Lin Shuanghe
He Yan slept for a long time.
She even had a dream. In the dream, she was fighting against Ridamuji, the tyrannical and brutal leader. When she pointed her sword at his head, the person suddenly raised his head, but instead of Ridamuji, the person’s face changed into He Rufei.
The sword in He Yan’s hand fell with a “clang”.
When she opened her eyes, all she could see was the soft tent and a mattress under her. So she looked down and found that she was lying on a bed completely fine.
He Yan still remembered that before she fainted, Xiao Jue and Ridamuzy were exchanging blows in the martial arts arena, as the reinforcements from the Southern Army were arriving from a distance. What’s the situation now? Is everything over now?
She propped herself up and sat up slowly. When she moved, the wound on her waist was pulled again causing her to frown in pain. After a while, she sat down holding the side of the bed.
The wound on her body was already bandaged, and she was back in her own room – the room next to Xiao Jue. There was no one else in the room, so she couldn’t even ask anyone how the situation was right now.
Just as she was thinking, the door was pushed open, and a young man walked in with the medicine in his hand. He closed the door and took the medicine to the front of He Yan’s bed. Seeing that He Yan had already sat up, and smiled, “Awake? You seem to be recovering well.”
This was an unfamiliar face. It was the first time He Yan had seen such a person in Liangzhou Guard, but looking at the clothes he was wearing, he would definitely not be a recruit. He Yan stared at his face, her mind went blank for a moment, then suddenly she came back to her senses and almost accidentally called out the other party’s name.
Fortunately, she reacted in time and the words that came to her lips were swallowed abruptly. The man looked at her with a smile, and said, “My name is Lin Shuanghe. I’m a doctor and a friend of Xiao Huaijin. I am the one who treated you.”
Seeing He Yan was just staring at him without speaking, Lin Shuanghe thought for a while and then said, “Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t take off your clothes. It was Xiao Huaijin. I was only responsible for the treatment. Cough… Now… I am also aware of your true identity.” He lowered his voice, approached He Yan, and said, “Sister, I really admire you.”
He Yan, “…”
She nodded to Lin Shuanghe with difficulty, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Lin Shuanghe smiled and handed her the medicine, “Drink it, it’s almost cold.”
He Yan took the medicine bowl and drank the medicine slowly, unable to hide her shock.
Lin Shuanghe! Lin Shuanghe actually came to Liangzhou Guard!
He Yan was no stranger to Lin Shuanghe. In fact, he was also He Yan’s classmate. Among the teenagers who went to school together in Xianchang Hall, He Yan felt that she was more familiar with Lin Shuanghe than Xiao Jue.
There was no special reason. In fact, it was because the one who competed with He Yan for the last position eight out of ten times was this brother.
Although Lin Shuanghe seems to have a smart face, in fact, he was also a mess in the civil and martial arts subjects. Still, he was different from He Yan. He Yan tried hard but still came last, while Lin Shuanghe didn’t work hard at all. He and Xiao Jue had a very good relationship, and they were inseparable from each other. He just copied his friend’s homework. Even the calligraphy books the teachers asked to copy were given to someone else to copy in return for money.
The youngsters of Xianchang Pavilion come from rich or noble families. They were not short of money, but every time this brother, Lin Shuanghe, would just bring out rare treasures, making people jealous. He Yan also couldn’t hold back the temptation and helped Lin Shuanghe copy books for a night, in return she got a jade grasshopper.
Lin Shuanghe is very rich.
The Lin family has practiced medicine for generations, and their ancestors worked in the imperial hospital inside the palace. Now, Lin Shuanghe’s grandfather, Lin Qingtan, is the imperial physician of the imperial physician court. Lin Qingtan’s youngest son, Lin Mu, is also an imperial physician. Lin Mu also likes to develop some beauty secrets, to please the empress dowager and concubines, and will be rewarded from time to time. These rewards were given back to Lin Shuanghe.
Lin Mu has only one son, Lin Shuanghe, who was favored to the extreme. Lin Shuanghe also relied on the wealth of his family to live in the Xianchang Pavilion.
The Lin family did not have high expectations or requirements for Lin Shuanghe. They never thought that Lin Shuanghe would excel in civil and military affairs, and they didn’t even care about his homework. There was no negative pressure at home, so he had to deal with the teachers at Xiangchang Pavillion only. That’s why Lin Shuanghe’s school life, every day was full of the ease and comfort of beckoning cats and dogs.
