Novel The Great Game - The Young Master (Ch.308) [finished]

no way D: D: D; NOT SUNLI!!!!!!!

 

Yin Yanzhao uses NTR..... Checkmate.

 

“In my experience, there's no such thing as luck.”
--Obi-Wan Kenobi

Chapter 135 – Questions, questions

In various parts of the capital city, secret meetings were held and plans discussed clandestinely. One such meeting had just ended, with a fateful decision that would shake the fate of the entire Kingdom of Wu. Once the course of action was determined, the participants were sworn to secrecy and dismissed to wait for the right timing.


Such was the situation that Huang Ming and Huang Lang found themselves in, hours after their audience with the King of Wu. While her father was delighted at the willingness of the brothers to eliminate Prime Minister Tong Xuan, the Princess of Wu was too exhausted to detain the brothers for an inquisition regarding the chain of events leading to that point. She resignedly allowed the brothers to retire, promising to exact a thorough explanation from Huang Lang on a later date.


The two brothers were covertly led out of the royal palace by a trusted eunuch via a confusing maze of secret doors and tunnels. It wasn’t until they were finally out in a quiet alley that the brothers breath a sigh of relief.


“Well, that was interesting,” Huang Lang said mildly after the earth-shaking meeting.


Huang Ming shot his elder brother a dirty look. His annoyance increased when he saw his brother somehow remained immaculate and unperturbed from the ordeal of moving in dank tunnels and dusty hallways. In comparison, Huang Ming felt dampness at the soles of his shoes and cobwebs on his shoulders.


“How did you…” Huang Ming muttered discontentedly as he brushed off the dust and muck off his clothes.


“Mmm?” Huang Lang said absent-mindedly as he scanned the surroundings cautiously.


“I demand an explanation,” Huang Ming said firmly.


“About what?” Huang Lang asked, still distracted.


Huang Ming smacked his brother’s shoulder to get his attention. “What do you think you’re doing? Who is this ‘Hui Tian’ you’re pretending to be? When are you going to write to your wife? Why did you keep her and Uncle Li Hong in the dark? And how are we going to get rid of Tong Xuan?” he demanded in rapid-fire succession.


At the end of the tirade, Huang Ming glared at him. It cannot be understated just how relieved he was when he first saw Huang Lang in the palace, but now the anger came flooding back. Seeing his brother all well and every inch still the impeccable gentleman stoked the ire that rose from what seemed to be needless worries that had been inflicted on him. That ridiculous moustache made him all the more dandy.


“Calm down,” Huang Lang advised, and Huang Ming actually took it. The younger man breathed deeply several times, and even the Celestial Qilin admired the way his brother shifted gears so quickly.


“Alright, I’m calm,” Huang Ming said.


Huang Lang smiled faintly, in his mind recalling the vast difference between the Huang Ming before him and the dissolute wastrel that he had knew. From that day when he had led his younger brother to his favourite tea-house, it was like a lifetime ago. Since the day Huang Ming had infuriated his brother-in-law Cao Shuang, there were tales of love and war, and Huang Lang had been constantly astounded by the way his younger brother had turned his life around.


“Hui Tian is a disguise I made up. I am going to write to my wife today, in fact I was planning to return to the Li Clan residence,” he said slowly.


“Why not sooner? The first thing Uncle Li Hong said to me was that you had gone missing. You’re lucky that I didn’t write a letter back yet,” Huang Ming grumbled.


“This is a plot that involves the end of the Prime Minister of our country, of course secrecy is paramount,” Huang Lang said gravely. Then he added, “Besides, I did inform someone.”


“Who?”


“Cao Shuang is here too,” Huang Lang replied, and he enjoyed the look on his younger brother’s face.


“What? Why?” Huang Ming sputtered.


Huang Lang shrugged. “Happy coincidence. He was on private business.”


“There is no such thing as coincidence,” Huang Ming said automatically. “How did you even meet the princess?”


“Actually, you can blame this subterfuge on Muge Jian, it was his idea,” Huang Lang answered as an afterthought, his eyes looking far away.


“And where is our intrepid master swordsman?” Huang Ming asked suspiciously, not entirely convinced by his brother’s response.


“It’s a story for another time. Do you know that you too have an acquaintance here in the capital?” Huang Lang asked.


Huang Ming waved a hand in dismissal. “If you meant Qiong Ying or Sunli, they came here with me.”


