Chapter 231 Missed Too Many Years

The engagement between the Huo and Yun families was a great joyous occasion, but unfortunately, because they had to keep the fact of Yun Chen's daughter a secret, everyone kept their joy to themselves and could not speak it out loud.

Even the people of Guangyuan City had only heard that a group of people brought a thousand loads of red silk gifts into the Yun Mansion, but they didn't know why.

After the engagement, the dowry was prepared under the supervision of Yun Zhongjun.

There was one item in the dowry that made Huo Gannian and Yun Chen so excited that they couldn't sleep all night. It was 100,000 Tusu war horses.

The horse is fast and has great endurance. It can travel a thousand miles a day without getting tired and run eight hundred miles at night without slacking off.

First, they are extremely courageous, brave and resolute in temperament, making them extremely suitable for combat; second, they are hardworking and not easily susceptible to illness or disease, and can adapt to the cruel environment of a long-term war.

Yun Zhongjun had been paying close attention to the war in the Nan Kingdom for many years, so he naturally guessed that the Lion Army was short of horses and had difficulty in fortifying Ying City.

The moment Yun Chen showed up at the Yun Mansion wearing the armor of a major general, Yun Zhongjun knew that Yun Chen must have come to borrow a horse, otherwise she would never come back to recognize him as her father.

To be honest, Yun Zhongjun has to thank the Black Scale Cavalry.

If they hadn't forced Yun Chen to come back to borrow the horse, Yun Zhongjun would probably never see his eldest daughter until his death.

It would take a long time to count a hundred thousand war horses.

In addition, at least 20,000 Lion Army soldiers are needed to come and receive the war horses, which will also take quite a while.

The battle in Guying City was at a stalemate, and Huo Gannian and Yun Chen had to leave Youzhou first as they could not afford to be without a general for too long.

On the day of departure, in order to avoid attracting attention, Huo Gannian and Yun Chen paid tribute to Shen Youning, and then left with only Ye Yan and a few close confidants, setting off from the back door of the Yun Mansion.

The Yun family, young and old, all stood at the back door to see them off. Everyone looked at Yun Chen and Huo Gannian, who were making the final arrangements for their departure.

Zhang Jiuzhi and Jia Mama secretly stuffed two amulets they had obtained from the Taoist temple into their packages while no one was paying attention.

Yun Zhongjun stood with his hands behind his back, looking seriously at Yun Chen, who was wearing the armor of a major general and had his hair neatly tied up.

Bai stood beside Yun Zhongjun, looking worried and saying with tears in her eyes:

"Miss, Master Huo, swords and knives are merciless on the battlefield, so be careful..."

Yun Chen smiled and nodded. Bai blushed slightly and said:

"Miss, if it's not too much trouble, I hope you can send me letters every month... no, frequently to let me know you're safe. Is that okay?"

"I understand." Yun Chen said, "Mother."

This was the first time in more than ten years that Bai heard Yun Chen willingly call her "mother". She was stunned and flattered, and tears instantly burst out of her eyes.

Bai kept wiping her tears with a handkerchief and began to cry while carefully telling Yun Chen to take care of his health, which made Yun Chen a little at a loss.

Seeing Bai started crying again, Yun Wang couldn't help it:

"Mom, don't cry, the moat is almost dry. Didn't you make a pair of knee pads for Sister Chen? Give them to Sister Chen quickly!"

"Yes, yes, yes! I almost forgot about this! Tian'er and I have been working on it for several days! One pair for the eldest lady and Mr. Huo." Only then did Mrs. Bai remember her "big thing" and hurriedly took out two pairs of knee pads.

Although Yun Tian was very reluctant when her name was called, she still whispered a few words to Yun Chen:

"Sister Chen, have a safe journey... My mother made most of the knee pads. I only patched a few stitches on them, but she thought they looked ugly..."

Everyone burst into laughter.

Yun Lan mysteriously handed Yun Chen a small brocade package, winked at him playfully, and said with a smile:

"Sister, open it when no one is around..." Yun Lan lowered her voice again and added to the bewildered Yun Chen:

"I guarantee you'll like it—and your brother-in-law will like it even more!"

