The Female Lead is Quite Unusual - Episode 61

General Chang was a commander deeply trusted by Gu Ze, possessing extensive combat experience and practically serving as Gu Ze’s mentor in military affairs.

 

Since this was the first war after his ascension to the throne, Gu Ze did not dare underestimate the enemy and dispatched General Chang to lead the troops.

 

The opposing commander was a young girl even younger than him. Gu Ze had assumed that sending General Chang was already giving her too much credit and expected news of victory soon. It never crossed his mind that his side would lose.

 

Thus, when the news of defeat reached him, Gu Ze thought he must have misheard.

 

“What did you say?” Gu Ze widened his eyes in disbelief and demanded.

 

The young eunuch trembled and repeated the message.

 

Gu Ze’s breathing immediately grew heavy, his face flushed crimson, and his once handsome features twisted into a vicious scowl. He kicked the eunuch aside, grabbed his cloak, and stormed out.

 

The young eunuch, struck in the chest, turned deathly pale but dared not make a sound, only trembling as he knelt on the ground.

 

“Aze, this is just an accident.” Huang Fu, her face full of worry, hurried after Gu Ze.

 

Although Lin Wan had long sensed that Gu Ze was not as benevolent as the rumors suggested, witnessing his violent outburst and his venting of anger on the eunuch still sent chills down her spine.

 

The eunuchs and maids around them remained expressionless, seemingly accustomed to such scenes and finding nothing unusual about it.

 

Lin Wan took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and stepped forward to help the pale, fallen eunuch to his feet.

 

She knew she ought to remain indifferent. Only then could she survive in the depths of the palace. But if one lived with a cold and unfeeling heart, what difference was there from a stone?

 

As Lin Wan helped the eunuch up, he whispered his thanks. Just as she was about to step back, he suddenly grasped her hand and slipped something into her palm.

 

Startled, Lin Wan lowered her head.

 

Not long after, Huang Fu returned. Seeing Lin Wan with her head bowed, seemingly distracted, Huang Fu assumed she was upset about Gu Ze’s sudden departure. A flicker of contempt crossed her eyes, but she comforted her gently, “Don’t be sad. His Majesty is merely anxious about the war and did not mean to neglect you.”

 

Her fingers, adorned with red nail polish, lightly patted Lin Wan’s arm before she returned to her seat. “Don’t worry. When the time is right, I will invite His Majesty to have a long talk with you.”

 

“I dare not presume. Matters of the court are more important,” Lin Wan replied softly, her head still lowered, wishing fervently that the two would forget about her entirely.

 

Huang Fu, however, was pleased with Lin Wan’s seemingly timid and shy demeanor. She massaged her temples.

 

Her time in this world was running out, yet the luck points she had collected from Gu Ze still fell short of the required “15%.” She had no choice but to double her efforts to please Gu Ze and cater to his whims.

 

Since Gu Ze lacked funds, she had ingratiated herself with this nouveau riche’s daughter, creating opportunities for her to interact with Gu Ze. Judging by how easily manipulated she seemed, it wouldn’t be long before she fell hopelessly in love with Gu Ze and persuaded her father to donate money to the national treasury.

 

Now that Gu Ze was anxious about the war, Huang Fu needed to think of something else to deepen his affection and extract more luck points.

 

Huang Fu coughed lightly twice, and one of her maids stepped forward, smiling as she said, “The Royal Consort is feeling unwell. Perhaps you could visit another day, Miss.”

 

Lin Wan obediently took her leave and returned to her room before daring to unfold the sweat-dampened note clutched in her palm.

 

The handwriting on the note was all too familiar to Lin Wan.

 

“Wanwan, wait for me for two months.”

 

Lin Wan’s eyes widened, and her vision went dark.

 

What did Sheng Qian mean by this?

 

How could she be so bold as to bribe someone in the palace to smuggle a message in?

 

Lin Wan truly regretted not having told Sheng Qian about her background. If Sheng Qian were to be exposed before Huang Fu, the consequences would be unimaginable.

 

Lin Wan felt both angry and anxious. If Sheng Qian were in front of her, she would have loved to grab her by the ear and have a serious talk with this troublesome girl.

 

But Sheng Qian was far outside the palace, and Lin Wan had no idea what she was scheming, nor could she contact her.

 

Filled with unease, Lin Wan could only pay extra attention to the news from the imperial court.

