As soon as Shi Lei received the letter Liu Kun had secretly sent him, he knew what the man wanted—nothing more than the usual attempts at winning him over.
When Shi Lei first read the letter, he was amused and somewhat mocking. Zhao Hanzhang was calling people brothers and discussing close friendship with them, yet she didn’t know that behind her back, they were already trying to poach her people.
These powerful nobles truly had no shame.
Shi Lei sneered coldly. Wanting to watch Zhao Hanzhang’s predicament unfold, he immediately agreed to the meeting and even deliberately had someone inform Zhao Hanzhang’s people.
Before coming, he had been wondering from which angles Liu Kun would try to win him over. He never expected Liu Kun would bring his elderly mother and nephew.
Shi Lei’s heart pounded violently. An indescribable mixture of regret and relief surged through him, the two emotions overlapping and pushing against each other until finally settling on relief.
Liu Kun’s actions showed that his sense of loyalty was not as it appeared. If he could backstab Zhao Hanzhang to this extent, what about him?
Thinking again of Liu Kun’s ingratitude toward Wang Jun, alarm bells rang loudly in Shi Lei’s mind, leaving only relief.
In that instant, many thoughts flashed through his mind. But when his mother saw him, she had only one thought. She rushed forward and embraced Shi Lei tightly, crying out loudly, “Fule, you’re alive, you’re alive—”
Only then did Shi Lei return to his senses. He reached out and hugged his mother tightly, tears rolling down his face as well. “Mother—”
Shi Hu stood to one side, staring with wide eyes, his face showing both excitement and restraint.
Seeing Shi Lei so moved that he stood frozen, Liu Kun immediately knew he had done the right thing. He stroked his beard with satisfaction.
Shi Lei’s mother had suffered greatly during these years of displacement and hardship. She was now thin and gaunt. She quickly finished crying, then turned to pull Shi Hu forward, saying to Shi Lei, “Fule, this is Huzi. Do you still remember him?”
Shi Lei certainly remembered. This child was technically his nephew, though his father had always raised him as a son, making him almost like a younger brother.
Shi Lei had been extremely close to him. Seeing that the boy had now grown tall and strong with long arms and legs, he felt deeply gratified. He reached out and clapped him firmly on the shoulder, saying, “Excellent, excellent! My young tiger has grown up!”
Shi Hu grinned happily in response.
Shi Lei’s mother had wanted to say that they had relied entirely on Shi Hu along the way, but catching sight of Liu Kun, she immediately changed her words. “Thanks to Magistrate Liu for finding us among the refugees, treating us extremely well, and helping us find you, our family can finally be reunited.”
Shi Lei’s mother didn’t know Shi Lei’s current status, but seeing his fine clothing, ruddy complexion, and robust physique, she knew he was doing well.
Moreover, since Liu Kun treated them kindly and personally brought them to meet him, it was obviously because of her son’s current position.
Based on her limited knowledge, Shi Lei’s mother thought Liu Kun was a good person and felt that Shi Lei following him was quite good, so she went along with Liu Kun’s intentions and spoke well of him.
Upon hearing this, Shi Lei immediately bowed repeatedly to Liu Kun in thanks.
Liu Kun quickly moved to help him up while returning the courtesy…
When Zhao Hanzhang strode in, the two men were bowing to each other. At such a scene, Ming Yu, who was following behind Zhao Hanzhang, was greatly shocked, but Zhao Hanzhang merely raised her eyebrows.
Then her gaze quickly swept the room and settled on Shi Lei’s mother and Shi Hu.
Zhao Hanzhang’s sudden intrusion startled not only Liu Kun but also Shi Lei, who had been mentally prepared. He instinctively withdrew his hand and stood properly, looking exactly like a concubine caught in adultery.
Liu Kun’s face turned even redder. He hastily explained, “Hanzhang, I encountered General Shi on the road and remembered that I had once sheltered a grandmother and grandson. I vaguely heard they seemed to be General Shi’s relatives, so I invited him to come see them. I didn’t expect they really were General Shi’s family…”
Zhao Hanzhang smiled and said, “What a coincidence. It shows that even Heaven cannot bear to see General Shi’s family separated.”