After stuffing the package, Yun Lan did not forget to bow to Huo Gannian, and said with a smile as if asking for credit:

"Next time we meet, brother-in-law must treat us to a drink!"

Huo Gannian probably guessed what was in the small brocade package. He smiled brighter than a flower and immediately took out a large bag of gold, saying that it was to give to his nephews and nieces as New Year's money.

The children divided the gold up in a lively atmosphere, and Yunliancheng got the most.

Everyone found it curious to see the little man, who was not even as tall as a horse's leg, with a small white jade whip with a red tassel stuck in his waist. He looked very proud and like a little adult.

Yun Liancheng raised the two gold ingots in his hand and said to Huo Gannian happily:

"Uncle, for the sake of the gold, please come often in the future!"

"Hahahaha——" everyone laughed.

Huo Leiting, who was standing by, couldn't help but pinch Yun Liancheng's chubby little face and said with a smile:

"Oh, I was originally worried that if I stayed in the Yun Mansion for a while longer, it would be too quiet. Now it seems that won't happen. With Xiaolian City here, it will definitely be very lively!"

Huo Gannian jumped onto his horse, whipped it, and asked Huo Leiting, who was busy teasing Yunlian City:

"Dad, I'm really leaving. Are you sure you want to stay here longer and not go back to Kyoto?"

Huo Lei Ting waved his hands without even looking up. "No, no, no, Kyoto is not as fun as Youzhou. I want to take a good look at Little Lotus City and reminisce with Lao Yun about our old comrades-in-arms!"

Yun Zhongjun, also known as "Old Yun", swallowed the words "We have never worked together" and just told Huo Gannian not to worry, saying that he would provide enough food and wine and let Huo Leiting live comfortably in the Yun Mansion for even ten or eight years.

Huo Leiting looked at Yun Zhongjun teasingly:

"Ten or eight years? By then I'm afraid I'll be really confused! I won't even need to pretend!"

Everyone laughed again.

Seeing the whole family having fun, Yun Chen also started laughing.

She suddenly realized that she might be a homebody, otherwise why would she be so reluctant to leave at this moment.

But I have a mission to fulfill and cannot stay any longer.

She turned over and rode on a tall and thin black horse called "Water Dragon".

The horse was as black as ink, and its fur shone like satin in the sunlight.

This horse is good at charging and can swim, and can be called a dragon in the water. It is the mount that Yun Zhongjun specially chose for her.

"Let's go!" Huo Gannian said, whipped his horse and galloped forward, and Yun Chen immediately followed.

The young men were so heroic and full of vigor that Huo Leiting was itching to see them. He nudged Yun Zhongjun next to him with his elbow:

"My son, your daughter, is incredibly talented and ambitious. They are so handsome! Old Yun, please say something—"

Yun Zhongjun had no time to pay attention to Huo Leiting. He just stretched his neck and followed Yun Chen who was gradually moving away.

On the other side, Yun Chen, who had already run more than ten feet, suddenly reined in his horse and stopped where he was.

She turned around and looked through the crowd at the back door.

She saw Yun Zhongjun standing in the crowd, slightly tiptoeing in a somewhat funny way, looking up at her.

The beard on his face had been completely shaved off, and he looked just like the father in her childhood memory, bringing back many warm memories for her.

Unexpectedly, Yun Chen turned around so suddenly that Yun Zhongjun didn't have time to put on a "serious" mask. His eyes were filled with worry, reluctance, relief, and pride...

It seemed that he also wanted to cherish this moment and was unwilling to pretend anymore. Yun Zhongjun gave Yun Chen a somewhat awkward but more encouraging smile and nodded slightly.

Yun Chen's heart was instantly shocked and his nose felt slightly sore.

Looking at the already aging Yun Zhongjun, Yun Chen suddenly realized that the tall and majestic father in his childhood memories had already turned gray...

She suddenly felt a little regretful, wondering if she had missed too many years...

"Dad, happy birthday." Yun Chen said softly, then turned his horse's head again, jumped on the horse and rode away.