A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

In Fengcheng, the moon was high in the sky, and the lights were still on in the central command tent.

After processing the day's military reports, Huo Jiang left one of them and tossed it in front of Mu Nanzhao.

"have a look."

Mu Nanzhao picked it up, but only glanced at it twice before putting it back on the table, clearly having known about it even earlier.

Huo Jiang wasn't surprised at all, and he had an expression that seemed to say he was looking forward to a good show.

"As expected, your plan has been thwarted by Boss Gu once again."

"People would rather work day and night to finish their work and go back to Huachidu Village. What does that tell us?"

"That means Boss Gu has seen through your little tricks."

"You think locking people up in a military dependents' village is protection? In the end, they'll probably see you the same way as before: self-righteous."

At first, Mu Nanzhao remained silent with a cold face, but after listening for a while, he even gave a cold laugh.

When he heard the last part, he finally looked up at Huo Jiang, his eyes filled with barely concealed anger.

"How many times have you even seen Gu Xixi?"

"Don't talk like you know her so well."

Seeing Mu Nanzhao's reaction, Huo Jiang knew that he had guessed everything correctly.

After all, in this person's record, the only time he's ever made someone so angry they'd vomit blood.

Even if Mount Tai were to collapse before him, he would remain as calm and composed as if walking in a garden, never letting anyone perceive the turmoil in his heart from his expression.

But things changed when he fell on hard times and came to the Northwest.

His several emotional outbursts all boiled down to something related to Gu Xixi.

Huo Jiang looked at Mu Nanzhao and smiled inwardly, but then suppressed his smile and said with feigned regret, "Actually, I can really understand why you feel this way."

"As your brother, if you had consulted me before doing all this, you wouldn't have ended up like this."

Mu Nanzhao was not so easily fooled. He coldly glanced at him and said, "I don't have time for idle chatter."

"I've heard that tea stalls inside the city gates are frequented by gossipy men and women. If the General goes there, he'll surely find a kindred spirit."

Huo Jiang cursed inwardly, "Damn it, he's so stubborn!"

He continued patiently, "When I returned to the capital last time, I knew that you had never been with a woman. Although you and that girl from the He family were childhood sweethearts, you never got close to her."

"You were young then, so it's understandable."

"It's been years since we last met. You're not still a virgin, are you?"

Mu Nanzhao: "..."

Seeing this, Huo Jiang was inwardly laughing hysterically, but he took a deep breath to hold it in and still spoke with a straight face:

"Since you left the Mu family, the only servants in the manor have been guards and young men."

Huo Jiang clicked his tongue in embarrassment and frowned, saying, "You haven't met many girls, and you're not young anymore and still unmarried. No wonder you don't understand women."

Mu Nanzhao stared straight at Huo Jiang.

This time, however, there was no anger in his eyes. Instead, he calmly picked up the teacup and slightly raised his left hand.

"Go on, continue."

Huo Jiang thought he had finally given in and was secretly pleased. "Women think differently from us men. Sometimes you may not understand what they care about, but you should try your best to understand."

"Only after you understand it will you truly know how to handle this problem from her perspective."

"No matter how hard you rack your brains, it's useless if you're single-minded!"

"What you do may not be what others want."

Mu Nanzhao calmly took a sip of tea and asked, "You only have your sister-in-law as your wife, and no concubines, right?"

He put down his teacup, sighed softly, and seemed quite disappointed. "I suppose your experience isn't much richer than mine. Tomorrow I'll ask someone else; that would be more reliable."

Huo Jiang immediately became unhappy, "Nonsense!"

"I've been married to your sister-in-law for twelve years, and our child is already quite grown up. I have far more experience than you!"

Mu Nanzhao remained silent, appearing indifferent and unwilling to listen any further.

Huo Jiang glared at him, his beard bristling. "What, you still don't believe me, kid?"

"Ha! Don't even mention your sister-in-law. Before I got engaged to your sister-in-law, I didn't have this much beard when I was young. Back in the capital, I was a woman with many beauties in her sleeves, riding a horse and leaning against a bridge!"

"And there's Mingxiaofang in the capital. My brothers and I used to frequent it. We were just as dashing as you literati."

Mingxiaofang was one of the most famous music and dance academies in the capital.

There you'll find the most beautiful women, the best songs, dances, music, and wine.

High-ranking officials, nobles, and literati gathered here, spending lavishly. Many of the poems and songs sung in the streets originated from Mingxiaofang.

"I never would have guessed, Old Huo, that you were quite the dashing young man back in the day."

Mu Nanzhao smiled and nodded, seemingly expressing his admiration.

Huo Jiang said dismissively, "Back then you were just a little kid playing hide-and-seek at home!"

Mu Nanzhao said coldly, "I never play hide-and-seek."

When he became a schoolteacher in Huachidu Village and watched the children play, he belatedly realized that he had hardly had a childhood.

Other children play in the water, dig in the dirt, fly kites, and climb trees.

He studied, practiced martial arts, and listened to the elders of the Mu family discussing politics...

Mentioning the past, Huo Jiang became interested in talking and wanted to teach him a few more moves, but then he saw Mu Nanzhao stand up.

"Where are you going? I haven't finished speaking!"

Mu Nanzhao turned his head calmly, "He Jinghui wrote that five days ago his men safely sent my sister-in-law to the mountainous area on the northwestern border. She should be here soon."

"When I meet my sister-in-law, I will definitely tell her how dashing and debonair you were before your wedding."

Huo Jiang's smile froze, and he stood there dumbfounded.

Mu Nanzhao, still feeling uneasy, sighed and muttered to himself, "A whole building full of beauties, is that it?"

"It's really intriguing to know just how many sleeves there are."

"I'm sure my sister-in-law is capable of getting to the bottom of this."

He picked up his toiletries and strolled out.

Huo Jiang roared, "Mu Nanzhao! If you dare to do this, I! I!"

"I'll tie you up and send you to a brothel, and find ten girls to give you your first taste of virginity!"

"I looked at Gu Xixi coldly; she's no less capable than my virtuous wife."

"Once you've tainted yourself in a brothel, you can forget about Gu Xixi ever looking at you again for the rest of your life!!"

Mu Nanzhao heard this from outside the tent and clenched his teeth.

Still calling her a virtuous wife?

She's clearly a notorious shrew in Beijing's social circles!

Otherwise, how could they have driven the great general to such a desperate moment that he would utter such a foolish move?

When Mu Nanzhao finished washing up and returned, Huo Jiang had already calmed down and was writing at his desk.

Hearing the noise, he said without looking up, "The new magistrate of Qingtian County you recommended is indeed useful."

"With the implementation of his proposed methods in various counties, prices of goods and grain have remained stable to this day."

Mu Nanzhao said calmly, "Fighting and fighting are matters for us."

"The common people are innocent; at the very least, we must ensure that they can live a peaceful life."

Huo Jiang raised his head and said, "In the game of chess, it's perfectly normal for two sides to lose a few pieces during a battle."

"That's what Mu Nanzhao, whom I knew in the past, said."

Why has it changed now?

He stroked his beard and said, "Wait, don't tell me, let me guess."

"Are you protecting one person, and incidentally protecting all the people of the Northwest?"