The wicked imperial concubine is courting death again; the comments section teaches her how to win w

Qin Jiangli's face flushed, unsure whether it was from embarrassment or shame. "Father, what are you saying?"

"My daughter is a few years older than Deputy General Song; she wouldn't have such thoughts."

Qin Zhenxiong, however, disagreed. He believed that a woman three years older than a man was a golden opportunity, and age was not a problem at all.

Furthermore, the fact that Qin Zhenxiong's daughter had taken a liking to him, a mere deputy general, was already an extraordinary honor.

But then I thought about it again. Song Xinghe's father was the Minister of War, and he was Xie Ling's man.

He has already sent his youngest daughter to the palace. Li'er must not have any further connection with Xie Ling. Otherwise, if he were to sit on the throne someday, his daughter would become a hindrance, making him hesitate.

Qin Zhenxiong said, "Li'er, Song Xinghe is not suitable. Even if you like him, your father will not agree."

"Once this battle is over and we return to Shengjing, your father will find you a suitable marriage."

"Father, I really don't want to get married," Qin Jiangli said, lowering her eyes. "Most men in this world are cold-hearted, not as brave as you, Father, nor as devoted to Mother as you are to me... I have no expectations for love, I just want to stay by your side, Father."

Qin Zhenxiong was speechless for a moment after hearing her words, feeling both gratified and conflicted.

Qin Jiangli spoke again, "Your daughter is concerned about your father's old ailment. She said that a rare Ganoderma lucidum herb was found on the cliff in the north, which is very beneficial to your old leg bone injury. That's why I thought of having Vice General Song accompany me. Otherwise, I'm afraid you would be worried if I went alone."

Qin Zhenxiong frowned. "How can a delicate young lady like you climb a cliff to gather herbs? What if you fall?"

"Li'er, your father knows how filial you are. I will go in your place."

"Then I won't go, and I won't tell you where it is." Qin Jiangli turned around, feigning reproach.

"This stuff was clearly meant to heal your injuries, why don't you figure out what's going on?"

Qin Zhenxiong finally couldn't resist her and had to agree.

But besides Song Xinghe, he also specially arranged for his trusted confidant to accompany him, fearing that the child might have found an excuse to secretly meet with someone.

……

The next day, Qin Jiangli, escorted by Song Xinghe and others, headed towards the northern cliff.

Qin Zhenxiong received another imperial edict from the capital, and a pale-faced, beardless eunuch followed behind his personal guards.

He claimed to be there to deliver an imperial decree, but he was clearly an official sent by Xie Ling to monitor him.

Qin Zhenxiong unfolded the imperial edict, which Xie Ling had personally drafted. The handwriting on it was still sharp and impatient, urging Qin Zhenxiong to send troops immediately and annihilate the Northern Rong in one fell swoop.

The supervisor's words were laced with coercion, saying something like, "If we delay any longer, the Emperor's mind may be unpredictable, and the whole family may be implicated."

Qin Zhenxiong chuckled and casually tossed the folding paper onto the table.

His nephew, seeing him remain unmoved, is probably getting restless.

Wanting to maintain his power, not wanting to sacrifice the beauty, and not even surrendering to him and begging for mercy—where in the world is there such a good deal?

Before the official could finish speaking, Qin Zhenxiong impatiently chopped off his head.

"boom--"

The eunuch's head hit the ground, rolled twice, and his eyes were wide open; he had clearly died before he could even react.

Qin Zhenxiong knew Xie Ling would be angry about this, but so what?

As long as he still holds military power in the Northwest, Xie Ling will not dare to touch him, much less his family members far away in the capital.

Moreover, he is of Qin family blood, how could he be so heartless as to harm his maternal relatives?

Qin Zhenxiong slowly picked up his pen to reply, but just then, a man covered in mud and with his helmet and armor askew rushed in.

It was Qiao Wu, the trusted confidant he had sent to protect Qin Jiangli, who cried out, "Something terrible has happened, General!"