 

Gu Ze was the male lead of this world, protected by the world’s consciousness, and his army was not weak. Logically, his defeat should have been just a one-time mishap.

 

Yet, contrary to Lin Wan’s expectations, the situation in the imperial court grew increasingly dire.

 

The young chieftain of the Leyi tribe was a prodigious talent. Despite leading troops for the first time, she seemed divinely aided, winning battle after battle and advancing all the way to the outskirts of the capital.

 

It was said that in recent battles, the young chieftain had made a rare appearance.

 

But she wore a fearsome silver mask, concealing her features. All that was known was that she possessed exceptional martial prowess, sweeping across the battlefield as if it were an empty plain.

 

In stark contrast, Gu Ze was growing increasingly frantic.

 

During this time, Gu Ze had taken his anger out on others, beating several palace maids and eunuchs to death. The palace was enveloped in a terrified silence, with no one daring to approach him except for Huang Fu. No matter how foul Gu Ze’s mood, she would still approach him with a smile.

 

Once, Lin Wan caught sight of the slap mark on Huang Fu’s face and the bruises visible on her neck. She couldn’t help but marvel inwardly: Perhaps Huang Fu was suffering from brain-dead-level infatuation when it came to Gu Ze. How else could she endure his repeated abuse?

 

At the same time, the fortune value above Huang Fu’s head kept fluctuating, sometimes rising to “14%” and other times dropping to “12%.”

 

Lin Wan speculated that Huang Fu’s fortune value was tied to Gu Ze’s affection for her. Perhaps even the world’s consciousness couldn’t stand Gu Ze’s violent behavior and compensated Huang Fu with fortune points for the beatings she endured.

 

Thus, aside from gathering news from outside, Lin Wan spent her days secluded in her room, silently wishing for the violent man and the lovestruck fool to remain locked together forever. Exhausted, Huang Fu was too busy placating Gu Ze to spare a thought for Lin Wan, allowing Lin Wan a period of peace.

 

But as time passed, Lin Wan grew increasingly worried about Sheng Qian that note clearly indicated she was secretly plotting something.

 

With the outside world in such chaos, and Sheng Qian being so delicate and alluring, Lin Wan genuinely feared that something might happen to her.

 

Time flew by, and over a month passed without any further news from Sheng Qian. Meanwhile, Huang Fu was beginning to crack.

 

Spending every day with a violent man like Gu Ze, as the war grew increasingly desperate, his emotions spiraled further out of control.

 

At first, after hitting her, he would still pull her close to coax her, but later he simply resorted to kicking and punching. With the national treasury depleted and military resources increasingly strained, Gu Ze grew more violent by the day. She devoted herself to playing the role of the devoted, unwavering woman, yet the fortune points Gu Ze gave her always fell just short of the required amount.

 

What could she do to extract a little more fortune from Gu Ze?

 

After nearly being strangled to death by Gu Ze, Huang Fu inadvertently caught sight of the palace maid delivering meals to Lin Wan.

 

Huang Fu pursed her lips.

 

That daughter of the upstart Lin Wan had been keeping to herself these days, likely frightened by Gu Ze’s true nature.

 

Lin Wan had a face that wasn’t unattractive and seemed timid and fearful, probably raised under the outdated and foolish tradition of “marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog” of this era.

 

If Gu Ze took her body, and Huang Fu instilled in her the idea that they were bound together in prosperity and adversity, Lin Wan would likely fall under her control and offer strategies to her family.

 

Moreover, by sending Lin Wan over, there would be another target for Gu Ze to torment, and she herself could suffer a little less.

 

However, with Gu Ze having executed so many people recently, everyone was terrified, so Lin Wan probably wouldn’t willingly serve him.

 

But Lin Wan was currently in her palace, so this wasn’t an insurmountable problem.

 

Huang Fu waved her hand, and the maid delivering the meal was immediately brought before her.

 

That evening, dinner arrived later than usual, and there was only a bowl of chicken soup.

 

The old woman delivering the meal had been replaced by another, who wore an ingratiating smile: “With the war intensifying and the treasury empty, His Majesty has cut back on the harem’s expenses. We hope you’ll bear with it, young mistress.”

 

Lin Wan took a sip and found the taste of the chicken soup unusually strange. Frowning, she set the bowl down after just one sip.

 

But before long, she began to feel something was wrong.

