"It's just that... he can't live without her."
Whether it was fate, destiny, or something else, Wei Yao didn't know. All he knew was that among all the women who came and went around the general, he had chosen only Zheng Quchi.
Therefore, she was different from others in his eyes.
Wang Zebang's pupils dilated, and after a long pause, he finally uttered a few words: "But why her?"
This time, however, the question was not so firm.
Wei Yao shrugged and joked, "How would I know? Why don't you risk getting killed by the general and go ask him yourself?"
Wang Zebang asked earnestly, but Wei Yao dismissed him, glaring angrily at him: "If you don't know anything, why are you saying so much?"
Wei Yao reached out and hooked his arm around him, giving him a friendly nudge: "Because I don't want you to make a mistake because you can't think straight for a moment. I don't know how important Zheng Quchi is to the general right now, but considering that he was willing to abandon his initial plan for her and choose a risky way to start the war, I can guess that even if she's not unique, she's still very important. If you create a rift between you and her because of Gongshu Lan..."
"Enough with the nonsense!" Wang Zebang couldn't stand it anymore and interrupted, "I, Wang Zebang, will only ever be loyal to the general. As long as it's the general's wish, I would do anything, even if I changed my heart and tore off my clothes, I would do it willingly. Do you think you can compare to me?"
Wei Yao widened her eyes dramatically and chuckled, "Yes, yes, in this respect, we are all no match for you. I know you have the heart of an old father."
"What nonsense are you spouting? You mustn't be disrespectful to the general!" Wang Zebang roared.
“Zebang, we can’t make decisions for the general. What path he takes in the future and what kind of people he chooses are all his own decisions. But what we can be sure of is that we will always be by his side.” Wei Yao looked up and smiled, revealing his teeth.
Hearing this, Wang Zebang's emotions were stirred, and after a long time, the knot in his heart finally loosened up a lot.
——
On one side, Wei Yao tried her best to comfort Wang Zebang and resolve the unspoken conflict, while on the other side, Fu Rong was also doing everything she could to comfort Yuwen Sheng.
But compared to the gradually harmonizing atmosphere over there, he felt like he was in dire straits.
In the city garrison's mansion, under the shadows of bamboo and cypress trees in the south garden, Yuwen Sheng stood under the eaves, his neck wrapped in a thick robe. He wore a loose, thin black robe and stood in the wind. He did not wear a mask, but instead used a red scarf to cover his eyes. In his hands, he held a sugar bag stained with patches of dark brown ink.
Once he retired from the military and returned home, his pale face, hair as black as thick fog, and thin, sickly demeanor were like wisps of smoke, or a scholar in a painting.
He had retrieved everything that belonged to Zheng Quchi from the imposter, including the candy bag that Zheng Quchi had picked up after it fell to the ground.
He's been craving sweets lately, and whenever he has a spare moment, he'll be chewing on candy one piece after another.
But when he saw that there was hardly any sugar left in the bag, he couldn't bear to part with it.
In the past, Zheng Quchi would always buy him food from time to time to make up for his lack of food, but now she is gone... What should he do if he finishes eating all of it?
Holding it in his hand, the warmth of his hand would melt the sugar; letting go, he felt an emptiness in his heart. Tormented by these alternating emotions, he hadn't had a good night's sleep in a long time.
When Zheng Quchi was by his side, he had gotten used to sleeping through the night. But once he returned to the days before she appeared, he found the nights unbearable.
After Fu Rong arrived, he bowed and then obeyed Yuwen Sheng's orders.
"Describe to me in detail the scene on Guixu Ridge that day when you recognized her."
Fu Rong cried out inwardly, "Oh no, it's happening again."
These days, the general always makes him recall again and again how he identified Zheng Quchi's identity.
"That day, when Fu Rong first saw the general's wife disguised as Sang Xuanqing, he felt a sense of familiarity with him. This came from my familiarity with the human body. Every person's skeleton is unique. Even if there are similar ones, it is impossible to be exactly the same. So I became suspicious and observed carefully. Finally, based on the differences in the physical structure of men and women, I concluded that Sang Xuanqing should not be a man, but a woman..."
Fu Rong, numb and as if reciting a memorized text, recounted the events of that day in their entirety, including the details of how he recognized Zheng Quchi and his inner thoughts.
The general had asked him to repeat himself because he had spoken too vaguely before.
He later went into detail about the content.
But because his explanation was too brief, the general asked him to repeat it.
Thus, he enriched the content.
Now he is a seasoned storyteller, capable of delivering stories that are both authentic and rich in content, completely satisfying his listeners.
"At that time, the general's wife had a very sharp look in her eyes. When she saw her subordinates about to step forward to capture her (she couldn't mention that she had shown any signs of violence, or the general would hold a grudge), she immediately loosened her clothes slightly (in fact, because of the urgency of the situation, she pulled quite hard, exposing a large area of her shoulders and neck, but she couldn't say that, or the general would gouge out her eyes). The subordinates happened to see the phoenix bracelet hanging around the lady's neck..."
Having finally finished explaining what needed to be explained, Fu Rong thought the trip was over, but the general suddenly asked a question.
How many wounds did she have at the time?
Fu Rong felt a chill run down his spine upon hearing this. He dared not look at the general's expression as he asked the question, and could only brace himself and say, "There are six places in total. The whipping should be concentrated on the back and legs, the abrasions from the fall are on the elbows, knees and jaw, and there is also the... hidden weapon wound on the waist."
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
