Chapter 40 My heart is pounding, pounding…
Unwilling to admit his defeat, Baili Xunzhou suffered another defeat in front of Feng Mian.
He stood there, his tall figure blocking the setting sun, casting a large shadow that enveloped the little boy. The wind whipped up his cloak behind him, casting a strange, menacing shape.
The little boy didn't dare to lift his head, closed his eyes, and trembled with fear.
"Okay, stop scaring him. I'll try."
A gentle voice reached the little boy's ears. He squinted and peeked through the small gap at a beautiful figure that had pushed aside the frightening figure. The figure then squatted down in front of him. The boy was so frightened that he quickly closed his eyes again, but he stopped trembling.
"Little friend, what's your name?"
The boy stiffened his neck warily and refused to utter a sound. His mother had told him not to talk to strangers!
“My name is Feng Mian, and I am a princess of Dayong. We will not harm you.”
The boy was stunned. Ah, now that he knew her name, she wasn't a complete stranger anymore, right? And she said she wouldn't hurt him.
Her voice is so gentle, she can't be a bad person, right?
The boy opened his eyes hesitantly, glanced quickly at Feng Mian, and found her smiling at him with a particularly beautiful smile. He felt a little more at ease; she definitely wasn't a bad person.
"A-Yang," he said softly, his throat dry and hoarse from not having eaten or drunk anything, sounding very weak.
Feng Mian raised his hand and beckoned, taking a bowl of water from Liu Ying's hand. He took a sip himself first before handing it to A Yang, saying, "A Yang, drink this."
A-Yang was startled, licked her chapped lips, suddenly leaned forward and bit the rim of the bowl, gulping down the entire bowl of water.
When he looked at Feng Mian again, his eyes showed less wariness.
Feng Mian then noticed that his eyes were green. "Your eyes..."
A-Yang trembled all over, shrinking back as she was about to lower her head, when she heard the second half of the sentence, "...So beautiful."
He paused for a moment, then finally dared to meet Feng Mian's gaze without flinching.
"Which tribe of the Northern Barbarians are you from?" Feng Mian asked softly, trying not to put any pressure on him.
“I am from Dayong,” A-Yang said firmly. “My mother is from Dayong, and so am I.”
He's not some unwanted bastard.
It seems he's still a good child who loves his mother very much.
Feng Mian glanced at his hands, which were tied to the tree, and looked at Baili Xunzhou inquiringly. Seeing Baili Xunzhou nod, she said, "I'll untie you. Please don't run away, okay? We just want to ask you some questions. We won't hurt you. You can leave after we've asked, okay?"
A-Yang stared at her, seemingly weighing her options for a moment, before nodding.
Just as Feng Mian was about to untie the rope, Baili Xunzhou squatted down first, saying, "This is a knot unique to the military, let me do it."
It seemed as if he was intentionally teaching Feng Mian to solve it this way, as he solved it rather slowly.
Once the ropes binding her were removed, A-Yang quickly sat up, hugging her arms and legs, but didn't run away. She just looked at Feng Mian warily and said, "Ask away."
Baili Xunzhou: "Why are you on the mountain?"
A-Yang ignored him completely, staring only at Feng Mian, her face clearly saying, "I'm only talking to her." This angered Baili Xunzhou, who clicked his tongue, glanced at Feng Mian, and still refrained from harming the child.
Feng Mian suppressed a laugh and placed the snacks that Liu Ying had brought in front of A Yang, saying, "Eat something first to regain your strength."
This plate of pastries was much fresher and prettier than the pastries in the hands of the man who had deliberately tricked him earlier. A-Yang swallowed hard, grabbed a big one, took a bite, and his eyes lit up immediately. He wolfed down the whole pastry.
Fearing he might choke, Feng Mian handed him another bowl of water, which he drank in one gulp.
Looking at the remaining snacks, A-Yang didn't reach for any more. She asked cautiously, "Can I take these back with me? My mother and the others haven't eaten for days."
