Her brother reluctantly spoke up for Xue Shen.

The family was divided.

Marrying Xue Shen meant marrying a rough man who had spent his life on the battlefield, a man with a reputation as bloody and ruthless as it was celebrated.

Not marrying Xue Shen meant she was already rejected by the Zhang family, with rumors swirling, making future marriage prospects even more difficult.

Yu Zhiguang was in a difficult position.

Xue Shen’s letter was vague, clearly wanting to keep the matter private.  Whenever she thought about it, she instinctively sought comfort in food. “I…haven’t had breakfast yet.”

“One thing after another this morning, I’m completely overwhelmed.”

Her family summoned the cook to prepare breakfast for her.

Her mother comforted her, “The matchmaker from the General’s mansion said we have three days to consider, no need to answer immediately. Shengsheng, weren’t you going to the East Market with Miss Jiang today? Your brother is off duty today, he’ll take you.”

“Okay, let me think it over.”

Yu Zhiguang ate without tasting.

Xue Shen’s handwritten letter was forceful, like his low, stern voice speaking to her, demanding responsibility. But she had never imagined responsibility would be like this.

At 3 pm, Yu Zhiguang hurried out, wearing a veil, instructing the gatekeeper to tell her brother not to bother escorting her.

She needed to clarify some things in person.

*

The Southern Camp of the Imperial Guard had never received such a delicate visitor.

The young lady wore a flowing cherry blossom silk dress, embroidered with weeping crabapples.  Even with her veil, her refined demeanor and voice revealed her upbringing as a pampered noblewoman.

The deputy commander didn’t believe it when the gatekeeper summoned him: “Which young lady? When have you ever seen General Xue interacting with women?”

The gatekeeper pointed, “I don’t know which family, but she’s indeed here to see the General.”

Yu Zhiguang heard a familiar voice and lifted her veil.

The deputy commander’s confident words stopped.

This young lady was indeed here.

On the night of the bandit suppression, the General had rescued the Yu family’s young lady and entrusted her to his guards.  Not to mention the gongs and drums announcing the General’s betrothal gifts to the Yu residence this morning, news that even reached the army camp.

The deputy commander touched his nose and coughed, “Young lady, follow me.”

He led Yu Zhiguang to the commander’s tent. The curtain swayed slightly, revealing the sound of splashing water. Xue Shen was taking a cold shower; he had just personally demonstrated fighting techniques with the instructor and was covered in sand.

The deputy commander deliberately lowered his voice, “General, Miss Yu is here to see you.”

“Who?” Xue Shen’s voice was muffled by the increasingly loud sound of water.

The deputy commander didn’t wait, lifting the curtain and peering inside. He saw Xue Shen shirtless, only wearing silk trousers, wiping himself down. The army wasn’t so particular; in summer, it was common for soldiers to bathe naked in the river, but meeting a young lady was different.

The deputy commander repeated himself, estimating how long it would take for his superior to get presentable. “She’s outside the main tent. Should I tell her to wait for another two quarters of an hour?”

Xue Shen glanced at him, “What for? Bring a folding screen.”

The army was efficient.

The deputy commander left, and Yu Zhiguang entered, with Yuanbao guarding outside the main tent.

Xue Shen, sitting cross-legged on a low stool behind the screen, was fastening his undergarment. He caught a glimpse of the small, blurry figure opposite him.

Xue Shen: “Miss Yu, what is it?”

Yu Zhiguang paused, unable to speak.

Xue Shen raised his voice and asked again.

She finally managed to speak, “I came to…to ask the General to tell me truthfully, why…why are you marrying me?”

Xue Shen stopped dressing.

At yesterday’s banquet, the Princess had revealed that the Empress Dowager intended to arrange a marriage between him and Princess Mingying at the Mid-Autumn Palace banquet. The Princess and the Empress Dowager were not on good terms, and she didn’t want the commander of the Imperial Guard tied to this marriage, so she informed him in advance.

After Yu Zhiguang left, the rumors at the banquet continued, and he overheard some of them. The betrothal could serve to refuse the arranged marriage and clear the rumors for Yu Zhiguang, killing two birds with one stone.

Whether Yu Zhiguang would marry him wasn’t his concern.

She had a previous engagement, he had a suggestive letter.

Now, there was no harm in telling the truth. Xue Shen put on his boots, “Someone told me that the Empress Dowager wants to arrange a marriage between me and a princess at the upcoming palace banquet. I need a reason to refuse.”

There was a long silence on the other side of the screen.

The practice drums sounded.

The main tent curtain was not closed, and the soldiers’ uniform footsteps and shouts filled the awkward silence.

After a long while, Xue Shen heard her voice, like a warbler, tentatively asking, “May I ask, how many people are in the General’s family?”

“My parents are deceased. I have a sister.”

“Is General Xue’s sister…also living in the General’s mansion?”

“She’s married.”

Yu Zhiguang’s questions were all over the place:

“General Xue, when do you arrive at and leave the camp?”

“Earliest at dawn, latest at dusk.”

“Where are you when you’re not in the camp?”

“The Southern Imperial Guard Office, the Imperial Guard prison, and various district police stations.”

“Does General Xue gamble? Drink? Go to…to the brothel?”

“Which military man doesn’t drink?” Xue Shen’s patience ran out. He roughly tied up his damp hair, put on his armor, and pushed aside the screen.

Yu Zhiguang flinched.

The time for the roll call was approaching, with new recruits arriving today, Xue Shen had no time to waste: “I don’t gamble, and I don’t go. Miss Yu, any more questions?”

Yu Zhiguang’s pale fingers intertwined, retreating into her sleeves, “No more, I’m disturbing the General, I…I’ll take my leave.”

The young lady quickly left the camp gate.

Xue Shen put on his suede armguards, glanced at her retreating figure, and strode towards the roll call platform.

On the third day after the betrothal gifts, the General’s mansion didn’t receive a return of the gifts from the Yu family, but a similarly flamboyant procession, delivering Yu Zhiguang’s birth chart and marriage contract, her name meticulously written in elegant calligraphy.