Nine out of ten gamblers lose; I've run into a jerk!

Chapter 98 She really... I'm crying my eyes out

Zhen E's Cangzhou army was engaged in fierce fighting with the mountain bandits, so why was he able to return so quickly?

This story begins when Ali discovered that Zhen E was missing. Knowing his husband well, he immediately knew that Zhen E might have gone to Tiger Head Mountain at night, and rushed to inform the head of the family.

The Prefect of Cangzhou only had one son, so how could he not be anxious? Based on his understanding of his son, he felt that he probably wouldn't stoop to fighting against a large number of mountain bandits alone, and that he had just gone to scout out the way and find out the terrain.

After a moment's thought, he mustered his troops and marched toward Tiger Head Mountain. However, he had not yet decided to attack the mountain immediately; he was just doing so in case Zhen E needed them and there was not enough time.

It must be said that Zhen Sima was truly prescient, which is why Zhen E encountered the Cangzhou army halfway there, allowing him to return to Tiger Head Mountain ahead of schedule.

The bandits were not properly trained, and most of their weapons were made of wood. Their fighting ability was no match for the Cangzhou army. If it weren't for their familiarity with the terrain, they would have been wiped out long ago.

Nevertheless, the outcome of this battle was still a foregone conclusion. Zhu Biao was dead, and the motley crew of more than a dozen mountain strongholds, which had just merged, were not united. Many of the bandits lost their will to fight and scattered and fled.

"Don't pursue a desperate enemy!"

With blood dripping from his red-tasseled spear, Zhen E stopped his men from chasing the fleeing bandits, saying it was more important to reunite with Mingzhu first.

On the other side, after dealing with those bandits, Shen Qing felt a little dizzy; he hadn't had a proper rest for many days.

Starting with the locust plague control efforts in Long County, followed by a rapid pursuit of the Xuan Kingdom delegation, and then the Ye Mingzhu incident, the combined mental strain of a night of intense combat left him completely exhausted and on the verge of collapse.

Dewey!

Ye Mingzhu's joy at escaping death vanished instantly. She rushed to Shen Qing's side and helped him up, exclaiming, "You're injured!"

Shen Qing leaned against Ye Mingzhu and slowly sat down, saying weakly, "No...no..." She felt dizzy, "I'll be fine after a while..."

"You still say you don't? Your leg is bleeding!"

"what?"

Shen Qing's first reaction was that it was someone else's blood, but then she belatedly realized, "Holy crap! My period has started!"

I've been so busy lately that I've lost track of time and even forgotten the days. No wonder I'm feeling extra tired.

"let me see!"

As Ye Mingzhu was about to reach out, Shen Qing quickly stopped her, saying, "It's alright, it's really alright!"

Seeing Shen Qing's pale face, looking like she had lost too much blood, Ye Mingzhu refused to believe it. "The blood is still seeping out, at least bandage it up first!"

"No, no!" The two started pushing each other.

"Men and women should not touch each other!"

"In times of emergency, one must act expediently. What's the point of worrying about such things at a time like this!"

"Don't……"

In the back-and-forth tug-of-war, Ye Mingzhu pressed down, causing Shen Qing to freeze, and Ye Mingzhu also stiffened.

This is so damn embarrassing!

"Dewey...you...you..."

"Cough~ It's just what you think..." Shen Qing looked up and suddenly froze. She saw that Ye Mingzhu's eyes were filled with misty tears. What's wrong?

Is it really that hard to accept that he's a girl? Could it be that the young lady has already fallen for him? What a sin!

"You're so badly injured, you've lost everything..."

"???"

"I've dragged you into this," Ye Mingzhu said, her eyes filled with guilt. In a moment, she seemed to make a decision, took Shen Qing's hand, and said firmly, "I'll marry you and take care of you for the rest of my life!"

"?!?!?!?!"

At this moment, a white dove took flight from the mountains and forests, crossed the flames of war, and landed in a courtyard in the border city of Kyung.

Two young scholars were playing chess in a pavilion. The black and white pieces were locked in a fierce battle, and the game was evenly matched.

“My lord,” a servant trotted in to report, “Zhu Biao is dead, Tiger Head Mountain has been wiped out, and the remaining bandits have scattered and fled.”

"Jinyi, your chess piece is useless."

"It was just a trial balloon, a casual move to test the waters." Wen Yan thought of the arrogant Zhu Biao and found it laughable. These were all scoundrels who wanted to become dragons; it wasn't that easy.

"Alas, we've worked so hard to expand our territory in the east, and yet the people in the court are dragging our feet. The king is truly senile..."

"Zechuan, be careful what you say."

Seeing Wen Yan's serious expression, Lu Shang cooperated by making a gesture to seal his mouth.

Watching him clown around, Wen Yan shook his head helplessly and sighed, "As people get older, they start to fear death. The higher one's position and the more powerful one is, the less willing one is to die. So one begins to seek immortality and pursue the elusive path to eternal life."

Lu Shang tilted his head, resting his chin on his hand. Perhaps it was true; as a great ruler aged, he became just like any other ordinary person. Suddenly, a strange idea popped into his mind.

"Jinyi, what do you think about us finding a highly skilled Taoist master to challenge Prime Minister Du in a martial arts contest?"

"Nonsense," Wen Yan blurted out subconsciously, but his hand holding the chess piece suddenly paused. It wasn't entirely impossible.

Although he did not believe in Taoism, the king did. As the saying goes, it is easier to get things done if you have someone in the court. Perhaps they could follow the example of Prime Minister Du... but where in the sea could they find such a person?

Wen Yan made a move, and this matter still needs careful planning, but there's no rush. The most important thing now is to take Cangzhou.

Shen Qing's feelings were quite complicated at this moment, and even the system that had been watching the show couldn't help but sigh.

She'd rather believe you've become a eunuch than doubt that you're a woman. ⊙?⊙

It's true, the system thought. First, Yu Jue made Shen Qing dress as a woman, then Ye Mingzhu wanted to repay him with her body, and many other people along the way, no one suspected that Shen Qing was a woman.

Is it because Shen Qing looks like a man? No, it's mainly due to preconceived notions; nobody thinks a woman can be so good at fighting!

Just like if Duan Zhengchun were to declare in front of all the heroes of the world that Xuzhu was his son, Xiao Yuanshan wouldn't be able to use a paternity test.

As long as Shen Qing doesn't take off his clothes and firmly says that he is a man, even if his chest develops, people will probably just think that he has well-developed pectoral muscles.

The system was amused by its own thoughts (?＞?＜?)

Shen Qing remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "This... I might not be able to..."

"I know you can't do it."

"..."

Shen Qing twitched her lips, thinking that she should just reveal it herself. She opened her mouth but couldn't bring herself to say it. If she had said it earlier, it would have been fine. The current situation was really awkward.

Well then, once Zhen E comes to pick him up, he will return to Xuan State, and we probably won't see each other again.

After recovering, Shen Qing stood up and said, "Zhen E has already led his troops to attack the mountain. Let's find a secluded place to hide for now."

"Mmm." Ye Mingzhu responded obediently, carefully supporting Shen Qing.

Seeing her like this, Shen Qing couldn't help but feel sorry for Zhen E. Not to mention liking Zhen E, Ye Mingzhu probably didn't even know that Zhen E liked her.