Gao Yi. That was what was contained in Song Lin’s latest report, the final one they needed. It was the name of the person heading the small rebellion group that would be their first point of contact in this war without a war.
He was someone who had been very loyal and dedicated to Lu Qinyi when he had served. This would be the best opportunity to reach out and test the waters.
There was only one complication.
“What do you mean ‘no’?” Fei Li questioned. He had only said he would prepare soldiers for the mission. And yet Lu Qinyi had immediately cut him off before he had finished his sentence. He furrowed his brows but Lu Qinyi only crossed his arms.
“I mean what I said. No. Do you really think they’ll take me as sincere if I approach them in such a group? Of course not.”
“I’ll pick a few of my best to go with you then.”
“Your men would sooner wish to see me meet an ‘unfortunate accident’ than provide assistance. Not only will they slow me down, I will have to watch my back against them.”
“My men aren’t unreliable, Lu.”
Lu Qinyi glared and it was clear he intended to be like a mountain, unmovable no matter how the wind howled.
Fei Li’s brows twitched in annoyance. “Then Zhao Mei-”
“She will be operating from the camp. She wasn’t liked much by the soldiers so she would only be a hindrance. She is best used in a planning and advising position anyway.”
“Do you plan to do this alone then?” Fei Li finally asked in exasperation. How could someone be so stubborn? And yet…
“Yes.” Lu Qinyi replied calmly.
“…” Fei Li pressed at his temple to ease the oncoming pain. “You plan to approach an enemy camp we have had no contact with, containing people from an army that was defeated under your name, to attempt to talk them down from rebelling, by yourself?”
“Yes. It will lower their guard if I am alone, and it will be easier to slip back out without anyone else to be concerned about. I’m only attempting to see their views and reactions to decide if diplomacy is possible. I will return and report my findings before action is taken.”
“And should things not go to plan?”
“I will handle it myself.”
“…You’re unbelievable.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“You’re a general! You can’t do whatever you wish.”
“Honourary title. My mission now is only to get results and I can do it in any way I wish. I’m not bound by the restrictions of the role of general anymore. If I decided to do this, who is going to stop me?”
Lu Qinyi clearly wanted to argue but after a few moments, he shut his mouth. There was nothing left to argue, so all he could do was simmer in his displeasure. He turned his head away and said nothing else.
“Lieutenant Xi.”
Xi Ming had been instructed to wait outside the tent. Xi Ming had been the one to assist Fei Li since he had been named, and he was very discontent with having been given such an order. But it wasn’t like he enjoyed Lu Qinyi’s presence either when the other was still so hostile, so he had gone without complaints. He entered as he was called and bowed respectfully. “General Fei.”
“Lu Qinyi and myself will be entering the enemy’s territory for peace negotiations. You will be in charge in my absence. Zhao Mei will assist you, listen to her when she speaks. I want you and the men I appoint to be on standby in a nearby location and ready to act as soon as I return and advise of the circumstances. Prepare for combat should it be necessary.”
Xi Ming’s eyes darted between Fei Li, and the still moody Lu Qinyi who had half turned away from them. “Take me with you,” Xi Ming said finally.
The one time I don’t need him to speak up. Fei Li sighed inside, reluctant to go against the very behaviour he had been trying to encourage. But bringing Xi Ming along was simply asking for trouble. Lu Qinyi never even tried to hide the hate he held for him. Shockingly, Lu Qinyi was more civil with Fei Li then he was with Xi Ming.
“No.”
The answer was firm, and Xi Ming would normally deflate under such a response. But the emotions that flashed across his face only grew more intense. He grit his teeth before he couldn’t contain it anymore, and the words tore from his mouth unbidden. “You can’t go alone with him! How can you possibly trust him? He’s a traitor! He’s a scoundrel!
After all he’s done-”
“Xi Ming.” Fei Li gestured to Lu Qinyi, who was doing a surprisingly good impression of a deaf person. Despite Lu Qinyi pretending not to hear, it wasn’t good for Xi Ming to keep going like this.
But Xi Ming only grew even more frustrated, his hands balling into fists as his tone became harsher. “General Fei, you can’t do this! How can you say nothing will happen to you while you trust your back to someone like him? Even after the things he’s done to you?! Everyone talks about what he did to you while you were hostage! And after that he even taunted you! I’ve heard about how he kissed-” Xi Ming’s sentence was abruptly cut off as Fei Li’s hand shot out to clamp over his mouth.
“Not another word.” Fei Li warned, casting Lu Qinyi a careful glance. Sure enough, the other had turned towards them with eyes narrowed. His mood turned for the worse and his face had already grown a few points colder.
Fei Li muttered a curse under his breath. “Listen to me carefully, Lieutenant Xi. I trust him. You’re not to speak of that nonsense again, is that clear?”
Xi Ming’s resistance had been swept away. He did not have the will to oppose anymore and so he shut his eyes solemnly and obediently nodded. Fei Li carefully removed his hand. Xi Ming bowed and swiftly left without another word.
“It’s amusing how your sins have somehow been twisted into wrongdoings of mine. General Fei could never do something so wrong, right?” Lu Qinyi’s tone sounded falsely calm, indifferent even, but the venom laced in them was anything but.
Fei Li avoided Lu Qinyi’s accusing gaze. “I had nothing to do with the rumours.”
“But you won’t confess the truth either, will you?”
An uncomfortable silence fell between the two men.
I couldn’t even if I wanted to. Such words would be meaningless to Lu Qinyi.
I’m sorry. Even if Fei Li begged for forgiveness, what use would that have?
I never meant for it to be like this. So what if Fei Li hadn’t expected that even now Lu Qinyi would have to live with the rumours, like a fresh stab to a still aching wound.
