The Empress Kneels in Her Palace to Admit Her Mistakes After Slaying Her Ways in the Female-Oriented

Gu Qing staggered back to the Gu residence.

The first thing that came into view was a corpse. Its bright armor was broken and charred, and the heroic spirit of the man who used to wear armor and hold a sword was completely gone. He lay quietly on the wooden plank of the hall.

Gu Qing's body went completely limp, and she could only move step by step to Hu Shaoyou with the help of the military doctor.

He lay there quietly on his back, his eyes closed, his face ashen and pale, his limbs cold and stiff, motionless, without a trace of life.

Gu Qing's body trembled again, and she knelt down on the ground. At first, her eyes were bloodshot, and large tears rolled down her cheeks silently as she bit her lip and sobbed.

But after a short while, he could no longer hold back.

She let out a heart-wrenching cry, her whole body trembling, unable to catch her breath.

She reached out and hugged the familiar man, stroking his cold face. She wished it was all just a nightmare, and that when she woke up, nothing would have happened.

The military doctor next to him also looked grief-stricken.

He gently pulled Gu Qing away and said, "Madam, please accept my condolences. The general died fighting against the enemy, and he died on the battlefield. He died a worthy death."

"We are also proud of our general!"

These were meant to be comforting words, but to Gu Qing, they only made her more devastated.

Is dying on the battlefield a worthy death?

But as a member of the imperial court, to defy the court and the imperial edict, and now to die in the flames of war, even if he is remembered by posterity, he will be a great villain!

Her husband, so full of glory, how could he...?

How did they end up like this?

From then on, she was all alone in the world.

Just then, the sounds of gunfire came from outside the door.

Almost immediately after the sound, a lightly armored cavalry force surged in; it was clearly the imperial army.

Zhang Shi took the lead and rushed in.

The personal guards who followed were also quick, and immediately took control of the entire Gu residence at top speed.

"Is this Hu Shaoyou?"

Zhang Shi looked at the corpse and asked a question.

But no one dared to answer.

"I'm asking you a question!" Zhang Shike didn't hesitate at all, and with a swift movement, he placed the knife directly against Gu Qing's neck.

A red mark instantly appeared on Gu Qing's delicate skin, but she was already heartbroken and didn't care about life or death at all. In fact, she even... wished to be killed as well, so that she could go to the underworld and accompany her husband on this journey.

However, Gu Qing still answered, "Yes, this is my husband, Hu Shaoyou. He... is dead..."

"Looks like he's really dead!"

As the saying goes, seeing is believing and hearing is deceiving. Zhang Shi examined the corpse and found that it was indeed lifeless and clearly dead.

However, to prevent any trickery or substitutions, he still summoned the surrendered soldiers from earlier and had them go in one by one in several groups to identify the perpetrators.

The final result is the same.

The body lying on the wooden plank was indeed Hu Shaoyou!

So, Hu Shaoyou is dead!

Died from cannon fire!

"Throughout history, there have been generals who died from falling rocks, but they were extremely rare. I never expected that I, Zhang Shi, would be the one to suffer the same fate?"

"Could it be that my luck has finally turned around?"

"Am I finally going to be blessed with good fortune too?"

Zhang Shi muttered these thoughts to himself, without forgetting the mission he was on this trip.

Capture Xu Shang and kill him.

Xu Shang was the acting city lord of Huai'an City. Huai'an City was the first city that Zhang Shi had captured by skillful means, which was of great significance to Zhang Shi.

Besides, how can someone claim credit for only doing half the work?

and so……

Zhang Shi thrust the blade forward further, deepening the bloodstain on Gu Qing's neck. He demanded sharply, "Where is Xu Shang?"

With the blade at his side, Zhang Shi's murderous aura solidified into a tangible force. Faced with such pressure, Gu Qing would have been trembling with fear under normal circumstances, but at this moment, her tear stains remained on her face, and her expression was one of utter despair and numbness.

She simply said, "Xu Shang was hidden by my husband, and he didn't tell me."

"Although I've asked my husband several times, I haven't gotten any answers, so I don't know where Xu Shang is hiding."

Zhang Shi grabbed Gu Qing and pulled her up.

He roared angrily, "I led my army here with great difficulty, and we've suffered countless losses along the way, all for that bastard Xu Shang!"

"You think you can just say you don't know?"

"snort!"

"If you don't know, I'll slaughter your entire family and see if you still know then!"

Despite such threats, Gu Qing remained undaunted, saying, "Although my Gu family is large and wealthy, my parents unfortunately died of illness in their early years. In this vast world, there are only my husband and I, who depend on each other for the rest of our lives."

"Now that he is dead, my heart is completely broken."

"If the general finds killing me satisfying, please take my head now. I only ask that the general burn my husband and me together in a fire, so that we can share a bed in life and a grave in death."

"If the general is unwilling to kill me, I will go to him after I have taken care of my husband's funeral. At that time, I will also put an end to the general's worries."

Gu Qing's desire to die surprised Zhang Shi. He had seen many people who were not afraid of death, but he rarely saw someone so determined to die.

but……

How can things end like this?

He said coldly, "My army has been on the move for days, and you think you can just die like that? Humph!"

After leaving Gu Qing behind, Zhang Shi turned around and ordered everyone to keep an eye on him. He then gathered the surrendered soldiers and immediately ordered a city-wide search to capture Xu Shang.

"Remember, with Xu Shang, we need to see him alive or dead!"

"yes!"

The guards immediately began a search and arrest.

Throughout the entire day, teams came one after another to report.

"General, we haven't found Xu Shang."

"General, we have interrogated all the officials in the city, and none of them know anything about Xu Shang."

"General, we only found a rumor that Xu Shang might have left the city, but it's not certain!"

……

Zhang Shi was annoyed.

Xu Shang was no longer important to the Duke. After all, without Xu Shang in Huai'an City, he posed no threat to the Duke, and his life or death was of no concern to him.

But it didn't matter to Zhang Shi.

He vowed to find Xu Shang.

Unfortunately, before there was even a single piece of news about Xu Shang, the guards brought Zhang Shi another devastating blow.

"General, the granary is completely empty; there isn't a single grain of food left!"

"General, the Yuancheng armory is almost empty of weapons; all that's left are some useless scrap metal!"

"General, there's no silver in the treasury. It's so empty that even mice could run around in it."

……

Zhang Shi's expression changed.

"What?"

"Is there no grain in the granary of Yuancheng?"

"There are no weapons in the armory?"

"Is there no gold or silver in the vault?"

Where did these supplies go?

……