Chapter 77 Why are you worried about me?
Yang Zhaoyi really didn't hold back. Pei Wu's fall just now was quite solid. Jiang Ru even subconsciously covered her mouth, as if she was in a bit of pain herself.
Yang Zhaoyi really lacks emotional intelligence. He doesn't give his superiors any face at all, and even threw Pei Wu to the ground.
Jiang Ru looked at Pei Wu with heartache. How could Yang Zhaoyi be like this? What a brute!
Pei Wu's armor was entirely black, with embroidered patterns on the helmet and iron armor that gleamed with a dazzling light. The shoulder guards and helmet were decorated with lion heads, making him look fierce and domineering, with a cold, metallic feel.
The soldiers were all too tall, and Jiang Ru could only peek through the gaps. Fortunately, Yang Zhaoyi told them to disperse, and Jiang Ru was finally able to see Pei Wu completely in the crowd.
Pei Wu stood very straight, staring at her with a somewhat dazed look. Jiang Ru waved to him, but Pei Wu turned his head away and refused to look at her.
Jiang Ru stood outside the field, completely bewildered. It was Yang Zhaoyi who noticed her first and called out to her.
Jiang Ru watched as Yang Zhaoyi walked towards her: "Please forgive my rudeness, Miss Jiang."
The one who was truly making a fool of himself was still pretending to be dead, as if he hadn't seen Jiang Ru. Jiang Ru smiled at Yang Zhaoyi and waved to Pei Wu over there: "Cousin."
Her cousin finally looked at her and, urged by her, reluctantly walked towards her.
Jiang Ru curiously touched his armor. The armor was very cold, especially now that it was cold. Touching it felt like touching ice crystals, and Jiang Ru immediately withdrew her hand.
Although it was springtime, her breath still left white puffs of air. Jiang Ru shivered and asked Pei Wu, "Aren't you cold?"
Pei Wu shook his head, seemingly unable to muster any energy. Jiang Ru then asked, "Where did you sleep last night? I didn't see you this morning."
Pei Wu: "I stayed at Commander Yang's place last night."
It was exactly what Jiang Ru had expected that Pei Wu wouldn't want to share a room with her. She had intended to persuade him last night, but she had fallen asleep before he could. And Pei Wu, well, he actually ran away.
Jiang Ru glared at him sideways, but Pei Wu was preoccupied and didn't notice her displeasure at all. It was cold, and her hands were cold too, so Jiang Ru rubbed them together. He immediately asked, "Are you cold?"
It was just a bit chilly in the morning. The temperature in Juzhou was actually higher than in Bianjing, but Juzhou was very humid and the cold was bone-chilling. Fortunately, it's spring now, and I have two thick coats inside, so I won't get cold.
She had ignored him before, but now that she was paying attention, Jiang Ru said irritably, "Where were you when I was cold last night?"
Jiang Ru said this with a hint of complaint, and waited for Pei Wu's reply. Pei Wu paused for a moment and said, "I'll go ask if there are any thick mattresses."
They brought a lot of supplies with them when they came to Juzhou; perhaps they could spare a quilt for them.
Pei Wu was unusually oblivious to such matters. Jiang Ru had finished complaining and quickly stopped him, saying, "Alright, alright, I'm not cold."
Her hands and feet were frozen stiff in the morning, but they would feel better by noon. Besides, she still had to go to the kitchen to help out. Jiang Ru took this opportunity to tell Pei Wu, "Remember to come back tonight. I have something to tell you."
Not knowing why it had to be discussed until the evening, Pei Wu nodded and watched Jiang Ru's figure leave the training ground and gradually walk away before turning his gaze away.
The food eaten by the Juzhou army was rather rough; they were content as long as they were full. It mostly consisted of flatbread and porridge, with meat only appearing very occasionally. Jiang Ru's task was to help them make flatbread. When she was hungry, she would grab a flatbread and eat it. A day would pass in the blink of an eye.
