The Slender Waist-Chapter 195 - 137 Struggle_2

Pei Jue said, "Using women and children as hostages, what’s the difference from a beast?"

Such moral righteousness, General.

Feng Yun looked at his cold and merciless face, and silently reflected upon herself.

He refuses to be a beast, yet he readily accepts the concubines offered up by beasts, doesn’t he?

Therefore, Feng Yun didn’t quite believe that Pei Jue truly thought this way...

But his actions were always unpredictable; since he had said so, it meant that Xiao Rong was indeed to be abandoned.

She didn’t insist.

"Fine, you won’t be a beast, so I’ll be one," she said.

Pei Jue glanced at her, but gave no response.

Feng Yun leaned over, her hand stretching out from within the blankets, resting on Pei Jue’s body. Seeing his dark pupils tighten, she couldn’t help but laugh.

Was she a flood beast? He looked so scared.

Feng Yun silently grabbed his hand, their fingers slowly interlacing, gently rubbing, compelling his eyes to redden and his breath to become unstable. Only then did she speak in a slow and gentle voice:

"Last night when I was writing the enemy formation analysis, there was a doubt lingering in my mind that I couldn’t figure out. I was wondering if the General could answer it for me."

Pei Jue was slightly absent-minded, his black eyes glistening, "Speak."

Feng Yun’s one hand clutched his, while her other hand began to toy with his armor, caressing from top to bottom, "Advancing deep into Bingzhou is very risky and certainly not a good strategy for the Northern Yong Army. If it were me, I would surely defend Xinzhou, guard the Wanning and Andu at the rear, secure the victories of this war, then sit down and negotiate with the Qi army, extort them thoroughly for a good New Year, and fight again come spring..."

Word by word, her hand also moved up and down, amusing herself, watching the man’s face contort intensely while remaining calmly still, his voice becoming even gentler and laced with laughter.

"Unless the General has some assured method of victory. Otherwise, this risky offensive is really unwise, and it doesn’t resemble the General’s character," she continued.

Pei Jue caught her hand, "What do you think of me as a person?"

Feng Yun said, "Master of strategies, scheming from thousands of miles away."

These words seemed to reach Pei Jue’s heart, and his gaze softened a bit.

"I must take Bingzhou," he said.

Feng Yun asked, "Why?"

Pei Jue suddenly reversed his hand and clasped hers.

"Do you know what kind of place Bingzhou is?" he inquired.

Feng Yun thought for a while, "Adjacent to Hengqu Pass, a strategic military chokepoint."

To utter these words, Feng Yun was more than a simple woman.

However, this clearly wasn’t the answer Pei Jue wanted to hear.

He looked down, fixing his gaze upon Feng Yun’s eyes.

"Do you remember the wars you spoke of in your childhood, the ones that took place in Bingzhou?" he asked.

Yet another person reminding her of this incident.

Feng Yun’s anger unfoundedly surged forth.

When angry, she didn’t want to let him off.

So without a word, she sat up fiercely, stared at him malevolently, then pushed his hands upwards, forcefully seated herself upon him, ignoring the astonishment of General Pei, tormenting the imposing beast in that forbidden area ruthlessly, not sparing any mercy or caring how much suffering it might cause him.

Madness!

Seeing her reckless and frenzied behavior, Pei Jue lifted her by the waist, obviously capable of easily restraining her, but his hands became weak, a trace of light flicked through his dark eyes, hidden within his composed expression, his voice helpless and hoarse, "Don’t provoke, you can’t bear it."

Feng Yun’s heart stumbled.

A flood of memories came rushing back.

He wasn’t wrong, she knew how formidable it was.

She had suffered a lot, truly enduring thralls of agony, but once through the hardship, she found immense satisfaction. She often missed this physique, forged in the fires of battlefields, full of vigorous vitality and inured harshness, something that could drive one mad, had a sense to incite frenzy, and was unforgettable for a lifetime.

She raised a smile, pressing down his arm.

"Why do my legs go weak the moment the General speaks?" she asked.

Her eyes were soft and affectionate, yet her gaze was sharp as a blade, as if she was about to slice open his armor in the next instant.

Pei Jue grabbed hold of her, "Speak properly."

