Chapter 709: Reminiscence
[V7C026 – In Life and In Eternal Rest]
Listening to the complaints of his subordinates, Zhao Jundu finally said, “Enough, it’s useless to speak further about this. A general died in my hands, after all, so they need to put on a show. Otherwise, how can they placate the masses?”
One of the generals said, “Sigh! Everything would be fine if the fourth young master had been a bit more ruthless and killed all of them.”
Zhao Jundu smiled faintly. “These are troubled times. Intimidating lowly people is right and proper, but it wouldn’t be appropriate to start a massacre. It brings no benefit to the greater picture.”
Since Zhao Jundu had spoken thus, the generals couldn’t say anything else. One of them did mumble in dissatisfaction, “Duke Chengen won’t be that easy to deal with!”
Within a large courtyard in the core region of Indomitable, a fully-armored Zhao Weihuang passed through many a corridor to finally arrive at a building by the water.
Princess Gaoyi was sitting by the window. She didn’t even turn back upon hearing the door open and merely kept on gazing at the pond outside.
Zhao Weihuang sat down across from her with a rather embarrassed smile.
The princess poured a cup of tea for herself, took a sip, and looked out of the window once more. From the beginning to the end, she didn’t spare so much as a glance for the Zhao clan lord. Zhao Weihuang wanted to pour himself a cup of tea but quickly realized that there was no second teacup—not on the table, not in the entire room. Hence, he had no choice but to retract his hand with a dry cough.
Gaoyi kept gazing out of the window, almost as though she would sit like this forever.
The more silent she was, the more restless Zhao Weihuang became. Gone was the demeanor of the man who could intimidate the entire Western Territory, or the temperament of the one who could potentially replace Lin Xitang and crush the rebel army.
“That… Heh heh…” Zhao Weihaung still couldn’t bring himself to speak. Princess Gaoyi’s non-responsiveness stuffed all the words he had prepared back into his stomach. All he could do was keep on laughing awkwardly.
In the end, Princess Gaoyi could no longer stand to watch this laughing man. She glared fiercely at him and said, “Shameless!”
Full of smiles, Zhao Weihuang said politely, “It was truly fortunate that you were here this time. Otherwise, I wouldn’t know what to do.”
Princess Gaoyi was somewhat helpless against Duke Chengen’s cheekiness. She glared at him once more and said, “If it wasn’t for Ruoxi and Jundu, do you think I would pay attention to your mess?”
“You’re right, you’re right.”
Princess Gaoyi sighed. “That kid, Qianye, is bold and impetuous. He’s exactly like you in this respect.”
Zhao Weihuang wore a rather awkward expression. “I was only like that when I was young.”
Princess Gaoyi snorted before adding, “But that child is devoted and loyal, unlike a certain someone.”
Zhao Weihuang felt even more embarrassed. All he could do was laugh dryly because he didn’t know what else to say.
The princess put down her teacup and said, “This matter has blown up quite a bit. I came over because those people are really quite unreasonable, but this is merely the beginning. All I can do is make the imperial family stay out of this matter. What are your plans?”
At the mention of war and politics, Zhao Junhuang immediately sat straight, and his dignified temperament sprang out once more. “Those little bastards from the military actually want to summon Jundu for a court hearing, so I’ll let him go. It’s easy to invite someone over, but it won’t be so simple to send him back. With Jundu absent from the front lines, the responsibility of his defensive region will be handed to the people from the military. I really want to see how long they can last there.”
“Aren’t you afraid Jundu will suffer in their hands?”
Zhao Weihuang laughed with an almost metallic voice. “If they dare touch a single hair of Jundu’s, I’ll beat the yolk out of those old things.”
Princess Gaoyi frowned in displeasure. “Vulgar! You’re always so presumptuous and never think about the consequences. This is a matter related to the nation and army!”
Zhao Weihuang sneered, “This daddy has never seen those people place national matters in their eyes. All they have in their brains are dirty things that can’t be brought into light. Since they want to blow up this case, then this daddy here will make it even bigger! Go and defend Jundu’s battlefront if they have the ability. This daddy wants to see how capable they are on the battlefield. Damn their grandmas, back in the year…”
Just as his heroism was reaching its zenith, Zhao Weihuang suddenly noticed Gaoyi looking at him with a spurious smile. His haughtiness deflated just like a cat drenched in water, quickly replaced by an awkward laugh. “Well, I also did a lot of dumb things back then.”
“Only dumb things?” the princess inquired.
Zhao Weihuang immediately felt quite distressed. How come his answers were always wrong when it came to questions like these. He rubbed his hands and laughed awkwardly for a long time, but he couldn’t squeeze out a proper response.
Fortunately, Princess Gaoyi didn’t intend to make things too difficult for him. “That child, Qianye is really not bad. He saved Ruoxi back then, and now he’s saved Jundu again. Even I can’t help but like him. This ‘not bad’, however, is referring to his character. Qianye’s talents, as I see it, aren’t at all inferior to Jundu’s, how can they be described merely as ‘not bad’? Right now, I’m really curious, just what kind of mother was able to give birth to such a child?”
Zhao Weihuang’s expression fluctuated drastically, and even his awkward chuckle had stopped. He held his breath and stared at the ground in front of him, almost as though there was some kind of rare treasure hidden underneath it.
Princess Gaoyi said with a faint smile, “That child, Ruoxi, is acting a bit weird these days. As her father, you really should pay more attention to her. Don’t just focus all your attention on the western battlefront. If I hadn’t arrived on time, I fear she really would’ve fired the Red Spider Lily.”
Zhao Weihuang was astonished. “What, really?”
Princess Gaoyi sighed but said nothing else.
