This attitude left Shen Zhian deeply dissatisfied.
The more she watched Zhou Buzhang walk away, the more dissatisfied she became.
“Honestly, how was I so blind back then that I married a man like him?”
“He doesn’t have even the slightest sense of responsibility!”
“So what if we’re facing a little difficulty right now? Can’t he find some joy in hardship? Can’t he cheer himself up?”
“If you don’t pull yourself together, how are we supposed to…”
“How are we supposed to live a good life?”
Shen Zhian was extremely unhappy with Zhou Buzhang’s attitude. But even under such circumstances, she would still be a strong woman!
At the very least, she had to look like one.
Only by displaying a positive attitude through her actions could she gradually become positive on the inside and face life more effectively.
Only then could she seize the occasional sweetness life offered her.
This was Shen Zhian’s creed in life. So she sat back down and continued eating and drinking, quietly—even peacefully—enjoying the meal before her.
Afterward, she tidied everything up properly. When it was time to sleep, she went to bed—but she would not sleep with Zhou Buzhang.
She disliked Zhou Buzhang’s current state and did not want him affecting her own.
Only by maintaining a good state of mind could she welcome good fortune.
Shen Zhian’s calculations were uncannily accurate.
The very next morning, shortly after she got out of bed, her maid hurried in.
“Madam, someone has come to visit!”
“He says his surname is Zhang, and that he is the military’s deputy commander!”
Shen Zhian’s eyes widened instantly.
“His surname is Zhang?”
“The military’s deputy commander?”
“General Zhang Shi?!”
“Quick, invite him in! Quickly!”
Shen Zhian was extremely excited. A sense of pride also welled up inside her—a pride in herself. See? She had said so. As long as a person remained positive and strived upward, good fortune would come their way!
Look, hadn’t good fortune arrived already?
General Zhang Shi had come in person. Could even greater luck be far behind?
She hurriedly freshened up and tidied herself before making her way to the main hall. There, she met the legendary General Zhang Shi, whose reputation was renowned throughout the land.
He looked exactly as the rumors described.
General Zhang Shi was… quite ferocious-looking!
Especially the scar across his face—it was so shocking that one instinctively looked away.
“General Zhang Shi, I never expected you to visit us in person,” she said politely. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there to welcome you. Please forgive me.”
Zhang Shi waved a hand.
“No need. I’m a rough man and don’t care about such formalities.”
“I came to see Madam because there are a few matters I’d like to discuss with you. I hope I’m not disturbing you?”
Shen Zhian immediately replied, “How could I possibly be too busy when General Zhang Shi has come in person? No matter how inconvenient it might be, I would make time. General Zhang Shi, please tell me what you need.”
“There are two matters,” Zhang Shi said.
“The first is that I’d like to ask Madam for a favor.”
“Ah…”
At this point, Zhang Shi let out an exaggerated sigh and said, “I thought that after coming to the Yangtze defense line, the grievances I suffered under Ren Tianye would finally come to an end. But I never imagined that things would be just as difficult here!”
“I drove Madam away on behalf of the Grand Commander, yet I failed to earn the Grand Commander’s trust. Not only that, but even Ruan Fei, who is always at the Grand Commander’s side, has been harsh toward me. And that Ning Wanqin has been just as discourteous!”
“Now I, Zhang Shi, am truly isolated and powerless!”
Zhang Shi’s sigh was loud, but Shen Zhian’s eyes lit up as she listened.
General Zhang Shi was in a difficult position within the military camp?
And he had deliberately come to find her while he was in that difficult position?
Could it be that…
She could form an alliance with General Zhang Shi?
If so, she and General Zhang Shi would share a close relationship!
With a talent like General Zhang Shi, he was bound to rise to the top sooner or later. When that happened, her investment would certainly bring tremendous returns.
Thinking this, Shen Zhian straightened her back.
“General Zhang Shi, I truly never imagined that you would encounter such difficulties as well. I may not be especially capable, but I do have considerable wealth, as well as some business connections and contacts. So…”
“If General Zhang Shi needs it, I, Shen Zhian, can provide you with some financial support!”
Zhang Shi was pleasantly surprised.
Was it really this easy to talk to these people?
He had not even finished speaking, yet they seemed to understand his intentions and had offered their help on their own?
“If that’s the case, then it couldn’t be better,” he said. “Madam, Zhang Shi thanks you.”
