Chapter 1523 - 477: Ji Hong’s Surprise, First Hearing Xue Zijing
Chapter 1523: Chapter 477: Ji Hong’s Surprise, First Hearing Xue Zijing
Bang...
"From March in the ninth year of Great Xia until now, it’s almost been four years, right?"
On the top floor of the Worldly Noble Tavern, in an elegant room behind the high platform of the round hall, Xia Hong sat alone by the window with Jiang Xinfan and twelve others standing on both sides.
Seeing Zhang Yuchuan leading Ji Hong in, Xia Hong waved his hand slightly, first using inner power to close the door, then gently releasing some qi blood energy to fill the room, and finally looked at Ji Hong, speaking with a touch of sentiment.
"I was taken away from Hongmen by Chen Yiqing on the second day of March in the ninth year of Great Xia, and now it has been three years and eight months, a total of 1,323 days..."
While speaking, Ji Hong walked to Xia Hong and after finishing saying 1,323 days, he suddenly kneeled down. The emotions he had suppressed for a long time finally burst out, and his eyes instantly turned red:
"Ji Hong, paying respects to the Lord!"
1,323 days, remembering the time so clearly...
Xia Hong certainly wouldn’t doubt Ji Hong’s loyalty to Great Xia. He sighed because Ji Hong remembered the time so precisely, indicating that every day he left Hongmen with Chen Yiqing, traveled long distances to reach Chen Cang, and stayed there so long was probably as long as a year.
No wonder, Chen Yiqing is a sworn enemy who killed his sister, Xia Hong was familiar with Ji Hong and Ji Jiang, knowing Ji Hong’s character was somewhat obsessive and extreme. Not surprisingly, Ji Hong would blame the entire Chen Cang for his sister’s death.
"Stand up!"
Looking at Ji Hong’s slightly red eyes, Xia Hong smiled and said, "I remember you are only a little over three years younger than me, and you should not be thirty yet this year. Back then during the calamity of the Wood Puppet Monster at the Mud Slope, you harbored a death wish with your sister, and I even asked Xia Chuan to persuade you, wasn’t it?"
Back then, it was the Lord who sent the Minister to persuade me!
Ji Hong’s expression suddenly froze, and the hot tears in his eyes could no longer be suppressed, flowing directly down his cheeks, full of remorse: "The Lord gave our siblings a second chance at life, but Ji Hong, young and ignorant, still failed to protect his sister, letting Ah Jiang be harmed by Chen Yiqing..."
People grow over time, and as nearly four years have passed, along with Ji Hong’s increasing resentment, his understanding of his sister Ji Jiang’s death naturally became deeper.
Looking back now, the death of his sister ultimately stemmed from his defenselessness against outsiders. He remembered clearly that Chen Yiqing first approached him on the eve of the Hongmen battle in the eighth year of Great Xia, the encounter outside the city, idle talk at Zhao’s Restaurant, his unchecked speech was the root of all calamity.
The more he realized this point, the more Ji Hong’s heart was tormented. He could only let the resentment within him grow, so that he could numb himself, giving himself hope for the days ahead.
"... Ji Hong knows his sins are heavy, and for the past three years being coerced by Chen Yiqing into coming to Chen Cang, I thought of nothing else but collected intelligence on the Four Vassals, first to serve Great Xia, pioneering intelligence for the future unification of Moao River; second to destroy Chen Cang and avenge my sister Ah Jiang."
Though Xia Hong had thoroughly understood the matter of Ji Hong and his sister, hearing Ji Hong’s remorseless testimony at this moment, along with his unveiling of the two objectives behind staying in Chen Cang, he couldn’t help but feel a slight touch looking at this young man barely three years younger than himself.
He pondered for a dozen breaths and lastingly sighed, "The wrongdoer has a head, the debtor has a master, your enemy is Chen Yiqing, there really is no need to blame..."
"Please look, Lord..."
Interrupted by Ji Hong, Xia Hong did not look at the things he handed over but raised his head to look into Ji Hong’s eyes. Seeing the firm determination within Ji Hong’s gaze, he thought for a moment and abandoned the idea of persuasion.
Living life, one must have some thoughts after all.
Without this overwhelming hatred as motivation, given Ji Hong’s feelings for his sister, how could he endure so long in a place like Chen Cang?
Blaming the entire Chen Cang for Ji Jiang’s death was too extreme, and Ji Hong might not be unaware, but after saying a thousand things and a thousand truths, Ji Jiang is dead. Even if he kills Chen Yiqing, it can no longer be undone.
This is Ji Hong setting an unattainable goal for himself as a reason to continue living forward!
"Ah..."
Xia Hong sighed slightly within and didn’t say much more.
He couldn’t point out to Ji Hong ultimately that it was Chen Yiqing who brought this upon himself, having no reason to provoke these troubled siblings.
What will happen in the future, we will talk about it in the future!
What Ji Hong took out was a Beast Skin Roll that had been folded multiple times.
Xia Hong completely unfolded the Beast Skin Roll and laid it out on the table in front of him, his pupils suddenly shook fiercely.
The Beast Skin Roll was a giant map, encompassing the entire Moao River Four Vassals, with the north Hezang, the middle Cai Qiu, the east Wei Bo, the Three Vassals only outlining the contours of each county and major city locations, including part of the terrain; what most caught Xia Hong’s eye was the southwest direction of Chen Cang.
Ji Hong had been in Chen Cang for over three years, and it was natural for him to have the most complete control over the situation in Chen Cang, as could be seen from the map at this moment.
On the map of Chen Cang Feudal Town, not only it had the detailed positions of the five counties and seven cities along with Chen Cang City, but the distances were clearly marked as well, and the specific terrain of the entire area, its mountains, rivers, lakes, as well as its mountain paths and small roads, and even the number of slave villages were all noted down.
Moreover, the specific locations where the large armies were stationed in each area, the types and numbers of soldiers, their commanding officers, and their cultivation strength, even the personalities, preferences, and backgrounds of these commanding officers were all marked down.