"Of course. Don't worry about not having enough, eat as much as you want, and I'll get you some more to take with you."
Seeing that A-Yang finally picked up a pastry and started eating again, Feng Mian finally asked the question that had been on his mind, "What did you mean when you said that your mother and the others hadn't eaten for several days?"
“There was no food at home, and the village chief said he would take us to find something to eat, so my mother took me with her.” A-Yang’s shoulders slumped, and she was not happy. “Three days ago, they robbed a rich merchant who was passing by. We ate something, and then there was nothing to eat again.”
Feng Mian and Baili Xunzhou exchanged a glance and immediately sensed something was wrong.
Could the so-called banditry at Yongxue Pass be nothing more than these starving people? But recently, there has been no news of disasters or famines in any other place.
Ah Yang misunderstood their reaction and quickly said, "The village chief and the others didn't kill anyone, they just stole some food! Don't arrest them!"
"Don't worry, it won't happen." Feng Mian continued to coax, "Then where do you live? How come you have no food?"
A-Yang's shoulders slumped even more. "In Heishigou. For the last month before harvest, it didn't rain at all, and the crops didn't grow. The county wouldn't let us in, saying we were refugees..."
...
Feng Mian packed a whole bundle of snacks for A Yang and four large water bags filled with clean water, telling A Yang to take the things back and explain things to their village chief, so that the village chief could come and talk to them in person the next day.
After sending a scout to escort A Yang away, Baili Xunzhou's suppressed emotions finally erupted. He punched a tree and gritted his teeth, angrily saying, "The disaster is so severe, yet the county magistrate of Baishui County dared to conceal it!"
A leaf trembled and rained down from a tree branch. Feng Mian also felt heavy-hearted. "I remember there were two or three towns between Baishui County and Yongxue Pass, but not one of them was willing to take them in or report the disaster?"
Yao Zhiyuan said, "The food supply in the northern frontier has never been very abundant, and I'm afraid these towns don't have any surplus grain to provide. Moreover, the area along the way is adjacent to the northern barbarians and is often robbed. Some of the northern barbarians will disguise themselves as people from Dayong to gain trust."
"Some people may be cowardly and afraid of trouble, while others may mistakenly believe that it was the northern barbarians who caused the trouble, which is why they have joined forces to create the current situation."
While they were suppressing the bandits, the bandits they were supposed to eliminate suddenly turned into innocent refugees suffering from disaster. In addition, they had not yet found the whereabouts of the kidnappers, so the morale of the group was low for a while.
As dusk approached, the evening glow flowed freely, pouring down without any obstruction.
Upon seeing this, Feng Mian immediately gave the order, "Go and move the tents out, have everyone help set them up, and the rest of you go and start a fire to cook."
The Luanyi Guard immediately called on everyone in the Shangjiyu Camp to get busy together.
Baili Xunzhou stared in disbelief: "Why did you bring so much stuff?"
"You originally only planned to come out for one day, so I suppose you didn't prepare anything. I brought everything with me, which I got at the last minute. If there's anything you're not used to, please bear with me."
“Who would dare to be uncomfortable?” Baili Xunzhou raised an eyebrow. “If you hadn’t come, they would be sleeping under the open sky today.”
Now that they not only have tents to sleep in, but also a hot meal, they must be incredibly grateful.
As the tents were pitched one by one, wisps of smoke rose into the deepening twilight.
Feng Mian specially brought some ready-to-eat soup noodles from the workshop, taking them from his own private stash.
The supply department hasn't included the instant soup noodles yet, so today is just a sneak peek for everyone.
The instant soup noodles were cooked, and their aroma filled the entire mountainside.
The soldiers of the Swift Feather Camp stopped moving around and all gathered around the pot of bubbling hot noodle soup. They didn't flinch as the steam covered their faces, but kept sniffing and swallowing hard.
Wang Er and Yan Xiaoqi, who were lucky enough to try the instant soup noodles, became the proudest people in the crowd. They vividly described to the people next to them how delicious the instant soup noodles were. As a result, when the soup noodles were ready to be cooked, the people around them rushed to grab them, and the two of them were pushed out and fell on their butts.
