Dao Companions Help Me Live Forever

Chapter 43: Seeking Help

It is unknown who leaked the information.

The rebels are approaching, and they will soon attack Changning City.

No one believes that the court can be a match for the rebels. The rebels have gained a reputation for being victorious in every battle.

This is how rebellions are. They start off difficult, but once they gain momentum, they spread like wildfire and are difficult to extinguish.

After all, wherever there are people, there is oppression and exploitation.

The Kingdom of Yue has existed for over four hundred years, and various class contradictions have long been like a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment.

But due to the intervention of extraordinary powers, previous resistance forces usually did not cause much trouble and were quickly suppressed. This created the illusion of prosperity in the Kingdom of Yue.

However, the Guangnan rebels have broken this strange phenomenon, and there are people willing to risk their lives to change the fate of being forever oppressed at the bottom.

There are already people in Changning City who have contacted the rebels and volunteered to be insiders.

In response, General Di and his defense battalion have entered the city, declaring Changning City to be under military control. They behead several people every day at the vegetable market.

But the killings cannot suppress the people's hearts, and the entire Changning City is in chaos.

Prices of various goods in the city have skyrocketed, and ordinary people have emptied their savings just to fill their stomachs, but they are enduring.

They carry a glimmer of hope, believing that everything will return to normal once the rebels are repelled.

Unfortunately, at this time, someone saw ships suddenly leaving the previously blocked port.

It turned out that the wealthy and influential people in the city did not have confidence in the outcome of the war and took their families and boarded ships heading north.

The relationships among these people are complex, and the city's officials and generals have all received benefits and did not stop them. They even secretly sent their own families onto the ships.

This caused everyone's mentality to collapse.

In just a few days, before the rebels even arrived, various violent crimes in the city skyrocketed.

Under the influence of the rebels' insiders, ordinary people felt abandoned from the bottom of their hearts. Street thugs took advantage of the situation to cause trouble, and unscrupulous bosses made a fortune.

The defense battalion tried to suppress the chaos, but they couldn't control it. Many mid- and low-level military officers also secretly joined the riotous revelry.

As for the refugees outside the city, it was said that they would be provided relief and resettlement, but they only received a few days of porridge, barely giving them any hope.

Until chaos broke out in the city and the government offices were overwhelmed, even the porridge distribution stopped.

The Wang family sponsored a total of one million taels of silver, but in exchange, they only provided a few days of meager porridge to the refugees, and the rest of the silver disappeared without a trace.

Even Yu Xian, who was mentally prepared, couldn't help but curse.

He had already overestimated the greed of these officials, but he didn't expect it to be even worse.

No one really wanted to resist; they were all planning to make a fortune and run away. As for the fate of the ordinary people, no one cared.

Well, not everyone didn't care, like the person in front of him.

Yu Xian rubbed his temples and looked at the middle-aged man with a few strands of white hair at his temples, who had appeared out of nowhere and said with a bitter smile, "Captain Zhou, you should go back. The princess won't see you."

It turned out that Captain Zhou, the head of the government office, saw that the chaos in the city was out of control and that his superiors were only concerned about making money. So he wanted to ask the princess to take action in the name of the Wang family, to rally everyone together and resist the rebels.

Captain Zhou clasped his fists and said, "Brother Yu, Captain Zhou is not doing this for himself. I just want to seek a glimmer of hope for the million people in the city. I hope you can let me and the princess meet, based on the camaraderie we once had."

Yu Xian silently rolled his eyes.

The princess was easily influenced, and she was an emotional woman. If Captain Zhou managed to persuade her, she might decide to resist to the end.

This would only make things difficult for him.

Undeniably, he had improper thoughts about the princess, who had amazed him from the first time they met.

In addition, they had spent the past few months together under the pretext of raising the young prince, and the lonely princess had long been attracted to this man who was both handsome and intelligent.

After all, with her status, there were not many men she could frequently interact with, including Li Gonggong.

A person who has been idle for a long time and another person who has ulterior motives, it's not surprising that feelings would develop over time.

If it weren't for the concern of public opinion, Yu Xian felt that his ambition as a thief would have been fulfilled long ago.

"Zhou Xiong, I know you're a good person, but the situation is dire. It's not something that can be saved by one person alone.

The Empress is just a weak woman, she can't make decisions on matters of state, nor does she want to.

You're imposing this responsibility on her, but have you considered her wishes?

In my eyes, the feelings of the people in the city are not as important as hers alone. If you mention this matter to her, it will inevitably cause her more worry. It's better not to disturb her."

Yu Xian's expression suddenly changed, and he spoke with righteous indignation.

As the chief investigator of the yamen, Zhou Bai had been investigating cases for many years, so Yu Xian's words were not too straightforward in his ears.

His face was full of disbelief as he pointed at Yu Xian and said in a deep voice,

"You, you and the princess?"

He was just about to say "adulterous couple".

Yu Xian snorted coldly, "The princess is pure and virtuous, I only have admiration for her. Zhou Xiong, don't think too much."

Zhou Bai's eyes turned dull, and he sighed deeply, "Brother Yu, I really have no other choice."

As he spoke, he bowed to Yu Xian, lowering his head to his waist, his voice filled with sorrow, as if a hero was nearing the end of his life.

"I beg you!"

He was a martial arts master, renowned in the officialdom and among the people. Even when facing the county magistrate, his immediate superior, he had never been so humble.

Back then, even Chen Xiao had acknowledged his character and was unwilling to kill him.

Yu Xian raised his hand, and Zhou Bai was lifted up again.

"Zhou Xiong, this is too much of a favor. But I still won't let you see the princess. How about this?"

Yu Xian reached into his bosom and took out a blue and white porcelain bottle.

"Previously, in order to investigate the case of the prince's assassination, I used extreme methods and made the servants in the mansion take a seven-day death pill. This bottle contains the antidote.

Taking one pill can alleviate their seven-day fate, and the prescription for the antidote is here."

Zhou Bai was still shocked by Yu Xian's strength, but his gaze was quickly drawn to the porcelain bottle in Yu Xian's hand.

He understood what Yu Xian meant.

The servants in the prince's mansion were considered the cream of the crop in the city. If he had control over the antidote, the power he could wield would far surpass the few constables under his command, and he might even become the decisive force in the entire city.

Yu Xian continued, "I don't care about their reputation behind their backs, nor am I afraid of their methods.

But Zhou Xiong, you have been a hero for half your life. If you take this bottle, your reputation will be completely ruined. You need to think it through."

Zhou Bai shook his head bitterly, "Since I was young, I have been practicing martial arts and have always had the aspiration to be a chivalrous hero. However, relying on my own strength alone is like a drop in the bucket.

Martial artists rely on their strength to bully others, and officials oppress the good. I, Zhou Bai, entered the government halfway to change this phenomenon, and I have never explained myself even when my fellow martial artists called me a lackey of the court.

Now the lives of the people in the city are in imminent danger. With my reputation alone, if I can save the lives of thousands of people, it's already a great profit."

He took the blue porcelain bottle from Yu Xian's hand, bowed again, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bow down.

He couldn't help but sigh again at Yu Xian's power. If he was willing to intervene, he could greatly alleviate the crisis in the city, but he couldn't force him.

He could only thank him with a bow and say, "Brother Yu, this is farewell. We may never see each other again. I will retire now, take care."

"Take care."

Yu Xian returned the gesture with a fist.

Even if he didn't lend a helping hand to this good person who carried firewood for the masses in the storm, he wouldn't push him into the well.

Moreover, this Chief Zhou had earned his first ten thousand taels since coming to the mortal world, and the two of them had a certain bond.

(End of this chapter)