Chapter 141
The sun was scorching, the sky was cloudless, and the sound of cicadas could be heard in the distance, making the air a little drier.
Xie Chen looked at the soldiers training in front of him with sharp eyes. They were training in riding and archery skills.
The soldier rode over, pulling the reins with one hand. The horse neighed. The soldier took out an arrow from behind, put it on the bow, and shot it at the target in the distance with a "whoosh". The other soldiers cheered. Then, another soldier took over and shot arrows at the target. He Xin recorded the names of the soldiers who hit the target multiple times and would reward them later. As for the soldiers who failed to hit the target, their names must be recorded and they must undergo additional training after the training.
"Sir, the blacksmiths sent by Lord Sang have made a batch of armor according to the refining method mentioned by Lord Lin." A soldier came to report.
In this era, armor was made of iron. It was made of thin iron sheets and lined with fur or cloth, making it very light for use in combat. Lin Shuge also added iron plates to important positions such as the chest according to his memory of later generations, with the aim of increasing the soldiers' protection in combat.
Xie Chen nodded, asked the soldiers to take off their armor first, told He Xin to let the soldiers continue training, and he went to another place.
Different from the horse riding and archery training where cheers could be heard from time to time, the soldiers training here were very silent. They held muskets in their hands, and with an order, with a "bang", the gunpowder pellets were fired as fast as thunder, and the target in the distance was instantly blown up.
The soldier wiped the sweat from his forehead. His arm was numbed by the force of the gunpowder explosion. There was still a smell of gunpowder from the muzzle. The soldier swallowed and continued to add things to the musket.
"Sir, this group of sharpshooters are carefully selected by me. They are well trained, right?" When Lao Zhang saw Xie Chen, he strode towards him and boasted before Xie Chen could even open his mouth.
Xie Chen said nothing. He took a musket from a soldier and aimed at a dead tree in the distance. Everyone put down their guns and looked at him.
With a loud "bang", a bird on a dead tree in the distance was knocked to the ground. Everyone only knew that Xie Chen's archery skills were extremely good, but they didn't expect that his spear skills were also so superb.
"Keep practicing. You've been working hard in the hot weather these days. There will be a reward after you finish practicing." Xie Chen said loudly.
The soldiers' eyes were filled with joy, but although Xie Chen usually led by example and was considerate of his subordinates, he had a somewhat cold temper, and the soldiers did not dare to joke with him.
Lao Zhang didn't care about that. He knew his boss's temperament and immediately asked the question that everyone wanted to know, "Sir, what is the reward this time?"
Xie Chen looked at him and said, "You will know soon." The newly refined armor was for them.
"Sir, this is not fun. You make us guess every time." Lao Zhang complained in a low voice.
Xie Chen had no time to deal with him. Just then a soldier came to report that Lin Shuge had arrived. He immediately left Lao Zhang who was pestering him with questions and went to find Lin Shuge.
Lin Shuge sat in the room where Xie Chen usually worked. The room was very stuffy. He fanned himself gently with his hands and poured himself a glass of iced sour plum soup. Only then did the heat in his chest subside.
There were footsteps outside the house, and then Xie Chen's voice was heard, "Brother, why are you here on such a hot day?"
Lin Shuge ordered the servants to give the ice and sour plum soup they brought to the cooks in the barracks, and ask them to make another batch to distribute to the soldiers. It was such a hot day, and they needed to cool down.
"If I hadn't come, I'm afraid our Lord Wei would have forgotten who I am long ago?" Lin Shuge looked at Xie Chen with resentment on his face.
Xie Chen took a sip of the sour plum soup in his hand and said, "Brother is still thinking about me." This ice must have been freshly made.
"Who is thinking of you? I just saw that the soldiers were training hard in this hot summer, so I asked someone to bring ice here. What does it have to do with you?" Lin Shuge pushed Xie Chen away who was getting closer and closer, "It's so hot, stay away from me."
"Brother, you don't even feel sorry for me for being so busy." Xie Chen's eyes looked pitiful and innocent. Lin Shuge looked at him for a moment, took out a handkerchief from his sleeve, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and poured him a cup of sour plum soup.
