Chapter 11. They dragged him to the side room and sealed the windows and doors shut...

It has been a long time since Zhan Yunmei's incident, and there has been little progress in the case. Deputy General Chen, who is in charge of investigating the case, has repeatedly asked Zhan Yunmei to send more people to investigate the case, but she has refused.

Zhan Yunmei remained calm and showed no impatience regarding the slow progress of the case. She told Deputy General Chen, "Nothing has happened to me, and the person behind me hasn't done anything further. Let's investigate slowly."

“Why wasn’t there a second chance? Wasn’t Deputy Geng also killed?” Deputy General Chen said.

Zhan Yunmei stared at him intently. "How can you be sure that these two things are behind the same person? What if they aren't?"

Deputy General Chen pursed his lips and nodded reluctantly, "That's true, General is indeed wise."

That night, a batch of official documents concerning military affairs in the border towns were brought to the palace. The matter was of great importance, and the emperor requested that Zhan Yunmei review them personally.

Zhan Yunmei, who was supposed to retire on time, was forced to take on a higher post because of this batch of official documents.

In order to get back to the mansion as soon as possible, Zhan Yunmei sat in the duty room reviewing official documents, without even eating dinner, squeezing out all her time to review them.

Even with all that effort, it was already past midnight by the time they finished reviewing this large batch of documents. Not only had they missed the General's Mansion's dinner time, but Hua Lang had probably already slept through several rounds of sleep.

Zhan Yunmei pinched the bridge of her nose, finished organizing the official documents, locked the door and went out. At this hour, the Beijing garrison should have been deserted, and those who were supposed to be resting should have already gone to bed.

It should have been pitch black at this time, but unexpectedly, there was a faint light in the office.

If no one was there, the candle flame would easily ignite the documents if the wind blew. Zhan Yunmei was unsure whether anyone was there, so she had no choice but to go and check.

As she pushed open the door, light gradually streamed in, followed by a burnt smell. Zhan Yunmei then shoved the door shut.

The person inside, who had their back to her, also turned around at that moment.

"Deputy General Chen, what are you doing?" The clerk's office always kept a water bucket on hand for firefighting. Zhan Yunmei picked up the bucket and extinguished the flames in one swift motion.

The room suddenly darkened.

Suddenly, a faint sound of cloth slicing through the air rang out. Zhan Yunmei took half a step back, raised her hand to block Vice General Chen, and kicked him in the knee at the same time.

With a thud, he knelt down on the ground.

Zhan Yunmei summoned the military officer on night duty and took Deputy General Chen away, while she went into the house to check what had been burned.

No important documents were missing; what was burned was the file on the avalanche case, which recorded the movements of all military officers on the day Zhan Yunmei was murdered.

Almost everyone had one, even Geng Qi. He was strolling around the market in the capital that day.

Apart from Vice General Chen himself.

Deputy General Chen harmed the founding general, who was also his closest and most trusted subordinate. After informing the emperor of the progress of the case, the emperor ordered Chen to be removed from his position as deputy general and installed a new person to assist Zhan Yunmei.

The emperor learned of this matter and issued the order in just one hour, with almost no hesitation.

Zhan Yunmei swept up the remaining paper embers on the ground, not particularly surprised; she had already expected it.

Deputy General Chen knew her direction better than anyone, always following behind her, making it easy for him to harm her. He was given orders to take charge of the case, but he couldn't close it for a long time, and he would get agitated whenever the matter was mentioned.

Initially, Princess Rongning did not punish Geng Qi at all, but Deputy General Chen still claimed that Geng Qi was punished by the so-called princess's attendant, which was when the abnormality first appeared.

At first, Zhan Yunmei couldn't figure out why Deputy General Chen was doing this, but later, with a clearer direction and Hua Lang's ambiguous words, she understood.

However, Deputy General Chen was not a person who could not control his temper. He revealed too many loopholes, and Zhan Yunmei was able to tell from them that there were people behind Deputy General Chen. In other words, he was entrusted or asked by someone, and he was just the one who took the blame.

The new deputy general is a woman who is closer to the emperor than Zhan Yunmei. She is the emperor's first indication that he wants to cultivate female generals, and also a hint of his wariness of Zhan Yunmei.

The new deputy general, He Lanwan, assists Zhan Yunmei and provides advice on military affairs. When Zhan Yunmei is not present, she is the commander-in-chief.

Everything was arranged quickly, and Zhan Yunmei had no authority to choose her own deputy general.

Zhan Yunmei had no objections, but she arrested Deputy General Chen in the middle of the night, went to the palace, and then returned to the Beijing garrison to process He Lanwan's official appointment overnight, leaving them somewhat short-handed.

Dragging his weary body back to the mansion, he found that the servants had already retired for the night, and the main house was dark.

Zhan Yunmei tiptoed into the house in the dark, took off her work robe, grabbed the nightgown that had been laid out beforehand, and headed towards the bathroom. Yao Shuniang would leave hot water, or at the very least, the water should be warm. The weather wasn't too cold now, so a warm shower would be just about right.