His brother arched an eyebrow. “Both of them? You’re braver than I thought,” he said appreciatively.


“It was not my idea,” Huang Ming muttered. Then he blinked. “You mean it’s not them? So you haven’t come across Qiong Ying, er, Quan Lu yet?”


“Should I have?”


Huang Ming sighed. “I was called to the palace before I could start looking for you proper. She volunteered to do so in my stead.”


His elder brother shook his head. “I did not see her.”


Huang Ming threw up his hands in exasperation. “This entirely thing is such a mess! It’s like we’re all blindfolded and we’re groping in the dark looking for each other.”


His elder brother could not help but chuckle at the imagery, irritating him even more.


“Don’t laugh! This is all your fault to begin with. Why are you taking such risks anyway?” Huang Ming demanded.


Huang Lang said nothing, his face a calm mask. But in his heart, that same question had cropped up before.


Huang Ming’s accomplishments have overshadowed him. Even Huang Ke had risked life and limb in Wei. Both younger brothers had followed their father into war, yet Huang Lang had remained at Tianxin City to be the man of the house. When word came of Huang Ming’s great deeds in the Wei campaign, Huang Lang felt overawed by the sheer scale of his merits.


He could do no less.


Huang Lang was still a young man after all. Despite his reputation for calmness and wisdom, he could not help but be inspired to serve the country in some fashion. Thus he had gone to the capital to investigate matters surrounding Prime Minister Tong Xuan. Who knew that his younger brother would follow him here, and for them to have met in the king’s very own private chamber was an unimaginable coincidence.


His younger brother, the former wastrel; was now celebrated as a hero of the country.


It filled Huang Lang with pride.


“So who did you mean?” his brother interrupted his thoughts.


“Nangong Xie is with the Prime Minister,” Huang Lang answered.


Huang Ming’s mouth fell open. “I was wondering where he went,” he mumbled with disbelief.


“The princess told me about it. She said he’s trying to seduce her,” Huang Lang continued.


Huang Ming merely said, “Oh.”


“You seem to know her quite well,” Huang Lang commented.


“Nonsense, we only met briefly. She thinks I’m some war-loving killer,” Huang Ming scoffed. “The King said it’s part of her disguise to fool the Prime Minister, but I think she really hates my guts.”


“I wonder how your fiancées would feel if they are to learn of the princess,” Huang Lang added.


“Wipe that smile off your face. And that disgusting hair on your lip. You lied to the princess, you deal with her,” Huang Ming growled.


“Why do you think I have this moustache?” Huang Lang asked.


“Oh, is that what it is supposed to be? I thought a silkworm crawled up there and died,” Huang Ming shot back sarcastically.


“Yes, it’s actually quite uncomfortable,” Huang Lang said with a frown, touching it distractedly.


Huang Ming looked heavenward in annoyance. “You’re not going to tell me that you only grew it to make yourself less attractive to the princess, are you?”


There was an awkward silence as Huang Ming stared at his brother who did not respond.


“Wow, you’re awesome,” Huang Ming said at last, his words dripping with sarcasm.


“Mm, I am awesome,” Huang Lang agreed, giving him a mysterious smile.


Huang Ming rolled his eyes and started to say something, but his brother was not paying attention.


‘But not as awesome as you,’ Huang Lang thought proudly.

Two brothers reunited,
Their futures shining bright.​

 

“The world will always be filled with injustice. If you have time to give up or hold a grudge against that injustice, then use that time to enjoy battling those injustices instead.”
--Koro-sensei, ‘Assassination Classroom’

Chapter 136 – There is ‘u’ in volunteer

Uncle Li Hong was frightened when Zhen Tian and Tian Zhu returned to the Li Clan residence to pick him up. The two bodyguards were escorted by Cao Shuang’s men, and they were all unfamiliar to him. But he knew of the two bodyguards and did not hesitate to follow them when they told him that Quan Lu and Huang Ming were in trouble.


“A matter of life and death! We must hurry!” the older man said anxiously.


Zhen Tian and Tian Zhu shared sheepish looks. How were they going to explain to him that their ward Quan Lu suddenly asked them to bring the paramount leader of the prominent Li Clan to a brothel?


When Li Hong saw that he was being led towards the pleasure district, his face turned white with shock, and then red with anger.


