TSFLIP Chapter 296

Gu Yan said calmly, “Commander Qian, that ‘madman’ you just called me—I’ll take it as a compliment.”

Qian Qiu blurted, “I still don’t understand… How could someone like you fall in love with a five-year-old child ten years ago?”

“You’re mistaken, Commander Qian. It wasn’t ten years ago—it was fifteen years ago,” Gu Yan corrected him with a slight smile.

“Fifteen years ago…”

Gu Yan’s words stunned not only Qian Qiu but also Su Xu, who couldn’t help showing her surprise. Fifteen years ago, Xia Feng Guang was merely a baby, while Gu Yan had already been a dashing and accomplished young man. How could he… How could he fall in love with an infant?

Their incomprehension reached such an extreme that it turned to horror. But Gu Yan remained unbothered. He was as elegant and refined as ever, exuding an air of grace. A hint of the tenderness he kept hidden in his eyes emerged, revealing that he was thinking of the one person who occupied his thoughts and heart.

“Feng Guang… She’s the one I’ve been waiting for to grow up,” Gu Yan sighed. “You’ll never understand how long I’ve waited for this day.”

But what did it matter if they didn’t understand?

Qian Qiu managed to find his voice amidst his shock. “If you love Xia Feng Guang so much… Didn’t it occur to you that during her time imprisoned by me, I might have done something to her? After all, setting aside her identity as Empress, she’s still a beauty.”

Gu Yan suddenly let out a cold laugh. “Do you think you’re capable of touching her?”

Qian Qiu froze.

“Have you forgotten, Commander Qian? Five years ago, after spending a night in a brothel, you discovered that your manhood had been… severed,” Gu Yan said with delight. “I believe the rumor was that a courtesan who refused to sell her body was responsible.”

“It was you…” Qian Qiu shouted uncontrollably. “You orchestrated that as well!”

Qian Qiu had always been a man who could hold his liquor, yet on that particular day, just three drinks had left him completely unconscious. When he woke up, he was met with excruciating pain in his lower body, and the courtesan was nowhere to be found. He had never told anyone about the incident; as a man, his pride wouldn’t allow it—especially regarding something so humiliating.

Faced with Qian Qiu’s fury, Gu Yan simply smiled. “You should consider yourself fortunate. If not for the fact that you’re no longer truly a man, do you think I would have allowed you to stay near Feng Guang?”

As for the others—the Imperial Guards—they all had their weaknesses firmly in Gu Yan’s grasp. Who among them would dare to touch Her Majesty?

Gu Yan spoke with certainty. “Commander Qian, see? Even wearing a fake beard suits you quite well.”

Five years ago, Qian Qiu ceased growing facial hair. To avoid suspicion, he had resorted to wearing a fake beard—a fact he regarded as his greatest humiliation and the most painful stain on his life. Gu Yan’s gentle smile was, to Qian Qiu, nothing but mocking contempt.

Unable to contain himself, Qian Qiu raised his blade and charged at Gu Yan. “I’ll kill you!”

He never made it close. Before he could reach Gu Yan, his body lost balance, and he collapsed to the ground. Blood poured from his body—his left leg had been severed. It was only after a long moment that the pain registered, and he let out a harrowing scream.

Xiao Wo retracted the silver wire in his hands. Like Xiao Hao, Xiao Wu, and Xiao Liao, he watched the scene with cold indifference, as though the man writhing and wailing on the floor wasn’t a human but a pig awaiting slaughter.

Su Xu, whose role never involved killing, turned her back to avoid the gruesome sight.

Gu Yan stepped around Qian Qiu and walked to the door. “Dismantle him.”

The four responded in unison, “Yes, Master.”