TNIBFT -Chapter 288 Changing One’s Name for Wealth and Glory

“Peaches?”

Jiang Yunxi froze for a moment. Crawling on the ground, a trace of mockery flickered in her eyes. She lifted her head to meet Lin Xianzhong’s gaze, then quickly switched to a frightened expression and said softly, “Our Jiangyang City doesn’t produce peaches—we have oranges.”

“The oranges from my hometown are well-known far and wide. Could it be that the General remembered wrong?”

The girl’s expression was innocent. Lin Xianzhong gave a faint, ambiguous smile and said,
“Get up.”

“If you truly have nothing to do with Sifang City, then once I take it, I will let you leave. After all these years, you’re still the first person from Hanyang I’ve met.”

“Thank you, General!”
“Thank you, General!”

Jiang Yunxi knelt on the ground, expressing deep gratitude, her face filled with tearful joy. After staring at Lin Xianzhong for a while, she bit her lower lip, looking troubled.

“I… General, you’re a good man. But Ye Tian isn’t someone easy to deal with.”

“You mustn’t be careless. Ye Tian has Sun Wuji under his command. People from Sifang City say Sun Wuji is already invincible in the world. General, you must be cautious.”

“Oh?”

Lin Xianzhong looked at his deputy in surprise. Their gazes met, currents of calculation swirling beneath the surface.

They had already known about Sun Wuji before arriving. To deal with such an expert, they could only wait for him to make a move and then trap him. With an army of sixty thousand, even someone invincible would find it impossible to escape.

“Not only that—Ye Tian also has seventh- and ninth-rank experts by his side at all times.”

“And the greatest scholar in the world is also his right-hand man. If you truly intend to kill Ye Tian, I’m afraid the scholars of the world will condemn you in writing and speech, General.”

Jiang Yunxi’s small face was filled with concern, as though she were sincerely repaying Lin Xianzhong’s kindness and thinking on his behalf.

Lin Xianzhong stared sharply at her. She was just a captured woman—how could she know Ye Tian so well?

He tested her, asking, “Then tell me—what should I do now?”

Jiang Yunxi kowtowed on the ground. She hesitated for a long time before speaking, “In truth… Ye Tian has three children. They are like his very life. If one could…”

Lin Xianzhong’s face turned ashen. “That’s enough!”

“I, Lin Xianzhong, have lived my life with integrity. Do not mention such despicable acts against women and children again!”

“But Ye Tian is despicable! He already has countless Feng Jiaojiaos in his hands, all prepared for the day you arrive at Sifang City—so that you would be defeated without even fighting!”

Jiang Yunxi’s words made Lin Xianzhong clench his fists, rage surging in his eyes.

Ye Tian had investigated him.

And even knew the appearance and name of his late wife. He intended to use Jiaojiao against him? To make him feel guilt… to make him blame himself…

To attack the heart—what a vicious Ye Tian!

Lin Xianzhong’s face flushed red with anger. He mounted his horse in one swift motion and shouted back, “Move out!”

“Let’s go meet Ye Tian!”

A distance of thirty li—given the army’s speed and the road conditions, they would reach Sifang City in three hours. He would personally capture Ye Tian and make him kneel at the city gates in repentance.

…

Meanwhile, inside the hotpot restaurant—

Ye Tian had just returned when a scout rushed in with news.

“City Lord! Lin Xianzhong’s army is already thirty li outside the city—they’ve just passed Jingyang Market!”

“What?!”

“Thirty li?!”

Everyone in the hall exchanged shocked glances.

Zhao Kang was so startled he jumped straight out of his chair. “This Lin Xianzhong really knows how to wage war—traveling across snowy plains isn’t easy, yet his army can cover a hundred li a day?”

“Now’s not the time to praise him. The enemy is at our gates—we must prepare immediately!” Tao Lichun said, his face full of worry.

Fang Shenghu had already donned his armor and stood ready for battle. “The city troops are in position. The men lying in ambush outside the city haven’t dared to withdraw these past two days. Once Lin Xianzhong’s forces arrive, they’ll lure them into the trap and split their forces.”

