Winter came and the weather was very cold. Liangzhou's winter was colder than Beijing's. It was OK during the day, and it could warm me up during training, but it wasn't too cold. But at night, I felt the cold was overwhelming. The little firewood burning in the pot was far from enough.

There were fewer soldiers going to Wulu River to bathe, and they all went to boil water to bathe. He Yan was the same. In a blink of an eye, Xiao Jue had been gone for more than half a month.

She estimated that by this time, Xiao Jue had probably arrived in Zhangtai. But the coaches didn't talk about this on weekdays, and He Yan had no way of knowing the situation in Zhangtai. She still trained with the new recruits every day, but because her body was not fully recovered, she could not follow Xiao Jue's "three times daily training".

On this day, He Yan and the new recruits were training in infantry fighting at the drill ground. As evening approached, the training session ended and He Yan chatted with Hong Shan and the others.

Hong Shan rubbed his hands and blew air into them: "Ah He, do you feel that it has been too cold these days?"

"Not bad." He Yan said. When she was in the Fuyue Army, she once fought by the river in winter. The camp was set up on the shore. The river wind was cold at night, and there was no firewood to burn. The soldiers slept together at night to keep away the cold. That was the real freezing cold.

"You young people are really good at enduring the cold." Hong Shan sighed and looked towards the direction of Baiyue Mountain. "Why is it snowing in Liangzhou every day? It lasts all night."

He Yan followed his gaze. The Baiyue Mountain in winter was not as lush and green as in summer. It was covered with white snow. The new recruits went up the mountain to chop firewood every few days, but they were not allowed to go above the mountainside. The higher they went, the thicker the snow was, which was not very safe.

"Actually, this weather is the best for hunting," Xiao Mai came over and said, "My brother and I used to soak food in wine during the day and throw it next to the cave. There was nothing to eat in the winter, so rabbits and foxes would eat it when they saw it. Then we would go out at night to pick up prey, and the ground would be full of prey. It doesn't take much effort, and it's simple. Baiyue Mountain is so big, there should be a lot of rabbits and foxes." He licked his lips.

"Stop it," He Yan warned, "I think you should give up this idea. The terrain on the mountain is complicated and the snow is thick. You might become a rabbit before you catch the rabbit."

"Brother Ahe is too contemptuous." Xiaomiai muttered.

As he was speaking, he saw a line of new recruits walking down from the martial arts training ground to the end of the Baiyue Mountain horse trail. Walking in the middle was Shen Muxue, a female doctor wearing a kilt.

She was wearing a moon-white skirt, an apricot-colored long cape embroidered with plum blossoms, and a white headband. As she slowly emerged from the snow, she looked even more elegant and graceful, with an ethereal appearance.

Hong Shan stared with wide eyes, and said, "There is such a woman in the world, extremely beautiful, and extremely kind-hearted. In such a cold weather, a weak woman went up the mountain to collect herbs for the injured. Only a fairy can have such a kind heart." At the end, he asked He Yan, "Don't you agree?"

He Yan: "Not bad."

The new soldiers took turns to go up the mountain to chop wood every few days, and Shen Muxue would follow them. There were some medicinal herbs on the mountain, and some could be found in winter. There was a shortage of medicinal materials in the guardhouse, especially in winter. Some soldiers caught a cold and it was difficult to recover in a short time. Shen Muxue asked someone to boil some cold-dispelling medicinal juice and put it in a wooden barrel. Each person had a bowl. After drinking it, they would sweat profusely, which was very good for the body.

She didn't look as strong as He Yan, and was rather frail. It was truly a rare opportunity for her to go up the mountain with the new recruits in such a cold weather.

"Who is the new recruit behind her?" Shitou asked with a frown.

Everyone looked and saw a new soldier following behind Shen Muxue, with a person lying on his back. This person was not wearing a uniform, and it was obvious that he was not a new soldier of Liangzhou Guard. Before they could say anything, a curious new soldier had already rushed over to find out what was going on.

Not long after, a new soldier who had heard the news came back and told his companions what happened. He Yan listened and heard someone say, "That man was a hunter from the other side of the mountain. His family was so poor that they could not even afford to eat, so he ventured up the mountain to hunt and ended up being trapped by the heavy snow. When Miss Shen and the others met him on the road, half of his body was buried in the snow, but everyone dug him out of the snow and brought him back with half his life."

