Chapter 179

The outside was unusually cold. The northern winds scooped up the snow, blowing at the torches lighted up with pine oil. AhJing stood by the door of the tent. The servants to his left and right remained quiet upon seeing him, choosing to perform a simple salutation. A sense of discomfort brewed within AhJing’s heart. He no longer recognized any of Yan Xun’s guards presently; his title, the leader of the guards, was quickly becoming a blank title. After an unknown amount of time, AhJing could no longer stand the cold. He jumped about, trying to shake the cold off, and rubbed his hands continuously. Suddenly, he saw the curtains move. The young general was dressed in blue, and he walked out of the tent slowly.

“Cough… spit!” AhJing coughed deliberately and spat a mouthful of phlegm out, which landed on the general’s boots.

The general stopped in his tracks and turned around slowly, meeting AhJing’s ferocious look. The general was emotionless; his eyes were sparkling. Acting as if nothing had happened, he walked away and disappeared into the darkness.

“Scaredy cat! Useless creature!” AhJing cursed. “No wonder you want to be a deserter!” The night was pitch-black. As the man’s shadow disappeared, AhJing sneered twice before walking into the tent.

Yan Xun was inspecting his map under the light. Hearing his entrance, he did not even look up. With a low voice, he said, “What’s the matter?”

AhJing steadied himself before replying, “Your Highness, Miss is still following behind. In this cold weather, without a tent to spend the night, this…”

“What?” Yan Xun slowly raised his neat eyebrows and looked up. His voice was low and deliberately dragged, showing his frustrations. “Didn’t you say she turned back?”

AhJing scratched his head and whispered, “Yes, I saw Miss turn back towards Beishuo, but she caught up with us through the night again.”

“Useless people!” Yan Xun slammed the map on his table and exclaimed. “You men can’t even contain a woman.”

AhJing lowered his head and remained silent, feeling aggrieved. He thought to himself, She’s the person you love. We did not dare to touch her, be rough with her, or tie her up and send her back! She promised to turn back after a bit. Who knew that she would catch up again!

Yan Xun turned around and grabbed his cloak on the clothes hanger. He draped it around his shoulder and walked towards the outside. AhJing saw this and started to feel happy, dashing to his side and saying, “Your Highness, I’ve prepared the horse for you already. Let’s leave quickly. If we’re too late, Miss will freeze to death. Like I said, how would Your Highness leave Miss in the lurch? Other than you, Miss is the second most important figure in Yan Bei. She has suffered with you all the way from Zhen Huang. How could those traitors compare to her? I knew it…” However, before he had finished his words, he realized that the man behind did not follow him. He turned around and saw Yan Xun standing in the center of the tent. The candlelight shone on his face, brightening it. A greyish shadow shone on his face, like a layer of fog.

“Your…Your Highness?” AhJing whispered, trying to test the waters.

Yan Xun stood there silently. Finally, he lowered his hand which was fastening his cloak and said calmly, “Bring 20 guards with you to fetch her back here.”

“Ah?” AhJing’s jaw dropped as he was stunned. “Your Highness, you’re not going anymore?”

Yan Xun did not say anything, turning around and removing his cloak. Then, he made his way to his study table, rubbing his finger against the giant map of Yan Bei, remaining silent for a long time.

Yan Xun’s shadow was noticeable amidst the brightly lit candlelights. Suddenly, AhJing felt like his vision had been blurred. He looked at Yan Xun’s shadow, thinking about that bright morning at Sheng Jin Palace many years ago. The Xia Emperor walked out slowly from his palace, while he knelt in the center of the crowd. He looked up sneakily but was blinded by the shiny gold robe.

“Yes, Your Highness.” AhJing obliged. As he turned to leave, Yan Xun’s voice echoed out, “Without proper approval, you are not to enter the tent at will from now.” The young warrior from Yan Bei nodded, his liveliness gone. “Yes, Your Highness.”

When Chu Qiao followed AhJing into the camp, Yan Xun had slept. She looked at Yan Xun’s tent, where the candlelights had been extinguished, and felt a bit dazed. Feng Zhi dashed over and remarked, “Your Highness has traveled the whole day. I think he’s tired.”

“Okay.” Chu Qiao nodded without any emotion and replied quietly, “I’ll head back first.”

When she got back to the tent, her limbs had turned numb from the cold. AhJing and some servants gave her a warm welcome by delivering some hot water to her. Although the majority of the warriors did not recognize her, they had heard of her name and her past contributions. They gathered outside her tent to see what was going on and only left after being chided by AhJing. After a while, the curtains of her tent moved. A small head popped out from outside and shouted in joy, “General Chu!”

“Pingan?” Chu Qiao was shocked. Pingan was dressed in a small-sized military uniform. They had not seen each other for a few days, but he had seemed to grow up even more. That day, after the battle at Beishuo had ended, she had fallen sick and was not able to pay attention to him. She had not expected to meet him here. She remarked, “Why are you here?”

“I’m a soldier.”

“You? Soldier?” Chu Qiao was stunned. “How old are you?”