She quickly finished washing up, wanting to go back to bed as soon as possible, hug Hua Lang, or kiss him, which would make her feel much better.

Full of anticipation, Zhan Yunmei sat down on the bed and explored the inside along the soft mattress.

There was no one there.

She frowned, initially wondering if her words yesterday had made Hua Lang hold a grudge. But when she found no one in the side room, she called Yao Shuniang to look for her, but they couldn't find her either.

There is no such person as Hua Lang in the General's Mansion.

Zhan Yunmei was so surprised that a sarcastic remark came out of her mouth. She forced a smile and said, "I was wondering why you weren't trying to kill yourself these days. You've been getting all lovey-dovey and hugged. I never thought you were holding back something big."

Zhan Yunmei was usually gentle and magnanimous, and she didn't hold grudges. This was the first time Yao Shuniang had seen her put her anger on display. Her brows were furrowed, and she could no longer hide the fierce aura of a military general.

"General, don't worry. Maybe your father-in-law is just throwing a tantrum and hiding away," Yao Shuniang advised.

"Hide? Where can you hide? We've searched the entire mansion and we still can't find you," Zhan Yunmei said, squeezing out the entire night to come back as soon as possible, just to see Hua Lang.

Zhan Yunmei closed her eyes briefly, calming herself down, and said, "Shuniang, send someone outside to search."

Seeing that she had calmed down again, Yao Shuniang lowered her eyes and said yes, then led a large group of people out of the mansion to search.

Yao Shuniang led several groups of people to search separately. One group of servants after another returned, all saying that they had not found Hua Lang.

No one in the manor knew where Hua Lang had gone; he had left no message.

It seems they're determined to run away.

Zhan Yunmei sat in the flower hall for a while. The more she looked at the uprooted flowers and plants around the hall, as well as the bare peach blossoms, the more upset she became.

She was so angry she wanted to laugh, so she just let out a cold laugh. She thought to herself, she was very good to him, and he was too ungrateful.

If she had known this would happen, she shouldn't have cared about his wishes; in that case, it wouldn't have mattered if he ran away.

When she kissed him on the couch, he trembled uncontrollably. After getting off the couch, he started acting like he was going to die, trying to run away.

Zhan Yunmei suddenly realized that Hua Lang's reaction on the bed was probably an act to make her lower her guard so that she could run away effortlessly.

For a moment, she thought that Hua Lang couldn't live without her, and that his running away was ungrateful.

The night breeze blew in, seeping straight into her nightgown. Zhan Yunmei was almost dozing off in the flower hall when the wind woke her up, and she let out a shallow yawn.

At that moment, there was a knock on the gate.

Thinking it was Yao Shuniang returning, Zhan Yunmei opened the door, only to find it was Hua Lang.

The moment the door opened, Hua Lang saw her and was stunned for a moment.

"You came back to apologize after discovering that Shuniang was looking for you?" Zhan Yunmei leaned against the door with her hands behind her back, blocking Hua Lang from entering.

Hua Lang frowned, not quite understanding. "What did you say?"

"What do you think I'm talking about?" He didn't understand, and she didn't understand him either. Then she asked, "Where did you go?"

Zhan Yunmei's expression didn't change much, but Hua Lang noticed the distrust emanating from her entire being. Having spent his life observing people's expressions, how could he not understand these subtle details?

He originally wanted to talk about his itinerary, but when he saw Zhan Yunmei's expression, he suddenly felt at a loss. He opened his mouth, "I..." but couldn't speak. He wouldn't defend himself; to do so would be as if he were in the wrong and begging for forgiveness.

Hua Lang's stammering was interpreted by Zhan Yunmei as a guilty conscience.

She smiled gently: "I'm just asking you, don't you want to tell me?"

"I didn't!" Hua Lang exploded at her words. "I went out to buy something, just something, that's all!"

Zhan Yunmei reached out her hand, "Where are the things?"

Hua Lang was taken aback, then stepped back and hesitated, "Here with me..."

"Then let me see it."

Hua Lang blinked, swallowed hard, and said slowly, "Wait a moment."

Zhan Yunmei was so angry she wanted to laugh. He was still running away, still pretending, still lying. Had all her kindness over the years gone to waste?

“I don’t want to see it. Go back to the main house and wash yourself,” Zhan Yunmei said before leaving.

Zhan Yunmei had never been so indifferent before. Hua Lang was stunned for a moment, then lowered his eyes and followed her back to the main house. When he took a bath, he also took his things with him and hid them.

As Hua Lang emerged from the steamy bathhouse, he first caught a faint scent of incense, not the same kind of fragrance he had placed in the box.

Zhan Yunmei changed the face powder.

Realizing the situation, Hua Lang was surprised again, but then acted as usual and slowly moved to the edge of the bed.

