"Then brother should rest well. Xie Chang'an, let's not disturb your rest!"
Ye Jinghe stared at Xie Chang'an with a wary look until Xie Chang'an left Ye Jingchen's tent and returned to his own tent before he also went back to his own tent.
Their tents were also right next to Ye Jingchen's, one on the left and one on the right, protecting him in the middle.
Despite being in a completely unfamiliar environment, Ye Jingchen was so tired after the day that he fell asleep as soon as he lay down on the simple bed.
Ye Jingchen was awakened in the morning by the lively noise outside the tent.
After waking up, he was in a daze for a while before he realized that they were on the road to suppress bandits.
He didn't bring any palace maids or eunuchs with him during this bandit suppression campaign; he had to take care of all the daily necessities himself.
After a night's rest, his legs were only a little sore and weak, but he had no other discomfort, and his feet were fine.
He dressed and stepped out of the tent, only to see Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an fighting outside his tent, while a number of soldiers watched and cheered from a distance.
Upon seeing Ye Jingchen, the two stopped fighting simultaneously and walked towards him as if nothing had happened.
"Brother, I've already prepared the water for you to wash up! Let me help you—"
"I'll tie your hair up."
Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an spoke at the same time.
"I can! I can do it myself!" Ye Jingchen said quickly.
He's not some helpless giant baby.
Before becoming the crown prince, he had at least lived as an ordinary person for thirty years!
After he finished washing up and simply tied his hair up, Ye Jinghe brought him breakfast.
The food on the march was simple: porridge, steamed buns, and a few dishes of pickled vegetables, along with a plate of delicate pastries that seemed completely out of place.
Ye Jingchen didn't say anything, finished the steamed buns and porridge, and shared the pastries with Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an.
After we finish eating, it's time to continue our journey.
"Brother, let me carry you on my back today!" Ye Jinghe looked at Ye Jingchen with anticipation.
Ye Jingchen was touched, but refused, saying, "I can walk by myself!"
Traveling light on the march is already excessive; how could we possibly make an exception for them?
Moreover, Ye Jinghe is the commander of this thousand-strong guard. What would it look like if they saw Ye Jinghe carrying him on his back? Wouldn't that damage Ye Jinghe's prestige?
Most importantly, Ye Jinghe is the younger brother, and four years younger than him. How could he possibly let Ye Jinghe carry him?
"It will be better to pad the soles with cotton cloth," Xie Chang'an said.
Without affecting his ability to walk, Ye Jingchen padded the soles of his shoes with several layers of cotton cloth, and then walking felt much better.
As they continued their journey, Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an stayed close by his sides, offering their assistance whenever they encountered steep sections of the road.
Ye Jingchen did not refuse their kindness, but he gained a deeper understanding of his own physical limitations.
Perhaps it wasn't that he was too useless, but rather that Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an were too physically strong. You know, his physical strength was stronger than that of everyone else in the Wenhua Hall, but he was instantly reduced to dust in front of these two little monsters.
That evening, they arrived at the mountain range where the bandits' stronghold was located, but in order not to alert them, they set up camp on a separate hilltop.
After a day of walking around, Ye Jingchen felt much better than yesterday.
Perhaps because Ye Jinghe and Xie Chang'an had been helping him along the way, and his body had adapted to the intensity, his calves were not as swollen as yesterday, and he only had one or two blisters on the soles of his feet.
Ye Jingchen didn't want to get involved; the symptoms weren't serious, and he figured he'd be fine after a night's rest. But Ye Jinghe wouldn't have it and insisted on massaging his legs and pricking the blisters.
Yesterday, Xie Chang'an massaged his feet for almost half an hour, and today Ye Jinghe also insisted on massaging them for half an hour before stopping. He then washed his feet with great enthusiasm and persistence and helped him remove the blisters.
As he did these things, Ye Jingchen noticed that Xie Chang'an was staring at them, his face as black as the bottom of a pot.
Ye Jinghe was very happy. After removing the blisters, he wanted to stay in Ye Jingchen's tent to guard him, citing the fact that it was too close to the bandits' camp and unsafe. Ye Jingchen sternly refused.
Ye Jingchen kicked both of them out.
But he had only been lying down for a short while when a dark figure silently crept into the dimly lit tent.
If Ye Jingchen hadn't been keeping a close eye on the tent entrance, he probably wouldn't have noticed.
He got out of bed, and dawn appeared beside him.
The shadowy figure realized it had been discovered, and instead of leaving, it moved closer.
"Brother, I'm still worried about you and want to stay by your side." Ye Jinghe gave a signature obedient smile.
"I have Chenxi guarding us, so we're perfectly safe. As the team's leader, you should rest well, recharge your energy, and strive for a great victory tomorrow!" Ye Jingchen said somewhat helplessly.
"I can get some rest while I'm with my brother!" Ye Jinghe looked at Ye Jingchen pitifully, trying to get away with it by being cute.
"Good boy, the big battle is imminent, you can't be willful, go back and get some rest!" Ye Jingchen said as he firmly pushed Ye Jinghe out.
As soon as I pushed the tent to the entrance, I was startled by the people standing outside.
"Xie Chang'an, what are you doing standing here so late at night instead of sleeping?" Ye Jingchen asked irritably.
"I discovered that some bad guys had sneaked into your tent, so I came here specifically to rescue you!" Xie Chang'an said to Ye Jinghe with a meaningful look in his eyes.
"You're the one with ill intentions! What business is it of yours if I go into my brother's tent?!" Ye Jinghe said coldly to Xie Chang'an.
"With a major battle imminent, it's not quite right for Commander Ye to be doing petty theft instead of thinking about how to defeat the bandits tomorrow!" Xie Chang'an mocked.
"Stop! You two go back to your tents!" Ye Jingchen said quickly before Ye Jinghe could speak.
"If you're so capable, you can guarantee to breach the bandit stronghold without taking any damage and capture all the bandits by tomorrow!"
After watching the two return to their respective tents, Ye Jingchen went back to his tent and lay down, but the disturbance made it difficult for him to fall asleep.
Ye Jinghe didn't know whether he was nervous about tomorrow's big battle, but he was indeed a little nervous.
According to the intelligence provided by Xie Chang'an, the bandits in this area committed numerous atrocities and deserved to die. However, apart from a few who were inherently vicious, most of them were forced into banditry because they could not survive.
The presence of bandits indicates problems with the local officials' governance.
The fact that local officials have problems indicates that the emperor's administration is not yet sufficiently clean and efficient.
Although Dayuan appears peaceful and harmonious, there are still many places where filth and evil lurk, and there is still much for them to work on.
However, right now, what he hopes for most is that tomorrow's bandit suppression will go smoothly, because a smooth operation means there won't be too many casualties.
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