Finest Servant

Chapter 379 Must Be Washed Clean

"You—" Xu Zhiqing hummed, her face turning red. She kept her distance and dared not speak any further.

This was a case of a villain needing another villain to grind them down. Lin Wanrong laughed a few times, taking Luo Ning's small hand, following behind Hu Bugui, and heading towards the camp.

After the loss of the official silver, Luo Min had already ordered a citywide lockdown in Jining, with the camp being of utmost importance. Elite soldiers were stationed to guard it overnight. Without a special order, no one could enter, so the traces left behind after the loss of the official silver were well-preserved.

Upon entering the camp through multiple checkpoints, Lin Wanrong looked up and saw that the large camp was pitched beside the east-west official road, convenient for coming and going. To the south, it faced the sparkling Weishan Lake, which shone gold in the firelight, and the expansive lake surface seemed to be touched with golden rosy clouds, a sight of great beauty. Inside the large camp, hundreds of white tents were connected one after the other, neatly arranged in all directions.

Hu Bugui led Lin Wanrong to the center of the camp and pointed to the various wheel tracks on the ground, saying, "General Lin, Miss Xu, please look."

Lin Wanrong glanced and saw the ground full of chaotic wheel tracks, winding and twisting, concentrated most heavily where the four of them were standing. Hu Bugui bowed his fist and said, "According to my observation just now, the wheel marks here are dense. The official silver must have been stored here the night before last. From the marks left by the wheels, although they are disordered, the tracks going in the east-west direction are very distinct."

"So according to General Hu, the vehicles carrying the silver should have gone in the east-west direction?" Xu Zhiqing said softly, her brows slightly furrowed, seemingly deep in thought.

Hu Bugui nodded, squatting down, and pressed the yellow earth ground down with his finger, musing, "If it were an empty cart, the wheels would not sink into the mud so deeply. From the rolled-out tracks, the carriages going in both east and west directions were definitely not empty but were laden with heavy weight. As for whether the silver was on them, I cannot guarantee."

Hu Bugui's detailed observation had some merit. From the remaining marks, the carriages were indeed loaded with goods, going in two directions: east and west. But with 5,000 soldiers transporting 350,000 taels of official silver, already a tight situation, why would they split into two routes in a fearful state after secretly stealing the silver? Was it merely to confuse the court whether they were going east or west?

Lin Wanrong and Xu Zhiqing exchanged a glance, both reading doubt in each other's eyes. The matter was suspicious, with many incomprehensible aspects, but they couldn't pinpoint where the problem lay.

"Lin, Lin San," Xu Zhiqing began, her face blushing slightly, probably recalling his unique tonic, "Do you think that the 5,000 soldiers who robbed the silver were all poisoned? Is it true or false?"

"It's probably not false. The area around Jining has been sealed off, with strict searches and no sign of these 5,000 people. They did not ascend to heaven, so they must have gone underground," Lin Wanrong sighed, thinking of the Dongyin Samurai Sasaki's words, feeling an unpleasant stir in his heart.

"That's strange indeed," Xu Zhiqing's elegant brows furrowed lightly, and her jade-like cheeks were filled with an expression of puzzlement. "Since these five thousand men have betrayed the court and are escorting the official silver, why would the person behind the scenes resort to such a malicious trick?"

This question had been troubling Lin Wanrong as well. He couldn't find an answer at the moment and didn't dwell on it. Following the tracks left by the wagon wheels, he slowly moved forward. Not far ahead, he spotted a row of stables filled with neatly cut dry hay, a substantial quantity at that.

Lin Wanrong picked up some hay and turned it over, curiously asking, "Brother Hu, come take a look. Isn't this fodder for feeding the horses?"

Hu Bugui had already inspected it and nodded, "Indeed, it's for feeding the war horses. These soldiers came from Hangzhou, and their horses are not used to Shandong's hay. They even requested fodder from Lord Luo."

"Oh? Is that so?" Lin Wanrong asked, surprised.