“Did my nephew get his thing stuck somewhere? I thought he had turned a new leaf!” he growled. His ears were steaming: just a few days ago the entire clan was exultant by the king’s royal summons for Huang Ming, and now that kid has the temerity to get into trouble in a pleasure house!


Zhen Tian and Tian Zhu kept their mouths shut, not wanting to be mired in explaining that their young master was completely innocent. They only hoped that Quan Lu and Cao Shuang would be able to clear up matters later.


Their shame about the subterfuge was replaced by unbridled joy when they came across not just Huang Ming but also Huang Lang in the brothel. Uncle Li Hong became emotional: the worry about Huang Lang’s disappearance had weighed heavily upon him though it was but a just a few short days.


The two brothers were bewildered at the sight of their uncle standing in the brothel, having just arrived there themselves. They had barely reunited with Quan Lu/Qiong Ying and Cao Shuang when their uncle arrived.


“Aren’t you a little too old to be visiting this sort of place?” Huang Ming asked slyly once the initial confusion wore off.


“You brat!” Uncle Li Hong roared. “If those two louts of yours didn’t come running home crying about how you were in trouble and needed rescue, I would never step foot in a place like this!”


“It wasn’t even me who had sent them,” Huang Ming said defensively, shooting Quan Lu a look. The disguised Qiong Ying was airily fanning herself, as if she was uninvolved in the matter.


‘I’ll need to have some long, meaningful talk with her later,’ he made a mental note. Maybe it was due to his age and clothing in this world, his deceptively slender physique and handsome boyish features, but it seemed all the women in this particular life were quite assertive and have the habit of making decisions and giving orders without taking him into account. From his mother to his two fiancées and to his sisters-in-laws, they all share the common characteristic of not taking him too seriously, despite his new-found status as a rising hero of the country.


Maybe he should be more assertive.


But where were all the docile, jade-skinned damsels in distress for him to provide relief for? Instead he had a fox and a pantheress for company.


Speaking of fiancées, where was Sunli? Huang Ming was a little surprised that the Amazon did not come running with his uncle to ‘rescue’ him.


“And you! Where have you been?” Li Hong whirled and gesticulated at Huang Lang in frustration.


“Uncle, I know you’re excited but please calm down,” Huang Lang said placatingly.


Huang Ming could not help but snicker at his choice of words. “Brother, you shouldn’t make fun of uncle like that. He can’t help but be excited here.”


There was a pause as everyone in the room took in what he said. Of course, there would be one or two whose eyes inevitably travelled downwards to verify Li Hong’s ‘excitement’.


“That is not what I meant,” Huang Lang said with vast understatement.


“I swear, you two will be the death of me. I can’t wait for you both to be gone from the capital,” Li Hong groused.


“Can we all please be serious here?” Cao Shuang demanded. Barely five minutes since he had seen the Huang brothers again and already they were giving him a headache.


“Nice to see you too,” Huang Ming said to him. “Does your sister know that you’re in this deadly conspiracy?”


“Conspiracy? What deadly conspiracy?” Li Hong interrupted.


“Why, didn’t anyone tell you? You’re now part of a secret plot to kill the Prime Minister of Wu,” Huang Ming replied casually.


“Kill the prime minister?” Li Hong’s mouth fell open.


“Yes. Welcome to the conspiracy,” Huang Ming said blandly.


There was another pregnant pause as Uncle Li Hong stared at him, aghast.


“You… uh, ah… I need to sit down,” Li Hong said weakly.


“Ah Ming, I would appreciate it if you do not say such things so openly,” Huang Lang said in admonishment. “One misstep and all our families can be implicated,” he added ominously.


“Oh, now you want to keep our family out of it,” Huang Ming said sarcastically. “What about me then?”


“I knew I could count on you,” his brother said dryly.


“So you have made your resolve?” ‘Quan Lu’ spoke up, snapping his fan shut.


“Big brother over here,” Huang Ming said while jerking a thumb at Huang Lang, “…had even deceived Princess Wu Liying.”


“You have done what to who now?” Uncle Li Hong exclaimed, jumping back to his feet.


“Uncle, it was a necessary ruse for me to enter the palace,” Huang Lang answered.


“Enter the palace?” Li Hong repeated in disbelief.


“Don’t worry, she has forgiven us,” Huang Ming said cheerily.


Cao Shuang drew a deep breath. “You have succeeded then?” he asked.


Huang Lang nodded. “We have met the king,” he informed him.


“Met the king?” Li Hong echoed weakly.


