When the outline of Shuanghe City's walls faintly appeared on the distant horizon, Gu Chengyin raised his hand and gently clenched his fist. Seeing this, Chen Busha immediately signaled the entire army to halt.
Then, Gu Chengyin lightly patted Shangguan Yunying's shoulder and pointed forward.
Understanding his intent, she immediately pulled back on the reins. The steed beneath her let out a low neigh and came to a steady stop at the top of a slightly elevated hill.
Gu Chengyin's gaze swept across the surroundings as swiftly as a falcon's.
The rolling mountains, winding ravines, and sparse woods were all taken in at a glance.
Afterward, he pointed toward the entrance of a valley with relatively dense vegetation:
"Her Highness has ordered that a temporary camp be set up with that mountain col as the center."
"The scale doesn't need to be too large, but it must look real. Create the illusion that the main force is resting and resupplying, and that both men and horses are exhausted."
"Understood," Shangguan Yunying replied. Just as she was about to pass down the order, she heard Gu Chengyin continue:
"Remember, the camp is fake, and the rest is fake. Once the setup is complete, assemble immediately and prepare for the return journey."
Return journey?
Shangguan Yunying paused mid-nod, a clear trace of bewilderment flashing through her eyes.
Return? Return where? Isn't Shuanghe City right in front of us?
Doubts sprang up in her heart, but the authority Gu Chengyin had established recently forced her to suppress the urge to question him.
She simply gave a composed nod: "Understood."
She then turned her horse around and relayed the orders clearly and swiftly.
Today's Golden Feather Guard, having undergone Gu Chengyin's previous ideological rectification, had quietly elevated their morale and cohesion to a new level.
Regarding this seemingly abrupt command, the commanders at all levels were exceptionally resolute when passing it down. There was no criticism from the rank and file, and its execution was swift and decisive, without the slightest hint of sluggishness.
Watching the Golden Feather Guard operate so efficiently, Shangguan Yunying felt a bit more at ease.
She stealthily glanced at the Fake Luo Zhao sitting with closed eyes on a flat rock not far away.
After hesitating for a moment, she quietly moved her steps and arrived behind Gu Chengyin, who was personally supervising the operation.
"Deacon Gu." Her voice wasn't loud, but it startled the fully concentrated Gu Chengyin.
Gu Chengyin spun around abruptly. Seeing it was her, he breathed a sigh of relief and said in annoyance, "Yunying, do you not make any sound when you walk?"
Remembering her Foundation Establishment cultivation realm, he realized she probably really could walk without making a sound, and he waved his hand helplessly.
"Forget it. Do you need something?"
Seeing Gu Chengyin's startled appearance, Shangguan Yunying found it rather amusing. The corners of her mouth unconsciously curved up, but she quickly restrained her smile and said seriously:
"I would like to ask you, sir, about the meaning of the word return you just mentioned. Where are we... returning to?"
Shangguan Yunying truly could not suppress the curiosity in her heart any longer.
Priding herself on being intelligent and adept at reading people, she could always guess Luo Zhao's thoughts with decent accuracy when she was by her side.
This was also a major reason why she could securely hold the position of Chief Lady-in-Waiting of the Internal Affairs Bureau.
Although she would occasionally guess wrong and be severely reprimanded by Luo Zhao.
But facing Gu Chengyin, she felt an unprecedented sense of defeat and bewilderment.
Every step this man took was beyond her expectations, yet perfectly logical once executed.
This advanced foresight and planning made Gu Chengyin seem like a walking fog, completely elusive to her.
At the same time, it aroused her intense curiosity. Shangguan Yunying had wanted to know for a long time.
Just what kind of strategy would allow thirty thousand Golden Feather Guards to safely reach the Divine Capital while besieged by hundreds of thousands of rebels.
At this moment, Shangguan Yunying shed her usual businesslike aloofness, her eyes sparkling with the thirst for knowledge.
"You want to know?"
Gu Chengyin turned his head and cast a glance at her.
As long as this woman wasn't arguing with him, she was actually quite pretty.
Shangguan Yunying nodded vigorously, her eyes filled with an eager thirst for knowledge.
However, Gu Chengyin's reply consisted of only a few dry words:
"Military secret. No comment."
The anticipation on Shangguan Yunying's face instantly collapsed. The corners of her mouth turned down slightly, and her eyes revealed obvious disappointment and a hint of irritation.
