When he saw the style of the second letter, Qi Shan froze for a moment.
He calculated the date with his fingers and murmured as he gently massaged his temples. "So it's already this hour. Time really does fly."
Qi Shan didn't rush to open either letter.
He rubbed the bruise on his waist and waited a while, making sure his own lord wasn't about to spring another huge surprise on him out of nowhere. Only then did Qi Shan grimace and sit down. He picked up the heavy bamboo scroll, took a carving knife, and cut through the dried clay. After confirming that no one had tampered with the cord beneath it, he untied it and spread the thick scroll open in his hands.
The first thing he saw was his own lord's atrocious handwriting.
From the strokes and slant of the characters, Qi Shan could even make out the writer's state of mind—excited, furious, chaotic, hurried, and gritting her teeth. He popped a piece of pastry into his mouth, his eyes moving from top to bottom and right to left as he skimmed ten lines at a glance.
Halfway through, he felt relieved.
His lord had time to write so much nonsense, which meant the front lines were stable. Qi Shan slowed his reading and patiently picked one or two useful bits of news out of a heap of blather. As he read, he felt like sighing. The clerks in the room were so tense they were holding their breath...
They were simply too curious, so curious it felt like a hundred claws were scratching at their hearts.
"Meow~~~"
A handsome cat, plump and fluffy, with a sleek, glossy coat, crossed the threshold as if it owned the place. With a graceful sway, it walked over to Qi