Huang Lang looked at each person in the room in the eyes.


“The king himself has called for us to rid the country of Tong Xuan,” he announced solemnly.


Huang Ming smiled. “Congratulations. All of you have been volunteered.”

The course is set,
No time for them to fret.​

 

Thanks for the chapter.

 

Forget that this existed. I better catch up and while I'm at it thanks for the chapters

 

I suspected of the brother but the other 2 took me by surprise
PD: I loved the "Hail Hydra" in my opinion was the best part of that chapter
PD2:In another note, how is your father, I hope he is getting better

 

I've seen comments regarding the current pacing of the story, and I beg for the understanding of the readers. I take note of them and I hope to improve further in the future.

----

“Peace is Our Profession.”
--Motto of the US Strategic Air Command

Chapter 137 – Scripting

Despite the reservations of Uncle Li Hong, the rest of the clandestine meeting proceeded smoothly. The two Huang brothers took charge of the briefing. Having decided on the goal of assassinating Prime Minister Tong Xuan, ideas were bandied freely about on the method to be used.


In Huang Ming’s opinion, the easiest way was to install an explosive device on the Prime Minister’s carriage. However there were difficulties in producing the explosive elements in this world, let alone a way to remotely detonate it from a safe distance. Besides, Huang Lang had insisted on several criteria.


“The Prime Minister must be arrested or killed openly and in full view of witnesses,” he said.


“Why?”


“Firstly, it is to cow his lackeys and subordinates. They must be frightened into surrendering without resistance, lest they rise up and cause a disturbance in the capital,” Huang Lang answered.


Huang Ming understood this point, he had seen first hand what had happened when Marshal Gao Fang had ‘disappeared’ after the defeat in Wei. His subordinates simply did not believe he was gone and had refused to allow the defeated army to return home, citing the marshal’s standing orders.


“Secondly, there must be a smooth transition of power. After Tong Xuan is removed, the king must quickly appoint a new prime minister to regain public confidence and prevent a power grab,” Huang Lang continued.


Again, Huang Ming agreed with his brother. After the end of Gao Fang, the position of Marshal of the Armies became empty. There were many rumoured to be covetous of the job, and the king had been reluctant to appoint a new marshal for fear of another Gao Fang. It meant even loyal figures like his own father General Huang Zheng were eyed by suspicion.


“Who do you have in mind?” he asked.


“Muge Jian is looking into it,” Huang Lang replied succinctly. It was a tone that meant ‘do not ask further’, and so Huang Ming changed tack.


“You said Nangong Xie is here and in league with the Prime Minister. All this talk would be for nothing if he recognizes you,” Huang Ming said to his brother. “Or you,” he added, pointing at Cao Shuang.


“Leave him to me,” Cao Shuang grunted. “If his habits remained the same, it would be easy for my people to lure him away.”


Huang Ming arched a brow. “And if he has changed his ways?”


“I will just use force,” Cao Shuang replied bluntly.


Huang Lang rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “The princess did say he was trying to seduce her. Maybe she could work together with Cao Shuang,” he said, giving his brother a meaningful look.


“Good idea,” Huang Ming agreed immediately. The two brothers were of course glad to hook up the princess with someone other than themselves. Cao Shuang was a good nominee: the son of a governor, single, young and successful.


Cao Shuang was not oblivious, he had the suspicions that he was being set up for something. But before he could voice his objection, Huang Lang ignored him and ploughed on.


“Another concern is the imperial guard,” he said. “After the fall of Marshal Gao, Tong Xuan appointed his own subordinate to take charge of the guards. We must take care lest the king be harmed.”


Huang Ming’s mind drifted to the Praetorian Guard of Ancient Rome: the elite bodyguards of the emperor had demonstrated their willingness to depose and even kill their charge in times of chaos.


“But the current leader is Wang Hong, he is very powerful,” Uncle Li Hong said. “He will have to be removed permanently, he is not the sort to take kindly to be demoted.”


“I suppose you have a plan to deal with him too?” Huang Ming asked sarcastically.


“We need someone to defeat him in combat. It may be necessary in order to seize direct command of the guards,” Huang Lang murmured.


Huang Ming immediately thought of his brother Huang Ke the Mountain-Splitter and Liu Xiang the Iron Tiger, but the two military men had responsibilities in Tigertrap Fortress and Tianxin City.


