The General Says She Won't Marry - Chapter 34 Part 1

Lin Aoxue was trapped in the dungeon of the Mingting Mountain Palace. She didn’t know if she would ever have a chance to leave. As long as Beichen He still had a shred of conscience or believed she held even the slightest value, he wouldn’t let her die so easily.

Beichen He had orchestrated this scheme, ensuring she was convicted and imprisoned by the emperor. However, since Lin Aoxue was merely a scapegoat for the emperor’s wrath and not deserving of death, Beichen He could easily manipulate events behind the scenes to rescue her. By doing so, he could completely win her over, making her eternally grateful—and thus, an asset at his disposal.

Leaning against the cold, damp wall, Lin Aoxue felt her muscles cramp from the freezing air. All she could do was clutch herself tightly. The mask on her face had fallen off during her fight with the leopard, lost somewhere in the struggle.

Her disheveled hair veiled her scarred face, making her appear haggard and wretched, evoking an inexplicable sense of desolation.

In the pitch-black dungeon, time crawled unbearably slowly. Her consciousness wavered—sometimes lucid, sometimes muddled. Even when she briefly awakened, it lasted only a few fleeting moments before she sank back into prolonged silence. Her shoulder wound worsened with each passing day, first inflamed, then festering, until maggots began writhing from the decayed flesh.

Her injured arm was so weak she could barely lift it. Any slight movement felt as if it might detach from her shoulder. Fever had gripped her relentlessly for days. Each day, attendants would leave spoiled food and water outside her cell door, expecting her to retrieve them whenever she was awake.

She loathed this wretched existence, but the relentless hatred burning within her forced her to endure. Struggling to rise from the wall, she attempted to stand, only to collapse due to her weakened limbs. Crawling on her hands and knees toward the cell door, she reached out with her bloodstained fingers, grasping the rancid food and shoving it into her mouth, mud and all.

She had to survive.

No matter how humiliating, no matter how excruciating, she had to stay alive.

Only by enduring each day, clinging to life, could she hope to see the light again. If even the slightest opportunity arose—if she could escape this place—she would repay today’s suffering a hundredfold.

She did not wallow in despair. Though life was unpredictable, this agony was the perfect whetstone, sharpening her pride and reminding her of the formidable enemies she faced. She had to endure, to tread carefully, to grow stronger and more resilient—until no amount of suffering could deter her from vengeance.

Lin Aoxue had lost track of time in her imprisonment. Teetering on the edge of life and death, she counted every breath as a blessing.

The pain of her wounds had dulled into numbness. She could hear rats squeaking near her ear. When she weakly opened her eyes, her vision was dark and blurry. Only in the far distance could she glimpse a faint sliver of light seeping through the iron door’s cracks. Through the haze, she saw a rat gnawing at her fingertips. She shifted slightly, and the rat, startled, scurried away into the darkness.

A faint breath escaped her lips. At least these little creatures kept her company—it wasn’t so lonely after all.

Day after day passed, slow but unceasing.

Then, one day, the dungeon door creaked open, and light flooded in, so blinding that Lin Aoxue couldn’t keep her eyes open. Through the slits of her eyelids, she vaguely saw a figure approaching. A woman’s startled cry rang out, followed by the quickening sound of footsteps drawing closer.

The iron chains rattled as someone unlocked them. A wave of fragrant perfume overwhelmed her senses—a foreign scent of cosmetics. Before she could see who it was, her vision went black, and she lost consciousness completely.

***

Beichen Ling led a group of people into the dungeon to retrieve Lin Aoxue, yet the moment the cell door swung open, she froze in place.

A gasp escaped her lips. No matter how much she had imagined Lin Aoxue’s suffering in the dungeon, the reality before her was a hundred times worse than she had envisioned.

She recalled Lin Aoxue’s fierce battle against the leopard that day. But now, the person before her was unrecognizable—huddled on the ground, emaciated to the bone. Instinctively, Beichen Ling quickened her pace and ordered the guards to open the iron gate. Ignoring the filth covering Lin Aoxue, she—of noble status—rushed forward and scooped her up in her arms.