She naturally understood this principle, and she knew that some plans could not be leaked in advance.
But being rejected so bluntly still left a bad taste in her mouth, making her gaze toward Gu Chengyin turn a few degrees colder.
"However..." Gu Chengyin suddenly changed his tune, dragging out the word.
"If you promise me one thing."
Gu Chengyin lowered his voice, a hint of a smile in his tone.
"I will tell you. After all, you are the Chief Lady-in-Waiting. The orders have to be relayed through you anyway, so it doesn't matter if you know in advance."
"What is it?" Shangguan Yunying asked subconsciously, leaning forward slightly.
Gu Chengyin turned his head, leaned in close to her ear, and softly breathed out two words in a whisper only the two of them could hear:
"I'm sorry."
Shangguan Yunying was taken aback at first, then confused. Sorry for what?
What did Gu Chengyin have to apologize to her for...
In a flash of lightning, the thrilling leap on horseback last night, the out-of-control hands, and...
Like an unsealed memory, the image violently crashed into her mind!
With a boom, Shangguan Yunying felt the blood rush to her head.
Her cheeks instantly dyed a scalding crimson! She averted her eyes in a panic, not daring to look at Gu Chengyin's face, which was so close at hand.
"Lady Shangguan."
Right at that moment, a female official from the Internal Affairs Bureau hurried over holding a Luoshan Token.
However, as the female official approached and saw Shangguan Yunying's unusual complexion, her footsteps involuntarily paused.
In her memory, when had this lady ever shown such a thought-provoking appearance?
Could it be that Lady Shangguan and Deacon Gu...
The female official's eyes darted back and forth between Gu Chengyin and Shangguan Yunying a couple of times.
A trace of realization flashed in her eyes, quickly turning into a bright, gossipy gleam.
"Mhm."
Shangguan Yunying forcefully suppressed the wild beating of her heart, striving to keep her face taut. She put on a serious, businesslike expression, deliberately keeping her voice steady and low.
She reached out and took the Luoshan Token. Her gaze fell upon it, but she felt the writing was somewhat blurry and couldn't process a single word.
After hastily scanning it a few times, she handed the Luoshan Token back and said in a flat tone, "I understand. Process it according to the established procedures. You may step down."
"Yes."
The female official respectfully took back the Luoshan Token and acknowledged the order.
But her departing steps seemed somewhat reluctant. She looked back every few steps, her gaze lingering on the two of them as if trying to catch some interesting details.
It wasn't until she confirmed that the gossiping gaze had completely disappeared that Shangguan Yunying breathed a sigh of relief.
Steadying herself, she tried her best to make her voice sound more normal and official:
"Nothing whatsoever has happened between Deacon Gu and me."
"So what is there to apologize for."
Watching Shangguan Yunying's forced composure, Gu Chengyin smiled and nodded:
"You're right."
Since nothing had happened, then this matter was considered settled.
Gu Chengyin paused and, no longer keeping her in suspense, said directly:
"Since that's the case, I will tell you."
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
shall grant"] ["Inscribing the glory of our race upon tombstones"] ["All that is threatened, I shall protect"] How his younger sister sees her brother: A brother who only makes eye contact once a day, mostly fading into the background as he tinkers with who-knows-what in his room all day. Their life paths should have remained largely separate. Until one day. Su Qi created an equipment card for his never-met "online girlfriend." His sister fell into silent contemplation upon receiving the "white stockings." [Card can be upgraded] [Upgrade by fulfilling any of the following conditions] [Condition ①: Consume one hundred higher-tier cards] [Condition ②: Complete one 'Heart-Pounding Adventure'] What constitutes a Heart-Pounding Adventure? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Beginner Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to admire it.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Easy Level): Equip the card, invite 'Su Qi' to touch it, and analyze the equipment's texture.] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Entry Level): Equip the card and invite 'Su Qi' to...] [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Challenge Level): Freely combine the words 'Brother' 'Out' 'Brother' 'Me' 'Please' into a complete sentence...] "Please help me analyze both teams' mistakes in this match, brother..." His sister exhaled in relief—surely... surely there couldn't be anything more difficult? [Heart-Pounding Adventure (Suicide Mission Level): Sneak a peek at the names of the galgames in 'Su Qi's' hidden E-drive folder]
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
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!
