Chapter Ten: The Hero Saves the Beauty

  Here is the translation:

  As for Huayun, on that day, after failing to seduce Qin Wei, she bribed a servant to frame him in front of Hu Yong. Although she searched high and low for half the night, she was eventually talked down by Hu Yong. She didn't really want to die anyway, so it was just an excuse to save face.

  That day, feeling bored and frustrated at home, she took a young maid out for a stroll. As she had always been fond of lively places, they went to the most bustling street, without even taking a sedan chair. They watched acrobats, tasted snacks, and bought new trinkets, having a great time.

  Just as they were enjoying themselves, they ran into a few ruffians who eyed Huayun's beauty and her generous spending. The men approached them with flirtatious words, but Huayun pretended to be angry and gave the maid a signal. The maid quickly understood and shouted: "How dare you! You're just a bunch of scoundrels, daring to be rude to our mistress! Do you want to die?"

  The ruffians were taken aback by the maid's rebuke, but their leader was notorious for his recklessness. He thought that even if Huayun was really an official's wife, she should not be out in public like a commoner, and certainly not dressed so elegantly. But no matter how elegant her clothes were, they couldn't hide her true nature.

  The ruffian became bolder, speaking obscenities and making indecent gestures. Huayun was not one to back down, and she slapped him across the face. The blow landed squarely on his cheek, but this only enraged the ruffians further, who began to grab at her.

  The maid shouted from the side: "You bunch of good-for-nothings! Stop it! This is the wife of the commander-in-chief! You're going to die!" But the ruffian just laughed and said: "Ha! The wife of the commander-in-chief? Don't make us laugh! If you're the wife, then I'm the commander-in-chief too!"

  Huayun was furious but helpless, unable to free herself from their grasp. Just as she was being dragged away, two horses galloped up, accompanied by a loud shout: "Stop!" Everything froze, and the onlookers held their breath in fear.

  The two of them immediately came down, and Pī Pí still wanted to take action, but after a few rounds they were all knocked to the ground. One of them managed to grab Huá Yún from Pī Pí's hands during the fight. At this point, Huá Yún was completely exhausted and collapsed onto this person's body. This person wrapped his arms around her waist and knocked down several people who had just gotten back up.

  The scared and injured men ran away with their tails between their legs. The two didn't chase after them, but instead asked the woman and her maid if they were alright.

  Hua Yun felt extremely comfortable and at ease in this person's arms, as if she had finally found a sense of stability. Her emotions had calmed down slightly, and her body no longer trembled like before. "Ma'am, are you alright? Were you hurt?" A gentle voice asked, as Hua Yun was carefully lifted off the person's body, only to be followed by a soft "Ah?"

  Hua Yun also turned her head and took a closer look, it was none other than Qin Wei! Beside him was a military officer-like person, who was Zhou Ke.

  At this moment, Huayun's heart was filled with mixed emotions. The person who had once made her fall in love and then ruthlessly crushed her feelings had now saved her. His chest, his muscles, the scent of his sweat, she clung tightly to him, unlike last time when she was rejected, this time he took the initiative. Thinking about it, Huayun's face flushed with a hint of red, making her look even more beautiful.

  After the crowd dispersed, Zhou Ke also said, "Let's get the lady out of here, is she hurt?" Hua Yun replied with a smile, "No, I'm fine, General. Don't worry about me!" But her eyes were fixed on Qin Wei. Qin Wei said, "Since everything is alright, let's go." This sentence was directed at Zhou Ke.

  "General!" Hua Yun called out to stop Qin Wei, who was about to mount his horse and leave. "I hope the general won't tell Master about today's events. Those few people were just looking for trouble, but fortunately, thanks to the general's rescue, nothing serious happened. Let's just drop it."

  "Good!" Qin Wei replied coldly.

  "Please be at ease, madam," Zhou Ke said with a bow, "we won't report this to Commander Xing."

  "It's all right, thank you." Hua Yun looked at Qin Wei with a gloomy expression, turned around to leave, but didn't expect to trip and fall to the ground after taking one step. Zhou Ke and the maid rushed over to help her up, and Qin Wei also got off his horse and walked over to take a look. Seeing Qin Wei come over, Hua Yun was delighted in her heart and said: "It's nothing, maybe I accidentally twisted my foot during our argument earlier. With the maid here, let her help me back. The general's kindness in saving me will be repaid another day. The general is busy with official duties, please hurry off and don't delay your national affairs because of me."

  Actually, Zhou Ke understood that he and Qin Wei were on their way back to the camp after finishing official business, and there was no particular hurry. But for some reason, after rescuing the person, Qin Wei didn't seem to have any intention of sending Madame back to the manor. Could it be true what outsiders said, that his relationship with the master of the camp had become so strained? Just as he thought this, Qin Wei told him: "Zhou Ke, you send Madame back to the manor." "Yes." Zhou Ke called for a sedan chair and sent Huayun back to the manor.

  Hua Yun returned to the mansion, but no matter what she couldn't calm down her already turbulent emotions. She kept recalling the scenes with Qin Wei from earlier, his majesty, his bravery, his warmth, and his gentleness, lingering in her mind, unable to be shaken off. Hua Yun didn't want to shake off this wonderful memory either, she wanted to preserve it forever.

  At this time, the maid had already prepared the bath water and asked the lady to take a bath. However, Hua Yun, who was about to remove her makeup in front of the mirror, became flustered. It turned out that during the tug-of-war with Pi Li earlier, her hairpin had been pulled off, causing many strands of hair to fall loose. Her complexion wasn't good either, clearly frightened and pale. She should have left him with a beautiful impression, whether it was love or hate, at least letting him remember her beauty, but now she looked disheveled. Hua Yun regretted it deeply.

  While taking a bath, Hua Yun's imagination ran wild...