Luo Ning stood beside him, gently nodding in confirmation, "Yes, it's true. That day they wanted to camp in the city. The commander in charge reported to Father that they were short of fodder, and they needed to replenish some in Jining. Father inspected the situation on the spot and saw that their war horse fodder could only last a day, so he agreed to their request. But before the fodder could be delivered, they had already fled with the silver."

"One day?" Lin Wanrong's face broke into a knowing smile, and he playfully grabbed Luo Ning's little hand, teasing, "Ning'er, you didn't remember it wrong, did you?"

Luo Ning's face turned red, and she protested, "I was bored at the time and heard that 350,000 taels of silver were arriving. I'd never seen so much silver, so I followed Father to sneak a peek."

Lin Wanrong burst into hearty laughter, "Good sneaking, splendid sneaking. Ning'er, your big brother has also made quite a bit of silver. In the future, you can sneak a peek at home, and big brother will sneak a peek at you, too." Luo Ning's little face turned crimson, and she bashfully looked down, delighted.

Seeing the two openly flirting, Xu Zhiqing gently coughed a few times as a reminder to Lin Wanrong. He smiled slightly and pointed to the pile of hay in the field, "Brother Hu, take a look, how many war horses can eat this fodder?"

Hu Bugui carefully observed it and shook his head, "Based on my experience, this fodder could feed at most a thousand war horses for one day."

"That's correct." Lin Wanrong clapped his hands in joy and gave Hu Bugui a thumbs up, "Brother Hu, great eye!"

Hu Bugui looked puzzled, "General Lin, have you discovered something? I'm slow-witted, please enlighten me."

Xu Zhiqing pondered for a moment, and her face suddenly showed a hint of shock, "Lin San, are you saying that their war horses had no fodder at all?"

‘This girl is really quick to react,’ Lin Wanrong thought, looking at Miss Xu in surprise. Xu Zhiqing was also gazing at him, and when she saw him glance at her, she quickly snorted and looked down.

"Exactly, exactly. Miss Xu is so clever, you see through everything at once. I admire you wholeheartedly," Lin Wanrong said, laughing. "They not only lacked fodder, but even when they left that night, they didn't feed their war horses."

Hu Bugui uttered a sound of realization and exclaimed, "General Lin is right. We cavalrymen have rules for feeding our horses, cutting only as much dry hay as the war horses can eat. These five thousand horsemen clearly had a fodder shortage, yet when they left, they left piles of hay in the stables. This shows they left in a great hurry, and their war horses were not fed at all."

"Three hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver can't be moved by manpower alone; they can only be dragged away by war horses. But these horses couldn't have gone far." Xu Zhiqing's eyebrows relaxed, and her face suddenly beamed with joy as she said in a delicate voice, "I understand now. It's not that they left in a hurry, but that they never intended to go far at all! These wheel marks, they were all made intentionally to attract our attention, to divert our thoughts. The silver, the silver must be hidden nearby."

"Sister Zhiqing, are you telling the truth?" Luo Ning's little mouth opened in astonishment, her face full of disbelief.

Xu Zhiqing chuckled, pointing at Lin Wanrong beside her, and said with a light glance, "Ask your family's Lin San. He loves to play mysterious games. Though he had everything planned, he intentionally acted confused to tease us."

As for Xu Zhiqing, she was indeed incredibly intelligent. Lin Wanrong had just begun speaking, and she had already guessed the situation almost perfectly. No wonder she could fight the nomads at the front lines with her nimble mind; few in the world could compare with her.

"Big brother," Luo Ning exclaimed joyfully, hugging Lin Wanrong's arm, "Is the silver really hidden nearby?"

Lin Wanrong gave a wry smile and said, "According to Miss Xu's reasoning, theoretically, it should be so."

Luo Ning stomped her foot, twisting her delicate body, and turned to run back. Lin Wanrong quickly grabbed her and asked, "Ning'er, what are you doing?"

"Big brother, I am going to call people to dig for the silver. Even if we have to dig three feet into the ground, we must find it," Luo Ning said, her lips pursed firmly.