Some people, so tempted by the food that they didn't care that it was too hot to eat, took a bite first, and while jumping up and down from the heat, they kept shouting that it was delicious.
Wang Er and Yan Xiaoqi finally managed to grab a bowl, and their eyes lit up after just one bite. "Instant soup noodles cooked in a pot are even more delicious than those made with boiling water!"
Everyone was engrossed in eating, and compared to this instant soup noodles, could their usual marching rations even be considered food?
Someone took a sip of hot soup, let out a satisfied burp, and looked up at the darkening sky while holding the warm soup bowl.
The scenery I had seen countless times during my marches under the open sky now seemed to suddenly feel warm.
Wang Er and Yan Xiaoqi were still chattering away. They heard that the princess's workshop was doing very well. The princess felt that they were suffering too much. She said that they were soldiers who guarded their home and country, and were heroes. So she wanted to make their lives better. She wanted to include the instant soup noodles in the military supplies so that they could eat such delicious food in the future.
One of them, overcome with emotion, shed two tears into the soup bowl and said sullenly, "It's so good that the princess has come."
No one refuted him; everyone thought the same thing: "It's so good that the princess has arrived."
In the past, military camps were the most arduous places, but the people respected and loved them because they could guard their homes. As long as their homes were still there and they were still alive, they were not afraid of hardship.
But now the princess has come and said she wants them to have a better life. She not only started to improve their meals, but also sought to improve the well-being of their families.
The soldiers whose homes were in Yunzhong County all received letters from their families. The nameplates issued by the princess were very useful. In the past, they always lived frugally and couldn't bear to buy anything good. But ever since they could go to the princess's shop to buy things, their money seemed to last longer.
Especially Huichuntang.
There are already few doctors in northern Xinjiang, and medicine and consultation fees are expensive. Let alone buying medicine, they can't even afford to see a doctor when they are sick.
With the nameplate, they can receive free medical treatment at Huichuntang, saving them from countless illnesses.
Those whose homes were not in Yunzhong County wished they could immediately move their relatives there.
In short, all the words can be summed up in one sentence: It's so good that the princess has come.
The princess herself was sitting in a spacious carriage with Baili Xunzhou. The carriage doors and windows were open, letting out the rich aroma of the soup.
Just as Baili Xunzhou was about to close the doors and windows, he said, "You're not fully recovered yet, don't catch a cold."
Compared to the indifference and slight mockery at their first meeting, his words now were full of worry and concern.
Feng Mian wrinkled her nose and sniffed, not quite satisfied. "Let me get some fresh air. I can't sleep if I smell this after I've eaten."
Bai Lixun was somewhat helpless. The mountain was filled with the smell of soup dumplings. How long would it take for the smell to dissipate?
He thought for a moment, then with one hand loosened the cloak tie around his neck, leaned slightly towards Feng Mian, and wrapped Feng Mian tightly in the dark cloak.
He leaned forward, his long fingers tucking the sides of the cloak under Feng Mian's shoulders like tucking in the corners of a blanket. His knuckles traced her shoulders inch by inch, and he realized that the person under his hands was really thin, with clearly defined bones in her shoulders and back, and hardly any flesh on her body.
He heard a muffled cough coming from beside him. Baili Xunzhou looked up and was surprised to find that he was standing so close to Baili Xunzhou, with only a fist's width between them.
Feng Mian felt an itch in her throat and wanted to cough, but she was mindful of Baili Xunzhou who was so close by, so she held back until her face turned red.
Two faint blushes rose on her fair, jade-like cheeks, making Baili Xunzhou even more stunned.
My heart is pounding, pounding...
Boom!
A clap of thunder on the horizon nearly startled Baili Xunzhou so much that he nearly lost his mind. He managed to avoid embarrassing himself by leaning against the car window and falling headfirst into Feng Mian's arms.
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