Chapter 121: Keep Him Behind
The next day, at dawn, the camp was filled with the sound of work. Jin Sui went into the space to take care of her personal hygiene. She didn't care about being discovered by Gu Changxiao.
Last night, the two of them were covered in sand at the beach, and she felt uncomfortable if she didn't wash it off. That night, the soldiers went to the shallow sea to bathe, and invited her and Gu Changxiao to go with them.
She let Gu Changxiao go by himself, and she simply wiped the wound in the tent for fear of infection.
The result was that I didn’t sleep well that night, my mind was in a mess, and my body was itchy all over.
She checked the time in the space. It was just past four in the morning. Although it was early in the morning at the seaside, the soldiers also got up too early!
As soon as I came out of the tent, I saw Gu Changxiao leaning against the haystack with sleepy eyes. His long hair, which had just been washed last night, was a little messy, and his lips were tightly pursed, as if he was hiding his bad temper after waking up.
It's really rare to see Gu Changxiao like this. Jin Sui couldn't help but look at him a few more times. When their eyes met, Gu Changxiao instantly woke up.
Jinsui quickly turned her head away and stopped looking at him, as if she had done something bad.
Something is wrong! Something is very wrong!
Ling Jinsui, ah Ling Jinsui, you are a man now! A man! Your character cannot collapse.
She stretched herself and pretended that the two of them were not awkward and smiled: "The soldiers got up too early, and the waves were loud. Didn't you sleep well?"
Gu Changxiao was busy tying his hair, and some hay got stuck into his long hair, like a cat that had combed its fur in the morning.
Such a Gu Changxiao is even rarer!
Of course, thinking back carefully, the two of them had not been alone for very long, and he did not know Gu Changxiao very well at all.
The more I pretended not to care, the more I couldn't help but want to look at him, and the more I cared about these little details.
In the past, she was afraid, respectful, and awed by Gu Changxiao. She was afraid that she would reveal something, so she always remembered her persona and her acting in front of him.
Looking at Gu Changxiao at this moment, she was shocked to realize that he was actually just an eighteen-year-old teenager, but his experience made him more mature than his peers and he was more wary of others.
Seeing him tying his hair like straw, I couldn't help but take out a comb and said disdainfully: "I'll help you."
Gu Changxiao was stunned for a moment. He felt uncomfortable with such an intimate gesture, but he was reluctant to reject Taoist Xiao Ji's active contact. A mixture of conflict and joy flashed across his face.
Before he could decide whether to refuse or accept, his body instinctively moved forward. He even half-knelt in front of Jinsui to make it easier for the shorter Jinsui.
The sea breeze blew, and his long hair and red hairband blew onto Jinsui's face, carrying the scent of soapberries.
At this moment, Captain Liu came running over from afar and greeted with a smile: "Your Majesty, today I will lead people to level the salt fields and learn the salt drying method as soon as possible..."
Then he saw that his prince was combing the hair of his personal guards.
At that moment, all three of them were very embarrassed. Jin Sui reacted the fastest. He threw the comb into Gu Changxiao's hand and pretended nothing had happened.
He put his hands behind his back and said to Captain Liu with a smile, "Let's go together. I picked a good place last night. It's perfect for making salt fields."
Captain Liu stammered "Ah" and smiled at Gu Changxiao in a flattering manner.
The prince's new personal guard is so serious that people are afraid to get close to him. Unlike Hei Hu, he jokes and laughs with everyone he meets.
Gu Changxiao also tied his hair very naturally, glanced at the comb in his hand, then looked at Jinsui's back, put it in his arms very naturally, and followed behind Jinsui with the sword in his arms.
The first step in leveling the salt fields is to clear the rubble on the beach. If there are not enough people, even the King Li himself has to do it himself.
The three of them, along with the soldiers from the Tuntian Camp, spent half the morning clearing the stones. Gu Changxiao was concerned about Jinsui's injured foot last night, so he let her rest on the shore.
How to rest? The real Li Wang rolled up his sleeves and trouser legs and worked hard, while the fake Li Wang sat on the shore and admired the scenery? But Jin Sui's feet really hurt, so she took a fence to help turn over the stones, and when she saw crabs and clams crawling out, she hurriedly picked them up with a bucket.
The soldiers all knew that the prince was injured. They would not have any objection even if the prince sat in the tent and did nothing, let alone coming to work personally!
Working from around four in the morning to around nine in the morning, Jinsui picked up three large buckets of seafood. The soldiers who went out to sea to pull up the nets brought back the nets they had cast last night. They had a great harvest, including a swordfish half the size of a man. Jinsui helped pick the fish again.
The soldiers all laughed and said that they had not caught so many fish before, but after the prince came last night, there were so many fish.
What was even more surprising was that when Jinsui opened the clams, he found a pearl as big as a soybean. This was even more rare, as the soldiers had never found any pearls since they arrived in the East China Sea.
Jin Sui hurriedly asked Captain Liu to keep it safe, and after returning to the border town, he had someone take it to Yanzhou to exchange for food.
