Legend of the Female General

Chapter 221: A Friend’s Visit

Recently, a curious anecdote spread through Shuojing City: someone had set fire to the library of the Virtuous Prosperity Academy. The arsonist was discovered to have perished in the flames, and the library lost an entire shelf of books. Coincidentally, it was precisely the personal notes left behind by the Flying Goose General, He Rufei, during his time as a student at the academy.

Over the years, the Virtuous Prosperity Academy had become most famous for producing two renowned generals. Among these two, if General Feng Yun was the admired genius in the hearts of young men, then the Flying Goose General, He Rufei, was often held up by the academy’s instructors as a model for students.

“You must know that when General He was at the Virtuous Prosperity Academy, his studies were not exceptional—he often ranked last. Yet, diligence can compensate for shortcomings. Now, is he not one of Great Wei’s fiercest generals? Therefore, not everyone in this world is a genius, but through earnest effort, one can still achieve great things.”

General He, as an example of “diligence compensating for shortcomings,” could not rely solely on the words of his former classmates and instructors. The notes in the library served as evidence. Now, this evidence had inexplicably been reduced to ashes by the fire. While many instructors in Shuojing secretly cursed the arsonist for his wickedness, the students at the academy unanimously rejoiced.

After all, being forced to “compensate for shortcomings with diligence” was no easy task.

At the He residence, He Rufei sat in his study, looking at the subordinate who had returned with the report.

“You’re saying the death warrior sent to set the fire didn’t even leave a body behind?” he asked.

“That’s correct.”

“Rufei,” He Yuansheng narrowed his eyes, “do you feel something is amiss?”

“It’s just a shelf of books that was burned, yet he died in the fire without even a trace of his body. It feels somewhat suspicious.”

The subordinate replied respectfully, “I inquired around the Virtuous Prosperity Academy. The library fire was real, and now all the students have returned home. The headmaster is hiring craftsmen to repair the burned bookshelf… It’s said that not a single page of ‘General He’s’ notes remains.”

He Yuansheng pondered for a moment. “Rufei, if you’re uneasy, why not go and see for yourself?”

“No,” He Rufei firmly refused. “These are troubled times, and I must be even more cautious in my words and actions. The academy has just suffered a fire; if I go now, I might give others a handle against me. The matter from last time still hasn’t been resolved—we absolutely cannot let our guard down.” Thinking of the previous incident, He Rufei felt a surge of frustration. He had been determined to take He Yan’s life, or at least test her. But he hadn’t expected that woman to be so skilled. Fortunately, he had hired only death warriors, so no secrets were leaked. In the end, he had pinned all the evidence on the Fan family, but the authorities were slow to close the case. When He Rufei sent someone to inquire, he learned that Xiao Jue had intervened.

Xiao Huaijin held his fiancée in the highest regard, and it now seemed he intended to stand up for her. The daughter of a mere city gate captain was nothing to He Rufei, but he had long heard of Xiao Jue’s methods. Even Xu Jingfu had failed to gain any advantage over him, so he was certainly someone to be wary of.

“Enough. Since the notes have been burned, let’s not dwell on the rest,” He Rufei changed the subject. “Soon, the Wutuo envoys will arrive in the capital. At this critical juncture, it’s best not to stir up trouble.”

He Yuansheng paused and looked at He Rufei. “Once the Wutuo People enter the capital, His Majesty will inevitably discuss whether to advocate for war or peace. Rufei, our He family…”"Father, our He family naturally advocates for peace." He Rufei sneered, "Not to mention that after the Battle of Huayuan, we are already tied to Xu Xiang. Even if it's for the sake of the He family now, we can only stand on the side of peace. Xiao Huaijin has already become our enemy. Helping Xu Xiang is helping ourselves."

"Of course I know that, but," a glint of shrewdness flashed in He Yuansheng's eyes, "my son, in the current court, the Fourth Prince has gained considerable support. What do you think..."