Qin Zhenxiong's heart sank. "What's wrong? Where's Li'er?"

Qiao Wu's face was deathly pale, and blood was trickling from his forehead. "Miss...she's been kidnapped by Tuoba Jun, the King of the Northern Rong..."

Qin Zhenxiong's expression suddenly changed. He stood up and grabbed Qiao Wu by the collar. "What did you say?! Didn't I tell you to follow him every step of the way? Where is Song Xinghe?"

"Upon seeing that the young lady had been abducted, Vice General Song pursued the Northern Rong army camp single-handedly..."

"Oh, General, it's quite lively here. What's going on?" It was Zhang Zhuo who spoke.

He had been flogged and imprisoned by Qin Zhenxiong, but Xie Ling put pressure on him several times, and Zhang Zhuo still had a group of trusted old subordinates under his command. After weighing the options, Qin Zhenxiong had no choice but to release him temporarily.

Qin Zhenxiong ignored him and pressed, "What exactly happened? Tell me everything!"

Qiao Wu: "General, please forgive me! My subordinate and Vice General Song accompanied Miss to the cliff in the north of the mountain to collect herbs. Miss was worried about the General and wanted to collect them herself, but the cliff was too slippery to stand on. Miss tried several times but failed. So we advised Miss to wait at the bottom of the cliff while Vice General Song and I went up."

"But after I picked the Ganoderma lucidum, I saw that Tuoba Jun's cavalry had sneaked out of the enemy camp at some point, kidnapped the young lady, put her on horseback, and headed towards the main camp. Deputy General Song immediately rushed over and sent me back to report the news."

As he spoke, he trembled as he pulled a deep purple, cloud-shaped Ganoderma lucidum from his bosom.

The roots of the Ganoderma lucidum were covered with moist soil, indicating that they were still very fresh.

"Miss... is still worried about the General's old injury. She says that this Ganoderma lucidum can promote blood circulation and bone healing, which would be beneficial to the General's leg injury. She tells you not to worry about her and to prioritize military matters..."

Qin Zhenxiong stared at the purple Ganoderma lucidum, his eyes bloodshot, then kicked Qiao Wu in the chest, yelling, "A bunch of useless trash!"

"You couldn't even protect one person? If anything happens to Li'er, I, the general, will make you pay with your life!"

Zhang Zhuo chimed in detachedly, "If you ask me, it's all your fault, General. Bringing your daughter along to war is like sending a lamb to the slaughter."

"I've heard that Tuoba Jun is extremely violent and bloodthirsty, especially fond of women. He's tortured at least seventy or eighty women to death in bed. Of course—General Qin is so renowned that Tuoba Jun might not dare to really do anything to you, Miss. But if he harbors any wicked intentions and wants to use you as a bargaining chip, and then during the battle, if he calls you 'Father-in-law' on the battlefield..."

He drew out his words, glancing sideways at Qin Zhenxiong, "General, will you respond or not?"

Qin Zhenxiong suddenly remembered that Li'er had said yesterday that she had seen the Northern Rong King outside the main tent. How could she, a young lady from a humble family, recognize his identity even if she had met him?

Could it be that Tuoba Jun, having been ridiculed by him, harbored resentment and, upon seeing Li'er's beauty, took advantage of her?

This was probably done on purpose...

Qin Zhenxiong slammed his hand on the table, and the entire table split in two, scattering writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones all over the floor.

"How dare you, you brat!"

He originally planned to remain still and wait for Xie Ling to lose his temper first, so that he could negotiate terms and demands.

But now that his daughter has fallen into enemy hands, how can he still sit firmly in the central command tent?

All those schemes and calculations crumbled to dust in the face of the news of Qin Jiangli's abduction.

Qin Zhenxiong's eyes flashed with a cold light as he swept over the generals in the tent.

"Sir—bear my order! The entire army shall immediately prepare, break camp, and march north to annihilate the Northern Rong!"