Chapter 129

Daili couldn't care less about being stripped bare.

He was just talking tough, let him.

Qin Changgeng didn't hunt a tiger within the specified time, so no matter what, she won this bet.

If it was just about talking, anyone could do it. Daili deliberately raised her voice and said, "What fox? Did the Marquis hunt a fox on this trip? Is it a white fox or a red fox, alive or dead? Don't hide it, bring it out quickly and let me see."

Qin Shaozong: "..."

Feng Feng, who accompanied him, knew exactly what prey they had brought back, and quickly smoothed things over: "We did hunt a red fox, but later we found out that the mother fox was pregnant. The Marquis couldn't bear to kill it, so he let it go."

Daili praised: "The Marquis is benevolent and loves all creatures. He is a noble person who abides by the hunting rules."

She deliberately emphasized the word "abides".

Qin Shaozong was really amused by her anger, "Madam has an excellent memory. It's a pity you're not an accountant."

"Thank you for your guidance, Marquis." Daili took it as a compliment.

The impact of the gongs and cymbals was not small. Not only did Qin Shaozong return empty-handed, but the other people who went hunting today also got nothing.

It wasn't that no one was angry, but when they learned that the "instigators" were Qin Qinian and Qin Yanzhou, they all fell silent.

So it was the boys being mischievous. Fine, let the Marquis of Wu'an teach them a lesson himself.

Although everyone returned empty-handed today, the evening bonfire banquet was held as usual.

The meat was hunted by those young men yesterday. Part of it was eaten at the banquet last night, but it wasn't completely finished. The deer and roe deer with broken legs were kept. They were originally intended to be brought back as trophies, but unexpectedly became a reserve food supply.

The bonfire was lit, and the wooden spears skewered with meat were placed over the fire. As the meat gradually turned golden brown, oil slowly dripped out.

The butter dripped down after a short while, and the flames shot up like snakes, making the aroma instantly richer.

However, tonight, few people focused their attention on the food. For no other reason, as long as one wasn't blind, anyone could see that Qin Shaozong was not in a good mood.

Invisible dark clouds covered the sky and blocked the sun. Faint rumbling thunder could be heard, but it remained hidden and unreleased.

Everyone sat upright, being cautious in their words and actions.

The man beside her had a gloomy air pressure, and the surrounding atmosphere was also very strange. But Daili didn't care about that. She ate heartily, her appetite much better than last night.

After eating this skewer of meat, she reached out to get a frozen persimmon. Her snow-white cheeks bulged a little, and her red lips were shiny with oil, as if coated with a layer of honey.

Qin Shaozong looked at Daili a few times, but he didn't know if she didn't notice or was too lazy to pay attention to him. She didn't turn her head once.

Qin Shaozong sneered coldly and reached out to take a skewer of meat.

Daili was sitting right beside him. She saw his movement clearly, and her chewing paused.

What he just took seemed to be... venison.

Daili couldn't help but turn her head, just in time to see this man eating meat in big mouthfuls. His sharp white canine teeth bit hard into the meat, and his light brown eyes locked tightly onto her. The dark fire in his eyes was even more intense than the blazing bonfire in front of them.

Daili's heart skipped a beat.

In no time, Qin Shaozong finished a skewer of venison, and then went to get a new one.

This time he still took venison.

He still looked at her while eating meat in big mouthfuls, as if the meat he was biting was her. In a few bites, a large skewer of venison was completely devoured by him.

Qin Shaozong reached out again, wanting to take a third skewer.

Daili's alarm bells rang instantly. She quickly reached out and pressed his arm, "A balanced diet of meat and vegetables is the right way. The Marquis has already eaten enough meat. How about having some frozen persimmons?"

While asking "how about", Daili forcefully snatched the skewer of venison from his hand and stuffed two frozen persimmons into it.

Venison is known as the "fruit of the kidneys". Qin Changgeng was passionate about matters of the bed, and once he started, he would go on endlessly. He also had a powerful engine himself. If she let him continue eating, he would probably stay up all night making a fuss.

Having his venison snatched away, Qin Shaozong didn't say anything. He took the frozen persimmon and bit into it.

