Gu Fu was brought into the palace by Fu Yan.
The Imperial Preceptor’s carriage was both ostentatious and extravagant. After Gu Fu boarded, she was still a bit dazed, only coming to her senses after hearing the military report: “Leak in the northwestern border defense? Wasn’t the defense just recently changed?”
After speaking, Gu Fu thought of someone: “Could it be my uncle again?”
Gu Fu was on the verge of madness. If it was treason, even Prince An’s estate might not be able to protect Mu Qingyao.
Fu Yan had been busy for more than half a month, sleeping only two hours a day, and that too because Gu Fu had come late at night to force him to rest. Now, it seemed as if he had returned to the time before he knew Gu Fu, severely sleep-deprived.
He leaned on Gu Fu: “Not entirely. Do you remember the woman Mu Heng married in the northwest, his second wife?”
Gu Fu reacted quickly: “She’s a spy?”
“Yes, a spy and also someone working for the Prince of Yi.” Fu Yan continued, “The Court of Judicial Review went through a lot of trouble to get her to talk. Her mother was from the Yi River tribe, and her father was from the Central Plains. She grew up in the Yi River tribe, but after it was destroyed, she was sold as a foreign dancing girl and eventually ended up in the Prince of Yi’s residence. The Prince of Yi used her desire for revenge and sent her to the northwest, where she became Mu Heng’s concubine. She was quite capable, managing to convince Mu Heng to make her his official wife.”
Fu Yan adjusted his posture, hugged Gu Fu tightly, closed his eyes, and said, “She also mentioned one more thing.
“She said that the Prince of Yi had always wanted to win over Mu Heng but never succeeded. So, the Prince of Yi planned to bring Mu Heng’s daughter—your cousin—into his household, forcing Mu Heng to become his accomplice. However, the Prince of Yi already had a principal wife, and the daughter of the great general of the northwest couldn’t become a concubine. Divorcing his wife and remarrying would cause too much commotion, so…”
“So, he wanted to ruin Qingyao’s reputation, then pretend to be magnanimous and bring her into the Prince of Yi’s household.” Gu Fu finally realized who spread the rumors about Mu Qingyao being harassed by ruffians. And why Lady Wu Xiao would rather be ridiculed than let Mu Qingyao keep a good reputation. It wasn’t because she was foolish, but because from the very beginning, her goal was different from what they had imagined.
Gu Fu held his heavy head: “Does this testimony prove that Mu Heng wasn’t involved in the treason?”
“Not yet,” Fu Yan reminded Gu Fu, “There’s still Mu Shaoqing.”
Gu Fu thought back to that night by the small river on Xishan Mountain, where Mu Shaoqing was with the Prince of Yi.
There was still no conclusion on Mu Shaoqing, so Fu Yan shifted the topic back to the war report—
“Besides the northwest, there’s also the matter with the Yin and Lei Kingdoms.”
“The hostage from Yin Kingdom was released by people under Prince Yi’s orders. Yin Kingdom had been in the midst of civil strife. The hostage’s mother, the Queen of Yin, always hoped he could return to seize the throne to ensure her own status wouldn’t be shaken. However, His Majesty reached an agreement with the Fifth Prince of Yin. As long as Dayong didn’t return the hostage and hinder the Fifth Prince’s ascension, the Fifth Prince would guarantee that Yin wouldn’t oppose Dayong.”
“But the Prince of Yi seized the opportunity and struck a deal with the Queen of Yin. As long as he helped the hostage return to take the throne, she would assist the Prince of Yi by inciting unrest at the border.”
“As for the Lei Kingdom, tensions had already been rising between them and Dayong due to the incident with Princess Yulou. Just as they were on the verge of reconciliation, the Prince of Yiintervened and caused the current situation.”
In other words, all of this was orchestrated by Prince Yi.
He had failed in his attempt to seize the throne, but he had left behind a mess large enough to keep them all on edge.
Even if his coup had succeeded, these events would have still unfolded. But the external pressures would have been enough to make the court officials forget that Prince Yi’s father had once been a rebel. Then, with Wei Xiao reclaiming the northwest and the Prince of Yiresolving the conflict with Lei Kingdom, his position on the throne would have been secure.
Such a cunning scheme left Gu Fu in awe.
But Gu Fu didn’t understand: “What does His Majesty want by summoning me to the palace? Does he want me to replace Wei Xiao? Isn’t he afraid that my identity will be exposed?”
Fu Yan opened his eyes and said calmly, “He needs you to take over the position of Commander of the Northern Frontier Army. Just like before, when Prince Ying needed His Majesty to secure the position of Crown Prince, preventing Prince Chen or Prince Yi from seizing it.”
