Chapter 85
Gongsun Yin was in charge of the main army's pressure in the middle this time. Halfway through the battle, he suddenly saw a group of cavalry rushing in, breaking up Chongzhou's infantry formation and helping him complete the strangulation in the rear.
The two armies gathered their troops. When Gongsun Yin saw the old man in plain clothes calmly standing in the rain with an umbrella, he was surprised and delighted. He hurried forward and bowed, saying, "My Lord, you told me before that there is a master among the reinforcements at the foot of the mountain. I didn't expect it to be the Grand Master!"
His personal guard followed closely behind him, holding an umbrella for him. Raindrops dripped down from the ribs of the umbrella. The cold wind lifted a corner of his robe, giving him a sense of Wu Dai Dang Feng's elegance.
Tao Taifu said: "I am traveling here and I came to take a look."
He looked at the young man in front of him with admiration on his face: "I have heard that the Gongsun clan of Hejian has produced a wise man. It is also the boy's ability that he was able to persuade you to join his army."
Gongsun Yin nodded and said, "Your Majesty has the world in your heart and cares for the people. I admire your integrity and am willing to serve you."
After that, he led Master Tao to the carriage and said, "Shi Yue has a powerful general under his command. He tore through the vanguard and helped Shi Yue escape. The Marquis went to pursue the enemy and I think he is on his way back. Master, come with me up the mountain and drink a cup of ginger tea to get rid of the cold."
It was already evening, and after this great battle, the soldiers needed to rest. There was a ready-made camp and a defensive wall on the mountain, so the best strategy was to stay on the mountain.
After saying "thank you for your help", Master Tao got on the carriage with Gongsun Yin. Raindrops hit the carriage canopy, making a crackling sound like beans being sprinkled. The carriage swayed along the mountain road. Master Tao's voice was also slow in the sound of rain: "I still trouble Gongsun to find someone for me."
Gongsun Yin was pouring tea for Master Tao. Hearing this, he smiled warmly and said, "Master, please continue."
Tao Taifu said, "Among the Jizhou troops who were escorting grain and grass up the mountain half a month ago, there was a girl who was considered half of my disciple. She went up the mountain without hesitation that day, and I think she has suffered a lot in the past few days."
Gongsun Yin paused while pouring tea, thinking that among the reinforcements that were sent to the mountain last time, only Fan Changyu was a woman. Could it be that Master Tao was talking about Fan Changyu? Or was he saying that there was another woman disguised as a man on the mountain now?
He pushed a cup of tea towards Master Tao and asked, "What is the name of Master's favorite disciple?"
Master Tao said: "His surname is Fan, his name is Changyu, and he is a kind and honest child."
Gongsun Yin felt that the sip of tea he had just drunk had instantly turned into century-old vinegar, so sour that he could hardly open his mouth. After a long while, he said, "I heard that you have high requirements for the qualifications of your disciples?"
Who is Master Tao? When he heard what Gongsun Yin said, he felt that he must have met Fan Changyu. He was too embarrassed to say that he took the initiative to ask Fan Changyu to accept him as a disciple, but was rejected by Fan Changyu. He coughed lightly and stroked his goat beard and said, "That girl has a good foundation. She is a rare genius in martial arts. It's just that she lacks a few points in intelligence. That's why I say she is only half a disciple."
After hearing this, Gongsun Yin stopped being sour and said with a smile, "I have seen your disciple before."
-
As soon as Fan Changyu returned to the military camp, he went to look for Changning, but he didn't see Changning. After some inquiries, he learned that Changning had been taken away by Xie Qi.
She immediately looked over and saw Chang Ning sleeping on Xie Qijun's bed. Beside the bed was a bamboo basket of unknown use filled with some dry grass. Hai Dongqing was squatting inside and taking a nap. When he heard the footsteps, he immediately opened his round eyes.
When Fan Changyu saw the Saker Falcon, he was stunned for a moment. For a moment he couldn't tell whether this falcon was tamed by Xie Zheng or had been his from the beginning.
