C79. Grove.

C79. Grove.

Upon returning to the mansion, Chu Hechao immediately sent people to check if there were any individuals from Luoyang at Cai Ji's residence.

Youzhou was vast, Jizhou was not small either, and there were frequent movements of ethnic minorities. It would not be surprising for a few messengers from Luoyang to go unnoticed.

Nowadays, with the chaos of war, refugees traversed the boundaries freely, and it was impossible to discern who they were and where they came from, be it in Jizhou, the territory of Governor Wu Shanshi of Yizhou, or the domain of Prince Chen.

From today's events, Yuan Li noticed a major loophole.

The control of the Prince Chu Palace over Youzhou was too weak. The Prince Chu and his wife had long stayed in Luoyang and rarely returned to Youzhou, while Chu Hechao was stationed in the northern borderlands and seldom visited Youzhou.

Despite Chu Feng's intelligence, he was far away and lacked authority.

Without a master's presence, Youzhou had been neglected for over a decade; the influence of the Prince Chu Palace was no greater than that of local landlords.

This was unacceptable.

The events of the day, including the presence of spies and Cai Ji's abnormal behavior, heightened Yuan Li's vigilant defensiveness. How many nefarious characters lurked within Youzhou?

It was necessary to gradually investigate the grassroots of Youzhou to truly have a firm grip on the territory. However, Yuan Li's intelligence network had just been established and was not yet capable of producing comprehensive results.

Upon returning to the mansion, they had not eaten much at Cai Ji's banquet. Now, both individuals with hearty appetites were hungry. The kitchen was instructed to quickly prepare a meal, and they sat down in the dining hall to eat.

While eating, Yuan Li was lost in thought. Suddenly, he felt a tap on his forehead and looked up to see a man sternly instructing him to continue eating.

"Eat."

Though his words were stern, he couldn't help but smile, abandoning the arrogance and coldness from their first meeting, appearing somewhat foolish.

Yuan Li obediently responded and began eating. He had a hearty appetite, even more than many others, but Chu Hechao's appetite surpassed his own. He ate quickly, finishing a bowl of rice in no time.

Seeing him eat so quickly, Yuan Li reached out with his chopsticks to stop him, saying, "Don't eat so fast; it's not good for your health."

Chu Hechao raised an eyebrow, set down his chopsticks against the chairback, and smirked at Yuan Li with a hint of mischief, saying, "Now you're going to start taking care of me?"

Yuan Li quietly observed him for a moment, then resumed eating without further comment.

After a while, Chu Hechao quietly held Yuan Li's hand under the table, giving it a squeeze and whispering in his ear, "Fine, fine, you can take care of me."

Once they finished eating, the two took a walk on the estate.

The estate was spacious with many trees. They had dug a pond on the southern side, which had filled up due to recent rains. The pond was surrounded by numerous lotus leaves, though the lotus flowers remained hidden in their buds. Several colorful carps swam in the pond.

In front of others, Yuan Li and Chu Hechao maintained a serious demeanor, walking at a distance from each other with formalities. Once they entered the woods away from prying eyes, Chu Hechao embraced Yuan Li.

Chu Hechao wrapped his arms around Yuan Li's waist, exuding warmth, and said, "Give me a kiss."

Yuan Li enjoyed his kisses and raised his head to meet them.

Birds chirped in the branches above, and after glancing at the couple for a while, they pecked at their own feathers.

The trees swayed, leaves fluttered down, and covered their heads.

Chu Hechao removed the leaf from Yuan Li's head, chuckled, and in a huskier tone than usual, with a hint of a provocative flavor, said, "Yang Zhongfa mentioned the taste of having a wife; I did not understand it before, but now I finally do."

He didn't know the difference between kissing a woman and kissing a man. He knew the feeling of being kissed by the one he loved. It was intoxicating, a sensation he would never forget.

Chu Hechao's chest was filled to the brim, a desire that was hard to resist.

The young man leaned against a tree, his hair disheveled, a flush on his face, his eyes bright and lively, leaving Chu Hechao slightly flustered.

Lowering his head, the man kissed Yuan Li twice more. Yuan Li's lips were sticky, filled with the taste of their intimacy.

