Chapter 28: The Heroic Daughter of a Military Family

The headquarters of the Anxi Military Governor was located directly opposite the Kingdom of Kucha, a vast complex covering dozens of acres. It housed military offices, granaries, and residences, serving as the supreme center of power in Anxi. At that moment, Gao Xianzhi had been kneeling in front of the governor’s palace with his upper body exposed for two hours already. The gates remained tightly closed, and Fumeng Lingcha still hadn’t shown up.

At that time, a kind-hearted guard quietly stepped forward. “General Gao, stop kneeling. Commander Cheng is inside!”

Gao Xianzhi was stunned. He let out a soft sigh. If Cheng Qianli was inside, when would he be able to get up from kneeling?

Suddenly, a warhorse rushed over. On it was Gao Wu, her face filled with anger. She wore Tang army armor, carried a sword at her waist, and had arrows on her back. As she drew near, she reined in her horse and shouted, “Dad, get up!”

Gao Xianzhi waved his hand and ordered in a low voice, “Go back quickly. Don’t interfere in the matters of the governor!”

“No! I won’t go back.”

Gao Wu bit her lip tightly. Suddenly, she drew her bow, shot three arrows at the gates of the governor’s palace in succession. *Thwack! Thwack!* The arrows stuck firmly in the red door rings, their tails trembling.

“Fumeng Lingcha, come out!”

Gao Xianzhi was both anxious and angry, but he didn’t dare stand up. He gritted his teeth and said, “Wu, stop being reckless.”

“Dad, you’re the one being reckless!”

Gao Wu sneered. “You’re a deputy commander appointed by the imperial court. The army you lead is the Tang Dynasty’s Anxi Army, not his private force. Even if he wants to dismiss you, what excuse does he have? Dad, you’ve been kneeling for two hours already. He’s humiliated you enough. If you keep kneeling, you’re only humiliating yourself. Get up! Face him head-on.”

Gao Xianzhi sighed again, feeling disheartened. After kneeling for two hours with no response, he realized Fumeng Lingcha was determined to dismiss him. Fine!

He slowly stood up, his legs numb. After putting on his clothes, he shouted at the gates, “General Fumeng, I sincerely admit my fault to you, but you refuse to accept it. It’s okay. I’ve done my best. Whether you dismiss me or demote me, it’s up to you!”

As he leaned on his daughter’s horse to leave, the side gate suddenly opened, and Cheng Qianli’s cold voice came through, “You shot arrows at the governor’s palace and expect to just walk away like that?”

Gao Xianzhi stopped in his tracks, turned slowly, and glanced at him disdainfully. “Commander Cheng, since when have you become the gatekeeper of the general’s residence?”

Cheng Qianli laughed loudly to the sky, his laughter harsh and unpleasant. Suddenly, he stopped laughing and said triumphantly, “Gao Xianzhi, you’re not only good at action but also eloquent. It’s a shame your luck is poor. Let me tell you—starting now, you’re no longer the commander of the four garrisons. I’ll take over temporarily, and I’ll hand over the duties to you tomorrow.”
“Then congratulations, Commander Cheng.”
Gao Xianzhi’s face turned ashen. He turned around and said, “Wu Niang, let’s go!”
“What about these three arrows? Is that it?”
As soon as Cheng Qianli finished speaking, Gao Wu stepped aside, drew her bow, and shot an arrow at him. “Despicable wretch! Die!”
Cheng Qianli was shocked and quickly dodged. The arrow whizzed past his face and stuck in the door, causing intense pain.
Furious, Cheng Qianli roared, “Someone! Capture her!”
At that moment, a cough came from inside the door. “Commander Cheng, why such a fuss?”
Fu Menglingcha finally came out. Glancing at the arrow in the door, he scolded Cheng Qianli unhappily, “Wu Niang is just a child who’s been mischievous since childhood. Why bother with her?”
Now that Fu Menglingcha had appeared, Gao Xianzhi couldn’t leave easily. He slowly stepped forward, bowed, and said, “Saluting the great commander!”
“Oh, it’s Xianzhi! When did you arrive?” Fu Menglingcha asked cheerfully.
“Reporting to the great commander, I’ve been here for two hours.”
“What!”
Fu Menglingcha turned and demanded angrily of his guards, “Gao Xianzhi has arrived. Why didn’t you inform me?”
The guards standing at the door trembled, none daring to speak.
“Hmph! How bold!”
Fu Menglingcha waved his hand and ordered, “Drag them away! Give each of them thirty lashes!”
Immediately, over a dozen guards came and dragged them away. Moments later, screams of agony came from inside the door.
Fu Menglingcha apologized, “Xianzhi, don’t be angry. I’ve spoiled them.”
But Gao Wu sneered, “Yet this Commander Cheng keeps claiming that the great commander has removed my father from his position as commander. How can that be?”
Fu Menglingcha was stunned. He glared at Cheng Qianli in displeasure. Could this fool not hold back even for a day? Cheng Qianli looked extremely embarrassed, lowering his head and not daring to speak.
Gao Xianzhi was already disheartened. No amount of courtesy from Fu Menglingcha could change the fact that he had been removed from his position. He bowed and said, “I won’t disturb the great commander’s rest. Xianzhi will leave now.”