"No matter how much support the Fourth Prince has, it cannot surpass Xu Xiang." He Rufei frowned, "Moreover, Great Wei places the greatest emphasis on rules and propriety. The Crown Prince is the legitimate heir, and the Fourth Prince lacks support from his maternal family. Father, at this point, our He family cannot foolishly maintain a neutral stance. We must unreservedly stand on the side of the Crown Prince."

He Yuansheng sighed, "I am merely worried."

A trace of mockery flickered in He Rufei's eyes as he looked at He Yuansheng. "Father, if you want to attain immense wealth and honor, you cannot avoid taking risks. When our sister reached the rank of general, there was no turning back."

He Yuansheng was taken aback, as if suddenly exposed in his hidden thoughts, a hint of embarrassment appearing on his face. After a pause, he stood up and said, "Since you have made up your mind, we will proceed as you say. I have matters to attend to, so I will take my leave." He fled as if escaping.

He Rufei watched He Yuansheng's hurried retreating figure, smiled slightly, leaned back, and his expression gradually darkened.

He didn't know when it started, but the entire He family had begun to act according to his mood. Even He Yuansheng and He Yuanliang had to speak to him with caution. He Rufei had heard more than once from the servants in the mansion that the young master's temperament had become increasingly peculiar in recent years, quite different from before. Upon hearing such remarks, He Rufei would order the servants who spoke them to be executed. After a few times, no one dared to gossip behind his back anymore.

Those who achieve great things do not fuss over minor details. Of the two He brothers, He Yuanliang was timid, cowardly, cunning, and unreliable. He Yuansheng, on the other hand, was ruthless and vicious, but unfortunately, he had too many concerns and dared not take bold risks. Now, merely because a woman with the same name had appeared and become an adversary of Xiao Huaijin, he had become hesitant and restrained in his actions, which was utterly irritating.

How could they understand that to accomplish great deeds, getting one's hands dirty was merely the most ordinary thing? Just like in the Battle of Huayuan, to eliminate future troubles, he had proactively aligned himself with Xu Jingfu beforehand. Xu Jingfu also had secret dealings with the Wutuo People. It was merely a matter of a casual remark, and all of He Yan's trusted subordinates were buried in that battle, which did not require such a heavy price.

Since then, few people truly understood the Flying Goose General, and he, as the general, felt completely at ease.

He Rufei felt not a shred of guilt for his actions, nor did he have any sympathy for his deceased cousin. Before He Yan became the "Flying Goose General," she had lived under his name for many years. If not for his identity as the "young master," a mere woman living in this world should have followed the rules, married, and obeyed her husband—how could she have achieved all that came later? It could be said that all the military merits He Yan earned were gained under his name. Now, everything was merely returning to its rightful owner.Not to mention that the Marquis of Wu'an was clearly a fake pretending to be a ghost, even if it were the real He Yan coming to demand his life, he would not fear in the slightest.

Because... this should have been his all along.

...

On this day, He Yan left home early in the morning and did not return until nearly evening.

Madam Fan in prison remained insane, and no useful information could be extracted from her. Nanny Qin was hidden in the Xiao residence, but what she knew was also limited. Xu Zhiheng never truly trusted He Wanru, and Nanny Qin had deliberately avoided the matter of the murder at the time. Thus, aside from witnesses, there was little other evidence for now. He Yan had no choice but to investigate on her own. Although she was now the Marquis of Wu'an, she had yet to establish her own connections in the court. Her colleagues, seeing her as a woman, outwardly flattered her but inwardly looked down on her. The officials she could befriend in the court were few and far between, aside from classmates like Yan He and Lin Shuanghe.

Fortunately, while the title of Marquis of Wu'an was not very effective, "Xiao Jue's fiancée" proved more convenient than He Yan had imagined. As long as she invoked Xiao Jue's name, most colleagues were willing to do her a favor. Using Xiao Jue's influence, He Yan inquired everywhere about matters within the Pacify Yue Army.

As she probed, she indeed uncovered some clues.

Ever since He Rufei was granted the title of Flying Goose General, the Great Wei had enjoyed peace and prosperity, with few wars. He had remained in Shuojing and never left the city. The Battle of Huayuan was He Rufei's first time on the battlefield in years. In this battle, the Pacify Yue Army led by He Rufei achieved only a pyrrhic victory, with all his trusted aides dying in battle. None of the deputy generals who had been relatively close to He Rufei survived.

