Good News
It was extremely cold during the winter days at the Liangzhou Guard. More than half of a winter month was spent under heavy snowfall. Even when it wasn’t snowing, the sun rarely made an appearance.
There was a shortage of firewood and charcoal; fortunately, after the new Liangzhou magistrate assumed office, he took the initiative to deliver some from the county warehouse as a demonstration of friendliness to the Right Army’s Chief Commander. The new magistrate was quite young, and his family didn’t have any support. He looked gentle and frail, but the way he handled matters demonstrated experience and attentiveness.
Lin Shuanghe was very content with this new magistrate.
In a blink of an eye, two months had passed, and the year was almost coming to an end. Soon, it’d be the new year, and spring would quickly follow. By then, the Liangzhou Guard’s new recruits would break away from their ‘new recruit’ title and spend another year here.
In his room, Xiao Jue was currently speaking with Chi Wu and Fei Nu.
“Another letter has come from the vassal king’s territory.” Chi Wu fished out a letter from a place by his chest and handed it to Xiao Jue. “A letter a month. This is the second letter.”
Other than the instructors, Chi Wu and his people, and He Yan, none of the Liangzhou Guard’s new recruits knew that Lei Hou was arrested and locked in the dungeon. They all thought he’d become a deserter. Xiao Jue ordered Lei Hou to continue corresponding with his accomplice in Jiyang by claiming he escaped from the Liangzhou Guard and was currently on the run from pursuing soldiers, having him ask what to do next.
The accomplice was extremely cunning—instead of instructing Lei Hou on what he should do in his letter, he only told Lei Hou to hide and that their master would arrange for someone to fetch him.
Xiao Jue slipped the letter from its envelope and finished reading it with a glance before handing it to Fei Nu. After Fei Nu and Chu Wu read it, their expressions turned ugly.
In the letter, the accomplice wrote that, since Ridamuzy was exposed, their plan for the Liangzhou Guard had been discarded. He told Lei Hou to find a way to hide and that, once matters blew over, their allies in Shuojing would fetch him. After this letter, they no longer needed to continue corresponding with each other—during such an eventful period, alerting the enemies and ruining their master’s great plan wasn’t something the two could afford.
“What do we do?” Chu Wu asked. “Does this mean there won’t be any more letters in the future?”
Xiao Jue said, “Lei Hou has become a useless pawn.”
“But Jiyang . . .” Fei Nu hesitated. “Is Chief Commander planning on traveling to Jiyang?”
“Even if there was no accomplice, I’d have to visit Jiyang anyway because Chai Anxi is there.” Xiao Jue fed the letter to the flickering flame of a candle on the desk. The flame licked the paper and, before long, it was reduced to ashes.
Chai Anxi was previously one of Xiao Zhong Wu’s vanguard generals.
In the Battle of Mingshui, Xiao Zhong Wu and the tens of thousands of soldiers he’d led died in battle—among them were his vanguard generals. At the time, Chai Anxi’s body wasn’t found on the battlefield, but everyone said he was most likely dead. Over the past few years, Xiao Jue had secretly assigned his men to investigate Chai Anxi’s whereabouts. Everything came to those who waited—now they knew Chai Anxi didn’t die and even concealed his identity to reside in Jiyang.
Jiyang was the vassal king’s territory. Citizens who wanted to enter the city but didn’t reside within Da Wei must obtain approved passage tokens. Even then, outsiders weren’t allowed to stay for long. Chai Anxi had been residing there for a long time—no wonder his whereabouts were difficult to locate.
“But how are we supposed to travel to Jiyang? If we request passage tokens, Xu Jingfu’s people will immediately find out. By then, wouldn’t they lead our every action by the nose?” Fei Nu asked.
Xiao Jue turned and pondered for a moment before asking, “Why don’t we use another method?”
Chi Wu asked, “What method?”
“We can just swap identities with people who do have the passage tokens for Jiyang.”
“That’s . . .” Fei Nu didn’t know what to say. When King Meng Ji was still alive, gate supervision over incoming travelers was rigorous; in addition to passage tokens, travelers would be logged and have their portraits painted. Because of how troublesome it was to enter the vassal king’s territory, the citizens of Da Wei had but one approach: if you don’t need to go, then don’t go. Throughout an entire year, very few people would obtain passage tokens to visit Jiyang.
It truly wouldn’t be easy to accomplish this with Jiyang’s strict gatekeeping and so few people to choose from—moreover, these people had to be willing to switch identities with Xiao Jue, carrying the risk that they could never set foot in the territory again if their plot was uncovered.
“Leave the arrangements to Luan Ying,” Xiao Jue said to Chi Wu. “Immediately send a letter to him so early preparations can be made.”
“. . . Understood,” Chi Wu said.
Right at this moment, someone pushed open the door and entered—it was Lin Shuanghe. Chi Wu walked past him and nodded. “Young Master Lin.”
Lin Shuanghe, in turn, smiled at him.
Fei Nu tactfully left as well.
“Huai Jin, what have you been busy with these past few days?” Lin Shuanghe swayed his fan. “The winter days are giving way to spring soon. Why don’t you help me calculate just how many times we’ve seen each other during this period?”
“Do you feel bored?” Xiao Jue asked. “Then, once Cheng Lisu returns to the capital, you can leave, too.”
“Never mind. Since I’m already here, there’s no need to go back,” he said. “When do they depart?”
“In a few days.”
After the incident with Ridamuzy, the Liangzhou Guard was no longer safe—it was possible something else would happen in the future, hence it was unsuitable for Cheng Lisu and Song Taotao to continue staying here. Xiao Jue had already arranged everything so they could return to Shuojing in a couple of days.