 

Her body grew weak and limp, devoid of strength, yet her mind remained perfectly clear.

 

Damn it! She’d been drugged!

 

Slumped in her chair, she wanted to resist but couldn’t muster any strength. She could only watch helplessly as Huang Fu pushed the door open with a smile, directing the old women to wash and dress her up.

 

“Dear sister, you haven’t seen His Majesty all these days. You must be anxious. I’ve decided to give you a helping hand.”

 

The old women applied makeup to Lin Wan and dressed her in an extremely revealing gauze gown, so thin it was almost transparent and hid nothing. Huang Fu looked on with great satisfaction, completely ignoring Lin Wan’s furious gaze. Sighing, she stroked Lin Wan’s cheek: “With a face like yours, even I feel pity for you, let alone His Majesty.”

 

With that, Huang Fu had Lin Wan wrapped in a quilt and carried to Gu Ze’s bedchamber.

 

For the first time, Lin Wan felt such intense hatred for someone.

 

But she knew that anger was useless now. It would only cloud her judgment. So, she took several deep breaths, striving to calm her emotions.

 

The old women placed her on the bed in the chamber but did not cover her with the quilt. They lit several red candles, burned a cloyingly sweet incense in the censer, and partially drew the bed curtains.

 

After setting up the suggestive scene, the old women closed the door and withdrew.

 

Lin Wan kept her eyes closed the entire time.

 

Others assumed she was unwilling to face this humiliating situation and paid her no further attention.

 

No one noticed, however, that the fingers at her side twitched slightly.

 

She did feel deeply humiliated, but at that moment, saving herself was what mattered most.

 

She only took a small sip of the chicken soup, and after being washed, she clearly felt the dizziness in her head lessen, but she didn’t show it.

 

It wasn’t until the maids retreated that Lin Wan opened her eyes, gritted her teeth, and began to steadily gather her strength.

 

From one finger, to several fingers, to one hand.

 

The water clock dripped continuously, drop by drop.

 

She had no idea how much time had passed, and Lin Wan grew increasingly anxious.

 

A commotion arose outside again. It seemed a thief had entered the palace. Lin Wan prayed silently that the thief would keep causing trouble a little longer, preferably lasting through the night, so Gu Ze wouldn’t have time to return to the bedchamber.

 

But things didn’t go as she hoped.

 

The noise gradually died down.

 

Not long after, the door creaked open, and someone stepped inside, approaching the bed step by step.

 

Lin Wan closed her eyes and clenched her teeth.

 

She knew she should endure it not to mention she had only regained the use of one hand, even if she had recovered all her strength, she was no match for Gu Ze, a man who had trained in martial arts for years.

 

Yet, when she felt the person stop by the bedside and seemed to lean down, Lin Wan couldn’t hold back. With great effort, she raised the hand that had regained its strength and swung it toward the person’s face.

 

As expected, her weak hand was effortlessly restrained.

 

Furious, she opened her eyes, but instead of meeting Gu Ze’s sinister face, she was met with a silver mask.

 

?!

 

The red candles flickered brightly, and the eyes behind the mask seemed even more intense than the candlelight.

 

Lin Wan froze, her first thought turning to that mysterious young clan leader.

 

Had Gu Ze been defeated?

 

Instantly, Lin Wan breathed a sigh of relief. This clan leader was a woman. Surely, she wouldn’t do anything to her.

 

Still, being seen in such a state by an outsider was somewhat embarrassing.

 

“Could you let me go?” Lin Wan’s cheeks burned fiercely. Gathering her strength, she spoke softly, trying to negotiate, “I’m not one of Gu Ze’s wives or concubines. I was drugged, which is why I’m in this state.”

 

The girl remained silent for a long time.

 

Lin Wan’s eyes gradually widened; being stared at by the girl and smelling the blood on her should have been frightening, yet Lin Wan felt increasingly strange.

 

This girl seemed somewhat like her own delicate and pitiable.

 

“Has sister recognized me?”

 

Accompanied by a light laugh, a familiar voice rang out.

 

Meeting Lin Wan’s shocked gaze, Sheng Qian removed the mask, her expression as innocent and straightforward as ever. Smiling brightly, she looked at Lin Wan, her blood-stained fingers gently stroking Lin Wan’s astonished cheek.

 

“They shouldn’t have taken you, sister.”