How could I possibly be confined in a cage?

Chapter 21 Marriage

Even after the family banquet ended and the curtain fell on the opera, Commander Guo did not leave.

The third and fourth concubines tactfully took their children and left, while the first wife helped the old lady back to rest.

Only the fifth concubine, alluring and graceful, walked over and asked, "Master, the festival is just around the corner, why don't you come to my courtyard to admire the moon today?"

Commander Guo picked up a string of Buddhist prayer beads and started counting them. Upon hearing this, he rubbed the back of his hand against the young and smooth face of his fifth concubine.

"No, let's go to the study today and settle the eldest son's marriage first."

Guo Zixing had been waiting at a distance, and only stepped forward when he heard Commander Guo mention him. "Father, what are your orders?"

Looking at his son's fearful face, Commander Guo was stunned for a moment. He had missed his children growing up when he was young, and now, looking at them closely, he saw that they had grown into adults.

Guo Zixing was his eldest son, and his birth brought great joy to Marshal Guo, though they later lived far apart.

Guo Zixing looks more like his biological mother, but the heroic spirit between his brows is exactly like that of the warlord. As for feelings, that's out of the question. It's just that now he's willing to think about the future of his child.

As he strolled toward the study, he asked, "Are you familiar with the girls in the Qiao family?"

Guo Zixing honestly replied, "I'm not familiar with them. My son mostly works with the police and rarely associates with the sons of powerful and wealthy people in the city."

Upon hearing this, Commander Guo couldn't help but feel a little regretful. "I haven't seen you all these years. You didn't get much education back in your hometown. Nowadays, everyone in the city is going to university. Are you interested?"

Guo Zixing didn't know why Commander Guo was bringing this up. He had also attended middle school in his hometown, but his grades were really bad.

Later, when he came to Sifang City, he felt out of place with his younger siblings and couldn't really get along with the sons of the powerful and wealthy.

"My son... wants to attend a military academy. He wasn't good at studying when he was a child; he would get a headache just looking at books. His teachers would say that he was no good at academics, but he was good at martial arts."

Commander Guo laughed, “There are now specialized military schools in the country. If the Baoding Military Academy back home were still there, you might have been sent there long ago. But now there is also the Whampoa Military Academy. If you want to go, I can recommend it to you.”

Guo Zixing could not hide his joy, "Son...son thanks Father for his consideration."

Commander Guo waved his hand, "Don't be too happy yet, I have something to tell you."

Guo Zixing listened attentively. Commander Guo continued, "The first thing is to get married. As the ancients said, 'Get married before you start a career.' If you get married first, your mother and grandmother will probably agree to let you go out. Then you'll have someone to take care of you when you're away."

Secondly, there's academics. You didn't study hard before, and that won't work now. Military academies are for training talent; even with my recommendation, you won't be accepted if your academic performance is too poor. And what about the matter I asked you to handle?”

Guo Zixing had been listening attentively, but as soon as this matter was mentioned, he immediately became uneasy.

“My son has some leads, and since it’s a holiday today, those two sisters might take advantage of the crowd and chaos to go home. I’ve already arranged for people to keep watch around the Lu family’s house and the house of the old servant’s son. If there’s any movement, we’ll arrest them immediately.”

Commander Guo nodded, then asked, "Do you know why I asked you to do this for the Lü family?"

After thinking for a moment, Guo Zixing carefully replied, "It was said before that the Lü family offended the Second Madam, but from what I've observed, the Lü family... is wealthy? Is that why Father asked me to take charge personally?"

Commander Guo frowned subconsciously. His boss was being too cautious, and not very efficient in handling matters.

But this was also because he had never taught her, so he felt somewhat relieved. "To tell you the truth, offending the second wife was a lie. The truth is that the Lü family is wealthy, and very wealthy. In this day and age, only with great wealth can one strengthen the army and enrich the people. The Lü family is just an ordinary commoner and could not be protected anyway. I was just making the most of their resources."

Guo Zixing was somewhat puzzled. "Forgive my bluntness, but although the Lü family was once wealthy, by Lü Peijun's generation they had fallen on hard times and had to sell off their ancestral property to make ends meet. How much do they have left? Is it worth it for us to take action ourselves?"

Commander Guo said, "It's not about the amount, but mainly... Boss, this is the first task I'm giving you, so you must do it perfectly. All the benefits will be yours."

Seeing Guo Dashuai's meaningful expression, Guo Zixing finally understood that this was Guo Dashuai testing him and preparing his first pot of gold.

His eyes suddenly burned with emotion, and Guo Zixing said sincerely, "Thank you, Father. I understand."

"There's one more thing," Commander Guo continued, "Go and make contact with the Qiao family. Once you've taken a good look, I'll make a decision for you."

Then he patted him on the shoulder, smiled, and walked away.

Guo Zixing watched Guo Dashuai leave, his heart burning with excitement. He couldn't wait to make some achievements so that people would see that like father, like son.

Once he calmed down and regained his usual aloof demeanor, Guo Zixing got up and walked towards the other courtyard.

Now he finally understood why the Lu family's affairs had been entrusted to him: the Lu family had ancestral property but no capable descendants.

Lu Peijun was a mere scholar, and none of the families he associated with were wealthy or powerful. He was considered an unknown figure in Sifang City. Moreover, he had no sons, which meant he was considered childless in this era. He was perfect for practicing with.

