Villain Lady

'I guess everyone is on edge because of the political matters.'

Wei Liuying chose to not pay them any heed and just watched her surroundings carefully. One thing that she had learned over the course of her life was that she should never let her guard down. Danger could come even at the most unexpected place.

"Strategist Liu, it's here."

"Thank you."

Walking inside, Wei Liuying could see a simple guest room. There was one table in the middle with several chairs around it. A servant was standing not far from the right side of the room while looking down. It was clear that General Hao was someone who keep tight rules for his servant.

There were two other doors that was connected to this room. Wei Liuying stood near the middle, but she didn't make any attempt to sit down.

"I see that Yang Xian have taught you some of the etiquette."

Turning her head to the side, Wei Liuying saw a middle aged man walking in. His large stature could be easily noticed in the crowd and with the authority aura around him, no one would dare to mess with him. She hurriedly cupped her hand and smiled while bowing slightly. "Liu Ying greets General Hao."

General Hao nodded and pointed to the chair with his chin. "Please take a seat."

"Thank you."

The two of them didn't immediately strike a conversation. Even though it was subtle, the two of them were observing each other. They wanted to know what kind of person they were dealing right now.

"I have heard of you for some time, Strategist Liu. Now, would you like to tell me the purpose of your visit, Strategist Liu?"

"It's an honor for me to have you remember my name, General Hao. I come here because I want to learn under you since I have never visited the sea before," Wei Liuying replied with a smile. In a graceful manner, she took out the scroll that she kept inside her robe.

General Hao took the scroll without averting his eyes from Wei Liuying. Her movements and behavior didn't look like a child that was taken from the street. Even though he had been living with Strategist Yang and learned etiquette, it was too fast. It was simply too natural.

There was only one possibility that General Hao could think of. The rumor that Liu Ying was a b*stard son of a high ranking official or noble was true.

Taking a look at the content, it was short and concise. General Sheng only wrote down that he wished for General Hao to take care of his strategist for several days to learn about new types of tactic that could be employed near the sea.

"You have quite an interesting request, Strategist Liu."

"I have heard it before. Thank you for your compliment, General Hao," Wei Liuying replied with a smile on her face.

General Hao nodded and put the letter on the table. The sound of the bamboo scroll hitting the wooden table was quite loud, yet the two people in the middle was not disturbed in the slightest bit.

"I believe this is not only your reason for coming. The tactic is not that useful for fighting in that terrain."

"I might have some other ideas to fight on the river from this observation, General Hao."

Wei Liuying purposely didn't mention about the matter that she actually wanted to know the most. The two of them were smart people, so she could guess that General Hao also knew what she actually wanted.

General Hao sighed. "I can't exactly reject General Sheng's request. However, I would like you not to divulge the military power of Zhuang City to anyone."

"Please rest assured that I will not do anything that could possibly put Han Shi Kingdom in disadvantage situation."

"In that case, you're free to watch the training and join the discussion."

Wei Liuying cupped her palm and fist. She smiled brightly. "Thank you very much for your kindness, General Hao."

General Hao nodded. He could see that Liu Ying didn't want to divulge anything to him, much less speaking openly. The only thing he could think off that would make this little strategist so cautious was about the matter of succession. With the Emperor was bedridden and his condition unknown, everyone would be on edge as the next successor might change in a bloody battle.

"Would you like to discuss some things, Strategist Liu?"

"It would be my honor, General Hao."

"I have heard that you're very capable and smart. Recently, I have been making bold moves to capture more areas to the north and get the beaches. Unfortunately, Nu Tribe is not being too friendly with my advance, so I would need some help to discuss about my next movements."

Wei Liuying looked at the general's face and smiled faintly. He was not telling her explicitly, but she understood what he wanted to tell her. The Emperor's sickness was out of the expectation for him. He couldn't make any move with his current position because of the recent battle that occurred here.

It was not unexpected.

After hearing of what happened here and how their territory have been expanded, Wei Liuying and Yang Xian already guessed that it was impossible to ask for General Hao's help. However, they needed to know the general's position regarding the succession's problem.

Would he help if Prince Ji Shu started a rebellion?

Or will he support the first prince or the third prince?

"I'll be happy to help, but I'm afraid that I need to learn more about the current situation. Would you like to allow me learn for a while first, General Hao?" Wei Liuying asked.

General Hao laughed lightly. "Of course. We shall have a discussion tomorrow with other commanders."

"In that case, I'll excuse myself. Thank you very much for giving me your precious time, General Hao."

"It's my pleasure, Strategist Liu."

The two of them were polite to each other as Wei Liuying left the room. She passed another look at the servant and smiled kindly but no words were said. 

As soon as the door was closed, the temperature dropped to a chilling degree.