Denghuangtai

"Yun Zheng, you..." Before the words "you're sick" could even leave her lips, Pei Qingyan remembered that she needed his help at the moment, so she had to suppress her anger for the time being. "Grand Marshal, what do you want?"

"He looks too smart for his age. Keeping him around might cause trouble. I don't want to create unnecessary problems for myself." Yun Zheng said righteously. In reality, he was worried that Pei Qingyan might develop feelings for Yuan Man because he looked like a scholar and had a handsome appearance.

As for that tall guy, he looks kind of simple-minded and silly, so he couldn't possibly be Pei Qingyan's type.

It's safer to keep it.

As for why he made Pei Qingyan choose even though she had a choice… he wanted Pei Qingyan to choose because he wanted to see who she felt was closer to her, the one she could spend more time with. Yun Zheng wouldn't object to choosing the taller one, but if she chose the thinner one…

That's the situation right now.

It can only be said that men who are jealous have no rationality or logic whatsoever.

Pei Qingyan was unaware of Yun Zheng's ulterior motives. She was simply furious at Yun Zheng's flip-flopping and rolled her eyes. "The Grand Marshal can keep whomever he wants, just release the other one."

Outside, the sounds of fighting ceased. Yun Zheng stood up, pushed open the window, intending to have the assassin dragged down for interrogation. However, upon opening the window, he found the courtyard filled with corpses.

"What's going on?" Yun Zheng asked softly, but his anger was barely concealed.

"My lord," the chief clerk said, forcing himself to step forward, "we've already dislocated their jaws, cutting off their path to suicide. But it seems they've already taken poison..."

As the chief clerk explained, he stole glances at Yun Zheng's face. Seeing that Yun Zheng's expression was becoming increasingly unpleasant and that his cold and murderous intent was emanating from him without any concealment, the chief clerk trembled inwardly and his voice grew weaker and weaker.

Although the snow had stopped and the sun was shining brightly in winter, the Chief Secretary felt colder than when it had snowed the previous two days.

"Drag everyone away," Yun Zheng ordered.

Upon hearing this, the chief clerk immediately ordered his men to take action. The group moved swiftly, and in the blink of an eye, only a few piles of snow remained in the courtyard, waiting to melt.

"Prepare the car."

Yun Zheng pushed open the door and walked out. He strode out, his robes billowing in the wind, and he reached the courtyard gate in just a few steps.

The chief clerk hurried to catch up, but was stopped by Yun Zheng, who said, "You stay and watch over her."

"Yes." The chief clerk stopped and watched Yun Zheng leave the temple. Then he turned around and saw Pei Qingyan busily untying the servants.

Noticing the chief clerk's gaze, Pei Qingyan looked up and smiled at him, explaining, "Your lord agreed to release them both."

She made a point of emphasizing "two," since Yun Zheng had left in a hurry and was unlikely to return anytime soon. He hadn't given any specific instructions before leaving, so she figured she might as well take advantage of the situation.

The chief clerk, of course, had no idea what was going on, and after hearing Pei Qingyan's explanation, he had no choice but to believe him.

Of course, this is because he clearly knows that Pei Qingyan is an extremely special and important person in Yun Zheng's heart. When facing Pei Qingyan, Yun Zheng has no principles or rules whatsoever.

Following the example set by Yun Zheng, the Chief Secretary naturally followed suit. He even went so far as to step forward and use his knife to cut the ropes binding the two men, seeing that Pei Qingyan was having some difficulty untying himself.

"Brother, what's your name?" Pei Qingyan asked politely.

"I dare not address the general as a brother. I am Yun Yin, the chief clerk by the Grand Minister of Works' side," the chief clerk said, bowing.

"Brother Yunyin." Pei Qingyan clasped his hands in a gesture of respect. "I would be grateful if you could personally escort my two retainers out of the temple." With that, he bowed solemnly to the Chief Secretary.

Even if Pei Qingyan was down on his luck, he was still a well-known young general who had repeatedly made great contributions on the battlefield. How could the chief clerk dare to accept her bow? He hurriedly turned aside and bowed to Pei Qingyan, saying, "General, you mustn't do that."

"It's nothing," Wu Yong said in a rough voice. "Our lord has always treated people with courtesy. In the past, he treated us like brothers who would risk their lives for him in the North. You captured the assassin just now, which can be considered protecting our lord. From now on, you're one of us too."

Although these words sounded somewhat naive, they warmed the Chief Secretary's heart.

Over the years, through Yun Zheng's connections, he had met many noble families, princes, and dukes. Out of respect for Yun Zheng, these people treated him, the chief secretary, with relative politeness.

But Pei Qingyan was the only one who was willing to set aside his airs, bow to him, and address him as a brother.

It's no wonder that our lord is so fond of General Pei, and it's also no wonder that so many people pleaded and intervened for her when she was in trouble.

"Brother Yunyin, I won't say any more polite words. My two subordinates can't stay any longer, so please hurry up and make the trip," Pei Qingyan urged.

"Alright." The chief clerk agreed without hesitation. "Please follow me."

Pei Qingyan had just breathed a sigh of relief as she watched him lead Yuan and Wu out of the courtyard when she suddenly saw the Chief Secretary return. A chill ran down her spine; she thought to herself, "Has he noticed something amiss?"

"General, I'll be right back. Please don't leave the courtyard, or I won't be able to explain when the lord returns."

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingyan's anxiety subsided.

She laughed and said, "With my health like this, and the weather so cold..." As she spoke, she coughed incessantly, looking frail and delicate. "Don't worry, I won't go out. I'm going inside now."

After saying that, she went inside. As soon as she closed the door, her frail appearance disappeared, and a strange glint flashed in her eyes.

Not going out?

No wonder!

Judging from Yun Zheng's hurried departure, she could guess with her own heels that he probably knew who was behind the assassination attempt and was going to settle scores with them.

In that case, how could Pei Qingyan, as the victim of the assassination attempt, not go along to find out what was going on?

Pei Qingyan searched around the room and found a thick, dark black fox fur cloak. Without thinking, she wrapped the garment, which no one knew who had left it, around her body.

The courtyard was eerily quiet. She climbed out the window, scaled the back wall of the courtyard, and followed the path through the temple gate. The whole thing was almost unbelievably smooth.

She stood at the mountain gate, looking at the two roads leading east and west, hesitating, when suddenly a large hand grabbed her shoulder.