When evening came, Jiang Ru returned to her tent. Pei Wu had not yet returned. Jiang Ru was sleepy and sat on the couch, feeling drowsy. Afraid that she would fall asleep before Pei Wu came, she did not go to bed but just sat on the couch and waited.
She dozed off against the small table on the couch. It was a bit cold inside the tent, so she couldn't sleep soundly and was always half asleep. Finally, she heard a very soft sound of the curtain being lifted and opened her sleepy eyes.
Perhaps surprised that she was still awake, Pei Wu's face showed a hint of astonishment as he asked, "Why aren't you asleep yet?"
Jiang Ru rubbed her eyes: "I'll wait for you."
She pulled back the curtain beside the bed, pointed to the bundle in the center of the bed, and assumed that Pei Wu didn't want to sleep on the floor, so she drew a line on the bed to separate them, so that Pei Wu could sleep on the bed.
Pei Wu seemed confused and looked at Jiang Ru with a puzzled expression.
Jiang Ru climbed onto the bed and patted the other side: "You sleep here."
Pei Wu understood this time, but he did not agree. He only said, "There is a place to sleep at Commander Yang's place."
“His place can’t compare to this,” Jiang Ru pondered. “He must be a terrible sleeper.”
It wasn't a good situation, but Pei Wu couldn't sleep even when he was in the same room as Jiang Ru, let alone share a bed with her; he would probably suffer from insomnia every night.
Pei Wu didn't respond to Jiang Ru's words. Instead, he took out the hot water bottle from his arms and handed it to Jiang Ru. The hot water bottle was made of rough material and had a layer of cloth on the outside, but it was still warm.
Jiang Ru touched it, somewhat surprised: "Where did this come from?"
Pei Wu: "I'm afraid you'll be cold at night. Holding this will help you sleep better."
He kept avoiding Jiang Ru's questions today, always changing the subject. Jiang Ru, holding the warm hot water bottle, asked, "So, are you going back after you deliver this?"
Pei Wu nodded, and then asked Jiang Ru, "What did you call me here for today?"
Jiang Ru pointed to the bed: "I told you to come back and sleep."
Pei Wu: "..."
He thought Jiang Ru was going to say something important, but it turned out to be the same thing. Pei Wu explained again, "Commander Yang and I will just squeeze in."
Alright, Jiang Ru didn't insist. She held the hot water bottle in her arms, letting the warmth flow into her palms, and looked at Pei Wu: "So, are you going back?"
Pei Wu hummed in agreement: "Go to sleep."
Jiang Ru, who had long known that Pei Wu would never share a bed with a woman in his life, sat on the bed in this thought.
The tent was definitely not as warm as a house, and it got really cold at night. Fortunately, Jiang Ru had a hot water bottle in her arms, so she slept soundly and felt warm all over when she woke up.
In the early morning, Jiang Ru crawled out of bed. The hot water bottle in her arms had gone cold, but the warmth it had stored up hadn't dissipated, so she slept very soundly.
Yang Zhaoyi's camp was very close to here, but Pei Wu got up earlier than her, so it was difficult for Jiang Ru to run into him. Therefore, she had hardly seen Pei Wu these past few days. Only at night would Pei Wu come to see her, but of course, Jiang Ru was asleep every time he came, so Pei Wu did not disturb her.
Jiang Ru thought that coming together would mean they wouldn't have to separate, but she didn't expect that they still couldn't see each other. Even when they did meet, they could only exchange a few words, which made her feel unbearably stifled.
Three days later, in the evening, Pei Wu came to her tent. It had been a long time since the two of them had been alone together, and Jiang Ru felt as if it had been a lifetime.
After entering the tent, Jiang Ru waited a long time before Pei Wu spoke. He said, "There will be some commotion tomorrow, don't be afraid."
Jiang Ru vaguely sensed something. She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Are we going to fight?"
Pei Wu said, "Yes."
