“Yes.” The officer cupped his hands in salute. “After they found some herbs, they lit a fire and started roasting a wild chicken.”
Chen Hong furrowed her brow and asked, “Any other abnormalities?”
“None found so far.” The officer shook his head. “But it seems they know Master Jian Yi.”
“What?” Chen Hong sat up abruptly.
Could it be that Feng Jiu’er had truly gotten Jian Yi to speak?
“Did Jian Yi say anything?” She was starting to regret letting Jian Yi go with them.
She had grown used to this man over these past days; unless it was absolutely necessary, she wouldn’t give him up.
“He didn’t.” The officer glanced up, then immediately lowered his head again. “Master Jian Yi paid them no attention at all.”
Hearing this, Chen Hong let out a breath of relief.
She stared at the officer, brow furrowing, and said coldly, “Do you look down on me?”
“I wouldn’t dare! I was only worried about whether Feng Jiu’er is truly treating you in good faith.” The officer dropped to his knees with a thud.
“General, I’m afraid many will have objections to a three-day ceasefire.”
The word had already been sent out, but whether the men outside would agree to it was not hard to imagine.
The enemy army was trapped — if they didn’t attack now, when would they?
The deputy general had never much liked the general to begin with, and now that the general was calling a three-day ceasefire for personal reasons, the deputy general was already furious enough to want to charge over.
Chen Hong let out a soft laugh, pulled a token from inside her robe, and tossed it out casually.
Seeing the token, the officer immediately rose and caught it with both hands.
“This — this is…” He stared at the token, eyes widening. “This is the Crown Prince’s token.”
The officer stumbled forward several steps and knelt before Chen Hong, offering the token back with both hands.
“Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince!”
Chen Hong unhurriedly took the token back and said in a low voice, “Tell them, this is the Crown Prince’s will.”
“Yes.” The officer bowed to accept the order.
“What are Feng Jiu’er’s people doing?” Chen Hong put the token away.
“Reporting to the general, the three hundred people in the forest move about occasionally, but nothing unusual has been found.” The officer replied in a low voice.
“According to the scouts, some people have also entered the mountains, but we haven’t been able to determine what they’re doing yet.”
“We’ve heard Feng Jiu’er has a great deal of gunpowder on hand, General. We can’t afford not to be careful.”
“Keep scouting, and make sure the information is accurate. Understood?” Chen Hong held a mirror in her hand, looking at the face reflected in it.
Sure enough, just as Feng Jiu’er had said, her face was now even uglier.
But after the intense pain, the long-standing numbness beneath the skin of her face had disappeared.
“Feng Jiu’er, you’d better not disappoint me,” Chen Hong said, touching the ruined flesh on her face, her eyes darkening.
“Otherwise, I will make you pay a hundred times over.”
Chen Hong’s manner turned icy to the extreme, so much so that even the man kneeling beside her couldn’t help but shiver.
The officer couldn’t fathom the Crown Prince’s thinking at all — why would he trust this woman, both hideous and vicious?
But the fact remained that Chen Hong had not only obtained the Gao family’s military tally, but also held the Crown Prince’s token.
“General.” The officer composed himself and raised his head. “If there are no further orders, I’ll go arrange the tasks now.”
“Go.” Chen Hong waved her hand. “For these three days, you must absolutely prevent Feng Jiu’er and her people from making contact with those inside.”
“If thirty thousand of you can’t even stop the footsteps of three hundred people, there’s no point in keeping you around — understood?”
“Un-understood.” The officer struggled to his feet and walked off, trembling slightly.
In the forest, the aroma of roasted chicken was tempting.
Feng Jiu’er tore off a chicken leg and looked at the man wearing the cold, expressionless mask.
“Handsome, want one?”