As for the surviving soldiers who participated in that battle, most were ordinary troops with no access to military secrets.

Nevertheless, some hidden rumors still circulated.

"The general that day was very different from before. It seemed he even argued with the military advisor, though the advisor had already perished in the Battle of Huayuan... When the Wutuo People arrived that day, we initially held the advantage. But the general held back his troops, ultimately giving the Wutuo People an opportunity."

"However, perhaps we were overthinking it. The general is a seasoned veteran, and his intentions are naturally beyond the comprehension of lowly soldiers like us," the soldier added.

Because the reputation of the Flying Goose General was too illustrious, no one would question his tactics, let alone his loyalty. But He Yan knew all too well that He Rufei had deliberately sent those men to their deaths. Before this, He Rufei had never led troops into battle. Yet in the Battle of Huayuan, he managed to have only his most trusted subordinates completely annihilated while emerging unscathed himself. There was no logic to this unless... he had long been colluding with the Wutuo People in secret.

Thinking this, He Yan realized that the reaction of the Wutuo general, Huyate, when she had disguised herself as He Rufei to raid the Wutuo camp and burn their supplies in Rundu, was also quite telling.

If He Rufei had truly betrayed the monarch and conspired with the enemy to protect his identity from being exposed, this crime was absolutely unforgivable.

Lost in these thoughts, she unknowingly arrived at her doorstep. As soon as she entered, Qingmei saw her and hurried over, saying, "Miss, you've finally returned.""What's wrong?" He Yan asked in surprise. Ever since her identity had been exposed, she had asked Xiao Jue to have Chi Wu withdraw during the day and return only at night. A proper guard couldn’t just stand watch over her without doing any real work, so after Chi Wu left, Qingmei had returned to her old routine. It was rare to see her so flustered.

"Someone has come to the house," Qingmei whispered. "They said they were looking for you, miss..."

Before she could finish, He Yan heard a familiar voice: "Big Brother!"

She turned to see a fair-skinned, rosy-lipped young man in yellow robes running into the hall. He circled her twice with a look of delight. "Big Brother, I never thought you were really a woman!"

Qingmei kindly reminded him, "Young master, our miss has always been a woman."

He Yan hadn’t expected Cheng Li Su to come to her home. It felt like ages since she last saw him. The boy had grown a little taller, but the spirited look in his eyes remained unchanged.

"What brings you here?" He Yan asked.

"I snuck out today while my family wasn’t paying attention," Cheng Li Su said with a pained expression. "Ever since I returned to the capital from Liangzhou Guard, I’ve been forced to attend school—I have no freedom at all. As soon as I heard you were back in the capital, I wanted to come see you, but the school is strict, and I couldn’t get out. When I finally returned home, I heard you were a woman and even became my uncle’s fiancée! Big Brother, what’s going on? How did you turn into a woman?"

After all this time, she hadn’t expected anyone to still be hung up on this matter. He Yan sighed helplessly and replied, "I’ve always been a woman. Back then, circumstances forced me to disguise myself as a man to join the army. Once I returned to the capital, my identity was naturally revealed. I’m sorry for misleading you."

As soon as she finished speaking, another voice chimed in: "So, you admit you deceived people, don’t you?"

He Yan froze and saw Song Taotao step out from behind. The girl looked even more delicate and charming than she had at Liangzhou Guard. The Song family clearly doted on their daughter—the fabric of her clothes looked expensive, making her seem like an ethereal fairy untouched by worldly matters. Yet, unlike her delicate, doll-like face, her expression was that of a lovelorn woman abandoned by a heartless man.

"Taotao?" He Yan glanced at Cheng Li Su. "Did you two come together?"

Cheng Li Su rolled his eyes. "Who would come with her? I just happened to run into this shrew at the door when I came to see Big Brother."

Song Taotao walked up to He Yan, her expression complicated. She looked He Yan up and down before speaking mournfully: "You really are a woman."