In the end, Lu Qinyi scoffed and walked away.
—
The awkward atmosphere remained as the two silently walked through the forest, dressed in ordinary, inconspicuous clothing. The journey felt like it stretched a long time as they made their way through the thicket of trees until they came across paths formed from trodden undergrowth. There was nothing of note in these dense areas of nature since no one lived out this way. And so the only ones to be walking these well worn paths had to be none other than Gao Yi’s group.
Just as the sun had begun to dip below the horizon, they reached the end of the path. Lu Qinyi, who had been stubbornly silent the entire time, couldn’t resist muttering a comment. “A cave? Isn’t that too… typical? Folktales have hideouts in caves, this is too ridiculous. The path too, did they think no one would find it?”
Fei Li entertained Lu Qinyi’s complaints for no other reason besides that he was grateful the other was finally talking again. “Perhaps they’ve heard too many folktales and believe themselves to be the beginning of another legend,” he replied while eyeing the two men at the cave entrance.
“The legend of a group of idiots,” Lu Qinyi said in mock grandness. “Actually, I think I know that folktale. It was about a bunch of monkeys. Now that I think about it, they really are being faithful to the original tale.”
This was the first time a serious mission had felt so light hearted to Fei Li. Even when about to face the enemy, Lu Qinyi was… Lu Qinyi.
“We should go before the sun gets too low.”
Lu Qinyi nodded and took the front, stepping out into view. He approached first, with Fei Li following just behind him.
“You two shouldn’t be here. Leave!” One of the rebels called out. But he didn’t seem shocked or on guard, since perhaps this wasn’t the first time someone had accidentally wandered here. But the one beside him frowned as Lu Qinyi got closer, as if there was something about the person before him that he couldn’t quite place.
“I’m here to see Gao Yi.”
The moment Lu Qinyi spoke, recognition lit in the eyes of the man who had been eyeing them warily. “General Lu! That’s General Lu Qinyi!”
“What?!” The other man started taking steps back, his face pale as if he were looking at a ghost. “There’s no way!”
Lu Qinyi was calm, very calm. “Gao Yi. Can you bring him here or not?”
The two murmured urgently amongst themselves, their eyes darting to the newcomers. Then one ran off and returned with the person that must have been Gao Yi. He had a brash, arrogant kind of appearance and tall, large frame. But when faced with his old general who he had once revered, even Gao Yi didn’t know how to act. Gao Yi recognised Lu Qinyi immediately and his expression grew twisted.
“You. How are you even here right now?”
“It’s been a while. You don’t seem very happy to see me. After I brought you such a good gift too.” Lu Qinyi commented mildly. The dwindling light of dusk cast ominous shadows across his face. By the time Fei Li felt there was something wrong with how dark Lu Qinyi’s eyes seemed to be and the strangeness of the smile he wore, it was too late. Lu Qinyi dragged him out from where he had been standing, half hidden behind Lu Qinyi’s figure where he went unnoticed. He was shoved out in the space between them, all eyes falling onto him. Fei Li felt his heart sinking and Lu Qinyi’s next words seemed to ring in his ears, both near and far at the same time.
“May I introduce you to General Fei Li, the General of the North.”
Author’s Note:
Hi all! I’m sorry about the unpredictable upload schedule. I keep disappearing for a month at a time. But don’t worry, I’ll always be back with another chapter!
I’m still fighting a lot with writer’s slump, which I think is very normal to experience after 125,500 words, 56 chapters and over 2 years of writing (I checked the date when I first moved my notes out of my phone and into a google doc and it was Jun 2021). I’m still very excited about getting to share my writing with you all, and I couldn’t wait to get this chapter out (and the next too!) since I thought the twist was going to be quite fun. So I’m absolutely still dedicated and in love with writing this series, and I’m going to continue fighting through the slump to bring each chapter to life and out of my mind prison, with my aim still being to complete the series before the end of the year. I really do love getting to share it and hear the reactions and thoughts about each chapter, it brings me so much joy.
I wish you all a lovely week and thank you all very much for continuing to be a part of this journey for me 💕
And thanks to editor-san Rae. She actually read this chapter in two halves just to help encourage me through the slump, and edited it within a couple days so I could upload it immediately after. An angel as always~
Thanks for the chapter! The story is getting more interesting, looking forward to more chapters! <3
Keep fighting the slump, you can do it! 💪
Thank you Miyori!! 💕 I’m so glad you’re still enjoying it, I’ll definitely keep going so you can see what happens next! Thank you for the support ❤
What a plot twist! This chapter is soooooooooooo good! I’m so so proud of you, Cupcake! You’re doing your best and you always deliver. 😍 You’ll beat this slump! Take care of you~
Thank you Editor-San Rae~ I always appreciate your efforts and encouragement, you make it easier to keep doing what I love (writing!). And thank you for always being my guinea pig so I can test how the next chapter will be for the readers and make changes as needed. Thank you for your noble sacrifice~
Intersting…
hehe ❤
I was wondering how long it would take for them to address the kiss ahaha.
That ending sent chills down my spine, it’s amazing!!!
hahaha! I’m glad you were anticipating it~ Nothing is forgotten in this novel, and everything has lasting consequences!
omg thank you so much <33 I was really hoping the twist would be an unexpected and impactful surprise. Gotta keep it interesting ’round here!
That sounds a bit like foreshadowing, author. 😦 Time for me to re-read this again so that I get a refresher on the details~
You definitely always keep things interesting!
😇 Hehe. Do feel free to remind me if any details and loose ends have slipped past, but hopefully all of them will have been addressed~
Good! I hope to entertain~