Lin Aoxue’s body was frighteningly thin—so light that even Beichen Ling had no difficulty lifting her. A strange thought crossed Beichen Ling’s mind. This frail frame did not resemble a man’s at all. It was delicate, like that of a woman.

She lowered her gaze to Lin Aoxue’s shoulder wound. The sight of the rotting flesh and writhing maggots made her face go pale. Never before had she witnessed such a gruesome state. Suppressing her nausea, she gritted her teeth and tore Lin Aoxue’s clothing, pulling the maggots away from her wound.

Compared to this, the burn scars on Lin Aoxue’s face seemed far less horrifying.

Beichen Ling felt as if she had exhausted the last reserves of her courage. If not for the fact that Lin Aoxue had once saved her life without hesitation—if not for that moment when Lin Aoxue’s face had overlapped with that of an old friend—she would never have felt such guilt.

In the end, Lin Aoxue had been thrown into prison merely because the emperor, in a fit of anger, lost his judgment. That was why Beichen Ling had no choice but to step forward and demand justice for her.

The Third Prince’s knee injury had left him crippled, and the emperor’s fury remained unquenched. No amount of persuasion could change his mind. Meanwhile, the imperial guards had failed to track down the assassin who had fired the arrow, nor could they determine why the leopard had appeared in the hunting grounds.

For ten days, the ministers had remained at Mingting Mountain, enduring the emperor’s endless rage.

Not until the Third Prince’s condition slightly improved did the emperor’s anger begin to subside. Only then did Beichen Ling plead for Lin Aoxue’s release, kneeling outside the emperor’s palace for two hours. Eventually, Prince of the First Rank Beichen He also interceded on Lin Aoxue’s behalf. It was only then that the emperor finally relented, permitting Beichen Ling to retrieve her.

But never had she expected that in just ten days, the dungeon had turned Lin Aoxue into a living corpse.

Beichen Ling tore the fabric from Lin Aoxue’s shoulder, exposing the wound to fresh air. She initially planned to have someone carry Lin Aoxue out of the cell, but in that moment, she accidentally caught sight of a strip of white bandages peeking from beneath Lin Aoxue’s loosened collar.

She froze.

She distinctly remembered that when Lin Aoxue was imprisoned, no one had tended to her wounds. The emperor had been furious—he wouldn’t have spared a thought for Lin Aoxue’s life or death. Besides, Lin Aoxue had sustained no other injuries. So why was there such thick bandaging on her chest?

Her hand hesitated. Her gaze drifted toward Lin Aoxue’s neck. The smooth curve where her neck met her shoulder was unexpectedly soft, unlike a man’s. It was… gentle, supple.

A sudden thought flashed through Beichen Ling’s mind, stealing her breath. Almost involuntarily, she reached out, shielding her actions from the guards, and quietly pulled open Lin Aoxue’s collar.

Beneath the layers of fabric—was a tightly wrapped chest. Further down, her waist was slender, delicate enough to fit within the span of two hands.

Beichen Ling finally understood why Lin Aoxue was so thin, so delicate, and so light.

It turned out—she was a woman.

Beichen Ling’s heart pounded like a drum. She withdrew her gaze from Lin Aoxue’s collar and looked instead at her dirt-streaked face. 

The profile resting against her shoulder seemed strangely familiar.

Lin Aoxue bore a resemblance to a childhood friend of hers.

That thought took root in her mind and grew wildly, breaking through all reason and restraint. She had to know—was reality as she imagined?

A nearby guard noticed her dazed expression and assumed she was reluctant to hold Lin Aoxue due to the filth covering her. Thinking to help, he reached out to take Lin Aoxue from Beichen Ling’s arms. But Beichen Ling instinctively pushed his hands away. Under his startled gaze, she hesitated briefly, then shook her head.

Without drawing attention to herself, she pulled Lin Aoxue’s collar closed, carefully concealing anything that might reveal her true identity. Amid the astonished and alarmed looks of the guards, she tightened her grip around Lin Aoxue and carried her away, ignoring all protests as she brought her directly to her own palace quarters.

