The high eaves shaded the scorching sun, and in the courtyard, the wind danced happily, taking away the unbearable heat.

  Liu Junshu leaned back in his recliner, his robes fluttering in the wind. He let out a long sigh, it had been a long time since he'd felt so carefree.

  Since he emerged in the younger generation of his clan, he has been under the attention of his elders, and he has also worked hard to learn a good skill. The name Liu Junshu is also highly respected within the Huanglong Army, perhaps twenty years from now, or maybe ten years later, he will ascend to the throne of the Grand Leader.

  However, the invasion of the Xiongnu people destroyed all his dreams and efforts. At this moment, he is alone, living in seclusion here, unable to do anything, no different from a dead man.

  The Liu family dynasty, will there be another chance for restoration? In his heart, there was no bottom line at all, not even a bit...

  Before that, Zhang Jinzhong responded to Liu Zhengting's call in the Grand Temple and led 800,000 Tianying Army soldiers to Taiyuan.

  It was as if the dawn of hope in the dark night, Liu Junshu immediately volunteered to go. Even if it's a heroic death on the battlefield, it's better than being idle here.

  However, unexpectedly, Xu Haifeng firmly refused. Faced with his silent accusation and silent protest, Xu Haifeng finally retreated a step. He said that if he still wanted to leave after ten days, then he would not stop him.

  Today is the deadline.

  The sound of footsteps approached, stopping right next to him.

  Liu Junshu furrowed his brow, extremely dissatisfied with someone disturbing his leisure. He opened his eyes and looked up, but was taken aback.

  The person in front of him was actually Jiang Gongming, Jiang's great military strategist.

  He smiled awkwardly, left the spacious and comfortable recliner, slightly bowed, and said: "General Jiang actually has leisure time to come see me, an idle person, what a rare guest."

  In his heart, he had no good impression of Jiang Gongming at all, but because of the other's identity and his admiration for his learning, he treated him with courtesy.

  Jiang Kongming smiled all over his face and politely said: "No need for that, I was sent by my master to invite General to meet someone, then wait for General's response."

  Liu Junshu looked at him and suddenly asked, "May I ask, Military Advisor, if Liu certain saw that mysterious person and still wanted to leave, what would be his fate?"

  Jiang Kungming smiled calmly and said, "Of course, we will see him off out of the city."

  "Is it?" Liu Junshu's eyes flashed with a hint of mockery, saying: "Isn't it directly sent to Huangtugang?"

  What is known as Huangtugang is a high mountain dozens of miles north of the Western Barracks, where generations of Tianying Army soldiers who died for their country are buried.

  Jiang Kongming looked up and met his gaze, after a moment, he said: "In the student's opinion, it is indeed so. Unfortunately, Master remembered the past friendship with General and repeatedly instructed that they should not meet in armor. Therefore, the student has already prepared horses and food, if the general really does not want to see that person, just leave directly. As for whether they will meet again later, as friends or enemies, it all depends on the general's decision."

  For some reason, when he heard Jiang Kung-Ming directly admit that he had murderous intentions towards him, he felt a sense of relief.

  Nowadays, the Western camp has all fallen into Xu Haifeng's hands. With Xu Haifeng in a state of semi-retirement, the one who truly holds power is Jiang Kongming. If he wants to kill himself, it would be as easy as turning his hand over; why go to such great lengths?

  He sneered and was about to leave directly, but he had a thread of curiosity in his heart, wanting to see who could make Xu Haifeng so concerned.

  "General Chiang's army, since it's like that, let Xu certain see that senior expert again."

  "Hmm?" Jiang Gongming's face suddenly turned extremely strange, he twitched the corner of his mouth, and after a while, said: "Alright, then let the student send Liu to meet that senior expert."

  Following Jiang Kung-ming, they arrived at a elegant villa. Jiang Kung-ming stopped his steps outside the courtyard and gave a signal with his eyes towards the inside.

  Liu Junshu smiled brightly and walked in big strides, at this moment, he had already completely put his own life and death outside of his consideration.

  As he walked around the bend, Liu Junshu suddenly stopped in his tracks. In front of him were four maids with identical faces and clothes. He naturally wouldn't forget that these people were none other than the personal maids of the little princess Liu Ting from back then.

  That year, on the eve of marrying Modu Chanyu, Liu Ting presented several maids to Xiang Yu and other generals.

  It was just that neither he, Su Chunwei, nor Jin Guanghua dared to take responsibility and laugh it off. In the end, Xu Haifeng took the initiative to step forward and generously included them in the account. This bold move left the three of them speechless.

  After parting in Beijing, they followed Xu Haifeng to Wolong City and gradually faded away in their memories. Unexpectedly, they met again today.

  At this moment, scenes from the past flooded his mind, vivid and clear, filling him with a sense of nostalgia.

  Time has changed, people have changed, and the fate of those envoys is different. The fallen ones like him still have to rely on others for survival, living a life of dependence and thievery.

  However, some people are boundless in their splendor and have become a generation of masters admired by tens of thousands of people.

  He gave a faint bitter smile, and felt his heart turn to ashes.

