Chu Lian shook her head. Most of the time, it was very difficult to transport supplies into Liangzhou during the cold winter. This caused Liangzhou City's situation to become a vicious cycle.

If it weren't for this, the court wouldn't have been so anxious when they found out that the northern border had been attacked by Tuhun's soldiers during the winter.

It was already difficult to transport supplies during the winter, and now that reinforcements were stuck at the Yueqin Mountain Range, it was no wonder that Tuhun's people would choose this time to attack Liangzhou City's borders.

Although Chu Lian was anxious, she didn't have any good ideas at the moment.

Money was useless in the north at this time. The most important thing now was probably to solve the problem of transportation.

Tang Yan escorted Chu Lian to the courtyard where she was settled, then returned to his residence with his men.

The governor of Liangzhou City had been removed from his post at the beginning of the year, and the responsibility of the governor fell to Great General Qian. There were very few commoners in Liangzhou City, and most of them were garrisoned soldiers. Thus, Great General Qian ordered the secretary of the border army, Sir Wu, to act as the governor.

Now that the border army was stationed in the barracks outside the city, Sir Wu naturally had to follow the border army during these critical times. The governor's manor, He Manor, had been empty for several months.

Great General Qian probably knew best what Liangzhou City's walls looked like, because every year, the task of repairing the walls fell to the northern border army.

The city walls couldn't defend against foreign enemies at all. In truth, the true border between the Great Wu Dynasty and Tuhun was a river called the Sula River. The Sula River was the lifeline of the entire Northern Prairie, and Great General Qian was currently leading the Northern Border Army to guard this natural moat.

Once Tuhun's people crossed the Sula River, Liangzhou would be the equivalent of opening a door for them, and the grasslands behind would be a vast expanse of flat land.

At that time, Tuhun's soldiers might directly attack the Tianjing Port, the land of fish and rice in the hinterland of the Great Wu Dynasty.

From this, it was clear how important it was to guard the Sula River.

Chu Lian was helped onto the kang by Wenlan. The kang had already been heated up by the servants in the manor, so it was exceptionally warm sitting on it. Standing in front of her, Steward Qin was giving Chu Lian a detailed report of the information he'd gathered.

Chu Lian rejoiced a little when she heard this. Thankfully, they had brought more than enough supplies along the way. She had even brought a lot of tools that were commonly used in Duke Jing 'an's estate, so they didn't have to worry about basic necessities for the time being.

After all, she was following the Empress Dowager's imperial decree. The documents of the imperial decree were still with Chu Lian, and the supplies were also here. Although not much, it was better than nothing. It seemed that she had to find a chance to go to the border army camp.

It would be better to wait until he found Tang Yan in the next two days before deciding on the date to go to the barracks.

The northern region was bitterly cold. Although the He Residence was considered the best residence in Liangzhou City, the moment they left the kang bed, they would still feel the cold. Even the siblings, Li Xing and Li Yue, who were highly skilled in martial arts, were wrapped up like two balls, not to mention Chu Lian.

Chu Lian rested for another two days and was finally able to walk slowly. Early in the morning, Chu Lian sent someone to find Tang Yan.

The people of the Great Wu Dynasty were particular about appearance, especially the customs of Shengjing City. Although Tang Yan was from Shandong, he had been in Shengjing City for many years and had long been assimilated by this customs.

When he woke up this morning, he noticed that he had grown a layer of green stubble, so he had the manservant beside him find a razor and carefully clean his face. The guards beside him also took this opportunity to shave their beards as well.

When they left, they felt refreshed and clean, and their moods improved.

Due to the urgency of this trip to the northern region, Chu Lian only brought Wenqing and Wenlan, two maids who knew martial arts to serve her. Even if the female guard Li Yue was included, there were only four women in the entire group, including Chu Lian.

The rest of the servants, whether it was cleaning, scattering, cooking or washing, were all men.

There were only two gatekeepers in the He Residence, and they were both old and injured soldiers.

Now, the entire residence was filled with men.

Chu Lian had already woken up early in the morning. Tang Yan came very early. When he saw Wenqing bring in the morning food, he unceremoniously asked her to bring him another portion. Chu Lian was a woman after all, and it was embarrassing for her to come over every day to freeload food. Tang Yan especially took this opportunity to freeload breakfast.

Chu Lian sat at the table. How could she not see through this foodie's thoughts?

She didn't expose him, but nodded at Wenqing.

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When she looked up, she saw Tang Yan, who was particularly spirited today. She was slightly surprised, and then a trace of admiration flashed in her eyes.

Tang Yan was twenty-five or twenty-six years old this year. If compared with He Sanlang and Prince Jin, who were both outstanding in appearance, there was naturally no comparison. But if you looked at him alone, he could be considered a man with excellent looks.

In particular, the bridge of his nose was high, and his eyebrows were as thick as ink. He must have deliberately washed his face today, which made him look clean and elegant, and even more pleasing to the eye.

Who didn't like beautiful things? Chu Lian looked at Tang Yan with pure admiration. Naturally, she also saw the guards of Prince Jin's estate standing not far behind Tang Yan.

The guards wore ink-colored flying fish robes, with gray rat skin capes draped over them. Each of them was tall and strong, and because they practiced martial arts all year round, their bodies were strong and powerful. Coupled with the fact that they had washed their faces like Tang Yan, they immediately made people's eyes light up.