Shen Zhian hurriedly replied, “General Zhang Shi, there’s no need to be so polite. It is my great fortune to be able to form an alliance with you. However…”
“I hope General Zhang Shi can keep this matter a secret and not mention it to anyone else, especially…”
Shen Zhian’s gaze deepened as she deliberately emphasized several names.
“Ruan Fei!”
“Ning Wanqin!”
“Gu Qingyue!”
“Bao Bao!”
Zhang Shi nodded heavily, his expression solemn.
“Rest assured. This is a secret between Madam and me!”
“Other than the two of us, I, Zhang Shi, will absolutely not tell anyone else.”
Only then did Shen Zhian relax. The joy on her face grew increasingly apparent.
Zhang Shi spoke again.
“The second matter is also a favor I’d like to ask of Madam.”
“I feel that I’m troubling you too much…”
Shen Zhian waved a hand.
“General Zhang Shi, what are you saying? We’re allies now. How could a few small matters be considered troublesome?”
“Just as I said before, if there’s anything you need, tell me directly. Anything I can do for you, I certainly will. And even if there’s something I can’t do, I’ll find a way to help!”
Zhang Shi nodded.
This time, however, there was little embarrassment on his face. Instead, he appeared quite composed.
“It’s like this. The military camp is currently short of naval commanders—seriously short. I’m afraid that if this continues, we won’t be able to stop Ren Tianye’s army from crossing the river!”
“So I plan to train a group of naval commanders. However, we still need an experienced veteran of outstanding ability to take charge. After much consideration, I decided that General Zhou Buzhang would be the best candidate.”
“That is why I came to ask Madam whether you could persuade General Zhou Buzhang to come out of retirement once more.”
Shen Zhian was stunned at first, then overwhelmed with delight.
Have Zhou Buzhang come out of retirement?
This… was simply wonderful!
She had always wanted Zhou Buzhang to pull himself together, but he had remained dazed and dispirited, as if living in a dream. Now, a heaven-sent opportunity had appeared right before him!
Moreover…
If Zhou Buzhang came out of retirement and received an important position, then his salary and the influence he gained from his status in the military would allow her to expand her business operations even further!
This…
This was an enormous stroke of good fortune!
She immediately said, “General Zhang Shi, he can do it!”
“Of course he can!”
“I’ll talk to Zhou Buzhang about coming out of retirement!”
“As long as you agree, General Zhang Shi, I’ll have him come out of retirement immediately. He can even follow you to the military camp today!”
Zhang Shi smiled.
“There’s no need to hurry quite so much.”
“How about this? I’ll give you three days. If you and General Zhou Buzhang make up your minds within those three days, then have General Zhou Buzhang come to the military camp and find me.”
“If not, then forget it.”
“As for the military’s current crisis, I, Zhang Shi, will bear it alone.”
Shen Zhian quickly gave him another firm assurance.
“General Zhang Shi, don’t worry. Zhou Buzhang will definitely report to the military camp on time.”
Zhang Shi nodded, chatted with Shen Zhian for a few more moments, then rose to take his leave. Shen Zhian escorted him to the main gate, when Zhang Shi suddenly seemed to remember something.
He turned to Shen Zhian and said, “Oh, that’s right, Madam. Please pass a message to General Zhou Buzhang for me: if he is willing to come, I, Zhang Shi, am prepared to give General Zhou Buzhang one hundred thousand taels of silver upfront as the fee for inviting him out of retirement!”
With that, Zhang Shi truly departed, leaving Shen Zhian sighing in admiration.
“General Zhang Shi really is extraordinarily generous!”
“He offers one hundred thousand taels of silver just like that!”
“As a military man, it couldn’t have been easy for him to save up that much money—it truly couldn’t. Yet he is willing to hand it over so readily. It’s clear that General Zhang Shi possesses a character far beyond that of ordinary men.”
“With that kind of character, what could he possibly fail to accomplish?”
“I’ll feel at ease knowing Buzhang will be serving under General Zhang Shi in the future!”
…
lity and could only live as an ordinary mortal. He only wished to live a peaceful life. Yet he didn't know— The dog he adopted, because it ate his food, became a legendary demon king. The kitchen knife he casually forged became a peerless divine weapon, causing numerous experts to fight desperately for it. The young disciple he took in became an immortal lord that led an era, due to cultivating the techniques Ye Feng taught him. Even the skeletons he looked down on the most were ominous demon kings that suppressed countless worlds. Many years later, looking at the void shattered with a punch, Ye Feng murmured to himself: It turns out the peerless kings were myself all along...
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