He continued to tell Jiang Ru, "If anything happens, someone will come to pick you up. They will have my fish talisman in their hands. Remember to go with them."
Pei Wu's words made it hard for Jiang Ru not to think that he was entrusting his son to someone else, and she couldn't stand it: "What do you mean by this?"
Pei Wu remained calm: "It's just a backup plan."
Jiang Ru asked without much hope, "When will you be back?"
Pei Wu: "If all goes well, I should be back within a few days."
If things don't go smoothly, it means you won't be able to come back. Jiang Ru remained silent for a long time, feeling a tightness in her chest. She could only tell Pei Wu, "Cousin, if you don't come back, I will have no family left."
Even though Pei Wu was perfectly fine, her eyes were still filled with tears. Jiang Ru said with teary eyes, "Remember, you must come back."
Pei Wu didn't answer, so Jiang Ru could only grip his arm and ask, "Did you hear me?"
Pei Wu finally nodded.
Jiang Ru followed him out of the tent, watching him go to find Yang Zhaoyi until his figure disappeared from her sight, before reluctantly turning her gaze away.
She stood guard at the tent entrance for a long time, until the cold wind chilled her to the bone, until the guards politely asked her if she had something to do before she returned to her tent.
As dawn approached, Jiang Ru finally heard some sounds: the clatter of hooves, the swishing of swords, and the hurried running sounds. The atmosphere suddenly became tense.
Jiang Ru sat up straight, listening to the running sounds outside the tent for a long time, her heart pounding as if it were about to jump out of her chest.
The noise lasted for a very long time, so long that Jiang Ru couldn't help but want to go out and see what was going on. Finally, the sound subsided and disappeared, and everything returned to calm.
They set off, and Jiang Ru couldn't fall asleep, staying awake until dawn.
It was a bright sunny day, but the camp was unusually quiet, unlike its usual bustling atmosphere. When Jiang Ru went to the kitchen, the cooks were all silent and busy with their own tasks.
Jiang Ru helped numbly, cooking several pots of flatbreads. She then sat on the wood outside the kitchen, nibbling on the flatbread in her hand.
The early spring sun was warm. Jiang Ru basked in the sunlight, her head burning hot, but her body was shivering from the cold, and she couldn't calm down no matter what.
Jiang Ru had scratched her palms so many times that they were covered in marks. Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through her palms. She looked down and saw that her palms were bleeding from the scratches. Almost instinctively, she continued to scratch them. But the moment the pain struck, she snapped back to reality.
She took out a handkerchief and pressed it against the wound. The bright red blood immediately stained the handkerchief. Jiang Ru pressed it for a while longer until the wound stopped bleeding. Only then did she look at her palm. The blood had dried and congealed on her palm, which was very glaring.
Jiang Ru finished eating her pancake.
The battle was expected to last for several days. Pei Wu and his men had brought a lot of food with them, and their rear also needed to be supported. Jiang Ru could only keep making pancakes.
After a long day, Jiang Ru dragged her tired body back to her tent. There was no trace of Pei Wu's life here, since she had occupied it as soon as she arrived, and she couldn't even remember him by looking at the things.
Jiang Ru was afraid that Pei Wu would not be able to return, but she remembered that Pei Wu was alive at this time in her previous life, and that in her previous life, Northern Yan was also driven back, so she should put her mind at ease.
However, when she actually experienced it, she still couldn't blindly believe in the ending of her past life, nor could she stand aside and think calmly.
Jiang Ru didn't sleep that night either. Her eyes were dark and swollen from lack of sleep. She went to the kitchen weakly, but was sent back to rest by several cooks.
Jiang Ru clutched the jade pendant in her arms, a gift from Pei Wu last year, which could barely represent him. She murmured softly, "Pei Wu, you must come back."
Sincerity moves mountains, and perhaps her wish came true. Another day passed, and while Jiang was still in her tent, she heard the sound of gongs and drums, and soldiers on horseback shouted: "We have won a great victory! The Northern Yan army has been pursued for ten miles and has been routed and is fleeing!"