This young girl was indeed impulsive. Lin Wanrong shook his head and smiled helplessly, "Ning'er, we are only speculating that the silver is nearby, not necessarily right under our feet."

Luo Ning was taken aback and then asked softly, "Big brother, you mean—"

Lin Wanrong walked a few steps, pondering, "This is the south gate of Jinan City. To the north is the city itself. They wouldn't be foolish enough to sneak the silver into the city. East and West are the official roads, where they lured us to track them, so those directions are naturally wrong. That leaves only the south—"

"The south?" Luo Ning looked to the south, where the vast Weishan Lake stretched out of sight, shadowy mountains veiled in the dim night, gentle waves lapping the shore, accompanied by the sound of the tide. Her brows furrowed, she whispered, "Could the silver be hidden in—"

"Yes, hidden in Weishan Lake." Xu Zhiqing took her hand, gently saying, "This place is only a few steps from Weishan Lake. With a boat, they could easily transport the silver to the lake and sink it. Unseen by both gods and ghosts. To deceive others, the mastermind intentionally split five thousand troops into two paths to attract our attention, then struck with a fatal blow, leaving no witnesses alive."

"Hu Bugui—!" Lin Wanrong suddenly shouted out.

"Here!" Hu Bugui hurriedly responded with a fist salute.

"I assign you to lead two thousand cavalrymen, follow along the banks of Weishan Lake, and focus on questioning the surrounding fishermen. Find out if there have been any civilian boats requisitioned recently, or if anything unusual has appeared in the lake. Report back immediately with any news!"

"Yes, sir!" Hu Bugui turned and hurried off to make arrangements.

Lin Wanrong stood by the shores of Weishan Lake, feeling the moist breeze gently caressing his face, and he sighed slowly. He was eighty percent sure that the three hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver were hidden in Weishan Lake. This lake covered several hundred square miles, several times larger than the towns around Jining. On land, that amount of silver would cover a vast area, but once sunk into the lake, it would be like searching for a needle in the ocean. Damn, he didn't know who had come up with such an ingenious plot; it was truly brilliant, layer upon layer of deception. Even if he guessed that the silver was in Weishan Lake, it was like a dog biting a hedgehog—impossible to grasp. Was he really expected to drain the lake?

Luo Ning stood behind him, not daring to say a word, afraid to interrupt his thoughts. Xu Zhiqing was indeed intelligent, but faced with this needle-in-a-haystack problem, she couldn't find a solution either. Watching his solitary figure standing there, and recalling his misdeeds along the way, she felt a sudden sense of unreality: Were these two Lin Sans really the same person?

After an unknown amount of time, a gentle and soft sensation came from behind, a warm and tender body seemed to cling to him like a flame. Lin Wanrong quickly turned to see Luo Ning had removed her armor, wearing only a thin long skirt, tightly hugging his sturdy back, her face pressed against his shoulder, her eyes filled with tenderness. She whispered, "Big brother, Ning'er loves you. Loves you enough to die for you!"

"You silly girl," Lin Wanrong quickly took off his own coat, wrapping her soft body, "It's freezing cold, why did you take off your armor? What if you catch a cold?"

"Ning'er isn't afraid; Ning'er wants to warm big brother." Luo Ning smiled softly, her face a mix of shyness and determination, holding him tightly and placing his large hand on her chest. "Big brother, feel how fast Ning'er's heart is beating!"

The feeling of warmth and smoothness spread through his fingertips, two soft protrusions tightly sandwiching his large hand, skin as delicate as milk. Luo Ning gently closed her eyes, her rosy lips slightly parted, her full chest heaving, causing his hand on her chest to bounce slightly. Lin Wanrong's heart skipped a beat, and his hand naturally slid across her chest, covering the soft flesh, the two upright red beans beneath his coarse hand constantly jumping like frightened little rabbits, pressing against his palm.