Dizzy from the kisses, the man whispered, "Open your mouth, let me in."

Yuan Li pushed him away, saying it was not possible, "Can't you see? You pressed into me."

Both being young, Yuan Li felt a bit restless himself.

Despite his lack of romantic experience, he had a sense of propriety. They had only confirmed their relationship today, and kissing on the lips had happened quickly.

Yuan Li believed they needed to take things slowly.

Chu Hechao said, "I didn't notice."

Yuan Li stared at him, surprised by his shamelessness. The man chuckled, grabbing Yuan Li's hand and pulling him closer.

More leaves fell from the trees, and the curious birds flapped their wings and flew away, circling above the forest.

Frogs croaked, and small flying insects flew around and made trouble.

As the evening approached in early spring, the weather was mild, but the sweat trickled down under the trees. Tired, Yuan Li couldn't help but pinch the man.

The man, with closed eyes pressed against the tree, furrowed his brows in pain, letting out a groan.

Yuan Li looked at his face.

As the sweat streamed down, his handsome features shifted from seductive to restrained, his jaw tensing.

Yuan Li shifted his gaze, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

Opening his eyes, Chu Hechao exclaimed with a mix of irritation and humor, "You're so naughty."

Yuan Li pulled his hand back and wiped it off on him without reservation. The man's satisfied expression indicated contentment, and after hastily cleaning himself up and the surrounding area, he held Yuan Li's hand and continued their walk by the lake.

Passing by a few willow branches almost touching the surface of the lake, Yuan Li couldn't resist plucking a long branch, fiddling with it in his hand, "Let me tell you something."

Chu Hechao also plucked a blade of grass and chewed on it lazily, "Go ahead."

"Do you remember the method I proposed for accommodating injured soldiers?" Yuan Li asked.

Chuhe Chao nodded while casually playing with the grass in his mouth, "I remember. It was because of your arrangements for the injured soldiers that the soldiers fought so fiercely alongside me against Hu Yan Wuzhu."

Yuan Li smiled, "I mentioned before that the injured soldiers can serve various purposes, including infiltrating the lower levels to control every corner of Youzhou."

This essentially provided employment opportunities for disabled soldiers.

Of course, they could not only serve as information gatherers at the grassroots level but also take on roles like village chiefs or minor officials. Yuan Li would educate them to read and write, hoping that these disabled soldiers could impart knowledge to the common people starting from the grassroots level.

This was an idea that Yuan Li had never shared with anyone.

He wanted to break the scholarly monopoly over the common people, to enlighten minds, transform the system for selecting officials, and dismantle the privilege of those scholars who disregarded human life.

This goal would take time.

Continuing, he said, "There are many ethnic minorities in Youzhou, and the majority have already intermarried and settled in Northern Zhou, making their expulsion from Youzhou impossible. However, there are spies and assassins among them. I intend to have lightly wounded disabled soldiers infiltrate their ranks, investigate from the bottom up, and gradually scrutinize all suspicious individuals within Youzhou."

"And there's also the matter of Cai Ji," Yuan Li sighed, already weaving a grass ring in his hand. He raised it, placing it on Chu Hechao's head, expressing his worries, "You see, Cai Ji might have heard some news from Luoyang. Here we are, a great general and a governor of Youzhou, not knowing anything."

The man, handsome and rugged, chuckled slightly after wearing the grass ring adorned with leaves. His lips twitched as he took it off, placing it on Yuan Li's head, "Luoyang has our people too."

Eyes gleaming, Yuan Li lowered his voice and asked eagerly, "Who are our people in Luoyang?"

Chuhe Chao glanced at him lazily, "Why should I tell you?"

Yuan Li was taken aback and turned to leave.

The man quickly walked up to him, teasingly embracing Yuan Li's shoulder, "Are you angry?"

Yuan Li kept a straight face, not giving in to his jokes.

Standing up, Chu Hechao looked around for any onlookers, then embraced Yuanli from behind, his broad back bending, chin resting on Yuan Li's shoulder, whispering softly, "Are you pretending to be angry again?"

