The God of War Who Protects the Nation: Starting with Saving a Mother and Daughter in Distress

Now that he has risen to the rank of general, Qin An has naturally seen many fine horses, but he has never seen such a magnificent steed.

His eyes lit up completely when he saw this magnificent black steed.

For a valiant general charging into battle, the importance of a good horse is self-evident.

Seeing Qin An's reaction, Li Zhaoning immediately smiled.

She knew that a fierce general like Qin An would not be able to refuse such a generous gift.

"General, you have a good eye. We acquired this horse by chance. You need a good horse to fight on the battlefield, so we present it to you as a token of our appreciation."

Qin An looked at the snow-white black horse, and the horse seemed to understand him, snorting at him.

He knew in his heart that the value of this horse far exceeded that of the calligraphy, paintings and jade artifacts he had acquired before, and that Li Zhaoning was going to great lengths to win him over.

"Miss Li's gift is too generous," Qin An said in a deep voice.

"For the general, the best gift would be to help you gain a better chance of winning on the battlefield." Li Zhaoning's eyes were sincere. "General Qin is a rare talent and will surely achieve great things in the future. I hope the general will not refuse this small token of my appreciation."

Qin An looked at the snow-covered black horse, then at the expectation in Li Zhaoning's eyes, and finally nodded.

"In that case, I will accept your offer without hesitation. If you ever need anything from me in the future, please feel free to ask."

Li Zhaoning smiled sincerely: "Thank you, General."

Sunlight shone on the bluestone slabs in the courtyard, and also on the magnificent black steed, Ta Xue Wu Zhui, making it gleam with dazzling light.

Qin An couldn't help but step forward and gently stroke the mane of the Snow-Treading Black Steed. The smooth, silky feel stirred something within him.

He had to admit that Li Zhaoning's gift had truly touched his heart.

He looked up at Li Zhaoning and saw that the other was smiling at him.

Qin An pondered to himself that the Daxing Dynasty was already in turmoil, with rebel armies rising up everywhere and factional strife raging in the court.

The Yuwen family held absolute power, and their officials were not particularly loyal. Furthermore, the emperor was indulging in pleasure. Given this situation, their downfall was probably only a matter of time.

He was merely a lowly military officer who, despite some military achievements, had no real foundation.

When the world is truly in chaos, with only the limited military power he holds, he might not even be able to protect himself.

To gain a foothold in this chaotic world, seeking refuge with a powerful force is an inevitable choice.

Clearly, Qin An was quite self-aware. Although he realized that chaos was coming, he did not think of taking this opportunity to fight for supremacy.

He knew very well that his background was ultimately too low.

But Daxing descended into chaos far too early.

If given several decades to secure a high position in the court, perhaps there would still be some hope of contending for the throne.

Unfortunately, fate did not grant him that time.

Therefore, if one wants to make a name for oneself in chaotic times, one must choose a side.

The Li family is also a good choice.

The Li family is a noble family with a long and distinguished history, yet they have always maintained a low profile and enjoy an excellent reputation among the people.

More importantly, he and the Li family do seem to have a special connection.

Li Zheng possessed the natural grace of a dragon and phoenix, while Li Zhaoning was intelligent and decisive. This brother and sister did not exhibit the arrogance often associated with scions of noble families; instead, they displayed pragmatism and resilience. They first met Li Zheng, who gifted them a bow when they were still weak. Their act of saving Li Zhaoning and her brother had already forged a bond between them.

Now that the other party has taken the initiative to show goodwill, it is indeed worthwhile to make contact first and see how things go, just in case.

"I will remember Miss Li's kindness." Qin An mounted his horse, and the black steed, Tasi, reared up and neighed softly, as if it were in sync with his thoughts. "If there are any tasks for me in the future, as long as they do not violate military discipline and morality, I will never refuse."

Li Zhaoning's smile deepened: "General, you flatter me. We have a history, why say such formal things?"

As they were talking, soft footsteps came from behind the courtyard.

Li Qingwan and Shan Bing walked side by side, with Jin Ping, a maid, following closely behind.

Upon learning that distinguished guests had arrived at their home, including female relatives, they rushed over to avoid being impolite.

Li Qingwan was still dressed in an elegant ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), her long hair loosely tied up. She looked a bit lazy as if she had just woken up. When she saw the guests in the courtyard, she quickly curtsied and bowed, her voice gentle and sweet.

"I was unaware of our distinguished guest's presence and failed to greet him properly. Please forgive me."

Dan Bing changed into a neat lake-green outfit, her long hair tied up high, revealing her smooth forehead. Her eyes and brows were full of heroic spirit, and she looked less awkward and more at ease than yesterday.

She nodded to Li Zhaoning, and although she didn't say much, she exuded a certain air of composure.

Jin Ping was dressed in a peach-pink palace gown, with lotus patterns embroidered on the hem. She swayed gracefully as she walked, her eyes sparkling with charm.

But she had no say here; she simply faithfully performed her duties as a maid.

Li Zhaoning looked at the three women before him, secretly marveling. Li Qingwan was gentle and graceful, Shan Bing was heroic and imposing, and Jin Ping was charming and alluring. Each of the three had a different style, but all three were undeniably beautiful.

Looking at the gentleness in Qin An's eyes as he gazed at them, Li Zhaoning instantly understood.

