Cui Hui's response put Shen Tang's mind at ease.

Thinking it best to act sooner rather than later, Cui Hui planned to go see Cui Xiao, his only request being that Qi Shan escort him. This suggestion made Qi Shan react like a cat with its fur standing on end, resistance written all over his face. He remained silent, only gazing at his master with a melancholy look. Shen Tang chuckled, "Are you worried that Cui Kewu is two-faced, and might conspire with your own father to kill you?"

To orchestrate a spy within a spy, a scheme within a scheme?

If Qi Shan were Cui Hui, he would have done just that.

Qi Shan felt awkward as Shen Tang had guessed her thoughts, and she looked away, her voice lacking confidence: "The Northern Desert is not yet settled, and I am worried."

Shen Tang chuckled and said, "What is there to worry about? The elite troops in the Northern Desert suffered heavy losses in the battle, and they also had grain reserves. If they can't conquer Kang Kingdom this year, they will face a great famine next year. The difference between putting up a stubborn resistance is whether they die now or starve to death next year. The message we sent to spread among the tribes these days is beginning to have an effect. Even if the gods of the Northern Desert were to sell their pots and pans to provide support, how can they fight without people? You can rest assured and settle all your old scores."

Fortunately, Cui Hui was very understanding and righteous this time.

If she were to hold Qi Shan responsible for all the blood debts from back then, this matter would likely never end. Not only did Qi Shan not hold a grudge, but she was also understanding and rational about the past; her magnanimity and awareness surpassed that of many others. Shen Tang only hoped this was the last time.

Qi Shan's guilty conscience deepened.

Shen Tang raised an eyebrow, feigning helplessness as she rubbed her forehead and shook her head with a wry smile: "Yuan Liang, what other surprises do you have that I don't know about?"

Qi Shan watched her make funny faces at him, and for some reason felt a chill run down his spine again. He quickly said, "Alright, I'll go. It's just... I feel guilty looking at her face."

Qi Shan disliked this kind of emotion very much.

In his view, a strategist should abandon unnecessary distractions and prioritize the interests of both the ruler and himself when advising a ruler. Feeling guilty towards someone can easily cloud judgment, leading to soft-heartedness, misjudgments, or even wavering in one's stance.

Such people often meet a bad end.

In the past, he wouldn't have minded treating "great kindness as great enmity"—

He won't have to feel guilty anymore as long as the person he feels guilty towards dies!

That won't work now.

"Being with her is too painful, it's like being slowly sliced ​​to death."

Shen Tang found this intriguing.

"Lingchi" (death by a thousand cuts)?

Lingchi Qi Yuanliang's Schrödinger's conscience?

Although he didn't voice his grumbling, Shen Tang's teasing was undisguised, and Qi Shan walked away with a sour face. As soon as he stepped out of the tent, he heard his master's unrestrained laughter behind him.

Qi Shan: "..."

Sigh, I guess I'll just have to bear it. I chose this lord myself!

He couldn't bear it, but what could he do but flip the table?

Shen Tang didn't completely trust Cui Hui, and her decision to have Qi Shan accompany her to find Cui Xiao was also because she had a backup plan. The war in the Northern Desert was largely over, and even if there were still sporadic rebel uprisings, they would be like ants trying to shake a tree, posing no real threat.

This minor disturbance doesn't require the suppression of so many of Kangguo's elite troops.

Shen Tang wants to transfer troops to He Yin.

Qi Shan and his men set off, and the army broke camp shortly after.

The time difference is only three to five days.

If Qi Shanzhen senses something is wrong, there will be plenty of time to rescue her.

The next day, all the provisions and food for the carriages were prepared.

Cui Hui and Imamsong bid each other a reluctant farewell.

The child was very attached to Cui Hui, his eyes reddening silently as he refused to let go.

Cui Hui patiently comforted the child until he calmed down.

Seeing Cui Hui looking back repeatedly through the car window, he said, "Ke Wu and Banbu's daughter get along very well."

The escorting convoy consisted of over twenty martial artists, their warhorses all formed from martial energy, making them fast and stable. Before long, the small figure of Imamson disappeared from sight. Cui Hui withdrew his gaze: "Imamson's personality is similar to my daughter's. Every time I see this child, I can't help but think of her..."

Cui Hui's expression seemed to convey reminiscence and melancholy.

Qi Shan was taken aback: "You have a daughter?"

Cui Hui raised his hand to stroke his hair bun and said with a smile, "Yuanliang, you don't think I'm dressed like this for convenience when I'm out in public, do you? If that's the case, wouldn't it be more convenient and easier to dress as a man?"

Qi Shan looked somewhat uneasy.

He clearly wasn't hesitant for that reason.