Xie Qi didn't know whether his identity as a marquis had been exposed. When he saw Fan Changyu, he called out tentatively, "Miss Fan."
Fan Changyu glanced at him, picked up Changning and walked back without saying a word.
The fact that he had that big falcon here showed that he also knew Xie Zheng's identity and that he had been fooled by them these days.
When Xie Qi saw Fan Changyu's expression, he knew that she must know everything. He felt guilty and ashamed, and when he saw her leaving, he didn't dare to stop her.
Changning felt herself being moved. She opened her eyes in a daze, saw Fan Changyu, called out "Sister", and fell asleep on her shoulder again.
Fan Changyu held Changning in one hand and still had one hand free to hold the umbrella. Seeing this, Xie Qi hurried forward and said, "Miss Fan, let me help you hold the umbrella."
Fan Changyu stared at the young man in front of him who was smiling flatteringly with a stiff smile for a while, and finally did not embarrass him anymore. He was under pressure from Xie Zheng above, and it was not his intention to deceive him together with him.
The raindrops hitting the umbrella made soft "puff" sounds. Although the weather was not good, every tent in the military camp was lit after a victory. It was inconvenient for the soldiers to celebrate in the open air, so they had a good meal with wine and meat inside the tent.
Through the rain, the sounds were distant yet clear.
Xie Qi was always smart, and he said thoughtfully, "Miss Fan, I know you may be annoyed that the Marquis has been hiding his identity from you, but the Marquis has no choice but to do this. The Marquis has always been surrounded by wolves, and Miss Changning was kidnapped by thieves before. The Marquis is afraid that you will also be in trouble, so he has no choice but to do this."
Fan Changyu paused and asked, "Was Changning's kidnapping related to him?"
Xie Qi hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to respond. However, Fan Changyu had already gotten the answer he wanted from his silence, and his heart became more and more confused.
In front of them was the military tent where she and Chang Ning lived. Fan Changyu turned around at the door and said, "Thank you, Brother Xiaoqi, for seeing me off. The room is not cleaned up yet, so I won't invite you in to sit down."
Xie Qi hurriedly said, "Miss Fan, you are too kind. This is Xie Qi's job."
Fan Changyu didn't say anything more. After entering the tent, he put Changning on the bed in the dark without turning on the lights and covered her with a quilt. He then sat aside with his knees hugged, looking at the dark night in a daze.
There is only one marquis in the entire northwest, so Yan Zheng is the Marquis of Wu'an who makes the northern Jue people tremble in fear?
In the past, she thought Yan Zheng was vivid and real. He had a bad temper, was unforgiving, and was picky about food, but he was also very kind. He disliked her for being stupid but always helped her and almost never broke his promises.
He had read a lot of books and understood a lot of things. He was the smartest person she had ever met.
Perhaps the time when she met Yan Zheng was the most difficult time for her after her parents passed away, so much so that after he left, she often thought of him.
Sometimes she was eating salted pork intestines, thinking that if he were still alive, he would probably frown while eating, and she felt a little funny in her heart. Sometimes she was flipping through the books he annotated, and when she bent down, she remembered what he once said about reading the books of saints without sitting properly, and she immediately sat up straight to read. Sometimes she went to the candy store to buy pine nut candy for Changning, and the store owner asked why she didn't buy Chenpi candy, because there was no one in her family who ate Chenpi candy, but she still subconsciously bought some more to bring back...
Whenever she encountered difficulties, she would think, if only Yan Zheng were still here, because he was so smart and would definitely be able to help her find a solution.
She traveled across mountains and rivers to find him, and was willing to risk her life on the battlefield to protect him. It was that kind of person, but that person didn't exist at all.
She couldn't continue to regard Wu'an Hou as speaking the truth.
Behind that title were his glorious military achievements and the admiration of the people, but it was also something that was out of her reach.
Her hair, wet by the rain, had not been combed dry yet, and water droplets fell from the ends of her hair, wetting a small area of the dry clothes she had just changed. The wet fabric stuck to her body, making her feel a little cold, but it also made Fan Changyu more sober.