"Then he is blessed with a long life. Baiyue Mountain is incredibly cold. I'm afraid that if he stays there for a few more moments, even gods won't be able to save him."

"you do not say!"

Xiao Mai muttered, "Going up the mountain in this weather is really a life-threatening thing."

"There's nothing we can do. The poor can't have their fortunes told. My family doesn't even have money to eat, so how can we care about anything else?" Hong Shan sighed.

After watching for a while, the crowd dispersed.

But the matter was not over yet. At night, Cheng Lisu came back and said that he wanted to live in Xiao Jue's house. He Yan asked curiously, "Aren't you unwilling to move back?"

Cheng Lisu said with a sad face, "The man that Doctor Shen rescued today lives in our house, so I was forced to come back. I can't let him live in my uncle's room. When my uncle comes back, he will beat me to death. Forget it, I will stay here for a few days, and when he leaves in a few days, I will move back. Brother He, can you accompany me to get the box tomorrow? I can't move it alone."

"Of course you can, but I'm afraid you won't be living here for just a few days, but for a very long time." He Yan shook his head.

"Why?"

He Yan smiled and didn't answer, but Cheng Lisu soon understood why He Yan said that.

On the second day, after the daily training, He Yan accompanied Cheng Lisu back to get a few boxes from the shop, and happened to meet Shen Muxue who was applying medicine to the hunter who was rescued yesterday.

He Yan looked at what she had in her hand. In addition to some Qi-boosting soup and some medicine for frostbite, there was also some external injury medicine. He Yan asked, "Miss Shen, is that person injured?"

"There were wild animals in the forest, and he encountered a bear. He was attacked by the bear, and when he tried to escape, he fell off a cliff and was buried in the snow. He had some external injuries."

Cheng Lisu asked: "Is he seriously injured? Will he have to stay in Liangzhou for a long time? It will take a long time before I can move back."

"Young Master Cheng," Shen Muxue said helplessly, "Even if his injury has healed, he can't leave Liangzhouwei for the time being. He came from the other side of the mountain. Now Baiyue Mountain is closed due to heavy snow. I'm afraid we have to wait for the snow to melt or for a few sunny days before we can go up. If we let him go back now, he will just freeze to death on the mountain again."

Cheng Lisu almost jumped up when he heard this, "So we have to wait for a whole winter!"

"When the Second Young Master comes back, maybe there will be other ways." Shen Muxue said comfortingly.

He Yan noticed that when Shen Muxue referred to Xiao Jue, she did not call him "the governor" but "the second young master", not in the sense of master and servant, but as if they were very familiar with each other. While he was thinking, several people had already arrived in front of the house.

There was no one else in the room at the moment. After the martial arts training, everyone went to eat and rest. There was another person lying on the edge of the room where He Yan used to lie against the wall. He was wearing a thin single garment and wrapped tightly in the quilt. He seemed to be very cold. Shen Muxue put the medicine tray on the table and turned to call him: "Hu Yuanzhong?"

The man lying on the bed heard this and the quilt moved slightly. After a moment, he supported himself with both hands and slowly sat up.

This was a man in his thirties, with dark skin, chapped lips, and a thin look. He lifted the quilt and said hastily to Shen Muxue, "Shen, Doctor Shen."

"You should change the dressing." Shen Muxue said, "Come sit on the edge of the bed and roll up your pants."

The man named Hu Yuanzhong looked even more nervous. He rubbed his hands and stammered, "Why bother the female doctor? I'd better do it myself." He bent down, and as soon as he moved, he hissed in pain.

Upon seeing this, Shen Muxue squatted down in front of Hu Yuanzhong and rolled up his trouser legs. Sure enough, his legs were covered with scars of varying depths, probably caused by the hard rocks and branches on the mountain.

"Not well yet," Shen Muxue said, "I'll apply more medicine today."

Hu Yuanzhong nodded blankly.

"Let me do it." At this moment, He Yan's voice interrupted. Without waiting for Shen Muxue to react, she reached out and snatched the medicine from Shen Muxue's hand, squatting down: "Miss Shen, get up first."

"This..." Hu Yuanzhong was a little surprised, "This little brother..."

