Chapter 136 Military Law Enforcement

"Mingyue, what brings you here today?" Guan Shao feigned ignorance.

He's always been adept at pretending to be ignorant when he knows the truth.

Zhu Mingyue, of course, was quick to respond, saying exactly what Guan Shao wanted to hear: "This humble citizen wishes to donate provisions to the army, but is unaware of any shortages, and has come to inquire of the general."

Of course we're short of them!

The imperial court has now abandoned all responsibility, and the Jizhou army is dirt poor. They have never had a surplus of food, and they don't know where the next month's food will come from. He is worried about food supplies every day.

Besides, which army would complain about not having enough food? He would love to stockpile enough for a year or two to eliminate any worries about supplies.

But Guan Shao remained composed, suppressing his eagerness. He coughed twice and said, "What's with all this talk about commoners? There's no need for such formalities between us. I treat you no differently than a nephew or son in my family. You can just call me uncle."

Zhu Mingyue trembled, but couldn't utter a sound.

Guan Shao kept urging, "Shout it out! Do you not want to acknowledge me as your uncle?"

“I’m willing to acknowledge him.” Zhu Mingyue held her breath and called out softly, “Uncle.”

Guan Shao's dark face finally brightened, and he immediately smiled: "Good!"

It's very pleasant to hear!

Since he's called him uncle, he's a junior in the family, so there's no need to be reserved when speaking to a junior. He changed the subject: "Mingyue, what about the grain supplies you mentioned earlier?"

Seeing that things were finally back to the main topic, Zhu Mingyue breathed a sigh of relief without showing any emotion, and repeated what she had said before: "To be honest, I have been in the army for several days and have developed a deep affection for this place. So I wanted to do my best to donate a batch of grain to the army to improve the soldiers' meals."

“Mingyue! How can I accept this? You already donated a batch of supplies to the army before the New Year, not to mention the grain and fodder you donated earlier, which greatly helped the army and made great contributions to our capture of Suiyuan. However, the Jizhou army has nothing to repay you with, and I am truly ashamed in this matter.”

Zhu Mingyue hurriedly replied, "The Jizhou army's defense of the territory and protection of the people is a righteous act. I am merely doing my best and have no intention of rewarding them."

"Furthermore, although the batch of grain and fodder delivered to Jizhou Camp before the New Year was intercepted en route, it was probably not recovered if the army had not intervened."

Guan Shao denied it: "You can't say that. You paid for and worked hard to bring the grain from afar. I appreciate your kindness this time, but I absolutely cannot accept any more grain."

Haha, could you be any more fake?

If Guan Shao hadn't looked so nervous, as if he were afraid he would agree without hesitation, Zhu Mingyue would probably have taken it as a genuine refusal.

Zhu Mingyue's lips twitched, and then she also put on a distressed look, sighing dramatically: "I always wanted to do something for the Jizhou army, but I have no ability. I have nothing but money. The only thing I can do is donate grain. I never thought that even this wish could not be fulfilled. Oh well, I'll go back now."

After saying that, he got up to take his leave.

I glanced at Guan Shao out of the corner of my eye, and sure enough, his expression was one of great alarm. He could no longer keep up the act.

"Mingyue, don't go yet!" Guan Shao said gruffly, almost standing up to stop her.

Zhu Mingyue stopped in her tracks.

Guan Shao was a little embarrassed. He wanted to decline a couple of times, but the other party didn't play by the rules.

"Uncle, what is it?"

Guan Shao smiled kindly: "The matter of provisions is negotiable. If you really want to donate provisions, I certainly won't stop you. As you probably know, the army has always been short of provisions. It's just that I feel bad asking you to donate provisions so many times." As he spoke, he even pretended to pound his chest a few times.

Guan Shao offered a way out, and Zhu Mingyue naturally took it; one has to give the other face, right?

He immediately smiled and said, "There's nothing to feel bad about."

Guan Shao felt a chill run down his spine. "Then?"

Zhu Mingyue looked extremely obedient: "I want to donate."

"Good, good boy!" Guan Shao's mood brightened, and he even looked much better.

Guan Shao is not the kind of person who would be dishonest; he would never use someone and then discard them.

"Oh dear!" Guan Shao sighed. "You know your uncle can't give you material compensation, and I'm sure you don't lack it. If there's anything I can do, just tell me."

Zhu Mingyue had been waiting for these words, and her eyes lit up for a moment upon hearing them.

But he immediately concealed the glint in his eyes and cautiously asked, "Then Xie Pei..."

Guan Shao was still smiling, but as if he had foreseen the future, he decisively interrupted him: "Except for Xie Pei's matter."

Zhu Mingyue: ...

He looked like a wilted cucumber drying in the field, his shoulders slumped over, and he looked pitiful.

Guan Shao couldn't bear it. If he went out like this, wouldn't outsiders think that he, a great general, was bullying a child?

He lowered his voice and tried to comfort him gently, saying, "Everything else is fine, but Xie Pei's matter is really out of the question. You should just leave that kid alone."

Zhu Mingyue pouted, her eyes reddening, and her voice almost overflowing with grievance: "It's something to be concerned about."

This is his man. If he doesn't care, who will?

Guan Shao sighed, looking very troubled: "You have done a good job in donating grain, so it would be unreasonable for me not to agree to your request. But the credit for donating grain belongs to you, and even if we use merit to offset demerit, it cannot be attributed to that kid Xie Pei."

Zhu Mingyue was not an unreasonable person, so upon hearing this, she could only compromise and ask, "Then can you tell me what crime Xie Pei should be punished for this offense?"

Guan Shao felt a heart attack just thinking about Xie Pei. He took a few deep breaths before saying, "Beating a colleague in the army is a serious crime."

