Legend of the Female General

Chapter 212: Preemptive

The winter in Shuojing grew colder with each passing day.

After a night of rain, the ground was coated with a damp chill by the next morning. On the tenth day of the tenth month, He Yan rose early.

He Sui and He Yun Sheng had left before dawn—one for work, the other for school. After they departed, He Yan got up, lit a candle, quietly washed and dressed, and tiptoed out of the house.

Qingmei was still fast asleep, and it was not yet time for her to prepare breakfast. He Yan knew that Chi Wu stayed in an empty room in the courtyard, keeping watch during the first half of the night and resting during the second. However, he was sharp-witted and alert, so to avoid being noticed, He Yan employed the stealth and infiltration skills she had honed in her previous life in the Vanguard Battalion, navigating the short distance from the courtyard to the outside.

Xiangxiang glanced at her, seemingly puzzled by her actions. He Yan patted the horse’s head. He Yun Sheng truly cherished this horse, even going so far as to outfit it with a new saddle, though he was too reluctant to ride it, leaving the saddle unused. However, today she needed to leave the city, and with no money left to rent a carriage, she had no choice but to ask Xiangxiang for a ride.

He Yan mounted the horse and galloped through the hazy winter dawn of Shuojing City toward the outskirts.

By the time the rooster crowed for the third time, Qingmei yawned and got up to boil water. The stove was placed outside the courtyard, and the kettle bubbled with steam, bringing a touch of warmth to the cold morning. She first went to the kitchen to prepare the porridge, then headed to the courtyard to refill the trough in the stable.

He Yun Sheng loved horses dearly and used to feed them himself, but with his heavy academic load and early departures and late returns, he could no longer tend to them regularly. Thus, he entrusted this honorable task to Qingmei. Qingmei dared not neglect it, treating Xiangxiang as the third young master of the household and caring for him meticulously.

Usually, when Qingmei approached the "stable," Xiangxiang would pace back and forth upon hearing her voice. Today, however, it was unusually quiet. Qingmei grew worried—could he be ill? The weather had been bitterly cold lately, and even people were prone to catching chills, let alone horses. Carrying a lantern, Qingmei walked up to the stable and peered inside. She froze for a moment before snapping back to reality and rushing toward He Yan’s room, shouting as she ran, "Miss, something’s wrong! Xiangxiang… Xiangxiang has been stolen…"

The door swung open, and Qingmei’s voice abruptly cut off. The room was empty, with no one in sight. Panicked, she searched around but found no trace of He Yan. After a moment of stunned silence, she burst into tears.

With a loud clatter, the door opened again, and a man’s voice echoed in the courtyard, "What happened?"

Chi Wu rubbed his temples, thinking to himself that the He family was truly poor. Aside from the three main rooms, there were no other guest rooms in the courtyard. He Sui, being an honest man, offered to vacate his own room for Chi Wu, while He Yun Sheng reluctantly agreed to share his room with him. Chi Wu firmly refused. Though he was not usually particular about accommodations, he was not reckless enough to take over the master’s quarters while serving as a guard to protect the family’s safety. After much deliberation, He Sui finally cleared out the innermost room in the courtyard, which had been used for storing miscellaneous items.The room was very small. After clearing away the clutter, there was only enough space for a single bed. If Chi Wu wanted to leave, he had to squeeze through sideways. Although he had also served as a guard in the Xiao household, the treatment here was worlds apart. Even though the He family had done their best to provide him with the best conditions, there were many times when Chi Wu wished he could pay out of his own pocket to have the He family move to a larger residence.

He had kept watch during the first half of the night and returned to his room to rest during the second half. As soon as he woke up, he heard the little maid crying as if her heart were breaking, so he got up to ask what was wrong.

Qingmei turned around and was startled to see Chi Wu. He was usually quiet in the courtyard, never ate with them, and only slept in the storeroom at night, making him practically invisible. Sometimes, Qingmei almost forgot there was another person in the house. Now that Chi Wu had appeared, she felt as if she had grasped a lifeline and rushed over to him, saying, "Young Master Chi Wu! The young lady and Xiangxiang are gone, they've been kidnapped!"

