In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 312 Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery

"Since they're from the Zheng family, that makes things easier!"

Chen Dao was secretly delighted, but his expression remained unchanged: "If the Zheng family is willing to give me a copy of the mid-grade martial art Cloud Shadow Palm, I can sell the Blood Feather Chicken to you."

Cloud Shadow Palm?

Qingying was shocked and looked at Chen Dao in disbelief.

Manager Wang's eyes widened in disbelief; he had never expected Chen Dao to make such a request.

The Cloud Shadow Palm is a family martial art of the Zheng family. How could a manager working for the Zheng family decide where the Cloud Shadow Palm goes?

"Mr. Chen, I cannot make that decision!"

Manager Wang shook his head vigorously, as if it were a rattle-drum: "The Cloud Shadow Palm is a closely guarded secret of the Zheng family. I am merely a manager of the Zheng Family Trading Company. How can I decide the fate of the Cloud Shadow Palm?"

"I know you can't decide that."

Chen Dao dismissed it, saying, "You can go back and discuss it with the head of the Zheng family!"

"This……"

Shopkeeper Wang opened his mouth several times, but Chen Dao's attitude was already very clear: if he wanted the Blood Feather Chicken, he had to get a copy of the Cloud Shadow Palm technique, but...

The Cloud Shadow Palm technique is a closely guarded secret of the Zheng family; how could it be passed on to Chen Dao?

Manager Wang's expression shifted between light and dark.

Qingying, who was standing next to him, suddenly spoke up: "If Mr. Chen wants the Cloud Shadow Palm technique, he might as well go to the county town and discuss it with the Zheng family in person!"

As Zheng Qiuyan's personal maid, Qingying's understanding of the Zheng family's internal affairs far surpasses that of Manager Wang.

In fact, the Cloud Shadow Palm is not only for those with Zheng family blood; there are many maids within the Zheng family, including her, who can learn the Cloud Shadow Palm.

Therefore, it is clear that while Cloud Shadow Palm may be important to the Zheng family, it is definitely not a closely guarded secret.

Given Zheng Qiuyan's emphasis on the Blood Feather Chicken, it's not impossible for Chen Dao to obtain a rubbing of the Cloud Shadow Palm technique.

"Oh?"

Chen Dao glanced at Qing Ying, pondered for a moment, and then nodded, saying, "Very well! I will go to the county town with you!"

After saying that, Chen Dao said to Chen Cheng, "Cheng-ge, arrange accommodations for them. We'll set off for the county town tomorrow."

"Okay, Brother Dao."

Soon after, Qingying and Manager Wang were led by Chen Cheng to stay temporarily in an old house, which was an old house left behind by a family in the village after they built a new house.

After Chen Cheng left, Manager Wang sat in a chair, frowning as he looked at Qingying: "What are you thinking?"

Manager Wang did not believe that Chen Dao could obtain the Cloud Shadow Palm rubbing from the Zheng family, so he was very puzzled by Qing Ying's invitation to Chen Dao to the county town.

"Miss values ​​the Blood Feather Chicken very much."

Qingying said, "There may be room for discussion regarding the Cloud Shadow Palm matter."

"Is it……"

Manager Wang said no more. Soon after, the caravan members who had been waiting outside the village were led into the village and settled in.

Qingying and Manager Wang walked out of the house and looked around Chenjia Village.

Previously, because they had other things on their minds, the two had not carefully observed Chenjia Village. Only now did they realize that Chenjia Village was very different from the villages they had seen before.

The entire village resembled a giant construction site, with villagers busy everywhere, building houses or repairing roads, creating a bustling and vibrant atmosphere.

"This should be farmland in Chenjia Village!"

Before long, the two stood at the edge of the farmland in Chenjia Village, where they saw many women busy working in the fields, a scene of bustling activity.

"Are men responsible for building houses and roads, while women are responsible for tilling the land?"

Looking at the farmland in front of him, Manager Wang seemed to be deep in thought.

…………

…………

The next day, the caravan set off back to the county town. However, compared to when they arrived, there were two more people in the caravan: Chen Dao and Chen Cheng, as well as Xiao Yuan hanging on Chen Dao's shoulder.

Looking at the massive caravan slowly moving forward, a hint of envy flashed across Chen Dao's eyes.

Compared to the caravans of Chenjia Village, the Zheng family's caravans were undoubtedly more professional and more luxurious.

The caravans from Chenjia Village often used donkey carts as their means of transportation, while the Zheng family's caravans were all made up of horse-drawn carriages, and the guards accompanying the caravans were all strong and robust, exuding a fierce aura, which made it clear that they were quite powerful.

"Set off."

At Manager Wang's command, the convoy slowly started and headed south.

Just as Chen Dao and his group set off, a massive army was also setting off from the capital city, thousands of miles away.

Mounted on horseback, Marquis Lu Mingyi, the loyal and brave general, watched the slowly advancing army, a hint of helplessness flashing across his aged face.

After months of deliberation, the imperial court finally made a decision: to appoint Marquis Zhongyong Lu Mingyi as the commander-in-chief, leading 10 combat soldiers and 15 auxiliary soldiers, a total of 25 troops, to send troops to Liangzhou to suppress bandits.

Lu Mingyi was no stranger to the matter of suppressing bandits, because he obtained his title through bandit suppression.

The Xia Kingdom had enjoyed a long period of peace, and most of its battles were fought domestically to suppress bandits. During the reign of the previous emperor, banditry frequently broke out, and Lu Mingyi distinguished himself in these campaigns, ultimately being granted the title of Marquis of Loyalty and Valor.

Now, six years have passed since the late emperor's death, and Lu Mingyi is already very old and no longer as brave as he once was.

In fact, Lu Mingyi had been retired for many years. Unexpectedly, in his old age, he still had to lead troops into battle!

A bitter smile flashed across Lu Mingyi's lips. He was not afraid of fighting. Although he had been retired for many years, his ability to command battles had not declined much. After all, he had fought half his life and was already very familiar with commanding battles.

Can……

No matter how strong his command ability is, he still needs soldiers who are capable and willing to fight!

The soldiers sent on this expedition were drawn from the three major camps in the capital: the Divine Might Camp, the Divine Martial Camp, and the Divine Wind Camp. These three camps were the backbone of Emperor Taizu when he swept across the country, and it is no exaggeration to say that they were elite troops who had fought a hundred battles.

But that was all in the past. As the Xia Kingdom had enjoyed peace for a long time, the soldiers of the three battalions had long lost their former bravery.

A few days ago, when Lu Mingyi inspected the three camps, he saw soldiers who were sallow-faced and emaciated, with no will to fight. He even saw many generals openly gambling in the camps, and some even bringing prostitutes into the camps for lewd pleasures...

When Lu Mingyi saw this scene, he almost fainted. How could such a corrupt army fight a war?

Lu Mingyi was so angry that he wanted to punish all those generals with military law, however...

This is obviously impossible.

The generals in the three camps were all sons of noble families in the capital. Although Lu Mingyi was the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, he had been idle at home for many years and had no power or influence in the court. How could he deal with those noble sons who all had terrifying backgrounds?

Ultimately, the matter was dropped. Faced with pressure from all sides, Lu Mingyi could only take it on high and let it go, sparing those generals from the blame.