When Beichen He received word that Beichen Ling had taken Lin Aoxue from the dungeon and brought her to her personal chambers, his brows furrowed slightly, his eyes reflecting a thoughtful expression. A moment later, he waved his hand dismissively and said, “Let her be. If someone can make her settle down, that’s not a bad thing.”

After carrying Lin Aoxue to her chambers, Beichen Ling did not immediately summon a doctor. Ignoring the blood and grime covering Lin Aoxue, she placed her directly on her own bed.

She dismissed all the palace attendants, sending the maids away and locking the doors and windows before returning to the bedside.

Lin Aoxue remained unconscious, her face marred by a hideous burn scar on one side.

Beichen Ling took a soft towel soaked in warm water and gently wiped the dirt from Lin Aoxue’s face. Once the blood and grime were gone, her long, unbound hair veiled the burned half of her face, lending her a softer, more delicate appearance.

Seeing her like this—there was no doubt. She was a woman.

And she looked even more like her childhood friend.

Beichen Ling’s heartbeat quickened. She pressed her lips together tightly, her fingers trembling as she hesitantly caressed Lin Aoxue’s exposed cheek. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to suppress the storm of emotions surging inside her and instead turned her focus to Lin Aoxue’s wounded shoulder.

Beichen Ling had no medical knowledge; she didn’t know how to treat Lin Aoxue’s injuries. But whether or not Lin Aoxue was the person she hoped for, one thing was certain—her identity as a woman could not be revealed.

Moving with great care, she loosened Lin Aoxue’s clothing, fully exposing her wounded shoulder. Using a clean, damp cloth, she gently wiped away the dried blood and grime around the wound before dressing Lin Aoxue in a fresh set of clothes.

As a commandery princess of the Prince of the First Rank’s household, Beichen Ling had never tended to anyone with such care before. But because Lin Aoxue resembled someone she once knew, she couldn’t help but feel an instinctive sense of closeness.

She had too many regrets regarding that person. Even if Lin Aoxue was merely a lookalike, treating her well felt like a way to ease the guilt in her heart, as if she could pass on the kindness she had once owed.

Yet despite being removed from the cold, damp dungeon, Lin Aoxue’s condition did not improve. She remained feverish, her body alternately burning up and chilled. Cold sweat drenched Beichen Ling’s bedding and the fresh garments she had just put on her.

Beichen Ling had been keeping a close watch on her condition. She knew this couldn’t go on. But she also couldn’t summon the imperial doctors from the hunting grounds—if she did, Lin Aoxue’s secret would undoubtedly be exposed.

After much hesitation, she finally gritted her teeth and decided to seek out Beichen He.

***

Beichen He was seated in the courtyard, leisurely drinking tea. Because of the Third Prince’s injury, the officials in the palace were on edge, and few dared to go out. As a result, Beichen He had been enjoying a rare period of peace.

A guard approached and whispered something in his ear. Beichen He frowned slightly, then turned his head just as Beichen Ling entered the courtyard. 

She came to a stop before him and respectfully greeted, “Father.”

Beichen He smiled kindly, appearing every bit the benevolent father as he said, “Ling’er, you’ve been through a fright recently. You even went to the dungeon to rescue someone. Why don’t you rest instead of coming to see me? What is it that brings you here?”

Beichen Ling’s expression remained neutral. Lowering her gaze slightly, she quietly said, “I have not been feeling well lately. Perhaps it is because of the fright I suffered from the wild beast attack. Nightmares plague me every night. Father, would you speak to my uncle and allow me to leave the mountain early?”

When she finished speaking, Beichen He’s eyes flickered with a knowing smile. He asked meaningfully, “Do you intend to take Lin Aoxue with you as well?”

Beichen Ling knew there was no way to hide this from Beichen He, so she didn’t bother trying. Instead, she answered frankly, “Qianhu Lin saved my life and was injured because of me. However, the climate on Mingting Mountain is too cold and unsuitable for recovery. I ask Father to grant permission for us to leave.”

Beichen He let out a hearty laugh, a knowing look flashing in his eyes as he remarked, “That boy is quite fortunate.” Beichen Ling feigned confusion and did not respond. Seeing this, Beichen He waved his hand dismissively and did not press further. “Fine, take him down the mountain to recuperate.”