He Yan: "..."

To say He Yan had been completely unaware of the young girl’s feelings would be untrue. After all, the child was pure and sincere—her thoughts were written all over her face, and her unreserved admiration and affection were obvious even to a fool. But at Liangzhou Guard, He Yan couldn’t reveal her identity or remind the girl that she was a woman and couldn’t marry Song Taotao.

Now that she had been confronted like this, He Yan felt inexplicably guilty, as if she were a scoundrel who had deceived a young girl’s innocent heart.

"I..." she carefully weighed her words, still unsure how to explain without hurting Song Taotao’s fragile feelings.Song Taotao was also filled with immense grievance. It had been a long time since she learned that He Yan was a woman, yet no matter what, she couldn't convince herself. She insisted on seeing He Yan in person before she would believe it. Today, after finally persuading her parents, she brought her servants out, only to run into that unlucky fellow Cheng Li Su as soon as she arrived. That aside, now, seeing the woman before her standing tall and graceful, with a heroic yet delicate appearance, Song Taotao finally had to accept a heavy reality.

He Yan was indeed a woman—and even a rather good-looking one at that.

How could she have ever mistaken such a woman for a man back then? She had even been determined to break off her engagement with Cheng Li Su and marry her!

"It's all your fault," Song Taotao, spoiled and pampered, felt stifled and vented all her anger on He Yan. "Why did you have to go to Liangzhou Guard and deceive everyone?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," He Yan carefully apologized to the young lady. "I didn't mean to."

"How could you not mean to?" The more Song Taotao thought about it, the angrier and more wronged she felt. She stared at He Yan, pressing her aggressively. "You just wanted to show off your heroic demeanor, to outshine everyone else, so that all eyes would be on you, and you alone would bask in the glory!"

He Yan found it hard to explain herself. "I..."

"It's all your fault!"

"Enough." Another voice chimed in. He Yan turned to see He Yun Sheng walking in with a cloth bag on his back. He stepped in front of He Yan, his face cold as he addressed Song Taotao. "Who are you? Who allowed you to be so insolent to my sister in our home?"

He Yan felt her head spinning. Great, now besides her and Qingmei, there were three troublemakers in the room. The situation was truly awkward.

"Yun Sheng, this is Second Miss Song, and this is Young Master Cheng. They're both friends I met at Liangzhou Guard." She then turned to Song Taotao and the others. "This is my younger brother, He Yun Sheng."

"Friends?" He Yun Sheng glanced at Song Taotao, displeased. "How could a friend be so aggressive? He Yan, I've told you before—don't just treat anyone as a friend."

Song Taotao was taken aback. He Yun Sheng's sudden appearance had caught her off guard, and she hadn't reacted immediately. Now, hearing He Yan's explanation, she refocused her attention on He Yun Sheng. In fact, He Yun Sheng bore some resemblance to He Yan, though he lacked her warm and gentle demeanor, always wearing a smile for others. He was even a head taller than He Yan, and the handsome yet aloof young man standing there was quite striking.

A man who somewhat resembled He Yan in appearance but was entirely different in temperament?

The feeling was strange. Song Taotao stared at him blankly, forgetting to retort.

He Yan pinched He Yun Sheng's arm hard and whispered in his ear, "She's a young lady. Can you not be so harsh?"

"I don't care if she's a young lady or a man," He Yun Sheng frowned. "Talking to you like that—does she think I'm dead?"

This rebellious child was getting worse by the day, He Yan thought to herself. She guessed that Song Taotao would probably burst into tears after being yelled at like this. Before she could figure out how to comfort the crying young lady, Cheng Li Su had already eagerly stepped forward again, grabbing He Yun Sheng's hand. "You're my big brother's younger brother, so that makes you my brother too! I'm Cheng Li Su. Brother He, did you just get back from school?"He Yun Sheng had never seen someone so naturally familiar before. He immediately took a step back, shook off Cheng Li Su's hand, and frowned, "Who are you calling big brother?"

