Chapter 860: Sneaking Food Without Wiping His Mouth (Part 2) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
He stole food without cleaning up his mess, leaving his lord to clean it up.
Shen Tang felt that she was not the master, but a great victim!
Inside the tent, everyone remained silent.
When the female soldier's pregnancy was unexpectedly discovered, who could have imagined things would turn out this way? Everyone thought she would be the victim, but it turns out the man who got her pregnant is the real victim. Military law can't punish her in this case.
Because the relevant military laws only apply to male soldiers.
The women's camp is not included.
Before this, who would have thought that female soldiers would be so easily swayed by lust, engaging in consensual sex, sleeping under the open sky, and seemingly oblivious to the world around them? And to make matters worse, they even left behind irrefutable evidence in their wombs? It's truly unbelievable and unexpected.
Gu Chi looked at the female soldier, lost in thought.
Shen Tang looked at the female soldier, expressionless.
The others looked at the female soldier, each with their own thoughts.
This matter is really getting complicated.
There's no such provision in military law regarding punishment, so we can't just patch things up and deal with the female soldier. The only charge we can impose is dereliction of duty—a charge determined by the severity of the damage. Although this female soldier made a mistake and deserted midway, she completed the order perfectly and even earned a minor commendation from the battalion.
If we don't deal with it, it won't have a good impact. We can't really conclude that the man was willing based on just her words. It's a tough situation!
Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
Even with their years of experience leading troops, they were completely at a loss.
"Tell me your thoughts, how should we handle this?" At this moment, Shen Tang exhaled a breath of stale air and called out, "Shuhe."
Qian Yong, who just wanted to watch the excitement: "..."
If he had known he would be dragged into this, he would never have come to watch his lord's amusement! But as the saying goes, hindsight is always 20/20, so Qian Yong had no choice but to bite the bullet, calmly and slowly stroking his beard, and after a few more breaths he said, "...My lord, this matter is not a big deal."
Shen Tang raised an eyebrow: "Not big?"
Qian Yong spoke with increasing confidence, pointing at the female soldier and saying, "This isn't a big deal. She's a martial artist, but she's also pregnant. She didn't want this to happen. Whether she keeps the child or has an abortion, it will harm her health. This is a lesson she's learned. We can't just punish her severely for a consensual relationship, can we? How about we show leniency?"
Actually, his true thoughts are more naked and straightforward than this.
Other armies, after conquering cities and seizing territories, would give their soldiers a few days to relax. Those with strict discipline would explicitly forbid them from harassing civilians and robbing property, but other behaviors were not prohibited, such as seeking pleasure in brothels within the city. Those with less discipline would not have explicit military orders prohibiting it, and soldiers were allowed to do so as long as they did not cause a major disturbance; those with no discipline at all were practically committing small-scale massacres.
The soldiers didn't kill anyone, but they wanted money and people.
Soldiers are not all the same.
For rare martial arts masters, they don't even need to actively seek them out; their subordinates will naturally bring them to them.
Qian Yong himself disdained this approach and believed that indulgence would damage one's vitality. He was quite strict in disciplining his subordinates, but that did not mean he thought this matter warranted the execution of a brave martial artist.
Before gender, she was a brave and courageous warrior.
Naturally, she can also enjoy the privileges of a martial arts master.
Qian Yong didn't dare say that. The new master in front of him was different from the others, and he didn't want to cause trouble for himself.
Shen Tang asked, "How do you know it was 'mutual consent'?"
Qian Yong turned his face away: "She said it."
Shen Tang said, "People can lie."
Qian Yong clapped his hands: "Simple! There are no lies under the power of words. With her strength, she cannot lie under the interrogation of words."
In fact, whether or not one uses the power of words to check is not very meaningful.
The female soldier was unaware of Gu Chi's scholarly ways, so her true feelings must be genuine, but to be on the safe side, it was still necessary to investigate, as they were indeed true.
Shen Tang was not satisfied with the result. Because the power of words could only reveal the female soldiers' innermost thoughts, but the truth was not the same as reality!
Do you remember where this happened?
The female soldier dared not hide anything and confessed honestly.
Shen Tang sent people to search the vicinity of that place according to the description given by the female soldier: "Go, pick the most handsome ones to look for!"
Finding the person takes time, and considering the travel distance, it will take at least twenty days to find out the result. During this time, the female soldier will be temporarily detained. Once the person is found and their statements are verified, the punishment for the female soldier will be decided: "Do you have any resentment or dissatisfaction about this?"
Faced with Shen Tang's words, the female soldier dared not complain.
They say it, and they mean it.
Seeing this, Shen Tang's expression softened, and she said, "If his testimony is without problems, I can consider the circumstances and give you a lighter punishment, and you can decide whether to keep the child in your womb. But—a lighter punishment is not the same as no punishment at all!"