Back then, the three of them were ostensibly together, but in reality, he was observing Cui Hui and her senior brother's flirtatious interactions from an outsider's perspective. Just as the lord said, matters of love between men and women are indeed more interesting to watch others discuss. This kind of feeling seems to blind one's eyes—the ambiguous, the unspoken, the lingering, the reluctant entanglement…

Anyone with eyes can see that these two are in love.

They were all blind, unfortunately.

One was clueless, the other was timid.

Qi Shan truly believed that Cui Hui was still unmarried.

"Having seen the vast ocean, other waters seem insignificant; having beheld the clouds of Wushan, other clouds are not worth seeing."

Not to mention the immense damage caused by that incident back then.

Cui Hui was intelligent from a young age.

How could she not understand what Qi Shan meant?

She just said self-deprecatingly, "If I remember correctly, the person who created this incantation wasn't exactly a man of deep and unwavering affection, was he? What he said and what he did were always different. When I was young, I thought I would remember my senior brother for the rest of my life, but you know what? After only two years of wandering the world with my mother, I was horrified to find that I could hardly remember his features anymore. I remember crying and having sleepless nights when I first looked at his portrait, but when I suddenly woke up, I realized that I hadn't opened that painting for almost half a month."

That painting was done by Qi Yuanliang.

Lifelike and vivid.

Qi Yuanliang had a keen eye for detail; even his ordinary-looking senior brother could be enhanced in his paintings. This painting was also the only time the two students were depicted together. Cui Hui relied on this painting to get through the two most painful years of her life; time is truly terrifying.

She still deeply loved her senior brother, and the thought of him made her want to cry, but she no longer felt that heart-wrenching pain.

When Cui Hui realized this, she had a dream.

I dreamt of my senior brother dressed in a wedding gown.

Cui Hui apologized painfully.

She didn't know why she had forgotten so quickly.

The senior brother said, "This isn't your fault, Ke Wu. You haven't forgotten; it's just that you've seen far more painful things in the past two years. Your senior brother is very sad, saddened that I'm not by your side..."

Cui Hui didn't know if the dream was a message from her senior brother or a lie she was telling herself. Waking up felt like a rebirth. She finally noticed her much older mother, her anxious and worried younger brother, and the people around her, suffering from the ravages of war and forced to flee for their lives…

As she grew older and gained more life experience, the memories of her youth faded with time, and her family finally found a relatively stable country to stay in for a few months. That year, while enjoying a spring outing on a lake, she happened to see a young scholar on a boat and her heart fluttered.

Cui Hui calmly recounted that experience.

Qi Shan asked, "A young scholar?"

The scholars in the literary world were generally not ugly.

But it also means that it's not easy to use force.

Cui Hui nodded: "Yes."

Qi Shan asked curiously, "Did it work out?"

Cui Hui retorted, "Otherwise, how did my daughter come to be?"

This first encounter was somewhat like something out of a traditional Chinese novel. As if on cue, it rained, and the kind boatman pulled ashore to shelter the soaked fish. Cui Hui approached the scholar, only to find him holding a scroll titled "The Legend of the White Snake," and their eyes met.

Qi Shan: "..."

Why does it sound so sour to him?

Cui Hui and the scholar naturally became acquainted through conversation.

The two chatted amiably, and during their conversation, Cui Hui learned that the young man had come from another country to recuperate, and that his temporary lodging was just across the street from his own. Perhaps it was truly fate, for when Cui Hui went out to buy books for his younger brother, he encountered the young man again.

Everything happened naturally.

Cui Hui inquired about the families of young scholars.

Only then did they learn that the scholar was married and divorced, and had no children.

Cui Hui was somewhat disappointed, but still asked the young man why he had divorced his wife. The young man replied frankly, "Because I am incompetent..."

Qi Shan: "..."

Is this something you can say in public?

Cui Hui sighed and said, "It's not that I'm impotent in that area."

The young man divorced his wife because of conflicts between their parents, or rather, family conflicts. These conflicts were so sharp and irreconcilable that the newlywed couple ultimately suffered. After the divorce, he gradually took over the family affairs.

Cui Hui hesitated: "So it seems your separation wasn't due to incompatibility. Now that you have the means, why not turn back?"

The young scholar said: "There's no going back."

The young scholar, lost in thought, said with a wistful expression: "Back then I lacked the power to protect them, and now I lack the courage to turn back. It's best if we all live peacefully; everything is in the past."

Cui Hui became estranged from scholars because of this incident.

Unfortunately, fate was quite interested in this ill-fated relationship.

The two met again in a foreign country, and he even helped him out of a predicament.

After a while—

Cui Hui was completely smitten.

When the two families were discussing marriage, she learned that the young man came from an extremely high social standing, truly raised in a golden palace. Given the vast difference in their family backgrounds, the marriage was likely doomed. However, through some maneuvering, the young man managed to give Cui Hui a false identity that made him a suitable match, allowing them to marry him legitimately.

Upon hearing this, Qi Shan's fists hardened.

He said he couldn't find Cui Hui anywhere.

