Heаring thеsе wоrds, Yin Gеzhi suddenly felt thаt Fеng Yue was trulу a clеvеr girl. Наving sоmеone likе her accompаnуing him on this jоurneу, hе wаs indеed fаr luсkiеr thаn Gеnerаl Yi.
Yi Guoru fell into dееp thоught once mоre, while Yi Zhаngzhu gently tuggеd аt his slееvе аnd sаid, "Father hаs finаlly rеturnеd, уet instеad оf hаving a meаl with us, whу keеp talking abоut such matters?"
"Аrе уou hungrу?" Glancing at thе timе, Yi Guоru smiled. "It's still quitе еаrlу."
"Еvеn so, wе shоuld havе the рrepаratiоns stаrtеd in advаnсе," Yi Zhаngzhu cooеd. "Let's not discuss state аffairs at homе."
"Alright, alright," Yi Guоru softеnеd his eхpression, looking at her with affection. "Whatever you say goes. It's my fault for not being with you for half a year, and I must make it up to you properly. How about this—you go to the kitchen first to see what ingredients are available, then have someone prepare lunch?"
Seeing her father's gentle demeanor, Yi Zhangzhu nodded in agreement. "Alright."
Then, lifting her skirt, she hurried out.
When only two people remained in the hall, Yi Guoru spoke again. "The Crown Prince governs with cruelty, and many in the court are dissatisfied. If Your Highness can extricate yourself in time, it would be for the best."
"General, rest assured," Yin Gezhi clasped his hands. "As soon as the general returned to the capital, I had someone return the Wind-Sensing Token to the Grand Commandant's Mansion. With the general present, the Crown Prince likely won't force this item upon me again."
The implication was that it was only because the general was away from the capital that he had been compelled to hold onto the Wind-Sensing Token.
Yi Guoru nodded, finally ceasing to scrutinize him. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and looked out at the sky. "In my lifetime, I have faced many opponents, but the ones I admire most are none other than Your Highness and General Guan of the Wei Kingdom. It's a pity that General Guan died due to the royal family's suspicion—truly lamentable. With such a precedent, I absolutely do not wish to follow in his footsteps. Often, one must employ some means to protect oneself."
The meaning behind his words was likely to give Yin Gezhi advance notice—I am about to use underhanded tactics; if you notice, don't say anything, as I am merely protecting myself.
However, Yin Gezhi's attention was not on this. After hearing Yi Guoru's words, his first question was, "General Guan died due to the royal family's suspicion?"
Yi Guoru was taken aback, his body stiffening slightly. His eyes flickered briefly before he smiled nonchalantly and asked, "Did I just say that?"
Frowning, Yin Gezhi nodded.
"That was a slip of the tongue," Yi Guoru said calmly, picking up the teacup beside him. "As for how General Guan truly died, Your Highness should know better than I. These are matters of the past, and there's no need to bring them up again."
"General," Yin Gezhi said solemnly, "Now, I am merely a hostage. I do not involve myself in the affairs of the Wu Kingdom, nor do I concern myself with those of the Wei Kingdom. But regarding General Guan's matter, I ask that you tell me the truth."
Back then, when Guan Canghai was accused of colluding with the enemy and betraying the state, wasn't the enemy he colluded with none other than Yi Guoru before him? Yet how could Yi Guoru blurt out that Guan Canghai died due to the royal family's suspicion?
Yi Guoru smiled, showing no intention of continuing the topic. Instead, he shifted the conversation. "With General Guan gone, the Wei Kingdom will always have young talents to fill the void. Recently, I heard news that a General Feng in the Wei Kingdom, young and spirited, has won three consecutive battles, thoroughly subduing the surrounding minor states. He bears some resemblance to Your Highness in his prime."
General Feng? Feng Ming? Yin Gezhi replied indifferently, "The heir of the Marquis of Zhenguo does have some skill, though his temper isn't the best.""Oh?" Since they weren't discussing General Guan's affairs, Yi Guoru cooperatively engaged in conversation: "What do you mean by a bad temper?"
"He was originally betrothed to Guan Qingyue, the legitimate daughter of General Guan's family." Slowly uttering these words while watching Yi Guoru's expression suddenly stiffen, Yin Gezhi continued: "Unfortunately, General Guan's entire family was later executed, and his fiancée also died on the execution platform. Because of this, he once forced his way into the Eastern Palace of Wei Kingdom in the middle of the night and fought with me."
He had wanted to change the subject, but had chosen the wrong direction. If one were to ask who in Wei Kingdom still had connections to the Guan family and was still alive, there was only Feng Ming.
Yi Guoru gave a dry laugh. Seeing that he was about to bring up the Guan family again, he quickly called out to the outside: "Go check on how the young lady is doing."
"Yes," a servant outside responded.
Turning back, General Guan said: "During this border war, I encountered many interesting things. If Your Highness would like to hear, this old man can tell you about them."
Giving him a deep look, Yin Gezhi nodded: "Alright."
The sun slowly rose to its zenith. Inside the Envoy's Mansion, Feng Yue fanned Lingshu with a silk fan while complaining: "It's just too hot."
Lingshu sat opposite her, mimicking her actions by fanning her with a fan, obediently saying: "If you still feel hot, I can fetch some ice for you."
"At a time like this, where would there be ice?"
"There is, at the shop in the middle of Anju Street, specifically supplied to the nobles living there." Lingshu said: "I saw it last time I went out."
If there really was... Feng Yue turned her head and smiled at Guan Zhi.
