Water Margin: Gao Yanei is actually a Gal Genius

When Gao Qiu heard that Lin Chong also had a plan, his eyebrows twitched. Seeing Lin Chong's imposing figure, he felt a momentary daze, as if he saw Gao Jin saying, "I have a plan..."

Gao Qiu hurriedly picked up his teacup, took a sip, suppressed the trembling in his heart, and rubbed his temples. "Tell me about it."

"Isn't the Grand Commandant going to hold a grand competition among the Imperial Guards after the festival?" Lin Chong asked, crossing his arms.

"That is indeed the case. The oppression from the Liao in the north is becoming increasingly excessive. I do have the idea of ​​holding a grand military competition. This would allow the people of Dongjing to witness the prowess of the soldiers of our Great Song army and boost their morale."

"I think it would be better to involve Brother Gao Jin as well."

Gao Qiu stroked his beard and shook his head. "That's not appropriate. That scoundrel has never cared about fame or fortune. I tried to get him a prefectural post before, but he refused, let alone a military post in the Imperial Guard."

"I'll find a pretext to force Brother Gao Jin to go..."

Gao Qiu was displeased upon hearing this, but he patiently refrained from reacting. "What's the reason?"

"Today I was chatting with Brother Gao Jin about martial arts. His spear technique is quite similar to my family's spear technique... I plan to have Brother Gao Jin bring glory to my family's spear technique."

How confident are you?

"Brother Gao Jin has always been loyal and righteous, so I think there's a good chance he'll agree."

"...loyal and righteous..." Gao Qiu muttered, "In this world, that's not exactly a compliment."

"As long as Brother Gao Jin agrees, and I insist on leaving first after the Mid-Autumn Festival, then Brother Gao Jin will naturally have no reason to leave the capital."

Gao Qiu thought to himself, "Perhaps I should just settle Gao Jin's marriage as soon as possible, rather than letting this matter go unresolved."

Once a man settles down and starts a family, that beast will naturally become more prudent in his actions.

Uncle Dang was so insightful; if he had arranged the marriage with that scoundrel earlier, there wouldn't be this disaster today.

With a sigh, Gao Qiu said, "Let's leave it at that for now. Keep a close eye on this matter and don't let that beast find a chance to escape."

Lin Chong is usable, but he's a bit too upright. He spends his days with bandits, and he's probably going to get himself killed on Liangshan. So let's send someone clever to go with him.

Gao Qiu also planned to repay Lin Chong for a favor.

"Yes." Lin Chong left the study and went back to the small building.

Gao Qiu summoned his steward and instructed him to prepare an invitation to be sent to the old Taoist priest Chen Xizhen the next day, inviting him to his residence for a chat.

That afternoon, at the Chen residence.

As evening approached, Chen Xizhen stood before the arrow stacks, watching his daughter Liqing wield a fine iron dragon-patterned staff with the agility of snowflakes.

As she finished her movement and exhaled, beads of sweat on her forehead reflecting the setting sun, the old Taoist suddenly tapped the stone lock with the butt of his spear.

"How is Gao Tuizhi doing these days?"

Liqing flicked her wrist, and the stick left a crooked mark on the muddy ground.

Without looking up, she simply leaned the stick against the weapon rack.

"Father, have you finished your homework for today? Then what about Brother... what can Gao Yanei do? He lives a life of luxury in the Gao mansion."

"Oh?" The old Taoist priest took out a bow and slowly wiped its back. "Didn't you show off your skills?"

Chen Liqing's ears burned slightly, and she turned her head away, not daring to look at the old Taoist priest for a moment.

"His old injury flared up, so it's not safe for him to fight."

Seeing her daughter's performance, a glint of shrewdness flashed in Chen Xizhen's eyes. Her face darkened, and she put the bow back in its place.

"Come in with me."

After saying that, he turned and headed towards the flower hall.

Chen Liqing's heart tightened, and she followed behind the old Taoist priest, feeling uneasy and anxious.

Upon entering the rear hall, Chen Xizhen sat down in a chair and tossed a scroll onto the table.

"Kneel down!" The old Taoist priest's voice was as deep as an iron weight.

Chen Liqing knelt upright on the blue bricks, the cold air from the cracks in the bricks seeping into her knees.

The old Taoist priest didn't even look at her; he simply extended his index finger and tapped heavily on the two characters "Admonitions for Women" on the book cover.

"Where did you go last night? You even changed your clothes!"

