[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers":3,"chapter-restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-chapter-7":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Restoring the Mountains and Rivers",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2364276,4623,"Chapter 7: Rescuing","restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-chapter-7",7,"\u003Cp>Have the Embroidered Uniform Guard broken in?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Fu asked, his expression agitated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, he was still a youth; though he had stood firm a moment ago, the arrival of enemies at his door still left him shaken.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My Lord, the voice sounds like it belongs to the young master of the Zhenyuan Marquis House.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He refused your invitation earlier and led his retainers to hold their ground downstairs—yet somehow, he’s managed to hold out this long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The eunuch’s reply left Prince Fu deeply disappointed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Zhenyuan Marquis House has few men; from the sounds alone, the fighting downstairs is still fierce, and even if reinforcements joined now, they could not immediately turn the tide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But they had come to save his life—he could hardly say anything to spoil the moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clash grew closer; a guard collapsed at the doorway, blood streaming into the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing this, Prince Fu abandoned all pretense of dignity and let the eunuch push him under the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could steady his nerves, a severed head rolled straight to his feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Locking eyes with the dead man’s unblinking stare, Prince Fu let out a shriek.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his panic, his head slammed into the table, leaving him thoroughly disheveled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether by accident or design, the middle-aged eunuch, as he stepped forward to inspect, also bumped into the table and fell flat on his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the eunuch’s misfortune as contrast, Prince Fu’s sour mood suddenly lifted a little.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With fresh reinforcements arriving, the gray-clad attackers, caught between two fronts, instantly lost morale and were swiftly driven to the left corridor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once he confirmed Prince Fu was safe, Li Mu no longer rushed forward; instead, he led his men in a slow, deliberate engagement with the enemy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Training retainers was hard; the glory of saving the prince was already secured—no need to risk lives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Embroidered Uniform Guard outside finally broke in, they would handle the cleanup.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fundamentally, this was about demonstrating loyalty; ability came second.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sons of noble families only needed to show modest competence to advance steadily; if they showed too much ability, they invited disaster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My Lord, you may come out now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I glanced at the door just now—the enemy has been pushed to the east; the guards and the Marquis House men are joining forces to surround them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It looks like they’ll annihilate the enemy soon!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing the eunuch’s words, Prince Fu’s face lit up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having brushed against death’s door, he now understood how precious life truly was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though dangerous, today’s performance was worth it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before long, word would spread through the capital that he, calm under pressure, had commanded his men to slay barbarian spies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When it reached His Imperial Brother’s ears, rewards were certain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, he didn’t care for minor rewards—but the title of Virtuous Prince held great appeal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A man must have some ambition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where is Prince Fu?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rough voice rang out, signaling the battle’s end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under Sergeant Zhou’s lead, a large force of Embroidered Uniform Guards surged in, just in time to see Prince Fu crawling out from under the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room froze instantly; the atmosphere was deeply awkward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What are you all standing there for? Go capture those barbarian spies!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The middle-aged eunuch stepped in to defuse the tension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Embroidered Uniform Guards quickly withdrew from the room and joined the assault on the gray-clad attackers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With more reinforcements, the battle ended swiftly—but the carnage was brutal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of the twelve Prince's Mansion guards, seven were dead, three severely wounded; only two remained standing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Mu’s five retainers were all bloodied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the blood was from the enemy downstairs; though they looked badly hurt, none had suffered serious wounds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The only casualty among the Marquis House side was Fubao, who had foolishly gotten slashed and now bore the sole injury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After tallying the casualties, Sergeant Zhou, who had commanded the battle, felt his heart sink.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Zhenyuan Marquis House was manageable—they hadn’t lost a man; dealing with the higher-ups would just be a matter of negotiation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Prince's Mansion side was a nightmare: the guards were all registered imperial officials, some with ranks higher than his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seven dead at once meant an immediate report to the court.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your Highness, regarding today’s incident…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Sergeant Zhou could finish, Prince Fu cut him off:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No excuses—send for imperial physicians immediately to treat the wounded!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a prince of Dayu, Ji Zhao shun never bullied the innocent nor seized property by force—he was the very model of a princely lord.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even going out for tea and music could draw such calamity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fault couldn’t lie with this good prince—it must be the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s doing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If those bastards hadn’t driven the enemy into the teahouse, none of this would have happened; his guards wouldn’t have died.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They nearly got him killed; if they think they can sweep this under the rug, the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard himself must come to apologize.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mere sergeant? Ji Zhao shun didn’t even regard him as worth noticing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Acting Commander Li Mu of the Hanzhong Garrison, at your service, Your Highness!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Mu stepped forward and bowed deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder you’re from a noble house—you haven’t disgraced your ancestors!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Prince Fu gave a slight nod.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His starkly different attitude made his stance clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He did not continue to flatter him, for Dayu law forbade princes from associating with military officers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your Highness, I have no further business here—I’ll take my leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Saying this, Li Mu turned and walked away without mentioning a word of what had just occurred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sergeant Zhou, who had been about to speak and detain him, bit back his words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today’s events were filled with too many coincidences and unresolved mysteries; by Embroidered Uniform Guard protocol, everyone present must be interrogated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Zhenyuan Marquis House was no pushover, and Li Mu had just saved Prince Fu’s life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taking him in now would mean offending two titans at once.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the raid had been a last-minute order from above; the fire spreading to the teahouse was an accident—no human planning could be suspected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An acting military officer carrying a few capable retainers was perfectly reasonable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if a few corpses downstairs bore wounds that looked like street thug tactics, that was merely a minor detail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhenyuan Marquis House.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Madam, great trouble—Young Master Mu has returned!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The maid’s truncated words left the Marquis Lady utterly bewildered; she immediately scolded her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Cui, what nonsense are you spouting!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Mu returns, how is that bad?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such talk couldn’t be tolerated—if it spread, people would think she governed her household poorly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Madam, Young Master Mu and his men are covered in blood—they look terrifying.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fubao was carried back on someone’s back; he seems badly injured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Cui’s explanation stunned the Marquis Lady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though noble youths brawling wasn’t unusual, Li Mu’s actions today contradicted what her husband had described.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Send for a physician to treat Fubao’s wounds, and ask what happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instruct all servants not to spread rumors—wait until the Marquis returns before drawing any conclusions!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, she had seen great affairs before; the Marquis Lady refused to jump to conclusions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1206,"2026-06-21T08:09:02.410Z",1,"Qwen3.5 397B","0c61b64ffdd63799fa8f0cae7b2466a44c1b85c4cbf9b299d30ef19527beea61","restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-chapter-8","restoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-chapter-6",391,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Frestoring-the-mountains-and-rivers-cover.jpg"]