The playboy Lin Shuanghe didn’t even care if he fell. Seeing He Yan working so hard, he felt very incomprehensible. He once approached He Yan when she was busy memorizing books and asked, “Brother He, say, you are always here. What’s the point of trying so hard all the time, but still taking the last place?”
He Yan ignored him and continued to recite the book. Lin Shuanghe felt bored and left by himself.
A few days later, when He Yan’s examination changed from the last to the second last, he came to He Yan again and asked, “Brother He, let’s discuss. This time, can you still take the last position? Just once, let me take the second last.”
He Yan, “…why?”
“Teacher filed a complaint to my grandfather. My grandfather scolded my father. My father ordered me to make progress in the next test, otherwise, my financial resources would be cut off. I am now the last one. As long as I am not last in the test, wouldn’t it be considered progress?”
He Yan, “…”
“Brother He, I beg you.” The young man pleaded, “If you help me this time, I will give you the golden hairpin with a crested phoenix that Concubine Shu rewarded.”
“No,” He Yan refused, “I’m not a woman, why would I need a hairpin for?”
“You can give it to your mother!” Lin Shuanghe shook his fan and continued to negotiate with her, “Or tell me what you like, I will give it to you, as long as you help me this time.”
“Sorry,” He Yan shook her head, “I really can’t help, why don’t you ask Huai… Brother Huaijin to help you review your homework. He is so good at his studies. As long as he gives you a few pointers, you will definitely improve.”
Hearing this, Lin Shuanghe rolled his eyes greatly, “Give me a break. Who needs his guidance? He only sleeps all day and has no patience. It is better for me to study by myself than to ask him for advice.” After saying that, he sighed, “How can there be such a person in the world who sleeps all day and still takes first place? He should be a demon, right!”
He Yan glanced at Xiao Jue who was sleeping on the desk and agreed with Lin Shuanghe’s words.
God must be Xiao Jue’s biological father, that’s why he loves him so much.
Lin Shuanghe lowered his head in despair, looking pitiful. He Yan looked at him with a little pity and said to him, “Actually, you don’t have to be discouraged. I have to review my homework every day. If you don’t mind, you can join me. You can take a look at the homework I have sorted out. It shouldn’t be a big deal.” Feeling a little uneasy she said, “However, I’m not very good at organizing…”
Lin Shuanghe looked at her, and when He Yan felt hairy, the young man closed his fan, “Okay!”
“What?”
“I will review together with you, and see what it feels to have my hair tied up over the beam and the awl pricking up my thigh?[1]” {t/n: It means that in ancient times there were people who would tie their hair with a rope to the beam in the room, as when they feel sleepy the rope would tug their hair and they would feel pain so they would stay awake and similarly there was a person who to study would stab awl on his thighs when he felt sleepy just so he could stay awake and study}
In fact, Lin Shuanghe’s popularity in the Xianchang Pavilion was much better than He Yan’s. He didn’t wear a mask nor engage in mavericks. He had a personable demeanor in life, was generous with no pretense, and was tactful in doing things. He even used to invite everyone to eat good food. When there was a teenager who didn’t have a mother or sister to take care of them when they were sick, he used to beg Imperial Physician Lin to treat them. In addition, his grandfather made good friends with the nobles in the palace, so no one dared to offend him. Therefore, Lin Shuanghe was liked by everyone among the teenagers.
However, it’s one thing to like him, and another to review his homework with him. It stands to reason that if Lin Shuanghe wanted to ask for help, there would be countless people who would be willing to help. But his foundation was too poor, and most of the teenagers in Xianchang Hall were talented, so they really didn’t have the patience and time to accompany him to study from scratch. One way or another, no one was willing to take up this hard job.
But He Yan was different, therefore nothing was better than anything.
So He Yan and Lin Shuanghe would spend all day reviewing their homework before the next test.
Lin Shuanghe’s martial arts was not good, so he gave up directly. He studied with He Yan and focused on literature more. No matter what others say, it still looked decent. After school, in the evening, when everyone went to eat, the two would still be sitting in the school, reciting with each other’s backs.
