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"A'ning, I love you!"

After dinner, Zichuan Xiu, having read the emails he received, said affectionately to Zichuan Ning, who was drinking tea.

With a "crash," Shirakawa's teacup fell to the floor; Roger coughed violently – the half-eaten cake got stuck in his throat, and he couldn't breathe; Chuan's mouth was open wide enough to fit two eggs, so stunned that he didn't even notice Roger pickpocketing him...

Zichuan Ning's heart pounded, her breathing grew tense, and her face felt hot as if on fire – the fire of joy was burning! For so long, hadn't she been yearning and desperately waiting for the person she loved to say these words? Today, finally...

"I love you!" Zichuan Xiu said with a solemn expression, "So – can you lend me some money! That damn Commander's Office, the duel was clearly initiated by Di Lin, so why are they sending me the bill for the damaged furniture! Last month's salary was all spent paying off that debt at Tianmeng Restaurant – speaking of which, I still haven't settled accounts with you, Shirakawa, you brat! Hey, A'ning, where are you going? I haven't finished speaking, don't leave...!"

"Honestly, girls these days, running off without even hearing a confession – no sincerity in love at all! The world is going downhill!"

Zichuan Xiu sighed and turned to Shirakawa, saying affectionately, "Shirakawa, I love you..."

With a "bang," countless stars appeared before Zichuan Xiu's eyes – all shaped like gold coins!

A messenger announced the arrival of Sterling, the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards.

Zichuan Xiu was overjoyed and went out to greet him.

Sterling was twenty-three years old at this time, at the peak of his glorious youth, exuding vibrant energy. He was of medium height, with a neat crew cut, light brown skin, and sharp eyes. He was very handsome – unlike Zichuan Xiu's effeminate, fair-skinned, and casual demeanor, or Di Lin's arrogant, icy aloofness, Sterling possessed a masculine vigor and the crisp, decisive aura unique to soldiers. He was forthright, dignified, spirited, and cheerful.

Later historians would worshipfully call Sterling "the standard military model of the golden age." His contemporary, Zichuan Xiu, commented, "Sterling was born to be a soldier!"

Zichuan Ning had also compared the temperaments of the three great talents of the family: "Sterling is a fierce tiger, possessing the air of a king; Di Lin is like a cobra, cold and cruel, unapproachable; as for Zichuan Xiu – I can't describe him, I can only say he's like a slug..."

The two men talked in the garden to ensure secrecy.

"I heard you went to the Commander's Office today? Who did you meet?"

Zichuan Xiu recounted the day's events one by one. Sterling listened carefully and finally sighed, "It must be difficult for Di Lin! His situation is the most dangerous, and his psychological pressure must be immense."

"But the intelligence he provided is indeed valuable – how do you plan to deal with the two spies on your side?"

"It's enough that I know – if I move against them now, it will be obvious to Yang Minghua that Di Lin is one of us!"

"Second Brother, I've always had a question: since everyone knows Yang Minghua is not a good person, why hasn't Chief of Staff Zichuan Canxing recalled him from the Far East Army to deal with him? Could it be that Chief of Staff Canxing is really as people say...?" Zichuan Xiu swallowed the word "stupid."

"No one knows the true nature of Zichuan Canxing," Sterling sighed. "Even though I can consider myself his most trusted subordinate, I often feel I can't see through him – but he is definitely not stupid. Don't many people also call you an idiot, a playboy, a good-for-nothing, and incompetent?"

Zichuan Xiu smiled faintly; he thought of Roger, Shirakawa, and Chuan.

"As for recalling the main army to deal with Yang Minghua, it's unrealistic. To deal with seventeen thousand Central Army troops, we would need to draw at least twenty thousand from the Far East, ten thousand from the border guards, and eight thousand from the Black Flag Army – such a large troop movement would absolutely not escape Yang Minghua's notice and would only force him to fight desperately and rebel immediately. Then we would all be finished."

Zichuan Xiu gave a wry smile, "So everyone is wary of each other!"

"Yes, no one dares to openly confront each other. We're all operating in the shadows now," Sterling said. "Di Lin's advice to you is genuine, be extra careful – many people in the Imperial Capital have been ambushed in dark alleys recently. Every morning, garbage collectors find a large pile of bodies. Many prominent figures have met their end this way – last week, my deputy, Vice Banner Captain Shu, was taken away after getting drunk in a tavern. We found his body by the moat three days later."

"Then you..." Zichuan Xiu knew his friend's personality too well; he would never let this go.

"Oh, it's nothing – but a couple of days ago, I heard that Commander Lei Xun's godson, Flag Bearer Lei Xiaoyun, was found dead in his mistress's home. The Zhibu Shao (the Imperial Capital's security agency) believes it was a robbery case and is currently searching for the culprit among the unemployed and riff-raff – what a tragedy!"

Zichuan Xiu burst into laughter: Sterling, usually so serious, was even funnier when he was being humorous.

"So, A'Xiu, what are your plans?"

"Oh, hearing you say it's so dangerous – the honest, timid, and cowardly Zichuan Xiu will just stay far away and wait until you two giants have settled things before I come back to shake hands with the victor."

"Honest, timid, and cowardly – who are you referring to?"

The two men exchanged glances, seeing the boundless amusement in each other's eyes.

"Come help me, A'Xiu! Let's serve the Chief together."

"Sterling, I remember when we were very young. You, me, and Di Lin all swore allegiance to Miss Zichuan Ning under the late Lord Zichuan Yuanxing – have you forgotten?"

"I remember – but under the current circumstances, we can only protect Miss by helping Chief Zichuan Canxing deal with Yang Minghua, can't we?"

Zichuan Xiu was still hesitating...

