Chapter 85

After managing the border for more than ten years, Wei Zhenyuan definitely had his own secret operations besides the Han Valley Camp. One such place was the Jiupan Stockade. After their defense was broken by the barbarians' stratagem, the remaining remnants retreated there.

Now, with the soldiers on the mountain lacking a leader and Wei Zhenyuan temporarily unable to move due to his injury, Wei Ling had to return to oversee the overall situation.

Wei Ling didn't stay long at Cheng's residence and left with his men on the third morning, leaving behind Meng Ji and a soldier named Yu Dazui.

These two were complementary: if Meng Ji was clever and cunning, then Yu Dazui was a strong and rough man.

Wei Zhenyuan's arrangements had deep meaning behind them. Firstly, their actions needed to be low-key. The fact that there was already an outsider at Yang Village made it easy to draw attention. If Cheng Duo hadn't opened a brick kiln, attracting many people, they might not even dare to show their faces.

Secondly, Cheng Duo was extraordinarily fierce. When he wasn't trying to kill, he could easily handle ten people, let alone when he went all out.

Wei Zhenyuan secretly admired Cheng Duo. If Cheng Duo were one of his soldiers, he would definitely support him wholeheartedly. However, Cheng Duo happened to be his son-in-law. He had been looking for his son, and by the time he found Yong Ge, he was already someone else's.

Thus, Wei Zhenyuan had complicated feelings towards Cheng Duo. Like most fathers-in-law, while he admired him in his heart, he still showed some disdain on the surface.

Especially in front of Yong Ge.

That night, Yong Ge was alone at the table, sorting out the accounts. Since the recorded numbers didn't match the copper coins in the money box, he kept turning the abacus and mumbling to himself, "It's still ten wen short. Where did I go wrong?"

Cheng Duo, on the other hand, didn't say a word. After helping to arrange the copper coins, he sat aside and drank tea, leaving Yong Ge to worry alone.

Wei Zhenyuan, lying on the bed, couldn't bear it anymore, "Yong Ge, you've checked it three times already. It's just ten wen; if you can't find it, just give up. I don't believe certain people would make things difficult for you over ten wen right in front of me!"

After saying that, he glared at Cheng Duo, and the intended target of his gaze was obvious.

"No, the accounts should be clear and precise; there should be no ambiguity! Otherwise, it might be ten wen today, but tomorrow it could be a hundred wen, and the day after that, a thousand wen!" Yong Ge firmly rejected, not realizing his father's belated care.

Wei Zhenyuan choked, "Then, then I'll assign someone from the accounting office to you. You're the Young Master of the Wei family; there's no need for you to personally handle these petty calculations."

"Brother Cheng said that if I want to ask someone from the accounting office, I must understand it myself; otherwise, I won't even know if they are deceiving me."

Hearing his little brother refer to Cheng Duo as "Beother Cheng" every time, Wei Zhenyuan felt a pang of sourness in his heart and couldn't help but say, "Your Brother Cheng knows everything, why doesn't he handle it himself?"

"I'm just starting to learn. Brother Cheng wants me to handle the accounts so that I can learn. Besides, I only handle the accounts for making mud bricks. If I can't even understand these simple calculations, how can I help Brother Cheng manage the entire brick kiln in the future?"

Yong Ge finished speaking and turned his head to seek Cheng Duo's approval. Seeing how Yong Ge had made his cheap father stutter, Cheng Duo couldn't help but touch his head with a suppressed smile.

Wei Zhenyuan naturally knew that Yong Ge was right, and Cheng Duo was doing it for Yong Ge's own good. Based on the information he obtained from his informant, before Cheng Duo appeared, the two sons of Yong Ge's foster father had bullied him severely. He was busy making a living and had no opportunity to learn how to read or handle accounts.

Moreover, if Cheng Duo had simply set his sights on Yong Ge's appearance, he could have hidden him in the backyard after getting married, and that would have been enough. However, now Cheng Duo went to great lengths, teaching him knowledge and manners, training him to manage the family business diligently, even more thoroughly than his own biological father.

Facing this man who had set his eyes on his precious son, Wei Zhenyuan felt both gratified and jealous. If he treated Yong Ge well, he felt content, but if he mistreated him, he might not be able to resist the urge to eliminate the offender…

Just like those two brothers of Yong Ge, if they were capable, they should have stayed at Yufang Mountain and not returned. Otherwise, he would make them experience the feeling of being bullied when they couldn't fight back!