Chen Liqing stiffened her neck. "My daughter saw that Brother Gao Jin was being mistreated, so she went to stand up for him!"

"Shut up!" The old Taoist slammed his hand on the table, startling the teacup into jumping. "Does venting your anger require you to change your clothes?"

Without waiting for Chen Liqing's reply, he pulled out a three-foot-long ruler from under the table. The sandalwood, soaked with sweat, gleamed coldly. "Give me your hand!"

Chen Liqing stretched out her hand and opened her palm.

The ruler whistled as it fell, and *smack!* A red ridge immediately appeared on Chen Liqing's palm.

"This time, I'm punishing you for 'not avoiding suspicion'." The old Taoist's breathing was heavy.

"Although Gao Tuizhi is a good man, you haven't gone through the six rites of marriage and the matchmaker hasn't been arranged. You are the face of the Chen family! If people find out that you met with Gao Jin at night, what will they say about you? How will your father hold his head high?"

Chen Liqing bit her lower lip, and blood seeped into her teeth.

She didn't intend to tell everyone about Gao Jin killing Cai Xiu.

*Smack!* The second blow was even harder.

"This time, I'm slapping you on the shoulder for 'forgetting your roots and overstepping your bounds'." A look of pain flashed in the old Taoist's eyes.

"Your mother was also the daughter of a martial arts instructor. Why did she stay at home for a full six months before marrying me? Your grandfather held my hand on his deathbed and said, 'It's harder for a daughter of a martial arts family than for others, because you know not only embroidery needles, but also the art of killing. So you have to follow the rules twice, one for the world to see, and one to suppress the mad tiger in your own heart.'"

Chen Liqing remained silent, while the window paper rustled softly.

The ruler was raised for the third time, but remained suspended in mid-air for a long time.

The old Taoist priest looked at the swollen finger marks on his daughter's palm, his Adam's apple bobbed several times, and he gently placed the ruler on Chen Liqing's shoulder.

"Remember this last sentence: if Gao Jin truly respected and loved you, he should have formally invited you to court and offered incense to his ancestors, instead of dragging you into this clandestine affair while he indulged in his own pleasure!"

He suddenly leaned down, his low voice breaking open to reveal the soft, yielding substance within.

"Qing'er, I'm afraid... I'm afraid that if you make a wrong move, you won't even be able to accept incense in the Gao family ancestral hall."

Chen Liqing was startled. When she looked up, she saw a white hair on the old Taoist's temple fluttering in the wind.

Suddenly, the sound of a ruler being struck came from outside the courtyard. Bang, bang, bang, each sound like a ruler being struck.

Qing'e slowly withdrew her swollen hand, glanced in the direction of the sound, then turned back to look deeply into her father's eyes.

"Father, I... understand!" She enunciated each word clearly, "From today onwards, if Brother Gao tries to lay a hand on me again, I'll teach him a lesson! If he asks why..."

She suddenly tore off the blue cloth ribbon that bound her hair and wrapped it around her swollen palm, saying, "Then I'll say that the Chen family's daughter must not have a corrupt family reputation."

The old Taoist priest abruptly turned his back and waved his hand. If he didn't care about his reputation, he would have already been promoted by Gao Qiu. Naturally, he didn't want his daughter to have a bad reputation either.

Chen Liqing got up and walked into the courtyard. She picked up the iron dragon-patterned staff, but stopped wielding it. Instead, she poked at the shadow of the old locust tree, as if trying to nail something into the ground.

When the night watchman struck the first watch, Chen Liqing was sitting by the window, copying the "Admonitions for Women" ten times by the light of an oil lamp.

When she reached the phrase "pure and chaste, upright and virtuous," she put down her pen, touched her cherry lips with her finger, and murmured, "Brother Gao Jin..."

Behind her, the maidservant was yawning, ready to serve her mistress at any moment.

In the backyard of the Gao family mansion, Gao Jin was watching a monk perform a stone lock trick, with Lu Zhishen tossing two hundred-pound stones back and forth.

Lin Chong wasn't here; he went to find Lao Deng, saying he needed to report back to the Grand Commandant and inform him of the date of his departure for Liangshan, so that Lao Deng wouldn't overthink things.

Gao Jin's old injury wasn't serious, so he didn't have to lie down all the time. He stood to the side, staring intently at Lu Zhishen showing off, feeling extremely resentful.

If it weren't for this reckless monk, he would have been sleeping with Chen Liqing tonight!

Who wants to watch this reckless monk playing with stones?