The two children naturally refused and made a lot of fuss, but once Xiao Jue made a decision, nothing could stop it from happening. No matter how discontent they were, they could only accept Xiao Jue’s judgment.
“I won’t say anything about Cheng Lisu, but is that girl, Song Taotao, truly willing to let go of He Yan?” Lin Shuanghe asked with disbelief. “She doesn’t mind not being able to stick with He Yan all day long anymore? Will she really just obediently leave?”
“Why don’t you ask her yourself?” Xiao Jue sat on a chair and poured himself a cup of tea before lazily sipping on it.
He’d been busy for a while and only just managed to obtain this moment of rest.
Lin Shuanghe sat on his soft bed and looked at him. “I don’t mind you ignoring me—after all, I’ve known you for years, so I won’t bicker with you about this. But why are you also ignoring my Little Miss He? Although military affairs are important, Little Miss He is also important. Don’t blame your brother for not reminding you—if you continue on like this, you’ll have nobody to cry to once Little Miss He is led away by Chu Zilan.”
“What does she have to do with me?” Xiao Jue frowned in irritation. “What’s happening with Chu Zilan?”
Lin Shuanghe rested his chin on his fan’s handle and calmly replied, “I’m not sure if it’s a coincidence or not, but I’ve been seeing Little Miss He and Chu Zilan chatting more frequently this past month.
“She’s a girl with an injury who can’t even participate in her daily training, so she’d naturally feel bored idling away. We don’t know the true intentions behind Chu Zilan’s arrival at the Liangzhou Guard either—it’s been two months, yet he still hasn’t mentioned when he’ll be leaving. He’s bored, Little Miss He’s bored; even strangers become more than acquaintances once they get to know each other.
“Anyway, in the past, Little Miss He would always call him ‘Fourth Young Master Chu.’ Just a few days ago, I heard her call Chu Zilan ‘Brother Chu.’ Don’t you feel anxious?”
Xiao Jue was puzzled. “Why would I feel anxious?”
“Think—if Little Miss He was led away by Chu Zilan and became his tool, the Liangzhou Guard would lose an exceptional talent unparalleled in civil and military skills. You’re pushing away a competent and capable subordinate.”
Xiao Jue sneered. “Do you think she’s the only soldier in the Liangzhou Guard?”
“Either way, I’ve never met a girl like her,” Lin Shuanghe said. “Chu Zilan is familiar with gaining the ladies’ favor. You have a superior background and capabilities, but what about personality? In the end, he’s the warm and amicable one. What lady wouldn’t love such a good-looking, noble young master to affectionately accompany her?”
“Love?” Xiao Jue’s beautiful eyes narrowed. With a hint of mockery in his voice, he said, “She’s only sixteen. What would she know about love?”
“So what if she’s sixteen?” Lin Shuanghe responded. “In Shuojing, many sixteen-year-old ladies are already married!”
“So?” Xiao Jue took a sip of tea before indifferently continuing, “At sixteen, other than their fathers, brothers, and seniors, how many men have they met? Since they haven’t met many, what can they know of love? Those who say they like peonies when it’s the only flower they’ve seen are different to those who say they like peonies even after seeing a hundred flowers.
“There’s a difference between a love with choice and a love without choice.”
“There’s no fun in how you explain it.” Lin Shuanghe rolled his eyes. “Many people in this world are ordinary. According to ordinary people’s rules, ordinary people will be betrothed at sixteen. That doesn’t mean their life will be spent without happiness and harmony.”
“But a majority of them are unhappy,” Xiao Jue said. “Others may not have a choice, but I do.”
Lin Shuanghe was left speechless. “Alright, alright, alright, you have a choice, you have a choice. However, according to you, the only girl you can find who has seen a hundred flowers is Little Miss He.
“In fact, since arriving at the Liangzhou Guard, Little Miss He has seen more than a hundred flowers. There are tens of thousands of men here, so she’s someone who’s seen tens of thousands of flowers. Even after seeing tens of thousands of flowers, if the one she likes is still you, then that’s great. However, if the one she likes is Chu Zilan . . .” Lin Shuanghe gloated. “. . . wouldn’t it be a blow to you?”
“You’re overthinking.” Xiao Jue smiled. “Who she likes doesn’t have anything to do with me. However, Xu Jingfu will definitely take Chu Zilan as his son-in-law.
“She can like Chu Zilan.” The corners of Xiao Jue’s lips curled up. “As long as she doesn’t fear death.”
Lin Shuanghe was taken aback.
“That’s right. I almost forgot that Chu Zilan is on Xu Jingfu’s side.”
…..
While Lin Shuanghe and Xiao Jue talked about Chu Zilan, He Yan had just arrived at Chu Zilan’s door.
Ying Xiang cheerfully invited her in. “Young Master He is here.” Then, she looked over He Yan’s shoulder and jokingly said, “Thank goodness Lady Song didn’t come along today.”
Song Taotao was constantly on guard against Ying Xiang, so whenever He Yan went to visit Chu Zhao, Song Taotao would vigilantly follow. After all, Ying Xiang was extremely beautiful with a humorous and coquettish personality. Compared to the cold and aloof Shen Muxue, most men would find her more attractive.
“She’s packing her luggage,” He Yan explained with a smile. “She’ll be leaving the Liangzhou Guard in a few days, so she can’t follow me all day long.”
Speaking of this, He Yan felt her head grow bigger. When Song Taotao received the news that she was returning to Shuojing, at first she cried, made a fuss, and threatened to hang herself, saying that she wouldn’t leave no matter what. She and Cheng Lisu reached an unprecedented agreement and almost tore down the Liangzhou Guard’s roof. Xiao Jue had to personally subdue these two children before they agreed to return to the capital. That was fine; however, Song Taotao had been attempting to take He Yan away with them.