His breath brushed against Yuan Li's face and neck, causing goosebumps. Yuan Li tried to keep a straight face, but couldn't help but laugh, turning his head away to avoid his advances, "It's too ticklish, stop it."

Chu Hechao chuckled softly and kissed his neck.

By evening, the man had stubble, prickly and itchy.

The grass ring on his head was askew, but the man caught it, readjusting and placing it back on Yuan Li's head.

Yuan Li looked at the man seriously, "I want to see you wear it."

Chu Hechao's eyelid twitched, pretending not to hear, "What?"

"Wear the grass ring," Yuan Li fought back a smile, feigning disappointment, "When we were at the governor's residence, you said I could have whatever I wanted..."

Chu Hechao's forehead tensed, after a moment of patience he grumbled, "Give it here."

The disappointed youth instantly broke into a smile, adjusting the grass ring and then hurriedly adding a few red and yellow wildflowers picked from the roadside.

Chu Hechao watched as the flowers increased on the grass ring, breathing deeply and swallowing his pride.

Finally, Yuan Li was satisfied and placed the flower crown on Chuhe Chao's head.

At that moment, the man calmed down, his lips curling up, eyes fixed on Yuan Li, "Satisfied?"

Yuan Li nodded.

Chu Hechao lightened up, rubbing Yuanli's hand, "Being my wife is better than being Chu Mingfeng's wife, right?"

Yuan Li replied, "Actually, about Chu Mingfeng..."

Chu Hechao's brow furrowed, the smile faded, his expression turning dark, "Don't mention him to me."

Yuan Li remained silent.

Chu Hechao touched Yuan Li's face, his tone softening, "Alright. You're no longer with him, so you shouldn't think about him either. In the future, he's either your ex-husband or your elder brother. Now, bow your head and call out to him underground."

Thinking he was joking, Yuan Li was surprised by Chu Hechao's serious expression. After a moment of contemplation, he decided to play along.

With a deep breath, he lowered his head and muttered an apology to Chu Mingfeng and called out, "Elder brother."

Chu Mingfeng, I'm sorry. I might have turned your brother gay too. But maybe I was turned gay too. Shall we call it even?

With a gentle touch, Chu Hechao's fingers caressed Yuan Li's neck as he kissed him, whispering, "Be good."

Yuan Li was left sweating and out of breath from the kiss, his mouth dry. Blinking slowly, he gently pushed the man away, "There's something else we haven't discussed. If there are people in Luoyang who are on our side, would they send us messages in case of a major event?"

"Yes," Chu Hechao replied somewhat absentmindedly, pondering for a moment. "Although my father is not involved in court affairs, he has many colleagues in the court. Chu Mingfeng also has many connections. If there is a significant event, they would definitely send someone to inform me."

Yuan Li pondered for a moment, "Perhaps they have already sent a message to you, assuming you were in the Northern Border, and the message was delivered there."

Chu Hechao remained calm, "No need to rush, we can wait for the message. As for your idea of sending injured soldiers to infiltrate the lower ranks, I trust you can arrange it as you wish."

The two of them strolled for a half hour, circling the lake before slowly making their way back to the woods.

As they entered the woods, their hands parted, with enough space between them for another person to stand.

Yuan Li clenched his fists, palms sweaty.

Catchig a glimpse of the man, he turned to look, meeting his gaze.

Their eyes met, the man pulled his lips into a smile.

In the estate, their rooms were next to each other. As they walked towards their rooms, they spotted Yuan Dan anxiously pacing in front of Yuan Li's room.

Yuan Li was surprised and quickened his pace, calling out, "Wenhan?"

Seeing them return, Yuan Dan's face lit up with joy. He rushed forward and grasped Yuan Li's hand, excitedly exclaiming, "Lejun, you're finally back!"

Chu Hechao glanced at their joined hands, then casually averted his gaze.

Yuan Li patted Yuan Dan's hand reassuringly and asked calmly, "Don't worry, what's the matter?"

"It's a big deal! A huge deal!" Yuan Dan's face was flushed with excitement, his words slightly slurred from the excitement, "Cui Yan has made a repeating crossbow! It can fire continuously, with much greater firepower than arrows!"