Here ‘Quan Lu’ snapped his fan open and smiled. “Well, what about Ms. Zhao Sunli? She has the martial skills and military reputation,” the disguised Qiong Ying suggested.


“Where is she anyway? Why isn’t she here?” Huang Ming asked.


“Oh, she went out with General Yin Yanzhao the White Star,” Uncle Li Hong answered.


“Eh?” Huang Ming and Quan Lu chimed together.


“He came to call on her to discuss military matters,” Li Hong said. “Speaking of whom, wouldn’t he be a good choice?”


“If we are able to convince him to join our cause, it would be ideal,” Cao Shuang enthused.


“We will have to tread carefully. Ah Ming, perhaps you could handle this?” Huang Lang asked.


It was a question, but Huang Ming knew it was more like an order. He had direct ties to Sunli, and it would be logical for him to ask her about the general. Besides, he was curious about the general himself.


The meeting ended soon thereafter. As it dispersed, Uncle Li Hong drew his nephews aside.


“You two are reckless,” he admonished in a stern voice.


“Me? But I-” Huang Ming started to protest, wanting to point out that his involvement was not his choice.


“We apologize, uncle,” Huang Lang interrupted.


“I look away for a moment and now you two are risking the lives of our entire clans in this plot,” Li Hong sighed.


Huang Ming grimaced. “It is not my-”


“The fate of our country is at stake, and we cannot stand idly by,” Huang Lang interrupted again.


“I suppose it is the right thing to do,” Li Hong said resignedly.


Then he narrowed his eyes at Huang Ming. “You better keep an eye on him lest he steals Miss Sunli away,” he warned.


“But-” Huang Ming started to say.


“Uncle, do not fear. They are engaged,” Huang Lang said.


Uncle Li Hong was of course delighted, having thought of that particular idea after being leery of Huang Ming’s closeness with ‘Quan Lu’.


“Really?” he beamed. “Well, that is reassuring. Still, you must not let down your guard and be complacent. The man is a widower after all, and he is still fit and healthy. And good looking.”


“I-” Huang Ming grumbled.


“No, that would not do at all,” Uncle Li Hong ignored him. “Yes, yes, we all admire General Yin, but this is your love life we are talking about. You will need to buck up, your flaws are far too many when compared to the general.”


“You are absolutely right, uncle,” Huang Lang said solemnly. He turned to give his younger brother a serious look. “You must be careful so as not to offend either the general or Miss Zhao, we need either one to accomplish our goals. It would be best to have them both, but without their military skills to handle the imperial guards, our plans would be in peril.”


Uncle Li Hong rubbed his hands together. “We still have some spare time, I shall arrange for you to be alone with Miss Zhao. Mmm, good, good,” he mumbled to himself and nodded in satisfaction.


Without even waiting for Huang Ming to respond, Huang Lang and Li Hong walked away to discuss other matters.


Huang Ming stared at them, his mouth half-open.


“Looks like you have your work cut out for you,” Qiong Ying said she fanned herself with a smile.

A few more hurdles,
Before the reversal.​

 

I see I have a new reader. Thank you very much.



(this goes on for four pages)

 

sigh I am at chapter 10 and I like the MC. He is funny and cunning hmm

This will be the new novel in my reading list, since I was looking for something new to read

 

Thanks for the chapter

 

NUF has let me down again! No alert for chapter, and I wouldn't have checked today if not for FAiri110 liking one of my posts. Thanks @FAiri110 . Thanks for the chapter!

 

Oh my...I didn't realize I had liked these chapters like crazy! It's 5.30am and I'm still binge reading. Well, at least I havent depraved of my 'like' limit

Very good story btw.

 

thanks for the chapter

 

wow, amazing, I'm so excited, thanks for the chapter

 

Please dont let sunli get taken by the general

 

Loving this novel especially the time and detail you put into your writing

 

This chapter is unedited. Today was hell of a day, with the Qidian drama. And in real life, the bottom of my shoe got damaged. I spent my lunch hour sole-searching. Luckily it was only one shoe, and the other was fine. You could say it was the sole survivor. /badum-tish

---

“It’s not that simple.”
--Allie Hamilton, ‘The Notebook’

Chapter 138 – Telepathy fail

Evening was giving way to night when Zhao Sunli returned to the Li Clan residence. She found Huang Ming waiting for her. Her fiancé’s head was bowed, a frown upon his brows as he pondered over a scroll by the candlelight.