Lost in thought, Guan Zhi shivered and turned back, opening his eyes innocently: "What?"
"How about going to Anju Street to fetch some ice?" Feng Yue smiled, her lips red and teeth white: "I'll pay."
Guan Zhi's face fell: "Miss Feng Yue, I'm alone, I can't carry much..."
"Lingshu, are you hot?" She turned her head and asked.
The little maid cooperatively nodded: "Hot!"
Giving her an appreciative glance, Feng Yue smiled and looked at Guan Zhi again. The latter's face turned pale. After struggling for a moment, he still whispered: "You give me the money then."
To avoid anyone complaining to Yin Gezhi when he returned, Feng Yue gave extra money, enough for him to hire an ox cart to transport the ice back. Guan Zhi actually felt immensely grateful. Taking the money, he dashed out in a flash.
The moment he stepped out of the Envoy's Mansion, a soft whistle sounded in the distance, drowned out by the noise outside, not very noticeable.
Feng Yue was laughing and talking with Lingshu when suddenly her expression tightened. She picked Lingshu up and ran toward Yin Gezhi's room.
"What's wrong?" Lingshu looked bewildered.
"Something's happened." With a grave expression, Feng Yue's face was tense. She swiftly stuffed Lingshu into the gap between the canopy bed and the wall, whispering: "Don't make any sound. Even if someone comes looking, try to close your eyes and play dead, understand?"
Completely unaware of what was happening, but under her master's sharp gaze, Lingshu covered her mouth and nodded.
The sounds of fighting outside gradually grew clearer. Feng Yue tied her long skirt around her waist, gathered her sleeves, and boldly jumped out of the window, heading straight toward the direction of the sounds.Intruders had broken into the Envoy's Mansion. Probably thinking that with Guan Zhi gone, there weren't many guards left, ten of them boldly entered through the main gate, only to be blocked at the entrance by Gan Jiang and others who emerged from the shadows.
The ten masked men were initially a bit bewildered, unable to figure out where these people had come from, when they saw the person they were supposed to capture standing in the distance, letting out an exaggerated "Wow!" Then she turned and ran, sprinting away so fast that she vanished toward the back door in a flash!
"Grab her!" the leader shouted, and instantly, the group stopped fighting, trying to break free from the hidden guards to pursue her.
However, Gan Jiang and his men were no pushovers. As soon as the masked men lost focus, they seized the upper hand, grabbing those who were eager to charge forward and giving them a fierce beating.
In an instant, several masked men fell to the ground, unable to get up. But two managed to break through the encirclement and chased straight toward the back door.
Gan Jiang grew anxious. With a palm strike to the head of one opponent, he also turned and ran toward the back door. When he arrived, he saw the back door wide open. A single embroidered shoe lay at the entrance, and the two masked men had already chased far into the distance.
Pausing briefly, Gan Jiang stepped forward, immediately closed the back door, and then glanced around.
"You're much smarter than them," Feng Yue, who had been hiding nearby, said with a grin. "You even knew I hadn't left."
Hearing her voice, Gan Jiang instinctively clasped his hands in salute. "Young Master..."
"What are you saying?" Walking up to him and lifting his hands, Feng Yue smiled. "How could this humble one deserve your courtesy?"
Listening to the sounds of fighting from the front courtyard, Gan Jiang shook his head. "This is no place to linger."
"Why not?" she replied. "There's no safer place outside than here. Besides, Lingshu, with her slender arms and legs, can't run very fast. Instead of retreating, it's better to hold our ground."
The hidden guards in the mansion were more than capable of handling three opponents each. It was just that the suddenness of the incident had caught them off guard. Moreover, in broad daylight, with the Envoy's Mansion located near Anju Street, if the commotion grew too loud, the intruders naturally wouldn't dare to stay long.
Gan Jiang nodded, giving her a deep look before turning to deal with the masked men. Feng Yue calmly locked the back door and then went to the kitchen to fetch two jars of oil and wine, pouring them on the ground beneath the back door and the surrounding wall.
The pursuers, seeing no trace of Feng Yue along the way, realized they had been tricked and quickly turned back. Finding the back door unyielding, they sneered and used their qinggong to leap over the wall from outside!
Then they landed on the slippery ground, falling with injuries severe enough to cripple them.
Feng Yue smiled, holding a torch as she crouched nearby, watching them. "Want to capture me?"
Smelling the alcohol in the air and looking at the oil covering their bodies, the two masked men stood up in terror, retreating step by step.
"Didn't you want to capture me? Come on, don't be afraid." Grinning to reveal a row of white teeth, Feng Yue extended the torch toward them, coquettishly saying, "Take me away~ little brothers."
Staring at her as if she were a ghost, the two struggled to their feet, immediately tried to open the back door, slipped, and stumbled out in a daze.
What a terrifying woman!
Three incense sticks' worth of time passed before the sounds of fighting in the front courtyard gradually subsided. Gan Jiang caught his breath and was about to tie up those who hadn't managed to escape when he suddenly remembered the back courtyard. Slapping his forehead, he exclaimed, "Oh no!"
What if those two came back!He hurried to the back, only to catch a strange smell. Ganjiang looked up in astonishment and saw Feng Yue squatting on the steps, sighing with her head lowered, "Amitabha, what a waste of oil and wine—such a shameful misuse of precious things."
"This..." Ganjiang was dumbfounded. "What happened?"
"Nothing much. I dug a trap, and the enemy forces have retreated ten miles, not daring to advance again." Clapping her hands as she stood up, Feng Yue smiled at him and said, "You've worked hard."
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