Gu Fu immediately understood the meaning behind Fu Yan’s words.
The Northern Frontier is indeed a unique place. It’s not like the west, separated by the sea, or like the prosperous east, where dense populations divide the land with intricate balance between regions. Nor is it like the rugged south, where precision in military deployment matters more than numbers.
The Northern Fronteir is vast and open, constantly threatened by various tribal factions. It’s a bitter, war-torn region, which is why the Northern Army is large, with a far greater jurisdiction than the other three border armies, and its influence far surpasses that of the other three frontier armies.
Now, with trouble in the northwest, the Northern Army needs a new commander. Once the northwest is stabilized, it’s likely to be absorbed back into the Northern Frontier’s territory, meaning its jurisdiction will expand even further.
Such a place is not something His Majesty would easily hand over.
With Wei Xiao and the Prince of Yialready involved in treason, the loyalty of the Northern Army must be carefully examined to see who is trustworthy. The most straightforward and reliable method for now is for the court to send someone from the central government.
But most of the available generals are tied to the great noble families in the capital. For example, the lineage of the General of the South comes from the Lin family of Hezhou.
His Majesty has suffered enough at the hands of the noble families and is extremely wary of them.
Thus, Gu Fu, who had previously served as Commander of the Northern Frontier Army, is undoubtedly the best candidate.
Moreover, Gu Fu had “died” once in the Northern Frontier. Over the past year, she had become somewhat of a legendary figure in the region, like a “pure, untouchable memory” figure. Having her take charge of the Northern Frontier and reclaim the northwest was the most fitting option.
The Emperor had urgently summoned Gu Fu back to the capita beforel, mainly out of concern that her identity would be exposed, potentially destabilizing the Northern Frontier and complicating the court’s appointments. But now the situation was different—compared to the impact of Gu Fu’s gender being revealed, keeping control over the Northern Frontier was far more important.
Still, Gu Fu didn’t quite understand: “There was no need to summon me to the palace specifically.”
It would have sufficed to announce that the former Commander of the Northern Frontier Army was alive and simply send Gu Fu back to the Northern Frontier. There was no need to have her enter the palace, especially since many officials had seen her face during the journey to Xishan Mountain.
Fu Yan got up from leaning on Gu Fu, as if worried she would be displeased. He spoke in a very soft voice: “That was my idea.”
Gu Fu was stunned.
Fu Yan explained: “When you were still at Xishan Mountain, I wrote a letter to His Majesty. I asked him if, by sending you to clean up the mess in the Northern Frontier, he could allow you to openly and honorably lead the troops out of the city.”
Fu Yan spoke gently to Gu Fu, saying “if” and “could,” but in the letter, his tone was far from tentative. It was the first time in many years that he had expressed an almost forceful stance to the Emperor on an official matter.
“I know you don’t care about this,” Fu Yan said, taking Gu Fu’s hand and placing it over his heart. “But I care. Even if future generations don’t remember, at least the people of today will know that the one who achieved these feats isn’t some ‘Marquis Zhongshun’ whose origins are ambiguous and whose legacy is lost—it’s you, Gu Fu.”
Fu Yan was very thorough in his thinking: “Don’t worry. The news won’t reach the Northern Frontier anytime soon, and it won’t affect you taking over.”
When Fu Yan said this, he didn’t dare look Gu Fu in the eye. His beautiful brows and eyes were downcast, with a faint hint of grievance hidden in his indifference. Gu Fu knew that Fu Yan was feeling wronged on her behalf.
Gu Fu lifted her other hand, wrapped it around Fu Yan’s neck, pulling him closer. She pressed her forehead against his and asked, “Who said I don’t care about this?”
Fu Yan looked up, meeting Gu Fu’s smiling eyes. She said, “At first, I thought it was too much trouble and unnecessary, but since you’re willing to fight for me, I’m very happy.”
Their lips were so close. Fu Yan leaned in and kissed her. Gu Fu responded gently, deeply, as though she wanted to melt the moment into her very bones.
Upon entering the palace, the eunuch leading them took them to the Zichen Hall, where civil and military officials were gathered. When Gu Fu arrived, she overheard the Minister of War in a heated argument with Lin Hanhai.
From the content, it seemed they were disagreeing over military supplies.
Gu Fu’s appearance surprised the crowd, and once she arrived, the Emperor, who had been avoiding the topic of the Northern Frontier war, finally brought it up.
An official mentioned that Lin Hanhai’s son, Lin Yi, was in the Northern Frontier Army and suggested giving him a key position for now, with further details to be discussed after reclaiming the three cities in the northwest.