"My name is He Yan. The bed you are sleeping on now was originally mine. Miss Shen is a girl after all, so it is not convenient for her to sleep. I will apply the medicine to Brother Hu. It should be okay, right?" He Yan smiled and looked at Hu Yuanzhong.

Hu Yuanzhong breathed a sigh of relief: "Of course, I don't want to trouble Doctor Shen."

"He Yan, stop messing around," Shen Muxue frowned slightly, "There is no gender in front of a doctor, you don't know how to apply the medicine."

"I will still apply the medicine. Doctor Shen, don't be nervous. You should check on Cheng Lisu first. I saw that he had a cough this morning. Don't let him catch a cold."

Cheng Lisu said, "Yes, Doctor Shen, I feel my throat is a little dry."

Shen Muxue was startled and asked, "Really?" Then she stood up and said to Cheng Lisu, "Come with me outside, I'll take a look first."

The two of them left, and only Hu Yuanzhong and He Yan were left in the room.

He Yan first cleaned the blood on his leg and applied a thin layer of wound medicine on him, while asking, "Brother Hu, your injury is quite serious. Does it hurt?"

"Fortunately," Hu Yuanzhong said, "It's just some external injuries." Although he said this, the voice was uttered through gritted teeth, and it looked very difficult.

He Yan paused and hit him a little harder, causing Hu Yuanzhong to scream in pain: "Ah——"

"I'm sorry, Brother Hu," He Yan said with a blush, "I was careless."

"It's okay. It's okay."

"Doctor Shen is really considerate and thoughtful. I am a grown man and clumsy. I hurt Brother Hu. Brother Hu, please don't mind."

Hu Yuanzhong forced a smile and said, "That's not right."

He Yan smiled and lowered his head to continue applying the medicine, snorting in his heart.

She saw it clearly just now. Although the man surnamed Hu refused and said he would apply the medicine himself, he cried out in pain as soon as he moved. When Shen Muxue squatted down, a hint of secret joy flashed across his eyes. Although he hid it very well, He Yan still saw it. She always hated people who were tempted by beauty. Shen Muxue saved Hu Yuanzhong's life, but Hu Yuanzhong had evil thoughts about his lifesaver. What kind of person is he?

When he lifted his trousers, He Yan could see clearly these so-called "serious injuries". They looked messy and serious, but they were just superficial injuries. He Yan, a girl, could not say a word when she was injured more seriously than this. This man was already poor and was willing to risk his life to hunt in the mountains. He should not be so delicate. When people are hungry and can't afford to eat, how can they have the mind to rack their brains to come up with evil ideas?

A few words can reveal a person's character. Shen Muxue is kind and simple, and she is a doctor who treats the wounded. She looks down on these twists and turns. However, He Yan, as a bystander, sees it clearly and feels uncomfortable.

"Brother Hu, what are your plans after you recover from your injury?" He Yan asked.

Hu Yuanzhong shook his head and said, "I...I haven't thought about it yet."

"Why don't you stay in Liangzhouwei? Soldiers will have enough food to eat and won't go hungry." He Yan joked.

"...Okay." Hu Yuanzhong smiled innocently.

He actually said it was okay? This time He Yan was even more surprised. She had just made a joke, but Hu Yuanzhong actually agreed, and he didn't even say "I'm so sorry". This showed that firstly, he didn't feel grateful, and secondly, he had never thought about what to do next.

A person who doesn't know what the future holds should worry about what to do all the time. How can he be so careless? He Yan suddenly felt unhappy. Could it be that he wanted to rely on Liangzhou Guards to take advantage of Shen Muxue all the time?

Thinking of this, He Yan quickly applied the medicine to him, handed him the medicine bowl, and said, "Brother Hu, drink the medicine first."

Hu Yuanzhong took it and said, "Thank you."

He drank the medicine quite readily, straightening his neck and gulping it down, then handed the medicine bowl back to He Yan. He Yan reached out to take it, and saw that the hand he stretched out was covered with red rashes from the base of his palm to the inside of his wrist.

He Yan paused.

Hu Yuanzhong noticed He Yan's actions and asked, "What's wrong, Brother He?"

"Brother Hu, do you want to ask a female doctor to take a look at the rash on your hand?" He Yan asked, "Did you get it in the mountains as well?"