"Are you still busy today?" Lin Shuge asked.
"I still have things to do after training. Brother, you don't have to wait for me tonight. Go to bed early." Xie Chen enjoyed Lin Shuge's hospitality and said in a gentle voice.
"I have prepared other iced drinks and wanted to bring them here, but they melt too easily in this hot weather. Let me try this first." Lin Shuge took out a plate of food from the lunch box.
"What is this?" Xie Chen asked, but immediately picked it up and took a bite.
"I just had someone crush the ice and add cherry and pear juice into it. How does it taste?" Lin Shuge asked.
"It's delicious and refreshing." Xie Chen replied, and fed Lin Shuge another mouthful. The two of them shared a large bowl of ice drink and felt much more comfortable.
"Didn't I give you the method of making ice? Have someone make some ice to cool you down these few days. We have to train in such hot weather. What if we get heatstroke?"
Xie Chen thought about it and replied, "Okay, I'll get someone to do it right away."
He found a fan from somewhere and sat aside to fan Lin Shuge. "Brother, wait until the weather is cooler before going back. The sun is very hot right now."
"Okay, I'll be back later, you go ahead and do your work."
"No hurry," Xie Chen looked at him, rubbed the corner of Lin Shuge's lips with one hand, and then stretched out his fingers to rub his soft lips.
"What are you doing? Stop it." Lin Shuge brushed his hand away and moved away from him. "It's so hot, don't do anything stupid."
Xie Chen threw away the fan in his hand, stood up and gathered him under him, "Don't do anything, brother, give me some sweets, I'm really tired, I haven't been intimate with brother for a long time..."
Lin Shuge raised his head and kissed him on the lips, stopping him from saying anything. Their lips and teeth were pressed together, accompanied by the heat and heartbeat. Lin Shuge was like a thirsty fish in summer, about to drown in his surging love.
He was breathing heavily, Xie Chen smiled and patted him gently, "Brother, why can't you learn it? You need to practice more."
Lin Shuge glanced at him and pushed the unsatisfied Xie Chen away, "Enough, you're not hot, but I am." It was hot enough in the summer, and the two grown men squeezed together and were already sweating.
"Brother, do you dislike me?" Xie Chen pestered him relentlessly. Lin Shuge was cold and ruthless. "Of course, it's warmer to hold you in my arms in the winter, but it's better to stay away from me in the summer."
Upon hearing this, Xie Chen cried out to him about his cruelty and asked for a kiss before leaving.
Lin Shuge was sitting in the house, feeling stuffy and hot. He listened to the training horn outside, then stood up and went out to take a look around.
He sat under the shade of a tree, watching the soldiers practicing with swords in pairs. One soldier had very steady feet and good swordsmanship, and he quickly won the first round, and then continued practicing with the winner of the first round. The soldiers were sweating profusely, their clothes soaked with sweat, but they still wielded the ring-handled swords in their hands with great courage.
Lin Shuge was reading with great interest when a shadow floated over his head and a voice came from above, "It's cool under the tree, don't stay too long, be careful not to catch a cold, sir."
It is He Xin.
"Let me see how your training is going."
"Thank you for the ice, sir. It's a rare thing. I have never enjoyed it in all these years in the army. Today, thanks to you, all the soldiers in the barracks can taste it." There was a hint of joking in his words, but he didn't go too far.
"He Weishi, you are too polite." Lin Shuge said with a smile.
"Lord Wei looks cold, but he is very sympathetic to the soldiers. Last time, he distributed all the rewards to the soldiers. In fact, everyone knows it. When we were soldiers in the past, we encountered many things, from the commander being jealous of talented people and suppressing his subordinates to the withholding of military pay. Everyone has encountered it more or less. But under Lord Wei, there has never been such a thing." He Xin and Lin Shuge sat side by side, looking at the soldiers training in the distance, and he thought for a long time before speaking.
