Volume 1, Chapter 44: The General

That evening, Grand General Xue Yuandao’s manor welcomed two unexpected guests.

The unannounced arrival of Shen Ran and Xue Wu nearly stunned everyone in the household.

As a Grand General, Xue Yuandao had numerous military affairs to handle every day. Because Shen Ran and Xue Wu had made a surprise visit, he was not at the manor at the moment. However, Xue Nian, who was notoriously rarely home, was uncharacteristically present.

Xue Nian was Xue Yuandao’s only son and Xue Wu’s elder brother by the same mother. In Xue Yuandao’s absence, Xue Nian’s word was absolute throughout the Grand General’s manor.

Since Shen Ran and Xue Wu had arrived in secret, to prevent any leaks, Xue Zhong, the head steward of the manor, hurriedly dismissed the idle servants. He invited Shen Ran and Xue Wu to the seat of honor in the main hall while frantically sending men to summon Xue Yuandao back and requesting Xue Nian to come forward first to pay his respects.

Having entered the imperial palace, Xue Wu had not returned home or seen her father and brother for a long time. Sitting in her chair, she felt a subtle, nervous flutter of homesickness.

Sensing her tension, Shen Ran considerately refrained from disturbing her.

After about the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn, a steady, powerful sound of footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the hall.

Almost at the exact moment the footsteps sounded, a figure flashed into the hall like a gust of wind.

The instant they saw the newcomer clearly, everyone felt their eyes dazzle.

This was a young man in his early twenties.

His figure was tall, slender, and upright, resembling a verdant pine or cypress.

The young man wore no accessories whatsoever. Clad entirely in crimson robes, he had a curved saber hanging at his waist. Even in the gloom of night, he looked like the blazing sun, fierce as fire. With sword-like brows and starry eyes, his entire being exuded a sharp, aggressive aura, handsome enough to be almost blinding.

Unrestrained and untamed, he unconsciously radiated an arrogant air of looking down upon the entire world.

A subject was not permitted to carry weapons in the presence of the sovereign. Seeing the curved saber at the young man's waist, the guards standing behind Shen Ran instantly changed expression, and the sound of swords being drawn from their scabbards rang out continuously.

Cold, flashing glints aimed straight at the young man.

Yet, facing the impending blades, the young man stood his ground without moving an inch.

The corners of his thin lips curved upward slightly. Although he was smiling, it carried a faint, elusive hint of mockery.

Seeing this, Xue Wu abruptly stood up from her chair, a look of anxiety on her face. "Brother!"

Shen Ran caught her hand, pressed her back into her seat, and said calmly to the guards, "Stop. Do not offend Young Master Xue."

Hearing Shen Ran’s command, the imperial guards froze collectively, before retreating back behind Shen Ran a moment later.

This young man was none of other than Xue Nian.

At this moment, Xue Nian and Shen Ran were sitting and standing respectively. Instead of immediately dropping to his knees to kowtow, Xue Nian lowered his gaze slightly and looked at Shen Ran. As their eyes met, sparks seemed to fly through the air.

Shen Ran did not miss the deep, chilling coolness in Xue Nian's eyes, and he likewise saw the bitter frost in the depths of Shen Ran's gaze.

Although Xue Nian was a military general, he was not reckless. The old steward standing nearby, unable to guess his intentions, broke out in a cold sweat in an instant.

He hurriedly lowered his voice and said, "Young General, quickly pay respects to His Majesty and the Empress!"

After a fleeting moment of silence, Xue Nian cleanly and decisively dropped to his knees. "Your subject, Xue Nian, pays respects to His Majesty and the Empress. Overjoyed to behold the celestial countenance, yet arriving hastily and unbidden with my weapon, I beg Your Majesty and the Empress to pardon my capital crime."

His voice was clear and resonant, devoid of any panic.

With those words, he remained kneeling on the ground without rising.

It was a respectful and submissive posture.

Yet it also seemed to possess an indomitable, ringing spine of pride.

Just like other offspring of military families, Zhao Yuanzhuo was a pampered, high-spirited young master, but Xue Nian was somewhat different.

He was an eagle soaring through the sky.

Just as he had disliked Xue Wu in his past life, in his past life, Shen Ran had never liked seeing Xue Wu's elder brother either.

There was an irrepressible, exuberant vitality about Xue Nian—one that even Shen Ran secretly envied to a degree.

Just like now, even his action of kneeling in salute was smooth and fluid, completely devoid of servility.

As a general holding military power, Xue Yuandao knew he would inevitably arouse the emperor's suspicion. To avoid suspicion, he had never taken Xue Nian onto the battlefield. Even though Xue Nian was addressed as the Young General, he held only an idle, sinecure post in the capital.

Yet in his past life, when Xue Yuandao was trapped, Shen Ran not only refused to send reinforcements but also ordered the general's manor to be placed under strict surveillance. It was Xue Nian who charged out of Shengjing alone on a horse, galloped to the border, and directed maneuvers from left to right. Although it ultimately ended in a bitter victory fought against enemies on both fronts, he had successfully used a smaller force to defeat a larger one, forced the enemy to retreat, and even shot the enemy commander dead with a single arrow.

Regarding how Xue Nian had accomplished these feats, which most considered nearly impossible, the hardships involved naturally went without saying. But from then on, Xue Nian became famous in a single battle, and his prestige within the army even far surpassed that of Grand General Xue Yuandao.

Unfortunately, in the end, Xue Yuandao died of severe wounds, and Xue Nian led the elite Xue Family Army into the deep mountains, never to return to the imperial court.

In his past life, when the rebel army breached the imperial palace, the women in the inner court were either killed or seized as concubines. Only Xue Wu, the Empress, was left behind—they neither dared to kill her nor forcibly coerce her, primarily out of fear of Xue Nian. This was precisely what gave Xue Wu the opportunity to secretly escape the imperial palace.

Looking at the young man kneeling on the ground, Shen Ran hooked the corners of his lips with an inscrutable smile.

The current Xue Nian, to him, was somewhat like he himself had been to Shen Jianning back then.

He was indeed a sharp and useful blade, but it was impossible to confirm which direction this blade would point.

Loyal subjects sometimes possessed a pedantic submissiveness and awe toward imperial power, and that was always the kind of person the imperial court needed.

Yet Xue Nian was definitely not such a person.

Otherwise, he would not have had the audacity to break out of Shengjing alone on a horse, the capability to snatch survival from the jaws of death and repel the enemy, nor, after achieving victory, the defiance to ignore the imperial decree and lead his trusted aides into the deep mountains.

If he were truly loyal, he indeed had the ability to guard the Great Zhou dynasty; but if he turned against them, he would become the sovereign's greatest mortal threat.

From the perspective of an emperor, a subject with a rebellious spine from birth was even more terrifying than an incompetent one.

Shen Ran did not speak.

The entire hall was silent enough for a pin to drop, the atmosphere heavy and stagnant to the point of oppression.

Knowing that Xue Nian must harbor deep dissatisfaction regarding the affairs concerning the Zhao family, Xue Wu cast a worried glance at her brother, then looked at Shen Ran and spoke in a low voice, "Your Majesty."

Tapping his index finger lightly on the table, Shen Ran suddenly let out a chuckle.

A moment later, he slowly commanded:

"Grant Young Master Xue a seat."