Chi Wu: "..."

He said, "Let me take a look."

He Yan's bedroom was gaudy, with sachets and red curtains hanging everywhere. Chi Wu was thoroughly horrified. If he hadn't been forced to enter, he wouldn't have wanted to see such things. He never expected that beneath He Yan's carefree and unrestrained exterior, she had such a fondness for extravagance. He would have to tell Bai Rongwei about this later so that when Bai Rongwei arranged Xiao Jue's bridal chamber in the future, it would suit He Yan's tastes perfectly.

After only a few glances, he walked out of the room. Qingmei followed him. "Young Master Chi Wu, what do you think?"

"She wasn't kidnapped. She left on her own."

"How is that possible?" Qingmei refused to believe it. "Why would the young lady leave without a word? Even if she were leaving, she would have said something. Young Master Chi Wu," she eyed him suspiciously, "you wouldn't be trying to shift the blame onto our young lady because you're afraid of having to answer to Commander Xiao, would you?"

Chi Wu couldn't hold back any longer. "Look carefully, miss. Before your young lady was 'kidnapped,' she neatly folded the bedding." The bedding was folded in the style of the Liangzhou Guard recruits—square and neat, like a block of tofu. It was unmistakably He Yan's handiwork. "Tell me, what kind of assassin would wait for her to fold her blankets before kidnapping her?"

Qingmei: "But..."

"Even if they were kidnapping her, I've never heard of anyone kidnapping both a person and a horse."

Qingmei fell silent.

After a moment, as if she had completely forgotten her earlier accusations and suspicions toward Chi Wu, she asked politely again, "Then, Young Master Chi Wu, can you think of any reason why the young lady would leave without saying goodbye?"

"I'm afraid I don't know."

Chi Wu was also seething with anger. There were only Qingmei and him in the courtyard. Given how foolish Qingmei seemed, He Yan clearly hadn't needed to go to such lengths to sneak out of the residence. Without a doubt, it was to prevent him from following her!

Now that she was gone, he would surely be in trouble when his young master asked about it later. He Yan had left without a care, leaving him to deal with the mess. He had known from the start that this assignment to the He household was a bad idea, and sure enough, it was!

"What should we do now? Should we report it to the authorities?" Qingmei was at a loss and could only look to the one person she could still talk to.

Chi Wu said, "No need. I'll go out and look for her." Since He Yan had sneaked out, it was likely she was doing something she didn't want others to know about. Reporting it to the authorities and making a big fuss would only make things worse.He had only taken one step when his sleeve was tugged. Chi Wu turned to see Qingmei holding onto him, as if afraid he would also leave without a word in the next moment. "I'll go with you."

"No need."

"I'm all alone in this courtyard now, even Xiangxiang is gone," the little maid's lips trembled, as if she were about to cry, but she forced herself to hold back. "Young Master Chi Wu, let me go with you to search!"

Chi Wu: "..."

He sighed helplessly, "Alright."

...

He Yan could well imagine the upheaval that would follow her departure from home. Still, she trusted Chi Wu to be able to comfort Qingmei, that crybaby.

She had no other choice. If not for the fact that Nanny Qin's lover—Niu the Blacksmith—only came down the mountain to "Changmao Ironworks" on the tenth of each month, she wouldn't have resorted to this plan. She couldn't bring Chi Wu along, so she had to sneak out. As for everything else, she would deal with it after finding Nanny Qin and resolving this matter first.

Ever since Xiangxiang came to the He family, He Yun Sheng had been feeding it well and taking good care of it. On days when he didn't have to attend school, he would occasionally take it to the nearby riverbank for a run. The little horse could still run quite fast, and He Yan left the city smoothly. Asking passersby along the way, she finally arrived at the market at the foot of the barren mountain.

