As Shen Muzhi was still excited and hadn't had a chance to express himself, Yan Xiao stared at his face for a few moments before continuing:
"Look at you, you look exhausted and have dark circles under your eyes. If you keep going like this, you'll look like a decrepit old man."
What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. Chen Muzhi hadn't looked in the mirror for several days and really didn't know what she looked like.
He glanced at his beautiful wife, then thought about what he might look like now, and a sense of crisis immediately arose, but he remained extremely serious on the surface.
"I've been too busy these past few days and haven't spent much time with you. Is Yan'er complaining? It's all my fault. But once I finish what I'm doing, I'll have time to spend with you."
Yan Xiao hasn't been idle these days. She has already made contact with Consort Liu and reached a preliminary agreement. Now she's just waiting for the follow-up.
The reason she waited for Shen Muzhi today was simply because she learned about Shen Muzhi's current situation from the guardian deity, and she felt sorry for him.
Seeing how exhausted Shen Muzhi looked, she felt even more sorry for him and complained:
"I'm not trying to be mean, but you're a general. You don't have to do everything yourself. What's the point of having so many people? If everyone in power worked like you, they would have died from exhaustion long ago."
Shen Muzhi naturally understood this principle, but he couldn't afford to lose now. He had promised to make Yanxiao the most noble woman in the world, and he absolutely couldn't break his promise.
This is a critical moment, and we cannot afford to make any mistakes.
Yan Xiao guessed his thoughts and immediately added:
"It's one thing if you don't trust others, but don't you still have a brother who's been through thick and thin with you? Brothers are meant to share hardships. I don't think Brother Wei has a lot on his plate. You should make good use of a capable helper like Brother Wei."
Shen Muzhi trusted Wei Wuxiu implicitly, so he wouldn't let Wei Wuxiu be idle, but he also wouldn't really exploit him.
Therefore, after hearing Yan Xiao's words, he hesitated.
Yan Xiao immediately saw through his thoughts, and with a quick glance, she continued:
“You’re so busy these days, but Brother Wei still has time to drink tea. People who know you will say that you’re considerate of Brother Wei’s hard work, but people who don’t know you will think that you don’t trust Brother Wei and are afraid that he will seize power.”
Shen Muzhi frowned slightly upon hearing this: "I didn't mean that."
Yan Xiao naturally knew he didn't mean it that way, and simply said:
"What people fear most is suspicion. Whether you have that intention or not, others don't know, and inevitably some people will gossip behind your back."
Shen Muzhi waved his hand dismissively, "Brother Wei won't believe those things."
Yan Xiao remained silent, staring at Chen Muzhi and said, "Gossip is a fearsome thing. You can ignore it once or twice, but if you hear it too often, you will inevitably feel depressed, and over time it will hurt your feelings."
Shen Muzhi was about to say no, but seeing Yan Xiao's expression, he changed his tone and uncontrollably asked:
"Then, according to Yan'er's wishes, what should I, as her husband, do?"
"It's very simple. The capable should do more work. Keep Brother Wei busy. That way, others will see how much you value Brother Wei, and naturally no one will gossip behind his back."
Shen Muzhi gradually realized what was going on. His wife was clearly trying to take pity on him and was subtly trying to get him to cause trouble for Wei Wuxiu.
However, this also shows that Yan Xiao trusts Wei Wuxiu a lot, so it seems that Yan Xiao and Wei Wuxiu have gotten along quite well during this period.
Shen Muzhi thought for a moment and realized that if he disagreed with Yanxiao, she would probably get angry. In that case, it was time to get Wei Wuxiu busy.
As the saying goes, it's better to die for your friends than for someone on the same path.
He himself, however, has to steal a moment from his busy schedule to spend time with his wife.
“Yan’er is right. In that case, I will share some of my work with Brother Wei tomorrow.”
As he spoke, he reached out and hooked a strand of hair around Yan Xiao's neck, leaning slightly closer and tentatively asking:
"Is Madam feeling sleepy?"
Yan Xiao immediately understood his intention. She remained seated, slightly raising her chin as Shen Muzhi played with her hair, and replied with a soft laugh:
"I'm not sleepy at all. What, General, would you like to sing me a little tune to help me fall asleep?"
Shen Muzhi seemed amused by Yan Xiao's words, chuckled twice, and then moved closer to Yan Xiao until his lips were almost touching Yan Xiao's earlobe before stopping.
Immediately afterwards, Yan Xiao heard him whisper in his ear:
"Since you are so interested, I will naturally accompany you."
As soon as Shen Muzhi finished speaking, the two of them fell onto the bed behind them. However, who sang to whom after that was no longer up to Yan Xiao.
The next morning, as soon as Wei Wuxiu stepped out of his room, he saw Zhao Qian waiting at the door.
He raised an eyebrow in confusion, glanced at Xiao Rui beside him, and then asked:
"Is something the matter?"
Xiao Rui glanced at his master with sympathy, but said nothing.
Zhao Qian replied with a forced smile:
"Your Highness, my general sent me to inform you that he has been extremely busy lately and there are some things he doesn't trust anyone else to handle besides you, so he asked me to come and hand over the reins."
As he spoke, he handed the booklet in his hand to Wei Wuxiu.
Wei Wuxiu didn't think much of it and took it directly. But when he opened the booklet and saw the contents, his face turned pale.
"Is Shen Muzhi trying to work me to death?"
Zhao Qian seemed to have been prepared, his expression remained unchanged upon hearing this, and he replied with a smile:
“My general said that he has a family and his wife would complain if he were too busy. But the young master is different. He is single and has no ties, so he is naturally more free than him. I believe the young master can understand my general’s difficulties.”
"I don't understand a damn thing!"
Wei Wuxiu was not comforted by these words; instead, he felt heartbroken.
"Where is Shen Muzhi right now?" Wei Wuxiu gritted his teeth in anger, looking like he wanted to settle scores with Shen Muzhi.
Zhao Qian hesitated for a moment, then answered honestly:
"The Song City Lord of Qiliancheng arrived in Jiangbei before dawn, and the general and his wife are currently greeting him at the city gate."
"The city lord of Qilian City? That female city lord, the head of Copper Coin Fortress?"
"Exactly."
Wei Wuxiu became interested as well: "Alright, I got it, I'll go take a look."
He was about to leave when Zhao Qian hesitated.
"Your Highness, now that you're gone, what will happen to those government affairs?"
Just mentioning Wei Wuxiu makes me angry; I feel that Shen Muzhi has no humanity when it comes to women.
He left with the words "Wait here" and quickly walked away.
When he arrived at the city gate, Yan Xiao and Shen Muzhi had already escorted Song Zhuxin into the city.
Song Zhuxin's visit this time was mainly for Situ Nanzhao, aside from some political matters.
She had always known that Situ Nanzhao was engaged, and she also knew who his fiancée was, but in her opinion, the engagement made no difference.
But they never expected the other person to still be alive, and they never expected it to be Yan Xiao.
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