Ning Wanqin: How Can a Person Be This Miserable

“You mean, Ren Tianye…”

“Call him Lord Duke.”

“Fine. You mean Lord Duke is going to hold a grand ceremony to commend the generals who distinguished themselves during the southern campaign against Yun capital, while also setting up a negative example?”

Ning Wanqin, draped in a coat that barely covered her body, her hair disheveled, asked incredulously, “That negative example is General Zhang Shi?”

Lu Chaosheng reclined comfortably in his chair, his eyes still wandering as he said, “That’s right. General Wang is the positive example, and Zhang Shi is the negative one.”

“Heh…”

Lu Chaosheng slipped into his role as a gossiping actor. “I was wondering why Lord Duke had been giving me orders personally these past few days, always bypassing Zhang Shi. So it turns out Lord Duke had long since taken a dislike to him!”

“But when you think about it, it makes sense!”

“Zhang Shi might have some skill at fighting the prairie tribes, but his performance in the campaign against Yun capital has been absolutely ridiculous. After all this time, has he accomplished a single thing worth mentioning?”

“Not even one!”

“I’m guessing Lord Duke had placed great hopes in him before, but after he bungled things so badly, Lord Duke’s love turned to hatred.”

Lu Chaosheng continued rambling on. Ning Wanqin listened to every word, and her eyes grew brighter and brighter—bright enough to be frightening.

So the commander and his general were at odds!

This was the perfect opportunity for her.

She hurriedly said, “Chaosheng, can you take me along to that ceremony?”

“I want to go and see it.”

Lu Chaosheng refused without hesitation. “No.”

“Taking you into my tent already means I’m going against Lord Duke. If Lord Duke finds out that I’m hiding a woman in the military camp as well, won’t he have me executed?”

“I treasure my life, you know.”

“I still want to live a few more years.”

“No. Absolutely not!”

Ning Wanqin grew anxious. “Chaosheng, I can disguise myself as a male soldier when the time comes, can’t I? There’ll be so many people. Lord Duke won’t notice me.”

Lu Chaosheng considered it for a moment, but still shook his head. “No. The risk is too great. Still no!”

Ning Wanqin became even more anxious and furious. But knowing how important this matter was, she gritted her teeth and suddenly stood up. Her coat slipped from her body, and she gathered her hair up.

Then she slowly walked toward Lu Chaosheng.

After two full days of persuasion, Ning Wanqin finally managed to convince Lu Chaosheng. On the day of the ceremony, he let her change into the light armor of a male soldier and blend into the crowd.

However, because Lu Chaosheng had hesitated for so long and her efforts to persuade him had taken time, the ceremony was already halfway over by the time Ning Wanqin arrived.

On the platform, Ren Tianye was loudly reading out the imperial decree.

Below, the soldiers were already watching with envy.

“General Wang really is impressive. He’s the one who stood out most during this southern campaign, isn’t he? Lord Duke even obtained an imperial decree for General Wang, appointing him Grand General of the Southern Campaign! That’s the Grand General of the Southern Campaign!”

“With General Wang’s accomplishments this time, once Yun capital is captured and we return to court, he’ll probably be granted an extremely high position. He might even be made a prince!”

“It can’t be helped. After all, General Wang is a legend.”

…

Ning Wanqin listened as she looked up, but she was not particularly interested in Wang Ming. She had never heard of Wang Ming possessing any exceptional military talent. Compared with General Zhang Shi, he was far inferior.

Just as she was searching for Zhang Shi with her eyes, Ren Tianye’s voice rang out.

“Compared with General Wang, Zhang Shi, who serves under me, has been a tremendous disappointment…”

Ren Tianye’s expression was cold. “I placed great hopes in him, but aside from flanking the enemy, what else can he do? Waste provisions?”

“Throughout our march south, he carried the reputation of having swept across the prairie, yet he accomplished absolutely nothing. And on top of that, he is conceited, repeatedly challenging General Wang to wagers. In the end…”

“General Wang captured fortress after fortress and helped me pacify Yun capital, but what about Zhang Shi? He is utterly unworthy of his position!”

“I hope all of you will learn from General Wang and keep your distance from certain individuals!”

His words were extraordinarily harsh. Ning Wanqin, standing among the crowd below, was completely stunned.

Had the conflict between Zhang Shi and Ren Tianye already reached this level?

Then Ren Tianye began listing Zhang Shi’s various misdeeds one by one.

At Wusheng Pass, Zhang Shi had wagered against Wang Ming.

Wang Ming had already captured Wusheng Pass, while Zhang Shi was still busy flanking the enemy.

At the three strongholds, they had still been making wagers, and Wang Ming had taken them down in no time.

When they reached the cluster of fortresses north of the river, they were still wagering against each other. Yet Wang Ming had effortlessly captured Zhenjiang City, while Zhang Shi had taken only a few relatively unimportant positions, such as Linjiang Ferry!

Ren Tianye’s account was detailed, and the assembled soldiers were dumbfounded. Ning Wanqin’s mouth fell open.

“Wait, what does he mean, Wang Ming captured Wusheng Pass while Zhang Shi was still flanking the enemy? Zhang Shi endured the elements, led his soldiers over mountains, and suffered countless hardships, only to gain nothing at all?”

“No way. How can someone be this unlucky?”

At that moment, Ning Wanqin felt profound sympathy for Zhang Shi. No wonder Lord Gu Qingyue had sent her to win General Zhang Shi over. If she were in Zhang Shi’s position, she would have run away long ago.

Wang Ming and Zhang Shi were natural enemies!

The ceremony held by Ren Tianye soon came to an end, but the soldiers were unwilling to leave. Aside from a few core officers who knew the truth, most of them were unaware of the secrets behind the affair. However, many soldiers who had a decent relationship with Zhang Shi gathered around him.

The expressions on their faces were extremely amusing.

It could not be called consolation, because there was nothing consoling about it.

Nor could it be called mockery, though their twitching lips clearly showed that they were struggling not to laugh.

“Old Zhang, so you’ve had such a glorious history! Why didn’t you tell us sooner? Whenever the brothers get together for drinks, we’re always afraid we’ll run out of things to talk about. If you’d told us earlier, we’d have had entertainment for ages.”

“Old Zhang, Lord Duke is only angry for the moment. Don’t take it to heart. So what if you always lose your wagers with General Wang? It’s no big deal. Just smile and let it go. Hmm? Old Zhang, why aren’t you smiling? Were you born incapable of smiling?”

“Grand General of Flanking, why don’t you tell us all about it? What were you feeling when Wang Ming captured Wusheng Pass? And what about when he took those three strongholds? Oh, and Zhenjiang City too!”

“Old Zhang, don’t leave! The brothers will plead with Lord Duke on your behalf. Lord Duke is magnanimous and won’t hold this against you. But couldn’t you satisfy our curiosity first?”

…

Zhang Shi’s face was livid. Without saying a word, he returned to his tent.

Ning Wanqin watched the entire scene clearly, and the excitement in her heart grew stronger and stronger.

“What an opportunity. The best opportunity!”

“If I go and persuade General Zhang Shi at a time like this, I’m certain to succeed!”

“Except…”

“Lu Chaosheng is sure to keep an eye on me. No… I have to exhaust him. As long as he’s too tired to keep watch over me, I can go find General Zhang Shi. Then I can win him over!”

With that thought, Ning Wanqin clenched her teeth and decided to give Lu Chaosheng something truly unforgettable today—something so exhausting that he would not even be able to get up afterward!

…