It wasn't as bustling as the city, but this was the only large market in the nearby villages and towns. On the tenth of each month, merchants of all kinds would set up stalls here. Some sold medicinal herbs, others old clothes, and there were even those selling cattle and sheep. The lively scene was almost overwhelming to the eyes.

He Yan led her horse to a wine shop, where the shopkeeper greeted her with a smile, "Young man, are you here to buy wine?"

For convenience, He Yan had dressed as a man when she went out today. Hearing this, she simply smiled and replied, "I need to have horseshoes made for my horse. I heard there's an ironworks nearby called 'Changmao Ironworks.' Do you know where it is, shopkeeper?"

Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper pointed in a direction for her. "Follow this road straight ahead until the end, then look to the right. That's Changmao Ironworks."

He Yan thanked the man and led Xiangxiang in that direction. When she reached the end of the road and turned around, she indeed saw a shop facing her, with the words "Changmao Ironworks" scrawled above it.

He Yan tied her horse outside and walked in. Inside, there was only an elderly, gray-haired master sitting in front of the forge, hammering away at a black iron pot with a steady clang.

"Master," He Yan called out to him.

The old master looked up at He Yan and asked, "What would you like to have made, sir?"

"Sorry," He Yan said, "I'm not here to have anything forged. I'm here to ask about someone named Niu the Blacksmith. I heard he comes here on the tenth of every month. Has he already been here today?"

He Yan wasn't entirely sure. Fuwang had only said that Niu the Blacksmith came on the tenth of each month but hadn't specified when. Given Niu the Blacksmith's cautious nature, he likely left as soon as his business was done. By the time she left the city and arrived here, it was almost noon. Perhaps Niu the Blacksmith had already come and gone.

Hearing this, the old master stopped his work. He stood up, picked up a damp cloth nearby, wiped the grime from his hands, and said, "Old Niu hasn't come yet today. However, he's late. This is the first time he's ever been late."

He Yan: "Late?""On the tenth day of each month, early in the morning, he would come here to deliver his goods. Old Niu’s craftsmanship is excellent," the old master craftsman remarked with some emotion. "I originally asked him to work in my shop, where the monthly wages would be much higher than what he earns on his own, but he refused, so I let it be. By the schedule, he should have arrived here this morning at the hour of Chen to deliver the ten iron sickles I commissioned from him last month, but it’s almost noon now," the old master glanced at the sun outside, "and he still hasn’t come."

"Perhaps something delayed him on the way," He Yan said, though her heart sank. She feared that Xu Zhiheng had already found Nanny Qin’s whereabouts before her, which was why Niu the Blacksmith was nowhere to be seen.

"Old Niu is a reliable man. If nothing urgent had happened, he wouldn’t be late." The old master then asked He Yan, "What do you need from him, young master? Ever since I’ve known him, he’s always been a loner. Do you know Old Niu?"

He Yan smiled. "Not exactly. I’m just looking for him to ask about a few things."

The old master nodded and pointed to a wooden bench nearby. "Then please have a seat here, young master, and wait until Old Niu arrives to talk."

He Yan sat down as instructed, but she hadn’t expected to wait the entire day.

The sun gradually set, and the sky began to darken. The old master finished his day’s work, washed his hands, changed his clothes, and stood up to say to He Yan, "Young master, it seems Old Niu won’t be coming today."

"The market will soon close at this hour, and I need to shut the shop." He politely hinted that it was time for He Yan to leave.

He Yan’s heart felt as heavy as a stone, but she forced a smile and said, "Alright." Still uneasy, she added earnestly to the old master, "Master, please don’t mention today’s matter to anyone, including Niu the Blacksmith. I’ll return in a few days."

Only after the old master agreed did He Yan lead her horse away.

The market had scattered, leaving only the mess from the day’s hustle and bustle. A mother and child from a poor family were bending over, picking up leftover vegetables and fruits from the ground. In the distance, lanterns gradually lit up. He Yan walked slowly with her horse, finding it hard to feel any joy.

She had thought that Fuwang’s discovery of the clue would lead her to Nanny Qin’s whereabouts through Niu the Blacksmith today, but she had found nothing.

