With the game broken, Gu Qianluo put down the chess piece in her hand, her brows gradually relaxing, and turned to walk towards the viewing platform.
To the left of the viewing platform is the path down the mountain. Bandits often roam the area below, so Zhuying stood guard here for one night.
Seeing Gu Qianluo walk towards her, he bowed slightly, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Greetings, Mistress!"
"No need for formalities! Did Jinheng tell you when he would come to take me back to the manor? Why haven't I seen him yet?"
"Please do not worry, Madam. Knowing him as I do, he will not go back on his word since he has already promised you."
Hearing this, Gu Qianlu felt more at ease.
Judging from Zhu Ying's words, he seemed to know Chen Jinheng very well. He slowly approached him and asked softly,
"Zhuying, how long have you known General Chen? Has he always been so cold to those around him?"
Upon hearing this, a hint of pity appeared in Zhu Ying's eyes. She shook her head abruptly and replied hastily,
"No, the general used to be a kind-hearted person, a very good man. Otherwise, he wouldn't have saved me from the bandits."
If it weren't for that incident, he wouldn't have become so suspicious and cold-hearted.
"Oh? He helps people too?"
Gu Qianlu's lips curled up slightly, and a look of surprise appeared between her brows.
In her previous life, I heard that Chen Jinheng was born into a military family, born to a Marquis's wife amidst the flames of war, and spent most of her life growing up on the battlefield. As a result, she was cold and indifferent to people and not good at communicating with them.
Rumor has it that he had many wives and concubines, but he only doted on Lin Ruoyan.
Gu Qianxue was naturally beautiful and could not help but be jealous after falling out of favor. She poisoned Lin Ruoyan out of jealousy, and Chen Jinheng, in a fit of anger, ignored her for the rest of his life.
Gu Qianxue died of depression as a result, never receiving a shred of pity from any man.
On the contrary, he doted on Lin Ruoyan.
In this life, Gu Qianluo has no intention of fighting to the death with Lin Ruoyan just to win Chen Jinheng's favor!
If you're going to compete, you should compete for a position within the Marquis's mansion.
"Zhuying, can you tell me what happened to him that led to his current indifferent personality?"
"The mistress is the general's wife; she'll find out about these things sooner or later."
Once upon a time, the general had a sworn brother named Song Huaichuan.
When the Marquis was guarding the border, the general met Brother Song, a herdsman, on the grassland.
Brother Song taught him to ride horses, shoot arrows, and hunt; they became partners even closer than blood brothers.
However, this turned out to be a conspiracy orchestrated by the Flying Demon Gang.
"conspiracy?"
"Yes, Brother Song is the adopted son of the leader of the Flying Demon Gang. Ever since he learned that the Marquis was camped nearby, the leader of the Flying Demon Gang has been encouraging Brother Song to befriend General Chen."
However, Brother Song was unaware that the Flying Demon Gang was a branch of the enemy forces in the Northern Frontier, and they were mortal enemies of the Great Yue Kingdom.
One night, the Flying Demon Gang invited the General to their territory under the pretext of celebrating Brother Song's birthday.
The general was naive and trusted Brother Song implicitly; little did he know that this trip would turn out to be a trap.
"Jinheng has been captured?"
"Yes! After the birthday banquet that day, the general was imprisoned in an iron cell by the Flying Demon Gang and suffered all kinds of torture."
The leader of the Flying Demon Gang threatened the Marquis, saying he would only release the general if the Marquis withdrew from his post.
However, our Marquis is of upright character, unyielding to the death, and would rather sacrifice the general than withdraw from his post.
"After that incident, the general became cold and gloomy."
He spent his days in self-blame and pain, but thankfully Miss Lin was there to keep him company; otherwise, the general surely wouldn't have been able to endure it.
"Is Miss Lin very important to her?"
"I think so!"
Upon hearing this, Gu Qianluo's eyes flickered slightly, and a pang of sadness swept through her heart.
"Where is Brother Song now? Is he still in contact with Jinheng?"
Upon hearing this, Zhu Ying's eyes gradually darkened.
He's dead!
A deep, resonant voice came from behind, startling Gu Qianluo.
She slightly raised her eyes, and a familiar figure had already come to her.
"Husband?"
"Bamboo Shadow, was it safe here last night?" the man asked in a deep voice.
Seeing Chen Jinheng step forward and pull the person into his arms, Zhu Ying pursed her lips into a thin line, bowed, and said...
"Rest assured, Master, Jingyou Mountain was perfectly safe last night. I was unaware of your early arrival and apologize for not welcoming you properly!"
Hearing this, Chen Jinheng glared at him and said coldly, "It's alright, step back!"
Gu Qianlu's eyebrows twitched slightly. She raised her eyes and carefully examined the man's handsome face. She reached out and touched the dark circles under his eyes, and asked with concern,
"Husband, did you not sleep last night? Why do you look so haggard?"
Upon hearing the words "husband," Chen Jinheng's eyes gleamed with joy. He covered her hand with his large hand, pulling her closer, and said softly.
"I have nothing to do, why don't you sleep a little longer, my dear wife?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Qianluo turned her gaze around and said with a regretful expression,
“I haven’t been out in the countryside for a long time since my stepmother moved in. It’s a rare opportunity to get out, and the scenery here is so beautiful that I want to see more of it.”
Chen Jinheng gently smoothed her furrowed brows and comforted her.
"Then let me accompany you for a walk! Luo'er likes it here, and I'll bring you here often in the future!"
“Great!” she said happily.
Chen Jinheng held her slender hand tightly in his palm, and Gu Qianlu followed him to a courtyard full of blooming flowers.
Upon seeing their master enter, the servants stepped forward to bow and prepared tableware for them.
"Greetings, Second Young Master! Greetings, Second Madam! Breakfast is ready!"
"You've worked hard, you may all leave!" After waving the servants away, Chen Jinheng began to serve Gu Qianluo the dishes.
Gu Qianlu's eyes swept over the man's fluid movements, and she covered her mouth with her sleeve and chuckled softly.
"So our cold-faced general has such a tender side?"
Upon hearing this, Chen Jinheng's cheeks felt as if they were on fire, the heat extending all the way to the back of his ears.
"Hahaha! Chen Jinheng, why is your face so red? Are you shy?"
Chen Jinheng was startled and looked down at her, lost in thought.
This was the first time Gu Qianluo had smiled in front of him.
Her smile was like a rose blooming passionately in spring, possessing a powerful allure and infectious charm that even drew his heart to her.
"No, Madam, you're mistaken. Eat it while it's hot; it won't taste good when it's cold."
Upon hearing this, Gu Qianlu picked up the meat from the bowl with great interest and gently put it into her mouth. After tasting the delicious flavor, a happy smile appeared on her face.
Seeing her eating so happily, Chen Jinheng felt happy too. He even ate things he didn't like before with extra gusto today.
Because Chen Jinheng had lived in the military camp for many years, he ate and did things faster than the average person. He stopped eating in less than fifteen minutes.
"I've eaten my fill. My dear wife, please eat slowly, there's no rush. The Marquis's carriage is already waiting at the foot of the mountain."
"I'm full, let's set off."
“Madam, I will be going out in a few days. Please stay in the manor and learn more from my sister-in-law so that you can better manage the household affairs in the future.”
Upon hearing this, Gu Qianluo suddenly stopped in her tracks, looked up at him, and asked with concern,
"Chen Jinheng, are you preparing to lead your troops into battle?"
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