  "We have met General Liu." The four maidservants of music, chess, calligraphy and painting simultaneously curtsied.

  "Hmm." Liu Junshu responded casually, taking a step forward, and suddenly felt a tightness in his heart. He looked at their slender bodies with a look of surprise in his eyes.

  He can lead the vanguard of 100,000 elite soldiers. Apart from his illustrious family background and superior strategic thinking, his martial arts skills are also exceptional. Having gone through the trial by fire during the fall of the city, he is now a top-notch master at the second-grade peak level, and even if he is still one step away from reaching the first-grade boundary, it's only a thin line that separates him.

  However, when he saw the behavior and actions of the four women who were skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, he unexpectedly discovered that these people brought him a fleeting feeling. He carefully observed for a moment, his face changed again, they were young, but each person had about second-rate skills. Moreover, observing their advances and retreats, they always maintained a fixed distance from each other, presumably because they practiced some special skill, and when they combined to attack, the momentum was unstoppable.

  He remembered that when Liu Ting gave it to them, they were still completely without any martial arts foundation, so how did they suddenly make such great progress in just two years?

  Could it be that in just two years, a weak and feeble woman with strength no greater than a chicken's could become a master of the generation? If it were that simple, wouldn't every single soldier in the Black Flag Army have become a second-rate master by now?

  Thousands of second-rate masters, what a concept that is.

  He felt bitter in his heart. The methods of the sect master were indeed extraordinary and far beyond what someone of his level could comprehend.

  "Is Master Xu here?" Liu Junshu asked. At this time, he didn't dare to underestimate these four maids again. If they joined forces, they might not be weaker than himself. Indeed, the Xu family was a place where dragons and tigers were hidden.

  "Your husband is not here, but madam has been waiting for a long time?"

  Liu Junshu glanced at the little girl who was speaking, these several maidservants looked almost identical, he couldn't tell who was answering. He furrowed his brow and asked: "Which madam?"

  "It's just a young lady." Their pretty faces simultaneously floated with an inexplicable expression, as if they were puzzled by his confusion.

  "Miss?" Liu Junshu's eyes suddenly widened and were getting bigger and bigger, his breathing was rapid, he asked: "Could it be..."

  "General Liu, please come in for a chat."

  A soft, pleasant and extremely familiar voice came from the house at the right time. Liu Junshu's body shook, looking incredulously at the tightly closed door.

  ※※※※

  Just as Liu Junshu's tall figure completely disappeared from Jiang Kongming's line of sight, another figure slowly emerged from the dark corner beside the courtyard.

  Able to make Liu Junshu completely unaware, this person's martial arts cultivation is at least above first-rate.

  "Milord." He came quietly and stood beside Jiang Gongming, saying respectfully.

  "Is everything arranged?"

  "Yes, everything is arranged." He raised his head, his face gloomy, and it was Zheng Fasen, one of the top martial artists in the northern Wulin.

  Since he followed Jiang Gongming to the Western camp, after a detailed discussion, no one knew what they were talking about, but when they left the secret room, Zheng Fasen declared his allegiance in front of everyone.

  Of course, the object of his loyalty was not Jiang Kung-ming, but the great leader of the Black Flag Army - Xu Haifeng.

  But his actions could hardly escape detection.

  Jiang Kongming let out a long sigh and said: "Liu Junshu is a talented individual, and as the former commander of the Huang Long Army's vanguard, he also has great potential."

  "Is Commander-in-Chief thinking about those 500,000 Yellow Dragon troops?" Zheng Fasen asked.

  He shook his head, and Jiang Kongming said: "The Yellow Dragon Army can't be eaten for the time being, so let them fight with the Xiongnu people to a two-loss situation. However...". The Grand General's gaze moved back to the courtyard, muttering to himself: "Liu Junshu's role is absolutely not just this point. If the little princess can't persuade him, it would be really too wasteful. Master has ordered that he must not be killed, so imprisoning him for ten or twenty years should be possible, right?"

  On the side, Zheng Fasen's power was profound. Although this sentence was soft, he heard it clearly and immediately flattered: "Being able to be recognized by General Meng is his good fortune accumulated from his previous life. If one does not know how to show respect, they will naturally receive punishment."

  With a faint smile, Jiang Kongming turned his head and looked at him, suddenly saying: "Good words are loved by everyone, I am no exception."

  Zheng Fasen hastily said: "Every sentence I speak comes from the heart, absolutely no flattery intended."

  Jiang Kongming gazed at him without saying a word, his eyes seeming to see through the deepest secret hidden in his heart.

  Zheng Fasen's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and he had a deep sense of fear towards this low-ranking military advisor Jiang. If possible, he really didn't want to face him again, but for the sake of future glory and wealth, he had no choice but to swallow his pride and work under him.

  "Are you flattering me, I don't care about that. What I want is for you to complete the tasks assigned by Mr. Jiang, that's enough." The faint voice faded away as the master walked further and further into the distance, until it disappeared completely.

  "Yes." He watched Jiang Gongming leave, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead with one hand. Suddenly, he was taken aback and didn't know when it happened that even the back of his shirt had been stained with a patch of water.

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