The General’s Little Gher 9

"General Huo, are you sure about this?" Tian Qing-Shan became inexplicably restless. "If you cannot reach the distance and your arrow's trajectory lowered…"

Huo Zhang answered by loading his arrow. The words Bai Liang said to him weren't of a blind trust. He could indeed see where Bai Liang was standing with the plum on his head and even further than that very clearly.

He knew Bai Liang hid a mysterious wisdom within him and noticed his enhanced senses even before him. Even if he didn't have any wisdom, he wasn't the kind of person who would exaggerate his words. If he did, he would clearly show he was only joking or bluffing.

Then, his strength should also be able to reach it. The only problem was his bow. The furthest he had ever shot with it was around 1.5 li.

To test it, Huo Zhang raised his bow and drew its string to its very limit. His posture was straight and his arms were steady. Not a muscle trembled, and his body was as still as a statue. But after a full 30 seconds, he loosened his bow and lowered it.

"This one will not do." He turned to Tian Qing-Shan. "Your Highness, lend me the heaviest bow the palace owns."

Tian Qing-Shan who was holding his breath sighed his tension away and ordered a servant to fetch Huo Zhang's requested bow. It was covered with a layer of dust since nobody could use it after the second last general before Huo Zhang. The servant returned with heaving breaths as he struggled to bring the heavy bow with his untrained arms.

Huo Zhang took it and felt twice the weight of his bow. He tightened his grip, loaded his arrow, and raised it. The string required almost 2.5 times the strength from before, but his arms were equally steady.

Nobody dared to breathe as they waited for the general to shoot. It would be too tragic if he accidentally killed his wife only a few days after their wedding. They couldn't tell who was crazier between the husband and wife pair.

After a full minute passed, Tian Qing-Shan thought Huo Zhang wouldn't go through it after all when Huo Zhang finally shot. The arrow cut through the wind with a whistle and nobody could follow it with their eyes.

Bai Liang watched the arrow coming towards him without a blink and didn't flinch the slightest bit once it pierced through the very centre of the plum. He held onto it and the arrow passed through until the base of its feathers.

The guards who were placed there by Tian Qing-Shan in case the scene of blood happened had their hearts fall to their stomachs. Witnessing how much trust the general's wife had in the general, they deeply felt that the general was the luckiest man on the continent.

Bai Liang lowered the pierced plum from his head and was satisfied by the result. He never expected less from his master.

Huo Zhang went to Bai Liang with large strides and reached him in an incredibly short amount of time. He promptly cupped his face and thoroughly ensured there was not a single graze on him.

"I am fine." Bai Liang calmed him down and showed the pierced plum in his hand. "Look."

Huo Zhang lowered his gaze to see that he hit dead centre and finally rested his heart. He took out the handkerchief on his lapel only to remember what it was and put it back.

"You still have that?" Bai Liang was surprised.

"Why would I not?"

"It is too shabby."

"It is proof of our fate." Huo Zhang kissed a corner of Bai Liang's eye. He asked one of the guards to fetch him a damp towel and used his sleeves to clean some of the plum juice that spilt onto Bai Liang's hair. "Do not suggest something so outrageous ever again."

"There is nothing outrageous about believing in my own husband."

"Your husband is still human. There is no telling when I will make a mistake."

"Then, it is my job as your wife to make sure those mistakes are only a blessing in disguise." Bai Liang chuckled.

Huo Zhang's heart trembled. He couldn't contain the bubbling emotion in his chest and kissed his little enchantress as deeply as he could to convey it.

The guards around them hurriedly looked away while Tian Qing-Shan, who had just arrived at the scene, made a 180-degree turn in a fluster. What were they doing in broad daylight!?

They only separated when the guard who was sent to bring a damp towel returned with the requested item and Huo Zhang cleaned Bai Liang's hair until no residue was left behind.

In the end, Tian Qing-Shan was convinced Huo Zhang was suitable to be entrusted with the Heavenly Star Bow. The emperor had heard of their small game and invited them for lunch together. Hearing his general had grown even stronger, he couldn't be more satisfied.

Bai Liang and Huo Zhang returned home after lunch. In the carriage, Xue Liang prompted him.

Xue Liang: [Master, Lan Gao-Ye is reaching out to the Northern War God.]

'How strong is the war god?' Bai Liang wasn't surprised.

Xue Liang: [He is a little stronger than in the original trajectory but still incomparable against Grandmaster.]

Bai Liang thought for a while. 'Am I pregnant, Xiao Xue?'

Xue Liang gave a brief scan before answering: [No, Master. Master perfectly covered Master's womb during the intercourse.]

"General, your wife cannot conceive a baby until next year. Is that alright?" Bai Liang leaned onto Huo Zhang's shoulder.

After the Sacred Dragon Rite, the climax of this world's trajectory would be done. Once the Lan family received their retribution, Tian Qing-Shan and Yu Shen-Jia shouldn't have any major problems in their relationship development, just like when Yi Nian was sent to jail.

Huo Zhang straightened Bai Liang up, his expression tight. "Are you ill? Is it severe?"

"No. I just believe it will not be ideal for us to have a child right now. Everything will calm down after the Sacred Dragon Rite concludes. Only after that will it be safe for us to raise one."

Huo Zhang relaxed with a sigh and returned Bai Liang to his arm. "Then just say so. I will not die from abstinence. Must you scare me like that?"

Bai Liang blinked twice and laughed. "No, General. What I meant is, however much we entangle, you will not be able to impregnate me. I am just informing you so that you will not become worried in the future."

He waited for Huo Zhang's reply when he was suddenly lifted from his seat and moved to Huo Zhang's lap. "I understand. I will wait until next year, my little witch."

"Thank you, General," Bai Liang smiled and brought Huo Zhang's palm to his face. "In return, this witch will help you become even stronger."

Huo Zhang pulled Bai Liang in for a kiss. "You only need to continue bewitching me."

***

The hunting season that was done annually every autumn was one of the biggest events for the imperial family as it was an important event to show off one's capability to the emperor by bringing precious prey. This year was no different.

Only that for this year, instead of competing for the best prey, they must compete in catching a specific beast first. The hunting season wouldn't end before this beast was caught as this was a crucial offering for the Sacred Dragon Rite.

As such, compared to the normal hunting season, the number of participants in each faction was particularly high. Many of them hired the best hunter in the field to find the beast and invited many influential people to join them and show off their connection.

The beast that they must hunt was a stripeless white tiger with a crystal horn on its forehead. They were called crystal-horned tigers, a rare mythical beast which was the sacred dragon's favourite prey.

And a crystal-horned tiger's favourite prey was a gher. They could easily distinguish a gher hidden among 1,000 men. This was why Bai Liang could only coax the very upset Huo Zhang on their way to the hunting ground.

"General, you know this one is not a fragile little gher." Bai Liang rubbed his cheek onto Huo Zhang's shoulder coquettishly. "This wife only wants to help his beloved husband."

"You trust your husband to shoot a plum on top of your head yet you do not trust that he can hunt down a mere tiger by himself?" Huo Zhang was unmoved.

"Of course, this wife believes his husband is the mightiest." Bai Liang mounted himself on Huo Zhang's lap. "This wife is defeated by his husband's might every night."

Huo Zhang closed his eyes and regulated his breath, restraining himself to not be defeated by his little enchantress's temptation.

"Trust me. We are both a hunter and a prey."