She stared fixedly at Shi Hu for quite a while before finally moving her gaze back to Shi Lei’s face. After looking him up and down, her eyes narrowed slightly and her expression gradually became strange.
Shi Lei sensed something was wrong but couldn’t figure out what the problem was. He could only suppress his doubts for the moment.
Zhao Hanzhang’s gaze seemed able to see through people’s hearts. Not only did the guilty Liu Kun avoid her eyes, but even the innocent Shi Lei and the first-time meeting Shi Hu slightly avoided her gaze as well.
For a moment, no one in the room spoke. In the pin-drop silence, an awkward atmosphere slowly spread.
Zhao Hanzhang was the most confident, showing no awareness that she was an intruder. The shopkeeper who had run in after her didn’t dare breathe heavily. He quietly backed away, and once outside the room, immediately fled.
Zhao Hanzhang walked before Shi Lei’s mother, bowed to her, and said, “Madam Shi, I am Zhao Hanzhang. Shilong is currently a great general under my command. Over these years, Shilong has been searching for you. Unfortunately, with the world in chaos, it’s been extremely difficult to find someone in this vast sea of people. I never expected to find you here. It truly is Heaven’s blessing.”
Shi Lei’s mother looked bewildered. “Shilong?”
“Yes,” Zhao Hanzhang smiled. “This is Shi Lei’s courtesy name. Impressive, isn’t it?”
Shi Lei’s mother immediately smiled and nodded repeatedly. “Impressive, impressive! It’s very similar to the courtesy name Huzi chose for himself. Fule, Huzi gave himself a courtesy name—Jilong.”
Shi Lei’s heart leaped violently. He couldn’t help but look at Zhao Hanzhang, meeting her clear, cold gaze. Where was there any trace of a smile in her eyes?
Only pity.
Shi Lei’s lips trembled. The prediction Zhao Hanzhang had made surfaced in his mind. He looked at Shi Hu with some doubt, paused, then looked back at Zhao Hanzhang.
Zhao Hanzhang had already looked away and said to Liu Kun, “Yueshi, I have urgent business with you.”
Shi Lei immediately lowered his eyes and stood quietly to one side, not daring to say a word.
Liu Kun frowned slightly and looked up at Zhao Hanzhang, meeting her clear yet persistent gaze.
Zhao Hanzhang said, “Yueshi, Tuoba Yilu is a formidable figure. He left his homeland to come here—does he truly only want to manage Dai Jun?”
Liu Kun’s expression changed. “Does Hanzhang want to attack Dai Jun?”
“If he behaves properly, I will naturally honor your agreement with him and temporarily allow him to use Dai Jun. But I need him to remember that Dai Jun is a commandery of Great Jin, not the State of Dai.” Zhao Hanzhang said solemnly, “When Jinyang was attacked from both sides and you could barely hold the city gates, did the Xianbei send troops?”
Liu Kun remained silent.
Zhao Hanzhang said, “I want to see him!”
This time it wasn’t a tone of discussion but a command.
Only at this moment did Liu Kun realize that Zhao Hanzhang was not only the Inspector of Yuzhou but also currently Great Jin’s most powerful minister overseeing all government affairs.
Under her gaze, he involuntarily nodded.
Liu Kun weakly explained for himself, “The Xiongnu are brutal, and Wang Jun is wildly ambitious. Jinyang was surrounded in the middle. I had no choice but to rely on the Xianbei.”
Zhao Hanzhang nodded, indicating her understanding. Her expression softened somewhat as she smiled. “Besides this matter, there’s one more thing that requires your consent.”
Liu Kun’s heart tightened. He heard Zhao Hanzhang say, “Currently, my forces are all tied down by Liu Cong. I can’t free them up for now. General Shi only brought twenty thousand troops, which isn’t enough to recover the Jizhou commanderies occupied by Wang Jun. So I want to recruit new soldiers in Jinyang.”
Liu Kun relaxed and smiled. “Of course you may. Is there anything I can help with?”
Originally planning to say no, Zhao Hanzhang glanced at Shi Hu and immediately felt a headache. She simply said, “There actually is. I’ll presume upon Yueshi’s generosity and ask for some provisions.”
Everyone should keep busy to avoid having nothing to do and causing trouble instead—like secretly sending Shi Hu back, creating such a huge problem for her.
—