“General, don’t look down on people. General AhJing gave the orders just now. From now on, Pingan will be Miss’s personal bodyguard. If you have any errands to run, you can give them to me.”

Personal bodyguard? This is good as well. At least I don’t need to go onto the battlefield anymore. Chu Qiao smiled and rubbed the child’s head before saying, “Convey my thanks to AhJing.”

“General is not on duty tonight. It’s General Cheng who’s on duty.”

Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows. AhJing was Yan Xun’s most loyal personal bodyguard. How could he not be on night duty? She asked softly, “General Cheng? Which General Cheng?”

“I don’t know either.” Pingan was still a small kid after all, as he replied childishly, “I only know his surname is Cheng.”

“Oh,” Chu Qiao nodded and continued, “it’s late already. Go back and rest first.”

Pingan obliged joyfully and left the tent, jumping in his strides. Chu Qiao looked at his shadow and felt a sense of sorrow inside. Back in the modern day, a child of his age would be preparing to go to school every day. When he got into trouble, he would be complaining to his parents while being locked in their embrace! However, here, he had to assume the responsibility of taking care of his sister prematurely, involving himself in the life of bloodshed.

The water had turned lukewarm after she washed her face. She removed her boots with some effort and put it into the water. Her feet had turned swollen from the cold; the bruises made her feet appear purplish-red. She felt itchy upon immersing it in the water, and took a deep breath. After she was done washing her feet, she ate a mouthful of dry rations which were brought to her just now. She lay on the warm blanket in a daze. That day’s events had ultimately driven a wedge in between them. Despite her hiding it and Yan Xun’s efforts to salvage the situation, some things were like porcelain – once it was broken, it could not be salvaged no matter how much effort was put in.

Because of her illness, Yan Xun delayed his departure for two whole days. During that time, he stayed by her side, feeding her and brewing her medicine personally. His diligence frightened the people around him. However, when Chu Qiao raised the idea of her following the army, he rejected it with reasons that were comprehensive enough. Despite how reasonable his words were, or how he claimed to be sparing a thought for her, Chu Qiao’s head replayed what he said the other day: If they breach military law again, I will not show any more mercy.

This was a warning, but how could she be sure that this was not a signal? Chu Qiao felt bad as she thought this way. When had she started to be wary of him? Apart from the other day when Yan Xun treated her extra nicely, to the point that she felt it was a dream. However, on the day that the army departed, when she stood in front of the city gates and pleaded for herself to join the battle, Yan Xun had flared up at her.

This was the first time that he had flared up at her. He did not scold her, but stared at her for a long time. It seemed like he saw a lot of things as he looked through her shoulder. Finally, he asked, “AhChu, what are you worried about?” After that, before she had time to reply, he rode past her without even turning back.

The soldiers surrounded her and demanded that she return to her residence. She looked on quietly as Yan Xun departed, feeling a sense of disappointment.

He knew everything, everything. He was scheming. He asked her: what are you worried about? But, Yan Xun, what about you? What are you worried about?

Ultimately, she decided to follow his entourage. He was right—she was worried. She was worried about him, she was afraid that he would kill the entire army of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison. On the battlefield, it was easy to eliminate an entire army without leaving any traces of evidence. There were too many ways. The soldiers of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison had placed their lives in her hands.

She could not allow them to die in vain.

Perhaps, she was paranoid. But, Yan Xun, since you knew what I was afraid of, why didn’t you make me a promise? Or was it that you did not dare to? Was what I was afraid of already a part of your plans?

The fire on the ground burnt on quietly. This was high-grade white charcoal, as it only released a thin layer of smoke. Chu Qiao looked at the fireplace, feeling her eyes dry up in pain. She had not fully recovered. Coupled with the fact that she had traveled for an entire day in the cold weather, her fatigue had started to surface. She wore a thin, white outfit and lay on the bed. She extinguished the candlelights, and drifted off to sleep.

The moon outside was bright. The moonlight shone on the snowy ground, making the landscape appear a vast piece of white. However, in the tent, it was pitch-dark. The winds raged on. There was not a sight of a single tree around. Only the cries of eagles could be heard, as they pierced through the silent night sky. After an unknown amount of time, in the pitch-dark tent, Chu Qiao felt a cold sensation at her feet. She frowned, her eyes still closed. She sat up swiftly and hissed, “Who is that?”

In the darkness, a long silhouette was sitting by her bed. The man was dressed in an outfit made of soft cloth. With the help of the faint light, she could somewhat make out his face. He was sitting there, his hands grabbing at her feet. He put a bowl at the side of her bed, as the smell of medicine drifted outwards from the bowl.

“You’re awake?” Yan Xun asked quietly. He stood up and lit up a candle. The yellow light shone on his face, giving it a feeling of peace and calmness. He made his way back to her bed, reached out his long fingers, scooped up some medicine, and applied it over her wounds. The touch of his fingers was warm, like a warm wind, as they brushed over her toes and sole of her feet. Yan Xun did not look up as he continued to say, “You need to apply medicine to your feet every day. In the army, there are no maidservants to serve you as compared to back in the house. It’s busy here. Don’t neglect your health when you get busy.”