"Every time I fight alongside Lord Wei, I am amazed by his bravery, so much so that I always forget that he is actually younger than me. Sir, although Lao Zhang and I spoke out of turn after drinking last time, we all hope that you are all well. Lord Wei has never told us about his life experience, but I can feel that he must be carrying something." He Xinyu spoke earnestly, as if Xie Chen was not his immediate superior at this moment, but just a junior whom he valued.
Lin Shuge turned his head to look at him, "Thank you, I know, Zhongxuan is lucky to have your understanding."
Having said that, He Xin stopped dwelling on the matter and turned to talk to Lin Shuge about the ice that was delivered today.
The sun was setting, and the afternoon weather was getting hotter. After Xie Chen corrected the mistakes made by the soldiers during training, he looked around, but could not see Lin Shuge. He was about to ask the soldier who was following him where He Xin had gone, but when he looked up, he saw Mu Yuanzhou walking towards him.
"Young Master, I..." Mu Yuanzhou hesitated for a long time. Xie Chen raised his eyelids and gave him a cold look, then walked ahead. Seeing this, Mu Yuanzhou followed behind him.
Walking all the way to the room they had just come from, Xie Chen asked his attendants to step back and asked Mu Yuanzhou, "What do you want to talk to me about?"
Mu Yuanzhou lifted his robe and knelt down, "Sir, there is news from Yandu that Ding Wenbo has been released from prison. Lord Ruan was implicated in this incident and was forced to return home to reflect on himself."
"I have reminded you before not to act rashly. You see, I haven't moved. Do you think that I have wasted my ambitions in this wild and barbaric land? Or do you think that I have achieved military merit and forgotten the revenge of the Xie family?" Xie Chen's voice was the same as usual, without any anger, as if he had expected this.
"Sir, I have never thought of this before. You have been very kind to me. How could I have any mean thoughts towards you?"
"I know it's not you, but there are always people who lose their patience. Let them learn a lesson this time. With the current power of the Ding family, relying on them alone is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot or an ant trying to shake a tree." Xie Chen said coldly.
Seeing Mu Yuanzhou's worried look, Xie Chen waved his hand and said, "Alright, I know what you want to ask. Lord Ruan will be fine. Although the young emperor is young, his methods are much more sophisticated than the late emperor. He will definitely protect Lord Ruan, otherwise the emperor's party will be disappointed."
Xie Chen didn't want to discuss these with him, so he casually asked about his experience in Moshui Township.
"That's good. The young master let me stay in the Moshui Valley. I usually manage the affairs of Moshui Township and have frequent contacts with the Qiang tribes. Lord Lin's assimilation plan is very good. During the spring plowing this year, many Qiang people saw that the people of Dayan lived and worked in peace and contentment with the help of Lord Lin, and took the initiative to find me and ask to join the spring plowing. I dared not teach them the tools brought by Lord Lin, and only taught them simple farm work. Not only did they have no complaints, they were even grateful. There are also Qiang children who come to Qingquan to go to school every day, and after returning, they also spread the word about the prosperity of the people of Dayan. I think in the long run, the Qiang children will be like Han teenagers." Mu Yuanzhou talked about this with a clear look in his eyes and talked fluently, which was completely different from his previous listless state.
Xie Chen nodded. Seeing that he was really concerned about this matter, he praised him a few words and said, "You continue to do your own thing, and don't ask too much about other things. If necessary, I will tell you about the Ding family. I will avenge the Xie family myself, and I don't need others to satisfy their own selfish desires under the guise of revenge for my Xie family. In addition, I don't want others to know that I am still alive. Do you understand?"
Mu Yuanzhou agreed resentfully, not daring to say another word. He bowed to Xie Chen and turned away.
"Master Lin, why are you here?"
Xie Chen was startled and walked out quickly.
"Zhongxuan, I've been looking for you for a long time. Are you discussing official business?" Lin Shuge had a faint smile on his face, gentle and peaceful.
Seeing that he was as usual, Xie Chen felt relieved. He slowly explained what had just happened to Lin Shuge and arranged for someone to send him back to the county government office.
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