However, this kind of memorization was usually done by Lin Shuanghe sitting crookedly holding the book and reading, while He Yan recited after memorizing.
Like at one time, she said, “The way of the great scholars lies in being virtuous, being close to the people, and being steadfast in the ultimate good. Knowing when to stop, you will be calm; if you can be calm, you will be quiet; if you can be quiet, you will be peaceful. The desire of ancient times is clearly being virtuous in the world first… First…”
At some point, she forgot what to say later, so she looked at Lin Shuanghe.
Lin Shuanghe never reminded her, and deliberately teased her while eating dried fruit, “What first?”
He Yan’s cheeks at that time became flushed, and she couldn’t remember what happened next.
But Lin Shuanghe was still urging her, “What first? Say it quickly.”
“First, down. Then, up!” He Yan made up a random story.
“Cough-cough–” Behind her, the sound of someone choking on the tea sounded. The two of them turned around to see Xiao Jue lazily propping himself up at the table in the dark.
“Huaijin, you haven’t left yet?” Lin Shuanghe was surprised, “I thought you’ve left long ago.”
The young man stood up from the table. He probably just woke up and was still a little drowsy. He walked up to the two of them and asked Lin Shuanghe casually, “What are you doing?”
“I’m reviewing my homework!” Lin Shuanghe took He Yan’s shoulder and said as if they were very familiar, “I decided to make progress together with Brother He.”
“Review your homework?” he asked.
“Yes, Brother He also organized some notes for me. Brother He is really generous.” Lin Shuanghe said.
Xiao Jue glanced at He Yan and reached out to pick up the notebook on the table. Before He Yan could stop him, he had already turned it over. The above were all the small notes that He Yan talked about in class on weekdays and summed up in private. The book that Xiao Jue took was of the arithmetic scriptures.
He was very tall, and He Yan had to look up at him. The boy flipped a page casually, his eyes and the corners of his mouth twitched.
He Yan was a little nervous.
After a while, Xiao Jue put the notebook back on the table and said with a blank face, “Out of five questions on a page, you wrote three questions wrong.”
He Yan, “Huh?”
Lin Shuanghe was also at a loss for words.
Xiao Jue glanced at the two of them, hooked his lips, and said in a mocking tone, “Progress together?”
Lin Shuanghe, “…”
He turned around and left. Under the mask, He Yan’s face was red.
What was the final result of that inspection, He Yan still clearly remembered that she and Lin Shuanghe were tied for the last position. She didn’t know how Lin Shuanghe went back in the end to make a difference. Whether this was considered progress or not, no one knew.
Now that many years have passed, she did not expect to meet Lin Shuanghe again, moreover in such a situation. In Liangzhou Guard, thousands of miles away from Shuojing, it was not a school where the sound of books was bursting, but a battlefield that had just gone through a slaughter. They were no longer unlucky classmates reviewing their homework together. One was a recruit and the other was a doctor. What a mysterious fate.
He Yan drank all the medicine in the medicine bowl, put the bowl aside, and looked at the person in front of him.
Compared with many years ago, Lin Shuanghe’s brows and eyes have widened a lot, a little less immature compared to when he was a teenager. Now, he looked calmer. When he didn’t speak, he was the elegant son. But as soon as he spoke, his demeanor collapsed. He approached He Yan and said with a smile, “Sister, tell me honestly, did you come to Liangzhou Guard for Xiao Huaijin?”
He Yan, “What?”
“Do you like him? Is that why you came to Liangzhou Guard?” He said with admiration, “Your courage is commendable.”
He Yan was speechless for a moment, and then explained, “It’s not like that. It’s because I encountered some things in the capital that I couldn’t stay any longer, so I joined the army.”
Xiao Jue and Lin Shuanghe have always had a good relationship. Now that Lin Shuanghe knew her identity as a woman, Xiao Jue must have mentioned these things to Lin Shuanghe.
“Then why did he find out your female identity?” Lin Shuanghe didn’t believe it, “I don’t think your relationship is ordinary.”
“He discovered my identity because General Xiao is very resourceful and had many suspicions about me, so he sent people to the capital to check my identity and found out the truth. Doctor Lin,” He Yan talked to him patiently, “Can I ask you a favor?”
Lin Shuanghe was serious, “Please speak.”