There was a saying that women putting on makeup was a form of respect for others. Then these people dressing neatly and cleanly was also a form of respect. Chu Lian suddenly felt that the Great Wu Dynasty's Shengjing Capital had a pretty good habit.

She was not stingy with her praise. "Lord Tang, you really made people's eyes light up today."

Who didn't like to be praised by others? Even Tang Yan was no exception. Along the way, Tang Yan had become very familiar with Chu Lian. He understood that her words didn't mean anything else. It was just a simple compliment.

He was also in a very good mood. This morning's bath was the first time he had taken a bath on this journey. It was always refreshing to wash away all the dust, and receiving praise made his mood even better.

Tang Yan was just about to open his mouth to speak when a cold snort suddenly came from the door. Immediately after, a low and cold voice rang out in the room, as if it was filled with ice shards. "Lian 'er really knows how to talk."

As soon as this voice fell, Chu Lian looked towards the door in astonishment. She saw He Changdi standing stiffly behind the thick felt curtain, with a bewildered Wenlan behind him.

His face was almost half covered by his black beard, and it was impossible to see his expression. However, his pair of narrow and deep eyes seemed to ripple with huge waves. It seemed that in the blink of an eye, a wave would send Chu Lian flying.

Chu Lian frowned at him. She didn't expect him to appear at this time.

She saw that there were still a few snowflakes on He Sanlang's shoulders, and his tied up hair was a bit messy. His sturdy armor was worn and dirty, and his thick-soled boots were covered in mud and unmelted snow. His disheveled appearance was a stark contrast to Tang Yan's clean and tidy appearance.

If Wenlan hadn't seen his signature beard, she wouldn't have recognized him as her male master.

Chu Lian stood up and slowly walked towards He Sanlang. "Why are you here at this time?"

It was just a simple question, but He Sanlang felt that Chu Lian's words carried a hint of disdain. When he heard this, his expression darkened even more.

The corner of his mouth twitched. "What, Lian 'er doesn't welcome your husband?"

Chu Lian tilted her head and looked at He Changdi carefully. She could sense the obvious displeasure in He Sanlang's words. What was wrong with this guy again? If she remembered correctly, they hadn't seen each other for the past few days, so why would she make him angry?

Wasn't everything fine the last time she left?

However, Chu Lian had already gotten used to He Sanlang's temperamental attitude. This time, her emotions didn't even change. When she heard him say this, she only smiled faintly and didn't reply.

At this time, Tang Yan also stood up and walked to He Changdi's side to salute him.

Even though He Sanlang and Tang Yan didn't have any grudges against each other, and the two of them could only be described as nodding acquaintances, at this moment, He Changdi looked at the tidy and well-dressed Tang Yan and felt an inexplicable sense of displeasure.

Tang Yan didn't have much contact with He Changdi. They only met a few times at Prince Jin's estate.

He generously told He Sanlang the reason why he came to find Chu Lian today.

He Changdi took a light breath to adjust his emotions. Then, he nodded and sat down at the table. When he first sat down, he forcefully clenched his teeth to endure the pain in his butt.

Chu Lian didn't care too much. Last time, she accidentally overheard Mo Chenggui's words. These past few days, she had been absent-minded. Now that she saw He Sanlang, her gaze that was originally on Tang Yan and the guards of Prince Jin's estate was attracted to him. She wanted to ask if He Sanlang had been punished by military law, but Tang Yan was still there, so she couldn't ask. She could only sit down with He Changdi.

At this time, Wenqing came in with the morning food. She didn't expect the third young master to return as well.

After she saluted, she placed the food on the table. Today, they were eating fried spring rolls and mushroom chicken porridge.

Tang Yan's eyes lit up when he saw the food. He picked up his chopsticks and said, "Village Lord, Third Young Master He, then I won't be polite and will eat first."

After saying this, he began to wolf down the food.

Chu Lian picked up her spoon and lowered her head to drink a mouthful of porridge. Just as she was about to ask He Changdi if he had eaten breakfast, the spoon in her hand was snatched away by him.

Then, Chu Lian saw this guy use his spoon to scoop a spoonful of porridge from the bowl in front of her and stuff it into his mouth.

Chu Lian was stunned. This He Sanlang, this was her morning food. He wasn't treating her like an outsider!

Chu Lian's eyes widened and she forgot to speak. All she could see was He Changdi's movements as he wolfed down the food. His movements were even faster than Tang Yan's. Seeing the two of them eat, she seriously doubted their identities as nobles in the capital.

Wenqing reacted quickly and said, "Third Young Madam, wait a moment. This servant will go get you another bowl."

Chu Lian curled her lips and could only nod.

However, by the time Chu Lian ate the porridge, the spring rolls on the table had already been swept clean …

He Sanlang silently counted in his heart. He had eaten one more than Tang Yan. When he thought of this, he felt a little better. He put down his bowl and chopsticks and looked towards Tang Yan.

Tang Yan could also feel He Changdi's rejection of him. He had already eaten the food, so there was no point for him to stay here. He simply said goodbye and said, "Third Young Master He and Village Lord should discuss it first. If you have a decision, just send someone to inform me."