After Exile, I Married the Amnesiac General [Rebirth] Chapter 50

Li Chanxiu had always not known why the Pei Zhen in his dream had let him go.

His father, as Crown Prince, had long been placed under house arrest, but the emperor had never formally issued an edict to depose him.

Or rather, it wasn’t that the emperor didn’t want to depose him, but that back then, when his elder brother was severely wounded and died during a northern campaign, he concealed the news and seized the throne ahead of time, taking his nephew’s imperial position. Externally, however, he claimed that the late emperor felt his son was still young and therefore let him, the third brother, ascend the throne.

But before setting out on the campaign, the late emperor had already established his own son, Li Chanxiu’s father, Li Xuan, as Crown Prince.

At the time, the current emperor’s words did not convince the late emperor’s old ministers. In order to stabilize them, he declared outwardly that Li Xuan would remain Crown Prince and would succeed him in the future.

Perhaps he intended to wait, wait until he had eliminated all of the late emperor’s old ministers before deposing the Crown Prince.

But before he could, he died under the chaotic blades of refugees. His most favored son, Liang Wang, hastily ascended the throne while fleeing south, but due to excessive shock, soon fell ill and died. After that, Liang Wang Shizi succeeded him.

At that time, Li Chanxiu’s father’s former subordinates in the southwest rose up in his father’s name, claiming that the legitimate line of Great Zhou lay with Li Xuan’s lineage.

Liang Wang Shizi, now the new emperor, was extremely panicked. He hurriedly issued an edict declaring that Li Xuan’s position as Crown Prince had long been abolished, that those rising in the southwest were rebels, and ordered Pei Zhen, who was fighting in the north, not to deal with the Hu people for the time being, but instead to immediately lead troops to the southwest to suppress the rebellion.

So Li Chanxiu had never understood why Pei Zhen had disobeyed the edict, let him go, and even sent carriages to escort him.

In the dream, he had no time to think about these matters. After arriving in the southwest, he immediately reorganized his father’s former subordinates and, like Lu Zhi and Pei Zhen, led troops to resist the Hu people.

However, before he arrived in the southwest, his father had already died of illness, and the former subordinates who had risen up had been repeatedly suppressed by the court, their numbers dwindling. At that time, he had no capable people under him. Moreover, he had been confined since birth, had no experience leading troops, and had no one around to teach him, so he only had a superficial understanding of warfare.

Although when he was young and confined, he often played in the corner of the northern courtyard of the Crown Prince’s residence, using captured crickets and frogs as generals, broken grass stems as soldiers, directing them to charge and fight among “mountains and rivers” made of piled dirt.

His father, seeing him play like this often, thought he had talent and secretly taught him much about military strategy, avoiding the watching soldiers. But those were ultimately just theories on paper. After truly leading troops, many things required him to explore on his own. He suffered setbacks and was often lost.

That period was very difficult. He did not know how long he could persist, nor whether the people his father left behind would follow him into extinction. It was at that time that one of Pei Zhen’s subordinates suddenly contacted him, saying they hoped to join forces with them to attack a nearby Hu army.

As long as it was fighting the Hu people, Li Chanxiu supported it.

After careful consideration and confirming it was not a trap, he immediately persuaded his subordinates and agreed.

Originally, he thought that the one who sent the letter was merely a unit under Pei Zhen, and that it was likely the commanding officer of that force acting on his own initiative to cooperate with him.

After all, although he had some power in the southwest at the time and was not hostile to Great Zhou, only fighting the Hu people, he was still labeled a “rebel” by the new emperor, while Pei Zhen was the new emperor’s confidant.

Only later, when they joined forces to attack, did he learn that the one commanding the neighboring army was actually Pei Zhen himself.

Pei Zhen had been famous since his youth, often winning battles, and was once called the War God of the Northern Lands. Later, when half of Great Zhou fell, the only two generals one could rely on were him and Lu Zhi.

