After regaining their senses, the men scattered and fled.

They had been willing to risk their lives for the promise of a meteoric rise to power.

But now that the benefits were gone, who would be willing to take a losing bet?

Zhao Ting had been worried, but seeing this, he finally relaxed.

Finding paper and pen, Jiang Chen wrote a secret letter in a flourish. After the general Jing Yue found arrived, he handed the letter over, instructing him to take control of the county government before leaving with Jing Yue and Zhao Ting.

The urgent eight-hundred-li dispatch reached the capital in a day and a night.

Upon seeing the contents of the document, Xu Changqing and the others gasped in astonishment.

Good heavens, someone actually wanted to rebel!

Who was it?

Reading further, they saw Jiang Chen's deduction in the secret letter.

Whoever was preparing to enter the capital recently was the one plotting rebellion!

The newly appointed Minister of Rites, Zhao Liting, immediately thought of the Tang Prince, who had applied to enter the capital to celebrate Consort Yu's birthday.

But when he mentioned this, everyone hesitated.

Although the Tang Prince was indeed the only one who had recently applied to enter the capital, his reasons were perfectly valid.

"Could it be that he is still waiting for the result before deciding whether to set out?" Vice Minister of Rites Yang Yongqi said.

Minister of Justice Wu Zuo nodded, "That possibility cannot be ruled out."

"This matter is of great importance, so we must be cautious."

Minister of War Yao Shouxin said in a deep voice, "Let's see what the Tang Prince does after entering the capital first."

A conclusion was quickly reached on this matter.

At the same time, they also reached a consensus on another matter.

They couldn't let His Majesty continue his incognito travels!

First, he caused a ruckus in the county government, then he fought a tiger, and now he had even encountered a situation involving rebellion!

They really didn't know what else might happen if he continued down this road!

What would happen to Da Wei if something happened to him?

Driven by such worries, the six ministers jointly wrote a letter and sent it south with an urgent eight-hundred-li dispatch, trying to persuade Jiang Chen to change his mind.

However, Jiang Chen never received this letter.

After having the general temporarily take over Xiang Prefecture, the three continued south.

Leaving Xiang Prefecture, the road was lined with farmland and small villages, and towns of any size were extremely rare.

Jiang Chen got out of the carriage, observing the condition of the fields along the way and shaking his head.

This year's drought and subsequent floods had indeed had a significant impact on agriculture.

Just looking at the remaining rice stubble in the fields, one could tell how poor this year's harvest had been.

But fortunately, they had managed to get through this year.

The unusual behavior of Jiang Chen and his companions quickly attracted the attention of the nearby villagers.

A dignified old man, accompanied by several strong men, blocked the path of Jiang Chen and the others.

"What are you doing?" the old man asked.

"We are traveling south from the capital," Jiang Chen said with a smile.

In a way, that wasn't wrong.

"Traveling south?"

The old man looked suspicious.

The country had just experienced two major disasters, so who would be in the mood to travel south?

Looking Jiang Chen and his companions up and down, the old man became even more puzzled.

The clothes of Jiang Chen and the others were more beautiful than those of many gentry he had seen, so they couldn't be petty thieves.

Could it be that these three really were traveling south?

After thinking for a moment, the old man said, "It is fate that the three of you have come here. I am Liu Yimin, the village chief of Liu Li Village nearby. If the three of you don't mind, you can come to my house for a while."

Jiang Chen naturally wouldn't refuse.

The main goal of his incognito journey south was to see the real living conditions of the people in Zhong Province.

The appearance of Jiang Chen and his companions attracted the attention of many people in the village.

In particular, the carriage pulled by Zhao Ting drew gasps of amazement from the crowd.

In the countryside, even owning a donkey cart was the envy of many families.

They had only heard of such tall horses, but where had they ever seen one?

"Village Chief Liu, how many people are there in Liu Li Village in total?" Jiang Chen casually chatted with Liu Yimin.

"About two hundred people."

Liu Yimin answered while focusing all his attention on Jiang Chen.

He was very curious about Jiang Chen's identity.

"I heard in the capital that there was a severe drought this year. How are the people of Liu Li Village doing?" Jiang Chen asked again.

"Alas! If it weren't for those people before, we would be doing very well," Liu Yimin sighed.

Jiang Chen knew that the "people before" Liu Yimin was referring to were the corrupt officials who had embezzled disaster relief funds.

"So, you're doing alright now?" Jiang Chen asked.

Liu Yimin nodded and said, "Since the new county magistrate took office, our lives have been much better."

A rare smile appeared on Jiang Chen's face. This was the only good news he had heard since leaving the capital.

"What about the village's public farm tools and plowing cattle?" Jiang Chen asked. "Are the old and weak in the village able to use these things normally now?"

Gratitude appeared on Liu Yimin's face as he said, "This is all thanks to His Majesty. No one in the village is seizing these things anymore."

Jiang Chen breathed a sigh of relief. Although this matter had cost the court a considerable sum, the results seemed to be good.

As they were talking, they arrived at Liu Yimin's house.

As the village chief of Liu Li Village, Liu Yimin's house was considered the best in the village, but even that was limited.

Seeing Liu Yimin bringing three strangers back, an old woman said, "Who are they?"

Liu Yimin introduced them to Jiang Chen and his companions, "This is my wife. They are travelers passing through here on their way south. I invited them back for a meal."

"Oh."

The old woman smiled upon hearing this, beckoned for the three to sit down, and poured water into three large bowls for Jiang Chen and the others.

"Alright, go and make lunch," Liu Yimin urged.

"Then come and help me cut the vegetables," the old woman said.

Liu Yimin was a little puzzled. His wife usually cooked alone, so why did she need his help today?

Seeing the old woman winking at him repeatedly, Liu Yimin realized that his wife had something to tell him.

Apologizing to Jiang Chen and the others, Liu Yimin followed the old woman into the kitchen.

"Young master, it seems that the old woman has something to say to the village chief," Jing Yue said in a low voice.

A very important responsibility of secret guards was to observe the words and actions of the people around them at all times and nip any possible dangers in the bud.

The winks of the old woman had long been seen by Jing Yue.

Jiang Chen nodded, already listening intently to the conversation inside the kitchen.

"What are you thinking? Bringing three young men back for a meal?" the old woman complained, lowering her voice.

Liu Yimin was a little puzzled, "It's just a meal, what's wrong?"

"Look how much rice we have left," the old woman said, followed by the sound of something being uncovered.

Then came Liu Yimin's somewhat surprised voice, "Why is there so little rice left?"

Hearing this, Jiang Chen frowned.

According to the court's disaster relief standards, each adult was supposed to receive half a catty of rice per day. These two old people would eat even less, so there should have been some rice left over.