On the city wall, secret spies took out their hand crossbows from their waists and hid behind the ramparts, staring intently at the darkness below the city.

Jin Zhu paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, no longer as calm as before.

From time to time, he would have to lie down on the city wall and look down, only temporarily putting his heart at ease after confirming that Chen Ji was safe.

He was like a gambler at a Pai Gow table, constantly rubbing open his bottom card to check after getting a good hand, worrying that he had misread it while also fearing his opponent was cheating and might flip the table.

It was as if Chen Ji wasn’t gambling with his own life, but Jin Zhu’s.

Fortunately.

Perhaps due to the appearance of Tian Ma, the people of the Liu family hidden among the disaster victims did not assassinate Chen Ji.

They were like poisonous insects lying low, waiting for the Mao hour.

Tian Ma stood beside the ramparts and looked down, only to see Chen Ji sitting alone by the city wall, as if no one else was present, closing his eyes and resting, as if asleep.

Tian Ma looked at Jin Zhu and gestured with his hands: “Newcomer? He has great courage, like a madman.”

Jin Zhu’s face suddenly turned as bitter as a purple eggplant: “I might fall back to the Houtian realm. This kid will play himself to death sooner or later.”

Tian Ma was surprised: “You actually bet on him?”

A hint of pity appeared in his eyes.

Jin Zhu sighed: “Meng Ji wrote in his report to the Inner Minister that this kid’s official potential is extremely high, both of you are A-grade. I originally thought that A-grade geniuses are hard to find and must be quickly grasped in my hands, but I didn’t expect to lose to him.”

Tian Ma thought for a moment, and silently gestured: “You want to help him become a Twelve Zodiac?”

Jin Zhu nodded.

Tian Ma gestured again: “Is he also an orphan?”

Jin Zhu shook his head.

Tian Ma hesitated for a moment: “Then when do we remove his parents?”

Jin Zhu lowered his voice, in no mood to say: “To become a Twelve Zodiac, one does not necessarily have to be an orphan, several of the early Zodiacs were not.”

Tian Ma was doubtful.

Jin Zhu rolled his eyes and quickly said: “Really no need.”

Tian Ma looked at the stars as if nothing had happened: Almost Mao hour.

Jin Zhu was startled in his heart, he turned his head to look inside the city, but still didn’t see any trace of grain carts.

The torches had already been extinguished.

Chen Ji slowly opened his eyes and saw the disaster victims in front of him standing up one by one, like a piece of black withered forest, boundless.

A disaster victim held a little girl in his arms and asked dryly: “This official, why is the grain still not transported here? My child is already crying without a sound from hunger.”

Chen Ji silently stood up.

The little girl in the disaster victim’s arms had arms thinner than bamboo poles.

Chen Ji softly asked: “The flood has receded, why not stay in Yu Xi and cultivate the land?”

The disaster victim said angrily: “After the flood receded, the government demarcated the fields, and mysteriously they all became the Liu family’s land. Every household has no surplus grain, Yi Ma county city does have rich households willing to lend us grain, but that is a nine-in, thirteen-out high-interest loan. If this continues, generation after generation will not think of turning over. If there was a way out, we wouldn’t have walked a hundred kilometers to Luo City.”

The disaster victim said bitterly: “It’s really unbearable hunger.”

Suddenly someone in the crowd shouted: “What are you wasting words with him for? It’s almost Mao hour, the grain promised to us still hasn’t arrived.”

“Right, where’s the grain?”

“Lying, he’s deceiving us!”

“Kill him, break down the door!”

On the city wall, Tian Ma immediately wanted to draw his bowstring to the fullest and shoot the disaster victim who was leading the riot, but was held down by Jin Zhu.

Jin Zhu gritted his teeth: “Cannot kill, you cannot kill all the people. If the disaster victims are angered, Chen Ji that kid really won’t survive.”

Tian Ma looked at Jin Zhu and used hand language to say: No one will listen to what he says, he’s a dead man. If not, I’ll give him a quick death?