This General Qin was originally a man who had a fondness for beautiful women.

Realizing this, she was not at all dismissive; on the contrary, she was even more delighted.

People have certain preferences, so it's easy to manipulate them.

If Qin An remains unmoved, she will have to put in even more effort to win him over.

Looking back now, it actually saved a lot of trouble.

"No need for such formalities, sisters." Li Zhaoning stepped forward with a friendly smile. "I came here today specifically to thank General Qin. I am the one who should apologize for disturbing the peace and quiet of your residence."

Her words were polite and her attitude was friendly; she quickly closed the distance between them.

Li Qingwan was gentle by nature, and seeing how approachable Li Zhaoning was, she put aside her reserve and chatted with her with a smile.

Although Shan Bing didn't talk much, she listened attentively and occasionally chimed in, and she and Li Zhaoning got along very well.

Li Zhaoning is adept at social interaction, readily recounting interesting anecdotes from the capital, and also possesses considerable insight into needlework and embroidery.

Before long, she became familiar with Li Qingwan and Shan Bing, and even Jin Ping was amused by her.

Qin An stood aside, watching the group chatting and laughing, and felt a sense of relief.

Li Zhaoning's social skills were indeed impressive; in a short time, she won the favor of the women in the household.

He was happy to have some peace and quiet, and his gaze unconsciously fell on Li Xuanfu, who had been silent all along.

The child kept his head down, his little hands tightly gripping the hem of Li Zhaoning's clothes, his long eyelashes drooping, obscuring the emotions in his eyes, and he looked somewhat shy.

Upon seeing him, Qin An couldn't help but think of his two daughters, Cai Yan and Cai Zhen.

They were only a few years older than Li Xuanfu. He wondered how they looked now. Recalling how they always clung to him and acted spoiled, Qin An couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for Li Xuanfu.

He softened his tone, trying to make his voice sound gentle: "Xuanfu, come here."

Li Xuanfu's body stiffened slightly, and he didn't move. He only secretly glanced at Qin An before quickly lowering his head again.

Qin An took a jade pendant from his waist. It was an ordinary white jade pendant with simple peace patterns carved on it.

He had bought this on a whim a few days ago when he passed by a jade shop. He handed the jade pendant to Li Xuanfu: "Here, you can play with this."

Li Xuanfu hesitated, his little hand twitching, but he didn't dare to take it.

Li Zhaoning said softly from the side, "Xuanfu, General Qin is giving it to you, so please take it."

With his sister's permission, Li Xuanfu slowly reached out his little hand and took the jade pendant.

The jade pendant felt warm to the touch. He held it tightly in his palm, raised his head, and gave Qin An a slight smile. The smile was clean and pure, which warmed Qin An's heart.

"That's right." Qin An ruffled his hair, feeling its soft texture. "You're bored here, how about I take you somewhere else to play?"

Seeing the women chatting happily, Qin An felt a little uncomfortable being there.

Three women make a drama, and Qin An wasn't interested in their conversation, so he decided to use this as an excuse to slip away.

Li Xuanfu blinked, not refusing, but rather quite tempted.

But she still glanced at her older sister.

Li Xuanfu's performance surprised Li Zhaoning.

She knew that her younger brother was born different from others and was extremely violent in front of outsiders.

Unexpectedly, he was not resistant to Qin An at all, but rather quite close to him.

Li Zhaoning was a smart woman and quickly realized what was going on.

"This is probably because Qin An saved my life!"

After figuring this out, Li Zhaoning breathed a sigh of relief.

She nodded to Li Xuanfu, reassured that Qin An was taking her younger brother on the trip.

He continued to pursue Li Qingwan and Shan Bing, aiming to become their wives in order to better win over Qin An.

Having received permission, Li Xuanfu was overjoyed and walked over to Qin An.

The latter took his little hand and led him to the backyard. The child was a little reserved at first, but relaxed after a few steps.

She took quick, small steps, closely following Qin An's footsteps.

After touring the Qin residence, the two passed by the martial arts arena.

Qin'an's training ground wasn't large, but it was kept clean and tidy.

Weapon racks stood on the sidelines, displaying various weapons such as spears, broadswords, and halberds, which gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

In the corner were several piles of stone weights of varying sizes, clearly used for strength training.

As soon as Li Xuanfu entered the training ground, his eyes lit up instantly. He broke free from Qin An's hand, ran to the weapon rack, and curiously examined the weapons.

He reached out his little hand and gently touched the tip of a spear, then touched the scabbard beside it, his little face full of excitement.

"Do you like these?" Qin An walked up to him and asked with a smile.

Li Xuanfu nodded vigorously, pointed at the thick-backed broadsword, and said indistinctly, "I want...I want that."

Qin An was somewhat surprised. That thick-backed broadsword weighed over thirty pounds, and even an ordinary adult might not be able to lift it easily. This child looked thin and weak, so why did he choose this?

He wanted to warn Li Xuanfu to be careful, but he saw that the child had already stood on tiptoe, grabbed the hilt of the knife with his little hand, and suddenly exerted force.

"Clang!"

He actually pulled the thick-backed broadsword off the weapon rack, and it fell heavily to the ground with a thud.

Qin An's pupils contracted instantly!