The female soldier said, "I am willing to take responsibility for my actions."
"It's good that you know."
After saying this, he ordered his men to take the female soldier away.
Shen Tang then ordered someone to find a military doctor.
She found an excuse to check the pulses of all the soldiers in the battalion, ostensibly to show concern for their health, but secretly to investigate whether there were more similar cases: "Wu Hui, have someone add a few more articles to the military law. This was my carelessness; I fell into the wrong stereotype and forgot that female warriors are different from ordinary women... She cheated, and she didn't even know how to protect herself!"
Everyone was quite surprised by the last sentence.
"Don't you know... how to protect yourself?"
They assumed that their lord deeply resented the female soldier's behavior.
Seeing the bewildered looks on her subordinates' faces, including Bai Su, Shen Tang's anger, which she had just suppressed, flared up again. She raised her voice and said, "Does she think she can't have children because she doesn't have menstrual blood? Or does she think that having sex outside the home will prevent her from getting pregnant? Or does she think that a strange man won't have any uncleanliness on him?"
She held up two fingers in extreme anger.
"She's nineteen! She's nineteen! She entered the women's camp before she was fourteen, and now she's just over nineteen! She'll be twenty at the beginning of this year! In other places these days, she's at the age where she can hold one in her left hand, hug one in her right, carry one on her back, and even have one in her belly! Doesn't she know that this kind of behavior can lead to pregnancy? How dare she! Playing so wildly, how dare she!"
The tent was filled with Shen Tang's out-of-control roars.
The expressions of everyone present gradually shifted from calm to stiff and unnatural, not because their lord was angry, but because of the content of his words. Several people's gazes occasionally swept over Chu Yao and Gu Chi, their eyes filled with a hint of inquiry.
Why does my lord know so much about this?
Chu Yao's mind went blank. Over the years, his lord's life had been simple and straightforward: either fighting or working. In his lord's words, these mundane days were so predictable that he could copy and paste them into his diary without making a mistake.
He didn't see any suspicious men around his lord.
It's not that Chu Yao has to interfere in this matter, but the future "mistress" is related to the offspring, so she can't be chosen carelessly! If this man has ulterior motives or other plans, and tries to seduce the lord into indulging in beauty and ruining the great cause, then he absolutely cannot be allowed to live!
Chu Yao mentally went through all the men he knew.
Hmm, they don't seem to be suspects at all.
Gu Chi scoffed at the various speculations made by the crowd.
Given the lord's inability to keep secrets, if a man truly won her favor, even if he kept it to himself, he wouldn't be able to hide it from her heart. She simply knew that much, not that she had experience. Among everyone, only Gu Chi remained the most composed.
Shen Tang had no idea what the people below were imagining.
She is still in an outbreak state.
"...Although female warriors are physically strong and can fight even when heavily pregnant, they are not as agile as before. The enemy will not show mercy just because you are pregnant; they will only kick your bulging belly! Abortion on the battlefield! I established the female battalion to fight, not to increase the population! Sexual relations are human nature, but can you please not create such an obvious handle? She has killed far more men than she has slept with; doesn't she know about contraception?"
Qian Yong stammered, "It's no use avoiding it."
Things like sheep intestines and fish bladders are fine, but they don't last long and spoil easily. I've heard that some people in the community drink safflower soup or take mercury for contraception, which is harmful to the body and ineffective. If there were truly safe contraceptive methods, his wife wouldn't have suffered the pain of childbirth.
Abortion is harmful and dangerous, so people generally give birth as soon as they get pregnant.
As soon as he finished speaking, he was glared at by many pairs of eyes.
Qian Yong: "..."
He didn't want to bring up this topic either.
The scene before me was too bizarre.
A group of adults, some even with children, were discussing this topic with their lord, who was still not yet twenty. But their lord was the type to pry and ask questions relentlessly, making the conversation increasingly awkward. Shen Tang was filled with questions: "Why didn't it work?"
She genuinely lacks understanding of certain products from this era.
For a moment, the tent fell silent again, because it was too awkward.
Gu Chi and Kang Shi were also at a loss for words, feeling extremely uncomfortable; this kind of topic was really not suitable for them to join in.
On one side, Chu Yao, also single, remained seated. He had worked as a menial laborer at Yuehua Tower in Xiaocheng for many years, and Yuehua Tower was in that kind of business. He was well aware of the things the ladies and gentlemen used. His knowledge in this area probably surpassed everyone else present—but what use was such extensive knowledge to a strategist like him?
Shen Tang wasn't blind; he could see the evasive looks on everyone's faces. He slammed his fist on the table in anger: "Seriously! We're discussing important matters right now! What are you all doing, hiding and dodging like this? What, you're all old men with more experience than I have? Do you think I have a virgin under my command?"
