The Grand Secretary’s Pampered Wife - Chapter 796

[Galetron]

[Alma S.] [Christine G.-L.] [K.Rom]

[Lily J.] [Suong D.] [Tessy Ivy O.] [Ziana K.-P.]

[Anasi G.] [Passerby] [Xena]

[Nevy] [Roxanne C.]

[Debra W] [Kiiayame] [Smurfinbatik]

[kuroneko_chan] [Michelle K.]

[Ava C.] [Leeyue] [Manon] [Sophia W.] [Tionna M.] [Val Nes]

Hu Yang was baffled, “Wait, did you not understand? Han shizi is gone! Black Wind Camp is now Lord Xiao’s territory! Lord Xiao appreciates you and promoted you on the very first day! Don’t be ungrateful, I’m telling you!”

Wen Renchong replied, “I said I’m not going, and I mean it.”

“Hey! You—” Hu Yang put his hands on his hips, about to point at him when a soldier suddenly strode over from behind. “Old Chong! Is my armor fixed yet?”

Wen Renchong didn’t even lift his eyelids. He simply pointed to the left rear wall. “It’s done. Third shelf over there, get it yourself.”

The soldier pushed Hu Yang aside.

Though Hu Yang held the position of military advisor, he had no real status in the camp. The Han Family’s commanders never used military advisors appointed by the court; they had their own strategists.

To put it bluntly, he was just a figurehead, taking a military stipend for nothing.

Hu Yang stumbled, barely steadying himself against the wall.

He glared at the soldier and gritted his teeth. “Brat, watch where you’re going!”

The soldier grabbed his armor without even sparing Hu Yang or Wen Renchong a glance and swaggered off.

Hu Yang barely stood at the forge’s entrance for a moment before feeling like he was about to be roasted alive. He glanced at Wen Renchong sitting by the furnace, completely at a loss as to how the man could endure all this heat.

Wiping his sweat with his sleeve, Hu Yang spoke earnestly, “Wen Renchong, you were once the Xuanyuan Family’s trusted subordinate. You should know that even if it weren’t the Han Family, any noble household would refuse to promote you. You just got incredibly lucky that Lord Xiao took a risk offending all the noble families, even the Emperor, to raise the status of a former Xuanyuan subordinate. Yet you don’t feel even a little moved?”

Wen Renchong continued repairing the armor on his lap. “No.”

Hu Yang: “…”

After being shut down by Wen Renchong, Hu Yang stormed off to complain bitterly to Gu Jiao.

“That guy is ridiculously ungrateful!”

“I’ll go take a look.” Gu Jiao said.

As the commander, she had her own tent and attendants, much like orderlies in modern times.

She instructed them to take Black Wind King and the horse king to the training grounds, then headed to the forge with Hu Yang.

Hu Yang intended to lead the way, but to his surprise, Gu Jiao walked faster.

“My Lord! My Lord! My—” Hu Yang watched as Gu Jiao took a precise right turn straight to the forge. Scratching his head, he muttered, “The Lord knows the way? Has he been here before? Oh, right, he did come for the selection… No, wait, the selection was in the front camp. This is the reserve camp… Ah, whatever!”

By the time Gu Jiao arrived, Wen Renchong was no longer fixing armor but hammering iron.

Her gaze landed on him.

Due to the heat, he was shirtless, his bronze skin glistening with sweat. Though he hadn’t trained with the troops for years, forging was also strenuous work; his muscular physique remained strong and well-defined.

Gu Jiao noticed the leather glove on his right hand.

It must be covering his severed fingers.

Hu Yang finally caught up, drenched in sweat. Bending over with his hands on his thighs, he gasped for breath. “Wen… Wen Renchong… Lord Xiao… Lord Xiao came in person… Show some respect…”

Wen Renchong showed no interest in the new commander. Without sparing Gu Jiao a glance, he continued hammering. “Weapons for repair go on the left, armor on the right.”