-
As soon as Xie Zheng returned to the camp in the heavy rain, a personal guard came forward to lead his horse and said, "My Lord, Mr. Gongsun just sent someone to tell you to return to the camp. He said that a distinguished guest is coming to visit."
The soaked cloak was very uncomfortable to wear, so Xie Zheng took it off and threw it to his personal guard, saying, "I will change into some dry clothes first."
He strode into the central military tent, where his personal soldiers had already prepared hot water and clothes for bathing.
After Xie Zheng simply washed himself, he wiped the water off his body with a dry towel, picked up a long gown with arrow sleeves beside the bed and put it on, asking, "How is she doing after she came back?"
Xie Qi was serving in the room. He said thoughtfully, "Madam still seems a little angry. I tried to persuade her, but she said almost nothing."
Xie Zheng frowned slightly, fastened his belt and said, "I'll go over and take a look."
-
Fan Changyu was still sitting in the tent in a daze when he suddenly heard footsteps approaching in the rain outside, and it sounded like there was more than one person.
After a moment, the footsteps stopped at the door of the tent. It was Xie Qi's voice: "Miss Fan, the fire camp has cooked ginger soup. I'll bring you a bowl."
Fan Changyu was in a state of confusion and said, "I am in good health, so I don't need it. You can give it to other soldiers."
The person outside the tent did not leave. Instead, he opened the curtain and walked in.
When Fan Changyu raised his eyes, he met Xie Zheng's beautiful yet perverse eyes.
He entered the room carrying the ginger soup. Xie Qi, who was standing behind him, carefully protected the candlestick in front of him with one hand. When he saw Fan Changyu, he smiled awkwardly, put the candlestick on the table, and then walked out.
The coldness in the room seemed to be driven away by the warm candlelight.
Changning was always a deep sleeper, wrapped in a scarlet cloak with only his chubby little face exposed. Sensing the light, he turned over with his back to the candlestick, smacked his lips, and his breathing became longer again.
Fan Changyu looked at Xie Zheng. He used to look good in cloth clothes, but now he was wearing a brocade robe embroidered with delicate patterns. His noble aura could not be concealed. It was just that the bruise at the corner of his eye was a little eye-catching.
She had calmed down completely by now, and had thought clearly about the pros and cons. She knew that he was a marquis after all, and that the punch she had thrown out of anger and grievance was inappropriate after all. She pursed her lips and said, "I'm sorry for hitting you like this."
Xie Zheng raised his eyebrows in surprise and said, "Compared to the last beating, this one should be considered light."
Fan Changyu knew that the last time he was talking about was the time he was arrested for conscription, so he said again: "I'm sorry."
Xie Zheng was only half joking when he said this to her. After hearing her answer, he frowned and said, "Why do you keep apologizing to me? I was indeed an asshole that time."
His dark eyes locked onto her, and his casual expression made him look like a vicious dog with its fangs retracted. "I've read a lot of holy books, and I know how to be polite and honest, but when it comes to you, sometimes I can't help wanting to do some jerkish things."
He even said this with a hint of self-pity.
Fan Changyu subconsciously glared at him fiercely, and after two breaths of silence, he softened his tone: "Yan... Marquis, let's talk."
When Xie Zheng heard the change in how she addressed him, his eyelids lifted, his eyes darkened, and he said, "Okay, drink the ginger soup first."
He passed the bowl of ginger soup over.
Fan Changyu took a sip and drank the whole bowl of ginger soup. His whole stomach indeed felt warm.
Xie Zheng then spoke: "I didn't mean to deceive you. I was being hunted down and drifted to Qingping County, and you happened to rescue me. If I told you my true identity, I was afraid it would attract trouble, so I kept it a secret."
Fan Changyu said: "I don't blame you for keeping it a secret at first."
She suddenly acted like she was very good at making sense, but Xie Zheng suddenly felt uneasy.
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