Zhu Mingyue's eyelashes trembled, and she looked up at Guan Shao, her eyes filled with expectation.

For a moment, Guan Shao almost softened. To be honest, Zhu Mingyue was indeed a good child; there was nothing about her that he was dissatisfied with.

But no one pleaded for him; he was determined to punish Xie Pei.

A general of such high rank openly assaulted a colleague in the army. The news has probably spread throughout the troops. If he shows the slightest favoritism, losing face is secondary; how will Xie Pei maintain his position in the army and win over the hearts of the soldiers?

Xie Pei came from a commoner background, which put him at a much lower starting point than his colleagues in the military.

Putting aside everything else, He Dayong, who was beaten, is related to a branch of the Xu family in Beijing.

The Xu family is a prestigious clan, and even their collateral branches are respected. He Dayong's status is more than enough in a place like Jizhou.

He Dayong, who considered himself extraordinary, had long been dissatisfied with Xie Pei for being able to go faster and farther than him. He was not completely unaware of Xie Pei's underhanded tactics and schemes.

But no matter how badly they acted, they didn't actually hit anyone.

Xie Pei beat up He Dayong, who is now lying in the hospital half-dead, his right leg broken.

He Dayong is used to being flattered and can't stand this kind of treatment. If he dares to protect Xie Pei this time, He Dayong will definitely cause a huge uproar.

Xie Pei had to be extremely careful with every step of his promotion, leaving no room for error. Now that he had made such a mistake at this crucial juncture, if we really wanted to protect him, we couldn't show favoritism and had to give He Dayong an explanation.

Whether or not he is satisfied is one thing, but at least He Dayong has to keep his mouth shut so he can't utter any complaints.

Guan Shao glanced at Zhu Mingyue sitting below with pity, "Go back! Don't make things difficult for your uncle. I have to give an explanation to the soldiers and to Captain He. If he isn't severely punished, there will be no discipline in the army."

"Don't worry, I will repay the favor I owe you whenever I can."

Zhu Mingyue walked out of the tent with a dejected expression.

Zhong Kai hurriedly went to greet him, "How is it?" To be honest, he didn't really have any hope.

As expected, Zhu Mingyue shook her head, speechless.

Now that things had come to this, Zhong Kai didn't know what to say, and could only comfort him: "The General values ​​our General very much, so nothing serious will happen."

Zhu Mingyue spent two days in a daze, and then learned that Xie Pei's decision was to apologize to He Dayong.

As for his official position, he wasn't dismissed for the time being, given a chance to make amends for his past mistakes. Guan Shao claimed he would be impartial, but in the end, he still showed favoritism.

He couldn't bear to part with it!

Xie Pei was someone he personally promoted. Once he retires and returns home, Xie Pei will most likely take his place. If he just dismisses his post like this, who will take over the position of commander? Is he going to hand it over to someone like He Dayong who has connections?

When Sun Kan told Zhu Mingyue the news, he was very happy for Xie Pei. In his opinion, this result was already a lenient punishment. Xie Pei was still a general, and he didn't need to change his superior.

However, Zhu Mingyue didn't seem very happy. He still remembered that Guan Shao said he would give He Dayong an explanation that day.

For someone as arrogant as Xie Pei to apologize to He Dayong is an insult to him.

What He Dayong wants is definitely more than just a verbal apology.

Sun Kan couldn't bear to see Zhu Mingyue so depressed, so he gently advised, "Young Master Zhu, look on the bright side. At least there's no better way to punish him."

"Moreover, the general has always acted cautiously. Since he did this, he must have considered the consequences beforehand. He certainly doesn't regret it now?"

Zhu Mingyue's heart finally softened a little. "Really?"

Sun Kan replied earnestly, "Really."

Many people in the army knew the ins and outs of this matter, but after the incident, the soldiers in the camp kept their mouths shut and tacitly chose not to let Zhu Mingyue hear the truth.

Zhu Mingyue was friendly and never kept any food to himself; everyone who came across him would get a share. Everyone had a very good impression of him and liked him very much.

That whole thing was He Dayong's fault.

At least in Sun Kan's view, He Dayong deserved to be taught a lesson. If he were in Xie Pei's position, he would not hesitate to use his fists.

But if someone is assaulted, that's assaulted. Military disputes are never judged based on motive; as long as violence is involved, it is dealt with according to military law.

He Dayong wanted to fight back, but he was completely powerless against Xie Pei, so Xie Pei had to bear the military punishment alone.

Sun Kan's fingers twitched slightly, and he finally couldn't resist patting Zhu Mingyue's shoulder twice: "Don't worry too much, General, at least you won't go to jail. I suppose you can return to camp after apologizing today."

Zhu Mingyue forced a smile. "Thank you, Lord Sun."

Sun Kan laughed and said, "It's nothing, just a matter of classification."

Now that he is a captain, with Xie Pei away, he is handling most of the affairs in the camp, and it is a busy time for him.

Zhu Mingyue didn't want to hold him back, so she pretended to be in a better mood to reassure him.

After seeing Sun Kan off, Zhu Mingyue found an excuse to leave the military camp and headed straight for the city's medical clinic.

Medical clinic outside the city

The ceramic pieces were shattered all over the floor.

He Dayong grabbed a cup of tea and shouted angrily, "Are you trying to scald me to death?!"

Before he could finish speaking, another teacup fell to the ground, shattering into pieces. The young apprentice serving nearby turned pale with fright and took a few steps back.

Just then, someone pushed open the door and entered, respectfully walked to He Dayong's side, and whispered something in his ear.

A flash of hatred suddenly appeared in He Dayong's eyes. "He's already here?"

Before the man could speak, the air pressure in the clinic suddenly dropped, and a chill ran down his spine.

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Author's note: The story will be finished next week!