Chapter 108
Lin Xuan has always been calm and steady. She knows that her eldest brother is a man who can do great things. Even though he was captured by bandits last time, she still believed in her eldest brother and Erlang.
But this time was different from usual. She was already terrified when she saw Erlang coming in carrying the unconscious eldest brother. Later, the eldest brother remained in a coma for two whole days and showed no signs of waking up. She had to coax Lin Qingyuan who was crying and breaking down, and also looked after Erlang who refused to eat or drink. She felt that she had to take responsibility for the whole family and was always on edge.
Seeing Lin Shuge wake up at this moment, all his worries and anxieties burst out. He rushed over, hugged Lin Shuge and burst into tears, and even pushed Xie Chen who was standing beside him out.
Lin Shuge looked at Lin Xuan who was crying while hugging him, and consoled her, "Don't cry, don't cry. I'm awake now, aren't I?"
The little girl has always been introverted and strong, so she never shows her emotions like this. Lin Shuge coaxed her while winking at Xie Chen, who stood beside her with his arms folded, not moving.
At this time, Lin Qingyuan heard the voice and asked while running: "Brother, are you awake?"
As soon as they saw Lin Shuge after entering the room, they pouted and burst into tears. The two of them hugged Lin Shuge and cried heartbrokenly. Lin Shuge could only comfort them one by one.
"Brother, eat something first." Xie Chen picked up the bowl on the table and said.
This time, the twins let go of Lin Shuge and watched him eat while wiping their tears.
Xie Chen held the bowl and insisted on feeding him, and the other two were also eager to try.
Lin Shuge sighed, "I only hurt my leg, not my hand. I'll do it myself. You all should go back and get some sleep, especially Zhongxuan, whose eyes are red from staying up so long."
"I don't..." Lin Qingyuan clung to him very tightly at this moment. Lin Xuan had to persuade him to leave after much persuasion, but Xie Chen just stood there and refused to listen at all.
"You should at least wash your face and tidy up. Young man, please pay attention to your image." Lin Shuge said with a smile.
After hearing what he said, Xie Chen picked up the bronze mirror and looked at it, then glanced at Lin Shuge suspiciously.
"Wait, I want to wash up first."
Xie Chen had no choice but to fetch some water for him to wash briefly before he went out to clean himself.
After everyone had left, Lin Shuge let out a slight cry of pain. It was truly too painful. There was no anesthetic in this era, and he had to endure this kind of physical pain.
He finished the porridge, put it on the table in front of the bed, and slowly lay down, hoping that he would not feel the pain when he fell asleep.
When Xie Chen came in after cleaning up, he saw him lying there motionless, "Brother, does it still hurt?"
"You figured it out," Lin Shuge said, making room for him, "Come up and lie down for a while."
"No need. I don't sleep well and the wound will be rubbed." Xie Chen pulled a chair to sit beside the bed, moved his legs out of the quilt, peeled off the bandage bit by bit, changed the medicine and bandage, and blew on it.
"Hahahaha, stop blowing, it's itchy."
Xie Chen glared at the person who didn't understand the situation, "Do you want to rest for a while? I think County Magistrate Lu should be here soon."
"I slept too much and can't sleep now. Isn't it just right that Ah Chuan is coming? I still have something to ask him. By the way, is Chu Xu back?"
"I'm back. I came back yesterday. As soon as I got back, I shouted that I wanted to see you, but I stopped him outside." Xie Chen said righteously.
"Don't make trouble. He came back with money. We can't afford any mistakes." Lin Shuge rubbed a water mark on his forehead with his hand.
Xie Chen pulled his hand to his mouth and kissed it, and Lin Shuge's face turned completely red.
They had done other more intimate things before, but Xie Chen's little action just now made him feel a little uneasy.
"Brother, why didn't you tell me that you were short of money? Although I'm not rich, I still have some money." He stood up and took a bundle from the side. "This is my salary over the years and the rewards for my military merits. Brother..."
"No, I can't take it. I promised to give it back to you after I used your jade last time. You risked your life on the battlefield to earn military merit and rewards. How can I just take it so easily..."
"Brother, who do you think I am? In a relationship like ours, what's the distinction between you and me, or are you just teasing me and never thinking of giving me a status?" Xie Chen's eyes were bright and full of anger, but upon closer inspection, he was actually full of grievances.
"No, Zhongxuan, why would you think so? I...why would I play with you? You are sincere, and I am naturally sincere too. It's just that the money is used by the county, and it shouldn't be yours." Before he finished speaking, he saw Xie Chen's eyes blowing over, and hurriedly said: "However, these can be used for household expenses, is that okay?"
Xie Chen's expression relaxed at this point, and he suddenly took off his boots and climbed up, holding him in his arms and saying, "Brother, I'll take a nap for a while."
Lin Shuge hummed, and found a comfortable position to lie down in his arms. He raised his hand to press the dark circles under his eyes, and said, "Go to sleep."
Perhaps it was because of the medicine, or perhaps it was because Xie Chen’s embrace was too warm, but Lin Shuge fell asleep soon after he lay down. When he woke up again, Xie Chen was no longer by his side.
"Zhongxuan," he called out hoarsely, but there was still no response from Xie Chen. Instead, Lin Xuan walked in. "Brother, are you looking for Erlang? He was out at that time. Let me tell you that he went to Pingxiang."
Lin Shuge nodded. Indeed, a group of soldiers were still there, and Zhongxuan, as the commander, had to go and guard it.
"By the way, Mr. Lu just came to see you, but left when he saw that you were not awake."