Jin Zhu said urgently: Wait a bit longer!

A moment later, the crowd below the city wall was like a black sea tide, instantly engulfing Chen Ji.

Some waved their fists, some smashed their hoes, some lifted their feet to kick, Chen Ji could only barely dodge the fatal attacks, retreating step by step towards the city gate, finally backing against the round copper rivets of the red lacquer city gate.

Jin Zhu clung to the ramparts and looked down, but discovered that Chen Ji had already been forced into the city gate cave and was no longer visible.

At this time, Chen Ji in the city gate cave grabbed a fist pounding towards him and stared directly at his opponent, saying: “I said the grain will arrive, then it certainly will arrive. My body and life are all gambled here, I’m not panicking, what are you all panicking about? Wait another quarter hour, if the grain still doesn’t come after a quarter hour, kill or hack as you please.”

Someone in the crowd still shouted: “We’ve already waited one night, what are you still waiting for?”

“Kill him, break down the door!”

“Enter the city and rob things to eat!”

Chen Ji’s face sank, the Liu family people were unwilling to wait any longer.

But the disaster victims hesitated, unwilling to lay a deadly hand on Chen Ji for a long time.

They were just honest farmers, they had never really killed people before, and earlier they were just bluffing.

The next moment, a man with a fierce expression shuttled among the disaster victims, he quietly came to the front row and stabbed out a knife from a gap, going straight towards Chen Ji’s abdomen.

In the chaos, if this knife stabbed Chen Ji to death, there would be no turning back between the disaster victims and the court.

However, just at the instant this knife was delivered, the man was surprised to discover that this knife was actually dodged by Chen Ji.

He suddenly lifted his head, facing Chen Ji’s cold gaze.

The man then realized that Chen Ji was absolutely not as weak as he had shown earlier.

However, after seeing that the sneak attack did not succeed, the man did not hesitate, he viciously turned the knife edge and stabbed it straight into his own abdomen, wailing and raising his bloody hands: “Murder, the official killed people, take revenge for me, enter Luo City.”

Chen Ji’s expression was serious, this was a dead soldier raised by the Liu family.

Zhang Zhuo, huh? Why hasn’t the grain been adjusted yet?

What accident? Could it be that the Liu family still has backup at the grain depot?

For a time, messy emotions surged into his brain, Chen Ji only felt that he had fallen into a carefully designed dead end by the Liu family.

This was not like Liu Ming’s obvious scheme, but more like a seasoned chess player’s temporary whim, casually placing a piece and then blocking all his retreats.

Sinister, cunning, no leeway.

The opponent’s plan was linked step by step, as if no matter how you struggled, you would ultimately find it hard to escape the fate of destined failure.

At this time, someone shouted: Make way.

The crowd hurriedly made way.

Chen Ji lifted his head to look, but saw that at the end of the channel where the disaster victims had made way, there were just dozens of people shouldering hemp ropes, lifting heavy giant wood to ram towards the city gate.

Once the city gate was broken, the people’s revolt would inevitably rise, and a dead end would be formed.

However, just at this time, a crisp horse hoof sound came from behind the city gate, lonely yet resolute.

The noisy sound of the disaster victims was actually suppressed by this lonely horse hoof sound, the whole world was only left with this one sound.

A creaking sound came, the heavy vermilion lacquer city gate behind Chen Ji was actually slowly pulled open from the inside.

The disaster victims looked on in astonishment, their gaze passing over Chen Ji, towards the increasingly large gap in the door.

Inside the vermilion red door gap, Zhang Zhuo just sat on a black war horse, his face and red official robe were all covered in blood spots.

Zhang Zhuo lightly urged his horse forward, the war horse snorted and stepped out of the city gate step by step. It walked one step, and the disaster victims retreated one step, until the crowd of people no longer retreated.

This figure of one person and one horse actually surpassed the momentum of thousands of disaster victims.

Chen Ji turned his head to look, Zhang Zhuo came alone, with no grain carts behind him.

He suddenly lifted his head, finding it hard to believe.