Hu Yuanzhong was stunned, and he rubbed his wrist twice, then smiled and said, "No need, it should go away in a few days, it's not a serious illness. Don't bother the doctor."

"In that case," He Yan nodded and said with a smile, "Then there's nothing to worry about."

She stared at Hu Yuanzhong without saying anything for a while, which made Hu Yuanzhong feel uncomfortable. He touched his face and said, "Brother He, is there something on your face?"

"No." He Yan smiled and shook her head, "I'll take the empty bowl out first. Although Miss Shen is a doctor, she is still a girl after all. I have nothing to do these few days, so I'll run errands for Miss Shen. I'll deliver the medicine for Brother Hu's injuries." Then, she pretended not to notice the disappointment in Hu Yuanzhong's eyes and turned and walked out.

When they got out of the door, Shen Muxue was just asking Cheng Lisu to stick out her tongue to see. When she saw He Yan coming out, she asked suspiciously, "So fast?"

"There aren't many wounds to begin with." He Yan asked, "How is Cheng Lisu?"

"I've been eating too much spicy food these days, and my throat is smoking." Cheng Lisu said in an embarrassed way, "It's nothing serious."

"Then it's all right, go back." He Yan returned the medicine tray to Shen Muxue, and said to her, "Brother Hu and I have also agreed that I will be the one delivering medicine to Brother Hu for the next few days. Starting tomorrow, I will come to Miss Shen's room at this time every day to get medicine and deliver it to Brother Hu, so Miss Shen doesn't have to make another trip."

Shen Muxue was still a little hesitant: "This..."

"It's settled. Consider it a thank you from Miss Shen for giving me that box of scar-removing and skin-regenerating cream." He Yan put his arm around Cheng Lisu's shoulders, "Then we'll go first."

He and Cheng Lisu drifted apart.

On the way, Cheng Lisu asked him, "Brother He, what's wrong with you?"

"What?" He Yan came back to his senses.

"You stopped talking after you came out of Hu Yuanzhong's room. What happened in the room just now? Did you have a fight?"

"No." He Yan took two steps, thought for a moment, stopped and said to Cheng Lisu: "You go back first, I have something to do with Hong Shan and the others."

"But you haven't eaten yet."

"I'll just go get two steamed buns." He Yan waved his hand: "You go back and wait for me. See you later."

…

Hong Shan and Xiao Mai were drinking porridge when they saw He Yan coming. They made room for her and said, "Why are you so late today? I thought you weren't coming."

"Something happened on the way." He Yan took a steamed bun, but he didn't wolf it down like he usually does. He only took a bite and stopped. He thought for a long time before saying, "Brother Shan, Shitou, I need your help with something."

"Why are you so serious?" Hong Shan put down the bowl in his hand, "What else can you use us for?"

"The hunter Hu Yuanzhong that Doctor Shen rescued from the mountain yesterday is in your house now, right?" He Yan said, "In the past few days, we just need to train him during the day. Can you help me keep an eye on him at night?"

Hongshan and Shitou looked at each other in bewilderment. Hongshan asked, "I don't understand what you are saying. What happened to Hu Yuanzhong? Why are you staring at him?"

“…I think there’s something wrong with him.”

Now, even Xiaomai had no time to eat. The atmosphere was tense for a moment, and Shitou asked in a low voice: "What's wrong?"

"Maybe I'm overthinking it. I'm not sure yet. But I think it's not a coincidence that he was rescued by Doctor Shen in the mountains."

Hearing this, Hong Shan's eyes widened: "Traitor?"

"Keep your voice down," He Yan said, "I'm just suspicious, so I want you to help keep an eye on him and see if he makes any moves or behaves abnormally at night."

"No," Hong Shan still found it unbelievable, "You have to tell us what's wrong with him first, so that you can suspect that he has a problem."

He Yan took a deep breath and said, "I'll tell you in a few days. Now I just ask you to keep an eye on it."

"I hope I'm overthinking it." She said softly.

…

At night, after parting with Hong Shan and the others, He Yan returned to his own room. After getting familiar with the place, he went to bed, but he had a lot on his mind and couldn't fall asleep.

Meeting Hu Yuanzhong today was originally an accident. Who would have known that in the end, it would make her upset and feel uneasy.

