Chapter 96
Even if it's nonsense, as long as it's related to the Zhan family's past, judging from Gu Shuan's behavior, he cares about it even more than Zhan Xian herself. This is also his biggest inner conflict throughout the book.
Gu Shuan's eyes narrowed upon hearing this, and she asked in a cold voice, "What do you know?"
Lin Yi was speechless for a moment. She knew a little bit, but she couldn't say it, brother.
"What could I possibly know? Didn't she say that the Zhan family's treason was a frame-up? Would a general with such military power be so easily framed? It must have been a coordinated attack from within and without. Outside are the Xili people, and inside, the closest one is Liangzhou, isn't it?"
As he said this, Lin Yi's face showed just the right amount of disdain, as if to say, how could you not even think of this?
These words sound simple, but putting them into action would be a complex and multifaceted process. Their initial failure to connect them to the Zhan family case stemmed from overcomplicating the matter.
Gu Shuan fell into deep thought, pondering how to conduct an investigation into the matter. Soon, he had a plan in mind: "For now, we should hold back. The war between our army and Xili has just begun, and the outcome is still unknown. When the war will end is also uncertain. During this period, we still need the supplies and transit arrangements from Liangzhou. It will not be too late to deal with this matter after the war situation stabilizes."
After all, regardless of the situation with Liangzhou, this is an internal affair of Anguo. As long as they have not betrayed the country and surrendered to the enemy, they can be dealt with later once the dust settles.
Xie Chengnan said, "But we can't be completely unprepared. Since they were able to plot against the Zhan family army ten years ago, it's hard to guarantee that they won't harbor ill intentions towards the Crown Prince who is personally leading the expedition."
Gu Shuan nodded in affirmation: "Leave a team behind, claiming to assist the state government in defending the city, but in reality to monitor and prevent spies from Xili from infiltrating and secretly colluding with Liangzhou."
The group has already begun discussing who will remain in the team.
Having already taken precautions, the specifics of how to proceed were no longer Lin Yi's concern. She was simply a little surprised; all the people present held military ranks, and not low ones at that, while she was merely a female physician, a position she had earned herself. Yet, when they discussed important military matters, they showed her absolutely no restraint—Lin Yi couldn't quite describe the subtle feeling this evoked. Their trust in her was quietly growing, but Lin Yi felt guilty… Since she held no military rank, continuing to eavesdrop would be overstepping her bounds.
So Lin Yi raised one hand, met the three men's gazes, and gave a slightly embarrassed smile: "Why don't you wait until I finish explaining before we discuss this?"
“I don’t like the ginger soup from the mess hall, so I added a few medicinal herbs—dried tangerine peel to regulate qi, hawthorn to clear turbidity, and licorice to harmonize it, making it sweeter and more effective at dispelling cold and preventing illness.” Lin Yi glanced down at the food box he had casually placed on the table when he came in, his voice soft but clear, “I have already tested these herbs and made sure there are no adverse interactions. In the commander’s opinion, could you… distribute them to the soldiers in the camp?”
A moment of silence fell over the tent. The gazes of the group shifted to the ginger soup on the table, then returned to her. Lin Yi's eyes were clear and bright, as if her mind and eyes were only focused on the few cups of ginger tea waiting to be served, making it impossible for anyone to refuse.
Gu Shuan raised her chin towards the food box.
Lin Yi immediately understood, her eyes crinkling with laughter, and took out the still-warm soup bowl from the box.
She gave the first bowl of soup to Xie Chengnan, and on the way here, Lin Yi went to get another one. Because she had instructed the cooking battalion beforehand to keep the soup in the pot warm on the fire, and to put it into the insulated food box immediately after it was served—it wasn't that she was being biased, Lin Yi really didn't expect the first bowl to cool down so quickly, and besides, Xie Chengnan was one of her own, while Gu Shuan was the key to deciding whether the pot of soup could be distributed, so naturally she needed to show her 'special performance'.
However, Lin Yi was distracted by observing Xie Chengnan's expression. Sure enough, the moment the lid was opened and steam escaped, she saw Xie Chengnan purse his lips.
Lin Yi clicked his tongue inwardly. This jealous person still needs to be appeased.
She took out the silver needle she always carried, dipped it into the bowl for a moment, and when she pulled it out of the tea, it was still shiny silver. She showed it to everyone and said, "I didn't poison you, Commander."
This sentence clearly draws a line between him and Gu Shuan, making their closeness or distance immediately apparent.
Xie Chengnan indeed didn't say anything more.
Gu Shuan took a small sip and said, "Give it to the military doctor, who will check it and confirm that there are no problems, then we will implement it in the army."
Xie Chengnan reminded her, "She is the best military doctor in this army."
Gu Shuan glanced at him sideways. "I'm not questioning her medical skills. Anything that soldiers put in their mouths must be inspected by multiple military doctors. That's the military regulation."
"It's military regulations again..." Xie Chengnan muttered under his breath. When he saw Xie Chengnan's gaze fixed on him again, he nodded repeatedly, with an expression that said, "Commander, you're right." He then gestured to Xie Chengnan.
