Inevitable Victory

Zhou Heng was in poor spirits, and his thoughts were often wandering. That afternoon, Xiao Jue summoned several trusted confidants to discuss the next strategic move in the outer room of his own tent.

The meeting was lengthy, lasting from the afternoon until dusk and continuing into the late night.

Inside the tent, the charcoal fire was warm and cozy, and the air was filled with the scent of ink and tea, as well as a solemn atmosphere befitting the center of power.

As a clerk in the army, Zhou Heng had to be alert and record the key points.

At first, he was able to keep up with the pace, but as time went on, the lack of sleep over the past few days and the exhaustion from being "forced to work" at night began to have a severe backlash.

His eyelids grew heavier and heavier, the words in front of him gradually blurred into a blur, and the deep, serious voices of the generals discussing in his ears seemed to turn into a hypnotic spell.

He tried to pinch his thigh to stay awake, but his fingers were limp and he couldn't muster any strength.

His head bobbed up and down, and finally, during a brief moment when Xiao Jue and Mr. Du were exchanging opinions in hushed tones, his head lolled to the side, and he completely lost consciousness, falling into a deep sleep on the low table in front of him.

He even had a brief but peaceful dream, a dream without dark eyes or binding strips of cloth, only a warm and reassuring darkness.

Zhou Heng was awakened by bright light shining through his eyelids after an unknown amount of time.

He groggily opened his eyes and saw an unfamiliar blue tent top embroidered with intricate dark patterns. Beneath him was a soft, fur-covered couch, and the air was filled with a refreshing and pleasant fragrance, similar to pine and cypress, completely different from the musty smell in his barracks.

He sat up abruptly and looked around.

This is a simple yet dignified inner room, sparsely furnished, but each item exudes understated luxury. Through the half-open door, one can see the familiar meeting scene outside—it's Xiao Jue's tent!

Zhou Heng was instantly stunned. How did he end up sleeping here? And so soundly? Last night… he had absolutely no recollection of the latter half of last night's meeting!

Immediately afterwards, an unprecedented feeling of refreshment swept over him.

There was no more startling awakening in the middle of the night, no more back pain or hidden discomfort after being forced to "work," and the lingering dizziness and dull pain in my head had mostly dissipated.

He actually... slept a full, peaceful, and undisturbed long sleep!

This is the most luxurious enjoyment during this unlucky period of being "targeted by dogs"!

In his ecstasy, a thought struck him like lightning into his muddled mind:

Xiao Jue's camp!

That's right! Why didn't he think of that sooner! Is there any place in this military camp safer than the sleeping tent of Marquis Zhenbei, Xiao Jue?

That elusive pervert who only dares to sneak around at night to bully "small fry" like him, even if he had the guts, would he dare to sneak into Xiao Jue's territory?

Safe zone! This is definitely a safe zone!

Zhou Heng's eyes lit up instantly, as if someone who had been groping in the dark for a long time had finally seen a ray of light.

He was almost moved to tears. The "night raid crisis" that had been troubling him for days seemed to have found the perfect solution!

He quickly climbed off the soft couch, straightened his slightly wrinkled robes, took a few deep breaths to calm his excited emotions, and then carefully walked out of the inner room.

Outside, Xiao Jue was already sitting behind his desk processing official documents. The morning light shone on his sharply defined profile, and he still had that aloof and unapproachable look.

Hearing the noise, he raised his eyes and glanced at Zhou Heng indifferently.

"Awake?" Xiao Jue asked indifferently. "You certainly know how to pick a place to sleep."

Zhou Heng blushed and quickly bowed to apologize: "This humble servant deserves to die! I have been so disrespectful as to fall asleep in the Marquis's tent. Please punish me, Marquis!" He glanced at Xiao Jue's face, pondering how to steer the conversation toward "staying overnight".

Xiao Jue waved his hand, seemingly unconcerned: "It's alright. Yesterday's meeting did indeed last a while. Seeing that you're not in good spirits, if things get urgent in the future and you're delayed until late, you can rest outside. You don't have to force yourself to walk back at night." He said this casually, as if he was just being considerate of his subordinate.

Zhou Heng's heart pounded wildly—an opportunity! A golden opportunity!

He immediately seized the opportunity, his face twisted with gratitude and a perfectly measured "embarrassment": "Thank you for your consideration, Lord Marquis! I will never forget your kindness! Actually... actually, my barracks have been... actually, there have been some troubles lately."

"Oh?" Xiao Jue put down his pen, looked at him, and seemed to have become somewhat interested.

Zhou Heng racked his brains to come up with a reason that seemed reasonable but didn't reveal the truth: "It's...it's like this. One of my brothers in the same camp snores like thunder and has recently caught a cold, coughing incessantly at night...I'm a light sleeper, and these days I've been disturbed so much that I can hardly sleep at night, and I'm a bit absent-minded during the day, almost delaying the important matters that the Marquis has entrusted to me."

As he spoke, he secretly watched Xiao Jue's reaction.

Xiao Jue listened quietly, his face expressionless. However, his deep eyes lingered for a moment on Zhou Heng's slightly anxious face, then swept over the faint dark circles under his eyes that had not completely faded even after a night's sleep.

"In that case," Xiao Jue picked up his pen again, his tone still calm, "you may move to the outer night watch area for the time being. There is a low couch there; although it is not as comfortable as the inner room, it is quiet. Chen Zhen will make the arrangements."

It's done! Zhou Heng felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders and almost couldn't help but cheer.

He suppressed his excitement and bowed deeply: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Excellency! This humble servant will certainly do even more diligently to repay your kindness!"

He didn't notice at all that when he bowed his head to express his gratitude, Xiao Jue's gaze, which was fixed on the report, flickered almost imperceptibly, and the corners of his mouth seemed to curve upwards in an extremely subtle and fleeting arc.

That night, Zhou Heng happily carried his simple bedding into the small night watch area separated by a screen outside Xiao Jue's tent.

The low couch was a bit hard, but it was clean, and most importantly—safe!

He lay there, listening to the faint sounds of Xiao Jue turning the pages of documents coming from outside, and the regular, distant bugle calls from the camp, and felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

He quickly drifted off into a sweet dream.

Unbeknownst to them, in the inner room separated only by a screen, the culprit had just put down the book in his hand.

Xiao Jue walked to the screen and, by the dim candlelight coming from the inner room, quietly watched for a while the figure curled up on the low couch, sleeping soundly and even snoring softly because of peace of mind.

The prey thought it had found the most fortified fortress, but little did it know that the fortress itself was a cage carefully prepared for it by the hunter.

He reached out, his fingertips almost touching a strand of Zhou Heng's black hair scattered on the pillow, but stopped at the last inch and slowly withdrew.

Not urgent.

Now that they've voluntarily come in, it's only a matter of time before they're completely devoured.

Xiao Jue turned and walked back into the inner room, the confident smile on his lips clear and cold in the flickering candlelight.