"Thank you for your trust, Elder Gu. I will handle this properly and do whatever it takes to stabilize Lu State," Liu Zhongjun vowed. "I can’t let what happened with Wu Yongqiang be repeated."
’If it happens again, it will prove I’m no longer capable of this responsibility. And next time, I won’t be this lucky.’
"Good," Hua Yusen said with a nod. "I’ll stay to help you stabilize the situation, and then I’ll be leaving. After that, it’s all in your hands."
"I guarantee I will carry out Elder Gu’s orders!" Liu Zhongjun said with great solemnity. After a month of reflection, he now fully understood his own position and the circumstances he was in.
’If I can’t properly complete the tasks Gu Qingyu has given me, I’ll surely be cast aside.’
’The Li family was able to back Wu Yongqiang to move against me, so the Gu Family can just as easily back someone else to replace me.’
After a busy week of putting things in order, Liu Zhongjun had completely stabilized the situation. He meted out due punishment to the rebels and rewarded those who had remained loyal.
Seeing that the mission was successfully completed, Hua Yusen led his men away and headed back to the city.
Also returning with Hua Yusen was Wu Qiaoqiao.
Seeing Wu Qiaoqiao walking toward them, Hua Yusen shot Liu Jian a look. "In a minute, tell her I need to rest and don’t want to be disturbed."
Liu Jian saw Wu Qiaoqiao and nodded in understanding. "Yes, Sen!"
Wu Qiaoqiao’s heart sank as she watched Hua Yusen turn and walk away. On the surface, however, she showed no anger. Instead, her smile was bright, her demeanor gentle and serene.
"Liu Jian, is Yu Sen busy? He left as soon as he saw me. Anyone who didn’t know better might think he dislikes me!" Wu Qiaoqiao said with a giggle, showing no sign of displeasure at his departure.
Liu Jian listened and replied with a smile, "Sen is a little tired. He hasn’t been sleeping enough lately, so he’s exhausted. He’ll probably sleep for the whole journey back, so he won’t have time to speak with you."
"Oh, dear, how could I forget? Yu Sen has been so busy lately. There was more than one occasion where he worked all night without sleep. I kept telling him to take care of himself, but he just wouldn’t listen," Wu Qiaoqiao said with a pout. "In that case, I won’t disturb him. Please take good care of Yu Sen for me."
Liu Jian’s eyebrow twitched. ’Wu Qiaoqiao’s words are a little too intimate, aren’t they? Anyone who didn’t know better would think she and Sen have some kind of close relationship!’
’No wonder Sen keeps avoiding Wu Qiaoqiao. So he already noticed her strange behavior!’
’Thinking of a woman as devoted and kind as Zhao Nuanyue... she deserved Sen’s undivided affection.’
’Besides, Sen isn’t a philanderer like Li Gongming. Of course he wouldn’t want to get too close to another woman and upset Zhao Nuanyue.’
Liu Jian was starting to understand Sen’s behavior.
"It’s my duty," Liu Jian said earnestly. ’Although I understand what Wu Qiaoqiao is thinking, it’s not the place of a mere bodyguard like me to interfere in these matters.’
To prevent Wu Qiaoqiao from getting close to Sen, Liu Jian decided that from now on, he wouldn’t leave Sen’s side whenever she appeared.
The convoy set off. Hua Yusen sat in the back seat, his eyes closed as he rested.
Liu Jian, in the front passenger seat, cast a few meaningful glances toward the back, suppressing his curiosity.
Hua Yusen let out a long sigh, feeling a wave of relief. ’Finally, I can go home.’
’I’ve been gone for so long. I wonder what Nuanyue is doing. Does she miss me? Has she been sad?’
These questions lingered in Hua Yusen’s mind. An image of the sweet and charming Zhao Nuanyue formed in his head, and a gentle smile graced his lips.
’What bliss, to have the woman I love waiting for me.’
Seeing Sen’s expression, Liu Jian became even more resolute. ’I absolutely cannot let Wu Qiaoqiao get close to Sen alone.’
Meanwhile, Zhao Nuanyue was busy practicing her Martial Arts and studying medicine. Only in the dead of night would she think of Hua Yusen, sometimes even dreaming of him.
Upon returning to Jincheng City, Hua Yusen went straight to Gu Qingyu to report on his mission.
Though the mission had been complex, it had resulted in Gu Qingyu gaining complete control over the markets in Lu State.
"Ah, Xiaohua, you did an excellent job on this mission, far exceeding my expectations!" Gu Qingyu clapped Hua Yusen on the shoulder, laughing heartily. "You’ve already briefed me, and I now have the situation there completely under control. So, I’m giving you three days’ leave. Go spend some proper time with Nuanyue!"
Hua Yusen was overjoyed to hear this. He immediately stood at attention and saluted. "Thank you, Elder Gu!"
"Haha, no need to thank me. You’ve earned it. You left for a mission the day before your wedding, and that hasn’t sat right with me. Now that you’ve returned after completing your work so perfectly, I certainly can’t keep you from reuniting with your lovely wife," Gu Qingyu said with a chuckle. He had been young once, too, and understood the sweet affection between a man and a woman.
"As they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder. If I were to keep a young couple like you apart now, I’d be no better than a villain trying to break up true love."
He was the witness at Zhao Nuanyue and Hua Yusen’s wedding, and their matchmaker as well. It was his duty to help them, not to be the one to cause them trouble.
By the time Hua Yusen left Gu Qingyu’s office, it was already ten o’clock at night.
The moon was bright, the stars were sparse, and silence reigned.
Flanked by two bodyguards, Hua Yusen arrived at Zhao Nuanyue’s home by Qingya Lake.
Inside, Zhao Nuanyue was practicing her Martial Arts, drenched in sweat. Zhao Nuanyang was doing the same.
It was winter now, and the night air was especially cold.
Yet Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuanyang were both completely absorbed in their training. They were sweating profusely, enjoying the refreshing satisfaction that came after a good, hard workout.
And what about Little Red Carp? She was sitting cross-legged on the stone table in the courtyard, cultivating.
Suddenly, Little Red Carp’s eyes snapped open. She leaped off the table and, scurrying on her short little legs, shouted cheerfully, "Yay, yay, we have a visitor!"
Seeing Little Red Carp scamper toward the gate, Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuanyang stopped their martial arts practice and followed her.
As Little Red Carp undid the latch on the main gate, Hua Yusen appeared in the doorway.
The guard at the gatehouse poked his head out the window. Seeing it was Hua Yusen, he offered a greeting and then retracted his head.
’That’s Zhao Nuanyue’s husband. A man’s coming home to his wife, is a guard like me going to stop him?’
Hua Yusen saw Little Red Carp opening the gate for him and bent down to scoop her into his arms.
"Thank you for opening the gate for me, Little Red Carp!" Hua Yusen said with a chuckle, reaching out to give her cheek a gentle pinch.
"Don’t pinch my face! You’ll make it fat! If my face gets fat, I won’t be pretty, and then I’ll never get married! I’ll have to stay home and sponge off my brother and sister forever!" Little Red Carp protested with a pout, unhappy with Hua Yusen’s actions.