Chapter 1176 – The Fall of Xu Pei, The First Kill of the Lords (46)
Was it just Yang Si’s imagination? He felt that the Lord had been acting strangely these past few days, like a firecracker ready to explode at any moment.
“Feng Jing, you’ve been accompanying the Lord to besiege cities these days. Any feelings about it?”
Yang Si didn’t dare to ask Jiang Pengji directly and instead tried to squeeze some information from Qin Gong.
Qin Gong fell silent for a moment, recalling the image of his Lord charging into the fray, and couldn’t help but shiver.
After a long pause, he hesitantly replied, “The Lord is indeed a man of grit.”
Yang Si: “……”
What the heck, isn’t this common knowledge? Who asked you for your opinion?
Yang Si asked, “Don’t you think the Lord has been particularly irritable these past two days?”
On normal days, she appeared quite typical, but when it came to battle, she was fiercer than ever, throwing herself into combat recklessly. Though they hadn’t broken through Xu Pei’s defenses yet, it was clear that the other side was beginning to feel the pressure.
Qin Gong hesitated and countered, “Really? I haven’t been with the Lord long, and don’t have as much insight as the Military Adviser.”
Saying this, the straightforward young commander wore an expression of embarrassment, as if he’d committed a grave error.
Yang Si said, “The Lord isn’t usually like this—she knows how to measure her actions during war, avoiding injuries whenever possible. How can it be like now—”
Qin Gong: “……”
Turns out, in the eyes of their Military Adviser Yang, even a small scratch on the arm from a stray arrow counts as an injury?
It was just a scratch, he had seen it. A tiny cut no longer than his pinky, superficial, merely breaking the surface of the skin.
Yang Si’s concerns were not unfounded; Jiang Pengji was, indeed, unleashing her pent-up emotions through warfare.
She was slashing her way through, but the poor souls meeting their end beneath her blade weren’t being left whole.
The Divine Blade was no ordinary weapon; it was a renowned divine instrument, on par with the Marshal of the Federation’s sword, capable of slicing through even interstellar armor with ease, let alone mere flesh. She fought until she felt a sharp pain from a scratch on her arm, bringing her back to reality—it didn’t matter what “Liu Xi” had been like; now, she was the one in charge of this body and no one else.
If Liu Xi wished to reclaim this body, Jiang Pengji wouldn’t dare to cling to it.
But if she wanted to seize the fruits of victory, forcefully taking everything that wasn’t hers, then Jiang Pengji would not hold back her ruthlessness.
Rising from the depths of her gloom, Jiang Pengji returned to her usual state.
The focus now was still to conquer the land, to swiftly seize the entire farm, after which those hiding in the shadows would have no choice but to reveal themselves.
What could be more demoralizing than being on the verge of victory only to have someone snatch it away?
Jiang Pengji was never one to be trifled with.
Since she had been thoroughly offended, she wouldn’t hold back her revenge!
She had climbed from the ranks of a genetic soldier to becoming the commander of an entire legion—how could she have gotten there without a bit of patience?
Nothing matters except that she stands as the final victor.
As Jiang Pengji clashed head-on with Xu Pei at the frontline, a group quietly departed from Hejian County, heading north toward Chongzhou.
When Stepmother Gu Zhen appeared before Lady Die, the latter looked taken aback.
“Why are you here instead of ‘recovering’ in Hejian?”
Lady Die wore simple clothes and, despite lacking makeup, had an innate charm that made all women envious.
“Has he put you under house arrest?”
Stepmother Gu Zhen furrowed her brow, scanning the room’s decor, which was both cold and desolate.
Lady Die said, “Isn’t that obvious?”
“Why would he do something like this?” Stepmother was confused.
“It’s just because I let Zhao Er escape. He wants Zhao Er to marry a huntress, which Zhao Er dislikes. I don’t like it either.” Lady Die scoffed, her full lips curling with cold disdain. “Just for that reason, he locked me up here—”
Gu Zhen’s expression turned grave. “How could this happen?”
Lady Die shrugged. “Why wouldn’t it? Lan Ting hasn’t even unified Dongqing yet, and he’s already acting like the supreme emperor.”
Facing Lady Die’s biting sarcasm, Stepmother remarked, “Lady Die—”
Lady Die interrupted, “Hmph, are you here to plead on his behalf?”
Stepmother replied, “Naturally not. I think you might be misunderstanding something—”
“Shut up, Gu Zhen!” Lady Die stood up angrily, glaring at Stepmother, her cold smile haughty. “I’ve told you before, stay away from me. You’re just a lowly daughter who snatched Gu Min’s status. I don’t need your interference—”
The relationship between the two was undoubtedly poor. Though they had maintained a façade in front of outsiders, once alone, their true colors shone through.
Gu Zhen’s expression changed. “I really don’t know what’s wrong with you, why you’ve treated Liu Zhi this way all these years—”
She remembered that White Die and Liu Zhi used to have a good relationship; they were childhood friends and also cousins.
Later, Liu Zhi married Gu Min, and their contact decreased significantly.
Then White Die became Liu Zhi’s concubine, and logically, their relationship should have grown even closer. Yet now, it seemed like enemies.
Such a huge change had occurred almost overnight, without even a buffer of time.
“This is none of your business.”
Lady Die’s attitude was domineering and unfriendly.
Gu Zhen responded, “If it weren’t for the sake of Eldest Sister, I wouldn’t bother with you.”
Lady Die sneered, “Stop acting like your words carry weight! You can talk a good game, but when it comes to snatching, you’re still going to grab what you want. Can you refute that?”
There were a few things she held a grudge against in her lifetime, one being how Gu Zhen had replaced Gu Min as Liu Zhi’s main wife.
Though Liu Zhi wasn’t exactly the greatest of men, the title of primary wife was something only Gu Min deserved.
Gu Zhen didn’t want to get into a quarrel with Lady Die over this. They’d already argued about this issue more than a hundred times.
Gu Zhen said, “I know your temperament. Your attitude toward Liu Zhi has changed so drastically; there must be a reason. I’ve asked you before, but you’ve never been willing to share. Now, with your relationship with Liu Zhi in such turmoil, are you still planning to hide it from me? Does this concern Eldest Sister?”
Lady Die replied, “What if I say—Gu Min didn’t die from illness; she was strangled to death by Liu Zhi using white silk, do you believe it?”
She suddenly dropped a huge bombshell, making Gu Zhen’s eyes go wide and her mind go blank.
White Die, what is White Die saying?
“You must be joking! How could my brother-in-law possibly strangle Eldest Sister with silk—”
That’s simply the biggest joke in the world.
“Why not possible? I saw it with my own eyes back then. Although I didn’t see the person, through the door and window, it was undoubtedly Liu Zhi holding the silk and strangling her.” Gu Zhen finally revealed the secret she had suppressed for over a decade. “The next day, Liu Zhi acted as if nothing happened—he even pretended to be deeply affectionate toward Gu Min—what a farce!”
Just as Gu Zhen was about to say more, the front door suddenly swung open.
Both women turned at the sound, seeing a middle-aged man in a scholarly robe standing at the entrance.
Liu, Liu Zhi?
