s to ally themselves with him, the Sun Family would not be targeted for now, regardless of how much White Family's property was confiscated. But... if they were spared now, it did not mean that they w...7. Cloud Song (6)

7。Cloud Song (Six)

A few men chasing after Yun Ge saw her leaning against a man in white when they caught up to her. The man was clad entirely in white, his black hair falling loose behind him. When he raised his head, a pair of calm eyes met them, distant and profound. At that moment, however, there was a faint coldness in those eyes. Such an elegant and ethereal man would be extremely rare even in a large southern city like Guangling, let alone this remote countryside, causing everyone to hesitate.

"Who are you Don't you dare lay a hand on my beauty!" The slender young man snapped out of his reverie and took a step forward, shouting loudly. He had been eyeing this small beauty for so long, how could he let someone else take her away just as she was about to be his Although Guangling was known for its beautiful women, one like this was rare indeed.

Qingchen gently swept a glance at everyone present and said, "Who are you You have quite the nerve."

The slender young man froze before sneering coldly, "I see that your nerve is truly great; but do you even have the ability to meddle in others' affairs Listen well: I am the eldest son of the Huang family from Guangling city. In this place, no one dares oppose me!" Initially hesitant due to Xu Qingchen's impressive demeanor, he grew arrogant once more upon seeing the ordinary white robe and realizing that Xu was but an unremarkable scholar with no martial prowess.

Xu Qingchen bent down to pick up Yun Ge and said coolly, "Huang family, I've noted it."

Seeing Xu Qingchen carry Yun Ge away, the young master of the Huang family raged, "How bold! Stop right there! Men, attack!"

The men following him obeyed their master's command and lunged forward. But Xu Qingchen seemed not to notice them as he turned around and headed towards Guangling.

To be so disregarded by a person who was weak and incapable, the crowd could not help but get angry. One of them punched at Xu Qingchen's back. Unexpectedly, with only the breeze touching him, that man hugged his fist and fell to the ground before even reaching Xu Qingchen’s clothes, howling in pain.

The crowd jumped in fright and warily looked around. Several gray-clad men appeared on both sides of the road without them noticing. They coldly glanced at everyone and leaped down in front of Xu Qingchen, saying, "Eldest Young Master."

Xu Qingchen lowered his head to glance at Yun Ge sleeping in his arms and said calmly, "Take these people back to Guangling City and have the governor come see me."

"As you wish," the gray-clad man replied softly. He waved his hand and the few men behind him swiftly subdued everyone and bound them up like zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). That Huang Young Master was stunned, staring at Xu Qingchen. Someone who could casually have a governor come to see him was definitely no ordinary person, "You… Who exactly are you"

Xu Qingchen looked at him calmly and then turned around with Yun Ge in his arms and walked away. The guards behind him pitied this thin and sickly-looking Huang Young Master who had lost his temper multiple times while following Miss Shen on her travels, and thus had almost gotten separated from the group a few times already. This man was courting death by running into Xu Qingchen himself… He really felt sorry for him.

In the back courtyard of an unremarkable inn in Guangling City, several people dressed with some distinction stood anxiously in the yard waiting. A few expressionless gray-clad guards were standing near the entrance; they seemed to have ignored everyone’s unease.

The leading man was wearing third-grade official attire and had plenty of white hair mixed into his black hair, looking like he was completely grey-haired already. He should be one of Guangling City's important officials in charge there but looked worried, as if the sky were falling down on him. Walking beside him was a middle-aged man dressed luxuriously. Behind the middle-aged man were several men and women of different ages; however, it seemed he could not understand how anxious the governor was, merely frowning at the guards nearby.

"Sir, my son..." The man looked at Guangling's governor with a furrowed brow. When he heard that his son had been kidnapped, he planned to send some of his household servants and guards to look for him. Unexpectedly, before even leaving the house, he received a message from the governor telling him to immediately go to this inn. He was also reminded to be respectful. He instantly understood that his son must have offended someone extraordinary. But when he arrived here and saw how worried the governor looked, he did not think much of it. With the Huang family's power in Guangling City, as long as Duke Ding and Duchess Ding were not there personally, who could do anything to them There is a saying that a strong dragon will not bully local snakes; this newly arrived governor must also be respectful towards these established noble families of Guangling.

