The Grand Secretary’s Pampered Wife

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S T E L L A R C L O U D

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O R A N G E S T A R

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Lady Zhang hadn’t expected to go into labor prematurely. While packing her belongings, she hadn’t thought to bring any clothes for the baby. As a result, Gu Jiao had no choice but to wrap the infant in a clean piece of clothing and then sling him against her chest with a strip of fabric, cradling him securely.

Tang Yueshan wanted to help share the burden, but with the baby being so newly born, he honestly didn’t dare lay a finger on him.

He was afraid that with his large, rough hands, he might accidentally snap one of the baby’s delicate little arms with the slightest misstep.

He strapped his large bow to his back, packed several dozen extra arrows into his quiver, and secured a long sword to his waist.

Gu Jiao’s weapon of choice was the silver spear that the little Black Impermanence had tossed her. While it wasn’t quite as suited to her hand as her own red-tasseled spear, it was still decently weighted and easy to wield.

Their chances of success on this mission were fifty-fifty at best. Taking a newborn baby along meant there was a real possibility he would be killed alongside them by the Jin troops once they ventured out.

But with a thousand lives trapped underground depending on them, they had no choice but to proceed.

“Are you sure you don’t want to take a few more people with you?” Shangguan Qing asked, concerned.

Gu Jiao replied calmly, “No need. Old Tang and I are enough. Too many people would only make it harder to stay hidden.”

Tang Yueshan agreed wholeheartedly. “That’s right. Besides, your manpower is already limited. It’s better to leave the rest to deal with the Jin troops.”

Shangguan Qing no longer insisted.

Just before they set out, Lady Zhang woke up. Gu Jiao handed her the baby so she could feed him one last time.

Once the child had fed, Lady Zhang, eyes brimming with tears, gave him back to Gu Jiao.

Shangguan Qing led the way, with two ghost soldiers bringing up the rear. The group advanced through the winding and twisting tunnels.

The deeper they went, the more amazed Tang Yueshan was by the ingenuity of the underground passageways. He couldn’t help but think, if they’d had such a tunnel system back when they were defending Yuegu City in the State of Zhao, they could have completely wiped out the State of Chen’s invading army!

“Ghost soldiers are few in number, but with these tunnels forming a labyrinth beneath the earth and being narrow and difficult to traverse, it’s impossible for twenty thousand troops to storm in all at once. They’d have to enter one by one—and that would make them easy targets to eliminate individually.” He murmured this to himself, gaining a bit more confidence in the odds of survival for Shangguan Qing and the villagers.

Of course, the Jin army wasn’t made of fools. Every squad they lost would help them learn the layout of one passage. The longer this dragged on, the worse it would get for the ghost soldiers.

“They really need to get the main army of the State of Yan here as soon as possible.”

Damn it!

He hadn’t even worried this much when he was fighting in the State of Zhao!

But so be it, everything for the sake of his godson.

“We’re here,” Shangguan Qing said as he came to a halt at the end of the passage. Holding up his oil lamp, he illuminated the earthen wall. “Behind this wall lies the path leading to the entrance of Ghost Mountain. Once you step through, this passage will be destroyed, and no one will ever be able to enter again. I’ll ask you one last time, are you sure about this? If you die at the entrance of Ghost Mountain, there’s nothing I can do to save you.”

“I know.” Gu Jiao said firmly.

The dim yellow light from Shangguan Qing’s lamp fell across Gu Jiao’s young, composed face. The red birthmark on her cheek bloomed like a demonic flower in the darkness.

Shangguan Qing said quietly, “We haven’t known each other long, but there’s something about your presence that feels strangely familiar to me.”

Because we’re family, silly Little Qing.

Gu Jiao’s expression turned serious. “Open the passage.”

I’ll get you out. I’ll take you to see your father, your mother, and your brother.

You’re the salvation of everyone. So, please, you must hang on, Xiao Qing.

……

Gu Jiao and Tang Yueshan emerged from the tunnel, and a faint sound of shifting sand rose from beneath their feet. The passage was being buried by mechanisms.

They moved behind a large tree. Just a few dozen steps ahead, and they would be out of Ghost Mountain. But the problem was, over a hundred Jin soldiers were stationed at that very spot.

A frontal assault was out of the question.

They weren’t riding Black Wind Cavalry horses this time, and if they were spotted, the Jin cavalry would catch them in no time.

Tang Yueshan gestured silently, signaling, “Let’s circle around from behind them.”

It was still before dawn, the surroundings pitch black. If they were cautious enough, it wasn’t entirely impossible to slip past unnoticed.

The only condition was, this little one mustn’t cry.

Gu Jiao glanced down at the sleeping child and gave a slight nod.

“Who goes there?!”

A Jin soldier suddenly turned and shouted.