"Achuan?" Lin Shuge guessed that he wanted to talk to him about the Qiang people. Just as he was about to ask him to come now, Lu Yuechuan's voice was heard outside the door.
"Ayuan, is the master awake?" Lu Yuechuan asked Lin Qingyuan outside the door.
Lin Xuan went out and told him something, and then Lin Shuge saw Lu Yuechuan.
"Sir..." Although he was a bit unruly on weekdays, he always behaved like a gentleman. When he saw Lin Shuge, he felt a little aggrieved for some reason.
"Don't cry in my arms. I've already coaxed three people today. Look at the clothes I just changed. I think I can wring water out of them."
"Sir, I... don't do this again next time. How can you be like this? Let us escape first, and you stay behind to cover us." He walked over and looked at Lin Shuge's face carefully.
"That group of Qiang people surrounded me but didn't kill me. It's obvious that they wanted to capture me alive. If I fell into their hands, I might be able to survive, but you can't. By the way, how is Yang Yan?"
"He was seriously injured, but he is awake now. However, like you, he is unable to get out of bed. Fortunately, Marquis Wei came quickly, otherwise neither you nor he would know..." He hesitated to speak, as if he was afraid of saying something bad.
"Keep him well taken care of. Zhongxuan is the guard of Pingxiang for the time being. I have something else to ask you. Zhongxuan said that you have been interrogating the Qiang people these days. Did you find out anything?" Lin Shuge turned to the main topic. This group of Qiang people are very powerful in combat and should be a large tribe among the Qiang people.
"I came to see you to say this, sir. The leader who was chasing us was stubborn and refused to say anything even under torture. However, Hu Yuan confessed immediately after being tortured." Lu Yuechuan said with a smile.
"It turns out that they are Qiang people from the Shaoliang tribe. Hu Yuan is actually the son of a tribal chieftain, but he is not favored. This year, there was a severe drought in Wei County, and all Qiang tribes were affected. They took advantage of the civil strife in Wei County to abduct many Wei County residents, including some who were literate and had a basic understanding of writing. For example, the Yan man we captured was the one who defected to the Shaoliang tribe after being abducted and was given an important position." Lu Yuechuan told the information he had asked about one by one.
"It was he who instigated Shaoliang Chieftain Hao Mengmang to cooperate with Huyashan because they found an iron mine on the border with Dayan. However, due to a lack of craftsmen, they asked the Huyashan bandits to kidnap a group of craftsmen and send them to them. Although these craftsmen were skilled, they did not know how to mine or make tools. They also heard that you had made a lot of new things in Ganzhou and had many skilled craftsmen under your command. So they took advantage of this opportunity and wanted to kidnap you, so that they would naturally have more help."
Lin Shuge said angrily, "They are planning something bigger. The Qiang people have always lived by following the water and grass. Could it be that the Shaoliang tribe wants to occupy the iron mines and make weapons, then come and kill the people of Dayan and rob our Dayan land?"
Lu Yuechuan nodded, "That's right, the Qiang people are uncivilized, let alone iron tools, some of them still use bronze weapons and bone tools. How the iron ore was discovered, I think it has something to do with the Dayan people who took refuge with the Qiang people."
"Really? Since the iron mine was discovered on the border of our Dayan, it should naturally be managed by Dayan. When will it be their turn?" Lin Shuge said coldly.
"Your Excellency is right, but we also learned that there are many conflicts among the Qiang people. The Shaoliang tribe has obtained a lot of weapons and wiped out the two weaker tribes around them. Perhaps we can use these to defeat them one by one." Lu Yuechuan said with a cold smile.
Lin Shuge said "hmm", pulling and hitting at the same time, this principle has been told to future generations by the generals of the previous dynasty.
"Zhongxuan led a group of soldiers to guard Pingxiang. Although he didn't tell me, I guess he will not just defend this time. I will draw a blueprint and you can take it to Xiangli Gu and ask him to think of a way to make it with the craftsmen." Lin Shuge motioned for him to take the pen and ink on the table.
"What does your Excellency want to do?" Lu Yuechuan asked after handing him the pen and ink.
"These are turbulent times. I have difficulty moving during this period, but I cannot hold you back. I asked Xiangli Gu to make a wheelchair for me. Come and see it," he said as he quickly drew the outline of the wheelchair with a pen.
"This thing is very good. If it is popularized, it will be of great use to some elderly people and people with limited mobility, sir..." His eyes were shining, and he looked up at Lin Shuge, but Lin Shuge looked at him with a half-smile.
"Achuan, you are different now." Although Lu Yuechuan did not take advantage of his talent in the past, he still had some arrogance of a child from an aristocratic family. Now he is like an official who is wholeheartedly serving the people. Whenever there is something good, he thinks about how to make the people benefit.
"Didn't you learn this from adults?" Lu Yuechuan returned him the same smile.
"Okay, stop flattering each other and get going."
"Then please have a good rest first, I will come to see you tomorrow," he said and was about to get up and leave, but stopped as if he remembered something, "Sir, the leader asked to see Wei Houchang, saying that he had something to talk to him... You... anyway, I have brought the message." He seemed a little conflicted, but he had to say it because the matter was of great importance.
"Okay, I got it. I'll tell him when Zhongxuan comes back. Achuan, there will be absolutely no problem with Zhongxuan." He said in an unusually firm voice, with absolute trust.
"I know, it must be a counter-espionage plot by the evil Qiang people." Lu Yuechuan said this and left.
Lin Shuge leaned against the bed, closed his eyes and thought for a while, then decided to wait for Zhongxuan to come back and ask him.
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