The bite mark was very deep. The bright red inside of the frozen persimmon looked like some kind of open meat, making Daili's spine tense up.

The bonfire banquet ended in a strange atmosphere. Dinner was over, and it was time to rest.

Daili's eyebrows moved slightly. Just as she was about to tell Qin Shaozong that she was going to find Qin Hongying, she suddenly felt her wrist being grabbed. Then an irresistible force pulled her up.

"Madam, it's late. Let's go back." He stared at her intently.

Daili: "..."

*

Inside the main tent.

The heavy curtain in front of the tent door hung down, completely separating the inside from the outside. The winter chill and piercing wind vanished without a trace with the fall of the curtain.

The temperature inside the tent quietly rose.

Qin Shaozong took off his cloak and casually draped it over the coat rack. He approached Daili, his eyes brewing with heavy dark fire, "Madam was very impressive today, strategizing and playing me like a fiddle."

His aura was overwhelming, a head taller than Daili. Even without his cloak, he was still as burly as a mountain.

"Qin Changgeng, when we made the bet, we didn't specify that tricks couldn't be used." As he advanced, Daili unconsciously retreated.

Qin Shaozong stepped forward step by step, trapping her near the corner of the soft bed. His tone was unclear: "This move of beating the grass to scare the snake was very ingenious. Whose idea was it? Madam's, or that boy Qin Yanzhou's?"

Daili wanted to retreat further, but unexpectedly there was a soft bed behind her. She accidentally tripped and lost her balance, falling onto the soft bed. She was already not as tall as him, and now that she had fallen, she was almost completely enveloped by his shadow.

She sat there, looking up at him.

"If it was Madam's idea, tonight I will definitely make Madam dry up like a river and sea. If that boy Qin Yanzhou thought of it himself..."

Qin Shaozong suddenly smiled. Daili couldn't understand this smile. It wasn't sarcasm, anger, or annoyance, but another kind of emotion. What exactly it was, she couldn't say at this moment, but she acutely sensed that it was positive.

Daili had always trusted her intuition.

Whether it was when she climbed a tree in the Jiang mansion and felt something was wrong, or later when she felt faintly uneasy in the teahouse in Taiping County, it was her sixth sense helping her.

At this moment, she inexplicably felt that perhaps she could tell the truth. He might really not cause trouble for Zhou Zhou.

"If it was Zhou Zhou's idea, then what will you do?" Daili couldn't help asking.

"I won't pursue the matter with him, and I will deal with Madam leniently." This man said "deal with leniently", but his hand was actually resting on the beast-head belt around his waist. His long fingers with thick calluses unfastened the buckle.

Daili's mouth twitched.

She didn't speak, and Qin Shaozong didn't urge her. After unfastening the belt, he pounced like a hungry tiger, pressing Daili down amidst her exclamations.

Qin Shaozong wrapped one arm around her waist, and his other large hand spread out to cup her jaw. Two fingers pinched her lips open through her soft cheeks, and then skillfully pried them open and entered.

The pent-up anger from the whole day finally flared up. He enveloped her in his shadow, sucking and biting her trembling lips, and then swept recklessly inside, like the most strict and cautious patrol, not letting go of a single corner.

Dai Li was already accustomed to his ways. Seeing him coming on so aggressively and setting such a high tone now, she inwardly cried out in dismay, hoping this night wouldn't truly last until dawn.

She raised her hand to press down on his hand, which had somehow hooked onto her waistband. Unable to speak, she wrapped her fingers around the belt twice and tugged it back, while trying her best to turn her head away.

"Does My Lord not want to know the answer?" her breath was already erratic.

The man propped himself up, actually managing to hold back and retreat a little. His gaze was like a torch, his brown eyes seemingly glowing in the dim light. "Confess the truth."

"Most of it was Zhou Zhou, I only helped him fill in the gaps," Dai Li said hesitantly.

Qin Changgeng had very good credit with her. He always did what he promised and had never broken his word once. Since he said he wouldn't pursue the matter with Zhou Zhou, then he truly wouldn't.

Just as these words fell, she did not know if it was her illusion, but she seemed to see him smile again, the same kind of smile as before.