“It’s just a wild rabbit.” One of the soldiers chuckled as he caught the intruding animal with practiced ease. “We’ll roast it later and have some rabbit meat.”

Gu Jiao and Tang Yueshan quietly slipped past the pair from behind, their movements light and silent as shadows.

The terrain of Ghost Mountain was high and steep, and the chill in the night air was sharp and penetrating. More than half of the Jin army had already settled down to rest in place, leaving only a dozen or so soldiers stationed around a bonfire at the entrance, simultaneously warming themselves and keeping watch.

No one noticed that, not far from them, two figures were moving stealthily past the edge of the woods.

Just as the two were about to step out of the forest and into the open, Gu Jiao suddenly halted mid-step, her body freezing in place.

What’s wrong?

Tang Yueshan shot her a questioning glance, asking silently with his eyes.

Gu Jiao replied through the same silent exchange: I think I just stepped on something.

Tang Yueshan opened his mouth to respond, but in the very next instant, he too stopped dead in his tracks, his body rigid.

He swallowed nervously and signaled back: I think I stepped on something too.

In unison, both of them slowly raised their heads. Above them, on the densely branched canopy overhead, they saw several rows of sharpened blades suspended ominously, each glinting coldly in the firelight, their lethal tips aimed straight down at them.

Just one wrong move. If either of them so much as shifted their footing, the mechanism would be triggered, and a deadly rain of blades would come slicing down from above.

This wasn’t any ordinary blade trap. The weapons were rigged with taut silk threads, designed to shoot downward with a force and speed greater than arrows. Even someone like An Hun wouldn’t be able to dodge in time.

They were done for. Absolutely doomed. If ever there was a textbook case of “the troops are ready but the general falls before the battle begins,” this was it.

Tang Yueshan: Is the Jin army really this terrifying?

Gu Jiao: …I think this is Shangguan Qing’s handiwork.

This trap was clearly meant to catch the Jin soldiers, but unfortunately, the soldiers hadn’t stepped on it. Instead, she and Tang Yueshan had landed squarely in its path.

Tang Yueshan: What do we do now? Just wait?

Gu Jiao: Wait for a baby to cry and give away our position, or wait for a patrol to wander by and expose us either way.

Tang Yueshan: “…”

“All right, I’m going to relieve myself.” One of the Jin soldiers stretched and got to his feet, rubbing his hands together and grumbling, “It’s freezing up here in the mountains.”

His comrade teased him, “Lazy folks always need to pee the most!”

“Anyone else coming?”

“What? You scared of ghosts?”

“You’re not?”

“Fine, fine, we’ll all go together!”

Now they were completely doomed. If all ten-plus soldiers came over at once, there was no way they could remain hidden.

Gu Jiao tightened her grip around the silver spear in her hand.

In that case, they would just have to fight their way out!

Tang Yueshan: Grab someone to use as a shield first.

Gu Jiao: Got it.

Raz P.ʼs Thoughts

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Description:

In the suspenseful supernatural novel “Records of Mortals,” Jiang Baiyan, once a solitary and impoverished youth, finds refuge in the Shi family of Chang’an due to his extraordinary bloodline. With his clear and captivating peach blossom eyes, this seemingly innocent young man conceals a fanatical and malevolent lunatic within. Destined to succumb to darkness amidst hardship and degradation, he becomes a harbinger of chaos.

When Shi Dai suddenly transmigrates, she takes on the role of the Shi family’s young lady, the one who subjects him to countless trials, eventually leading to her demise.

The twist? She never got to finish reading the novel.

From what she knew of the plot, Jiang Baiyan was just a silent, timid, and often bullied pitiable character.

***

Jiang Baiyan had never encountered someone like Shi Dai.

After he had slaughtered all the evil creatures in the garden, the blood-stained young man, exuding a murderous aura, approached her step by step, his lips curling into a malicious smile, ”Scared?”

Shi Dai responded, “You’re really amazing! I applaud you until I spin like a spiral and fly around the moon three hundred times! And also——you have dimples when you smile!”

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

—

After seeing her at a lantern festival with another man, Jiang Baiyan lowered his eyes, his fingers twirling her hair. He said in a mocking and sinister tone, ”The mansion in the western suburbs...if I hide you there, no one will find you, right?”

Shi Dai replied, ”Does it come with meals and lodging? Can I sleep in everyday? Oh, and your cooking is the best!”

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

—

Jiang Baiyan was supposed to dislike her, even hate her, but as their separation drew near, his eyes turned red and he grabbed her sleeve, pleading, ”Donʼt abandon me, alri—”

Shi Dai responded, ”Alright, alright, I’ll only have you. Mwah.”

Jiang Baiyan: ...?

He hasnʼt finished his lines yet though…