Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved

Chapter 47: Chapter 47: Father Also Thinks Princess Consort Ling Resembles Mother

Upon hearing about the campaign against the bandits, Murong Jiu became somewhat agitated.

She suddenly rose and walked outside. Chun Tao also heard, hurriedly grabbed a passerby, and asked, “What happened, please?”

“Prince Ling went to Minghua Mountain to fight the bandits and brought back the heads of the bandit leaders. Everyone’s gathering at the city gate to watch the excitement!”

Another passerby chimed in, “Truly gratifying! The bandits on Minghua Mountain have harmed so many innocent people, and they’ve been especially rampant these past few months!”

“Prince Ling is truly brave and good at fighting! Worthy of the War God!”

“Yes, I heard that the Second Prince also went to suppress bandits but he went to Cloud City Mountain and only captured the second-in-command. Compared to Prince Ling, the Second Prince still falls short.”

...

“Shush, keep it down, do you have a death wish? How dare you discuss royalty like this!”

The person hushed up, laughed a few times, and then ran out of the city, “No more talk, no more talk. Let’s go see the imposing Prince Ling!”

Murong Jiu stood rooted to the spot.

Minghua Mountain.

Jun Yuyan had actually gone to Minghua Mountain to fight the bandits.

That was where he had died in his previous life.

The bandits of Minghua Mountain secretly colluded with the Second Prince, and many wealthy merchant convoys fell victim there; much of these riches funneled into the Second Prince’s Mansion.

The reason why the bandits of Minghua Mountain were so rampant was because it was the essential passage to the capital. The mountain terrain was treacherous, extensive, full of traps, many bandits were skilled in martial arts, and with inside information, the official troops had tried several times to suppress them but never caught the bandit leader.

However, at this time, the bandits of Minghua Mountain had just started to organize and were far from the fearsome force they later became.

Murong Jiu was very surprised; Jun Yuyan had left the city to fight the bandits and even brought back the heads of the chief and deputy chief. Had he directly attacked the bandits’ stronghold?

She wondered if he had been injured.

She felt a bit like going to see it for herself.

Chun Tao grabbed her hand, “Miss, how can you go, those are heads!”

Bloody heads!

That’s true, if she had gone and started gagging in public, the whole city would know.

Although she was not afraid of blood, it was better to be cautious.

Murong Jiu felt good about cutting off one of Jun Haoze’s sources of wealth. Thinking about Jun Haoze learning the news and freaking out, she felt she could eat an extra bowl of rice that night.

Moreover, she knew that this change was caused by her. She had sabotaged Jun Haoze’s plans, which allowed Jun Yuyan to go uncalculated, hence the campaign against the bandits.

Jun Haoze was indeed furious. He could hardly believe his eyes as he sternly said to his subordinates:

“Are you telling me that Jun Yuyan had already located them, and today let Heir Su pretend to pass by, and with only a few men, he climbed the mountain and killed Han Zheng and his partner?”

The Han Zheng he mentioned were the chief and deputy chief of Minghua Mountain, infamous thieves in the martial world who, after being wanted, turned to banditry, gathering a host of miscreants to wreak havoc. They had just been “recruited” by Jun Haoze.

The Shuntian Prefecture Governor was his man. If anyone complained about the bandits, the governor would suppress it, ensuring the emperor never heard.

If things escalated, he would let the governor dispatch troops to suppress the bandits and bring back a few heads to settle the matter, then lay low for a while.

More often than not, they’d directly kill the entire merchant convoy and destroy the bodies, leaving no evidence to report.

Jun Haoze had tasted the sweetness of such money-making schemes, which brought in money faster than any other business.

But just as he had enjoyed this method for a few months, they told him that Han Zheng and his partner had become spirits under Jun Yuyan’s sword?

The closure of such a major revenue stream naturally infuriated Jun Haoze.

Moreover, it was a minor issue compared to his plans to recruit more Hidden Guards and Dead Soldiers in Minghua Mountain—all of which had gone up in smoke now!

“Your Highness, calm your anger! Prince Ling had placed a spy a few days ago who located them, and his leg seems much better. His Qinggong is formidable. By the time the brothers on the mountain reacted, it was already too late! You know Yang Chuan; he followed Prince Ling this time and killed the deputy chief!”

The speaker was a Hidden Guard of Jun Haoze, sent to Minghua Mountain. Had he not reacted quickly and escaped, Jun Haoze would have been unaware of what had happened.

By that time, the bandits’ den on Minghua Mountain had been completely destroyed by a big fire, and quite a few people had died.

Jun Haoze’s eyes were bloodshot as he asked in a deep voice, “How many people are left on Minghua Mountain now?”

The Hidden Guard answered, “Less than a hundred people remain, all of whom have already hidden in the deeper mountains. Once this blows over, I’ll gather them together and find some experts from the martial world to resume our former venture!”

“Your Highness! General Fu has taken the guards to Minghua Mountain to eliminate the remnants of the bandits!”

Just then, a guard’s report came from outside.

Jun Haoze’s face instantly became so gloomy it seemed water could drip from it, and his subordinates instinctively shrank their necks.

The scene of His Highness personally beheading Guard Xu a few days ago still lingered in their minds.

The Prince had grown increasingly unpredictable.

Murong Jiu, standing at the entrance of a rice shop, suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves.

She turned her head to look and saw a group of people riding horses toward the direction of the city gate, their pace not fast because of the people on the road.

When she saw clearly who was on the horses, her eyes narrowed, and she stood up from her chair.

The person in the lead was none other than the General of the Northern Command, whom she had met only once in her previous life!

The General of the Northern Command had a middle-aged appearance, tall and imposing, said to be able to scare a three-year-old child into tears just with his gaze.

But in Murong Jiu’s memory, he was a very gentle and kind senior, who had even patted her head with a smile, just like the father she had imagined as a child. That single encounter had stayed with her for a long time.

When the General of the Northern Command was beheaded, her tears uncontrollably flowed all night.

Seeing the General of the Northern Command again, Murong Jiu felt an impulse to stop him, but that was just an impulse. The current General Fu didn’t even know who she was. @@novelbin@@

“It seems General Fu is taking the three young masters to Minghua Mountain to eradicate the remaining bandits!”

Someone said loudly.

Murong Jiu also saw the three young masters following General Fu, only she hadn’t expected they were going to eliminate the remaining bandits.

That was even better. Minghua Mountain needed to be thoroughly cleansed to prevent any resurrection and leave no opportunities for Jun Haoze.

Yet, entering the mountain was dangerous; the bandits knew the terrain and she feared they might fall into traps and ambushes.

“Dad, it’s Princess Consort Ling!”

Suddenly, Fu Han, the Third Young Master from the General’s Mansion, pointed at Murong Jiu and spoke loudly.

Murong Jiu hadn’t expected the Third Young Master to be so excited.

General Fu and others all turned their gaze towards her.

She felt her heart suddenly pounding rapidly, overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of nervousness.

“Princess Consort Ling? The one who helped you save Zhou Hong?”

General Fu’s voice was also very commanding.

Fu Sheng, the Second Young Master, said, “Yes, if it hadn’t been for Princess Consort Ling, my young brother would have gotten into big trouble.”

Fu Han scratched his head, indeed, it had been his idea to drag the Zhou brothers out for fresh fish, nearly killing Hong.

Following Fu Han’s direction, General Fu saw Murong Jiu’s face, and he abruptly stiffened.

He murmured unconsciously, “Ah Liy…”

Fu Heng, the eldest son, was closest to his father, and hearing this soft exclamation, he looked at Murong Jiu in astonishment—did the Princess Consort also remind his father of his mother?