After Liu Yuan fled, Liu Xin and Liu Chi hated him to the extreme, believing he had implicated the entire family. If the imperial court were to capture Liu Yuan and execute his nine relations for rebellion, then without a doubt, Liu Xin and Liu Chi would be the first to suffer.

Fortunately, the Qin Dynasty was already in disarray, struggling to deal with uprisings everywhere. The current Qin ruler lacked the capability of Qin Shi Huang of old and could only sit in the high palace of Xianyang, deaf and blind to the world. The Liu family had thus escaped disaster. Unexpectedly, at the most unforeseen moment, Liu Yuan reappeared, and in the manner of a victor, swaggered before everyone.

Liu Xin and Liu Chi would of course never have helped Madam Zhang, but now that Liu Yuan had returned and was in control of Yingchuan Commandery, such words could not be spoken.

You could think it in your heart, but you couldn't say it out loud, because to say it would put you in the wrong. While Liu Yuan was away, they, as his father and brother, had failed to care for his family. This was inexcusable no matter how you looked at it.

So, after Liu Zhen exposed this, Liu Xin and Liu Chi were instantly overcome with embarrassment.

Liu Zhen didn't let them off the hook just like that, adding fuel to the fire: "When we were in the mountains, we ate tree bark and grass roots, but we never once saw Grandfather and Uncle come to see us. Father, do Grandfather and Uncle not like us?"

As she spoke, she put on an expression of "I'm so ignorant." Liu Zhen felt that if she could return to the modern era, even if she couldn't win an Oscar, a Golden Rooster Award would be no problem at all.

Look at him now. With every pause she made, her uncle's eye twitched. His whole face looked even stiffer, as if he were wearing a mask. It was truly a delightful sight.

Liu Yuan smiled and patted Liu Zhen's head. "Good Ah Zhen, you've misunderstood your grandfather and uncle. It's because you all ran up into the mountains and they couldn't find you that they didn't go to see you."

This reason was even more ridiculous. It was no secret that Liu Zhen and the others were hiding in the mountains; anyone who really tried could have found them. Even if he was worried about his son being a rebel and implicating him, there was no need to abandon his own grandchildren. Despite his wife and children being abused to this extent, he, the Governer, had just respectfully greeted his own father, not slighting his old father and elder brother because of his sudden rise to a high position.

When the two were compared, even the ignorant villagers could tell who was right and who was wrong.

If Liu Yuan were still that rebel in exile, everyone would have accused him of implicating the village. But now times had changed, Liu Yuan's status was different, and naturally, everyone's thoughts were different too.

Enduring the strange gazes from the onlookers, the faces of Liu Xin and his son turned from green to white, then white to red, changing again and again. It was an indescribably spectacular sight.

It was Liu Yuan who spoke up: "Father, my child is young and ignorant, please do not blame her." Then he said to the County Magistrate of Changshe, "Ziceng, do you have any clean clothes over there? Seeing them dressed like this pains my heart. If it's convenient, I'd like to borrow your clothes for them to use first."

Before, Liu Yuan was a subordinate of the County Magistrate of Changshe and had to act with utmost reverence. Now that the tables had turned and he was the superior, his form of address naturally had to change, and he directly called the other party by his name.

"Yes, yes!" This intimate form of address completely assured the County Magistrate of Changshe that Liu Yuan had no intention of causing him trouble. He said repeatedly, "Governer, please make your way to the county yamen!"

Madam Zhang was still a bit dazed. The embarrassing scene she had expected didn't happen. With just a few words from Liu Zhen, the situation had turned into Liu Xin and Liu Chi's predicament. Along with them, their family members, Madam Lou and Madam Yu, also lost face. The whole family stood there, indescribably awkward, which Madam Zhang found extremely satisfying to watch.

In the end, it was Liu Yuan who said, "Father, Elder Brother, please return home first. I will settle my family in, then I will come to pay my respects to Father and Mother." Only then did Liu Xin react. Without another word, he flicked his sleeves and left.

"Husband..."

Madam Zhang wanted to say more, but Liu Yuan waved his hand. "Let's talk after we get to the county yamen."

The County Magistrate of Changshe had already thoughtfully vacated a residence—his own living quarters. It was a suite of three connected rooms, convenient for Liu Yuan and his family to have some private time. He even sent over eight servant girls, and Liu Zhen was fortunate enough to be assigned one.