Before Dai Li could carefully ponder it, the waistband that had been wrapped around her fingers was untied and swiftly pulled away. Once the entire strip was separated from her outer robe, it was wrapped around her wrists.

"Madam's waistband is quite unique, lend it to me for a bit."

Dai Li was just about to struggle when his voice suddenly became strict and solemn. "The guilty woman, Dai Li, has committed the crime of teasing her husband. This official now sentences her to three hundred lashes and to be stripped of her fox skin for the night, as a warning to others."

Dai Li was speechless.

Dai Li was greatly shocked. She was just about to retort when her mouth was blocked again.

...

Time passed, and the full moon in the sky gradually slanted westward.

The cold wind of the Northland howled loudly. In the night, pairs of faint green little lanterns flickered with a cold, sharp light. There were wolves howling all around, masking many sounds.

The night was deep, but there were still people who had not fallen into a sound sleep.

In the large tent, the door curtain had been lowered. The curtains on the opposite sides were rolled up a little to facilitate air circulation.

Inside the tent, it was blazing hot, and the fierce battle was at its peak.

Dai Li lay on her stomach on the soft bed, her hands tightly gripping the brocade quilt beneath her. She bit her red lips tightly, trying hard to suppress the sounds in her throat.

The temperature inside the tent was much higher than outside. A thin layer of sweat appeared on her temples, neck, and body. Her snow-white skin was steamed into a light pink hue, as if she had just been scooped out of a hot spring.

He was full of interest and relished the experience, using that bamboo-red waistband to measure many places.

"Rest, let's rest for a moment..." Dai Li had just finished a round, her eyes lacking focus.

"The three hundred lashes are not even halfway done, how can we rest?" Not only did he not listen, but he also conveniently took back the waistband that was currently tied directly around the woman's waist and tied it around her wrists again.

Dai Li laughed out of anger. "Not halfway? You are lying through your teeth. I refuse to accept this, have your superior come speak with me."

He smiled wickedly, and also moved wickedly. "Who in the hall is suing this official?"

Dai Li was speechless again.

"Qin Changgeng, you are shameless." Dai Li kicked her legs.

His large, vein-bulging hand reached over, fingers spread wide, tightly gripping that section of her pale thigh, with some tender white flesh spilling out between his fingers. "To think you would hurl insults at an imperial court official. I punish you to start over from the beginning."

Dai Li was speechless.

"However, this official is benevolent and can give you a chance for a pardon." He retreated a little, maintaining a half-withdrawn state as he flipped Dai Li over, making her face upwards.

He stared into her eyes, pointing out something implicitly. "If Madam asks me to stop now, I will definitely obey the order."

Dai Li understood his underlying meaning.

He and she had made a bet, and the loser had to promise the winner one thing. This man clearly wanted her to use the prize on such an insignificant trivial matter.

Dai Li turned her head away. "Standing firm through countless grinds and blows, letting the winds blow from all directions."

Qin Shaozong gave a fake smile. "Not only do you not agree, you actually dare to compose a poem to mock this official. You deserve to be punished. The three hundred lashes are doubled, you are sentenced to take six hundred."

"Qin Changgeng, I beg you to have some shame..."

The winter night was long and endless. The two large skewers of venison Qin Shaozong had eaten all turned into firewood and dry grass this night, stewing the fox in the pot until she was completely disoriented.

Waking and sleeping throughout the night, Dai Li unsurprisingly woke up late the next day.

When she woke up, she noticed that there seemed to be quite a few people missing from the camp. Upon asking, she found out that some people had gone out hunting in the morning. And among these people were Qin Shaozong, as well as Qin Yanzhou and Qin Qinian.

...

After a night of recovery, a portion of the prey that had been scared away originally returned.

Last night, Qin Shaozong could not encounter any prey and had no chance to make a move, but this morning he ran into some.

They discovered a large roe deer.

"Qin San, you go catch the roe deer," Qin Shaozong said.

Yesterday, while hunting rabbits, Qin Qinian was distracted by other things, which caused him to lose the competition. The young man was holding in a surge of energy with nowhere to use it. Now, hearing his father's words, he took two people and plunged headfirst into the forest.

