After Transmigration: Building a Kingdom in Turbulent Times-Chapter 921 - 906: Caught Red-Handed

As soon as Shi Le received the secret letter from Liu Kun, he knew what he wanted to do, nothing more than forming alliances.

Shi Le laughed when he saw the letter, with a bit of mockery too, Zhao Hanzhang was still calling him a brother and a confidant, yet unbeknownst to her, the other party was already digging at her walls behind her back.

These nobles truly have a heart.

Shi Le sneered, in order to watch Zhao Hanzhang’s predicament, he agreed to meet at once, and specifically had someone inform Zhao Hanzhang’s people.

Before coming, he was still wondering from which aspects Liu Kun would try to win him over, never in a million years did he expect that he would bring his elderly mother and nephew.

Shi Le’s heart jumped, an inexpressible mix of regret and fortune clashed within him, ultimately settling on fortune.

Liu Kun acting this way shows that his loyalty isn’t as it appears; if he can betray Zhao Hanzhang to such an extent, what about him?

Recalling his ingratitude towards Wang Jun, Shi Le’s alarm bells were ringing, leaving only a sense of fortune.

At that moment, he thought of many things, but Shi’s mother had only one thought when she saw him; She rushed forward, grabbed Shi Le and cried out loud, "Fule, you’re alive, you’re alive—"

Only then did Shi Le regain his senses and embraced his mother, tears streaming down, "Mother—"

Shi Hu stood aside, with his big eyes wide open, his face both excited and restrained.

Liu Kun, seeing Shi Le so moved, knew immediately he had made the right move, contentedly stroked his beard.

Shi’s mother had suffered a lot of hardships over the past years, looking skinny and gaunt, she soon stopped crying, turned around to pull Shi Hu, and said to Shi Le, "Fule, this is Hu Zi, do you remember him?"

Of course, Shi Le remembered, although the child was his nephew, his father had always raised him as a son, basically equivalent to his little brother.

Shi Le had a great affection for him too, seeing him grown tall and strong with long arms and legs, he was greatly gratified, he gave his shoulder a hearty pat, "Not bad, not bad, the tiger cub of our family has grown up!"

Shi Hu smiled broadly with joy.

Shi’s mother originally wanted to say that the journey relied entirely on Shi Hu, but upon glimpsing Liu Kun, she immediately changed her words, "We must thank Governor Liu for finding us from among the refugees, treating us kindly, and helping us find you, allowing our family to be reunited."

Shi’s mother was unaware of Shi Le’s current status, but seeing his fine clothes, ruddy complexion, and robust physique, she knew he was doing well.

Moreover, with Liu Kun treating them well and personally leading them to meet, it was obviously related to her son’s current status.

With her limited knowledge, Shi’s mother thought Liu Kun was a good person, and believed it wasn’t bad for Shi Le to follow him, so she praised Liu Kun.

As Shi Le listened, he hastily bowed to Liu Kun in gratitude.

Liu Kun quickly went to support him, replying in kind...

As Zhao Hanzhang strode in, the two were bowing together, creating such a scene that the Ming Yu following Zhao Hanzhang was shocked, but Zhao Hanzhang merely raised an eyebrow. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Then her gaze quickly swept over, pausing on Shi’s mother and Shi Hu.

Zhao Hanzhang’s sudden entry startled not only Liu Kun but also the prepared Shi Le, who instinctively withdrew his hand and stood properly, like a concubine caught in the act.

Liu Kun turned even redder and hurriedly explained, "Hanzhang, on the road I happened to meet General Shi, remembering I once sheltered a pair of grandparent and grandchild, vaguely hearing they might be General Shi’s kin, so I invited him to take a look, and it turned out they really were his family..."

Zhao Hanzhang smiled, "Such a coincidence, it seems even Heaven cannot bear to see General Shi’s family separated."

She fixed her gaze on Shi Hu for a while before shifting it back to Shi Le, scrutinizing him, her eyes narrowing and her expression gradually turning peculiar.