Everyone: "..."
Qian Yong was so embarrassed he wanted to run away, and he spoke for everyone else: "This kind of thing... how is it a big deal?"
Although the current social atmosphere is open, and even female soldiers can be tempted by lust and leave evidence, it is really not the case that a group of important officials and the lord gathered in a tent to discuss the small props used for their lovemaking!
Shen Tang, contrary to his usual self, became serious.
She said seriously, "This kind of matter concerning human reproduction is of course very important. First of all, no matter how strict the military discipline is, it can't guarantee that there won't be another female soldier running away with a child! There are all kinds of birds in a big forest! Secondly, whether it's a female martial arts expert or an ordinary woman, if they can't control their fertility, frequent and continuous childbirth will greatly deplete their bodies. Finally, it's one thing for ordinary women to be unable to control it, but why can't a female martial arts expert do it? Is her martial arts fake?"
Shen Tang simply couldn't understand it at all!
What she couldn't understand even more was that the wives of these generals under her command also had a high frequency of childbirth. A loving marriage is a good thing, but shouldn't they at least pay attention to the woman's health? What a scumbag!
Of course, all of the above are just internal complaints.
Relying on his years of experience in grasping the key points, Gu Chi asked a crucial question: "What does this have to do with martial arts?"
Shen Tang stood with his hands on his hips, looking at his subordinates.
These people's expressions don't seem to be lying!
She said, "Of course it's related! You can all conjure up martial armor, and the weapons you conjure can tear people to pieces... Haven't you ever thought about using martial energy to stop those things? Oh, theoretically, literary energy should be able to do that too, right?"
Everyone: "..."
Shen Tang and the others exchanged bewildered glances: "Isn't that right?"
Part of the reason she was so angry was because the female soldiers didn't even have basic awareness of contraception! They were just too careless!
On the battlefield, each of them used their martial arts skills with increasing ease.
They enjoy killing the enemy, but they don't take any protective measures for themselves.
Although female soldiers are only low-ranking warriors, their control over martial energy is far less refined and skillful than that of experts... but with just one protective barrier, how much micro-management skills could this thing possibly require?
Everyone: "..."
This is probably the most explosive use of literary/martial energy.
They really didn't know that martial/literary energy could be used in this way.
Is this the kind of thinking a decent person should have?
Shen Tang said, "I don't think this is difficult at all."
Everyone: "..."
It's not difficult in itself, but it's really hard to come up with this kind of use.
Shen Tang rubbed her throbbing temples. She felt it necessary to conduct a survey, to do some kind of public education, and then write a booklet to thoroughly educate the entire camp...
If she can't control her wildness and humanity, her desires and her reason, who knows what other trouble she'll cause to clean up her mess?
"Everyone here is an adult, why be so reserved? We're discussing important matters that benefit the people under our rule!" Shen Tang waved his hand and sent someone to gather all the trusted confidants he could find nearby, adding an impromptu meeting. "Gentlemen, we must approach this issue with a serious eye!"
Don't have any lewd thoughts in your mind!
Thanks to their excellent professional skills, everyone quickly regained their composure. The later arrivals of Xun Zhen and his son were not told what had happened. Xun Ding had only heard the beginning when his young face flushed red, his earlobes turning so red they seemed about to bleed.
In contrast, Yu Zi and the others seemed to be in deep meditation.
Xun Zhen asked, "Is this what you're asking about, my lord?"
Shen Tang nodded: "According to my idea, literary energy and martial energy should be able to prevent frequent reproduction."
She raised her hand and conjured a ball of literary energy and a ball of martial energy.
Before everyone's eyes, the two wisps of gas seemed to come alive, transforming into thin sheets of paper and lively little figures. Considering Yu Zi and the others were young, Shen Tang didn't actually create any embarrassing shapes. After all, the lord's face was still a face!
She said, "But what about ordinary people? Martial arts masters and scholars are ultimately a minority. Most people are still ordinary people, and their partners are mostly ordinary people as well. For women, childbirth is a life-or-death ordeal every time. One wrong move and both mother and child die."
As of now, some people are more inclined to avoid the topic than to seriously consider it. Content related to sexual intimacy is indeed not suitable for open discussion. If a subordinate has a weaker sense of humor or is more narrow-minded, they might even feel humiliated.
until--
"So I made a decision."
Shen Tang raised his other hand and conjured the Imperial Seal.
"As the lord, I must also consult your opinions."
"Allocate a fixed portion of the nation's destiny to do this one thing!"
|ω`)
While writing this chapter, I was practically digging my toes into the ground, and I did consider that discussing it in public wasn't appropriate. It would be incredibly awkward, both for my subordinates and my lord. But then I thought, Tang-mei is really upright and truly wants what's best for the people, so I gritted my teeth and continued writing.
(End of this chapter)
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