"It's your sister!" Cheng Li Su replied matter-of-factly. As soon as the words left his mouth, he seemed to realize it wasn't quite right and hurriedly corrected himself, "Actually, I shouldn't call her big brother now, should I? Then I'll call her sister? No, no—my big brother is my uncle's fiancée, so that means I should call her aunt!"

He looked up at He Yan and enunciated clearly, "Aunt!"

He Yan: "..."

How had she suddenly gained such a big nephew out of nowhere?

But that wasn't all. Cheng Li Su then turned to He Yun Sheng. "You're my aunt's brother, so I should call you... uncle? Uncle He!"

Both He siblings were stunned by Cheng Li Su's natural way of claiming kinship. Even Song Taotao couldn't stand it and scolded, "What are you calling them? Be careful Commander Xiao hears you and comes to settle the score."

"I'm not calling them anything wrong. She'll be my aunt sooner or later anyway." Cheng Li Su didn't feel the slightest bit bothered by being demoted a generation. He cheerfully added, "From now on, I have two more relatives—Aunt and Uncle. I haven't eaten yet. How about we have dinner together?"

He Yun Sheng couldn't take it anymore. He turned to He Yan and said, "What kind of people are you befriending?" Then he turned and stormed off.

He Yan: "..."

It really wasn't her fault. It was just that Cheng Li Su had always been someone who didn't play by the rules. She smiled at Song Taotao. "Have you eaten, Taotao? Would you like to join us?"

She had thought the girl had come today to demand an explanation, and this meeting hadn't been particularly pleasant. The pampered Second Miss Song might not be used to eating in such a crude house. Unexpectedly, Song Taotao paused for a moment and nodded nonchalantly, "Alright."

He Yan was genuinely taken aback.

What was going on today? Why was everyone acting out of character?

But since they had already decided to stay, she had to provide a meal. However, the He family's meals were simple, and she was afraid they wouldn't suit the tastes of the young master and miss. So, He Yan gave some silver to Qingmei and sent her out to buy some side dishes.

When He Sui returned, he was also quite startled by the crowd in the house. Upon hearing they were He Yan's friends from the Liangzhou Guard, he immediately greeted them with a smile, treating them like familiar juniors. Everyone sat together at the table. Aside from Song Taotao's silence and He Yun Sheng's constant sour expression, the atmosphere was relatively harmonious. He Sui had always wanted to know how He Yan was doing at the Liangzhou Guard, but he couldn't keep asking Xiao Jue about it. Now that he had the perfect candidates right in front of him, he naturally wouldn't let this opportunity slip by.

Cheng Li Su was also a chatterbox. He answered every question He Sui asked in great detail, holding nothing back. He Yan suspected he could even remember exactly how many dry biscuits she ate with each meal at the Liangzhou Guard.

But thanks to these kids, the gloomy mood from her earlier inquiries about the Pacify Yue Army's affairs was somewhat alleviated.

After the meal, He Yan saw them out. Both Song Taotao and Cheng Li Su had brought their own carriages and servants. In the short time it took to finish a meal, Cheng Li Su had already become fast friends with He Sui, even scheduling their next meal together. He Yan finally managed to send them off before stepping out herself.Outside, Song Taotao boarded her family's carriage. The maid beside her cautiously asked, "Miss, now that you've met Miss He today, surely you won't keep insisting on breaking off the engagement with Young Master Cheng anymore?"

Since her beloved was a woman, it was naturally impossible. From now on, what reason could Song Taotao possibly have to regret the marriage?

Song Taotao replied carelessly, "I greatly admire Commander Xiao. Being able to become related to him is my good fortune. However, I never once thought of becoming his niece-in-law."

The maid was taken aback, not quite understanding what Song Taotao meant by this.

Song Taotao lowered her head, recalling the face of the young man in blue she had just seen, and secretly pursed her lips.

She had originally thought about becoming Xiao Jue's sister-in-law, but unfortunately, Xiao Jing was already married. However, upon further reflection, becoming Xiao Jue's sister-in-law through marriage to his younger brother didn't seem so bad either.

A question: Yun Tao or Li Tao or ALL Tao—which one do you support?

(End of Chapter)