With Beichen He’s approval, Beichen Ling felt a weight lift from her heart. She knew Beichen He had his own ways to persuade the emperor. After offering a respectful farewell, she returned to her residence, packed a few essentials, ordered a carriage to be prepared, and then carried Lin Aoxue into it before leaving Mingting Mountain.

***

After descending the mountain, she did not immediately return to the Prince of the First Rank’s estate. Instead, she directed the carriage to a private residence she owned in the capital. After settling Lin Aoxue there, she sent word to Yanyu Tower.

Half an hour later, Yun Yan appeared at the gates of Beichen Ling’s private residence, her expression complex as she raised her hand and knocked. The steward opened the door and respectfully led her inside, directly to the room where Beichen Ling was waiting.

Hearing approaching footsteps outside, Beichen Ling knew Yun Yan had arrived. She turned toward the door and saw Yun Yan standing there, dressed in an elegant azure gown, her makeup flawlessly applied with an alluring charm. However, in stark contrast to her appearance, she carried a physician’s medicine box.

“Commoner Yun Yan greets Your Highness,” Yun Yan said, bowing her head and curtsying.

The steward tactfully withdrew, while Beichen Ling stood up. Her gaze was colder than ever, filled with a sharp, murderous intent as she glared at Yun Yan and demanded harshly, “You knew she was a woman. Why didn’t you report it?!”

Before returning to the capital, Yun Yan had been stationed at Yanyu Tower in the northern frontier. Beichen Ling was well aware of all her experiences, including the fact that she had entered the military camp, served as a military doctor, treated Lin Aoxue’s injuries multiple times, and even carried out missions alongside her.

There was no way Yun Yan did not know Lin Aoxue was a woman.

Yet, she had deliberately concealed this secret. Beichen Ling felt a surge of fury—she saw Yun Yan’s actions as an act of disloyalty, so much so that for a brief moment, she even considered killing her outright.

“Please, Your Highness, quell your anger,” Yun Yan said calmly, her expression unreadable.

From the moment she stepped into the courtyard, entered the room, and saw Lin Aoxue lying in bed—pale and feverish—with Beichen Ling’s reddened eyes filled with emotion, Yun Yan understood. Lin Aoxue’s secret had been exposed, but neither of them would lose their lives over it.

She had no idea why Beichen Ling was so agitated upon discovering Lin Aoxue’s identity, nor why she was so determined to keep it hidden. Something about the situation felt off, but Yun Yan was not in a position to question it. She was here to follow Beichen Ling’s orders—nothing more.

Beichen Ling glared at Yun Yan. Seeing that she neither explained herself nor showed any fear, Beichen Ling suddenly felt as if her anger was unreasonable. After a long silence, her emotions surged even more violently, and she closed her eyes in pain. Her brows furrowed as if caught in an internal struggle.

Moments later, she sighed in resignation, stepped aside, and said, “Treat her wounds.”

Yun Yan obeyed, walking over to the bedside. Lin Aoxue was still in the throes of a high fever, her brows tightly knit in pain even while unconscious. Her entire body was burning up, and the wound on her shoulder, where the leopard had bitten her, had festered, soaking through her clothes with pus. The sight was nothing short of tragic.

Yun Yan’s nose stung, and tears welled up in her eyes. But she forced herself to suppress her emotions, swallowing the lump in her throat as she focused on cleaning Lin Aoxue’s wounds.

The injury was on Lin Aoxue’s left shoulder—the same spot where she had been shot by an arrow when they first met in Yong’an.

Yun Yan shook her head with a bitter smile. Lin Aoxue’s shoulder seemed cursed—barely healed from the arrow wound, only to be punctured again by a beast’s fangs.

She meticulously cleaned the wound, working swiftly while Lin Aoxue was still unconscious to minimize her suffering. First, she cut away the necrotic flesh, then used scalding liquor to sterilize the area and neutralize any toxins from the beast’s fangs before carefully applying medicine and wrapping the wound.

The entire process was painstaking and excruciating. If Lin Aoxue had been awake, the pain would have likely driven her to madness.