Paired with bodyguards
Xiao Chengyan walked around the tent, and everyone felt an overwhelming sense of oppression, making it hard to breathe.
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Chengyan finally spoke: "Do the generals also think, like General Zhang, that there is anything wrong with Master Gu's words?"
No one spoke.
Xiao Chengyan stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze calmly sweeping over the generals present: "Although you have doubts in your hearts, you have been able to suppress them for the time being and obey orders. For this alone, I should tell you the reason. The 'brilliant plan' you mentioned did not come from me, but was offered by Master Gu."
The generals looked at each other, bewildered and uncertain.
Xiao Chengyan continued, “Her understanding of the mountains and rivers of the southwest and the construction of fortifications far surpasses that of us generals and engineers who have been stationed here for a long time! Today, she is a friend of my Great Yong, but what if she were an enemy? With a powerful enemy lurking at our side, instead of reflecting on your own mistakes and improving your skills, you judge her by seniority and gender? How pedantic! How ridiculous!”
"Have I been leading the Southwest Army all these years... in vain? Must I break down every single military order I issue in the future and explain the reasons to you one by one before it can be implemented?"
The generals knelt on one knee, clasped their hands in a fist and said, "Your subordinates dare not!"
Xiao Chengyan's eyes were filled with a sense of authority as he swept his gaze over the generals present. "Since experienced craftsmen are needed, then Wang Gongcheng and Li Gongcheng will immediately go to Laoyatan to personally supervise the underwater operations. They must follow the blueprints drawn by Master Gu exactly as they are shown! As for the rest, carry out the instructions I just gave."
After saying that, he deliberately glanced at Gu Jinghong.
Gu Jinghong opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing.
Xiao Chengyan understood perfectly what Gu Jinghong wanted to say, because the "experienced craftsman" she mentioned was herself.
Is she out of her mind to plan to dredge the site herself? The men of the Southwest Camp aren't dead, why would she, a delicate girl, have to do such a dangerous thing?
Upon seeing this, the lieutenants all said in unison, "Your subordinates obey!"
The generals filed out, leaving only Xiao Chengyan, Changfeng, and Gu Jinghong, who was still standing in the corner, inside the command tent.
Changfeng felt as if his breath had stopped.
Xiao Chengyan stood with his hands behind his back, his back straight but exuding an invisible tension, as if he was trying his best to suppress something.
— Clearly, Gu Jinghong's desire to go to the scene in person angered Xiao Chengyan.
Gu Jinghong desperately tried to signal to Changfeng with her eyes.
With a forced smile, Changfeng turned to Gu Jinghong and conveyed in a dry voice, "Engineer Gu, His Highness has assigned the experienced foreman Wang and foreman Li to oversee the underwater operations at Laoyatan. Do you... have any further instructions that I should relay?"
Gu Jinghong slightly raised her eyelids to look at Changfeng, but her words were meant for Xiao Chengyan.
"Commander Feng, the drawings are detailed enough. However, the underwater environment is constantly changing. If there are any unexpected situations not covered by the drawings, we will need to make on-the-spot decisions. The difficulty of the tunnels and the complexity of the situation mean that I cannot provide the best solution without my personal presence."
Her tone remained calm and even, revealing no emotion: "Please, Commander Feng, be sure to inform the two Assistant Ministers that I will be going with them."
“This…” Changfeng agreed, but his heart sank.
Xiao Chengyan suddenly turned around: "Gu Jinghong, this is a military camp. Nothing is a game here. A single order can cost you your life! You are a woman. Just stay in your tent and draw blueprints. I have already given you men to command!"
Gu Jinghong was not afraid of Xiao Chengyan at all: "What Your Highness said makes sense, but there is one point. If men can go into the water, why can't women? So the prince who just said, 'To judge by seniority and gender? How pedantic! How ridiculous!' also views the differences between men and women in this way?"
Xiao Chengyan: "Women differ from men in speed, strength, and even physique... The currents are swift and the environment is complex and dangerous. If enemy scouts are lurking, it could be a matter of life and death in an instant! ...Alright, I don't want to argue with you about these things. You should stay in the military camp and not let anyone else be distracted by you!"
Gu Jinghong: "Distracted... Your Highness, you are the commander-in-chief and I am the battalion commander. Our relationship is simply one of superior and subordinate. You just need to be less distracted."
Changfeng was secretly delighted—after so many years, he had finally met someone who could tame the prince!
"Changfeng," he said coldly, "get out."
Changfeng was taken aback, then turned and left.
Xiao Chengyan suddenly reached out and grabbed Gu Jinghong's shoulders: "Superior and subordinate? Gu Jinghong, are we just superiors and subordinates? Have you ever seen a superior eat rabbit meat that his subordinate has eaten? Have you ever seen a superior be disturbed by his subordinate? Have you ever seen a superior and subordinate kiss and hug each other, or have a romantic relationship?"
Gu Jinghong looked at Xiao Chengyan and sneered: "In the end, Your Highness still doesn't trust me. You are protecting me, but you are also restricting me. We haven't known each other for long, but we've spent a lot of time together. You know how much Jinghong knows about mechanical arts, which is why you appointed me as the 'Commander of the Armory'. But if Jinghong can't personally go to such an important fortification, how will you lead the Armory in the future?"
Xiao Chengyan lowered his hands: "They are all prejudiced. With me here, they dare not talk nonsense."
Gu Jinghong: "Your Highness, as you know, I don't care what others say. I just want to do what I feel I should do."
