Ye Jingchuan was somewhat dumbstruck listening to this. Although he disliked getting involved in inner household affairs, having grown up in a prestigious family, he inevitably had been exposed to such matters and possessed a natural sensitivity to them. In the past, if someone in the household committed an unforgivable grave error, they would generally be sent to an estate. In more serious cases, it would be like this—having a human trafficker come, not even asking for silver, implicitly making clear the view of this servant—allowing the trafficker to handle them however they wished, as long as the wrongdoer suffered more, that would suffice. This had already become an established rule among the aristocratic families in the capital for dealing with their servants.

He thought about An’an, then thought about Lianyi whom he had found in a pigsty before, and suddenly felt that these methods he had always considered too heartless actually had their own reasons for existing. Otherwise, how could such wicked people be made to pay the proper price for their wrongdoings?

Song Chuyi had already turned around somewhat wearily. The fierce wind howled past, blowing off her hood. She handed her sleeve warmers to Qing Tao who had just hurried over, then put her hood back on properly herself, turning her head slightly to ask Qing Tao in a soft voice: “Does Lianyi know about this matter?”

The Li family was a nightmare in Lianyi’s heart. Whenever she heard of them, she would be frightened to the point of uncontrollable trembling. These years had truly been too hard on her. If she learned that the old woman Li had still harbored such depraved intentions of wanting An’an dead, who knew how devastated she would be.

Qing Tao helped her put the sleeve warmers back on while tucking a hand warmer into her hands, only then shaking her head: “We didn’t dare tell her. I also told Nanny Xu to have her not mention this matter to Lianyi.”

Song Chuyi couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief, humming in acknowledgment before turning to thank Zhou Weizhao and Ye Jingchuan: “Today we truly owe you both. Otherwise—”

Otherwise, if something had happened to An’an, Lianyi wouldn’t have survived either, and she herself would never have peace of mind for the rest of her life.

Zhou Weizhao shook his head, pointing toward the ornamental gate to indicate she should walk forward, then said: “Your younger brother should have arrived in Shu by now, shouldn’t he? Tang Mingzhao doesn’t have many disciples, and he’s a gentleman. Going there is a good thing—it’s both peaceful and he can learn skills.”

Ye Jingchuan also interjected: “I’ve also heard Father mention that Tang Mingzhao has only taken on that many disciples in total. By the time it came to Song Yan, he happened to be the last disciple. You truly picked the right timing.”

Turning past the ornamental gate, surrounded by courtyard walls on all sides, the sound of the howling wind diminished considerably. Song Chuyi merely nodded slightly: “It was also an opportunity obtained through karmic coincidence. I don’t ask that he become a world-changing talent—as long as he can establish himself in the future, that will be enough.”

Although Empress Dowager Rongxian had already been brought down, Song Chuyi still wasn’t at ease. She would rather send Song Yan thousands of miles away than have him remain in the capital to become a target for others when they attacked her. The tragic story from her previous life must never happen again.

She paused, then turned to ask Ye Jingchuan: “At the latest, you’ll have to set off immediately after the New Year. How is it that you always have time to wander around outside? And each time you wander right to my place—”

Previously, Princess Zhennan had already brought Ye Jingchuan to Earl Changning’s manor several times. Although she hadn’t revealed any particular intentions, her affectionate attitude toward Song Chuyi was probably evident to everyone.

Ye Jingchuan scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly: “First, I myself want to find you to play with. Second, when my mother hears I’m coming to find you, she’s willing to let me go out, so I can’t very well go to other places…”

Zhou Weizhao glanced at him and suddenly found it somewhat amusing: “You want to find her to play with, but your mother doesn’t think that way. She probably thinks you’ve grown up and know how to plan for yourself now.”

Ye Jingchuan did indeed know how to plan for himself. If he truly were just an ordinary wastrel young master, he wouldn’t have insisted on running to Fujian. She became serious and looked at Ye Jingchuan, suddenly asking: “Why are you willing to withdraw from the north and run to Fujian? Do you think the Japanese pirate threat will come earlier than the northern one?”

After the Tatar incident at Tongzhou, the outbreak would probably occur within these one or two years—the Great Zhou had closed the mutual markets, which was equivalent to cutting off their pots, bowls, ladles, basins, rice, flour, and clothing. For these people who only knew how to herd on the grasslands, an eruption was only a matter of time. Since they couldn’t buy what they needed and remembered the cavalry’s miserable situation at Tongzhou, they would naturally be driven to desperate measures like cornered dogs.

Yet in everyone else’s eyes, the Japanese pirates on the Fujian side had always been just minor skirmishes, unable to amount to anything significant.

Bringing up this matter, Ye Jingchuan rarely became composed. His expression grave, he nodded: “The court has always maintained a maritime ban, but in recent years the pirates reported from that area have become more and more numerous. I counted them—those who have their own ships and weapons alone number no less than ten. These outlawed pirates have become increasingly brazen, not only selling weapons to Japan but sometimes even joining forces with those Japanese pirates to plunder the Fujian and Guangdong coasts… This situation has continued for a full three or four years. I once asked your maternal uncle what would happen if this continued, and your maternal uncle’s thoughts were the same as mine.”

Zhou Weizhao, walking ahead with his hands behind his back, heard him pause and picked up the thread: “Within a year, the Japanese pirates will inevitably launch a major invasion.”

It was precisely because of this that Cui Shaoting had always been uneasy, delaying his entry to the capital even after receiving the transfer order. But at the same time, the northern defense line was indeed strained. Although Datong and Xuanfu had been impregnable fortresses in the past, defended by descendants of famous generals, gradually over the decades, without proper maintenance, they were no longer as solid as before.

Song Chuyi’s brows knitted tightly together, and she suddenly let out a heavy sigh.

She knew that most of these pirates were from Jiangxi and Changsha. In recent years, these two places had suffered continuous bandit problems, and being close to the sea, more and more people had fled to become pirates.

Most terrifying was that several of these people had close dealings with Prince Duan.

In her previous life, when Prince Duan raised his forces in rebellion, the Japanese pirates simultaneously invaded Fujian, Guangdong, and Zhejiang, tying up more than half of the southern military forces. What made matters worse was that at that time, the Fujian Governor-General, the Guangzhou Prefect, the Changsha Prefect, and the Jiangxi Prefect were all Prince Duan’s people—the southern prefectures had practically become Prince Duan’s stronghold.

“This time when you go to Fujian, under whose command will you serve?” After finishing her sigh, Song Chuyi raised her head to look at Ye Jingchuan, her eyes bright and unblinking, her long lashes fluttering up and down like butterfly wings.

For some reason, Ye Jingchuan suddenly felt his face grow somewhat hot. He stood there dazed, touching his own head, his mind going completely blank for a long moment without answering.

Zhou Weizhao struck him on the head again, finally knocking him back to his senses.

“My father’s intention is to still serve under the incoming Fujian Governor-General—”

Song Chuyi shook her head, a smile suddenly blooming on her face. This smile came so suddenly and was so beautiful that people didn’t react immediately.

“No, don’t go to him. I’ll tell you about someone—if you follow him, you definitely won’t go wrong.”