In the President's study.
"I heard that General Mei's daughter tried to commit suicide because of you. Is that true?" asked the President with a smile. He raised a goblet filled with wine and handed it to Gu Haoting.
Gu Haoting received the goblet and pursed his lips. "As expected, nothing escapes your eyes."
"Many affairs that you consider trivial are considered momentous by the rest of the country, so I ought to pay attention. However, you have never cared about who you're engaged to, and General Mei's daughter has an excellent lineage and background. Don't you think that you rejected her a little too thoroughly?" asked the President teasingly.
"It's true that I've never cared about who I was engaged to. I felt rather hopeless over the past few years, so it didn't seem to matter much. But now, I want to seize the hope that belongs to me," Gu Haoting murmured. He swirled the goblet as his eyes glistened with resolution and determination.
"What do you mean by that? Have you, our God of War, faced a time of hopelessness?" the President teased him.
"Let's not talk about this. I don't think that you summoned me here just to discuss my future nuptials, right?" Gu Haoting responded, attempting to drag the conversation back to the main point.
"My wife and I are going to be traveling internationally for the next month. However, while we're gone, I hope that you can help me discipline Yu Yi. I intend for him to become a city mayor upon graduation, so until then, nothing can go wrong," the President said with a frown.
"I understand, sir. Just leave it to me," replied Gu Haoting immediately. His face remained impassive.
The President curled his lips into a smile and clinked his goblet against Gu Haoting's. "Your words definitely put me at ease."
Gu Haoting gulped down the contents of his goblet.
Upon emerging from the Presidential palace, he boarded his own private plane and made a call to Lieutenant Shang.
"Has she admitted her mistakes?" he asked.
Lieutenant Shang found himself placed in a difficult position as he reported, "She said that she's a tigress who isn't afraid of wolves."
Gu Haoting snorted mockingly and commanded, "I don't wish to sleep with a corpse. Send her to the garret—remember to make it look more real and install a few more hidden cameras to ensure her safety. On top of that, give me access to the live footage on my mobile phone."
"Understood."
***
The day had been full of stressful and unexpected experiences for Huo Weiwu, which might have been why her period had taken the express train and reached her early. She discovered it while she was changing her underwear.
Luckily, the blood flow on the first day wasn't heavy enough to be unmanageable.
Gu Haoting had said that he wouldn't allow her to take anything with her. Hence, for the sake of safety, Huo Weiwu stole a roll of toilet paper from his bathroom and hid it in her pants.
"Madam, you have been in the bathroom for half an hour. It's time we head to the black pine forest," said Lieutenant Shang urgently from the other side of the door.
"Why are you in such a rush? Are you that desperate for me to be reincarnated?" said Huo Weiwu as she pushed open the bathroom door. She leaned lazily against the wall and asked, "Lieutenant Shang, what if I accidentally get eaten by the wolves and become feces? What will you guys do then?"
"Don't worry, Madam, we will make sure to lay your body to rest peacefully and give you a big tombstone with your name engraved on it," replied Lieutenant Shang with decency.
Huo Weiwu rolled her eyes at him. "Aren't you guys afraid of going to prison?"
"We are soldiers—even if we have to sacrifice ourselves in the midst of our training, it's considered an honor," said Lieutenant Shang proudly.
"But I'm not your soldier, I'm merely a normal and innocent civilian," said Huo Weiwu, clutching her chest.
"The wife of a military man is also part of the military," replied Lieutenant Shang with a nod of his head.
Huo Weiwu narrowed her eyes as she looked toward Lieutenant Shang.
"He's trying to say that if I die, it'll be what I deserve, right?" she thought.
Gu Haoting was like some devil waiting to torment innocent souls—he had truly earned his reputation.
"If something happens to me, please convey a message to Gu Haoting for me," said Huo Weiwu casually.
"What is it?"