"I know you're still holding a grudge against Chief Canxing for what happened six years ago – but back then, Chief Canxing had just taken office, and the political situation was manipulated by Yang Minghua. He had no choice but to cooperate with Yang Minghua to deal with you! But afterward, he often told me how regretful he was that he let a meritorious official like you be humiliated – he truly regrets it, so please forgive him."

"Moreover, you both have a common enemy now, Yang Minghua – no matter what, Yang Minghua won't let you go. Your only way to survive is to join forces with us!"

Zichuan Xiu smiled, "Let me think about it – I heard you're getting married to Flag Bearer Li Qing soon?"

Sterling also smiled: Zichuan Xiu had a special trick – when discussing topics he disliked, he would say, "Let me think about it – oh, there's a mouse crawling over there, oh, that bird is so big, oh, the moon is so round today!"

He didn't press him either: "Yes, we plan to hold the wedding after the crisis is resolved."

"I brought back a batch of elf-monsters from the Far East. I'll give Li Qing a pair!"

"That's great! Li Qing has always wanted an elf-monster as a servant, but they sell for thirty thousand yuan each on the market – you guys who lead troops outside are really rich!"

"What are you talking about? The entire family army only has your Imperial Guards' uniforms with gold trim – and you say you don't have money! It's settled, this is a wedding gift!"

"Don't try to pull a fast one! One thing is one thing, don't try to mix them up – the wedding gift is separate!"

"With things so chaotic on our side, I'm really worried the Liufeng Family will take the opportunity to interfere."

"You can rest assured about that – the Liufengs are also tied up! Their patriarch, Liufeng Xishan, is on his deathbed, and they are busy with matters similar to ours – power struggles. None of Liufeng Xishan's three sons are capable, making their father hesitate and unsure who to pass the position to – each one seems a bit stupider than the other two."

"Thank heavens, thankfully Liufeng Shuang is a woman and has no claim to inheritance, otherwise we would have trouble."

"Yes, but I heard Liufeng Xishan has already ordered Liufeng Shuang to be appointed as the 'Lifelong Regent Commander'!"

"What does that mean?"

"It means Liufeng Xishan doesn't trust any of his sons. No matter who inherits, as long as they have Liufeng Shuang's assistance, the Liufeng Family probably won't perish."

"Truly thoughtful—I heard you encountered Liufeng Shuang's troops during the second campaign, how were they?"

At this, Sterling let out a long sigh, "Liufeng Shuang... truly a remarkable person!"

"At the time, we had almost surrounded nearly 200,000 troops belonging to Liufeng Ming and Liufeng Qing—they were already starting to scatter, just one more push and we could have started an annihilation battle—it was at this moment that Liufeng Shuang's troops appeared: no banners, less than eight thousand men, all cavalry."

"At that time, none of us four frontline commanders—myself, Fang Jin, Ming Hui, and Yang Li (who was the Border Defense Army Commander then)—took those eight thousand men seriously. Fang Jin simply dispatched three infantry phalanxes to intercept them—theoretically sound military strategy: who knew those three phalanxes would be cut into saber fragments in less than ten minutes? Her troops were too fierce! They also routed one of Yang Li's infantry divisions, and just like that, they charged straight into the encirclement."

"We realized something was wrong and quickly mobilized our main forces to deal with them—it was already too late! A large flag with red characters on a white background was raised high: 'Liufeng Shuang'. Upon seeing this flag, the 200,000 surrounded Liufeng troops immediately let out earth-shattering shouts of 'Long live!' 'Lord Shuang has arrived, we are saved!' 'Kill all the dog thieves of the Zichuan family!'—they had been fighting all day, already exhausted and demoralized, but with Liufeng Shuang's arrival, they immediately became like they had taken stimulants, their war cries making us tremble... Liufeng Shuang, a mere girl, disregarding the rain of arrows, actually took off her clothes and stood bare-chested beneath the flag for both friend and foe on the battlefield to see. She brandished her saber high and shouted, 'Soldiers of the Liufeng Family, are you not even inferior to women? Fight with spirit! Attack!' Such spirit... it was truly admirable. Her guards were also madmen, all bare-chested, using their bodies to shield Liufeng Shuang from arrows, as soon as one fell, another immediately took his place..."

"As a result, the Liufeng troops charged at us like madmen—that slippery Ming Hui, upon seeing Liufeng Shuang's flag, immediately retreated at full speed; Yang Li, still unclear of the situation, actually ordered a stand-fast—his troops immediately suffered heavy losses and were routed; fortunately, Fang Jin and I joined forces to cover the retreat, fighting and running, she pursued us for hundreds of kilometers and wouldn't let up—only when the border defenses received reinforcements from Ming Hui's border army did Liufeng Shuang cease her pursuit."

Sterling revealed a hint of pride again, "However, I dare say my troops were no worse than hers. Under her fierce assault, other units collapsed at the first charge, but we were still able to maintain order! After nearly a thousand kilometers of pursuit, she could never get the better of me!—in the final clash, she even suffered a setback at my hands!"

He turned to look at Zichuan Xiu, "Hey, why are you... you... asleep?"

"Of course! Listening to your endless boring past stories, it'd be strange if I didn't get sleepy!"

As soon as he stepped through the living room doorway, Sterling froze as if struck by lightning, stunned.

"Assassin?" Zichuan Xiu, a step behind him, immediately reacted, rushing into the living room, ready for battle, and looking around...

On the sofa sat Shirakawa, Roger, and Chuan, three lively characters, shamelessly sharing the food prepared for guests at Zichuan Ning's home.

"No problem!" Zichuan Xiu followed Sterling's fixed gaze and discovered a fourth person. Although also seated on the sofa, she sat upright and dignified, showing no interest in the abundant food on the table.

It was Princess Kadan of the Demon Race.