After Exile, I Married the Amnesiac General [Rebirth] Chapter 29

“Truly insatiably greedy. These three squeezed layer after layer, and in the end it was the soldiers below who suffered. Didn’t they think that if the soldiers lost the strength to fight, what would happen if the Hu people attacked and Yongfeng Town couldn’t hold?”

“At that time they would all become ghosts beneath the Hu people’s blades. What use would having all that money be!” The more Physician Hu spoke, the more indignant he became.

After finishing, he could not help feeling a burst of relief. “Luckily this matter was discovered by you in time, and they were doing this during winter when there are few battles, so it didn’t brew into a great disaster. Otherwise, if they were still skimming salt when the Hu people attacked…”

Physician Hu could not help shaking his head. He simply did not dare imagine what kind of consequences that would produce.

Li Chanxiu held both hands over the brazier to warm them, turning the backs of his hands over, and thought absentmindedly: Did it really not brew into a great disaster?

In that dream, the disaster where the Hu people tore open the northwest defensive line and nearly fought all the way to Chang’an, how exactly did it happen?

Naturally, Yongfeng Town did not play such a crucial role. The defensive line may not have been torn open here, but when the northwest fell, the Hu people certainly must have fought through here.

Physician Hu felt fortunate that this happened during a time with few battles, believing that according to experience from previous years, the Hu people would not launch a large-scale attack on Yongfeng Town at this time.

But in Li Chanxiu’s dream, this might very well have happened, perhaps even in the near future.

So, in the dream, no one discovered that the soldiers lacked salt. What would Yongfeng Town later have become?

Physician Hu, Aunt Xu, Little Ah Yun, Hu Yuan’er, and also… Pei Er, later… were they all still alive?

Li Chanxiu quietly gazed at the glowing coals burning red in the brazier, and his heart suddenly felt somewhat heavy.

.

Inside the central army command tent, General Chen dismissed the others, then turned to look at Pei Er. After a long while he sighed. “This time it’s thanks to you and your wife discovering this matter in time.”

After saying that, remembering why Pei Er had discovered the matter, he added, “They deliberately made things difficult for you, why didn’t you come tell me?”

Pei Er lowered his eyes, not knowing how to answer.

He truly had not thought about coming to find General Chen. Perhaps deep down he felt he could solve it himself, could train those more than a hundred soldiers well. Later, after training them for two days and realizing something was wrong, he went to find Li Chanxiu to help.

General Chen had spoken with him several times and more or less knew something of his character. Seeing him silent now, he sighed again. “You, you, your temperament is too straightforward. That can be good but also not good. Sometimes you still need to be a little flexible, otherwise you’ll suffer silent losses.”

However, thinking that it was precisely because Pei Er had been made difficult for and had not come directly to him that he helped him discover the parasites within the army, he could not help sighing again. “Truly, ‘misfortune is what fortune depends upon, and fortune is what misfortune lies within.’ Discovering the salt being skimmed in time this time instead lets us mend the pen after the sheep are lost and avoid disasters that might occur in the future.”

After saying that he was about to reward Pei Er and Li Chanxiu. Especially since the more than one hundred soldiers under Pei Er were weak due to lack of salt, and had been deliberately stuffed to him by Thousand-man Commander Bai to make things difficult for him, it would be better to simply replace them with another batch.

But Pei Er said, “No need,” cupping his hands as he added, “I heard the military physician say those soldiers’ symptoms have not yet reached a serious stage. Supplementing salt for a period of time will allow them to recover.”

Who this military physician was was self-evident; in any case, it was unlikely to be Physician Hu.

General Chen could not help stroking his short beard and chuckling, feeling somewhat like he had matched a pair of good lovers together. Although the two had originally been going to marry anyway, he had only helped preside over the wedding, so it did not quite count as matchmaking.

“Then I’ll transfer another seventy or eighty men under your command to make up two hundred people,” General Chen said with a wave of his hand.

A centurion normally managed only around one hundred and ten men, so two hundred was certainly more. But General Chen was now increasingly appreciative of Pei Er. Assigning him more men was also to see what his ability was like.

If he were not worried that promoting Pei Er too quickly would cause others to have opinions, and since he was still not sure how many soldiers Pei Er could command, he would have directly promoted him to thousand-man commander.

“Additionally, your wife, I plan to officially promote her to military physician and report today’s matter to the prefect. Although our army has no official position for female military physicians, for now her treatment can only be the same as Physician Hu’s, without an official appointment document. But if the prefect learns of today’s matter and can submit a memorial to pardon your wife’s criminal status, that would also be good.”

Pei Er had shown no reaction when hearing about the rewards earlier. Only when hearing the part concerning Li Chanxiu did he truly reveal a smile. He immediately knelt on one knee and clasped his fists in thanks.

General Chen hurriedly helped him up and said with a smile, “Those more than one hundred soldiers under you will probably need to recuperate for a few days. You don’t need to train troops these days. At night you can go back home to stay, just in time to tell your wife this news and celebrate together.”

As he spoke, he remembered the scene during the day when he had seen the young couple secretly holding hands and could not help teasing again. “Just newly married, yet staying in the military camp every day, it’s not easy, is it?”