Cheng Duo thought it was about time and gave a way out to his father-in-law, "Yong Ge, General Wei is right. You have checked three times, and there's always a difference of ten wen. If you can't find it in today's accounts, what should you do?"

"Search the previous ones!" With Cheng Duo's prompt, Yong Ge's eyes suddenly lit up. "Ah, I forgot. Two days ago, I undercalculated Aunt Dazhuang by ten wen, and I made up for it today!"

As Yong Ge spoke, he flipped through the account book and found a record from two days ago, which made him instantly delighted. "Brother Cheng, look, I found it!"

Wei Zhenyuan couldn't help but find faults again. "He probably knew it all along and just sat there drinking tea without telling you."

Yong Ge frowned and finally realized that his biological father was intentionally targeting Cheng Duo. He said dissatisfiedly, "Brother Cheng has taught me everything. He didn't say anything to help me improve my skills, so I can be more efficient with the abacus!"

"Why do you always target Brother Cheng? He saved your life, and if you keep doing this, I'll have my eldest cousin come and take you away."

Yong Ge's face fell, and he lowered his head, writing the accounts unhappily, refusing to look at Wei Zhenyuan again.

He thought his biological father cared for him, but it turned out that he kept ruining his relationship with Cheng Duo!

With such a good husband like Cheng Duo, he no longer cared about his biological father!

Seeing Yong Ge's serious expression, Wei Zhenyuan suddenly felt awkward. "Yong Ge, I didn't mean it. I just don't want him to treat you poorly…"

"Brother Cheng treats me well!" Yong Ge glared at him fiercely and rubbed his eyes. "When you weren't here, Brother Cheng was the best person to me, second only to my dad."

Wei Zhenyuan felt another stab in his heart. Even though he pretended to be Yong Ge's father in front of him, Yong Ge never called him that. It hurt him deeply.

Now that he saw Yong Ge wiping his eyes, he became even more embarrassed. "Then, what about that night when I came, and he said he wanted to punish you?"

"Huh?" Yong Ge was confused. When did Cheng Duo say he wanted to punish him?

But Cheng Duo coughed awkwardly and glanced at Yong Ge, instantly causing Yong Ge to recall. In a flash, his fair face turned red.

He remembered! The punishment Cheng Duo talked about wasn't the same as what Wei Zhenyuan was thinking. It was about their private affair in the bedroom!

"You misunderstood. How could Brother Cheng punish me?!" To protect Cheng Duo's reputation, Yong Ge forced himself to say.

Seeing his little son and his husband's eye exchanges, Wei Zhenyuan didn't quite understand at first, but after a while, he noticed that Cheng Duo, a composed man, had a faint blush on his ears…

Wei Zhenyuan's eyes widened, feeling increasingly embarrassed. He also cleared his throat and said, "Is that so? Well, then, it's good. It was just a misunderstanding on my part."

Wei Zhenyuan watched Yong Ge cautiously. "Yong Ge, don't be angry. Dad apologizes, alright? Dad won't do it again."

"You should apologize to Brother Cheng." Yong Ge was an easy-going person. Seeing Wei Zhenyuan being so submissive, he softened his stance but still demanded an apology to Cheng Duo.

Wei Zhenyuan knew he had been careless. Cheng Duo's position in his son's heart was exceptionally high, so he had to play along.

As for Cheng Duo, he didn't take it to heart. Firstly, Wei Zhenyuan had just found his biological son and couldn't resist causing some trouble to draw his attention. Secondly, Wei Zhenyuan had already accepted him. If he didn't treat him as family, he wouldn't nitpick his flaws face to face.

Right now, he acted like a mischievous child, and Cheng Duo was fine with that. His family's Yong Ge had ways to deal with him!

During Wei Zhenyuan's recovery, chaos broke out in Xidu. Small groups of nomads started raiding the borders, and even the previously peaceful bandit gangs that only targeted merchant caravans began to act restlessly, posing as nomads to cause trouble.

Soon, rumors spread throughout Xidu that the nomads invaded because the Wei family's army suffered a major defeat at the Hangu Pass. The soldiers and officers were either dead or fleeing, and the commander-in-chief, Wei Zhenyuan, along with his close subordinates, were nowhere to be found.

Later, there were rumors that General Wuwei, Yuan Kui, had found evidence of Wei Zhenyuan colluding with foreign powers and intentionally orchestrating the defeat.

Receiving the news, Wei Ling rushed to find Wei Zhenyuan that night to discuss, "General, this is definitely a trap. Yuan Kui was so quick to produce evidence; it's obvious he had it prepared in advance to make us unable to refute!"