The governor of Guangling frowned, the look on his face becoming somewhat unfriendly. He did not know if the Huang family had truly offended too much by offending Qingchen Young Master. To those outside who were unaware, they might think that Qingchen Young Master was gentle and refined and must be a kind-hearted gentleman; but as officials from Duke Ding’s mansion, how could they not know In the past two years, since Duke Ding and Duchess Ding had been away at war, all matters of the Duke's mansion had been handled by Qingchen Young Master. Among the old servants, officials, and military leaders under Duke Ding's command, there were many who were arrogant and proud. If Qingchen Young Master only had talent but no firm measures, how could he control these people Even if Duke Ding and Duchess Ding came personally, they might be able to ask for leniency from the Duchess; but offending Qingchen Young Master now… Watching the Huang Family patriarch still unaware of the situation, the governor shook his head in his heart and ignored him. He quietly thought about whether he had made any mistakes during his tenure as the Guangling City governor so far.

Seeing the Prefect's expression, Mr. Huang also instinctively felt that something was amiss. However, he couldn't think of anyone in Guangling whom the Huang family could not afford to offend. Even those generals who commanded large armies could be appeased with the Huang family’s vast wealth. Besides, the person who brought back the news had mentioned that it was a weak and delicate young master who had captured his son.

Outside the door, everyone's thoughts were varied, but Qingchen Scholar paid no heed to their anxious anticipation. He sat calmly by the bed, gazing at the serene sleeping face of the girl. Sleeping, she seemed more peaceful and innocent than when awake, her hand still clutching one corner of the blanket tightly in her sweet slumber, truly like an unworldly little child.

He gently pinched her rosy cheek. Qingchen Scholar laughed helplessly under his breath, "Isn’t it better to stay by my side Why do you insist on running around everywhere What would have happened if I wasn't here this time You must behave since you're so stupid, and I won't look down on you for that. Your face has lost some of its plumpness; what a silly girl."

The sleeping girl’s slightly curled lashes quivered lightly. Qingchen Scholar calmly withdrew his hand and smiled, "Do you still wish to pretend to be asleep"

Yun Ge, who had been pretending to sleep, instantly opened her eyes, rubbing the reddened cheeks that he had pinched as she looked at the handsome scholar before her with a forced laugh. "Xu Qingchen… how did you end up here"

Qingchen Scholar's smile was cold, "If I hadn't been here, you would have become someone else’s concubine."

Aware that she was in the wrong and naturally afraid of this person, Yun Ge lowered her head meekly. Seeing her pitiful appearance, Xu Qingchen could not help but feel a twinge of softness in his heart as he sighed gently, "You know you shouldn't run around anymore, right You should understand how dangerous it was today."

Yun Ge did not care whether she understood clearly what Xu Qingchen had said; she nodded repeatedly. Qingchen Scholar stroked her hair and said, "You’ve just been detoxified, so rest for a while. I need to handle some matters."

"Okay." Yun Ge nodded, blinking at Qingchen Scholar with her big eyes.

Mr. Qingchen stood up and looked at Yun Ge with a solemn expression, saying, "No more sneaking out! Otherwise... I'll lock you up to copy books for the rest of your life."

Sigh... Upon hearing this, Yun Ge's heart trembled slightly; she nodded vigorously and shook her head frantically. Seeing her like that, Mr. Qingchen’s coldness diminished somewhat, "If you behave yourself, I won't punish you." Actually, Ms. Yun Ge was quite an interesting character, thought Mr. Qingchen silently to himself. However, he couldn’t be too harsh with her or else the little girl would run away again.

“Ugh, I’m tired, let me sleep.” Afraid of any further defiance, Yun Ge curled up under the covers and covered her head, refusing to face reality. Mr. Qingchen smiled faintly, shook his head, and turned to leave the room. At the same time, a layer of frost reappeared in his originally warm eyes.

Just as he stepped out the door, the Governor of Guangling greeted him with great eagerness, "Sir..."

Xu Qingchen raised his hand to stop him before giving everyone in the yard a cold glance and heading towards the front hall. The grey-clad guards at the door left two people behind to guard the entrance; the rest followed silently after him. After hesitating for a moment, the Governor of Guangling glared fiercely at Mr. Huang’s family before hurrying after them.

In the flower pavilion, Mr. Qingchen sat in the upper seat drinking tea. The previously arrogant Huang Xiucai was tied up like a large zongzi (sticky rice dumpling) and thrown into the hall. With his mother already there, she let out an agonized cry and rushed over to him, "Zu’er! Zu’er, what happened Who bullied you" Huang Xiucai could only make unintelligible sounds for a while since he had been struck dumb; he tried desperately to gesture towards the woman with his eyes, but unfortunately, she was too anxious and worried to understand.