Now, without the need for the soldiers to flatter him, Jin Sui himself felt that he was extremely lucky.
Instruct the soldiers to classify the seafood. No shells should be thrown away, no matter how big or small. The shells will be very useful after the meat is peeled out.
Gu Changxiao asked curiously: "What is the use of this shell?"
Jin Sui counted on his fingers and said, "They have many uses. The shiny ones can be used as dyes, rouge, and accessories. The ordinary ones are also good building materials. In short, they all have their uses and should not be wasted."
Gu Changxiao saw that she treated the border town as her own home and wanted to bring home all the good things. She was thinking of ways to make her family rich.
The corners of his mouth could not help but rise. "Master Xiao Ji, in fact, I don't need to force you to stay, you will definitely stay in Border Town! Maybe you haven't realized that you care more about the construction of Border Town than I, the True Li King."
"If we dry the meat and sell it at dry goods shops in the north and south, the price will be very high!"
Gu Changxiao agreed with this: "The good soups in Chang'an restaurants all have seafood added to them."
Finally, the signal for breakfast was received. Jinsui was so hungry that her stomach was sticking to her back. She thought that the soldiers worked so hard every day, eating only two meals a day and working from dawn until the moon was at its highest point in the sky.
After asking, I found out that they usually didn't get up until dawn, but today Captain Liu was too anxious and woke up the soldiers of the Tuntian Camp to work before dawn.
Jinsui: ...
No, why are you workers so stubborn? It makes me look lazy!
But she turned around and said to Gu Changxiao proudly: "See, I trained your subordinates to be diligent!"
Gu Changxiao felt his heart tremble slightly. He seemed to like seeing Taoist Xiao Ji's expression.
The bowl in his hand was so hot that his fingers turned red, but he didn't even notice. What was wrong with him?
Fortunately, Jin Sui reacted quickly: "The seafood porridge is very hot, put down the bowl quickly." As she spoke, she took his bowl, and she quickly rubbed her ears because it was so hot.
Gu Changxiao's Adam's apple rolled a few times, and he seemed to be... seriously ill.
Seeing Gu Changxiao looking at him intently, Jin Sui's heart skipped a beat: "What's wrong with you? Are you hungry?"
Gu Changxiao then came back to his senses and answered her previous question: "Brother Ji has a keen eye for talent and knows how to use people. The soldiers at the border have indeed made great progress under the guidance of the prince."
For some reason, if someone praised her like this, Jin Sui would have become proud long ago, just like when Wei Zhubo was around, she would always hold her chin high.
But after Gu Changxiao said this, she felt something was wrong, and quickly lowered her head to drink the seafood porridge, and said to the soldiers generously:
"I know everyone is tired of seafood, so Captain Liu brought three sheep and a pig yesterday as a snack for dinner!"
All the soldiers were delighted, and all their resentment about being forced to work early in the morning disappeared.
Because the prince was only staying in the East China Sea for three days and two nights, Captain Liu seized every minute to ask questions about salt drying.
The soldiers who were boiling fish oil here also had many questions to ask, and the soldiers who were in charge of planning and building coastal bases over there also wanted to drag the prince around to visit this area.
The three of them almost came to a fight over the prince. Gu Changxiao was most interested in fish oil, so he favored the officer in charge of fish oil and asked Jin Sui to come for a "chemistry lesson".
It was indeed very useful, and the soldiers immediately proposed several improvements, which resulted in more and purer fish oil.
The fragrant mutton pot with flatbreads stewed in the evening made people feel dizzy after eating it. Before it got dark, Jinsui couldn't open his eyes.
It just so happened that the soldiers in charge of infrastructure were waiting to take the prince around for a tour. Jinsui had to make the final decision on where to build the roads, where to set up the camps, which areas to build military farms, salt fields, where to widen the rivers and bring in fresh water, and so on.
Everyone knows that it is not easy for the prince to come to the border town, and they can't wait to work around the clock.
Jin Sui said to Gu Chang Xiao in a sleepy voice, "Let's change back now! This job is really unbearable, it's much more tiring than being a Taoist priest!"
Gu Changxiao smiled dotingly and said, "I'll take you for a horse ride, and you can take a nap on the horse's back for a while."
"I'll have to trouble you for a while with these tasks, Brother Ji. I also want to learn from you."
Jin Sui was so flattered by him that she didn't even remember whether she refused or accepted. Anyway, when she woke up on the bumpy horse's back, she found herself sitting in front of Gu Changxiao.
She had ridden with Han Xing before, and at that time she had no other feelings at all and treated Han Xing as her driver.
But at this moment, Gu Changxiao's breathing was very close, and his big hands were pulling the reins in front of her. She only needed to lean back to fall into his arms.
Jinsui's sleepiness suddenly disappeared and his heart began to beat like a drum.
The soldiers in charge of infrastructure construction never stopped talking about their plans all the way, but Jin Sui could not hear a word as their voices were drowned out by the sounds of the wind, waves and Gu Changxiao's breathing.
