Chapter 599: Pacifying Sibao County (Part 1) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]

The soldier presented the arrow with both hands.

Qiu Cheng looked at it, a bad feeling creeping into his heart.

He did not reach out to take it immediately.

He countered by asking, "Where was this object found?"

The soldier looked troubled, but dared not disobey orders, and told the truth: "Just now an arrow was shot from outside the camp and hit the flag right there."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Cheng was naturally furious.

It's obvious who sent this arrow. He practically snatched the arrow and tore off the piece of paper.

Unfolding it in a few swift movements, several large, flamboyant characters came into view. Before the arriving wife could even get a closer look, Qiu Cheng swayed a few times, nearly fainting. Then, she heard him grind his back teeth, uttering a few words: "This is outrageous! That brat Shen Youli is outrageous!"

"My Lord!"

She stepped forward to help him up and showed concern.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the contents of the paper.

Just nine simple words —

【Chiu Wen-yen, wash your neck clean!】

Her face turned deathly pale: "Who is so rude and arrogant?"

Miao Shu didn't see the contents, but judging from the reactions of Qiu Cheng and his wife, the contents of the paper were unfriendly, and it was most likely sent by Shen Tang. She said calmly, "It should be Shen Youli. Such actions are nothing more than an attempt to avenge the loss of the Nanyu County granary."

Upon hearing that it was Shen Tang, the lady was somewhat incredulous and scolded in a shrill voice, "I had heard of this person's reputation for benevolence in my early years and thought he was from some noble family. I never expected him to be such a pedantic, arrogant, and unruly person. This is truly outrageous!"

Miao Shu: "..."

She probably couldn't understand this distant aunt.

Doesn't she understand the principle of reciprocity?

On second thought—

The other party should understand, but what they cared more about was Shen Tang's infuriating and humiliating methods. In her consistent view, even if the two sides completely broke off relations, under the constraints of manners and restraint, they should still be "polite," "smiling while hiding a knife," and "soft while concealing a needle," rather than acting recklessly like commoners. Once she understood this, Miao Shu lost interest in delving into the details and returned to indifference.

Shen Tang's words were quite impactful.

It took Qiu Cheng a while to recover.

What followed was a series of raging outbursts of anger.

Because of last night's defeat, because of Shen Tang's arrogance.

As the de facto ruler of the Qiu family, he hadn't experienced this feeling of being looked down upon, threatened, and reprimanded in a long time. Shen Tang's statement, which wasn't quite a manifesto, brought back a flood of memories he had previously tried to ignore…

The other party was still just a child in his eyes.

This made Qiu Cheng feel even more humiliated.

"furious!"

He let out a shout.

"Pass on my order: Prepare for war on high alert!"

"If Shen Youli dares to come, he won't be able to leave!"

Because of Shen Tang's close-range taunting attack, Qiu Cheng had no interest in pursuing the details of last night, nor did he want to hear the loser's explanation. He felt a pang of regret at losing two experienced martial artists, but their strength wasn't particularly high under his command, and they weren't irreplaceable. Therefore, he softened his expression, telling the seriously injured Eighth-Rank Gongcheng not to overthink it, and that healing was the most important thing…

The eighth-class passenger accepted with immense shame.

And he promised: "Next time I fight those traitors, I will definitely wash away last night's shame with their heads!"

Defeat can demoralize soldiers, but with proper handling, it can also unite them in a shared sense of righteous indignation. In such situations, it's natural to offer words of comfort and arrange for the funeral benefits of fallen soldiers. Qiu Cheng was a capable man, and his actions indeed boosted the morale of his troops.

"Shuniang, come here."

"only."

He could let go of the matter concerning the eighth-class public transport, but—

Snap!

Inside the tent were only him, his wife, and Miao Shu.

The wife was worried about how to comfort her husband.

The next moment, she saw her husband, his face grim, turn around and slap Miao Shu squarely across the right cheek. He stunned her, and she stumbled and fell to the ground. A red handprint appeared, and a trickle of blood appeared at the corner of her mouth.

In that instant, Miao Shu felt as if the world had fallen silent.

When the sound returned to her ears, the burning and excruciating pain in her cheeks made her forget what thinking was; her mind went completely blank.

He didn't even know when the legal wife helped him up.

The lady looked distressed, anxious, and somewhat fearful. She lowered her voice and said, "...My lord, why are you so upset? Although we failed last night, it wasn't all Shuniang's fault. The enemy was more skilled and laid an ambush early on. How could human calculations be completely outmaneuvered?"

They were a young couple and knew each other well. She had seen Qiu Cheng in many embarrassing situations, but she had never seen him lose control and resort to violence.

This really surprised her.

Qiu Cheng simply glared at her coldly.

He said to Miao Shu, "Reflect on your actions carefully."

After speaking, he left the tent.

He left behind his two wives and concubines.

The legal wife looked somewhat at a loss.

The usually eloquent man stammered and hesitated, "Shu...Shu Niang, the master isn't usually like this...or perhaps the losses last night were too great, or perhaps Shen Youli's proclamation was too disrespectful...that's why he couldn't control his temper..."

Miao Shu blinked, barely regaining some of her composure.

He sneered, "Can't control your temper?"

His words were full of sarcasm, his knuckles turned white, and he asked his aunt sharply, "Is he unable to control his temper now? Why didn't he slap his beloved general in front of everyone just now? Did he dare? Would he do that? Isn't he just a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong?"

The first wife's eyes widened in surprise.

He raised his hand and covered her mouth.

"You're delusional, you've gone mad!"

Miao Shu turned her head away, panting heavily: "If it had been his registrar who lost last night, would he have been able to slap me like that?"

Throughout history, how many subordinates have been slapped?

How could such a humiliating disgrace befall her?

Is it simply because she doesn't need to be respected?

So does that mean it can be trampled on?

At that moment, Miao Shu's hatred for Qiu Cheng even surpassed that for Shen Tang, the imagined enemy in her mind. The hatred and ruthlessness that burst forth from her eyes were like that of a bloodthirsty and maddened mother wolf, making even the wife, who thought she had Miao Shu firmly under her control, tremble with fear.

"Shu...Shuniang?"

Miao Shu closed her eyes, suppressing the surging anger within her. She raised her hand, shaking off the support of the first wife, and said coldly, "Aunt, I should reflect on my actions. Please do as you see fit. Also—the man you cherish is no cleaner in my eyes than the men in brothels. In fact, he's not as comfortable as the male prostitutes I buy. Of course, you don't need to constantly remind me to be at ease!"

This bold statement left the wife speechless. She couldn't help but recall a certain detail—just after she persuaded Miao Shu to submit to Qiu Cheng, Miao Shu hesitated and said she needed two days to think it over. She went out for a whole night before finally returning.

Although the world is more open-minded about relationships between men and women these days, very few people would do something like this, let alone someone who is the concubine of a powerful figure.

The first wife exhaled a breath of stale air.

With a formidable enemy at hand, she had no intention of getting involved in this matter.

Shen Tang is a man of his word.

She reminded Qiu Cheng to wash his neck and wait for her, which meant she wasn't joking; she really would come at him with her sword!

“We have a special connection with Sibao County. Our makeshift team started in Sibao County four years ago, and now we’re using Sibao County as a springboard—our neighbor Qiu Wenyan is someone who knows how to offer help.” He munched on a flatbread while attending the morning meeting.

(*゜ー゜*)

It's the 30th, the last day of November! My monthly votes will expire if I don't cast them now, please, everyone, please!

PS: I estimate I won't make it to my due date before meeting the microspores, so I'll try my best to keep the shiitake mushrooms fresh.

(End of this chapter)