Jiang Ru rushed out of the tent. The soldiers who returned with the victory report were holding up flags, and the bronze drums in their hands were still making a crisp clanging sound. She opened her eyes wide and stood there in a daze for a long time before she seemed to finally understand what they were saying.
The Great Xia won.
Overjoyed at the belated realization, Jiang Ru wanted to rush over and ask Pei Wu if he had returned, but she didn't. Instead, she hurriedly ran to the camp entrance and stood on the path Pei Wu would inevitably take to return, waiting for him.
All the worries of the past few days vanished at this moment. Jiang Ru couldn't contain herself and paced back and forth several times before finally hearing the sound of horses' hooves coming from afar.
Jiang Ru took a few steps forward, looking around at the returning army. Before they arrived, the sound of horses' hooves came first. After waiting for a while, Jiang Ru finally saw the black dots in the distance.
Jiang Ru was incredibly excited. She stamped her foot, and a wide, uncontrollable smile spread across her face.
Finally, the procession drew closer, and Jiang Ru spotted Pei Wu at the very front from afar. Everyone around her became blurry figures; she could only see Pei Wu.
Jiang Ru couldn't help but jump up and wave at him, not caring whether others could hear her or whether they would laugh at her and Pei Wu. She just wanted to wave at Pei Wu.
Pei Wu seemed to have seen her too. The horse in the front row suddenly started running and galloped towards Jiang Ru at a fast speed. The horse kicked up clouds of dust as it ran. When it was almost in front of her, the horse finally slowed down and walked to stand in front of Jiang Ru.
Pei Wu dismounted, his armor gleaming coldly. Jiang Ru could hardly contain her excitement; the worries and longing of the past few days could finally find an outlet. Her nose tingled with emotion, and she threw herself into Pei Wu's arms.
Pei Wu's eyes were initially cold and so dark that his emotions were hard to discern, but the moment he saw her, they seemed to melt away like ice and snow, instantly transforming into a gentle and warm sun.
Pei Wu's armor was cold and hard, making it impossible to hug him directly or feel his body temperature.
Jiang Ru touched the hard armor plates on the armor, smelled the blood on Pei Wu's body, and even saw the blood on Pei Wu's chin when she looked up.
Her gaze fell on Pei Wu's chin; there was blood on his nail guards. Afraid that she might accidentally touch his wounds, Jiang Ru quickly withdrew her hands, no longer daring to hug Pei Wu, and took a step back: "You're injured."
She looked Pei Wu up and down, her voice even trembling with anxiety: "Where are you hurt? Are you badly hurt?"
Pei Wu's gaze remained fixed on her face. Almost at the same time as Jiang Ru asked her question, he also asked her, "Didn't you get a good night's sleep?"
Their voices overlapped, and they couldn't hear each other's questions anymore, preoccupied with worrying about one another.
The moment Jiang Ru hugged him, Pei Wu saw Jiang Ru's reddened nose, bloodshot eyes, dark circles under her eyes, and even the thinness in her cheeks.
He had imagined that Jiang Ru wouldn't sleep or eat properly, but the moment he actually saw her, his heart ached uncontrollably. He could only comfort her first: "You're not injured, the blood isn't mine."
It's also his fault. He didn't expect Jiang Ru to overthink things when she saw the blood on him, which made her sad.
Juzhou was dry and cold. Even though it was springtime, Jiang Ru's face was still flushed from the wind. Jiang Ru was crying, and if she continued to cry, her face might chapped. Pei Wu wanted to take out a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe Jiang Ru's face, but he couldn't find it anywhere.
Fortunately, his hands were relatively clean. Pei Wu reached out and carefully rubbed his rough fingers against Jiang Ru's cheek. Perhaps because his hands were too rough, the tears on Jiang Ru's face were indeed wiped away, but her cheeks were also reddened by his rubbing.
