“Getting married is a good thing. General Chen should find someone to help him manage his household affairs.” Gu An’an thought of that peace charm. It was a real hot potato. Throwing it away was not an option, but keeping it was also a bit redundant.

However, considering Chen Yuan's identity, Gu An'an still kept the amulet.

After all, this person is the military commander of the three prefectures of Anling. He might need something from him someday, so leaving a token is a good idea.

"Chen Bei and Ming Yi are on good terms. General Chen is his elder brother from the same mother. His wedding will be a big event for our Anling Three Prefectures. We will prepare a grand gift in the name of Gu Ji to thank General Chen for protecting the people of Anling Three Prefectures."

Xiao You couldn't find anything wrong with what he said. "The boss is very thoughtful. So, what kind of gift should we prepare?"

"It's best to cater to his tastes and see what General Chen likes. Otherwise, if you try to flatter him by giving him gifts, it might backfire and be counterproductive."

That doesn't seem wrong. Xiao You scratched his head. "Alright, I'll go and find out what this young general likes."

"Go ahead, I'll go home too, and see what Mingyi and the others have been up to lately."

As her child grew up and developed his own ideas, Gu An'an had much less to worry about.

In the past two years, although there have been occasional inquiries from people in Beijing, nothing particularly noteworthy has been made.

Jiang Mingyi focused on his studies, while Jiang Mingzhu also made progress in martial arts and military strategy.

Even Bao'er is two years older now, no longer the little girl who always wanted to be carried.

As the children grew up day by day, Gu An'an felt that it would be fine to just continue living like this.

What's wrong with a peaceful and tranquil life?

However, this peaceful life may be disrupted at any time.

When Gu An'an returned home, she saw a carriage parked at the gate of the mansion. The character "Chen" on it was very conspicuous, and she knew without a doubt that someone from her family had come.

Jiang Mingzhu was very excited to see her mother return. "Mother, Shu'er just told me that General Chen wants to form an all-female army, and she wants to sign up with me."

Women's Army?

Gu An'an was slightly surprised and asked Chen Shu, "General Chen, why did you suddenly have such thoughts?"

“It didn’t happen suddenly. It’s just that my brother felt that we women shouldn’t be so weak, relying on our parents and brothers without any skills of our own. He thought that if I could become a female general, perhaps not so many people would dare to mess with me. He has been planning this for the past two years. But to establish a women’s army, we need people. So I thought I would take Zhu’er and Yue’er with me.”

Gu An'an understood after hearing this; it turned out that this was for Chen Shu's protection.

"Aren't you getting married soon?"

Chen Shu blushed slightly upon hearing this, "That won't delay things, Fang Ping wouldn't dare to disagree."

When she said this, she carried a hint of the pride of a young lady from a prominent family.

Gu An'an couldn't help but laugh, "Our Miss Chen has Vice General Fang completely under her thumb, how could he dare to have any objections?"

"Oh dear, if you keep saying that, I won't play with you anymore." A blush rose on the girl's thin face.

Jiang Mingzhu laughed too, "My mother just loves to joke, but since we need her to pay for it, why don't we just listen to her talk nonsense for a bit?"

Chen Shu felt a little awkward. "Actually, it's not that I came here simply to ask Sister Gu for money. It's just that my mother doesn't approve of me going to the army. She thinks I'll pick up some bandit-like traits, so I don't want to ask her for money. Besides, the savings I've accumulated over the years aren't enough, so..."

Gu An'an couldn't help but laugh. "I understand. Women are inherently weaker, so it's my duty to help if I have the ability. But Chen Shu, if this women's army wants to become strong, it can't rely on a few young ladies from wealthy families getting together to joke around. If that's the case, the women's army will be ruined."

Chen Shu was stunned for a moment, then stood there speechless. "Sister Gu, what do you mean...?"

“Poverty makes people strong. If you’ve ever been to the docks, you’ll know that it’s not just men who are loading ships and carrying those sacks; there are women too. There are so many women in this world who suffer hardship. If we can give these women a way to survive, the power they create will be immense.”

Chen Shu understood, "Just like your puppet shop, the original embroiderers were women who were sold to brothels."

If there were any other way to make a living, who would want to do those kinds of sex work?

While men could take the imperial examinations to become officials or join the army, women had few options. If they met a good man, they were truly blessed.

Gu An'an's words gave Chen Shu some ideas, which made Madam Xie a little dissatisfied. In the past few days, her daughter had been leading people to the streets and alleys to shout that the three prefectures of Anling were going to form a women's army.

Joining the Women's Army meant receiving a military salary and food every year.

This prompted many officials' families to come and inquire about what exactly happened.

What else could it be?

Chen Yuan went mad, and Chen Shu went mad with him. A perfectly normal young lady had to start some kind of women's army.

And that Gu An'an, she actually gave them money behind her back to fund these things, she's clearly trying to make things difficult for her.

Madam Xie was very annoyed. When she came to the study in the front yard, she saw her husband, Chen Fangdao, talking to someone.

Upon seeing this, the servant quickly withdrew, and Madam Xie, unable to contain her anger, poured out her rage like beans spilling from a bucket.

“A few days ago I spread the word that Yuan’er was getting married, and she pulled this stunt on me. You be the judge, isn’t Gu An’an trying to go against me?”

Chen Fangdao quickly poured a cup of tea. "Madam, there's no need to be angry. This Madam Gu isn't necessarily against you."

Upon hearing this, Madam Xie glared angrily, "What did you say?"

"Madam, please hear me out first. Yuan'er has already told me about the Women's Army. I think it's a good thing. As for Madam Gu, she has her own agenda. It's nothing more than her daughter's desire to become a female general. She's taking this opportunity to send her daughter into the army. It's better for her to be in the Women's Army than to fight with a bunch of men."

Madam Xie snorted coldly, "A perfectly good young lady has been raised to be so thuggish."

“Madam, there’s no need for this. You should know that when the previous dynasty fell, Princess Jinse was powerless to protect herself and could only jump off the city wall to die for her country. If she had any ability to protect herself, why would she have done this?”

Chen Fangdao's words left Madam Xie speechless for a moment before she finally spoke, "Shu'er is not Princess Jinse, nor is she..."

"Madam, it's good to give Shu'er some confidence. The Fang family hasn't said anything." Chen Fang sighed. He originally didn't want to say it outright, but how long could he keep things ambiguous like this?

“Madam, Madam Gu’s child is already so grown up, how could she possibly have any connection with Yuan’er? You are really overthinking it.”

These words were like stirring up a hornet's nest, and Madam Xie immediately exploded, "No one knows a son better than his mother! Do you think I don't know what that boy is thinking? Besides, do you think it's just Chen Yuan's problem? Don't forget you have two sons!"

This left Chen Fangdao dumbfounded.

“That kid Chen Bei, he, he also…”