“Gao Xianzhi, there’s nothing I can do about this either. It’s the emperor’s decision. Resistance is pointless; I can only comply. If there’s a chance later, I’ll submit another petition to the emperor to highlight your merits. Just be patient!”
Fu Meng Lingcha came up with a plausible and grand excuse. Logically, the matter should have ended there, but Gao Wu refused to accept it. She asked insistently, “General, why did the emperor dismiss my father?”
“Dareful!”
Fu Meng Lingcha immediately turned hostile. “When did I say it was the emperor’s decision? Guard General Gao, keep your daughter’s mouth shut.”
Just then, a bodyguard pointed in the distance and shouted, “General, look quickly!”
Fu Meng Lingcha glanced over and saw a large group of officers surrounding Bian Lingcheng as they walked toward them. He was momentarily stunned—what were they doing?
“General Fu Meng, you seem so relaxed. Haven’t you seen the barracks on fire?” Bian Lingcheng stepped forward and asked bluntly.
“The barracks are on fire?” Fu Meng Lingcha was confused; he hadn’t known at all. Meanwhile, Gao Xianzhi suddenly snapped into action. He strode forward, pointed at the group of officers, and shouted, “You brutes! How dare you set fire to the barracks? Who did this?”
The hundreds of generals were terrified and knelt down one after another. “General Gao, when the soldiers heard you were dismissed, they started rioting. We couldn’t control the situation, so we came to ask Military Supervisor Bian to intervene.”
“Do you want to kill me? How dare you threaten the supervisor? Who’s behind this?”
Gao Xianzhi was furious. He grabbed He Lou Yurun by the collar. “Black Beard, was it you?”
He Lou Yurun shook his head frantically. “General Gao, it has nothing to do with me.”
“Then who did it?”
Gao Xianzhi’s stern gaze swept over everyone’s faces. The hundreds of generals exchanged glances and all lowered their heads, too afraid to speak. Seeing Gao Xianzhi bring order with just a few words, Bian Lingcheng finally relaxed. He turned to Fu Meng Lingcha and said, “The grudges between you have nothing to do with me. But if this leads to chaos in the army, hum! Hum!”
Fu Meng Lingcha inwardly groaned in frustration. He hadn’t expected Bian Lingcheng to step in, and moreover, to side with Gao Xianzhi. Although Bian Lingcheng didn’t have the authority to command the army, he could impeach him, and in emergencies, he could even suspend his powers. He definitely couldn’t afford to offend this eunuch. But the problem was—he had already dismissed Gao Xianzhi. How could he withdraw his order and stay in power?

He didn’t know how to start speaking for a moment, but Lady Wu seized the opportunity and shouted from the side, “Military supervisor, just now General Fu Meng said the emperor has decided to remove my father from his position as Commander of the Troops. I want to know—what reason does the emperor have for removing my father?”
Fu Meng Ling was terrified; he frantically waved his hands to deny it, “No! I definitely never said such a thing. I also didn’t remove Xianzhi from his position as Commander of the Troops.”
Reversing his decision might be embarrassing, but it was far better than committing the crime of falsely issuing imperial edicts. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and glared fiercely at Gao Wu.
Bian Lingcheng nodded and turned to the generals, “You’ve all heard it—the general hasn’t removed General Gao from his military position. Go back quickly and calm down the soldiers. No more trouble!”
The generals were overjoyed and stood up to leave. Just then, dozens of horses rushed toward them. At the front was an envoy from the Imperial Secretariat, holding a scroll wrapped in yellow hemp paper. He rushed forward and shouted, “Who here is Gao Xianzhi?”
Gao Xianzhi quickly replied, “It’s me!”
The envoy raised the scroll and declared loudly, “An imperial edict has arrived! Gao Xianzhi, receive it!”