Besides the roe deer, they had also encountered deer on the road just now, and Qin Shaozong similarly assigned tasks out. At this time, the number of people following by his side could be counted on one hand, and among these few people was Qin Yanzhou.

The young man rode his horse forward and dismounted when he reached Qin Shaozong's side. He cupped his hands to Qin Shaozong. "One person takes responsibility for their own actions. They were merely acting on my orders. The source is me, and I can bear the consequences myself. I ask the Marquis of Wu'an to release them, and please do not make things difficult for Young Lady Shi."

The they Qin Yanzhou spoke of referred to those few personal guards brought over from the Shi family.

Yesterday, after Qin Yanzhou fell into the net, Shi Rongyue ran around with her personal guards. Midway, she specifically separated a group of people to go look for gongs and cymbals respectively. Two quarters of an hour after one fell into the net, another would strike, thereby dragging out the time that the cymbals and gongs could be struck as much as possible.

Afterwards, this group of people, including Shi Rongyue, were all arrested. And because Shi Rongyue's own status was special, she was released.

She was the only one released. The other personal guards of the Shi family were still being locked up by Qin Shaozong at this moment.

Qin Shaozong was still riding on the Red Dragon. At this time, he looked down at the person from a high position, but his tone was very calm. "Why would the Shi family's personal guards listen to your orders?"

Qin Yanzhou: "It was I who requested Young Lady Shi to lend me a helping hand."

Qin Shaozong's long fingers tapped the horse whip rhythmically. "You requested, and she agreed? Did she know the inside story?"

Qin Yanzhou shook his head and said she did not know.

Qin Shaozong suddenly chuckled.

Whether she knew or not, after Shi Rongyue had her suona confiscated, she definitely knew that music was forbidden in the hunting grounds.

"This little Shi Rongrong is quite audacious." He suddenly changed the subject, "But last night I heard my Madam say that beating gongs and drums everywhere and dispersing the guards to act was all her idea..."

"No, it has nothing to do with Mother! I arranged this matter single-handedly. It was because I heard she had a bet with you, and the contents of this bet had no rule restrictions, that I had other thoughts." Qin Yanzhou could not help but interrupt.

Qin Shaozong's gaze patrolled his face, and after a moment, he replied, "Alright, then let those people go."

He agreed too readily. He didn't even say anything else, made no demands, and didn't mention any follow-up.

Qin Yanzhou was slightly stunned.

Qin Shaozong understood his confusion. "The art of war is of deception. In the past, during the Battle of Hongshui, Duke Xiang of Song rigidly adhered to ancient rules, stubbornly waiting for the Chu army to cross the river and form their ranks before attacking, and ultimately suffered a crushing defeat. Duke Xiang himself was also severely injured and fled in defeat. From then on, the hegemony of the Central Plains had nothing to do with him."

Qin Shaozong's eyes held a hint of mockery, clearly looking down upon such blockheaded behavior. "On the battlefield, there isn't so much of 'can or cannot,' 'should or should not.' Once the horn blows, a battle only has two outcomes: success or failure."

Qin Yanzhou looked thoughtful.

"Besides, come next spring, your mother will marry me and become my wife. By then, you will have to call me father. Why would I bicker with my own son?" Qin Shaozong laughed.

Qin Yanzhou: "..."

After the hunting party returned and everyone had another round of meat, the various families began to break camp.

Today was the third day, the day this winter hunt concluded, and everyone was preparing to return to Yuyang.

The northern winds were piercingly cold. Daili had come in a carriage, and she would return in one as well. However, unlike before, there was an extra person in her carriage for the return trip.

The man dressed in a black robe leaned lazily against the soft seat. With his long arms and legs, he stretched out in an unrestrained posture, taking up a large portion of the space.

This carriage also had seating on only one side; the small table inside was pushed all the way to the front of the cabin, leaving only the long bench in the back for sitting.

When Daili arrived, she had worn a cloak, sinking into the warm lotus-green mink fur. Now, on the way back to the city, the cloak was set aside.

It simply wasn't needed.

