They returned late last night, so Aunt Lu didn’t wake them up in the morning. Qin Zheng woke up close to noon.

Half-opening her eyes, she instinctively closed them again in response to the strong light.

After a moment, when she opened them again, she found Chu Chengji still lying beside her.

However, she was sprawled over him like an octopus.

His black hair was slightly disheveled, spread out over the pillow.

His complexion was pale, and his long eyelashes lightly brushed against his cheeks, lacking the coldness he usually exhibited.

Instead, he seemed somewhat… obedient?

With one hand stretched across his chest, she could distinctly feel the rise and fall of his breathing beneath her palm.

Qin Zheng’s gaze moved down from his face to his neck and chest.

His collar was loose, revealing a small patch of porcelain-white chest.

His Adam’s apple was annoyingly sexy, as if enticing someone to kiss or nibble it.

As she reached out her hand, about to touch his Adam’s apple, she hesitated, afraid of waking him up.

Carefully, she withdrew her foot that was resting on him and quietly got out of bed.

As the door closed, Chu Chengji, who had been “sleeping” in bed, opened his eyes.

The throat is the most vulnerable part of the human body.

He had awakened almost the moment Qin Zheng raised her hand, but he remained still, wanting to know what she was up to.

Was she trying to touch him just now?

After finishing her morning routine, Qin Zheng returned to the room to find that Chu Chengji was already awake.

“Did you wake up, Husband? Aunt Lu left some food on the stove, and it’s still warm. You can eat after you finish washing up.”

As she went to fetch a comb, she noticed a large bronze mirror placed nearby and asked in surprise, “When did we get a bronze mirror?”

“We bought it earlier,” Chu Chengji replied.

The bronze mirror had been bought on the same day they bought hairpins.

Qin Zheng had always had to use a basin of water outside to comb her hair, so having a bronze mirror would make things much clearer.

With the noon sunlight streaming into the room, Qin Zheng held the bronze mirror and checked her reflection from different angles.

Satisfied with what she saw, she smiled and said, “Thank you, Your Highness.”

She placed the bronze mirror on the table and was about to use a wooden hairpin to tie her hair when Chu Chengji appeared behind her.

He casually took the comb from her hand and said, “I found a hairpin for you.”

Although he had only helped Qin Zheng tie her hair once, he was much more skilled than her.

After swirling her long hair around his fingers a few times, he used a jade hairpin to secure it in place.

As Qin Zheng watched him fasten the hairpin in her hair, she couldn’t help but feel a subtle change in Chu Chengji’s demeanor.

Why did he suddenly find a jade hairpin for her?

Could it be that Lin Zhao had told him about the incident where Shen Yanzhi forced her to insert that sheep-fat jade hairpin?

She had no joy in her eyes, and Chu Chengji’s gaze slightly narrowed. “Don’t like it?”

Qin Zheng hurriedly shook her head. “No, I like it.”

Seeing that Chu Chengji didn’t seem too happy, Qin Zheng feared he might mind that incident.

She carefully suggested, “The jade hairpin Shen Yanzhi gave me, I’ve only worn it once. In the future, I’ll wear the hairpins you give me every day. Is that okay?”

Her tone was slightly coquettish, almost unconsciously so.

However, something seemed to be amiss.

After Qin Zheng said this, Chu Chengji’s expression turned colder.

His expression didn’t improve even during the meal.

When he was angry, he didn’t ignore people or have trouble communicating.

It was just the low pressure emanating from him that made it evident to anyone that he was in a bad mood.

Wang Biao hurriedly came to report that Shen Yanzhi had gathered troops at the foot of the mountain, preparing to attack the stronghold.

Seeing the look in Chu Chengji’s eyes, his voice unconsciously lowered as he continued speaking.

Chu Chengji calmly put down his chopsticks. “Assemble the troops from various mountain peaks and follow me to the dam caves.”

He said this calmly, but it gave people a sense of oppression, as if behind the clear sky lay a hidden storm brewing.

The Two Dams Mountain occupied a natural stronghold, so Qin Zheng wasn’t worried that Shen Yanzhi would be able to capture it easily.

After Chu Chengji left with his men for the dam caves, she went to find Lin Zhao.

Lin Zhao’s shoulder injury hadn’t fully healed yet, and Lin Yao had also gone to the dam caves, leaving only Xique at home to take care of her.

