Chapter 160
**Chapter 160: Notes from Taihua**
Shen Wei was filled with worry.
If General Zhao had ulterior motives and was deeply scheming, it would not bode well for her. Should he return to Yanjing and see Wei Yan Ji and Qi Xiang Zhai, he might very well discover Shen Wei's existence...
It was still unclear whether he was friend or foe. Moreover, as a military strategist capable of designing powerful landmines, his intelligence was likely not to be underestimated.
"The princess is drunk, gathering lotus and picking peaches. Please escort her back to the princess's residence," Shen Wei instructed her maid, feeling restless as she sent the inebriated princess away.
Alone in the waterside pavilion, Shen Wei pondered the mysterious "General Zhao." She could not afford to overlook any potential enemy; she needed to be prepared for whatever might come.
Lost in thought, she unconsciously picked up a wine cup and took a sip. When Cai Ping returned, she found that Shen Wei had unknowingly consumed nearly half of the fruit wine.
Cai Ping was taken aback and hurried over to support the tipsy Shen Wei. "My lady, you've had too much to drink!"
"Quick, someone lend a hand to help the lady inside. De Shun, have the kitchen prepare a hangover soup."
Shen Wei had a low tolerance for alcohol.
After downing half a jar of wine, she was as limp as a rag doll. Fortunately, she never became rowdy when drunk; she simply lay quietly and fell asleep. Cai Ping helped Shen Wei into the room, removed her shoes and socks, laid her down on the bed, and then went to the kitchen to check on the hangover soup.
As dusk approached, the King of Yan returned to the Liuli Pavilion. A rich aroma of wine wafted through the air, and there lay Shen Wei on the bed, her cheeks flushed like rouge.
The King of Yan: ...
"Your Highness, this afternoon, Princess Zhaoyang came to visit. The lady accompanied her for a few drinks and accidentally got drunk," Cai Ping explained as she entered with the hangover soup, quickly providing a reasonable excuse for Shen Wei.
Hearing the commotion, Shen Wei opened her eyes in a daze. The scene before her was swaying, and she quickly spotted the King of Yan by the bedside.
Shen Wei smiled.
She tugged at the King’s sleeve, beaming as she climbed out of bed. With open arms, she embraced his waist. "You’re back... I really like you..."
Shen Wei joyfully clung to the King, her treasure. Holding onto her treasure, she felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction.
The King of Yan's lips curled into a smile, ripples of warmth spreading through his heart.
As the saying goes, "In vino veritas." Even in her drunken state, Shen Wei had not forgotten her love.
He gently pushed the inebriated Shen Wei back onto the bed and teasingly asked, "Wei Wei, do you really love me this much?"
Shen Wei clutched his sleeve and replied, her words slurred, "Of course... I think about it every day... I wish I could strip you bare... leave not a single hair behind..."
She longed to take all the good things from the King, to squeeze every last benefit from him.
The King of Yan cleared his throat, glancing down at Shen Wei, who was still holding onto his sleeve. This little girl, even drunk, was thinking about undressing him and sharing intimate moments.
How adorable.
Cai Ping brought in the hangover soup, and the King personally fed Shen Wei half a bowl. Shen Wei, feeling drowsy, lay back down and fell into a deep sleep for the entire night.
...
Meanwhile, far away in the border city of Liangzhou, the cold moon hung high, casting a layer of white frost over the vast desert.
The general's residence was brightly lit. After a prolonged battle, the soldiers celebrated their victory, toasting and reveling through the night.
In one of the courtyards of the residence, military strategist Zhao Qing left the banquet early, stepping carefully on the moonlit frost as she returned to her quarters.
She closed the door and bolted it. Ensuring there were no outsiders, she cautiously returned to her bedroom and retrieved an old sheepskin notebook from beneath her pillow.
This notebook was at least a hundred years old, the sheepskin preserved by some potion, remaining intact through the ages. The ink on the parchment was also unique, having never faded over the century.
The candlelight flickered dimly.
Zhao Qing sat on the edge of her bed, using the soft glow to peruse the sheepskin notebook. The cover bore the hasty title "Taihua Zha Ji" (Notes from Taihua) written in a crooked hand, with slight differences from the characters used in the Kingdom of Qing.
As she opened the notebook, she found it filled with both text and illustrations, the handwriting messy and the drawings of weapons crude.
"Besides muskets and landmines, what other weapons can be used?" Zhao Qing murmured to herself, delicately turning the sheepskin pages.
Rockets, flying ships, nuclear weapons... these terms were foreign to her, and the illustrations were bizarre, impossible to construct with human effort. As she flipped to the back, she saw a page that read "Composite Bow."
Zhao Qing's eyes lit up as she struggled to decipher the scrawled text, reading aloud: "Effort-saving, long-range, highly lethal. No alloy materials required; can be replaced with cow horn, deer sinew, or fir wood..."
She committed the contents of that page to memory, then carefully placed the precious "Taihua Zha Ji" back into the box under her pillow, hiding it away.
This was a treasure bestowed upon her by the heavens, a notebook that would change her fate.
Years ago, Zhao Qing was just an ordinary herbalist in Liangzhou. While foraging in the mountains, she accidentally fell into an abandoned cave. The cave bore signs of human habitation; the wooden table had long rotted, and the jars on it were all broken, but in the corner, a sheepskin notebook remained intact.
Time had passed, and the author of the notebook had long turned to dust. Zhao Qing obtained the notebook and, relying on the ingenious weapons mentioned within, transformed into the military strategist for the Marquis of Southern Town, earning the love of the border city's people.
She vowed to keep this secret for a lifetime.
Knock, knock—
A voice came from outside, warm and gentle: "A Qing, are you asleep?"
Zhao Qing hurriedly tidied herself up, joyfully opening the door. "My lord, I’m still awake."
The wooden door creaked open, and the cool moonlight spilled in. There stood Shangguan Xuan, clad in military attire, his handsome features softened by the long battles he had fought. In the remote Liangzhou, most men were rugged, but Zhao Qing was drawn to Shangguan Xuan's refined and elegant appearance.
She knew he had a wife in Yanjing.
But so what?
On the last page of the "Taihua Zha Ji," the original owner had written the words: "Fear not the world, bravely pursue love."
Zhao Qing held these eight characters close to her heart. Happiness was in her own hands, and she was ready to take a brave step forward. She no longer wanted to live in the war-torn Liangzhou; she wanted to go to the prosperous Yanjing and become the esteemed wife of a marquis.
Shangguan Xuan stepped into the room, a gentle smile gracing his handsome face. "A Qing, early winter is my mother’s birthday. With the war situation stabilizing, in two months, would you come back to Yanjing with me?"
Zhao Qing nodded vigorously, responding cheerfully, "As long as I can be by your side, I’m willing to go anywhere."
The candlelight flickered dimly.
Shangguan Xuan gazed at the girl before him, dressed as a boy, his heart swelling with affection. He had grown up in Yanjing, where the women were often gentle and demure, adhering to societal norms.
Sent to Liangzhou for military campaigns, he had witnessed the forthrightness of the women there. Liangzhou women were open and unrestrained, never hiding their emotions.
Shangguan Xuan was quite fond of Zhao Qing. She possessed the refreshing spirit of Liangzhou women, coupled with a sharp mind, and her beauty was undeniable.
In the future, when he brought Zhao Qing back to Yanjing, he would seek the emperor's permission to marry her as the legitimate wife of the marquis, relegating Sun Qingmei to a secondary consort.
After all, the Sun family had already fallen from grace, and their daughter was hardly worthy of being the marquis's wife.
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