Gu Jiao looked at the piles of broken weapons and armor stacked on either side of the yard and asked, “No need for registration?”

“No.” Wen Renchong struck the red-hot metal again, sending a spray of sparks flying.

Gu Jiao asked, “You remember whose gear is whose?”

Finally growing impatient, Wen Renchong frowned and looked at Gu Jiao. “Are you here to fix things or not? If not, don’t block my ligh——”

The last word was only half-spoken.

His eyes flickered with unconcealed shock. He clearly hadn’t expected the new commander to be so young.

Gu Jiao’s official age was nineteen, but she wasn’t even seventeen yet. She looked just like a fresh-faced youth.

Yet, there was a composed sharpness in her demeanor, a calm and steady air that far surpassed her years.

“Hey! Mind your tone!” Hu Yang, now less breathless, pointed at Wen Renchong. “Zhang Hu just got punished for defying orders! Do you want to end up like him?”

Wen Renchong lowered his gaze and continued hammering. “Whatever.”

Hu Yang was exasperated. "You–– This guy––"

Gu Jiao remained calm. She glanced at Wen Renchong and said, "Then I’ll come ask you again tomorrow."

With that, she clasped her hands behind her back and turned to leave.

Wen Renchong watched her straight-backed figure and said flatly, "Don’t waste your time. No matter how many times you ask, my answer won’t change. I’m just a blacksmith now."

Gu Jiao didn’t respond or stop. She simply walked away with Hu Yang.

Hu Yang sighed. "My Lord, don’t be upset. Wen Renchong has always had this stubborn temper. Back then, the Han Family tried to recruit him, but he refused. That’s why he ended up in the reserve camp as a blacksmith."

"Mm." Gu Jiao nodded as if taking his advice to heart, then asked, "Earlier, you mentioned that Li Shen and Zhao Dengfeng are no longer in the camp. When did they leave? Where are they now?"

Hu Yang thought for a moment and carefully chose his words, "They left three or four years ago. Li Shen left first, and within two months, Zhao Dengfeng followed… Those two never got along. As for their whereabouts now… My Lord, why don’t you rest in your tent? I’ll go to the training grounds and ask around."

"Alright." Gu Jiao returned to her tent.

The tent was spacious, divided into two spaces by a screen—an outer meeting hall and an inner sleeping area.

Though the luxurious furnishings had been removed, traces of the Han Family’s extravagance were still visible in the ceiling and walls.

The Xuanyuan family had always been frugal. Though they owned many estates and businesses, most of their earnings were funneled into military expenses.

Sitting in the large military tent, Gu Jiao felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, a deep-seated duty.

—Have I already adapted to Jing Yinyin’s identity this quickly?

"My Lord! My Lord! I found out!" Hu Yang rushed into the tent, panting, and bowed respectfully. "Li Shen… Li Shen and Zhao Dengfeng are both in a town outside Shengdu."

Gu Jiao asked, "How far?"

Hu Yang wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Not too far. If we take the shortcut, it’s just over an hour’s ride."

It was only her first day in command, and she wasn’t familiar with everything yet, so there wasn’t much to do. Gu Jiao said, "You’ll come with me."

So decisive?

Hu Yang took a moment to react, "Yes, I’ll prepare the carriage."

Gu Jiao stood up, grabbed the red-tasseled spear from the rack, and slung it over her back. "No need, we’ll ride."

"Uh… but I…"

I’m not very good at riding…

The horse king remained at the camp for training.

Gu Jiao mounted Black Wind King, while Hu Yang rode a Black Wind Cavalry horse, and together, they headed for Qiushan Town.

Qiushan Town was in the opposite direction of Tianqiong Academy. Gu Jiao had never been to the northern outskirts before. It wasn’t as bustling as the south, but it wasn’t desolate either.

The town had a cargo dock, where Li Shen worked as a laborer.

The dock was crowded; passengers rushed to and from ships, and strong men hauled heavy goods.