Ye Tian wasn’t particularly optimistic about their trap.

Not only would it fail to effectively divide the enemy’s forces, its lethality was also limited.

But this was already the best strategy these ancient people could come up with. Since everyone agreed it was feasible, Ye Tian didn’t insist on overriding them.

“I heard from Lord Meng that this Lin Xianzhong isn’t actually from Great Zhou, but a surrendered general from Great Liang!”

Ye Yunting, who had been practicing calligraphy at the large table, suddenly spoke up.

Though his voice was childish, it carried a calm steadiness that put others at ease.

Tao Lichun frowned, his cloudy eyes turning toward Ye Yunting. “Is what you say true?”

Ye Yunting nodded and continued, “Lin Xianzhong was originally from Jiangyang City in Great Liang. It’s said that on the very day of his wedding, he was forcibly conscripted.”

Just then, Feng Jiaojiao came out of the kitchen, holding a steaming bowl of red date ginger tea in both hands. Hearing Ye Yunting’s words, her whole body trembled. The scalding tea spilled over her hands, and she cried out in pain, “Ah—”

With a loud clang, the large bowl slipped from her hands, shattering on the ground. Porcelain shards scattered everywhere, and the tea splashed across the floor.

Everyone turned to look. Flustered and uneasy, Feng Jiaojiao twisted the apron at her waist, forcing an awkward smile. “I’m sorry for disturbing everyone.”

“I’ll clean it up right away!”

Ye Tian asked with concern, “Sister Feng, are you alright? You don’t look well.”

Feng Jiaojiao avoided his gaze. As expected… what was bound to happen had still happened.

Ye Yunting continued, “Actually, Lord Meng said that Great Zhou sending Lin Xianzhong to attack Sifang City is itself a conspiracy. Whether he succeeds or not, Lin Xianzhong is doomed to die.”

“As a surrendered general commanding a city’s troops, he’s maintained neutrality all these years. It seems like he offends no one, but Lindong City has long been coveted by others.”

Feng Jiaojiao’s expression turned panicked, her emotions surging with both agitation and tension.

She stood frozen, unwilling to leave.

Ye Tian glanced at her—just as expected, the original storyline still required the original characters to push things forward more smoothly.

“Lord Meng is right,” Tao Lichun sighed, stroking his graying beard.

Behind him, Zhao Kang said excitedly, “In that case, why don’t we send someone to explain things clearly to Lin Xianzhong? With Lord Meng guaranteeing it, what is there to worry about?”

“I think we don’t even need to fight this battle!”

“Impossible!” Ye Tian rejected the idea without hesitation.

Qin Fengyi had already done too much for him. She was originally from Great Zhou, and leaking military intelligence for his sake and their child was already a grave crime. Now Zhao Kang wanted her to act as a mediator—wasn’t that sending her to her death?

Ye Yunting added, “I think it’d be better to let Uncle Duan go.”

Although Lord Meng was suitable, Ye Yunting didn’t want his own mother to take such a risk.

Feng Jiaojiao, who had been standing there stunned, now had tears glistening in her eyes. She looked at Ye Tian, hesitant to speak. “Lin Xianzhong… is he from Lin Family Village in Jiangyang?”

“Was… was he once called Lin Erniu?”

Her voice trembled, thick with sobs. Tears blurred her vision, and the gray at her temples made her look especially aged.

With a dull thud, she dropped to her knees before Ye Tian. “City Lord, please tell me!”

“Is Lin Xianzhong the Lin Erniu I’ve been searching for?”

“I’ve been looking for him for twelve years. A lone woman, traveling from Jiangyang to Sifang City—for twelve whole years!”

Laughing and crying at the same time, she looked utterly miserable.

Ye Yunting’s expression changed drastically. He had never imagined that Aunt Feng was actually Lin Xianzhong’s wife.

Everyone else was equally stunned.

Feng Jiaojiao continued, “Let me go. Let me ask him myself—has he now gathered children and concubines, living in luxury?”

“What a heartless man—changing his name and identity just for wealth and glory…”