At this point, they were in a desperate situation. If they showed themselves, they would die. If they stayed hidden, they would still die.

Wei Li spat, "Damn it, fortunately, the General is wise. Otherwise, after we escaped back to Xiling, we might have already been silenced!"

"General, what should we do?"

Wei Zhenyuan shook his head in silence. He had underestimated He Kuntai; the only evidence that could be used against him had already been handed over. With He Kuntai's caution, he wouldn't leave any traces behind.

Moreover, the so-called "evidence" Yuan Kui presented was likely fabricated by the nomads. The current emperor was only eleven or twelve years old, and the Empress Dowager and noble families were busy fighting amongst themselves. Both sides wanted to win He Kuntai's support, so it would be difficult for them to escape with substantial evidence, let alone nothing.

"At this time, shouldn't we send someone on a fast horse to beat He Kuntai in reporting false military information and bring back your family members?" Cheng Duo suddenly suggested.

Wei Zhenyuan and Wei Ling were both startled. Wei Ling asked, "Cheng Duo, what do you mean?"

Cheng Duo remained calm. "The court is incompetent. Even the great general guarding the border has defected. Do you have any other choice?"

Cheng Duo had figured it out. His cheap father-in-law and eldest uncle either bore the crime of treason and were executed or had to rebel. Once they died, Yong Ge's identity would likely be exposed, so they couldn't take that path.

Other generals looked at each other. Although Cheng Duo's suggestion was shocking, they realized that when both options led to death, even ants would choose to live. Moreover, they had family members.

With this in mind, five or six generals loosened their stance. "General!" "General…"

Wei Zhenyuan smiled bitterly. The Wei family had been loyal for generations. Was their century-old reputation to be buried with him?

Not to mention his father, Marquis Wei, who is still alive. Even if we talk about his four deceased brothers, wouldn't they jump out of their coffins in anger?

Seeing his father's silence, Yong Ge became anxious. "Dad?"

Don't blame him for being cunning, shouting at someone at this critical moment. His husband had said such things, and if his father didn't agree, Cheng Duo would be in danger.

Wei Zhenyuan did get agitated. "Yong Ge, what did you just call me?"

Yong Ge pursed his lips. After the first word, the rest came more easily. "Dad, you should do as Brother Cheng says. Brother Cheng never does anything uncertain. Can you trust him this one time?"

Wei Zhenyuan froze. He had practically gone to the far-off borders to find him, and now, he called him "Dad" for his husband's sake!

But Yong Ge pleaded with him. Wei Zhenyuan thought of how he came to see his son for the last time, but it ended up becoming a burden to Yong Ge… How could this be!

He looked at Wei Ling, and Wei Ling's eyes flickered. "General, don't look at me. When I left, my grandfather already told us to act according to the situation and not be bound by the court's rules."

Wei Ling didn't think much of it at the time, but now, he realized his grandfather might have foreseen this day. Being so old, he had seen everything. Moreover, out of his five sons, only his younger uncle remained, and among his grandchildren, there was only Yong Ge.

It could be said that he had been loyal to Da Xia his whole life, but he hadn't left any good for his family.

Wei Zhenyuan wavered, but when he thought of the vast difference in their forces, he could only smile bitterly.

The northwest's lion had around 170,000 troops, while their Wei family's army had less than 20,000 remaining. How could they win?

"General, when I said I would help you kill He Kuntai, I wasn't joking. Although he is the Grand General, he has many guards and generals by his side, but he has to leave the camp at some point, right? As long as he dares to come out, I'm confident I can kill him."

With the main generals dead, the rest would be like scattered sand, and it would be much easier to subdue them.

Seeing that Wei Zhenyuan still didn't believe him, Cheng Duo asked him to dismiss the others, leaving only Wei Ling. "Let me show you something."

"What is it?"

Yong Ge had already guessed and touched Cheng Duo's hand emotionally. "Brother Cheng."

Cheng Duo teased, "With this, your dad will have no confidence to trouble me again in the future."

Wei Zhenyuan glared at him. Did Cheng Duo think a wine bottle could make him back off? He was dreaming!

The first thing Wei Zhenyuan thought of was the white jade wine bottle that Cheng Duo took out to treat his injuries. The thing, bottle and all, should be worth a thousand or eight hundred taels. However, he might have underestimated the cost of maintaining an army. The annual military expenses given by the court were at least several hundred thousand taels!