Seeing Qin Zheng, Lin Zhao was naturally delighted and asked about the injury on her shoulder.

Qin Zheng only said it was nothing. Then, feeling helpless, she asked, “Azhou, how much did you tell my husband about what happened at the villa last night?”

After receiving a confirmation from Lin Zhao, she would have a clearer idea of how to face Chu Chengji later.

However, to her surprise, Lin Zhao was puzzled. “What happened at the villa? I didn’t tell Your Highness anything about it.”

She reassured Qin Zheng, “I know what to say and what not to say.”

Qin Zheng’s heart sank. “My husband said you told him that I had an injury on my back.”

Lin Zhao nodded. “At the time, you were sleeping restlessly on the boat, and I thought I might have pressed on the injured area on your back. So, I reminded your husband.”

She said in confusion, “Did I say something wrong to make your husband misunderstand?”

Qin Zheng covered her face with one hand. “It’s me who misunderstood him.”

Now she knew how it felt to dig a pit for herself and then fall into it.

Chu Chengji didn’t know anything about what happened at the villa, and yet she didn’t confess anything to him.

The fact that he prepared a hairpin for her clearly wasn’t out of spite for Shen Yanzhi’s gift.

Recalling the words she had said to him before, Qin Zheng felt extremely uncomfortable.

She had wasted his sincere intentions.

Seeing Qin Zheng looking so disheartened, Lin Zhao comforted her, “There’s an old saying that goes, ‘Husbands and wives often argue at the head of the bed but make up at the foot.’ No matter what the misunderstanding is, Sister Zheng, you just need to make it up to your husband.”

She seemed to remember something and quickly pulled out a small box from under the bed.

Opening it, she revealed a collection of popular phrasebooks from the town below.

Lin Zhao picked out two books, flipped to a page, and showed them to Qin Zheng, her eyes shining. “It’s said that men are most susceptible to softening their hearts in bed. Sister Zheng, you can learn from this phrasebook.”

That page happened to be about the protagonist’s playful antics, and every “good brother” made Qin Zheng’s skin crawl with goosebumps.

She quickly closed the book. “…I’ll find a chance to explain it to him myself.”

The dam caves were crowded with people, including those from Qiyun Stronghold and other mountain strongholds within Qingzhou’s jurisdiction.

In the river below, dozens of official warships were anchored.

From the mountainside, the decks of the warships looked like a swarm of ants.

The soldiers on the decks beat their war drums, creating a deafening sound, displaying their imposing momentum.

Lin Yao, who had served at Qiyun Stronghold for many years, had never encountered such a large-scale siege before.

Seeing this, he couldn’t help feeling bitter.

He glanced at Chu Chengji, who remained unperturbed, seemingly not taking the government’s forces seriously at all.

He couldn’t help but ask, “Strategist, are we just going to let them beat their drums at the foot of the mountain?”

Seeing this situation, the leaders of various mountain strongholds were also anxious.

They shouted at Lin Yao, “Lin Master, when you led everyone to Two Dams Mountain, you said the government’s troops would withdraw in a few days.

Now, the brothers from my stronghold are trapped in your Two Dams Mountain. We can’t go down the mountain, and the food we brought won’t last long. You have to give us an explanation!”

“Yeah! You have to give us an explanation!”

The leaders of other strongholds echoed.

Lin Yao sneered, “Does Master Ma think that I, Lin, have inconvenienced you by letting you take refuge at our Mountain? When Xiakou Stronghold was wiped out by the government a few days ago, why didn’t Master Ma feel aggrieved coming to Qiyun Stronghold? What explanation do you want from Qiyun Stronghold?”

Lin Yao’s gaze swept over the leaders of the various strongholds without reservation.

He was unapologetic as he continued, “When you agreed to come to Two Dams Mountain back then, what were the conditions?

It was for you to join forces to deal with the government and save my sister! Did you contribute to saving my sister?

You came to Two Dams Mountain to escape the government’s purge, and now you have the nerve to ask me for an explanation? Now get the hell off my mountain!”

The people from Qiyun Stronghold all looked at the people from other strongholds with unfriendly expressions. They not only carried sophisticated weapons but also wore chain armor.

In contrast, the people from other strongholds seemed like a motley crew.

The leaders who were shouting just now were purely scared by the imposing manner of the government’s siege.