"Subject, Governor of Guangling Li Jiyi, paying respects to Sir." The Governor of Guangling straightened his clothes and bowed respectfully before him. However, Mr. Huang was furious and indignant, "Mr. Li, what is going on here Who is this gentleman, that he would treat my son like this"

Inside, the Governor of Guangling cursed the fool inwardly, lowered his head as if in deep thought, seemingly not having heard Mr. Huang's words.

"Mr. Li," Mr. Qingchen put down his teacup and said coolly.

"Yes, Your Excellency, please give your orders," the Governor of Guangling hurriedly said.

Xu Qingchen said, "You have been in Guangling for more than three months now. You've handled official duties quite well. However, how do you explain these matters" He tossed a thick stack of papers into the Governor's arms. The Governor hastily caught and opened it but his face turned paler as he read on. It was filled with accounts of the local aristocrats bullying common folk and doing evil deeds in Guangling, some of which had been reported to the government offices only to be suppressed by him. The Governor found himself at a loss for words; Guangling used to be under the control of Greater Chu before switching to Western Ling later on. Regardless of who was in charge, these local clans remained unbothered and stable. As former capital of the previous dynasty, these clans had long roots that ran deep into society. The Governor himself came from a common family background but relied solely on his own efforts to climb to this position as governor. However, after arriving in Guangling he found himself constantly restrained by these aristocratic families, forcing him to compromise with them and turn a blind eye to many of their activities to ensure a smooth transition and revival of the local economy.

"This subordinate understands his mistake; please punish me," the Governor knelt down without any defense, solemnly accepting his punishment.

Xu Qingchen looked at him and said, "I understand why you did these things. Since there is a reason behind it, I won’t penalize you. But… as an official in charge of a region, your duty is to the people first and foremost rather than balancing interests. If you encounter any difficulties, report them immediately and someone will certainly come to assist you. Even if it means acting first then seeking approval later, neither the Prince nor the Princess would blame you. However… if due to your interest-based judgment the commoners suffer, whether it be the Prince or the Princess or even me, none of us will forgive you, and you need not continue in this role as governor!"

In reality, saying that people are unable to survive is too severe. Under Li Jiyi's administration, every aspect of Brightness was quite satisfactory. However, these entrenched aristocratic families in Guangling were not something a mere governor could easily handle.

Hearing Xu Qingchen’s words, the Governor secretly heaved a sigh of relief and prostrated himself respectfully: "This subordinate understands; I have failed to live up to the trust placed by the Prince and Princess, and will not dare repeat my mistake."

Xu Qingchen nodded in satisfaction and said, "Very well, then let’s deal with these matters."

The Governor couldn’t help but draw a deep breath upon hearing this. The documents almost recorded all the crimes of Guangling's aristocratic families; if dealt with according to law, it would likely offend every single one of them in Guangling. But thinking about how the Prince treated former high officials and nobles in Li City, Qingchen’s attitude seemed reasonable. It was probably that neither the Prince nor the公子也不滿這些人，今日之事不過是借題發揮罷了。

“What is it” Seeing his hesitation, Xu Qingchen raised an eyebrow coolly.

(Note: The last sentence has been translated as directly as possible, but there appears to be a missing context or placeholder in the original text that reads "公子也不滿這些人，今日之事不過是借題發揮罷了。" which translates to "The公子 is also dissatisfied with these people; today's matter is just an excuse to vent one's grievances." If this sentence needs to fit into a specific narrative, further context would be necessary for accurate translation.)

"No... Your servant obeys the order!" The Governor of Guangling stood up and called out, "Someone here!"

Soon after, the bailiffs who had been waiting outside entered respectfully to receive their orders. The governor recited a long list of names, all of them notorious wastrels from influential families in Guangling city. He said sternly, “Hurry up and apprehend these people.”

Even the bailiffs were taken aback by this order. They looked at the extraordinarily handsome young master sitting on the dais and hurriedly accepted their orders before leaving.

"Mr. Li, what does this mean"

The Old Man Huang was still in shock from this sudden turn of events and questioned the Governor of Guangling pointedly.

The governor sneered and said, "Since no one else has arrived yet, how about dealing with the current situation first What do you think, young master"

Xu Qingchen raised an eyebrow and said, “Alright.”

"Huang Yaozu, relying on your family's power, you forcibly seized a common girl, forcing her to become a concubine and causing the deaths of three members in one household. Do you admit your guilt"

"What!"thank you for reminding me." There was no permanent peace or friendship between countries, which they all knew very well. Perhaps in the future they might become enemies, but at least now the Princess...