To acquire a fortune, not so much as to arouse envy, and without worrying about retaliation from descendants, is truly the best choice.

Thinking of the sallow-skinned woman in the villa, Guo Zixing's eyes filled with calculation.

In the study, Commander Guo leaned back in his chair, his face contorted in pain.

His body had been afflicted with many ailments from years of fighting away from home, not to mention the numerous injuries he had sustained. The symptoms had not been very noticeable in the past, but in the last two years they had become increasingly unbearable.

Lieutenant Zhang pushed open the door and came in, carrying a bowl of dark, steaming Chinese medicine.

"General, the medicine is ready."

He tapped the table with one hand, signaling Zhang to put it down, while his other hand clutched his chest, his brow furrowed.

Seeing the commander's pained expression, Zhang, the adjutant, said worriedly, "Commander... we've already made arrangements with the Western Hospital; several foreign experts are there."

Commander Guo waved his hand and said, "I understand."

He's actually not that old. At forty, one is supposed to be free from confusion, which is the golden age of one's life and should be the time when he's most triumphant. He has everything he could want: power, status, fame, money...

However, before he could enjoy it for long, he was struck by illness. How could he not feel frustrated?

As a result, the usually hot-tempered Commander Guo has become much more restrained in recent days.

Joy injures the heart, anger injures the liver, fear injures the kidneys, grief injures the lungs, and worry injures the spleen. In order to maintain my health, I have already given up many things.

A month ago, he witnessed the Guo brothers fighting in public, using vicious moves, which angered him greatly. He then flew into a rage and personally beat the two boys until their skin was torn and bleeding.

He regretted it afterward and called a doctor to come and see him, but unexpectedly, before the doctor could even see the two young masters, he collapsed first, apparently due to being consumed by anger.

He fought wars despite his health in previous years, which ultimately sowed the seeds of his downfall.

Commander Guo stroked the flesh on his chest, where a broken bullet casing was buried deep inside. Due to insufficient resources at the time, it could not be removed in time. By the time the conditions became available later, the casing had grown into the flesh, close to his heart.

He didn't think much of it when he was young, but now it has become his fatal flaw.

His involuntary sadness was like that of a dejected, aging lion king. The adjutant couldn't bear to look any longer and turned to wait at the study door.

Commander Guo then thought of his fourth concubine, who was a descendant of the imperial physicians, but she could only prescribe some mild remedies that could temporarily relieve the pain.

Commander Guo ordered the news to be kept secret, fearing that news of his illness would attract wolves, so apart from the doctor and his adjutant, no one knew about it.

As for the fourth concubine... Commander Guo didn't think too much about it. Even if it was for the sake of the third son, she wouldn't harm herself.

The war has never ended. Although there has been a brief period of peace, it does not mean that we can rest easy. He needs to make plans as soon as possible before he can leave his post to seek medical treatment.

The bowl of Chinese medicine had cooled down a bit. Commander Guo picked it up and drank it all in one gulp, his eyes filled with desolation.

Taking advantage of the momentous occasion, Guo Zixing left the marshal's mansion in high spirits and headed to the other courtyard.

Today was supposed to be a night for family reunion, but he didn't plan to stay home. As if possessed, his feet made the decision before his mind could process it, and by the time he realized it, he was already out of the marshal's mansion.

Qingru has been living in the villa for over a month now. They are neither relatives nor friends, neither guests nor servants, and it feels awkward for them.

Hongyu was used to Qingru living in the courtyard, and when Mid-Autumn Festival came, she would invite her to celebrate the festival together.

Hongyu was bought by Guo Zixing himself and kept in his own courtyard, so he used it more than others.

She has no parents and usually lives alone. This time, she finally found Qingru, who neither serves her nor does she have to do any work. The two of them get along like friends.

After dinner tonight, Hongyu set out fruit wine in the courtyard and invited Qingru to enjoy the moon together.

"Miss Cui'er, how do you usually celebrate holidays when you're at home?"

Qingru paused. A festival? A festival for family reunion, yet it's a time of family separation and ruin. How could she possibly feel like celebrating?

Concealing her true feelings, Qingru put on a nostalgic expression again.

“When I was at home… I used to live with my dad and sister. We would eat together, and after dinner we would admire the moon in the yard, eating pomegranates and peanuts that we grew ourselves, as well as mooncakes that we made ourselves. Later… I started living alone.”

Hongyu suddenly remembered that "Cui'er" had said that she was the only one left in her family. Had she just brought up someone's painful memory?

Therefore, she apologized, saying, "I'm sorry, Miss Cui'er, I didn't mean to mention it."

Qingru came to her senses. How could she be harsh on this honest girl? "I'm not blaming you. It's nothing."

Hongyu regretted bringing up the very thing she shouldn't have, so she tried her best to change the subject.

"Um, well, let's play a drinking game, I'll go first."

Hongyu thought about the scene she had seen before, but she couldn't describe it in words.

"Let's... let's recite a poem, it has to include the moon, and if we can't come up with one, we'll have a drink."

She felt that she had seen the world in front of the young master, so beating "Cui'er" was a piece of cake.

Qingru was also quite bored. She was trapped in this courtyard and couldn't get out no matter what. Hongyu was one of her few "comforts" each day.

He then said, "You go first."