“In Liangzhou Guard, can you not call me ‘sister’? There are a lot of people here. Once my identity is revealed, it will bring trouble to the General. Normally, you can call me ‘Brother He’.”
“Sister… Brother He, it’s a trivial matter, of course.” Lin Shuanghe looked at her, shook his head, and sighed, “You are a beautiful woman, instead of staying at home comfortably, why did you come to such a place to suffer? It’s so distressing. “
He Yan, “…”
Here we go again. Speaking of it, Lin Shuanghe really hasn’t changed at all in this matter.
Unlike Xiao Jue, when Xiao Jue was young, girls who admired him could line up from the east of the city to the west of the city, but he didn’t spare a look at anyone. While Lin Shuanghe was at the other extreme. As long as it was a girl, no, as long as it was a female, whether a human or an animal, he could treat them with infinite patience and tenderness.
Instead of calling them miss, he called them “sisters” – intimate and tactful, as if they really had the relation of brother and sister like a family. When he was a teenager, there were many girls who approached Lin Shuanghe with the idea of wooing Xiao Jue. Lin Shuanghe was not as inhumane as Xiao Jue but was friendly and kind. He was not angry about this kind of thing but was happy to run errands: delivering a flower note for one sister and taking out snacks for another sister. He had a good life in the first place, and after going back and forth, some girls who originally thought of approaching Xiao Jue also had their hearts set on Lin Shuanghe.
Of course, Lin Shuanghe was also very principled. No matter who liked him or didn’t like him, they were all “sisters”.
When he was young, he used to call He Yan “Brother He” with a righteous and dignified tone. Now he changed his tone of voice and was calling her “Sister” affectionately. It was really unbearable for He Yan to hear and it was giving her goosebumps all over.
“You haven’t healed the old wounds on your body, and you have added new ones, especially the blade, which was inserted very deeply. I will heal you, but it is not a matter of a day or two. For a few days, you need to stay in bed and recuperate. Don’t do daily training or anything like that.” Lin Shuanghe looked at her, “As for the scars, you don’t have to worry too much. Our Lin family has a good way to remove scars and grow skin. Although they can’t be restored to their former appearance, 70% to 80% recovery is possible, which is considered to be already good.”
He Yan nodded, “Thank you, Doctor Lin.”
“No need to thank me. You are the only one with the most severe injuries and the most pain-tolerant one among the many women I have healed. It can be regarded as an eye-opener for me. As a friend of Huaijin, you can also be my friend in the future. If you are in trouble, just tell me.”
Speaking of this, He Yan remembered something and asked, “Doctor Lin… Is the General here? I have something important to tell him.”
“He’s outside, wait a moment.” Lin Shuanghe stood up, opened the door, and said to the man in the yard, “Xiao Huaijin, He Yan is looking for you.”
Xiao Jue was talking to Shen Han and Shen Han nodded, indicating that he understood. After a while, Shen Han left, he came over, Lin Shuanghe was waiting for him at the door, and when he came in, he was about to follow him in.
Xiao Jue stopped and looked at him.
Lin Shuanghe was inexplicable, “What?”
“You, wait outside.”
“Why?” Lin Shuanghe said, “Is there anything I can’t hear?”
Xiao Jue glanced at him and said lightly, “Military secrets.” After saying this, he closed the door in front of Lin Shuanghe.
He Yan, “…”
Well, if Lin Shuanghe was here, there were indeed some things that are inconvenient for him to know. Even if they were fellow classmates, given Liangzhou Guard’s current situation, she has to be more careful.
Xiao Jue came over.
He Yan raised her eyes to look at him, but in fact, she hadn’t seen him for half a month, but it seemed like a long time had passed. He was still as cold and lazy as ever as if there had not been a fight. The clothes were still clean like autumn water.
He Yan was stunned for a while, after she recovered she said, “General, Lei Hou is in the prison.”
“I know.” He sat down on the chair before the collapse, looked at He Yan, and said casually, “I have already arranged someone to guard it.”
He Yan breathed a sigh of relief. Since he was guarded, she was not afraid that Lei Hou would commit suicide halfway through. Xiao Jue should know this better than her.
