Chapter 112: You Are a Madwoman

Dai Yuheng caught a glimpse of the bandage on her right palm. Smiling faintly, he took her wrist into his own palm. She shivered the moment his skin touched hers, goosebumps rising all over her body. Did Dai Yuheng think he could seduce her with his good looks?

Despite her inner curses, she couldn't help but admire how incredibly handsome this bitter, vengeful enemy was. As she oscillated between resentment and admiration, she saw his long eyelashes flutter as his gaze shifted from her wound to her eyes.

"Yinghuo, a sorcerer who has only ever kept company with insects and scorpions, has had a change of heart after spending just a few days with you, Commander. Not only did he refrain from harming you, but he even surrendered the State Policy Pearl. You truly have a way of making me look at you with new eyes," he said softly, his smile light and detached.

Kaiming struggled to pull away, but he tightened his grip on her injured hand. The wound, which had been on the verge of healing, immediately tore open, and her face drained of color. Did Dai Yuheng take pleasure in torturing her?

"You bastard—"

"Xiao Bi of the Eastern Palace, Qingyun of the Southern Palace—and let us not forget Ji, who has followed me for years!" Dai Yuheng did not give her a chance to speak. His grip grew firmer, his gaze increasingly sinister. "What kind of tricks have you used to make so many men willing to die for you? You woman!"

Blood seeped through the gauze, instantly staining the bandage red. Gritting her teeth, she clenched her left fist and swung it violently at his temple.

Dai Yuheng parried the blow without haste, pinning her left hand to the table. He looked at her coldly and said, "If it weren't for the fact that you are still of some use regarding the State Policy Pearl, I wouldn't have spared you this time! Listen well: the credit for this campaign will be attributed to you, and I will have the Emperor of Tianjue grant you a title. However, you must help me collect the pearls from the other three palaces! You will do exactly as I say. Do you understand?"

Pale-faced, she stammered, "It hurts... I can't think clearly. Let me go first!"

Dai Yuheng released her injured hand, but she suddenly turned her fist, gripping her own wounded hand and striking him recklessly.

Dai Yuheng did not dodge or parry; he took the blow to his chest head-on. Because the wound had reopened, the force of her punch was greatly diminished, and she drew back, gasping in pain.

"Hmph. Crafty woman!" He grabbed her chin, forced her head up to meet his angry gaze, and said coldly, "I haven't settled the score for that slap from last time, and now you've punched me. I am keeping a tally! Does a wildcat like you taste very different from other women? Is that what attracts those men?"

He yanked her hand, which was resting on the table, forward, pulling her toward him. She instinctively braced herself, and Dai Yuheng’s face was suddenly inches from her own.

She realized with horror that his face was too close; she could clearly see his pearl-colored lips slightly parted, and every texture of his lip was visible.

"I still remember the first time I saw Commander Kaiming, on that filthy, muddy country road. You were fighting with a village woman, your hair was torn, your clothes were ripped, and you were staring at my palanquin with wide, naked eyes. I thought to myself then, how could such a madwoman exist..."

Kaiming remembered it too. The scoff from inside the palanquin had filled her with an inexplicable sense of shame. It had been Dai Yuheng all along.

"I never imagined then that I would eventually be so inextricably entangled with this madwoman, nor that one day I would be sitting in the same military tent, discussing some nonsensical affairs of state..."

Kaiming glared in irritation. Was Dai Yuheng not clearly trying to humiliate her?

"What kind of woman are you, exactly?" He applied pressure to her chin, nearly forcing her into a kiss. She quickly steadied herself, feeling an intense surge of indignation.

Suddenly, the tent fabric rustled. Several loud footsteps stopped abruptly at the entrance, as if the newcomers were confused by the scene before them.

Dai Yuheng ceased his insolent behavior. Kaiming looked toward the entrance, grateful for the interruption. The first person she saw was Gouzi, his face sharp and eyes small, holding a tray of steaming food. His eyes were wide with shock as he stared at them.

Her gaze shifted to the young man beside Gouzi, whose thick brows were tightly knitted and whose bright, large eyes were flickering with an unidentifiable fire as he looked back and forth between them.

"Gouzi! Chang Geng!" she cried out excitedly. Their arrival was perfect; they were her saviors!

Gouzi’s mouth hung open as he stammered, "Com-Commander, we thought you might be hungry, so, so we..."

Dai Yuheng released her, stood up with composure, and turned to face them. A faint smile played on his lips as he walked toward the exit.

Only then did Kaiming feel the sharp, throbbing pain in her palm, with fresh blood dripping from the gauze onto the ground. She frowned and groaned, "Ouch!"

Chang Geng noticed her distress, his gaze turning fierce as he looked at Dai Yuheng. "What happened?"

Dai Yuheng maintained his gentle, spring-breeze smile. "Nothing, just sharing a few words with the Commander." Without even glancing at him, he stepped toward the tent flap.

"Dai Yuheng!" Kaiming shouted from behind him. He paused and tilted his head slightly.

"You keep asking me why so many people are willing to help me. I'll tell you now, so listen well!" she said through gritted teeth. "It is sincerity! You offer sincerity, and people reciprocate with their hearts! It is absolutely not the filthy behavior you describe!"

Dai Yuheng’s expression remained unchanged. He flicked his long lashes, turned, and exited the tent.

Chang Geng strode over to her and grabbed her wrist. "What happened? Did the wound reopen?"

