"This humble woman, Li Shishi, greets the Divine General." Upon entering Wang Han's room, Li Shishi immediately bowed and offered her blessings.
"General," Gao Qiu said respectfully to Wang Han as he followed in, appearing ready to receive orders at any moment, though inwardly he was plotting to see what Wang Han and Li Shishi would say.
"No need for formalities, please sit down!" Wang Han said immediately upon seeing this, glancing at the madam waiting outside the door and calling out, "Madam, you come in too."
"Yes, General." Upon hearing this, the madam quickly took the zither from Yang Zhi's hands and came in.
"General, this is Shishi's zither." After entering, the madam respectfully placed Li Shishi's zither on the table, glanced cautiously at Gao Qiu, and then respectfully handed over the box she was carrying, saying, "General, this is Li Shishi's redemption contract, as well as the redemption contracts of all the girls in the brothel. I offer them all to you, General, and hope you will accept them. I have nowhere else to go, so I beg you to have pity on me and arrange a place for me."
"Yang Zhi, take the things. Later, give the things those five people brought today to the madam as payment for these redemption contracts." Upon hearing this, Wang Han nodded and said, "Madam, wait outside for now."
"Thank you, General." Upon hearing this, the madam said respectfully, handed the box to Yang Zhi, and carefully withdrew.
This madam, having run a brothel for so long, was a shrewd and worldly person, adept at avoiding trouble and seeking good fortune. Knowing that Emperor Huizong would hold a grudge against her after this day, she sought Wang Han's protection. However, she didn't ask Wang Han to take her in; instead, she asked him to arrange a place for her to stay.
"Grand Commandant Gao, you may leave now! Thank you for inviting Miss Shishi here. Consider this a token of my gratitude. I won't see you off." Wang Han said to Gao Qiu, tossing him a scroll.
"Thank you for the reward, General." Seeing this, Gao Qiu could only catch the scroll that Wang Han threw at him, and said with a bitter face, before retreating with the scroll in his arms.
"Why give him something!" Zhao Fujin said after Gao Qiu left.
“My things are not so easily accepted.” Upon hearing this, Wang Han said with a smile, “It’s a map, of course, with my signature on it. He wouldn’t dare keep it even if he took it back; he could only offer it to your father. He would get nothing and would have to take all the blame for today.”
Wang Han didn't say anything, which was also a reassurance to Emperor Huizong of Song.
"A map?" Zhao Fujin asked curiously.
“You’ll find out soon enough,” Wang Han said, then stopped talking to Zhao Fujin and turned to Li Shishi, saying, “Please sit down, Miss Shishi. I’ve heard that you are the most famous courtesan in the capital, and a woman who is just as capable as any man. I’m so glad to meet you today. By the way, your name is the same as one of my disciples! Her name is Li Sisi.”
"I am but a skilled craftswoman, how could I possibly be any less capable than a man, and I am certainly no match for the great general's majesty. Yet, the mere invitation to come is like a death knell to the Grand Commandant and my mother," Li Shishi said, without a smile or any other expression.
“Those are all idle words.” Upon hearing this, Wang Han shook his head and said, “I invited you here today on someone’s behalf, so please forgive me. I’m sure Miss Shishi has already guessed this. As for the reason why I must see you today, I don’t need to say more.”
“…” Upon hearing this, Li Shishi fell silent. Just as Wang Han had said, she knew the reason very well: it was because of his identity as a geisha.
“I’ve ruined one of your blessings, so I’ll naturally return one to you. It’s better than you staying here, and better than your current situation and the future you envision,” Wang Han said. “Didn’t you say you’re not as capable as men? If you don’t mind, I’ll show you how to be.”
"Is the blessing you're talking about yourself?" Li Shishi asked Wang Han upon hearing this.
"Hahaha..." Upon hearing this, Wang Han laughed and shook his head, saying, "I've already said that your name sounds the same as one of my disciples."
"Tch, this guy talks too roundaboutly, there are traps everywhere." Zhao Fujin muttered in dissatisfaction after hearing Wang Han's words.
"I wonder what the General's abilities are?" Li Shishi thought carefully for a moment, and finally smiled as she asked Wang Han.
Wang Han is right. Given her status as a courtesan, even if His Majesty were to grant her the title of concubine despite the immense pressure, her life in the palace would still be difficult. Even with the Emperor's favor, she would still face many people targeting her. This was the best way out she could think of.
However, if she could become a female general with Wang Han's support, her future would indeed be better than her current situation and her envisioned future. It would be much freer, and far better than anything else. The only sacrifice would be a relationship destined to have a bad ending. There were already examples of female generals in the Song Dynasty. With the current power and prestige of the Divine Might General, becoming a female general wouldn't be difficult. She could even learn skills that everyone envied from him, and with the title of Divine Might General, she could command respect.
The only question is how powerful the Divine Might General really is, and whether he can last long. After all, the Divine Might General's power is destined to be immense.
"You have quite a long-term vision! You're afraid I'll be discarded one day after you've served your purpose." Wang Han laughed and said, "If you want to see how capable I am, you'll see soon enough. But I can put your mind at ease now. I have a secret technique (just a spell) that allows me to cleave mountains and rivers and change the landscape like a demigod. Also, I can tell you something else: I've had long talks with Ying Zheng, cooperated with Cao Cao, and studied astronomy and geography with Zhuge Liang. None of my disciples died a violent death. Can you rest easy now?"
Upon hearing this, Li Shishi and Zhao Fujin stared wide-eyed at Wang Han in disbelief.
Outside the door, Yang Zhi and the others stared in astonishment, having naturally heard Wang Han's words.
"Thank you, Teacher Xie." After her initial shock, Li Shishi immediately knelt down and kowtowed three times, performing the formal apprenticeship ceremony. If what Wang Han said was true, then not only herself, but even her descendants would have nothing to worry about. However, Li Shishi also understood the proper etiquette. Wang Han had said that her name sounded the same as his nominal disciple, meaning he wanted her to be a nominal disciple, so she didn't address him as "Master," but rather as "Teacher."
"I've already taken care of the matter that someone asked me to do," Wang Han said with a smile. "Now let me see how skilled our Song Dynasty's number one courtesan is."
"Yes." Upon hearing this, Li Shishi picked up the long zither from the table, gently stroked it with her jade-like hands, and melodious music flowed from the room.
Those who knew about Li Shishi couldn't help but feel envious. If what Wang Han said was true, then she was like a god, and even her descendants could benefit from her.
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