"Ning'er—" He swallowed hard, his palm grinding gently against the tender red beans. Luo Ning let out a soft moan and slumped into his arms, her red lips slightly open, panting, exhaling a fragrance like orchids. "Big brother, Ning'er is yours, forever yours—"

"Cough, cough--" Seeing the two of them deeply immersed in their passionate love affair, oblivious to everything around them, Xu Zhiqing, who stood not far from them, knew that if she didn't intervene, there was no telling what might happen. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her cheeks burning like fire. She wanted to leave but found herself unable to move her feet. Hastily, she feigned a cough, hoping to remind them of her presence.

Overwhelmed by her emotions, Luo Ning had entirely forgotten that Xu Zhiqing was nearby. Awakening from her reverie, she saw Xu Zhiqing looking at her with cheeks flushed, a look of amusement in her eyes. With a cry of surprise, she quickly hid behind Lin Wanrong, her beautiful eyes wide and her face blushing as if it could drip water. She leaned against her big brother's back, not daring to look up again.

"Ah ha, the moon is so round tonight--" Lin Wanrong laughed cheerfully, pretending not to notice Xu Zhiqing's disdainful glance and shamelessly made a comment. Luo Ning, hiding behind her big brother, wanted to laugh but didn't dare to. What nonsense about the moon being round? It was only the beginning of the month!

This man was truly incorrigible. Xu Zhiqing snorted softly, then seeing Luo Ning's blush, she smiled gently and beckoned, "Níng'er, come here."

"Sister Zhiqing--" Luo Ning responded timidly, her head almost bowed to her chest. Lin Wanrong lightly teased her, chuckling, "Níng'er, why are you afraid? We are husband and wife, acting openly and honorably. This girl loves to be a third wheel, spoiling our fun."

Though Luo Ning didn't understand what being a "third wheel" meant, seeing her big brother's playful expression, she gained courage, nodding slightly, regardless of Xu Zhiqing's surprised look, and whispered shyly in his ear, "Big brother, I can't wait any longer. I want to be your wife. Do you want me?"

His response was full of joy, nodding like a pecking chicken, "Want, want! I've wanted it every day!"

Gathering all her courage, she embraced his neck, her face flushed, her voice as soft as a mosquito's, "Big brother, Níng'er will wait for you in the room! You must come!"

With that said, she didn't dare to look at Lin Wanrong again. She turned and took Xu Zhiqing's hand, her voice trembling, "Sister Zhiqing, let's go quickly!"

"What's the matter?" Xu Zhiqing asked curiously, wondering why the girl was leaving her lover so abruptly.

"Don't ask, just let's go quickly." Before Xu Zhiqing could finish speaking, she felt Luo Ning's seemingly endless strength, pulling her into a sprint, even Lin San couldn't catch up.

This situation, letting a girl take the initiative, how could Lin Wanrong be comfortable with that? He burst into laughter, then suddenly remembered something crucial, calling out loudly, "Níng'er, which room are you in? I'm afraid I won't be able to find it!"

Luo Ning, in her haste, almost tripped, stomping her foot in a mix of shyness and sweetness. Under Xu Zhiqing's puzzled gaze, she softly replied, "Next to Sister Xu's room!"

Lin Wanrong was momentarily taken aback. Next to Sister Xu's room? Then, where was Sister Xu's room? Luo Ning was indeed extraordinary, her words full of mystery.

Seeing the two women almost disappearing from sight, Lin Wanrong shouted, "Níng'er, remember, you must wash up! You must wash up!" [TL: Take a shower/bath.]

"What does 'wash up' mean?!" Xu Zhiqing quietly asked the girl beside her.

Luo Ning, her face warm and her heart pounding, only felt that her big brother's words had sapped her strength. She grasped Xu Zhiqing's hand and managed to say, "Wash up, wash up, oh, that must be a dialect from my big brother's home. It probably means to wash your hands."

"Wash hands? How strange!" Xu Zhiqing heard this and shook her head with a light laugh, "Then I must go back and wash up as well."

Seeing Luo Ning and Xu Zhiqing sprinting away, their figures swaying with a captivating grace, Lin Wanrong felt a restless itch in his heart. He chuckled lewdly a few times, then took large strides, heading straight for the government office.

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