Liu Yuan was now in charge of Yingchuan Commandery, and his personal soldiers were back in Yangdi. After finding Liu Zhen and the others, An Zheng had immediately returned to Yangdi to help him manage things. An Zheng's family also moved to Yangdi. As for Liu Yuan, if nothing unexpected happened, he would have to return by tomorrow at the latest. These servant girls were naturally a gift from the County Magistrate of Changshe to Liu Yuan and could not be refused.

The servant girl assigned to serve Liu Zhen, like the other seven, was not exceptionally beautiful, but she wasn't ugly either, having delicate and pleasant features. She was very deft with her hands and feet. Though she looked frail, she could carry a pile of clothes, jewelry, shoes, and socks, and walk with extreme stability. This was likely a skill honed over many years of training.

At this time, Liu Zhen had already finished washing up by herself and was sitting there watching the girl at work.

Since arriving in the Qin Dynasty, given the Liu family's financial situation and Liu Zhen's young age, she had always worn simple linen jackets and short robes. The girls around her were from similar backgrounds, so no one felt anything was amiss. As a result, although Liu Zhen had seen Madam Zhang wear curved-hem or straight-hem robes, it was only today that she had the chance to try one on herself.

The servant girl, while helping Liu Zhen put on the prepared curved-hem deep robe, flattered her, "Young Mistress is so clever and cute, this outfit suits you perfectly!"

Liu Zhen looked down. The outer robe was a color between yellow and green, not as bright as orange-yellow, with a much softer tone. A red silk sash was tied tightly at her waist. When she walked, the hem lifted slightly with her steps. She suddenly had the illusion of "becoming a lady in one second."

Born in a chaotic era and having suddenly become the daughter of a Governer, she didn't even have to follow the regulations for clothing colors anymore, even though this Governer was self-appointed by the "rebel army."

To think that just yesterday, I was part of the exploited class, and today, I've transformed into the exploiting class.

"Young Mistress, shall I style your hair in twin topknots?" the servant girl asked.

"Alright." Liu Zhen couldn't make out anything clearly in the blurry mirror surface, so she decided not to look at all. "What's your name?"

The servant girl was very clever. "This servant was originally sent by the County Magistrate. Now that the County Magistrate has gifted this servant to the Governer, this servant belongs to the Young Mistress. I ask the Young Mistress to bestow a name upon me."

Liu Zhen thought that since her father had her sent over, he probably intended for her to stay with her. So, she casually pointed to the wild osmanthus outside the window and said, "How about Gui Xiang?"

Gui Xiang had just finished combing her hair. She put down the wooden comb, bowed her head, and said, "Thank you, Young Mistress, for the name."

Liu Zhen touched the two buns on her head, quite satisfied. If she had combed it herself, they would have definitely ended up one big and one small, a truly disastrous sight.

Meanwhile, Liu Yuan and Xu Zhongfang were enacting a scene of deep brotherly affection.

The two entered the inner room, and without a word, Liu Yuan dropped to the ground and kowtowed.

Xu Zhongfang hurriedly stepped forward to help him up, but with a firm push, Liu Yuan remained as still as a rock, determined to complete the formal rite.

"Third Brother, don't stop me. It is I, your Elder Brother, who should be thanking you. You protected my wife and children, a kindness akin to giving me a new life. You should accept this rite!"

After Liu Yuan finished the first kowtow and was about to perform a second, he was forcefully pulled up by Xu Zhongfang, who said in a rough voice, "Elder Brother! Your family is my family. Isn't it my duty to look after them? Besides, my abilities were limited, and I failed to take complete care of them. If you continue to be so formal, Elder Brother, then I, Xu Zhongfang, will have no face to stay here any longer!"

Liu Yuan burst out laughing, hugged him tightly, and slapped his back hard. "Good brother!"

After a while, the two separated and sat down.

Xu Zhongfang asked impatiently, "Elder Brother, are you really the Governer of Yingchuan Commandery now? What on earth happened? Aiyo, ever since I saw you just now, my heart has been itching with curiosity. I wish I could have asked you right then and there!"

Liu Yuan sighed. "It's a long story."

He had originally intended to just flee. Releasing the prisoners from the county jail was only to create a diversion for himself. But as a result of his previous favors, and because many of them were also at their wits' end, many prisoners expressed their willingness to follow him. Some even knelt and begged Liu Yuan to take them along.

Under these circumstances, Liu Yuan couldn't just leave them behind. To take a step back, if he refused to take them, these people could become a potential threat to his escape. So he gathered them up and, in the blink of an eye, became the leader of a dozen or so men, with An Zheng as his second-in-command.