They had a lead through the Gods' intelligence network, but the lead went cold during the investigation, and there was no further news since.

Good heavens, so there was this part all along!

While angry, I was also amazed by the man's courage.

"A proper marriage? That's quite the man."

If you're truly determined, you can overcome any obstacle.

In places where family background is important, it is not easy for two people to get together.

Cui Hui snorted: "There's some truth to the idea of ​​marrying someone of equal social standing. Before marriage, I thought mutual affection was enough, but after marriage, I realized it wasn't like that at all. Marrying this man means not only being his wife, but also being the matriarch, the matriarch, and the daughter-in-law of his family. You know my background best. Do you think I can get used to all this? But, what can I do? This man is handsome, so I can tolerate it for his looks. The formalities of large families are a nightmare; learning them is like living a life worse than death."

Despite saying that, Cui Hui was a strong-willed person.

She decides that if she's going to do something, she wants to do it to the best of her ability.

Aside from the initial two years when she was overwhelmed and needed her husband's trusted confidants to help her, she became quite adept at managing the household, running the family business, and raising children; life was peaceful. Until one day, her husband unexpectedly discovered a portrait in her dowry.

Cui Hui did not hide anything from his partner about his first wedding.

The other party had always known about this.

For some reason, the reaction was very strong that day.

Cui Hui was still reeling from the shock of discovering her gray hair. Having given birth to two sons and a daughter, she clearly felt that her body was not as light as it had been in her youth. Seeing her husband holding a painting, still young and vigorous, she felt an indescribable sense of suffocation gripping her throat.

You've seen this painting before.

The scholar said, "But I never expected you to survive to this day."

A sudden surge of anger welled up in Cui Hui's brain, and he gritted his teeth, saying, "I've already let it go. What can a painting prove?"

Even the only trace my senior brother left in this world can't be preserved?

The scholar said nothing and simply turned and left.

But what truly made Cui Hui let go of everything and leave was something else entirely: she discovered that her husband was still in contact with his ex-wife.

Qi Shan nearly choked on her saliva: "You can tolerate this?"

Cui Hui sneered: "If we keep tolerating this, we'll just become idiots."

In the years following her marriage, Cui Hui's life was not very happy.

Her in-laws knew her true identity.

Although she wasn't deliberately difficult, she was always distant, even after she gave birth to two sons and a daughter. She wasn't treated well, nor were her own children, yet she was very affectionate towards her husband's brother's children. Naturally, Cui Hui felt deeply hurt. Realizing her husband's affair with his ex-wife, she decisively wrote a divorce agreement.

[I was attracted to you back then because of your face.] Cui Hui's confrontation with her husband was very calm. [When your face no longer moves me, why should I help you manage your social interactions, handle the endless trivialities, and serve your parents? We were husband and wife, let's part amicably...]

Qi Shan asked, "Did he try to persuade me to stay?"

Cui Hui's face darkened: "No."

Qi Shan: "..."

After the confrontation, she packed her things and left.

They didn't take a single child with them.

She can't take it with her, and even if she did, she couldn't raise it.

In this world, she struggles even to protect herself.

Cui Hui sighed and said, "...His family is very particular about the order of birth and paternity. My eldest and second sons are both my children, and they are not young anymore. They also have some talent. Whether he remarries in the future or not will not affect the future of the three children. I am quite at ease."

Returning to a life of wandering the world was tough, but very free.

After hearing this dramatic story, Qi Shan said, "Whose family is your ex-husband from? If you call him back, you'll be dead or alive!"

Cui Hui's lips twitched: "...Let the child have a father...After all, it's quite infuriating to be told 'Your father is dead'..."

The convoy sped towards Heyin.

——

As mentioned before, Wu Xian will be summoned after the battle of Beimo.

Due to insufficient border defense forces and the pressure on the northern front, Zhao Feng, who was stationed in Heyin, simply adopted the "iron tortoise" tactic, focusing on defense and only engaging in battle when absolutely necessary. However, he would only make a brief move and then decisively retreat after gaining a small advantage.

No matter how much the generals of Gao Guowu provoked them, they ignored it. Occasionally, when the other side got tired of challenging them, they would have an open-air BBQ, grilling lamb, beef, pork, and all kinds of seasonal vegetables and fruits...

When he's in a good mood, he might even show off his archery skills.

Use bows and arrows to airlift the burnt food over.

They called it: "Inviting former colleagues to try my cooking."

Zhao Feng's outburst infuriated the Gao general to the point of near death. Luckily, he was a brave and physically strong warrior, otherwise he might have suffered a stroke from anger. Zhao Wei also seemed to have a new appreciation for his father's low limits and couldn't help but give him two thumbs up.

|ω`)

This ex-husband should have made an appearance.

Happy Lunar New Year's Eve! I'm planning to stay up all night tonight to work on my studies, so I can rest tomorrow.