven kids at the start, all yellow and skinny.

Chapter 84 Can’t ignore it

Longxi City covers a large area, and the entire city is square. According to the directions, it was divided into four districts: east, south, west, and north, which also formed a pattern of nobility in the east, wealth in the south, poverty in the west, lowliness in the north, and elegance in the center.

The term "Eastern Noble" refers to the fact that the eastern part of the city was inhabited by officials and their families, who were of noble status; "Southern Rich" refers to the fact that the southern part of the city was mostly inhabited by wealthy merchants; the western part of the city was inhabited by the poor, who were also called commoners; and "Northern Lowly" refers to the fact that many people living in the northern part of the city were of low social status.

In ancient times, the distinction between so-called "lowly status" was not significant. It mainly included slaves who sold themselves into servitude and people working in special industries, such as jailers, executioners, coroners, and midwives.

Therefore, if you really want to arrest people, it's safest to arrest those in the west and north of the city.

Ordinary people and the lowest social classes are basically powerless and have no influence. No one cares whether they live or die. Even if they cause public outrage, they can just be suppressed as a riot.

However, Longxi City was not a border town; there were officials in charge of its administration.

The Great Zhou Dynasty implemented a system that separated military and political affairs. The prefect was responsible for the administrative affairs of a prefecture, and he could only mobilize the prefectural soldiers and yamen runners, while the army of a city was under the command of the commander.

The Marquis of Zhenbei traveled all the way to Longxi City to arrest people. Even if the prefect was unaware, the commander certainly was.

The commander of Longxi City is named Huo Qingyuan. I didn't know which faction he belonged to before, but now that I see him, he might be part of the Third Prince's faction.

Yunyi asked He Wei to call Zhang Shou.

"You're that... boss?" Zhang Shou's reaction was similar to Lao Zhen's; both of them looked incredulous upon seeing Yun Yi.

“Yes.” Yunyi nodded. “I don’t have time to prove I can be their boss right now. I need you to tell me about the prefect and the commander.”

"You...you're looking for them?"

“Yes.” Yunyi nodded. “As the local officials, the prefect and the commander have the responsibility to protect the people. Now that the people in the city have been arrested, this is their dereliction of duty.”

"Hehe." Zhang Shou laughed. "This... Miss Yun, right? You're thinking too simply. They're mostly officials protecting each other." He pointed to the top of his head as he spoke. "Maybe it's someone who tacitly approves of it."

“Hmm.” Yunyi nodded. “That person who was able to depose the crown prince and exile the Xiao family is indeed not a wise ruler. You could even call him a tyrant. But now is not the time to discuss this. I need to know more about the situation. Tell me as much as you know. As for whether it will be useful… we’ll have to try to find out.”

Zhang Shou looked at Yun Yi for a moment, then nodded: "Okay, but I don't know much about her either."

……

After leaving Guaizi Hutong, Yunyi went straight to the Du residence. In the study of Prefect Du Renyi, she took an item and left a letter written in blood before returning to the inn where she had been staying.

I had just lain down when I heard a rooster crowing outside; it was dawn.

Yunyi yawned, turned over, and went back to sleep. She was quite tired after a long night.

I slept for about half an hour before it was already bright outside, and I could hear a bustling noise coming from outside.

Yunyi then got up, while Uncle Quan and Uncle Zhen had already returned from their trip. Since they had brought some vegetables into the city, they naturally wanted to set up a stall, but they had already sold out.

"Girl, we brought back breakfast." Old Quan placed the soy milk and fried dough sticks he had bought on the table.

"Uncle Quan, Uncle Zhen, are you familiar with Huo Qingyuan?" Yunyi asked while eating.

"Commander Huo?" Old Zhen frowned first. "Young lady, what do you want with him? He..."

"Uncle Zhen, are you familiar with him?" Yun Yi raised her eyebrows slightly.

Old Quan glanced at Old Zhen and said, "Young lady, Old Zhen used to be his subordinate. She ended up working for the government because she was injured."

"Huo Qingyuan is a man of great martial arts skills and literary talent, but... he is extremely lecherous. He has many wives and concubines in his household. I left two years ago. At that time, I heard that he had a master by his side. This master can not only predict good and bad fortune, but also refine pills, which can make him invincible..." Old Zhen glanced at Old Quan as he said this, and then his face turned a little shy.

After all, he was talking to a pretty young girl, so it didn't feel right to say such things.

"now what?"

"I've also been in contact with former colleagues before, and I heard that he sent elixirs to the capital. It's very likely that he'll be transferred to the capital when this term ends..."

Yunyi nodded and finished the rest of her soy milk: "I understand. I'll go to the military camp tonight to meet him."

Old Zhen seemed to want to say something but hesitated, and in the end, he didn't say anything.

Yunyi went back to catch up on sleep in the morning and continued to stroll around in the afternoon, but Lao Zhen said he had something to do, so only Lao Quan accompanied her.

After seeing all the major buildings in Longxi City, they returned to the inn.

“Young lady, you…” Old Quan looked worried, “Do you really want to go against the government officials?”

“Now that I’ve become their leader, I can’t just ignore them.” Yunyi smiled. “Uncle Quan, I know you’re worried about me. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything I’m not sure I can handle.”

Old Quan nodded, feeling a surge of warmth in his heart. After all, although she was just a young girl, her courage, kindness, and magnanimity were truly worth kneeling and bowing to.

That evening, Yunyi entered the Huo residence.

Huo Qingyuan's army was stationed in military camps, but he also had his own mansions in the city. Otherwise, where would he put all his wives and concubines?

The Huo family's security was much tighter than that of the Du family's, and the guards were clearly more skilled than those of the Du family.

After looking around, Yunyi finally found the study.

"Who goes there?" The guards outside heard the commotion as soon as they climbed over the wall.

Just as Yunyi was about to make a move, she suddenly heard a cry of an eagle from the tree outside the window, followed by a flapping sound.

The guards immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, it's just a bird."

"It must be an owl, right? Its call doesn't sound like a bird at all."

"I saw a guy jump up there, which startled me."

"Alright, let's go check out other places."

……

Yunyi breathed a sigh of relief inside the room. After hearing the people outside walk away, she began to check the study by the dim moonlight, hoping to find a hidden room or secret compartment.

In fact, the ancients were very wise. Their designs for hidden rooms and secret compartments were quite ingenious, and it was difficult for those unfamiliar with them to find the switches.

However, Yunyi lived in ancient times for tens of thousands of years. She not only owned all kinds of studies and hidden compartments, but also designed many different styles. Therefore, she probably knows the patterns.

He glanced around the study, then went straight over and lifted two paintings on the wall to take a look. He then went to the display shelf and placed his hand on a jade cabbage.