Chapter 229: Traces of the Pirates
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The gathered villagers gradually dispersed as the people of Yutai Village were released from the prison one by one.
Upon seeing Yue Yun, an elderly woman suddenly knelt before Yang Chengye and said, “Governor, selling smuggled salt has nothing to do with Yue Yun. It was me who forced him into it. The villagers are all old now—the young ones either joined the army or were killed at sea. Those of us left behind can’t farm anymore. We only sold salt to survive.”
“Mother, what are you doing? His Highness has already pardoned us,” Yue Yun said, embarrassed.
“What?!” The old woman looked at the three men outside—two strangers and Yang Chengye, who wore a bitter smile.
Seeing her gaze, Yang sighed. “Yue Yun is right. This is His Highness, the Prince of Qi. If you want to thank anyone, thank him.”
The old woman turned to Xiao Ming, trembling with emotion, and bowed deeply.
Xiao Ming quickly helped her up. “No need for such formalities. If your lives are difficult, that is my failure. I came to Dengzhou to deal with the pirate problem.”
The old woman’s eyes widened. “Your Highness… is this true?”
Xiao Ming nodded.
Pang Yukun interjected, “Your Highness, this isn’t the place to talk. Let’s return to the government office. Dengzhou’s situation is no simpler than Cangzhou’s.”
Yang Chengye snapped back to attention. “Your Highness, Chief Pang is right. Pirates often lurk in Dengzhou. We should discuss this inside.”