At that time, Li Chanxiu, as a junior with little experience, greatly admired both of them. However, he had no contact with them, and being a “rebel,” it was also inconvenient to reach out.

This joint operation was the first time he truly witnessed Pei Zhen’s ability. After that battle was won, Pei Zhen personally sent a letter thanking him for his assistance, and in the letter also praised him for fighting well.

After receiving the letter in the dream, Li Chanxiu’s mood was probably like that of a student who had just entered school, suddenly being praised by a great scholar of the court for writing well. Holding the letter, his emotions could not calm for a long time. He paced back and forth in the tent, and after much hesitation, decided to write a reply.

In the letter, he sincerely stated that resisting the Hu people was something he, as a subject of Great Zhou, ought to do, and that General Pei need not thank him. Then he modestly said his own ability was average, expressed his admiration and respect for General Pei, and finally, cautiously, tested the waters by asking the other some questions about leading troops and fighting battles.

After sending the letter, he felt somewhat uneasy, not knowing whether Pei Zhen would reply. After all, someone like him, with little experience in commanding troops and only able to figure things out by reading military books, must have asked questions that were very simple to Pei Zhen. Someone as busy as the other party would probably not pay attention to him.

Especially since he was still a “rebel”, the previous letter from the other party might have only been a polite gesture.

But unexpectedly, Pei Zhen quickly replied, and even used a golden eagle to deliver the letter.

In the letter, the other carefully answered his questions, explaining them incisively. In order to make it easier for him to understand, the other also cited examples from battles he had fought, using gentle wording without the slightest impatience, like an elder earnestly instructing a junior.

A few days later, Li Chanxiu received another military book sent by the other, delivered through territory occupied by the Hu people. Those books should all have been read by Pei Zhen, with annotations written in his own hand. Only, for some reason, some of the annotations seemed to have been written not long ago, the ink was still fresh.

Li Chanxiu had not expected that a general as formidable as Pei Zhen would still repeatedly read these military books he had already studied, writing new insights each time. The fresh ink in the books was very likely written during his recent readings.

Li Chanxiu had always thought he was diligent enough in his studies, but he had not expected Pei Zhen to be even more diligent. No wonder the other was so formidable.

He couldn’t help but admire him even more, and feel increasingly grateful. After that, he also followed the other’s example, taking up the military books he had read before and studying them repeatedly.

When he encountered questions he truly couldn’t understand, he tried writing again to ask Pei Zhen for guidance. And Pei Zhen never refused him, each time answering seriously, using gentle words and showing great patience.

The golden eagle that delivered the letters was later also given to him by the other, becoming the messenger through which they kept in contact.

So, although geographically speaking, the southwest where Li Chanxiu was was closer to the central region where Lu Zhi was stationed, he actually kept more contact with Pei Zhen, who was stationed at the easternmost part of the Yangtze River.

Later, once, he had the chance to meet Lu Zhi, also for the purpose of jointly attacking the Hu people. At that time, when he went to the other’s garrison, after discussing military matters, he casually asked one more question: “General Lu, does General Pei also often use a golden eagle to send letters to you, to pass messages?”

At that time, Lu Zhi, for some reason, froze for a moment, as if surprised and astonished. Then he coughed lightly, his voice seeming somewhat vague: “Yes… we do use golden eagles to send messages. When attacking the Hu together, using golden eagles is faster.”

After speaking, he quickly changed the subject.

Li Chanxiu nodded and soon left Lu Zhi’s garrison.

Although in the dream, he had never met Pei Zhen, through those exchanges of letters, he had already outlined in his mind what General Pei was like, 

The other had youthful vigor, but after growing up, should be a refined scholar-general, a magnanimous senior, a hero for the country and the people. In order to recover the northern lands, the other had even not married by the age of thirty, devoting all his energy to warfare.

In the dream, Li Chanxiu had even imagined the other’s appearance, he had heard that when Pei Zhen was young, besides his archery being renowned in Luoyang, another thing was his looks.