Coupled with the fact that they didn’t have their own farmland like Qiyun Stronghold did, and the food they brought couldn’t last long, they were causing trouble because they wanted Lin Yao to provide them with some food.

After being scolded by Lin Yao so mercilessly, they realized their mistake.

They had also seen the scene of Qiyun Stronghold training soldiers.

Their arrogance vanished, and they apologized with smiles.

“Master Lin, please calm down. Master Ma is just hot-headed and doesn’t speak well. Everyone is worried that the government will not easily withdraw its troops with such a grand display. Two Dams Mountain is impregnable, but we don’t have much food…”

The sound of drums from below surged like waves, resonating through the mountain rocks on both sides.

The powerful sound made people’s hearts tremble.

In the midst of the drumming, Chu Chengji spoke slowly, “Qiyun Stronghold is willing to take action. If you are willing to submit to Qiyun Stronghold, you will surely not lack food in the stronghold. Weapons, armor, and military pay will also be distributed.”

His voice was not loud, but after he said these words, the entire dam cave fell silent.

All the bandits were stunned.

They were used to making a living by robbing and committing heinous crimes.

If they were to receive military pay in the future, it would certainly be better than being bandits.

After all, as bandits, the good things they robbed were all shared with their superiors.

The little thugs below were content with just one meal.

Many people from the lower ranks of various strongholds secretly looked at the people from Qiyun Stronghold.

They were indeed wearing chain armor and holding weapons that only soldiers had.

They looked majestic, and for a moment, some of them were tempted.

The leaders of the various mountain strongholds had rather unpleasant expressions.

After whispering and discussing for a while, they said, “Allow us to go back and consider.”

Under normal circumstances, they would definitely refuse outright.

After all, who would give up their manpower and resources without gaining any benefits? But now, being under someone else’s control and facing the problem of food shortage, they had no room to maneuver.

Compared to Lin Yao, who looked fierce, Chu Chengji seemed more approachable.

Unfortunately, his words were far from pleasing:

“All right. Brothers from various mountain strongholds who are willing to come to Qiyun Stronghold can go to the gate of Qiyun Stronghold today to register with their names and origins.

Once you’re on the roster, you will be considered a member of Qiyun Stronghold. If anyone troubles you, Qiyun Stronghold will do its best to help you seek justice. Leaders of various strongholds…

please consider carefully. The lord of the stronghold will grant military ranks based on the manpower you have.”

The leaders of the various mountain strongholds looked even more unpleasant. This was an obvious threat.

By offering such favorable conditions, it was certain that the small fries under their command would want to join Qiyun Stronghold.

When most of their men left, even if they wanted to join Qiyun Stronghold later, they wouldn’t get much in return.

One leader from a mountain stronghold gritted his teeth and said to Chu Chengji, “The strategist of your stronghold is indeed cunning!”

The soldiers at the foot of the mountain seemed to have changed shifts in cursing.

Their voices became louder and more vulgar.

Ignoring the leader, Chu Chengji instructed Wang Biao, “Use explosives to blast the opposite mountain rock.”

“Yes, sir!” Wang Biao personally went to command a few men from Qiyun Stronghold to throw explosive bombs and adjust the range of the catapults.

Most of the people from other strongholds sneered at this.

With a mountain wall dozens of feet high, the soldiers couldn’t use catapults to throw boulders and explosives to attack them.

When they used catapults on the mountain to throw rocks, the attack area was too small.

If they threw explosive bombs, they wouldn’t even reach the river surface before exploding, so they couldn’t harm the soldiers on the warships.

Throwing explosives downward was simply a waste of resources.

After Wang Biao lit the explosive bombs, with a loud bang, the catapult launched the bombs to the opposite mountain wall, directly blasting a section of it.

The flying debris smashed onto the warships below, creating holes in them.

The once arrogant soldiers hurriedly scattered the ships, trying to avoid the falling rocks.

One ship with a huge hole sank into the water, and the soldiers on board abandoned ship and fled.

For a moment, many soldiers jumped into the river, like dumplings.

The people from Qiyun Stronghold at the dam mouth laughed heartily as they watched the battle below.

Chu Chengji’s tone was cold, “Continue.”

Wang Biao commanded the people from Qiyun Stronghold to adjust the position and range of the catapults.

After another loud bang, a gap was blasted into the opposite mountain wall again.

The surviving soldiers once again fled in their ships, trying to escape the falling rocks.