Only a small lamp was lit on the bedside table, and only this small area of ​​the room was lit. Zhan Yunmei leaned against the headboard with her eyes closed, and Hua Lang was not sure if she was asleep.

He slowly sat down, the bedding slightly dented, and she did nothing.

Hua Lang guessed she was asleep, so he went to pull the blanket up and draped it over her shoulder. She slowly opened her eyes.

Zhan Yunmei's eyes are not very narrow, with slightly upturned corners. Her eyes don't have a strong sense of pressure, but they aren't exactly gentle either.

"Finished washing?" Zhan Yunmei asked.

Hua Lang didn't dare to meet her gaze, staring at a fold in the bedding at the corner of the bed, and nodded slightly.

Zhan Yunmei raised her hand, pinched his chin, and then stroked his cheek—or rather, indifferently rubbed it.

With this pinching and kneading, Hua Lang's entire face turned rosy in no time. As soon as Zhan Yunmei let go, he fell off the edge of the couch, knelt on the ground, and looked up at her in disbelief.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Zhan Yunmei's tone remained calm, and her expression was indifferent.

Whether it was a misperception or not, Hua Lang keenly sensed her disgust for him from her expression and movements. He moved his lips, but couldn't say anything.

Slowly sit up and straighten your back.

Zhan Yunmei leaned down, and he thought she was going to kiss him, so he closed his eyes. But just as her breath came in, there was a knock on the door.

It was Yao Shuniang. "General, this servant couldn't find Eunuch Hua Lang."

Both of their gazes fell on the gatekeeper at the same time. Hua Lang looked away first and shifted her gaze to Zhan Yunmei's face. She glanced at him and said to the outsider, "No need to look anymore, he's back."

Yao Shuniang should be outside.

Once again, only the two of them remained. Zhan Yunmei leaned down again, and Hua Lang, somewhat timid, turned his head away. Unexpectedly, she still didn't want to kiss him; instead, she bent down to get something from the bedside table.

A wave of shame washed over Hua Lang from behind as she clenched her fists and then released them.

"Are you nervous?"

The item was taken out of the cabinet; it wasn't small.

Hua Lang didn't know what to say. Nervous? He couldn't explain why he was nervous, nor could he say what he was nervous about. Not nervous? Yet his heart was beating faster and faster, as if it would jump out of his chest.

Hua Lang pursed her lips repeatedly and said, "Why don't you keep asking me questions?"

“I don’t want to know,” Zhan Yunmei said, pressing her lips to his. “Open your mouth.”

She retorted as soon as his lips parted slightly.

Hua Lang was forced to squint. She forcefully ignored him, and his stomach immediately heaved, his throat burned, and he felt like vomiting.

A series of groans rolled from his throat, sounding like a plea for mercy. A moment of hesitation flashed in Zhan Yunmei's eyes, but in the end she didn't stop or lessen her strength.

Soon, blood appeared at the corner of Hua Lang's lips—a tiny, bright drop of blood.

Hua Lang felt the blood between his lips and teeth, and his throat seemed to be swollen and congested, with saliva mixed with blood constantly overflowing.

When he finally couldn't take it anymore, he crawled backward and knelt on the ground, vomiting, but only blood came out.

Zhan Yunmei wiped her hands with a handkerchief, looking down at him.

A faint light surrounded her from behind, and the more Hua Lang looked at her, the more ashamed she felt, more ashamed than anything else.

Before he could catch his breath, Zhan Yunmei opened the door, turned to look at Hua Lang, and said indifferently, "Go sleep in the side room."

It was at this moment that Hua Lang regained some clarity and remembered what she had said that night. He seemed to understand something; she had misunderstood that he was going to run away again.

So he stood up, stumbling forward, trying to tug at Zhan Yunmei's sleeve, wanting to explain that he had only gone out to buy something, couldn't find his way, and was late in returning. The item was originally meant for her, but now that she was handling it like this, he was embarrassed to show it to her.

She retreated, and he missed.

Zhan Yunmei said, "What, you don't want to go?" She laughed and called over the servants on night watch, "Drag him to the side room and seal the windows and doors."

Upon hearing the word "sealed off," she knew she was going to imprison him again, just like before, and drive him away.

A tremendous shock struck her heart, and coupled with the humiliation she had just suffered, Hua Lang's self-esteem felt as if it had been coldly pushed away and thrown far away.

Supported by several people, Hua Lang stopped resisting and collapsed like a boneless wreck. He knelt on the ground, his eyes trembling as he raised them, "Wait."

Zhan Yunmei was annoyed just looking at him, and patiently said, "What now?"

"I'm taking something; lock me up after I've taken it."

Zhan Yunmei didn't care, "Go ahead."

He gained a brief moment of freedom and retrieved the jade dildo he had left in the bathhouse. It was a gift he had given to her, containing his pride and his last shred of courage, but now it meant nothing.

After the small side room windows and doors were sealed shut, the not-so-short jade dildo was smashed into pieces.