“Where is the grain? What did you come for without grain? To die?”

However, Zhang Zhuo calmly sat on the horse, raised his voice unhurriedly and said: “This official is the Luo City prefect Zhang Zhuo, the relief grain is on the way, it will be transported here in no more than half an hour, all people retreat one hundred zhang, this official wants to set up a porridge shed under the city, at that time line up to give porridge, everyone has a share.”

The disaster victims did not move, without grain, saying anything was useless.

They confronted Zhang Zhuo silently, the silent pressure of thousands of people, as thick as a city wall, solid as substance.

Chen Ji’s heart sank, he said in a low voice: “Adult, retreat slowly, my secret spy department will cover you.”

But he heard Zhang Zhuo let out a cold laugh from his nose, and actually urged his horse forward again to press on.

The black tide of disaster victims was boundless, a touch of red figure was straight, firm, not allowing doubt.

Clatter clatter

Clatter clatter.

The slow sound of iron hooves knocked at the hearts of the disaster victims, Zhang Zhuo said calmly: “This official is the Son of Heaven’s appointed Luo City prefect, Zhang Zhuo. Those who do not retreat, according to the law, should be beheaded.”

Also at this time, some disaster victims saw through the city gate that Xi Feng and others were just pulling cart after cart of grain appearing at the end of the long street: “The grain has come.”

“The grain has come!”

“Quick, don’t obstruct Master Zhang from setting up the porridge shed.”

The disaster victims suddenly retreated like a defeat, like a tide.

Chen Ji let out a long breath of turbid air.

Zhang Zhuo stopped his horse by his side and laughed happily: “I still thought you were really not afraid of death!”

Chen Ji said tiredly: “Master Zhang, where in this world are there people who are really not afraid of death? I’m afraid to death.”

Zhang Zhuo lowered his head and carefully examined Chen Ji, only to see that the young man’s clothes were torn, his face had bruises, and he was extremely embarrassed.

A moment later, he said solemnly: “Thank you.”

Chen Ji then said: “Adult does not need to thank me, it’s good as long as nothing happened.”

Zhang Zhuo said solemnly: “If you hadn’t reminded me, I would not have discovered that there was a people’s revolt tonight. If you hadn’t delayed the time, the disaster victims would not have waited for the grain. This official thanks you for preserving my and Master Chen’s official hats, and secondly thanks you for preserving the lives of the thousands of households behind this city gate.”

Saying this, Zhang Zhuo jumped off his horse and bowed deeply towards Chen Ji.

Chen Ji slightly turned his body, only feeling that Zhang Zhuo tonight was somewhat different from the past Zhang Zhuo.

He slowly opened his mouth: “Now that Master Zhang is here to take charge of the overall situation, I should also leave.”

“Wait.”

“Hmm?”

Zhang Zhuo looked at Chen Ji and seriously asked: “I have great ambitions, would you assist me?”

Chen Ji laughed: “Thank you for your appreciation, Master Zhang, I know how many pounds and taels I have. I can risk my life, but I can’t play politics.”

Zhang Zhuo looked at Chen Ji’s eyes, not angry because of his refusal, but instead showed a smile: “No harm, a forcefully twisted melon is not sweet, but one day, if you change your mind, you may come find me anytime.”

Chen Ji was doubtful, always feeling that this sentence sounded like it was heard somewhere before, he firmly answered: “I will not change my mind.”

Zhang Zhuo laughed heartily: “Young man, don’t say things absolutely, the only thing that is unchanging in this world is ‘change’.”

Saying this, he proactively changed the topic: “This matter, is it indeed the Liu family behind it?”

Chen Ji replied: “Undoubtedly.”

Zhang Zhuo looked at the dense disaster victims: “You don’t hurry to succeed and retreat yet, the Liu family people are still hiding among the disaster victims. If they are allowed to continue lurking, perhaps variables will still arise. I also ask you, do you have a way to find them out?”

Chen Ji closed his eyes.

When he reopened them, he answered: “There is a method, I can try.”

This chapter ends.