Shen Yanzhi was supervising the battle on an official ship.

The ship he was on was closer to Two Dams Mountain, so it wasn’t affected by the falling rocks from the opposite mountain wall.

However, the other side had caused chaos for him without using a single soldier.

Shen Yanzhi’s face was gloomy. “Send my orders. All warships are to line up along the mountain wall of Two Dams Mountain and not approach the opposite mountain wall.”

The order was quickly conveyed by the flag officer, and the surviving warships regrouped.

Chu Chengji had no intention of completely repelling the government forces using this method.

He just wanted to dampen their morale and intimidate the leaders of the various mountain strongholds.

After proposing to surrender to the Qi Yun stronghold, there was no way they wouldn’t have evil intentions.

They would pretend to submit on the surface but secretly plot to replace the Qi Yun stronghold.

By using the weapons unique to the military, they would engage in a battle to make it clear to them the gap between themselves and the Qi Yun stronghold.

This would save them from a lot of unnecessary trouble.

The war drums stopped rumbling down the mountain, and the shouts of abuse quieted down.

The leaders of the major mountain strongholds, who had previously sneered, now had mixed expressions of anger and embarrassment on their faces.

The people of Qi Yun stronghold stood a bit taller, with an air of confidence on their faces, almost looking down their noses at the people from other strongholds.

Lin Yao timely spoke up, “I am the strategist of Qi Yun stronghold, and indeed, my strategies are quite effective.”

He said this to the leader of the stronghold who had mocked Chu Chengzhi earlier.

The leader’s heart trembled, not daring to meet Lin Yao’s gaze.

The other leaders of the strongholds also remained silent.

Although Chu Chengzhi had told Lin Yao earlier about his plan to gather the people from various strongholds to Mount Liang, and although they could clearly feel that they were halfway to success, Lin Yao’s heart still pounded wildly in his chest.

He maintained his composure and said, “The world is not yet settled. It depends on whether you all have the courage to take a risk. After all, the one who captured Bianjing was originally just a nobody from Qi County, right?”

These words made the leaders of the strongholds, who had been hesitant, start to consider.

They had lived their lives as bandits. When faced with such a large-scale suppression by the government, they would either die or have their forces scattered and start over, fighting with nearby strongholds.

If they could achieve success like Li Xin, they too could become officials in the future.

They would have money, power, and women.

What wouldn’t be better than being bandits?

Immediately, one leader of a stronghold threw down his knife and said, “I’m joining Qi Yun stronghold. When I become successful in the future, I’ll take ten or eight wives!”

A burly figure pushed through the crowd and said, “I became a bandit on the mountain, and my mother never acknowledged me until she died. When I become an official, I’ll go to her grave and burn incense for her!”

Power, wealth, women, and fame—weren’t these the things they had been seeking all their lives but could hardly obtain?

Now there was such an opportunity right in front of them.

With the government troops besieging from below and insufficient food supplies on the mountain, it was better to join Qi Yun stronghold.

Suddenly, most of the leaders of the strongholds found it easy to join Qi Yun stronghold.

The few stubborn ones looked around, seeing that the situation was lost. In the end, with a sigh of regret, they also joined Qi Yun stronghold.

The government couldn’t attack them, and as long as they held the stronghold, nothing would happen.

Only the people of Qi Yun stronghold lived in the village; the people from other strongholds were temporarily living in tents outside the village.

The leaders of the strongholds went back to tally the registries and the current food and military supplies.

Lin Yao led Chu Chengzhi and a dozen or so other leaders back to the stronghold for a meeting.

As soon as they returned to the stronghold, Lin Yao couldn’t conceal his worries: “Brother Chu, it’s a good thing to have recruited all the water bandits in Qingzhou, but during the heyday of Qi Yun stronghold, there were only two or three hundred people. Now suddenly, we have three to five thousand people. Every household in the stronghold has brought out their food, but it’s not enough to feed so many mouths!”

Chu Chengzhi replied, “Grain and fodder have already been bought.”

Lin Yao was puzzled, “Where do we have so much money to buy grain and fodder…”

As he spoke halfway, Lin Yao suddenly stopped, his expression filled with suspicion, “Brother Chu, earlier you had people transport the silk and satin looted here to buy grain in Wu County. Did you actually buy grain there? Did you foresee this situation, Strategist Cheng?”