Though it sounded like a rebuke, there was an unexpected softness to his voice. Though he wanted to push her away, her slender body seemed to weigh a ton at that moment.

She sat on top of him.

Her provocative manner was like that of a queen.

Pei Jue’s stern resolve softened under her grinding, and he struggled to regain his composure before that full, mischievous smile, finally managing to find his rationality.

"Do you remember the battle at Bingzhou fourteen years ago, Ji Ke?"

"I don’t." Feng Yun said irritably.

Pei Jue was so nagged by her that he suddenly got tough and pulled her over to pin her down. Feng Yun couldn’t break free, she clutched his fingers. Failing to pry them apart, she gently caressed them, slowly stroking each clearly defined knuckle...

Pei Jue took a deep breath.

"Don’t want to talk about it?"

"No." Feng Yun replied with a smile, "I’m forgetful, anything before I was nine is very blurry to me, let alone at three. What would a three-year-old understand about such things?"

Pei Jue asked, "Why nine?"

Feng Yun glanced at Pei Jue’s eyes, feeling he knew the answer.

But he asked anyway, which meant it mattered to him.

"My mother passed away."

Feng Yun said softly, her expression so neutral that it showed no sign of sadness. After a pause, she added, "She died for me. So, I suppose I’m a disaster, right? Those who are kind to me meet terrible fates. Those who hurt me live well."

Pei Jue’s gaze fell on her expressionless face, and he slowly let go of her arm. Without a word, he picked her up and placed her back in bed with gentleness, as one would soothe a child, softly patting her head.

"Sleep. Once you wake up, I’ll take you somewhere..."

Feng Yun had been tired for so long, seeing him maintain his false propriety, her spirit finally settled down, her energy drained, and her mood shattered by him. She hummed indifferently, turned away from him, her back facing him, and stopped talking.

Pei Jue sat on the edge of the bed for a long time.

"Are you angry?"

Feng Yun didn’t turn around or respond.

Playing dumb, who couldn’t?

Pei Jue didn’t move, just watched the back of her head and closed his eyes.

Feng Yun listened to the familiar breathing and soon felt sleepy...

The wind blew through the window lattice.

It was broad daylight.

Pei Jue bent down to look at her, focused.

Unable to stay calm any longer, even the coldest face couldn’t block the unstoppable sharpness of a drawn sword. He couldn’t sit still. Making sure she was asleep, he got up, picked up his weapon, and walked out.

Daman was outside, bowing, "General."

Pei Jue said, "Don’t wake up your master."

Daman glanced at the General’s stern face and hastily bowed his head.

"Yes."

-

Pei Jue didn’t go to find Puyang Jiu.

He went to the next room and waited, requesting Zuo Zhong to send him over.

Puyang Jiu was busy; hearing that the Great General had summoned him, he knew what it was about. He didn’t delay, came over with his medicine box, and also brought something for Pei Jue to eat.

"The Great General calling me in broad daylight, has Feng Ji provoked you again?"

Pei Jue narrowed his dark eyes but did not deny it.

"I knew it!" Puyang Jiu was frustrated, blaming yet helpless; it baffled him: holding a vibrant beauty, even a block of ice should have melted.

But he didn’t thaw, just kept being stubborn.

Watching his stern cold face, Puyang Jiu scolded him well and flipped open the medicine box to grab medicine, but then as if he realized something, looked up puzzled.

"Did you forget, Wangzhi? I gave you this month’s medicine when you first arrived in Bingzhou."

Not hearing an answer, he slammed the medicine box shut.

"You’ve finished everything? Are you trying to die?"

Pei Jue said, "I haven’t."

"Then what do you want me for? How can I help you?" Puyang Jiu’s emotions were agitated, he pointed at himself, then at Pei Jue, only then noticing... the tall figure was unnaturally rigid, with a seated posture unlike usual, strangely awkward.

He was dumbfounded, "You can’t tell me... you didn’t finish?"

Pei Jue was silent for a moment, "Is there a way?"

Good heavens! What sins had been committed.

Puyang Jiu was so angry he felt like killing him, his tone extremely agitated, "Don’t you know you’re ill? If you’re not willing, then why bother with her? You, you, just tell me, how can I help you? Do I need to make the ultimate sacrifice?"