Over the past few months, the blacksmith had delivered his goods to the ironworks shop on time every month, yet he had failed to appear today. Waiting from morning till evening without a trace made it impossible for this to be a simple delay. Either Niu the Blacksmith had moved away with Nanny Qin again, or he was no longer able to come.

He Yan’s gaze darkened.

…

By the time she returned home, the household was already in chaos. He Sui had not yet returned, and He Yun Sheng was preparing to go out. The family was clamoring loudly. When He Yan led her horse back, Qingmei was at the door. At first glance, she thought she was mistaken and rubbed her eyes before rushing over, shouting, "The young lady is back!"

Before He Yan could speak, He Yun Sheng stepped forward with an accusatory expression. "Where have you been? And you took Xiangxiang with you!"

He Yan wasn’t sure whether he was concerned about Xiangxiang or herself. After a moment’s thought, she replied, "I was just feeling idle today and hadn’t been out for a while, so I took Xiangxiang for a walk.""If you were going out, why didn't you take anyone with you?" He Yun Sheng glanced at Chi Wu, who stood silently to the side. "You didn't even say a word."

"Ah," He Yan feigned surprise, "I left a note on the table when I left. Didn't you see it? If not, perhaps a swallow from outside flew in and took it away."

"In the dead of winter, where would a swallow come from?" He Yun Sheng eyed her coldly as she spun her tale. "What exactly were you doing?"

"I just went out for a stroll, nothing much. I saw it was still early, and Chi Wu hadn’t woken up yet, so I thought I’d better not disturb him—I’d be back soon anyway. But it’s been so long since I last went out that I lost track of time. My apologies, this time it was just me being careless. It won’t happen again." He Yan offered an insincere apology.

Chi Wu: "..." Was she saying he slept too soundly?

He Yun Sheng fumed, "He Yan!"

"I’m hungry. Has Qingmei made food?" He Yan patted her stomach—this was genuine. She had spent the entire day at the blacksmith’s shop, not leaving for a moment, afraid she might miss Niu the Blacksmith if she stepped away. She had only bought two steamed buns from a vendor at the door to stave off hunger.

"Yes, yes." Qingmei hurried to the kitchen to bring out the food. "If the young lady is hungry, please eat first. I’ve kept the porridge warm, and it should be just right now."

"Thank you," He Yan replied with a smile.

He Yun Sheng, though furious, was helpless against He Yan. Whatever she wanted to do, he had never been able to control her. For a moment, torn between anger and resignation, he could only sit down at the table with her and pick up his chopsticks, eating without tasting a thing.

Chi Wu stood by the door, equally puzzled. He Yan had been gone the entire day. He and Qingmei had searched everywhere but found no trace of her. He Yun Sheng had nearly gone to report her missing to the authorities. Now, He Yan appeared safe and sound, and her expression gave little away.

But... what had she really been doing?

...

In a secluded courtyard within the house, a man and a woman sat facing each other in a room. Both were no longer young. The man had dark, weathered skin, deep wrinkles on his face, and grimy hands. He was burly and strong, clearly a laborer. The woman was in her forties. Though dressed plainly and inconspicuously, her skin was delicate, and she retained some of the fading charm of middle age, not looking as though she had endured much hardship.

The man was somewhat calmer, but the woman was visibly terrified. Their hands and feet were bound with ropes, leaving them unable to move an inch. Their mouths were free to speak, but ever since they had been brought here, no matter how much they shouted, no one had responded.

"Old Niu, what on earth is going on?" the woman asked, her voice trembling with fear.

This man and woman were none other than Niu the Blacksmith and his lover, Nanny Qin—the very people He Yan had been searching for.

Niu the Blacksmith shook his head. Though he appeared dull-witted, his eyes held a shrewd glint. After glancing around, he said, "Perhaps it’s someone from the Xu family."

At the mention of the "Xu family," Nanny Qin trembled uncontrollably.

