mtl008 Chapter 564 This is even more troublesome.
Chapter 564 This is even more troublesome.
As the grandson of the village chief, Li Shisan had studied since childhood and had also seen the prosperity of other towns. It would be a lie to say that he had no thoughts or envy about it.
So when he learned that Hua Rui had no intention of staying in Miao territory, he never voiced his hidden feelings again.
Perhaps he understood in his heart that, apart from searching for his sister, life outside was much better than in the mountains. The self-sufficiency of Miao territory was merely self-sufficiency.
Although life was relatively stable for generations, it remained almost unchanged.
It's not that it's bad. If you haven't seen the prosperity outside, you probably wouldn't have the idea of making changes. But once you have, you can't help but want to make Miao territory better.
This is the idea of Li Shisan and many young people in the village.
But the opportunities are far too few.
However, the mountain road to Crescent Moon Mountain blocked too many people and almost cut off the possibility of trade.
Moreover, the Miao region really didn't have much to offer for trade.
At most, they would sell some mountain delicacies and dried herbs, occasionally to some familiar peddlers in exchange for daily necessities that were not available in the mountains.
The salt well in Miao territory has been passed down for hundreds of years, through several dynasties, and has been forcibly occupied, but it eventually returned to the hands of the Miao people. When Miao territory submitted to the Great Zhao, the salt well was already dilapidated and produced very little. Due to the terrain of Miao territory, the southwestern general at the time did not want to cause unnecessary disputes, so he petitioned the court to tacitly allow Miao territory to keep the salt well, but explicitly prohibited its use for trading, otherwise it would be treated as selling smuggled salt, either destroying the salt well or bringing it under the control of the court.
In order to avoid being taken back, the Miao people have always tacitly abided by the agreement.
Even when life was difficult, they never thought of profiting from the salt wells, because if they did, it would mean not only losing control of the salt wells, but also potentially causing trouble for the Miao region.
Miao territory is only so big. If the imperial court sends troops to garrison it, who knows what kind of disaster will occur.
Moreover, the Miao region harbors some unspeakable secrets.
Therefore, the salt well thing is absolutely impossible.
Li Shisan realized he had spoken too hastily and quickly explained to Lu Yangyang, "Miss Lu, you may not know this, but the salt wells in Miao territory produce very little, barely enough for Miao territory's own use. Moreover, we have signed an agreement with the government that they must not be used for profit, otherwise it will inevitably bring trouble to Miao territory."
Lu Yangyang nodded: "Brother Li, don't worry. I'm an old acquaintance of that Young Master Ming. We just happened to meet, so I traveled with them. Young Master Ming is a member of the Salt Gang, so he probably wouldn't do anything illegal. I guess he just wants to find out what's going on. If you're interested, Brother Li, you can ask Young Master Ming."
Li Shisan's expression changed slightly. He was already surprised enough when he heard that the other party was a salt merchant, but he was even more surprised that the other party was a member of the Salt Gang.
This is even more troublesome.
For a moment, Li Shisan was at a loss for words.
Miao territory is a remote place, and no important figures have ever come here before. What's going on lately? Not only has a prince with ill intentions suddenly appeared, but even the Salt Gang has been dragged into this.
Li Shisan looked at Hua Rui with a complicated expression, then looked at Lu Yangyang: "This... if I may ask, what does Miss Lu do? I originally thought that you were just Hua Rui's sister, traveling with her, but now it seems that's not the case."
He had never doubted Lu Yangyang's identity before, only assuming that she was a close and trusted sister of Hua Rui, which was why he came back with her. Originally, he didn't plan to ask any more questions, only thinking of finding an opportunity to settle her down and send her away after things were settled. But, but why does it feel like things are getting more and more complicated?
Seeing his confused expression, Hua Rui felt a little guilty and couldn't help but look at Lu Yangyang, but she was conflicted.
Lu Yangyang didn't hide anything and said directly, "I'm here to find someone. My sister was taken away by the Crown Prince and Xueyan. I suspect they've come to Miao territory, so I asked to come with Miss Huarui to chase after them, but..."
Needless to say, Li Shisan already knew what happened next.
He said to Lu Yangyang, "Aside from seeing Xueyan come, I have never seen anyone else come to Miao territory. If there are any clues after the elders discuss it tomorrow, I will inform Miss Lu."
Then he cupped his hands in greeting and said, "You may stay here and rest for now. I will have someone bring you food. I will come back tomorrow when I have the results."
The two nodded, "Thank you for your trouble."
"You should get some rest." Li Shisan turned and left the room.
After he left, Hua Rui asked softly, "In this situation, won't telling them about Young Master Ming's identity cause trouble?"
Hua Rui never expected such a thing to happen. Her mind was still foggy, but she didn't want innocent people to be implicated, so she forced herself to ask Lu Yangyang.
"It would be troublesome if we didn't tell them. Some secrets can only be kept by the dead." Lu Yangyang deliberately told Li Shisan that Mingruo was a member of the Salt Gang. Otherwise, if the other party wanted to silence them, she could just drug them and kill them without anyone knowing. Who would have thought?
The Salt Gang is not to be trifled with either. If she reveals Mingruo's identity, at least the people in the Miao village will be more cautious.
Hua Rui's face turned pale, her expression full of bitterness.
Lu Yangyang saw through her thoughts and knew she was stuck in a rut. She looked into her eyes and said, "What's done is done. You are at fault. You are responsible for what happened to Jiaojiao, but the other things were not what you wanted. It's not that if you hadn't done them, none of this would have happened. When bad people want to do bad things, they always have countless ways and reasons. What can you change by blaming yourself? If you are willing to make amends, then cheer up. I can only rely on your help to find Jiaojiao now. If you really don't want to help, then you might as well just give me a ride."
Hua Rui was slightly stunned, and finally came to her full senses.
These days she has been trapped in a complex mix of self-blame and worry about implicating Huayuelou. Now, with the Yuhua Village incident, she has been completely devastated. Even though there is no time for grief right now, she is unable to escape this state of mind. Any word or event could break her down at any moment.
But what can this change?
If she were to die now, how could she face those innocent people who had died?
Even if one is to die, one must first be forgiven for one's sins.
She closed her eyes, her eyelids trembling slightly. After a long while, she swallowed all the bitterness and opened her eyes.
"I understand. I will definitely help you find Yuechuan Kingdom and your sister."
It will also help find the truth for the innocent people who died in Yuhua Village.
Seeing that she had finally figured it out, Lu Yangyang patted her on the shoulder.
"Get some rest, there's another tough battle to fight tomorrow."