Zhao Weihuang stood up. “That won’t do. I must have a talk with that lass!”
With that, the Zhao clan lord left hurriedly without waiting for the princess to reply, almost as though he were running away.
In an isolated chamber, Zhao Ruoxi sat quietly on the couch, her face expressionless. The Red Spider Lily was placed in a faraway secret chamber under the watch of three clan elders. It was just that everyone knew this was merely a formality—these people couldn’t do anything if the eldest miss wanted to activate the grand magnum.
It was a wonderful thing if one did not take her intentions into account. It went to show that her control over the Red Spider Lily had risen once again. But now, everyone in the residence was apprehensive, worried that their young miss would do something wild.
Zhao Weihuang walked into the isolated chamber and sat down across from Zhao Ruoxi. “Ruoxi, your mother and I both feel that we need to talk.”
Zhao Ruoxi didn’t even look up. “What about?”
“Eh, that…” Zhao Weihuang fell into a state of distress. He was so focused on escaping just now that he had forgotten to ask what exactly was wrong with Zhao Ruoxi.
The little girl finally looked up with a dangerous glint in her eyes. “Dad, don’t run over to me for cover just because you’re afraid of mom’s admonition.”
Zhao Weihuang’s steps faltered, and he almost tripped. Realizing that he had lost quite a bit of face, the clan lord said with a stern expression, “You’re still so young, what do you know? There’s no problem between your mom and I. What is there to admonish?”
“No problem, is it? But there’s Big Brother Qianye!”
Zhao Weihuang almost collapsed.
He forced himself to sit straight and said in a serious tone, “Ruoxi, you’re not a kid anymore. Qianye, you, Jundu, Junhong, and Yuying, all of you seem to be getting along well. Isn’t that great? Moreover, the matter of the past is long past. It’s a convoluted tale that can’t be summed up in a few words.”
However, Zhao Ruoxi was clearly not that easy to fool. “If it can’t be summed up in a few words, you can use as many as you like.”
At this point, Zhao Weihuang felt that he could no longer continue this conversation. He snorted deeply to express his dissatisfaction, and then he quickly left the isolated chamber. Only after leaving the room did he remember that he hadn’t quite found out what about his daughter was weird.
The imperial military’s stronghold in the city had undergone initial reconstruction. Moreover, it had expanded to cover an entire street block this time. Large batches of warrior craftsmen worked around the clock to rebuild the structure, their various transport and construction vehicles frequently blocking the nearby streets in the process.
This place was just a temporary stronghold at first, but now, it had expanded so much that it was affecting many of the nearby aristocratic families. Yet, no one expressed objection. The person in charge before was only a brigadier general since Li Fengshui hadn’t revealed himself to the public. That was no longer the case; after all, the person in charge now had become a former imperial marshal.
Within the urgently constructed building, the old man who had attempted to ambush Qianye was pacing about with his hands behind his back. Meanwhile, a brigadier general was reading a letter out loud, causing the old man’s expression to become uglier with each line pronounced.
Although this brigadier general could also be considered an expert, his voice began to tremble upon seeing the old man’s darkening countenance. After all, the other party’s strength hadn’t declined a lot despite having left his marshal position. Be it now or in the past, Wu Daoyu’s name was one that could shake an entire region.
When the brigadier general finally completed his task, Wu Daoyu halted his steps and asked, “Done?”
“Yes, that’s all.”
Wu Daoyu laughed coldly. “Bring that Zhao clan person over. I must ask him what right they have to impose such conditions on me.”
The brigadier general ran out swiftly and returned with another brigadier general. This man, seemingly in his thirties, looked fairly capable and resolute. After entering, he performed a military salute and stood as straight as a gun, silently awaiting Wu Daoyu’s question.
The old man’s eyes narrowed when he noticed the messenger’s Fire Beacon Corps Insignia. “They say Duke Chengen is an expert in leading troops, and that the Fire Beacon Corps is full of talented men. Now, I can see that these claims aren’t exaggerated. What is your name?”
The Zhao clan brigadier general said with a bow, “This lowly one is Zhao Chengyi.”
Wu Daoyu squinted unnoticeably. “You’re surnamed Zhao? Which residence are you from?”
“I’m registered to the Duke You Residence, but I’m actually from a side branch and not of lineal descent.”
A gloomy darkness flashed across Wu Daoyu’s face. “You’re from the Duke You residence but you also work for the Fire Beacon Corps. Mm, very well. I hear Duke Chengen is also in the city, did he send you here?”
Zhao Chengyi replied, “This lowly one is here on Duke You’s orders, I believe it’s stated clearly in the letter.”
Wu Daoyu’s expression sank as he unleashed his abyssal aura. This alone was enough to suppress the two brigadier generals until they were pale in the face and tottering on the verge of collapse. “This seat finds it curious. With Duke You’s vision and judgment, how can he bring up such outrageous conditions? I suspect there are vile people playing tricks.”
How could a divine champion’s suppressive might be so easy to withstand? Zhao Chengyi’s legs creaked, groaned, and it seemed like he would be forced to his knees pretty soon.
However, the man only glared back with wide, bloodshot eyes, refusing to kneel even if it would cost him his life. Although he couldn’t speak at the moment, Zhao Chengyi stared fixedly at Wu Daoyu with a smile of undisguised mockery.
The old man felt his eyes twitching. If he were to keep up the pressure, Zhao Chengyi might very well receive heavy, or even irreversible, injuries. He knew that he couldn’t actually wound this Zhao clan general because that would immediately anger the clan—and neither Duke You nor Duke Chengen was a saint.
At the thought of this, Wu Daoyu retracted his momentum. But he hadn't expected Zhao Chengyi to break into laughter. “Even you won’t dare to injure me here!”