"You've been lost in thought all day. Is something troubling you?" Gu Yun looked at Zhuo Qing with concern, noting how absent-minded she had been since morning. At dawn, she had summoned Zhuo Qing to the general's residence, claiming to have found a lead regarding that mysterious scrap of paper. They had been searching for most of the day, but Zhuo Qing remained visibly preoccupied. What could weigh so heavily on her mind?
With a listless expression, Zhuo Qing replied, "Yan Ruxuan returned to the palace early this morning."
"What?" Gu Yun was momentarily stunned before chuckling. "She just arrived yesterday and left already? That's quite the skill you've got."
Not in the mood for jokes, Zhuo Qing responded plainly, "It wasn't me—it was Xiyan. He visited her room last night. I'm not sure what they discussed, but by morning, she was gone."
Her departure had been abrupt, and Zhuo Qing was eager to know what Xiyan had said to drive Yan Ruxuan away so quickly. Gu Yun, evidently less concerned, laughed. "Maybe Lou Xiyan was just honest with her, and she finally came to her senses. It's only natural to walk away when you're not wanted. Who wants to be the irrelevant one in someone else's story?"
The two exchanged a knowing glance, then crouched down and began digging around the base of a tree. Zhuo Qing couldn't help but smile wryly—only Gu Yun would dare make two esteemed generals squat down to dig like common laborers.
Before long, Suyu called out, "There's something here!"
Everyone gathered around the small hole, less than a foot deep, where a wooden box lay buried. The box, worn and rotting from moisture and time, wasn't locked. Gu Yun carefully lifted it and opened it. Inside was yet another yellowed sheet of paper. Not another cryptic diagram, surely?
"She doesn't strike me as someone who gives up so easily," Zhuo Qing murmured, unconvinced that Yan Ruxuan had left simply out of tact. Gu Yun could believe it because she didn't truly understand Yan Ruxuan, nor the mindset of women from another era.
Patting Zhuo Qing's shoulder, Gu Yun gave a sheepish smile at her friend's obvious worry. "Let her be. At least she's gone now. The rest is up to Lou Xiyan to handle."
Zhuo Qing rolled her eyes. Discussing emotional matters with Gu Yun never led anywhere productive.
Suddenly, Gu Yun halted in her tracks, prompting Zhuo Qing to stop as well. Looking up, she saw an imposing bronze plaque etched with five bold characters: General Who Guards the Nation's Mansion. The vermilion characters were carved in powerful strokes, emanating an overwhelming presence. In front of the grand red wooden gates stood two majestic guardian beasts, carved from obsidian and polished to gleam. Their jewel-studded eyes seemed to watch with a predatory intensity.
Eight spear-wielding soldiers stood on either side of the entrance. The aura of trained warriors, far more formidable than that of ordinary guards, radiated from them—strict, commanding, and unshakable. Even with the gates open, no commoner would dare enter uninvited.
Zhuo Qing frowned. "Are you sure this is the place?"
"We've tried his residence and all the places he frequents. This is technically one of Yang Lu's work sites too. No harm in checking it out," Gu Yun replied.
If the paper's markings were taken at face value, it could easily be interpreted as a hand-drawn map.
Shrugging, Zhuo Qing smiled. "Alright then."
Having already toured the Prime Minister's estate, she was curious to see how the General's mansion compared. Was Su Ling home, she wondered?
Together, they stepped inside. As they passed through the gate, the guards who had previously pointed their spears forward smoothly retracted them and saluted with solemn respect. "Madam."
Zhuo Qing nearly stumbled. Glancing sideways at Gu Yun, who pretended not to hear, she quipped, "Madam, is it?"
She had worried about Gu Yun's status in the general's household. Apparently, her concerns had been completely unfounded—being addressed as "Madam" by the gate guards was no small matter. Was this Su Ling's doing? Had she missed a juicy development?
Gu Yun cleared her throat awkwardly. "There are no women in the general's residence. They're just calling anyone madam."
Calling anyone? So, in the absence of any other women, the first one to show up automatically became the lady of the house? Zhuo Qing rolled her eyes. Did they really think her intelligence shrank in proportion to her new curves?
She scoffed openly while Gu Yun continued to play oblivious. Zhuo Qing let it go—once they got further inside, the truth would reveal itself.
"Let's begin."
Standing in the main hall, they took out the paper and followed its directions. After a few turns, both began to feel more confident. So far, every direction matched the actual layout of the mansion. If a fork in the road had only one possible path, the paper reflected that exactly. Perhaps they were finally on the right track.
Another patrol of soldiers passed by, and upon seeing Gu Yun, called out respectfully, "Madam."
She nodded slightly in response.
"How many squads is that now?" Zhuo Qing smirked, giving Gu Yun a playful shoulder tap. "You really seem to be doing well here."
Zhuo Qing had to admit, the general's estate was impressively well-guarded. She'd never seen such meticulous patrols at the Prime Minister's residence.
Gu Yun laughed and flexed her fist. "What can I say? In a place where strength speaks loudest, I fit right in."
"Ah, that explains it," Zhuo Qing nodded knowingly.
But when she looked at Gu Yun's petite frame and limbs thinner than firewood, she couldn't help but burst into laughter again. "Heavens, fate really has a wicked sense of humor!"
Unable to bear the teasing, Gu Yun quickened her pace, determined not to walk beside a woman whose love life had clearly eaten her brain.
After weaving through the estate for a while, Zhuo Qing sighed. "This place is enormous!"
She couldn't understand why the general's residence had such a winding layout. Anyone coming here for the first time could easily get lost. Was it designed this way for security?
Gu Yun glanced at the next set of directions and frowned. "If we follow this path, we'll reach the training grounds."
Zhuo Qing raised an eyebrow. "Why the grim face? What kind of place is that?"
Gu Yun shrugged cryptically. "You'll see soon enough."
After turning left, they arrived at a small gate. As it swung open, the space beyond unfolded into an expansive clearing—what Zhuo Qing saw left her wide-eyed in astonishment. She finally understood Gu Yun's strange expression earlier.
"Oh my... this is scandalously intense!"
In the distance stretched an enormous field, easily the size of four or five soccer pitches. On it stood more than two thousand men, arranged in tight, orderly rows. That wasn't the shocking part—they were all shirtless. Under the blazing sun, their bronzed torsos gleamed like polished statues.
Zhuo Qing had seen her fair share of shirtless men, but never in such sheer numbers. The visual impact was... overwhelming. But under such harsh sunlight, weren't they unbearably hot?
She turned to Gu Yun, who seemed entirely unfazed. "They're training here? Why not in a military camp?"
"These are General Su's elite troops," Gu Yun explained. "This training ground was built specifically for secret drills and strategy experiments. Once the formations are perfected here, they're then implemented at the main barracks."
Zhuo Qing nodded, finally understanding. "No wonder there are no women in the general's mansion. Su Ling really is something—so young, yet already the Guardian General of the nation."
With so many men around, perhaps it was indeed wiser to keep the place female-free.
"You seem to admire him," Gu Yun remarked, clearly unimpressed.
Zhuo Qing replied with a candid smile, "I do think well of him. And I believe you'd make a perfect match. You're no one's concubine material, and good, unmarried men like him are rare."
There she went again. Gu Yun scoffed. "I never realized how nosy and melodramatic you could be. And it's only getting worse..."