Chen Wa had been by Princess Duanrong's side for too long, and he felt lost and helpless when he left his mistress. But everyone has their own life, and Gan Qiongying did not intend to involve anyone.
Therefore, Gan Qiongying stepped forward, reached out and patted Chen Wa's head, saying, "I really can't let you come with me. Look at your size, you're like a bear. When we were escaping, we had to hide here and there. Where am I supposed to hide with someone as big as you?"
Gan Qiongying finished speaking with a smile, and immediately blocked Chen Wa's microphone before he could retort.
"The reason I brought you to the Princess's residence in the first place was because I had my eye on the Chen family army behind you. Over the years, I haven't made things difficult for you, and I've given you a decent monthly allowance. I've treated you well, haven't I?"
"Now is the time for you to show your loyalty."
"Go to the northwest frontier and find a way to bring Chen's army into your own hands. Whether it takes three or five years, turn them into your own army."
"Once you become the commander-in-chief of the Chen family army, I will naturally contact you. If you still acknowledge me as your master at that time, I will indeed need you to be willing to do anything for me."
These words were, of course, meant to deceive Chen Wa, simply to make him leave his side with peace of mind so that he could establish his own great achievements.
Chen Wa is not young anymore. Over the years, he has been "acting arrogantly and domineeringly" in the capital city with Princess Duanrong. Once Princess Duanrong disappears, Chen Wa will naturally find it difficult to move an inch in the capital city without his backer.
It would be better to send him to the Northwest, where his father and brothers are. With their protection, Chen Wa will surely be able to establish his own achievements.
If we wait another three or five years... his determination to follow Princess Duanrong to the death will eventually pass.
Chen Wa seemed not to have expected Gan Qiongying to say that, and knelt there like a fool.
Gan Qiongying patted him on the head again and said, "I'm just going away to play for a few years to temporarily avoid the Kou family's sharp edge. But the regent is destined to fail. If the emperor runs away, just imagine how chaotic the capital will become. The clans will definitely fight each other like dogs."
"Ganlin is the only legitimate emperor, and the imperial clan is controlled by the Grand Princess Huian."
"Wait three to five years, and these clans will be fighting amongst themselves until they are covered in wounds. When you take control of the Chen family army, we will make a strong comeback, and the emperor will still be the emperor."
"He is now the true supreme ruler, no longer a puppet in anyone's hands!"
Gan Qiongying told her lies with such passion that even Gan Lin, who was eavesdropping behind the door, almost believed them.
Chen Wa, naturally deceived by Gan Qiongying, stammered, "Princess... but what if... what if I can't control the Chen family army?"
What if he dies on the battlefield? What if his years of wasted time cause his father and brother to disown him? What if the soldiers don't respect him? What if something unexpected happens to him?
This enormous task suddenly fell on Chen Wa's head, leaving him utterly panicked.
Gan Qiongying chuckled and said, "If you can't do it, then there are others, aren't there? I have so many private guards in my manor, more than two thousand, and not a single one of them is capable."
"If there really isn't one... then so be it. Maybe this is God's will."
"But if I leave the princess, who will protect her safety?" Chen Wa's eyes gradually hardened as he knelt in the swirling snow, feeling as if he had been filled with boiling lava.
He vowed in his heart that he must take control of the Chen family army and strengthen it. In the future, when the princess wanted to take back everything that belonged to her, he would definitely be her strongest support!
However, he was still worried about Gan Qiongying's safety, which was his last hesitation.
Gan Qiongying shook the snow off her robes and long hair, and said to Chen Wa, "Have you forgotten that I have more than a dozen shadow guards? They were left to His Majesty by the late Emperor. These people are all highly skilled in martial arts, and even you are no match for them. Don't worry, they will follow me."
"If even these few people can't protect me, then even with you here, it's just another corpse."
"A real man doesn't hesitate. How can I believe you can lead me back to the capital like this, General Chen!"
Chen Wa was so engrossed in Gan Qiongying's words that he lost his composure. In the end, he descended the mountain with great fanfare, leading his men on horseback towards the northwest frontier.
Gan Qiongying watched him leave. The world was pure white, and although the stars and moon were nowhere to be seen, the naked eye could still see.
Even after Chen Wa's figure had completely disappeared into a tiny black dot, Gan Qiongying remained standing there for a long time.
Although she was not Princess Duanrong, she was indeed Princess Duanrong.
This feeling was very difficult to describe, but Chen Wa had been by her side for many years, and those memories were as vivid as if she had experienced them herself. It was impossible for Gan Qiongying to remain unmoved.
She only wished that Chen Wa would have smooth sailing and be safe and happy from then on.
“Sister, Master Dingzhen is calling us.” Gan Lin saw that Gan Qiongying was almost buried in the snow, so she came out of the temple and walked up to her to shake the snow off her.
"Sister, are you reluctant to part with him?" Gan Lin said. "Actually, it wouldn't be bad to take him with us..."
Gan Lin hesitated for a moment before saying, "The way he looked at his sister clearly showed that he had feelings for her."
Gan Qiongying stretched out her frozen hand, clenched it into a small fist, and punched it into Gan Lin's arm.
"Stop talking nonsense!" Gan Qiongying said, "I like the prince consort."
"But... if you love the prince consort, why did you abandon him?"
This was something Gan Lin couldn't understand at all. He could sense that Gan Qiongying's mood had been consistently poor, and she would often drift off into a daze.
Moreover, they had clearly agreed to take the prince consort with them when they left this time, but at the last minute they abandoned him.
Gan Qiongying couldn't explain too much to Gan Lin. She couldn't very well say that the world was a book and they were all characters in it, could she?
Gan Qiongying couldn't tell Gan Lin that, according to the original plot, he was going to die soon, and his final fate wasn't to soar freely through the world.
He died at the hands of the prince consort, engulfed alive in flames.
Burning to death is an extremely cruel way to die; it's just too gruesome. Gan Lin has suffered so much; how could Gan Qiongying bear to see him experience any more sadness, not even a little bit?
How could I bear to let him know that this world isn't real? Otherwise, he'd start overthinking again.
So Gan Qiongying vaguely told Gan Lin, "I didn't abandon him. I'll just come back to pick him up a little later. We had a little argument."
“He angered me,” Gan Qiongying said, looking at Gan Lin. “Although you are married, you and the Empress are nothing, so you don’t understand the conflicts between husband and wife.”
“Sometimes you just have to give him a break,” Gan Qiongying said, “so that he fully realizes he was wrong and never dares to do it again, then I’ll go back to him.”
Gan Qiongying's actual plan was to send Gan Lin to a completely safe place, separating him from the male protagonist in the story, so that she could come back to find Li Hua.
Gan Qiongying wrote him two letters. The second letter was tucked into the important ledgers he usually flipped through. When he calmed down completely and started managing his business, he would find the letter she left behind when he flipped through the ledgers.
She told Li Hua to wait for her.
If Li Hua waits for her obediently, Gan Qiongying will have a good argument with him.
Why did he conceal the truth? Why did he replace Zhongli Zhengzhen? Was it because he couldn't bear to give up power and wanted to become emperor?
Just thinking about this possibility made Gan Qiongying feel a nagging unease, as if something was constantly churning inside her.
She pressed her hand to her chest, and together with Gan Lin, they walked to the door of a meditation room.
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