Pei Er’s face reddened slightly. He only cupped his fists and muttered his thanks.

***

Commandant Jiang walked quickly back to his own tent with a gloomy face the entire way.

Centurion Jiang followed behind him, step for step. After entering the tent as well, he shut the tent door tightly, glanced at his elder brother’s expression, and then said hesitantly, “That Bai Shizhong is truly useless. I only told him to make things difficult for that surnamed Pei, but he actually…”

“Slap!”

Commandant Jiang suddenly turned around and gave him a heavy slap across the face.

The force was so great that blood immediately appeared at the corner of Centurion Jiang’s mouth. His ears rang with a buzzing sound, and the whole person was stunned.

Commandant Jiang’s face was ashen. Furious to the extreme, yet still gritting his teeth to suppress his anger and voice, he barked in a low tone, “Who told you to act on your own initiative? Do you have a pig’s brain? Didn’t I tell you to temporarily not provoke him, not provoke him? Why wouldn’t you listen? Do you know that if the investigation into the skimming keeps getting bigger and bigger, neither your head nor mine will be safe!”

Centurion Jiang was stunned for a moment and did not dare say anything for a long while. In the end he defended himself in a low voice: “Wasn’t I… thinking for our sake? That man surnamed Pei is the only one among the more than a thousand people who escorted the grain and fodder who came back alive. If one day he recovers his memory and knows something, wouldn’t we be finished all the same?”

Commandant Jiang sneered. “Did I or did I not say that I would handle this matter? You let Bai Shizhong make things difficult for him, will that make it so he won’t recover his memory and won’t know anything?”

Centurion Jiang could not say anything for a moment.

Commandant Jiang sneered again. “I think you just wanted revenge. Because you lost to him before and have never been convinced. For such a small matter, you nearly ruined my major affair!”

Centurion Jiang’s face turned pale and green from the scolding. Secretly grinding his teeth, resentment filled his heart. Was that a small matter? Pei Er had nearly crippled him, had even already crippled him halfway. How could he endure such a great humiliation?

But in his heart he also knew that this time he had indeed tried to make things difficult for Pei Er and failed, instead making things worse and dragging himself in deeper.

He gritted his teeth, and in the end lowered his head and said, “Brother, I was wrong. But things are already like this, what do you say we should do?”

Commandant Jiang glared at him fiercely. After a long while he said in a deep voice, “That man surnamed Bai cannot be kept.”

Centurion Jiang immediately understood what he meant. Gripping the blade in his hand tightly, he nodded grimly.

“You’re not the one doing it this time.” Commandant Jiang cast him a resentful glance and continued through clenched teeth, “If he bites out you and me, then it will just be the two of our heads that won’t be preserved. But if he bites out the people above… our whole family won’t survive!”

By the end, his tone was ruthless.

***

After Pei Er took his leave of General Chen, his chest was filled with joy, and he had an almost impatient urge to go back and see Li Chanxiu.

But when he reached outside the camp tent, he realized that the sky had already grown completely dark, and that impulse gradually cooled.

At such a late hour, Miss Shen must already be asleep. If he went back now, wouldn’t he be disturbing her?

He suddenly felt low again. After hesitating several times, his steps ultimately turned toward the camp tent.

Inside the tent, soldiers who were about to rest were either lying on their beds or stepping into wooden basins to wash their feet. They were all discussing what had happened during the day, 

“I heard that this time it’s thanks to Centurion Pei’s wife, that Miss Shen. She’s the one who discovered everyone wasn’t eating salt.”

“I know that. I heard she’s a divine physician. Before, in the wounded soldiers’ camp, she even saved someone whose intestines had been severed.”

“Isn’t that right? Yesterday she came to examine everyone, and with one glance she saw that I hadn’t eaten salt.”

“So amazing?”

“Of course!”

“I heard she has eyes like a torch. Not only can she see where an illness is, she can even see what’s inside everyone’s stomachs. So whoever has no salt in their belly, she can tell at a glance.”

“I can’t even tell there’s no salt in the dishes, and she can see inside the stomach?”

“Well… that’s because she has discerning eyes. Discerning eyes, don’t you understand? It means even how many fennel beans you ate today, she could tell.”

“Hiss, that miraculous?”

“Then if Centurion Pei drinks wine outside in the future, won’t she see right through him the moment he gets back?”

The tent seemed to fall silent for a moment. After a while someone said quietly, “Looks like having a wife who’s too capable isn’t good either.”

“Yeah, but we’re not Centurion Pei.”

“That’s true. The one being seen through is Centurion Pei. As for us, we can still ask the divine physician to treat our illnesses.”

No one knew how this group had spread the story, but the more they talked, the more outrageous it became. Pei Er’s face darkened as he directly lifted the tent flap and walked in.

Instantly, the tent fell quiet again.

Pei Er’s gaze swept coldly around. Everyone behaved themselves and went back to doing what they were supposed to do.

Pei Er strode into the tent to the side of his own bed.

Just then Zhang Hu came back carrying a basin of hot water and shared some with him.

