Chapter 67: Probing

The old man called Li Po and Yuanlang into his presence.

"Sanniang is going to inspect the horse ranches; the two of you will accompany her..."

This was spoken right in front of Li Bi, carrying an undeniable air of authority. Yuanlang's inclusion was a matter of course, while Li Po was simply thrown in as an extra.

This was the result of Li Po's hard work over the past few months. Sometimes, opportunities appear to emerge out of nowhere, but in reality, fortune only favors those who are prepared and willing to put in the effort. As for those who simply wait for pie to fall from the sky, how could they possibly seize an opportunity even if it were placed right before them?

Li Bi agreed readily enough; it was no big deal.

The old man seemed quite gratified and repeatedly admonished the two: "Remember, you must listen to Sanniang along the way and not disgrace me. Otherwise, both of you will remain stuck in the stables and won't go anywhere ever again."

Then, turning to Li Bi, he said, "These two are young and inexperienced. If they make mistakes, feel free to discipline them as you see fit."

"Uncle, once they leave the commandery office with me, they hold military ranks and must be governed by military law. That has little to do with me anymore, wouldn't you say?"

The old man rolled his eyes. Having spent many years beside Li Jing, he found the tone of these words painfully familiar.

Irritated, he waved a hand. "Go on, go on! Where do you get all these high-sounding principles?"

With a chuckle, Li Bi led Li Po and Yuanlang out of the room.

Li Po shot a sideways glance, thinking to himself that despite her youth, this young woman was a master at manipulation. Staying by her side meant keeping one's wits sharp, or else she might trick one into a fatal battle one day.

Still, when she smiled, she was quite striking—her eyes curving, her lips upturned, looking rather adorable in a way. Unfortunately, her heart was truly formidable and best not tested.

The young woman immediately confirmed Li Po's assessment.

The moment they stepped out of the room, the smile vanished from her face. She clasped her hands behind her back and raised her chin. "Sanlang, go pack your gear immediately. We depart this afternoon. Make sure to bid your grandfather a proper farewell and do not cause him needless worry."

Yuanlang slipped away quietly.

Li Po rolled his eyes, pondering whether he should beg this tigress to let him bring Li Chun along as well. It wasn't that he was worried about leaving Li Chun alone in the stables, but since she had started practicing martial arts and swordplay, her future path was essentially set. This trip would be a fine opportunity to take her out and broaden her horizons.

However, if she refused, so be it.

At the same time, this would serve as a minor psychological assessment of the person before him.

If someone outright refused a small request, they tended to be straightforward and responsible. Li Po figured she might fall into this category—not necessarily because she was straightforward, but rather because, holding a high position, she possessed an excess of responsibility. Furthermore, she likely wouldn't even give a definitive answer, leaving one hanging—a behavior most characteristic of the elite.

As for most ordinary people, when faced with a rather abrupt request, they would hesitate and let him down far more gently, an option hardly worth considering.

If she agreed cheerfully and readily, she would lean towards being cold-hearted, because Li Chun was just a child, which would reveal her to be far more ruthless than others.

As for a sociopath... Good grief, who the hell could ever guess how a sociopath would react?

However, before he could speak—

Seeing that Yuanlang had already walked some distance away, the woman's gaze shifted to Li Po. She looked him up and down, her brows slightly furrowed as she said coldly, "I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

Li Po's heart skipped a beat, but maintaining his composure, he feigned ignorance. "Sanniang has indeed seen this humble one a few days ago..."

The young woman snorted, her voice dropping a few degrees colder, her gaze sweeping over him like small blades.

Suddenly, she asked, "A wolf running a thousand miles eats meat—what is the second half of the phrase?"

Such a trick could never catch someone like Li Po off guard. With even the slightest bit of preparation and his exceptional psychological resilience, even a sociopath couldn't compare to him.

He raised his head without any trace of abnormality, staring blankly at the young woman for a moment before stammering, "This one doesn't know."

A hint of suspicion finally crossed the young woman's face. Li Po breathed a sigh of relief, curling his lip inwardly. *Too green! You think you can bluff me with such little tricks? Keep dreaming.*

The young woman reined in her gaze and said indifferently, "You have an uncle named Li Chengshun, correct?"

"Yes, this humble one came specifically to look for my uncle."

"Li Chengshun, went beyond the frontier in the eighteenth year of the Kaihuang era, garrisoned at the Yunzhong border fort, and served under the jurisdiction of the Yunzhong Garrison Command. However, in the second year of Daye, when Prince Han, Yang Liang, rebelled and raised troops in Jinyang... the Yunzhong Garrison Command followed suit. In the third year of Daye, the Yunzhong Garrison Command was abolished, and most of the border soldiers perished in the chaos..."

"If you had traveled north to Yunzhong and searched everywhere in vain, only to subsequently detour to Mayi, that would make sense. Why the deliberate concealment?"

Since coercion failed, she turned to probing. In Li Po's eyes, this amounted to nothing. He would rather be beaten to death than admit to anything. Regarding one's background, once you made a firm statement, you could never take it back. Changing your story would only make things progressively worse with no other outcome.

Yet he harbored a slight doubt. Her arrogance seemed deeply ingrained in her bones, an utterly unpretentious, natural haughtiness.

The very first time Li Po laid eyes on her, he had sensed this quality. Though he had no idea what great figures of this era were truly like, he could glimpse a hint of it through her.

They were entirely different from people of later generations; they were born noble, possessing an upbringing and bearing that later generations could never hope to learn.

It was something uniquely belonging to the ancient aristocracy. No matter how closely later generations dressed to mimic them, they could never express the inner essence.

Much like later people playing the role of an emperor—they were merely monkeys dressed in caps, because one could never comprehend the mindset of an emperor who, with a single stroke of anger, could leave a million corpses in his wake and rivers of blood flowing a thousand miles.

An aristocratic woman like Li Bi was precisely like this. She showed no pleasantries whatsoever to people of low status; in her eyes, commoners were mere ants.

Yet she had spoken so many words to a lowly stable hand, leaving Li Po greatly surprised, full of doubt, and deeply vigilant.

Hiding his suspicions deep within, he widened his eyes and asked with a trace of feigned terror, "Un... Uncle is dead?"

Li Bi scrutinized Li Po, nodded slightly, and seeing that he appeared unsettled yet not particularly grief-stricken, she seemingly lost interest after a moment and casually waved a hand.

The meaning could not have been clearer: *Get lost immediately.*