In fact, ever since she had fought against Lei Hou in the fight for the flag, He Yan had faintly noticed that something was wrong. But the feeling was so slight, and she couldn’t understand it until she was put in prison. He Yan determined that there was a traitor in Liangzhou Guard who corresponded with Hu Yuanzhong, and sorted out the people she knew over and over again, and the doubts returned to Lei Hou.
There was something strange about Lei Hou.
She fought against Lei Hou when she was fighting for the flag. At that time Lei Hou used a sword. He Yan remembered clearly that when he used the sword, he used his left hand. It was not a big deal, as a person could be left-handed and used to using his left hand. But after Lei Hou entered the Forward Battalion, He Yan also went to the training of the Forward Battalion for the sake of observation. At that time, Lei Hou was using a spear with his right hand.
If you are left-handed, there is no need to deliberately use your right hand unless he is trying to hide something. He Yan thought about it and felt that when Lei Hou used a sword during the fight for the flag, he always seemed a little strange. It seemed that he was more used to using a sword. Using a spear was not so natural.
The same was true of the masked man who led her to the mountain that day.
Later, when Ridamuzy led his troops to come, Lei Hou thought of silencing her in the prison but was subdued by He Yan instead. He Yan also wanted to figure out if Lei Hou was related to the Qiangs. If he used a knife, he would probably use a machete. Maybe he was afraid that someone would find the trace, so he used the sword at first, but He Yan was sensitive, and Lei Hou probably felt that it was not safe, so he used the right hand, which will make it difficult to follow the traces.
However… He Yan still had doubts.
She asked, “General, if you went to Zhangtai, how did you come back so soon?”
Even if everything goes well on the Zhangtai side, he would not have return at this time. What’s more, he also brought back Southern soldiers.
“I didn’t go to Zhangtai.” Xiao Jue said.
He Yan looked at him.
“The news of Zhangtai’s distress was false,” he said. “I went to the south and brought some soldiers from there.”
He Yan was silent.
This thought had already occurred to her when she began to doubt Hu Yuanzhong. It was probably a trap to lure Xiao Jue. If Xiao Jue is not there, then Ridamuzi could easily lead the Qiang people to fight against the recruits of the Liangzhou Guard. The recruits who had only been practicing for half a year weren’t even able to fight against the Qiangs, and this battle would have been hard to win.
But Ridamuzy never dreamed that Xiao Jue didn’t go to Zhangtai at all.
He Yan asked, “So you put Lei Hou in the Forward Battalion on purpose? You had already suspected him?”
Xiao Jue hooked his lips, “Yes.”
He Yan was secretly shocked.
In the fight for the flag, it was clear that she was the one who took all twenty flags, but Xiao Jue ordered her defeat, while Lei Hou was ordered to go to the Forward Battalion. He Yan couldn’t understand why, but now, everything suddenly became clear in front of her. She was afraid that at that time, Xiao Jue had already suspected Lei Hou’s identity as a traitor, and deliberately made such a good show to lure the snakes out of their holes.
She didn’t even notice.
This game was laid out earlier than all of them. How could Ridamuzi expect that from the beginning, he would step into the pit and it would be difficult to turn back?
“General, you are amazing.” He Yan said sincerely. Although they are both generals, Xiao Jue has some skills that were admirable.
Xiao Jue glanced at her with a half-smile, “Not as good as you.”
He Yan, “Me?”
He folded his arms around his chest and looked at He Yan calmly, “Are you done asking? If you’re finished, it’s my turn.”
The words were inexplicable. He Yan didn’t know what to say, so she just said, “What do you mean?”
He laughed, took something out of his arms, and threw it in front of He Yan. He Yan made a move and picked it up to take a look.
It was a piece of paper folded in half, with a rough map and writing on it. Looking closely, on the map there was something written on the four sides of Liangzhou Guard.
When she was locked in the prison at night, Song Taotao came to visit her, and He Yan asked her to help with one thing. It was to put this matter in the hands of Shen Han. At that time, He Yan didn’t know what Shen Han would do when he saw this thing, but at that time, the situation was critical that she couldn’t care so much. He Yan reported the worst plan, if she really couldn’t get out or stop the development of things, this piece of paper would be the last card.
Now, the last card was in Xiao Jue’s hands.
“Miss He,” he tilted his head and looked at He Yan with a half-smile, his voice was light, “Explain.”