It was already past dinnertime and most of the Li Clan had retired to their respective dwellings within the estate, but those who had seen Sunli earlier in the library and then Huang Ming that night would note the similarities in their reading interests. The scroll in his hand was the very same one Sunli had tried to decipher.


She was struck by the image of the studious young man, and found herself looking over his profile for a few heartbeats.


They say a man was most attractive when he was utterly focused, and at this moment Huang Ming was demonstrating it.


This version of the young man was the one that had caused the most frustration and confusion in Sunli’s mind. Not the smart aleck with a frivolous tongue, not the reckless daredevil that jumped down into Tigertrap Fort with her in his arms. It was this one, the one with eyes like shimmering, unfathomable pools who had poured military wisdom in their private lectures.


She wondered if he had deliberately shown this aspect of himself to others, if there were others who knew of his depths.


‘The Lady Qiong Ying?’ an insidious whisper suggested from the depths of her heart before she could extinguish the thought.


The candlelight flickered from a stray breeze, causing the shadows to dance momentarily.


Huang Ming looked up from the scroll as if searching for the source of the breeze, and he saw Sunli watching him like a silent sentinel.


“Welcome back,” he greeted.


Sunli nodded simply, unsure as what to say.


“Have you eaten?” Huang Ming inquired softly.


“I had dinner with General Yin,” Sunli said matter-of-factly.


It was Huang Ming’s turn to nod without a word, his gaze on her unwavering.


It suddenly occurred to Sunli that her actions could be misconstrued.


Though she grew up in the martial environment of General Zhao Tong’s army camps, she was aware of some female proprieties. A single female going out with a man only to return at dark would be subject to public gossip for unladylike behaviour.


Sunli recalled that there were no ridiculing stares directed her way the whole day she was out with General Yin. The sight of two formidable military figures together, talking with serious looks on their faces as they strolled side-by-side deterred anyone from making snide remarks. It was plainly obvious that the pair were earnestly discussing weighty matters and it was not some outing between lovers.


Yet... why did she suddenly felt as if she had done something improper?


Why did she feel as if she had betrayed Huang Ming, despite the calm and non-judgemental way he was looking at her now?


“How was your day?” Huang Ming asked.


“Very good,” Sunli answered shortly, not volunteering more.


“I see…” Huang Ming said with a slight smile.


“We discussed the campaign in Wei in detail,” Sunli said. “Your tactics were of particular interest to the general,” she continued in a rush.


Then she inwardly chastised herself, why did she feel the need to explain herself?


Huang Ming’s eyes lit up and beckoned for her to sit with him.


“What did the general have to say?” he asked as he poured a cup of tea for her.


Sunli sat down, glad to push aside irritating things such as ‘feelings’ for the time being.


The two then spent several hours discussing the points, comments and arguments General Yin had raised.


“The general is very astute,” Huang Ming said later, and Sunli nodded in agreement.


“He reminds me of our fathers,” she said. Then she paused and frowned. “Without the old men nonsense,” the Amazon added.


Huang Ming chuckled.


“From the way you describe the discussion, it seemed he was doing most of the talking,” he noted.


“He was very persuasive,” Sunli said tersely. She was not about to tell her fiancé that he was right, that she was all but too overwhelmed by her proximity to a revered hero to have made any real rebuttals.


Huang Ming did not say anything, but his smirk was plain to see.


“He is a general after all, who am I to contradict him?” Sunli growled hotly.


“I am not making fun of you,” Huang Ming said, raising a hand in placation.


Sunli snorted, and Huang Ming scratched his cheek depreciatingly.


The moon was high in the night, and their candle had already burnt half its lifespan.


“We need to talk,” Huang Ming said quietly.


Sunli was startled. She remembered how Huang Ming had offered to have a heart-to-heart talk about their relationship limbo before that breathless moonlit jump into Tigertrap Fort, and the way she had angrily rebuffed him then.


She saw the solemn look on his face and she tensed in anticipation… not really knowing what she was bracing herself for.


“What do you want?” she asked slowly.


“What do you think of General Yin?” Huang Ming asked in return.


It was as if she was punched in the gut.


“What?” Sunli managed to say. ‘Did he think I was swayed?’ she thought, half-horrified, half-indignant.


Huang Ming seemed to not notice her rapidly changing facial expressions.