What He Yan said to Hong Shan was not made up. She did suspect that Hu Yuanzhong was a spy who had infiltrated the Liangzhou Guards for other purposes. As for how she discovered the suspicion, it was because today when she handed the medicine to Hu Yuanzhong, and when Hu Yuanzhong returned it, she saw a dense patch of red rashes from his base to the inside of his wrist.

It reminded her of the Qiang people.

The place where the Qiang people lived was covered with dense forests and had a humid climate all year round. The Qiang soldiers usually held knives, and it was easy for them to develop such red rashes from the base of their thumb to their wrists. When He Yan was a general of Feihong, he specially sought out military doctors to study it together. Even though these Qiang people later entered the Central Plains, the red rashes would not disappear in a short time.

Therefore, when she saw the red rash on Hu Yuanzhong's palm, she thought of the Qiang soldiers without hesitation. However, she was not completely sure, because all rashes in the world look the same. It may be caused by the humid climate or by touching something very sensitive. There is really no need to doubt the other party because of a rash.

But it was probably because He Yan had developed the habit of acting cautiously when he was a general, especially when facing the Qiang people. It was also probably because He Yan had noticed Hu Yuanzhong's hidden feelings for Shen Muxue, and he had a bad impression of him, so he immediately suspected him.

Thinking carefully, there are indeed many doubts. For example, there is so much snow on the mountain, and the other side of Baiyue Mountain is in the shade, so the snow will only be deeper. They are new recruits and it is difficult to climb over here. How did Hu Yuanzhong climb over from the other side alone? Since he said that his family was so poor that he could not make ends meet and he had no other choice but to go up the mountain to hunt, why didn't he find some gentler ways? For example, he could go to the dock to help people move goods and do some hard labor for others, which would at least temporarily resist hunger and cold. You know, the best situation for hunting in Baiyue Mountain is to hunt wild animals and alleviate the urgent need, but the more likely possibility is that he will die on the mountain and lose both his life and money.

Leaving the easier way behind and taking a seemingly inconceivable and difficult path is not facing up to the challenge, it is stupidity. However, judging from his behavior of pretending to cry out in pain to trick Shen Muxue into taking care of him personally, he does not seem like a stupid person.

The more He Yan thought about it, the more suspicious she became. Unfortunately, Xiao Jue was not around, so she could not remind him. But even if Xiao Jue was around, she could not directly point out the most important doubt. The Qiang tribe was thousands of miles away from Shuojing. The new recruits of Liangzhou Guards could not have seen Qiang soldiers. Even Xiao Jue might have never fought against the Qiang. How could He Yan, who was born in the capital, know the secret customs of the Qiang? She was afraid that once she said it, it would not be Hu Yuanzhong who would be suspected first, but herself.

Back then, she led her soldiers to quell the rebellion of the Western Qiang. The Qiang leader, Ridamuji, died on the battlefield, and the rest of the Qiang people surrendered. There was no trouble in the following years. The Qiang people were very stable and there was no news of unrest. But... it didn't mean that she could really rest assured.

If this person was really a Qiang man, an ordinary unarmed civilian, how could he have happened to go up Baiyue Mountain on such a snowy day, and be picked up by Shen Muxue and brought into Liangzhou Guard.

Too many coincidences are no longer coincidences; someone must have done it deliberately.

Now that Xiao Jue is not here, if there is any conspiracy, how can we deal with it?

Xiao Jue is not here... Xiao Jue is not here?

In an instant, He Yan sat up, and a terrible thought flashed through his mind.

Why did such a person come when Xiao Jue was not around? Could it be that the requests for help from Zhangtai were also fake? "Pretend to attack the east, but actually attack the west", a rule that we have to recite every day in military books, did she forget it?

I don't know when the snow stopped.

He Yan looked out the window. Outside, the wind was still and the ground was covered with snow. It was so quiet that even a pin drop could be heard clearly.

But beneath this calm, there may be a shocking undercurrent, waiting for the right time to cause a flood.

——Digression——

This article is fictional, and the place names and country names are all fictitious. The Qiang people are not the modern Qiang people, but just a fictional one. I also have Qiang friends, who are very warm and hospitable. (I really don't mean to be disrespectful to any region)