Ch.14 A War of Words Has Begun

Luo Yue could hardly recall a time when she had lost in a verbal battle. Even back when ‘that person’ had still been alive, she had been known for her uncult tongue. What made him think that 5 years of seclusion would have managed to teach her to mince her words?

Qi took a sharp intake of breath when he saw his master’s eyes darken dangerously. He was absolutely sure that this was the first time someone had dared show such blatant disrespect towards his lord. And still remain standing… The last time a drunkard had spoken like this, he had had to carry his tongue back home.

This lady… was she being this confident because she had the Imperial edict with her or because she had gotten the wrong impression that his lord was someone who would show mercy to the opposite gender? Either case, before his lord decided to add another to his headcount, he should dissuade him somehow.

Qi was just about to step up when he saw Wu Zhe Yan releasing his fists without eluding any of his murderous intent. Instead, he merely laughed and only God knows what a lunatic could suddenly be delightful about. He cocked his head. “You. What’s your name?”

“…” she paused for a second, a visible frown etched in her forehead, before parting her mouth reluctantly, “She Li.”

“Lynx?” The smile on his face never seem to reach his eyes and that was perhaps the most spine-chilling thing about him. “Why don’t you give us a meow?”

*She Li = Lynx (a type of cat)

“Why don’t you woof then?” Luo Yue shot back with a sweet smile. Two can play at this game. Sure, his looks were a pass but the way his golden eyes were just staring down at her, like a predator playing with its prey, was nauseating enough. The last time such looks had been directed at her 18 years ago, she had sworn to dig out every one of their eyes. Her tongue might be merciless, but with her stone-cold heart, she was rarely provoked. This time, however, this Mad Dog had successfully gotten a permanent residence on her bad side.

“W-why don’t the both of you calm down?” The lieutenants tried to ease the tension in the air. “Now that we know the map of TianAn City, why don’t we plan our next move quickly?”

Luo Yue tore her eyes away from the figure sitting at the front and turned back to the sand table. Her frown deepened as she weighed her choices. Well, there really wasn’t any other way to give them this important piece of information other than being direct. She made up her mind as she pointed to one part of TianAn City’s walls on the sand table.

“This, is fake.”

It only took a sentence to turn everyone against her. The lieutenants tightened their hold on their spear the moment her words fell into their ears. If even the Emperor had not told the General about this information, it meant that even his majesty had no idea as well. So, for such a piece of priceless information to fall into the hands of a mere nameless strategist, there had to be a trap!

“Hey, kitty.” A sword was unsheathed, and a cold metal landed swiftly next to her neck. “Who the hell are you?”

Shen Tian Ping pulled out his sword, but Luo Yue held up a hand to stop him. Instead, she pulled out the fan tied to the sash around her waist and lightly pushed the giant sword away with it, looking not in the least rattled. “Crazy dog, I’ll only say this once so listen carefully. I’m She Li, the strategist sent by the Imperial Court. Unfortunately.”

She watched him carefully, waiting for him to spit out another one of his sardonic remarks. The time they’ve known each other was short but that short amount of time was more than enough for her to grasp his personality.

One word.

Nutcase.

However, Wu Zhe Yan did not answer straight away, his attention caught by the blue fan in her hands. ‘This person… could she be…?’ An amusing thought got caught up in his mind as he took another good look at the lady before him. Well, he could not deny that he has never met someone more ethereal than her. Although, after second thoughts, perhaps ‘ethereal’ wasn’t really the right word for a lady eluding a frostiness that could freeze even the hottest of countries. And that coldness was the most alluring part, leaving a part of him suddenly wanting to strip off her layers and see the person inside.

‘Such a prideful lady… I can’t help but want to make her cry.’

“Fine, I’ll let you off for now.” Finally, he sheathed his sword as his eyes swept across the room. “The South will not move recklessly now that they have the upper hand. However, if we can’t make them surrender before their reinforcements arrive, we lose this war. So then, we’ll be giving them a taste of their own medicines.”

Luo Yue’s eyebrows lifted in amusement. That would have been her next course of action as well. So, he wasn’t exactly brainless then.

“General, by giving them a taste of their own medicines, you mean to...?” one of the lieutenants asked uneasily.

“I’ll bring a small troop with me to deceive them with a direct attack to the City gates. While their attention is on me, the rest of you lead the main troops, break down the fake wall and launch an attack from the inside.”

“General, it’s too risky! You can’t deal with the entire force of the Southern Army by yourself! What if something happens to you?”

“Then Qi will handle my body,” he grinned, the thought of meeting his ends on the battlefield more exhilarating than it was intimidating to him. Perhaps, he would lose a hand? Perhaps, a leg? Or -if it turned out that his day has come- his head? Whatever it was, he would make sure to drag more people down with him or else hell will be too boring for him. “We start at the break of dawn. Dismissed!”

‘Indeed, a mad dog.’ Luo Yue took another glance at the General who was admiring his blood-stained armour before pushing herself up from the chair. With a flip of her long sleeves, she made her way out of the tent, away from this war-crazed demon.

“Isn’t he exactly like what the rumours said?!” Xiao Liu quickly whispered the moment they were out of earshot. “Isn’t he just fighting because he likes it? Does he even care about the lives of the soldiers?”

“Well, he does have that level of decency, at least. Or else he would have brought the entire troops along and charged straight into TianAn City.” Rather than standing up for the mad man, Luo Yue was merely stating a fact. “Because either way, I don’t see him losing this war. To him, it is just a matter of winning by himself or winning with the rest.”

“So, he has chosen to win with the troops?” Xiao Liu sounded sceptical. “He doesn’t look like a person who would do that.”

“A person?” the lady snorted, obviously still greatly displeased with the appearance of this psychopath of a General. “That thing, is unmistakably a mad dog. No, wait…”

She paused and pondered deeply for a while before muttering, “that’s disrespectful to the dogs…”

‘My Lady… you must really despise the General…’

~~