Lin Hanhai didn’t believe Lin Yi was up to the task and looked over at Gu Fu.
The others were curious and also followed his gaze. Then they heard Gu Fu say: “The Northern Frontier Army is very exclusive. Traditionally, its commanders have all been promoted from within the army. The Young General, with his ties to the General of the South, likely won’t be able to fully win the loyalty of the Northern Frontier Army.”
Gu Fu used the same tone she would in the Northern Frontier, making it difficult to tell whether the speaker was male or female at first.
The officials were taken aback. Someone wanted to rebuke her, questioning why a woman was interrupting a discussion of state affairs, but Gu Fu’s unrestrained aura felt as if they were being stared down by a beast, and the words were swallowed back.
Another official, seeing the situation, didn’t argue with Gu Fu but instead suggested another candidate: “Guo Jian, the commander of the Chiyao Army, originally came from the Northern Frontier. He is both clever and strategic, making him an excellent choice.”
Hearing this, Gu Fu couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of her mouth. Her roguish nature surfaced instantly: “Guo Jian is a civil official by training. A month with the army would kill him. He might be fine leading the Chiyao Army for a walk around the capital, but you want him to lead troops into the Northern Frontier? Spare him, my lord.”
Gu Fu’s second rebuttal made it impossible for anyone to ignore her presence. Although no one dared to insult her in front of the emperor, one official still said, “Miss Gu, what brilliant insights do you have? Do share with us. Just be careful not to speak empty words and make a fool of yourself.”
After this comment, a few people chuckled, as if they were already anticipating the humor that would follow.
Gu Fu remained calm and said, “The worst-case scenario is that Wei Xiao refuses to hand over the military seal, leads the Northern Frontier Army in abandoning the defense line, and marches south. In that case, both the Northern Frontier and the capital will be in great danger.”
“He wouldn’t dare!” one of the civil officials angrily retorted.
“If Wei Xiao didn’t dare, he wouldn’t have conspired with Prince Yi,” Gu Fu replied. “I also advise all of you not to view the Northern Frontier the same way you view the capital. Up there, there are many uneducated men who value filling their stomachs more than the virtues of propriety, integrity, and honor that you hold so dear.”
“Miss Gu seems to have quite the understanding. It appears you already have someone in mind to take over the Northern Frontier Army. Why not share it with us?” Someone, displeased that a woman could speak so freely in the hall, deliberately made things difficult for her.
Gu Fu responded seriously, “If the Marquis Zhongshun were still alive, they would be the best candidate.”
As if to echo the earlier remark about “making a fool of herself,” someone immediately burst into laughter when Gu Fu finished speaking.
Gu Fu let them laugh and only asked when they were done, “Did I say anything unreasonable?”
The officials shook their heads, their expressions full of disdain and mockery. One even said, “What Miss Gu says is reasonable, but I wonder, how does she plan to summon the spirit of Marquis Zhongshun back from the underworld?”
Another wave of laughter followed. They weren’t just laughing at Gu Fu’s outlandish suggestion but also venting their fear from hearing the grim military reports, as well as their frustration with Gu Fu repeatedly opposing them.
The General of the South quietly shifted his feet, distancing himself from them.
The elderly Duke of Support was also one of the few who didn’t join in the mockery. He stepped forward and said to the emperor, “Time is pressing. Your Majesty should make a swift decision.”
But no one expected the emperor to ask the Duke of Support, “What does the Duke think of Marquis Zhongshun?”
Everyone froze for a moment. The Duke quickly gathered his thoughts and replied, “If Marquis Zhongshun were still alive, he would indeed be the best candidate.”
The emperor nodded, then spoke again. This time, he didn’t refer to Gu Fu as “Second Miss Gu” but called her directly by her name: “Gu Fu.”
Everyone was stunned again. They might not have known the personal name of the second daughter of the Gu family, but they certainly knew the name of Marquis Zhongshun.
Then, they saw the Gu family’s second daughter, dressed in men’s clothing, step forward to stand beside the Duke of Support and bow, saying, “Your subject is present.”
The emperor said, “I command you to take up the position of commander of the Northern Frontier Army. Set out for the Northern Frontier immediately. Capture the rebel Wei Xiao, eliminate all of the Prince of Yi’s followers, and provide reinforcements to the northwest.”
The emperor’s voice echoed throughout Zichen Hall. There was nothing wrong with the contents of the decree, but the person entrusted with such a significant responsibility left everyone completely dumbfounded.
Gu Fu, who had never imagined such a day would come, showed no hesitation. Her words were firm and powerful as she responded—
“Your subject obeys the decree.”
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