With Gu Shuan's personal permission, Lin Yi carried a teapot and personally delivered tea to various parts of the military camp. Originally, the cooking battalion could have done this, but having been with the army for a long time, she didn't even know how many military camps there were in Anguo, or how many branches of the military there were. This was a good opportunity for her to familiarize herself with them.
The clear broth, once poured out, emitted a sweet, fruity aroma mixed with the scent of ginger, wafting far and wide. An elderly soldier sheathed his sword, grinned, and scooped up a full bowl. After gulping it down, he wiped the broth from his lips with the back of his hand and exclaimed, "What excellent cooking, young lady!"
Several young recruits lined up behind him, craning their necks and eager to try. Lin Yi smiled and served them.
The atmosphere was relatively harmonious until now, but someone always had to say something sarcastic to spoil the mood.
One of the onlookers, a cavalryman wiping his bow and arrows, scoffed, "Is it really worth bragging about something as simple as boiling a pot of soup?"
The man next to her chuckled and chimed in, "That young lady is spoiled. It's good enough that she can do this. You expect her to go to war and fight, or come home to do your laundry and cook for you? Hahahaha..."
These words were rather vulgar, and the soldiers around them laughed when they heard them.
"Hey, it's good enough that she doesn't cause trouble and can do something. Believe me, when we get to the battlefield, we'll be the ones protecting her." He patted the cavalryman on the shoulder. "What's there to be upset about? You drink it, who knows how much trouble you'll cause us later!"
Despite his good intentions, he received no kind response. Lin Yi knew that in the military camp, strength was paramount. Since he could neither deploy troops nor fight on the front lines, he was considered the most useless person in their eyes.
She gripped the ladle slightly, but quickly relaxed her grip.
Although the soldiers looked down on her, they didn't throw away the herbal tea they were given; most of them drank it all, which was enough to prove her worth. Her purpose was simply to finish the soup, not to win anyone's favor.
Once I understood, I let it go.
Her smile deepened, and no matter what the soldiers said, as long as their words weren't too offensive or crossed her bottom line, she pretended not to hear them and distributed the remaining tea to them equally.
What she doesn't care about, someone else cares about very much.
Xie Chengnan remembered that she had never walked around the military camp alone since she joined the army, and worried that she might get lost. He quickly discussed a few words with Gu Shuan and Zhan Xian and then came out ahead of time.
He learned from the cooking camp that she had traveled to various camps and searched for her along the way.
They had barely seen the person when they heard those words.
"Drinking hot soup while cursing the cook—it's truly eye-opening! Even if you fed it to a stray dog in Yingkou, it would wag its tail and bring you a bone as thanks."
The implication is that these people are worse than animals.
One of them got angry first, uttered a curse word that Lin Yi couldn't understand, clenched his fist and turned to swing it at Xie Chengnan's face.
"Xie Chengnan—!" Lin Yi called out his name urgently.
Upon seeing Xie Chengnan's thin armor, the man quickly withdrew his fist: "General...!"
He accepted it, but Xie Chengnan didn't. Just as the man was about to crash into him due to inertia, Xie Chengnan delivered a powerful punch, viciously stabbing him in the chest and abdomen.
Saliva suddenly gushed from that person's mouth!
Xie Chengnan's control was excellent. This abdominal strike looked like it would shatter the liver and gallbladder, but in reality it avoided vital points. The force was only terrifying to look at and did not cause any real damage. At most, it would hurt for a few days.
Lin Yi knew he wouldn't kill his own people, but he was still startled. He dropped the ladle and rushed over to pull the people away.
"You're insane!"
Xie Chengnan remained unmoved. "Stand back a bit." His voice was soft, but the fierceness on his face was still there.
Lin Yi was worried that if he threw a few more punches, things would get out of hand, so instead of standing far away, he moved even closer and reached out to stop him.
The soldier who was hit clenched his fist tightly after taking such a punch, but he held back from retaliating. However, the gloomy resentment in his eyes was like a poisoned blade, as if it would explode at any moment.
Xie Chengnan raised his chin, his gaze sweeping over the group from top to bottom, taking in their anger and resentment. Suddenly, he withdrew his gaze and pointed at Lin Yi: "This is Doctor Qiu, the best physician in the entire army. Even His Majesty has consulted her. She came here because she couldn't bear to see the soldiers bleed and sacrifice on the battlefield. You'd better pray you don't get injured and don't need her to treat you, otherwise, wouldn't you die of shame?"
After saying that, he stretched out his long arm and pulled the person in front of him, resting his chin affectionately on Lin Yi's shoulder, even though this action required him to bend over.
"Furthermore, this is my wife. Show her some respect. If any unpleasant words reach my ears, I can't guarantee that I won't take revenge..."
Xie Chengnan grinned. "After all, no one would be so magnanimous as to tolerate their beloved wife being talked about by other men, wouldn't you say?"
His smile held a hint of ruthlessness and cruelty, the rest of it nonchalant, as if his words were just a joke.
But nobody takes it as a joke.
Lin Yi was shocked to see him so violent for the first time. Just as she was about to take a closer look, he put his arm around her shoulder.
"Let's go, no need to argue with them." Xie Chengnan's tone was light, all the gloom vanished.
Seeing how quickly his expression changed, Lin Yi knew she couldn't say anything more and had no choice but to leave with him.
That really is... youthful spirit.
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