Those waiting for their sons, husbands, and families to return home, when they looked up at the sky, emitted faint glimmers of light that were barely visible to the human eye.
After this collaborative effort, the border soldiers' perspectives changed at that moment, transforming into merits soaring towards the blue sky and white clouds...
At the imperial court.
Upon receiving the victorious news from the border, Pei Changying completely lost his composure.
"Is the Guan Family Army planning a rebellion!!!"
"I have been lenient with them, not punishing them for their prolonged failure to conquer the plague-ridden city, yet they dared to mobilize troops without my decree!"
"What chills my heart even more is that they have collaborated with the rebels!"
"Are they planning a rebellion? Hmph, someone go immediately to the Guan family—"
Before he could finish his sentence about raiding their homes and throwing them into prison, he was stopped by the unanimous persuasion of dozens of ministers.
The sound of rustling!
The great hall was filled with kneeling ministers.
Even the Prime Minister knelt down and shouted, "Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
"Your Majesty, General Guan has been loyally guarding the border. If we arrest his family just based on this incident, it might incite public outrage!"
"Your Majesty, General Guan commands an army of two hundred thousand! If we arrest his family, General Guan might, in a fit of rage, plot a rebellion!"
"Your Majesty, it must not be done!"
"Your Majesty..."
Under the pleading of the entire court, Pei Changying gradually regained his rationality.
He knew that General Guan, commanding a large force and having guarded the harsh border for decades, now was not the best time to punish him.
Firstly, if this matter were to leak out, the public would be the first to dissent.
Although Pei Changying was persuaded by the ministers not to target the Guan family, in his heart, he had already planted a seed of deadly intent towards General Guan.
In the plague city.
Merchants who traveled to the plague city for business had already informed the citizens about the great victory at the border.
The Elder Princess's furrowed brows suddenly relaxed.
Since the merchants were aware of this, it meant that several days had passed.
Perhaps, Zhou Qichen and another were already on their way back!
And after the imperial army left, the plague city entered a state of preparation and defense.
Fortunately, for such a long time, Pei Changying had not reacted, so he did not send a large army to attack the plague city.
Of course.
This was also thanks to General Guan, who suppressed all the imperial decrees for mobilization and did not inform Pei Changying of the actual situation.
Thus, Pei Changying was unaware that the main forces of the plague city had gone to the border, leaving behind only a city with little combat strength.
An opportunity missed is an opportunity lost; Pei Changying missed this chance.
By the time he realized, the main forces of the plague city had also returned, and by then, the plague city need not worry about being wiped out by the imperial court.
"Beep."
"Connection established."
"Looking at your expression, you already know about the great victory at the border!"
The Elder Princess, hearing Gu Sang's voice, looked up at the activated screen.
She saw Gu Sang sitting on a sofa, crunching on a bag of delicious chips.
The Elder Princess's gaze inadvertently swept over the brightly packaged chip bag, a flash of envy in her eyes. She had heard from Gu Sang that these chips were snacks made from potatoes.
Watching Gu Sang eat was truly a delight!
"Zhou Qichen and his group have already embarked upon their journey. They will probably reach Plague City in a few days' time," said someone.
"General Guan is a hero to admire. His thoughts are always on a grand scale, without the slightest intention of stopping the soldiers from Plague City."
"By the way, I have a piece of good news for you — though you might not consider it as such," Gu Sang said, her mouth curving into a slight smile as she chuckled.
Meeting Elder Princess' puzzled, anxious gaze, Gu Sang continued, "General Guan has made it clear to me that he will not interfere in any internal conflicts."
"His responsibility from now on is to guard the border, ensuring that not even a single Xiongnu steps foot within our Central Plains."
Hearing this, Elder Princess could not help but admire General Guan's thoughts even more. She proudly declared, "Our Central Plains have never lacked brave soldiers, or patriotic talents!"
"The only problem is that the current Emperor is a fool who only cares for his own self-interest. He insists on doing things his way, and even if heaven sent talent his way, he wouldn't recognize it."
"Once I ascend the throne, I will make our country even stronger."
"I will make sure that the Xiongnu tremble at the mere mention of the Central Plains' name. We will no longer be weaklings as we are now!"
Gu Sang agreed wholeheartedly, clapping her hands in approval, "Well said! I truly believe you can do it!"
"As long as the border's soldiers do not intervene, there's not many troops that can be utilized within the Central Plains' boundary. Wei Qi, it's finally our time to ascend the throne!"
"I've waited for this day, oh how I've waited!"
Shortly after, the two of them began discussing their next steps: how to expand their territory, and how to infiltrate the royal capital.
Half an hour later, their strategy session was nearly complete.
All that remained was to implement the plan with a patient, steady step-by-step approach.
'Your merit has increased by 500,000!'
'Your merit has increased by 1,000,000!'
'Your merit has increased by 3,000,000!'
As Gu Sang connected with Elder Princess, her merit continued to rise rapidly.
'Ding!'
'Your total merit has reached 30,000,000!'
Hearing her merit reaching the required amount threw Gu Sang’s heart into a flutter.
30,000,000!
This number means her grandmother can come back!
Her grandmother...
"Wei Qi, that's all for today. Goodbye!"
Hang up.
Rushing to end the call with the Elder Princess, a streak of excitement flashed across Gu Sang's usually calm and composed face. She was almost trembling with anticipation as she summoned the system.
"System, I've now reached 30,000,000 merits, am I now able to revive my grandmother?"
Who would have thought, a single second could feel this long.
The system's voice rang out after the agonizing wait of a second.
'Yes, your merit has reached 30,000,000, and you can now revive your grandmother!'
'Congratulations! You've accomplished your task incredibly quickly!'
Gu Sang was equally touched, having waited for this moment since her journey across the ages, from the modern world back to ancient times, and back again.
She said with a voice filled with suppressed excitement and eagerness, "System, I want to revive my grandmother!"
However, before the system could respond, the mechanized voice of the system rang out once again.
'Ding!'
'Received connection!'
'Automatic activation initiated!'
Staring at the connection that appeared out of nowhere, it made her pause her conversation with the system.
Especially since the one on the other end of the line was Pei Changying, who was even more disgusting than the flies in the washroom. Upon seeing his name, Gu Sang paused for a second, then couldn't help but start cursing.
"Dammit, you're such a dung beetle...!"
This idiot must be out to get her.
Yes.
Definitely out to get her.
It's always like this!
Pei Changying, who was taken aback by a series of Gu Sang's curses, was wide-mouthed and astonished.
