Chapter 433

A figure in fiery red burst forth like a sharp sword light, shattering the tranquility of the small courtyard.

Chen Wuji, who was reading, looked up and saw Qin Zhanhong rushing over in a flustered manner, saying, "Grand Master Qin, before you run away from home next time, could you at least say hello?"

Qin Zhanhong has been away from home for several days.

After scattering her dozen or so disciples across the counties of Hezhou, she began running around between them.

Today I'll check how this one is doing, tomorrow I'll see if that one has run into any trouble.

Completely unpredictable like a wandering soul, Chen Wuji now has no idea where this person went or what they're busy with.

"Busy, I don't have time to say hello to you!" Qin Zhanhong smoothed down her skirt with both hands, plopped down beside Chen Wuji, crossed her long legs, and elegantly took a small sip from Chen Wuji's tea cup.

"It's gone cold."

Qin Zhanhong glanced casually and said, "I'm a proper lady; I can't be reckless."

Chen Wuji: ……

A proper young lady from a respectable family wouldn't just lift her skirt and ride on someone.

At that moment, Huo Sanniang walked over from the back courtyard carrying a wooden basin, and the elegant lady Qin Zhanhong immediately rose and went to her, saying, "San Niang, I just returned from Ningyuan and happened to discover something good there."

As she spoke, she mysteriously pulled out a bundle from her bosom and shoved it into Huo Sanniang's hands, saying, "I heard it's some kind of… pearl? I forgot the name, but it's a good pearl for beautifying and nourishing the skin."

"This is too precious; I'll keep it for you, I don't want it." Huo Sanniang didn't even look at what the pearl inside the cloth looked like before stuffing it back to Qin Zhanhong.

Qin Zhanhong pushed it back again, saying, "Everyone has it, we all have it—except our husband, who doesn't need beautifying."

"I know pearl powder can beautify and nourish the skin, but I didn't realize pearls themselves have that effect," Chen Wuji said with a laugh. "Shall I grind it into powder? I'll do it."

"Go away, go away—such a beautiful pearl, why grind it into powder?" Qin Zhanhong said disdainfully. "Even if it can't beautify, just looking at it lifts one's mood."

"Being in a good mood really does help with beautification," Chen Wuji said, closing the bamboo slip with a smile.

Seeing this, Huo Sanniang finally put it away, opened the cloth bundle, and her eyes curved into charming peach-blossom shapes as she said, "This thing is indeed pretty."

Qin Zhanhong smiled at the corner of her mouth, leaned close to Huo Sanniang's ear, and whispered a couple of sentences.

"More nonsense," Huo Sanniang said, blushing, and gave Qin Zhanhong a light tap.

Qin Zhanhong giggled, saying, "A woman dresses up to please herself—what's there to be shy about? This kind of beauty isn't just about the face; the inside counts too."

"Enough already," Huo Sanniang said, chiding.

Chen Wuji wasn't curious about their private talk; he picked up his pen and wrote down some thoughts from the military book he'd just read, knowing that anything coming from Qin Zhanhong's mouth would surely not be a good idea.

Qin Zhanhong helped Huo Sanniang clean Chen Wuji's dirty clothes, then squeezed in beside him, saying, "Hezhou has sent some more news—want to hear it?"

"No more beating around the bush—is this about the big gift I sent to Gu Wenjie?" Chen Wuji asked.

After the previous battle, Chen Wuji specially sent people to deliver the so-called elite heads of the spies and Gu Wenjie's forces, under the cover of dark, windy night, to the foot of Hezhou City, returning the favor to Gu Wenjie and the Snake Staff Elder.

To receive without returning is impolite; courtesy should still be observed.

"My husband is so clever—he guessed it right away; this is exactly the matter." Qin Zhanhong said with a charming smile, her watery eyes fixed intently on Chen Wuji.

Seeing her like that, Chen Wuji knew exactly what this woman was up to.

After being out for so many days, it's about time for her to act up.

"Let's talk about the important stuff first," Chen Wuji said.

Qin Zhanhong's hand moved straight toward Chen Wuji's downhill path, saying, "Isn't that exactly the important stuff?"

Chen Wuji: ……

With a wife like this, what can a husband do?

If you want to coil, just coil—what else can you do?

"The big gift you sent to Hezhou basically managed to infuriate Gu Wenjie; my people couldn't reach inside the yamen, only roughly learned some news saying that over the past few days Gu Wenjie's temperament has drastically changed, and he's been killing indiscriminately." Qin Zhanhong leaned against Chen Wuji, speaking lazily.

Chen Wuji was slightly surprised, "Just this little thing made his temperament change so drastically?"

How could he hear this and feel it's so unreal?

Victory and defeat are common in warfare; Gu Wenjie has suffered losses before, not just this time—why would he lose his composure over this and even start killing indiscriminately?

Qin Zhanhong shook his head. "Anyway, that's the news that came back; as for anything else, I don't know—it's up to you, the commander, to consider and discern."

"It's just a bit strange; whether he really lost his composure or not isn't that important." Chen Wuji said casually. His original intention in sending those things over was merely to disgust Gu Wenjie and the Snake Staff Elder; knowing their exact reactions would be best, but a little vagueness doesn't matter.

Qin Zhanhong's soft, pliable figure pressed against Chen Wuji's embrace again before she continued: "Besides that, Gu Wenjie has recently met with many powerful clans in Hezhou; this time he seems to have forcibly used military might to pressure them, already slaughtering two clans and seizing all their wealth and Young Strongmen."

Chen Wuji shook his head. "Even a glutton would have to shout that this kid is an expert."

Obviously a family of officials who have read some sage books for a few days, yet they act like barbarian tribes, only knowing plunder and development—is this what decent people do?

After this incident, Chen Wuji increasingly felt that the Snake Staff Elder had other plans.

The person he relies on is certainly not Gu Wenjie, who has ambition but lacks any real ability—a petty thug.

Gu Wenjie might not understand the consequences of plunder‑style development, but the Snake Staff Elder is skilled at scheming—how could he not know? This Lao Deng with eight hundred little schemes in his heart, even if he hasn't read a single day of books, would certainly understand this principle.

"My lord, could Gu Wenjie's move indicate an eager eastward advance, intending to attack Yunan again?" Qin Zhanhong asked.

Chen Wuji pulled Qin Zhanhong's hand out of his clothing, his anger rising, feeling a bit uneasy: "In the short term, he shouldn't act rashly and advance on Yunan again."

"Although he surely faces pressure from Lu Ping'an and harbors intense hatred toward me, he has now lost control over Hezhou Counties, and has suffered successive losses of troops and generals; without going all out he cannot defeat me, but if he does go all out, Hezhou City will certainly become unstable."

Nowadays, Chen Wuji can finally say this openly and aboveboard.

In terms of troop strength and soldiers' combat power, Chen Wuji is in no way inferior to Gu Wenjie at this point; he is even contemplating a forceful assault on Hezhou City to seize the entirety of Hezhou.

Now, however, Gu Wenjie's worries are beginning to multiply.

The true balance of offense and defense has shifted, and the initiative now lies in Chen Wuji's hands.