Back when she had followed He Wanru into the Xu household, He Wanru had been favored, and as her wet nurse, Nanny Qin had enjoyed a period of good fortune. Her food and living conditions were far better than they had been in the He family. Unfortunately, the good times didn’t last. Ever since He Wanru’s death, she had lived a life of constant upheaval, hiding and fleeing from place to place.Thinking of He Wanru's death, Nanny Qin couldn't help but shiver.

He Wanru was a child she had nursed from infancy. Though somewhat spoiled in temperament, she trusted her wet nurse deeply. Nanny Qin had indeed reminded He Wanru before—some matters were secrets, and the fewer who knew, the better. If someone revealed a secret to you without any concealment, it wasn't trust; it was because, in their eyes, you were already a dead person.

The dead were the best at keeping secrets.

She had advised He Wanru to pack her valuables and flee with her. Unfortunately, He Wanru didn't believe her words, and so she died within the Xu residence. Before He Wanru's death, Nanny Qin foresaw her own fate and wrote a letter to her old lover, hoping that after her death, Niu the Blacksmith could help take care of her family.

Though Niu the Blacksmith was a laborer, his mind was sharp, and he held genuine affection for Nanny Qin. He offered her a plan, saying that even if she died, her children and grandchildren would still be in danger. It would be better to flee, as Xu Zhiheng might hesitate to harm Nanny Qin's family out of caution.

Upon hearing this, Nanny Qin felt Niu the Blacksmith's words made sense. As for where to flee, naturally, Niu the Blacksmith would decide.

For the past year, she and Niu the Blacksmith had hidden in the desolate mountains, living a peaceful life. But last night, for some unknown reason, a group of strangers suddenly barged into their thatched cottage in the mountains, easily subdued them, and took them away. When they awoke, they were already in this room.

"Old Niu, are we going to die?" Nanny Qin timidly spoke. "They found us; they won't let us live... my grandson... and you, I've dragged you into this."

Niu the Blacksmith said, "Ah Qin, don't be afraid. I don't think they necessarily want our lives."

Nanny Qin looked up. "What do you mean?"

If there was even a sliver of hope, who would willingly think of death? Nanny Qin didn't want to die either. Hearing Niu the Blacksmith's words, a glimmer of light immediately flashed in her eyes.

"If it were Xu Zhiheng, he could have acted as soon as he found us. He wouldn't have kept us alive until now," Niu the Blacksmith comforted her. "At least for now, we're not in danger."

"Then... then you mean the ones who captured us aren't Master Xu?" Nanny Qin asked, puzzled. "Then why did they capture us?"

"I don't know that either."

Nanny Qin fell silent. Sometimes, the fear of the unknown was the most terrifying. The other party had simply thrown the two of them here, ignoring them, which made them more suspicious than if their identities had been revealed from the start.

After an unknown amount of time, voices sounded from outside. Nanny Qin perked up, looking expectantly at the tightly shut door.

The door was pushed open, and someone entered. The first to come in were two people in black, a man and a woman, their expressions unreadable. Following them was a young man, exceptionally handsome, and judging by his attire, he was not from an ordinary family.

Having served in the Xu household for many years, Nanny Qin had some discernment. As soon as she saw the three, she knew the handsome young man at the end was the master. She immediately spoke up, "Spare us, my lord! Spare us!"

Niu the Blacksmith, however, remained silent, quietly observing the newcomers.The handsome young man sat down on the chair in the middle of the room, with two men in black standing at his sides. His gaze swept past them and finally settled on Nanny Qin.

Though his expression was calm, it sent a shiver down Nanny Qin’s spine.

“Are you the wet nurse of He Wanru from the Xu family?” the man asked.

Nanny Qin’s heart sank. She had still held a sliver of hope, but as soon as he spoke, she knew he was here for the Xu family’s secret. She replied, “Indeed... Young Master...”

Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by the other party. The young man spoke calmly, "How did He Wanru die?"

"I..."

"If you lie, he will die." He slightly raised his chin, gesturing toward Niu the Blacksmith.

(End of Chapter)