"Compared to the humiliation I've suffered, this little wound is nothing!" She was seething. That dog Dai Yuheng! To think he would accuse her of using tricks to seduce men, to think he would ask if she tasted different, to think he would call her a madwoman—that bastard! She would absolutely, absolutely not let him off lightly.

As he strode out of the camp, Dai Yuheng’s face was filled with a mocking smile. Reciprocating with hearts? How childish! Did he really believe that was the reason Yinghuo was willing to hand over the State Policy Pearl, a treasure he held dear? Or perhaps there was another motive?

A thought suddenly occurred to Dai Yuheng, and he smiled. Perhaps Yinghuo was smarter than he had imagined; wasn't it more valuable to trade a pearl for the lives of the entire Northern Palace? But what Yinghuo could never have guessed was that he, Dai Yuheng, wanted a unified nation, not just the paltry Northern Palace. With the pearl, the Northern Palace was only a matter of time. For now, he would let them be.

The following events proceeded according to protocol. Dai Yuheng reported the situation to the Central Palace, and the Emperor of Tianjue issued an edict ordering their triumphant return.

Once the military supplies were packed, thousands of soldiers marched back in a grand procession. Upon entering the Central Palace, they were welcomed by the jubilant cheers of the populace as victory songs played.

Beneath the great banner emblazoned with the character for "Commander," Kaiming wore a grave expression. Looking at the sea of joyful faces, she could not bring herself to be happy. On the surface, the Central Palace had won, but in reality, she had been completely outplayed by Yinghuo, and even more so by Dai Yuheng.

The biggest winner of this campaign against the Northern Palace was Dai Yuheng.

In the imperial court, she knelt silently to receive the edict, her mind drifting far away.

"Commander? Commander Kaiming?" The elderly eunuch reading the edict raised his voice twice before she snapped back to reality.

"Will you not accept the edict and offer your thanks?"

"Thanks?" She looked blankly at the moving lips, having no idea what the eunuch had just said. "Oh, yes, offer thanks, offer thanks." Whatever he had said, since it was a reward, it couldn't be anything bad.

Her unusual behavior immediately drew several stares.

"Minister Dai, hear the decree!" The eunuch’s voice rang out again, successfully diverting everyone’s attention. She let out a sigh of relief.

Dai Yuheng stepped forward and knelt on one knee beside her. He whispered, "You have just been promoted."

"What position?" she asked, quite curious.

Dai Yuheng shot her a sideways glance. "Impressive. You can actually zone out in front of the Emperor. You were just promoted to the rank of General, filling the vacancy left by Dayin."

"What?" She was shocked, blurting out, "How can that be!"

The eunuch’s voice ceased abruptly. Only then did she realize her volume had been loud enough to drown out the eunuch’s chanting. The civil and military officials in the hall stared at her in confusion, and the gaze of the Emperor of Tianjue from the high platform was filled with reproach.

Just as she was mentally cursing her luck, she heard Dai Yuheng chuckle and announce loudly, "We thank His Majesty for his grace!" This drew the attention of the crowd away from her once more.

Because of this incident, who else received rewards and what they received became irrelevant to her. Her head was spinning. This is terrible, terrible! What was the Emperor thinking? Giving her the position of his old lover—where was the old lover supposed to go now? What kind of scheme was he cooking up for her?

Was this a deliberate attempt to recruit her, or a direct confrontation with the Dai family? She glanced at Dai Yuheng, but the man was as composed as ever, his hidden depths impossible to fathom. She sighed, giving up on trying to find a chink in the fox's armor.

After the ceremony concluded and the officials dispersed, she stood at the palace entrance, dazed.

"What's wrong?" a voice asked beside her. She turned to see that handsome face, wearing an infuriating smile, standing quietly by her side.

"What I'm doing is none of your business!" she said coldly.

Dai Yuheng smiled. "Judging by the Emperor's intent, he has made up his mind."

"What intent?" She frowned. Dai Yuheng’s speech was always veiled, as if he were hinting at something.

Dai Yuheng did not explain, only smiling, "In that case, we might as well play out this game of chess with him to the end!"

Hearing this, Kaiming’s heart skipped a beat. For no reason she could name, a sense of unease began to stir within her.

Dai Yuheng’s eyes drifted to her right palm, which was wrapped in an even thicker layer of gauze. "Is your injury all right?"

She instinctively hid her hand behind her back, as if terrified by his previous stunt, and replied with a grim face, "Thanks to you, Minister Dai Yuheng!"

Dai Yuheng smiled even more broadly. "I am no longer a Minister, Kaiming... General."

"Gen, General? Stop spouting nonsense!" She was flustered. Having achieved nothing, how could she dare to occupy such a high-ranking position?

"You have been granted the title of General; you had better get used to the title!" Dai Yuheng laughed maliciously and waved his long sleeves with flair. "Of course, if you want to keep this position, you will need to put in some effort."

She looked at him, uncomprehending.

Dai Yuheng maintained a faint smile, his gaze sweeping over her with contempt as he looked up at the sky. "Look at the weather; it seems a change is coming. The Central Palace will not be peaceful for much longer!"

She followed his gaze to the sky. Thick, heavy black clouds were gathering in the gloomy firmament. A loud clap of thunder boomed, turning her face deathly pale.

A fierce wind rose, tangling Dai Yuheng’s ribbons, and in the harsh flash of lightning, his smiling, handsome face appeared truly, chillingly sinister.