Qin Shaozong was essentially a giant furnace himself; sitting next to him was incredibly warm.

"Qin Changgeng, you went hunting with Zhou Zhou this morning. Did you say something to him?" Daili suddenly asked.

When her son returned from the hunt this morning, although he didn't say anything and his expression remained as usual, Daili noticed some of his little habits.

He glanced at Qin Shaozong twice, seemingly curious.

Later, she overheard Qin Qinian mention that his father still hadn't hunted anything himself this morning, and her intuition told her something was off. If Qin Changgeng went out for a spin without hunting any prey, what was he doing out there?

Qin Shaozong picked up one of her hands, gently rubbing from the base of her palm all the way to her fingertips. "That boy came to confess to me. He said he would take sole responsibility for his actions, and asked me to let Shi Rongrong and her guards go."

Daili couldn't help but sit up straight.

When they returned last night, she had been so caught up in her amusement that she forgot to ask for the details. It turned out this matter not only involved Zhou Zhou's handiwork but also implicated Shi Rongyue.

Before Daili could ask, Qin Shaozong continued, "Since I already promised you last night, my lady, I naturally won't hold it against the younger generation."

Daili's spine relaxed, and she casually flattered him, "The Marquis truly is a man of his word."

He brought up the previous matter again. "Having lost to you this time, what is your request, my lady?"

Worried that she would keep dragging it out and focus entirely on tampering with the Marriage Agreement, Qin Shaozong deliberately added, "You must make your request today or tomorrow, my lady. Otherwise, the offer will expire."

Daili replied, "Rest assured, I will tell you once we get back."

Qin Shaozong raised a long eyebrow. "You can't do it now?"

Daili still insisted, "I'm missing a few things right now. Let's talk about it when we get back."

He did not press the issue further.

There were activities during the day, and both breaking camp and the journey back to the city took time. Therefore, by the time they returned to Yuyang, it was already dusk.

The brilliant afterglow covered the sky, dyeing the heavens into a beautiful oil painting. The main gates of the Qin Manor were wide open, with Qin Yunce, who had stayed behind to guard the residence, leading the welcoming party for their return.

"The winter winds are harsh; Yunce, you didn't need to wait here." The carriage curtain was lifted, and Qin Shaozong frowned as he spoke.

Qin Yunce offered a deep bow. "Thank you for your concern, Father. I have been feeling quite well lately; it is no trouble at all."

Qin Shaozong said, "Let's go inside."

The carriage drove straight to the main courtyard. Qin Shaozong stepped down first, then raised his hand to help Daili out of the carriage.

After Daili entered the main room, she heard footsteps behind her and knew that Qin Shaozong had followed her in, instead of heading to his study as he usually did.

Daili turned to look at him.

Meeting her gaze, the man curled his lips into a smile. "Now that we are home, feel free to state your request, my lady. Your husband will certainly grant your wish."

Daili suddenly asked, "Did the Marquis bring his personal seal?"

Qin Shaozong said he had.

Officials had official seals, and prominent families had their own personal seals. A personal seal was a form of credential, carrying the same legal weight as a signature. In some prestigious families, seeing the personal seal was akin to seeing the person themselves.

Daili went into the inner room and emerged a moment later holding two letters.

Qin Shaozong was already seated at the desk. His eyesight was excellent, and he clearly saw that one of the envelopes had Marriage Agreement written on it.

The curve of the man's lips instantly deepened.

Daili first placed the Marriage Agreement on the desk, sliding it forward until it was right in front of him. "This is the Marriage Agreement I promised you earlier."

Almost the very second the letter came to a stop, he snatched it up.

"However, I suggest the Marquis take a look at this one first," Daili suddenly added.

Qin Shaozong paused in his motion of opening the letter. Ultimately humoring her, he picked up the other envelope she had pushed over.

Nothing was written on this envelope, making it seem rather mysterious compared to the Marriage Agreement beside it.

Qin Shaozong tore it open, unfolding the mulberry paper inside.

But when his gaze touched the central title at the very top, his pupils suddenly shrank. His face turned ashen, and the smile on his lips quickly vanished.

The central title at the very top of the paper clearly read:

Divorce Agreement