One or two people would have been manageable, but with a group of over a dozen, even eating became a problem. So, Liu Yuan and An Zheng discussed it and decided to go to Chen Commandery to join Chen Sheng's forces. In any case, they had already fallen out with the County Magistrate. They were fugitives either way, so they might as well just fucking rebel.

After the two brothers made their decision, they also asked for the small group's opinion. Those willing to stay could go with them. Those who were not could leave on their own, but only after everyone had reached Chen Commandery, to prevent them from turning around and reporting to the authorities.

The result of the inquiry was that of the dozen or so men, not a single one wanted to leave on their own. In times like these, fleeing alone would only lead to starving to death or being captured by Qin soldiers. It was better to follow the main group. At least when they reached Chen Commandery, they would surely get a full meal.

After arriving at the King of Zhangchu's base in Chen Commandery, Liu Yuan and his group were welcomed, but the welcome was not particularly warm. They couldn't even get an audience with the Acting King, Wu Guang, let alone Chen Sheng himself. At that time, after several months of development, Chen Sheng's revolutionary army had grown quite large. People from all over flocked to join him, and a small group of a dozen like Liu Yuan's was simply insignificant and naturally didn't receive much attention.

However, although they weren't given much importance, they were still fed. Liu Yuan and An Zheng had nowhere else to go anyway, so they simply joined the Acting King Wu Guang's forces, running from east to west, fighting battles everywhere. The hardships went without saying. After a year, of the dozen or so people who had originally followed Liu Yuan, only eight remained, including An Zheng. But Liu Yuan and his men were also slowly promoted.

Before Liu Yuan took over Yingchuan Commandery, the King of Zhangchu, Chen Sheng, had originally wanted him to follow Wu Guang and Tian Zang to attack Xingyang. But there had always been conflict between Wu Guang and Tian Zang; they often fought internally for power and profit. Liu Yuan really didn't want to be caught in the middle as cannon fodder. He also felt that Xingyang would not be easy to take. So he requested a different assignment from Chen Sheng, volunteering to leave half of his troops for Wu Guang and the others, while he would take the remaining half to Yingchuan Commandery.

Attacking Xingyang was a chance for great merit. Since he was willing to yield it and even split his forces, the others were naturally more than happy. Chen Sheng also agreed, so Liu Yuan directly brought his men over.

The Governer of Yingchuan Commandery was not a man of the Qin State, and his will to resist wasn't very strong to begin with. Seeing the tumultuous uprisings all around Yingchuan, with the Qin army suffering successive defeats, he had long grown timid and had no intention of fighting. Coupled with Liu Yuan's solemn promise to treat him and his family well, he immediately opened the city gates and welcomed them in, surrendering without a fight and achieving a peaceful transition.

This was also Liu Yuan's good luck. If it had been someone else, the result might have been very different.

As soon as Liu Yuan took over Yingchuan Commandery, he immediately rushed to Xiang Town to pick up his family. The soldiers under his command were not all his trusted followers; many had joined midway. If both he and An Zheng were absent, and the troops developed other ideas, Liu Yuan would be stripped of everything and left with nothing. That was why after accompanying Liu Yuan here, An Zheng had to rush back to hold the fort for him and keep those men in check. Only with An Zheng there could Liu Yuan feel at ease enough to stay here for an extra day.

Liu Yuan was a good storyteller. His accounts of several near-death experiences on the battlefield made Xu Zhongfang's eyes go wide. Even knowing that they had ultimately been fine, he couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for Liu Yuan and An Zheng.

When Liu Yuan had finished recounting his experiences, Xu Zhongfang finally let out a long sigh of relief. He had no psychological burden about rebelling; on the contrary, his face was full of regret that he couldn't participate. "It's a pity I couldn't go with you."

Liu Yuan laughed heartily. "Why can't you go with me? Now that we three brothers are reunited, we won't be separated from now on. As long as I have a bowl of millet to eat, I'll never let you drink bean soup!"

After reminiscing about old times, it was time to discuss the present. Xu Zhongfang asked, "From what you've said, Elder Brother, the situation with the King of Zhangchu is not stable and I fear a change is coming. Now that you've taken over Yingchuan Commandery, what are your plans?"

Liu Yuan nodded. "Of course I have plans. When I was in Chen Commandery, I saw that the King of Zhangchu had dismissed all the former County Magistrates and their staff, distributing the positions to his own men. I, however, do not intend to follow his example. The governance of Yingchuan Commandery will follow the old regulations in all matters, without any changes."

Xu Zhongfang was taken aback. "This is your plan, Elder Brother?"