After washing his hands and face, Pei Er sat by the bed and used the remaining water to wash his feet. Suddenly he remembered hearing the soldiers in the tent chatting idly the past two days, saying that those soldiers in the camp who washed their faces and feet every day definitely had wives at home, and most of them were newly married. Those lazy fellows without wives were not particular about such things. They just stuffed their stinking feet into the bedding and fell asleep.

Someone who wasn’t married asked in confusion, “Why is it that once you’re married, you like washing your feet?”

“You don’t understand,” the other said with a mysterious expression. “If you don’t wash your feet, your wife won’t let you into the bedding.”

There were even shameless ones who chuckled and said, “Not just that. If the two wash together, their feet can touch each other…”

Pei Er: “……”

He lowered his head to look at the wooden basin with only his own pair of feet in it, then turned to look at the bedding where only he himself slept, and slowly let out a breath of turbid air.

That night, lying on the wooden plank bed, he quietly gazed into the darkness above.

Most people in the tent were already asleep. There were also those who missed their families and for the time being could not fall asleep, counting on their fingers when they could next have leave.

Someone beside them yawned and said lazily in a low voice, “Calculating again when you can go back to see your wife?”

Then they were quietly scolded with a “Get lost, get lost.”

Pei Er’s hearing was sharp and he heard these sounds clearly.

Lying on his back, listening to the occasional murmured whispers, he could not help thinking of Li Chanxiu.

After they parted in the morning, they had not seen each other again. He wondered whether Miss Shen, like him, also had many things she wanted to say. At this moment, had she already fallen asleep? Sleeping alone, would she feel cold?

Right, Miss Shen feared the cold. Tomorrow, if he had time to go back, he should take the quilt from the bed out into the courtyard to sun it…

The more he thought, the stronger the longing grew.

Pei Er turned over, closed his eyes, restrained himself from thinking further, and tried to fall asleep.

But Li Chanxiu’s figure still kept appearing in his mind, the clear and beautiful eyes full of surprise when he caught her hand in the morning and she looked over…

Then he remembered the words those soldiers had said while lining up outside the kitchen, 

“Centurion Pei just got married and still stays in the military camp every day. He really can bear it.”

“If it were me, even if I had to take military caning, I’d still go home to sleep every day!”

Even if I had to take military caning, I’d still go home to sleep…

Go home to sleep…

The two sentences repeated in his mind again and again.

Suddenly, Pei Er threw off the quilt in one motion. After sitting for a moment, he abruptly got out of bed, moving swiftly to put on his clothes.

Zhang Hu’s bed was right beside his. Awakened by the commotion, he hesitantly raised his head: “Centurion?”

“It’s nothing, go back to sleep.” Pei Er’s voice carried an unrest he couldn’t suppress.

He quickly dressed, strode out of the tent, went to the stables, and led away the jujube-red steed.

On the deep winter night, one’s breath turned to ice, cold stars dotting the ink-spilled sky.

Yet Pei Er’s chest brimmed with a surge of impulse; his blood seemed to be boiling, as if he were about to do some earth-shaking deed.

Beneath the cold, starry night, he mounted his horse and galloped out of the camp. Breathing the biting cold air, he didn’t feel cold at all; there was even a faint heat on his face.

He rode all the way to outside the small courtyard, dismounted nimbly, as if somewhat impatient.

Just as he was about to knock on the door, his movement suddenly stopped.

Miss Shen must already be fast asleep now. If he knocked outside the courtyard in this kind of cold weather, not only would she have to get up in the cold, she would also have to walk from the main door all the way to the courtyard gate to open it for him…

After a brief thought, Pei Er tied up the horse, then leapt lightly and easily jumped into the small courtyard.

Unexpectedly, the bedroom light was still on.

Miss Shen actually hadn’t gone to sleep yet?

Pei Er was stunned. After calming himself a bit, he walked over. When he raised his hand, he paused again. Finally, in rhythm with his heartbeat, dong dong, he knocked on the door.

Li Chanxiu was in the room burning charcoal in the brazier. Hearing the knock, he was clearly startled.

Fortunately, a familiar voice soon came from outside, slightly hoarse, “Miss Shen, it’s me.”

Li Chanxiu immediately let out a sigh of relief and set down the fire tongs in his hand.

Not knocking on the courtyard gate but directly knocking on the main door, the visitor had obviously climbed over the wall to come in. He had almost thought the person coming was not a proper one.

Luckily it was Pei Er.

He got up to open the door, though he felt somewhat puzzled: so late at night, why would Pei Er come back?

After opening the door, he indeed saw Pei Er’s tall figure standing outside.

He seemed to have returned in great haste; his breathing was slightly uneven. Perhaps because his blood had been rushing too quickly, there was a flush on his face, to the point that in the cold winter night, faint white vapor rose slightly from his forehead.

Almost the instant Li Chanxiu opened the door, those eyes of his, like cold stars, fixed tightly on him. The ink-dark color in their depths was thick, as if concealing something.

Li Chanxiu was stunned by the look. When he came back to himself, thinking Pei Er must have rushed back in the middle of the night because of some urgent matter, he hurriedly stepped aside to let him enter first.

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