Jiang Linyin went down the mountain on her own, as if the good relationship she had with them before was all an illusion.
Seeing this, Li Jiuge planned to muddle through and follow the two of them down the mountain. However, the two just stood there looking at her.
"Yunxi, Cousin, please let me go with you. I won't be a burden. I've learned a lot!" Li Jiuge pleaded coquettishly. "I don't want to watch you come back covered in blood anymore. Even if something happens, we should die together."
The two exchanged a look. Feng Xingzhi was about to persuade her further, but was stopped by Ji Yunxi.
"Forget it, Azhi. Let Jiuge come with us. Otherwise, it'll be even more dangerous if she sneaks down the mountain later on her own." She smiled at Li Jiuge. "Moreover, Jiuge is capable of handling things on her own now. We can't always treat her like a child."
Hearing this, Feng Xingzhi fell silent. Li Jiuge was his only cousin, and since they had always lived in the Southern Yan Palace, he had always regarded her as his own sister. In terms of feelings, apart from his mother and Xixi, she was the one he cared about the most.
Seeing that Ji Yunxi already trusted her, although Feng Xingzhi was still a bit worried, he also considered that one day he might not be able to protect his sister. So it wasn't a bad thing for her to get more training. Besides, with him and Yunxi around, it should be better than her going out alone.
So he finally nodded.
"Great! Thank you, Cousin, thank you, Yunxi!" Li Jiuge exclaimed and rushed forward to hug Ji Yunxi's arm. "I'll definitely be very obedient, very obedient!"
When Rong Hua arrived, Li Jiuge was hopping around like a happy little bird.
He watched with joy in his heart. "Come on, it's not like Kunlun Mountain has confined you."
When Li Jiuge saw it was Rong Hua, she immediately became well - behaved. "Master Rong Hua."
"Did you tell your master?"
"I already did. Master said it's good to go down the mountain for training."
Rong Hua nodded. Ning Shuihan attached great importance to her disciples' actual combat experience, so Li Jiuge's request would surely be supported.
"Then stop waiting. Pack up and go down the mountain." Rong Hua personally escorted them to the mountain gate. "Be careful on the way."
He was like a father sending his children out, gentle and powerful.
Ji Yunxi led the two to the stronghold of the Dream Blossom Pavilion, then they mounted their horses and galloped towards Yue City on the border of the Eastern Jin Dynasty.
However, their fast horses were halted before they even entered the territory of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. There were countless refugees on both the official roads and the country roads, moving slowly and aimlessly in one direction.
They looked dead - faced, like emotionless puppets. Moreover, there were many corpses by the roadside, and the stench of decay filled the air with an aura of death.
The three of them were stunned. They had been in seclusion during this period and knew nothing about the outside world. They never expected that the border of the Eastern Jin Dynasty had reached such a state.
It was a scene of corpses everywhere and wails filling the sky.
They led their horses and couldn't move forward quickly. They could only walk slowly.
Occasionally, some refugees would show greedy looks at them, but when they saw the swords on their waists, they had to withdraw their hands.
Li Jiuge couldn't bear to watch any longer. She dismounted and walked up to a woman to ask, "Auntie, what's going on..."
The woman looked up blankly. Seeing Li Jiuge in her noble clothes and ethereal appearance, she suddenly asked, "Are the immortals here to save us?"
This question made people feel sad. Li Jiuge looked helplessly at Ji Yunxi, not knowing how to answer.
Seeing this, Ji Yunxi also dismounted and walked up to the woman. "We're not immortals. We're just passing by."
She thought about giving them a glimmer of hope, but she also knew that it would be a false hope.
Hearing this, the woman cried. "Why doesn't God see our suffering! There has been a severe drought in recent years, and the crops have failed. Now the court is increasing taxes. We have no way out."
Ji Yunxi looked at Feng Xingzhi, her eyes filled with grief. When there were changes in the world, it was always the common people who suffered the most.
However, this was not the most tragic part. The woman sobbed as she spoke, "We've been on the run, but when people are extremely hungry, they'll do anything. They've committed all kinds of atrocities. Women and children like us have become victims under their swords. My child... My child was also killed. They said there was a sacred mountain in Yue City, and the mountain god needed sacrifices, so they..."
She choked suddenly. "They sacrificed my child!"
Li Jiuge immediately covered her mouth, shocked and heart - broken.
"Now I'm the only one left in my family. I have to take the memorial tablets of my family back home..."
Her sad look sent a chill down people's spines.
Li Jiuge looked at Ji Yunxi and whispered, "Shall we give her some dry food?"
Ji Yunxi shook her head. "No. Nowadays, those who have food are like those who carry precious jade. If you give it to her and she can't protect it, you'll only harm her."
Feng Xingzhi nodded and stepped forward to support Li Jiuge's shoulder. "You can help for a while, but not for a lifetime."
Ji Yunxi looked at this purgatory on earth and said, "You can help one person, but what about the others? What should they do? We have to solve the problem at its root."
Qing Xuan led the horse and immediately flattered, "Master is right."
The group quickened their pace towards Yue City. When they reached the city gate, Feng Xingzhi took out the travel permit and showed it to the border guards. The general took it and was surprised.
"You are honored guests. Please wait a moment while I inform the prefect."
Then he sent his subordinate to inform the prefect to come and greet them.
Not long after, the prefect arrived at the city gate in a carriage with his entourage. He was very enthusiastic when he saw them.
"I didn't know that the prince, princess, and the young lady were coming. I'm sorry for not welcoming you properly. Please come to my mansion for a talk."
The group was escorted all the way to the prefect's mansion. Along the way, the prefect asked them about their well - being. "I see that there's also the seal of Kunlun Mountain on the travel permit. Are you all immortals from Kunlun Mountain?"
Ji Yunxi smiled faintly. "No. We're just passing by."
Hearing this, the prefect was a bit dissatisfied. So they weren't immortals...
However, since their identities were not ordinary, the prefect naturally couldn't treat them casually.
There was a sumptuous meal prepared in the prefect's mansion, with wine and meat. However, the inside of the mansion and the outside of Yue City seemed like two different worlds, one a paradise and the other a purgatory.
Li Jiuge was so angry that she clenched her fists tightly. With a cold face, she wanted to scold, but Ji Yunxi keenly noticed what she was about to say. She quickly held her hand and shook her head, signaling her not to say a word.
Li Jiuge didn't understand. She thought that such corrupt officials should be cut into pieces. Why was Yunxi keeping silent?
Filled with confusion, she turned to look at Feng Xingzhi and found that he was also signaling her not to speak.
Li Jiuge felt a sense of suffocation in her heart and reluctantly closed her mouth.