Pei Wu looked down at his hands, seemingly beginning to question his existence. If Jiang Ru's face was just covered in tears, now that he had wiped them away, she looked even more disheveled.
His fingertips seemed to still be slightly damp. Pei Wu rubbed them together and whispered, "Don't cry."
Jiang Ru tilted her head back, completely unaware that she was crying. She sniffed and said, "I'm not crying."
At this moment, the army following Pei Wu also stopped outside the camp. Yang Zhaoyi, who was at the front, couldn't hide his smile, which also carried a hint of gossip: "Miss Jiang is quite a sentimental person."
Jiang Ru hastily wiped away her tears and silently moved back to stand behind Pei Wu.
Yang Zhaoyi burst into laughter again, saying heartily, "Now that our army has won a great victory, we'll feast tonight!"
Some wounded soldiers were sent to the military doctors. After Yang Zhaoyi gave the order, the soldiers who remained in the camp went to help in various places.
While everyone was distracted, Jiang Ru secretly nudged Pei Wu. Pei Wu looked down and glanced at her with a questioning look. Jiang Ru lowered her voice and said, "Come with me."
Yang Zhaoyi was immersed in joy and naturally had no time to pay attention to Pei Wu. When he finally came to his senses and looked for Pei Wu, he found that he had already run away.
Jiang Ru brought Pei Wu back to the tent. As soon as she opened the tent door, Jiang Ru said furtively, "Take off your armor."
Pei Wu: ""
Jiang Ru looked at him with distrust: "You say you're not injured, but I don't really believe you."
Upon hearing this, Pei Wu remained silent for a moment before finally taking off his armor. The armor of the Great Xia Dynasty was very heavy, weighing dozens of kilograms. Jiang Ru stepped forward to help, and when it was finally taken off, Jiang Ru almost strained her back from the weight.
Wearing this heavy load would probably kill her. Jiang Ru tried to lift it up; she could manage to carry it, but it was just too heavy.
Pei Wu was only wearing trousers under his armor, which were close-fitting and thin. He originally wanted to put on another garment, otherwise the clothes would be too tight. Jiang Ru wouldn't let him, so he could only stand there and let her look at him.
Jiang Ru asked in bewilderment, "Is it really not heavy?"
Pei Wu said, "It's alright."
With only the two of them left, Jiang Ru finally had a chance to check on Pei Wu. She didn't believe Pei Wu wasn't injured, so she reached out and touched his face.
The blood on Pei Wu's chin had dried, confirming it wasn't his, which relieved Jiang Ru somewhat. But that wasn't enough. Jiang Ru asked suspiciously, "You don't have any injuries, do you?"
If Pei Wu hadn't been unwilling, she might have even touched him to check. She was being too serious, so Pei Wu could only say, "No."
The Northern Yan army was caught off guard by their surprise attack and was thrown into disarray from the start, making them prone to defeat. Therefore, this battle was not too difficult for them. In addition, Yang Zhaoyi took care of Pei Wu, so he was not injured.
Jiang Ru reluctantly believed him. Only after confirming that Pei Wu was alright could she vent her emotions from the past few days. She said with a worried look on her face, "You have no idea how I've been these past few days. I was afraid something would happen to you, so I couldn't eat or sleep."
Pei Wu could tell as soon as he saw her that she was not in good spirits, with dark circles under her eyes, and her already fair skin was even more noticeable after staying up for several nights.
Perhaps it was just a moment of impulsiveness, or perhaps it was because he had missed Jiang Ru so much these past few days, but without thinking, Pei Wu asked her, "Why are you so worried about me?"
Jiang Ru was taken aback and asked him, somewhat confused, "What?"
Pei Wu repeated, "Why are you afraid something will happen to me, Jiang Ru?"
This question should be easy to answer, but for some reason, Jiang Ru was speechless. She looked at Pei Wu and blinked blankly.
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