"Uncle Chen, where is my adoptive father?"
"Last night, the palace issued an urgent decree ordering all officials of the fifth rank and above to attend court at 3:00 AM today. The general entered the palace early this morning."
It seems that the emperor has begun to make things difficult for his ministers over this matter, and Xiao Zhun will most likely be ordered to take military action.
"Then I'll wait for him in the study."
Xiao Nan turned around and was about to walk towards the study, but was stopped by Chen Si.
"Young lady, don't be so anxious. The general has known your whereabouts since you entered Chizhou. He predicted you would return soon and told me to tell you that the situation is critical now and he probably won't have time to return home. I told you to go directly to the camp to find him."
Yes, given the current situation, Xiao Zhun will soon be so busy that she will hardly be seen. She knew this year would not be a peaceful one.
"Has that stinky girl Shrike come back? Jixiang is still with her. I want to ride her to the camp."
Chen Si nodded and hurriedly stuffed the things in his hands into a deep box nearby. "She came back secretly last night. I just fed the horses this morning, so you can ride away. But don't leave too quickly. I'll ask Du Juan to bring you a change of clothes. The general will be worried if you go like this."
Xiao Nanhui's legs still felt weak when she heard Dujuan's name, and an awkward expression unconsciously appeared on her face. Chen Si saw this and smiled knowingly, "Miss, are you still a little scared? Don't worry, Dujuan is a sensible person who knows the priorities. She won't make things difficult for you this time. Just don't act so rashly next time, it makes me worry."
The old steward's back was not as straight as it was in previous years, and the hair at his temples had turned gray. The slightly angry tone in his voice made Xiao Nanhui feel warm and guilty, but he couldn't say anything at the moment and only responded in a low voice.
Half an hour later, Xiao Nanhui and his horse were stationed at the gates of the northern suburbs camp, a red flag with the word "Su" unfurling in the wind, looking even more solemn and murderous than usual. Xiao Zhun's battalion, composed mostly of cavalry and archers, had been given the name "Subei" for its long-standing defense of the northern frontier. It was the largest army in Tiancheng, and currently the branch camp closest to Quecheng.
Jixiang was familiar with the place. After Xiao Nanhui let it go, it walked towards the stable on its own.
Most of the people in the camp knew Xiao Nanhui, but according to military law, they still had to verify their badges before being allowed in. Once he actually entered the camp, Xiao Nanhui could clearly sense a change in the atmosphere.
Kaogongling, who was in charge of supervising the armory and had never shown up before, was now running hurriedly between the camps. The ground was covered with deep ruts left by the transportation of armor, shields and halberds. None of the team leaders who usually worked with her were to be seen. They had probably been called away by Captain Qu to reorganize the combat troops.
Everything conveys the same message: the war has begun and there is no escape.
Thinking about how she had been wandering around Huozhou without caring about anything, Xiao Nanhui felt a pang of fear in her heart. If she had returned a few days later, she might not have been able to see Xiao Zhun. Once the war broke out, they would be separated by life and death. She didn't know how much she would regret it then.
Thinking about something, she continued walking towards Xiao Jun's tent with her head down.
Suddenly, a strong wind came from behind, fast and fierce. Xiao Nan turned sideways and barely dodged it. When he looked up, he saw a familiar face as expected.
Even at this point, he was the only one who still refused to let her go easily.
"Xu Shu, this is the camp. Any private fighting will be subject to military law." Xiao Nanhui tried hard to suppress the anger in his voice, but the other party didn't seem to think so.
"Where did the fight come from? It's clearly just a friendly exchange between colleagues in the army." The young man had a cynical face. There was a scar on his left eyebrow given by Xiao Nanhui. The broken eyebrow made him look a bit evil every time he raised his eyebrow, which in Xiao Nanhui's opinion meant "deserve a beating".
Xu Shu is the son of the current Chief Justice Xu Zhi. He is the same age as Xiao Nanhui and is now one of Xiao Zhun's most capable deputy generals.
In the past, Xiao Nanhui always tried to enter the camp during the last shift change before the drums were beaten and the lights were turned off, just to avoid running into Xu Shu.
She thought Xu Shu was a strange person.
When they first met, Xiao Zhun was asked by Xu Zhi to do so. He thought that since they were of similar age and both were learning martial arts from him, they might as well practice together. Perhaps Xu Shu inherited his father's cunning nature, he was very slippery since he was a child. In front of Xiao Zhun, he was a respectful "good brother", but the next moment he turned around and mocked her for being a delicate and weak woman who was not worthy of being trained in the military camp like him. But after the real training began, he never showed mercy when facing Xiao Nanhui, and was even more ruthless than when he attacked men. Xiao Nanhui knew that he wanted her to give up, so as to prove that his judgment was correct.
But Xiao Nanhui was also at the age of not admitting defeat. Ever since she followed Xiao Zhun to learn skills, she no longer regarded herself as a girl. No matter whether she was beaten or attacked, she would never cry to Xiao Zhun. At most, if she held it in for a long time, she would howl a few times at Yao Yi and that would be the end of it.
The most serious incident was when Xu Shu deliberately took a wooden stick used for practice as an iron rod without a spear head. His original intention was to make Xiao Nanhui cry out for defeat in a competition watched by onlookers. However, Xiao Nanhui was too stubborn and did not cry out for help even when the wooden stick in his hand was broken. He insisted on fighting with flesh and blood. Xu Shu could not win for a long time, and with the help of the soldiers watching the excitement nearby, he got angry and pierced Xiao Nanhui's right leg with the stick.
The people present were all young people, and they were immediately shocked. Xiao Nanhui dragged his leg, which was pierced by an iron rod, to find Xiao Junshi, and blood had already flowed down his trouser leg.
That night, Xiao Zhun used the iron rod to beat Xu Shu so badly that he was bedridden for three months. He then personally carried Xu Shu to the Xu residence to apologize. Xu Zhi was a shrewd and adaptable man; even after his son was beaten so badly, he couldn't rationally break off relations with the dignified Qinghuai Marquis. After both sides apologized, the matter was put behind them.
From then on, the difficult years of practicing martial arts together finally ended, but the feud between Xiao Nanhui and Xu Shu was also formed.
I thought that after the worst period, the relationship between the two would ease, but unfortunately, it seems that there has not been any improvement at all.
"Get out of the way." Xiao Nanhui didn't even want to give him time to talk nonsense.
Xu Shu responded with a close-range armbar. Xiao Nanhui broke free with his backhand, but the opponent continued to press forward. After several rounds, Xiao Nanhui was about to fight back when Xu Shu suddenly withdrew and shouted, "Greetings, General."
Xiao Nanhui was startled and quickly withdrew her hand. In that instant, Xu Shu had seized the opportunity, grabbed Xiao Nanhui's belt and threw her out.
This move was really vicious. Once the wrestling move was used, there was always a 90% chance that the opponent would fall headfirst onto his back. Even if the move was done well, the opponent's trouser legs and sleeves would inevitably be covered in dirt. She had just changed into a dark-colored dress, and she would definitely be in a mess when she saw Xiao Zhun.
Well, she may not be at a disadvantage in terms of martial arts, but when it comes to fighting wits, she always loses to the opponent.
Xiao Nanhui sighed inwardly, trying to adjust her position as she fell, only to fall into a broad embrace mid-air. The person behind her had a strong arm, holding her up and releasing Xu Shu's force, then placing her firmly on the ground.
She stayed in this embrace for only a short moment, but it made her unable to recover for a long time.
Xiao Nanhui knew who this person was without even looking back.
"Godfather."
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