Shi Le felt something was amiss but didn’t know what, so he temporarily suppressed his doubts.

Zhao Hanzhang’s gaze seemed to penetrate the soul, not only did the guilty Liu Kun avoid her eyes, but even the innocent Shi Le and the first-time meeting Shi Hu slightly looked away from her gaze.

The room fell silent, the awkward atmosphere slowly thickening in the pin-drop silence.

Zhao Hanzhang was the most confident, without any awareness of being an intruder, while the shopkeeper, who rushed in after her, didn’t dare to breathe, quietly moved back, and hurried out of the room.

Zhao Hanzhang approached Shi’s mother, gave a bow and said, "Lady Shi, I am Zhao Hanzhang. Shi Long is now a general under me, he’s been searching for you all these years, but amid the chaos, it was too hard to find you among the vast sea of people. It’s truly Heaven’s blessing to find you here."

Shi’s mother looked puzzled, "Shi Long?"

"Yes," Zhao Hanzhang smiled, "That’s Shi Le’s courtesy name, isn’t it imposing?"

Shi’s mother immediately smiled, nodding repeatedly, "Imposing, imposing, it’s very similar to the name Hu Zi gave himself, Fule, Hu Zi named himself Jilong."

Shi Le’s heart raced, he couldn’t help but look at Zhao Hanzhang, meeting her clear and cold gaze, void of any smile.

Only compassion.

Shi Le’s lips trembled, Zhao Hanzhang’s prophecy rose in his mind, he looked at Shi Hu with suspicion, paused, and then looked back at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang had already shifted her gaze and said to Liu Kun, "Yue Shi, I have urgent business with you."

Liu Kun steadied himself and asked, "Hanzhang, please speak."

Zhao Hanzhang: "I need to meet with Tuoba Yilu."

Shi Le immediately lowered his eyes, silently stood by, and dared not utter a word.

Liu Kun frowned slightly, looked up at Zhao Hanzhang, meeting her clear and determined eyes.

Zhao Hanzhang said, "Yue Shi, Tuoba Yilu is a formidable rival. Having traveled far from home to be here, is he truly content with just managing Dai County?"

Liu Kun’s expression changed, asking, "Hanzhang intends to attack Dai County?"

"If he behaves, I will naturally abide by the agreement you have with him, temporarily lending him Dai County, but he must remember that Dai County is a county of the Great Jin, not of Dai Country," Zhao Hanzhang said sternly. "This time, with Jinyang under siege from both sides, you can hardly defend the gates. Have the Xianbei dispatched troops?"

Liu Kun remained silent.

Zhao Hanzhang said, "I need to see him!"

This time it wasn’t in a tone of negotiation, but an order.

It was at that moment Liu Kun realized, Zhao Hanzhang was not only the Governor of Yu State, but also now a powerful minister overseeing the affairs of the Great Jin.

Under her gaze, he unconsciously nodded.

Liu Kun weakly explained for himself, "The Xiongnu are fierce, and Wang Jun is ambitious. Jinyang is surrounded; I had no choice but to rely on the Xianbei."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded to show understanding, her expression softening a bit, smiling, "Besides this matter, there is something else that requires your consent."

Liu Kun’s heart tightened, then Zhao Hanzhang said, "Currently, my troops are held off by Liu Cong, unable to spare any forces, and General Shi only brought twenty thousand troops. With just these men, it’s not enough to regain the counties of Jizhou occupied by Wang Jun, so I intend to recruit new soldiers in Jinyang."

Liu Kun felt relieved, smiled and said, "Naturally, is there anything I can assist with?"

Originally, Zhao Hanzhang intended to say no, but glancing at Shi Hu, she felt a sudden toothache, bluntly saying, "There is indeed, I shamelessly request some provisions from Yue Shi."

Everyone is busy, lest idly creating trouble, yet silently returned Shi Hu, causing her quite the headache.