After speaking, Gu Jinghong lifted the curtain and left.
Xiao Chengyan stiffened almost imperceptibly for a moment, and then made no further sound.
After Gu Jinghong left, Xiao Chengyan called Changfeng in.
He looked at Changfeng, his eyes dark and unreadable: "Changfeng, whose side are you on?"
Changfeng: "..."
Xiao Chengyan: "Give her personal guards!"
...
Two days later, at Laoyatan.
The turbid waves rolled and roared deafeningly.
The cliffs on both sides are sheer and rugged with jagged rocks.
On the makeshift construction site, soldiers and craftsmen are working hard under immense water pressure and splashing waves.
Huge wooden stakes were pulled into the water by ropes, while people on the shore, shirtless and with their strong arms exposed, vigorously hammered the wedges.
The situation is worse than expected.
The key support points marked on the blueprints turned out to be an unusually smooth, hard, and riddled with hidden crevices underwater. The two previous blasts had not completely broken it open; instead, they had created even more turbulent whirlpools in the water within the crevices.
The craftsmen in charge of the underwater operations tried several times to determine the angle of the mortise and tenon joints, but were repeatedly tossed about by the undercurrents, making it difficult for them to stand and putting them in grave danger. The angles and depths on the blueprints became unattainable in the face of the forces of nature.
Wang Gongcheng and Li Gongcheng, dressed in faded blue cloth clothes with the hems rolled up at their waists, stood together in waist-deep water, holding onto a makeshift wooden frame, sweating profusely with anxiety.
The drawings were damp with moisture, and the lines on them were somewhat blurred.
"No, we can't get it in at this angle! The water flow is too strong!"
"The wedges aren't driven deep enough; they'll be pushed aside as soon as we let go! If this continues, the support point will be unstable, and the entire passage is in danger of collapsing!"
"Quickly, send someone back to the camp to report! We need Master Gu to make the decision in person; this job can't be done without her!" Master Wang wiped the water off his face and shouted hoarsely.
As soon as the messenger mounted his horse, a chestnut horse galloped from the direction of the camp like an arrow, its hooves pounding the mud and splashing up murky water.
On horseback, dressed in moon white, was none other than Gu Jinghong!
"Whoa—"
She reined in her horse and stopped at the edge of the shallows, then dismounted.
Two bodyguards sent by Changfeng to "assist" her followed closely behind and also dismounted.
"Engineer Gu!" Wang and Li rushed over through the muddy water as if they had seen a savior.
Gu Jinghong's gaze swept quickly across the chaotic scene, the obstructing boulder, and the disheveled state of the craftsmen in the water. Without a word, she grabbed a spare tool bag handed to her by a soldier next to her, and pulled out a bundle of sturdy rope and several small chisels.
Her voice pierced through the water, clear and decisive: "Where is it? Take me there!"
"Engineer Gu, it's too dangerous underwater! We can do it for you!" A guard couldn't help but speak up to stop him.
Gu Jinghong continued walking, neatly tying the rope around her waist and securing the other end firmly to a boulder on the shore. Without turning her head, she commanded, "You don't understand, going there will be useless. Stay on the shore and secure the rope! Wang Gongcheng, you have more experience, come with me into the water to point out the specific locations and problems! Everyone else, continue to reinforce the other support points, don't stop!"
The initially agitated and chaotic scene was inexplicably calmed down by Gu Jinghong's few words.
Wang Gongcheng hurriedly replied, "Yes! Master Gu, come with me!"
The icy river water instantly submerged her waist, the immense force almost knocking her off her feet. Gu Jinghong gritted her teeth, braving the raging torrent, and inching her way towards the giant rock. The murky water, carrying pebbles and silt, relentlessly battered her body, severely obstructing her vision.
Wang Gongcheng stood beside her, pointing to a depression on the side of the giant rock and a whirlpool formed by the water flow, shouting something, but his voice was mostly swallowed by the sound of the water.
Gu Jinghong squinted, trying to discern the underwater situation, his fingers tracing the cold rock surface, feeling the texture and the direction of the water flow.
She figured it out.
The problem was that the rock surface was too smooth and had an inward angle that hindered the interlocking of the tenons and mortises, causing the original blasting point to be off by half a foot. The water flow rushed in from this incorrect angle, forming a fatal whirlpool that prevented the wooden wedges from being driven in.
If the support points are unstable, the entire channel structure will be in grave danger.
Time is of the essence!
Gu Jinghong took a deep breath and suddenly submerged his body underwater!
Behind a very secluded pile of rocks in the distance, Xiao Chengyan gripped the hard bow in his hand so tightly it almost creaked.
His phoenix eyes were fixed on the moon-white figure bobbing in the turbid waves, watching her stagger as she was swept away by the rapids time and time again, yet she stubbornly steadied herself each time, and finally, without hesitation, plunged into the whirlpool that could devour everything!
In an instant, he felt a rush of blood to his head, and his heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, making him gasp for breath.
What a bunch of useless trash!
If he could show himself at this moment, why would he send a woman like her to do such a life-threatening thing?
Not a single craftsman or soldier in this southwestern camp could do anything for her?!
He wished he could fly over immediately, pull her out of the icy water, lock her firmly behind him, and never allow her to set foot in any dangerous place again.
But he knew better than anyone that she would never willingly let him protect her like that.
Furthermore, how exactly was Changfeng assigned to her post?! She was only given two bodyguards?!
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