“Huang Lang is back,” he said mirthlessly, “...and somehow he has gotten us all involved in a grand scheme to save the country.”


Sunli took a sharp breath to steady herself, willing herself to ignore the cauldron of bubbling emotions within her.


“What happened?” she asked.


Huang Ming then told her about the meeting with the King of Wu, and the subsequent plot orchestrated by Huang Lang to remove Prime Minister Tong Xuan.


“... and so we intend to recruit General Yin to our cause. Do you think he will agree?”


Sunli stared at him. A part of her was debating whether she should slap him or punch him in the nose.


Finally sensing that something was wrong, Huang Ming frowned.


“Are you alright?” he ventured to ask.


“You should ask him yourself,” Sunli snarled through gritted teeth.


Huang Ming leaned back and crossed his arms in thought.


“You’re right, this is too important for intermediaries. I should really talk to him face-to-face,” he said, nodding to himself. “Do you know where to find him?”


It was all too much for Sunli. Feelings of agony, hurt, anger and other unfamiliar emotions converged in a fiery ball and she could not bear to be in his presence any longer. She shot to her feet, startling Huang Ming in the process.


“He’s at the capital’s barracks, find him yourself!” she seethed and stomped away.


Huang Ming watched her go. Then, his shocked face slowly gave way to a knowing smile.


“What the hell was that?” Qiong Ying asked reproachfully as she emerged from the shadows.


“It was exactly as you saw,” Huang Ming replied.


“What I saw is you doing your best to be dense and stupid. Are you trying to drive her away?” Qiong Ying demanded.


“No.”


“Are you sure? Because it sure looked like you were,” Qiong Ying said suspiciously.


“She is young and confused, and so she must see the entirety of what it means to be involved with us,” Huang Ming said sagely.


Qiong Ying was so mystified that she did not retort about the age thing.


“Just what do you mean by that?” she asked.


“I have you,” Huang Ming began. “She knows this, and yet she is… trapped in this triangle with us.”


“She can be the main wife, I have said I didn’t mind,” Qiong Ying said impatiently.


“And I am very lucky,” Huang Ming returned. “But what about her? You have seen for yourself, she has no idea what she is facing. She doesn’t know what to say or how to even begin sorting her own feelings.”


“If you talk to her-” Qiong Ying began.


“This situation was your doing, not mine,” Huang Ming interrupted her. “She has to find what she truly wants now before getting into bed with us, and not regretting about what could have been when it is too late.”


Qiong Ying gave him the evil eye. “I think I understand. You are trying to say that you’re letting her see all of you, including the worst parts, as well as other possibilities; before she commits. That you’re placing the decision in her hands? Is that it?”


“She has already seen my good parts after all,” he grinned. ‘Including what I looked like topless,’ he left unsaid, recalling their spar so long ago.


“I am not sure that she did,” Qiong Ying said nastily.


“This is for her own good, don’t worry about it,” Huang Ming said airily.


She snorted in exasperation. “Are you some sort of selfless romantic fool? You do realize that there is a possibility that she would leave you for good? Maybe even for General Yin!”


“And it would be her choice,” Huang Ming said. He propped his chin with one fist and smiled at her.


“I don’t think there is another man like you, so willingly to allow something in your hands the choice to jump back out,” Qiong Ying grumbled. “All she needs is just some sweet talk and she’s yours.”


“This isn’t about me spreading my arms and letting her jump into my warm embrace. This is about her deciding if she should jump at all,” Huang Ming said.


“So complicated,” Qiong Ying muttered.


“This is who I am. Would you prefer if I’m the sort to fly from woman to woman and make a harem? Will you be happy and play nice with each other at home, while I’m off finding more peerless beauties with jade-like skin?” Huang Ming asked rhetorically.


Qiong Ying rolled her green eyes.


“You two are quite alike, you know,” Huang Ming said lazily. “Given a different situation, would you willingly share a husband? I think not, and you have seen how conflicted she was.”


Qiong Ying sighed, admitting that he did have some logic, even though she thought it was all overly complicated. And so altruistic.


Then she frowned mightily.


“You are giving her a chance to make a choice,” she stated.


“Yes.”


“What about me?” Qiong Ying demanded. “How is it that I did not get the same treatment?”


Huang Ming smirked.


“You jumped me first,” he reminded her.

A strange kindness,
Yet, a guidance.​

 

My father is fine, at least it's at the back of his mind for now. Thank you for asking!

 

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