Until Gu Changxiao whispered in her ear: "What do you think, Your Majesty?"
Jin Sui suddenly came back to his senses. No, having this person around would affect his work too much!
She coughed lightly and admitted embarrassedly: "The wind was too strong, I didn't hear you clearly, please say it again."
The construction officer hurriedly repeated with a smile, pointing to the distance: "I mean, when we build a camp in this area, the key is to protect the fish oil workshop. What do you think, Your Majesty?"
Jinsui looked around and saw that there were mountains on the left and a river not far away, which was indeed suitable for building a base.
She nodded repeatedly and said, "Sure! Just draw up the plan and I will approve the funds for you."
She reacted after she finished speaking, and hurriedly asked Gu Changxiao in a low voice: "What does the prince think?"
"Brother Ji, whatever you decide is fine. I support you."
Jin Sui: ...Why do you look like you are ready to give up your responsibilities? How could this be possible? On the way back, the moon was already high in the sky, and the Milky Way was shining. I couldn't see such a starry sky in my previous life, and after traveling through time, Jin Sui was no longer in the mood to look at the stars.
But tonight she felt very safe sitting on Gu Changxiao's horse, and took out her telescope to watch the stars with interest.
Gu Changxiao knew about this thing. Captain Huang of the scout team protected it like a treasure. He wanted to show it off, but was afraid that others would break it.
Gu Changxiao wanted to borrow it many times to have a look, but he found the other party's jumpy behavior annoying. Now seeing Jin Sui looking at the treasure, he tried to hold back and finally borrowed it before he could no longer bear it.
Then I heard Jin Sui laugh and say, "I'll take the reins and show you the stars."
Gu Changxiao took the telescope from her without any hesitation, and then Jin Sui waited for his exclamation.
"Isn't it amazing? Actually, this thing is used for sailing on the sea. Unfortunately, we don't have any sea vessels."
Gu Changxiao looked at the stars that seemed within reach, and listened to Taoist Xiao Ji's repeated hints of his desire to build a sea vessel.
He answered directly: "As long as the border town has extra silver, I will immediately find craftsmen to build a sea ship."
Jin Suixi asked, "But what if the court forbids us to go to sea?"
Gu Changxiao raised the corner of his mouth slightly, and there seemed to be falling stars in his eyes: "This is my fiefdom, the court has no control over it."
Jin Sui chuckled softly, "That's what I've been waiting for, Your Majesty!"
Gu Changxiao put away the telescope and asked softly, "Brother Ji, are you willing to help me build a ship?"
Jin Sui laughed and said, "This is for you. Keep it for your future sea trips."
Gu Changxiao was startled: "This thing is valuable..."
Jin Sui interrupted him and said, "It's my advance investment for going overseas. Of course, if the prince doesn't like it, he can refuse it."
Gu Changxiao said hurriedly: "I like it very much, thank you Brother Ji!"
He said with some guilt: "Brother Ji has been taking care of my affairs for so long, but I have nothing to give him."
As they were talking, they returned to the camp. Captain Liu had not slept yet and was discussing matters around the campfire.
Jin Sui felt her heart surging as she watched this bustling scene. She thought back to when she first came to the border town, the soldiers were still worrying about food and were willing to risk their lives to get their military pay.
Everyone is numb and takes the attitude of living one day at a time.
Who would have thought that in just over two months, everyone in the border town had a goal to strive for, and everyone was working hard for the future of the border town with great energy.
Jinsui joined their conversation. Everyone paid special attention to her opinions and regarded every word the prince said as a treasure.
What she could not have expected was that some young soldiers knew how to write. Although their handwriting was ugly and they wrote slowly, they still wrote down the process she said in detail.
This surprised Gu Changxiao as well. When he was in the northwest, the Northwest Army was known as the Tiger and Wolf Division, and 90% of the captains were illiterate.
I didn't expect that there were so many literate soldiers among the border soldiers.
When they heard that they had only learned to read since King Li came, and that they were learning the book of Thirty-Six Strategies, Cheng Yu, Wei Zhubo and Han Xing gave them lessons separately, and trained them every day, recognizing new words and reciting texts while training.
The prince also gave them several lessons in person.
What surprised the soldiers was that they had always believed that reading and writing were something only smart people could do, so those words were like incomprehensible books to them.
Unexpectedly, they were tempted by the prince with brown sugar in the early stage, and discovered the benefits of literacy in the later stage. The soldiers really liked to learn the Thirty-Six Stratagems.
Especially when they heard that this book was sold to outsiders for one hundred taels of silver, the soldiers regarded it as a treasure.
After cherishing this, I found that reading and writing were not so difficult anymore.
Jin Sui specifically said to Gu Changxiao: "Don't fall behind in your cultural studies! Even if you're a frontier soldier, learning calligraphy is very useful."
How could Gu Changxiao not know this!
Taoist Xiao Ji's abilities are much higher than he thinks.
No, even if I have to give him half of the border town, I will keep him!
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