Li Shen was exceptionally strong. While others carried one sack at a time, he carried three at once.

His temples bulged with veins, and sweat poured from his forehead like a waterfall, vanishing with a sizzle on the sun-scorched stone pavement.

Many workers had succumbed to the heat, slumping in the shade to catch their breath.

Gu Jiao could tell that Li Shen was close to heat exhaustion, but he gritted his teeth and hauled all three sacks into the warehouse before allowing himself a break.

He didn’t rest long. Before his strength had fully recovered, he was already heading back toward the cargo ship.

"Li Shen!" Hu Yang called from atop his horse.

Li Shen turned to glance at him and replied coldly, "You’ve got the wrong person."

Hu Yang insisted, "No, I haven’t! You are Li Shen!"

"Wang Dazhu! Come move these crates!" A sailor on the ship shouted.

"Coming!" Li Shen wiped the sweat from his brow and jogged toward the ship.

"Hey—hey—Li Shen—" Hu Yang shouted twice but failed to stop him.

Gu Jiao sat quietly on her horse, watching him. "What happened to him back then?"

Hu Yang answered, "My Lord mean why he left the army? I heard there was trouble at home. His younger brother died, his sister-in-law remarried with the child, and only his elderly mother was left. He left the military to take care of her. But I don’t understand why would he even change his name?"

"Where is Zhao Dengfeng?" Gu Jiao asked.

Hu Yang quickly replied, "Three miles away, at a tavern. His situation is much better as he owns the place. I hear business is doing well."

Looking around cautiously, he leaned in and whispered, "There were rumors that Zhao Dengfeng had already defected to the Han Family, secretly feeding them information. Some even suspect he played a part in Xuanyuan Family’s downfall. People didn’t believe it at first, after all, he was Xuanyuan Sheng’s most trusted deputy. But think about it, My Lord––he and Li Shen left around the same time, yet Li Shen ended up a dock laborer while Zhao Dengfeng somehow had enough money to open an inn. My Lord, think about it carefully."

Gu Jiao said, "So the money came from the Han Family?"

Hu Yang was impressed. "My Lord is wise!"

"Let’s go see for ourselves." Gu Jiao said.

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--------------------------------------------

In the suspenseful supernatural novel “Records of Mortals,” Jiang Baiyan, once a solitary and impoverished youth, finds refuge in the Shi family of Chang’an due to his extraordinary bloodline. With his clear and captivating peach blossom eyes, this seemingly innocent young man conceals a fanatical and malevolent lunatic within. Destined to succumb to darkness amidst hardship and degradation, he becomes a harbinger of chaos.

When Shi Dai suddenly transmigrates, she takes on the role of the Shi family’s young lady, the one who subjects him to countless trials, eventually leading to her demise.

The twist? She never got to finish reading the novel.

From what she knew of the plot, Jiang Baiyan was just a silent, timid, and often bullied pitiable character.

***

Jiang Baiyan had never encountered someone like Shi Dai.

After he had slaughtered all the evil creatures in the garden, the blood-stained young man, exuding a murderous aura, approached her step by step, his lips curling into a malicious smile, "Scared?"

Shi Dai responded, “You’re really amazing! I applaud you until I spin like a spiral and fly around the moon three hundred times! And also——you have dimples when you smile!"

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

—

After seeing her at a lantern festival with another man, Jiang Baiyan lowered his eyes, his fingers twirling her hair. He said in a mocking and sinister tone, "The mansion in the western suburbs...if I hide you there, no one will find you, right?"

Shi Dai replied, "Does it come with meals and lodging? Can I sleep in everyday? Oh, and your cooking is the best!"

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

—

Jiang Baiyan was supposed to dislike her, even hate her, but as their separation drew near, his eyes turned red and he grabbed her sleeve, pleading, "Don’t abandon me, alri—”

Shi Dai responded, "Alright, alright, I’ll only have you. Mwah."

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

He hasn’t finished his lines yet though…