And every time he wrote to Li Chanxiu, his wording was gentle and courteous, so he must be a refined and upright gentleman.

The Li Chanxiu in the dream had always admired Pei Zhen, regarding him as a senior and teacher, and even more admiring his character.

Even after waking, Li Chanxiu could still feel that sense of admiration his dream self had. At first, he found it somewhat helpless and amusing, that because of a dream, he had suddenly developed such deep admiration for someone he had never even met.

Later, after discovering the dream was real, his attention quickly shifted to other more pressing matters.

Only… so every time Pei Zhen was mentioned, he really did behave differently?

Li Chanxiu, besides being surprised, was also slightly stunned.

Seeing him fall into thought, Pei Er couldn’t help but tighten his grip on the shovel.

He had actually always suspected that Miss Shen might have met that Pei Shizi in Luoyang. Although she had denied it, he always felt his intuition wouldn’t be wrong.

When Miss Shen mentioned Pei Shizi, she was different from usual. He couldn’t quite say what was different, but the feeling it gave him was… that this Pei Shizi might be somewhat special in Miss Shen’s heart.

Even when Miss Shen had faced Lu Zhi before and wanted to speak with him alone, it hadn’t given him this feeling. So although he had once been jealous of Lu Zhi, he knew in his heart that Lu Zhi was not a threat, Miss Shen would not like Lu Zhi.

But this Pei Shizi… seemed a bit different.

His expression grew sullen, and the hand holding the shovel tightened more and more. Finally, he couldn’t help but raise his head again and tentatively ask, “Miss Shen, what do you think of… Pei Shizi as a person?”

Li Chanxiu was stunned and finally came back to his senses. After looking at him for a while, he smiled and said, “I really haven’t met him.”

But after a pause, he added, “However… I’ve heard that Pei Shizi led troops from a young age and has repelled invading Hu people many times, safeguarding the northern border for Great Zhou. He is a remarkable hero. And he is upright, with a heart for righteousness. I… admire him very much.”

After hearing this, Pei Er lowered his head again and said in a muffled voice, “Oh.”

This Pei Shizi really was different in Miss Shen’s heart. He thought to himself. After a moment, he raised his head again, his tone firm: “In the future, I won’t be worse than him.”

Li Chanxiu was taken aback upon hearing this, then gave a light cough and encouraged him: “Mm, I believe it. But you need to work harder.”

Pei Er’s thin lips curved slightly again. Seeing that the mud on the ground had already been mixed, he said, “Miss Shen, go rest. I can do the rest.”

Li Chanxiu didn’t know how to build a kang. Glancing at the sun overhead, he agreed, “Then you carry on, I’ll go cook first.”

Pei Er’s face couldn’t help but redden slightly, and he nodded, saying “Alright.”

He worked, and Miss Shen went to cook, it felt more like they were husband and wife.

Thinking this, Pei Er became even more motivated, planning to finish building the kang today.

And he truly was capable. In the end, something that would take others two days to build, he actually finished in one day, only stopping once to eat.

As evening approached, the room grew dim, and the lamp had already been lit.

Looking at the newly built kang by the wall, Pei Er straightened his back and admired it, his heart full of a sense of accomplishment.

The newly built kang was twice the size of the previous bed. He had deliberately made it larger, he had heard that once heated, it could stay warm for a whole day. Two people could roll around on it without fear of falling off…

As if thinking of something, the tips of his ears suddenly turned red, and he gave a light cough.

Now that the kang was finished, the first thing was naturally to let Li Chanxiu come and see it. Thinking this, he quickly turned and went out, his steps even lighter than usual.

Just as he reached the courtyard and saw the broken wooden bed that had been moved out earlier, he suddenly froze again, remembering another matter, 

Now that there was a kang in the bedroom, and there was still this broken wooden bed at home, wouldn’t he have to sleep separately from Miss Shen in the future, with no reason to sleep together anymore?

Pei Er’s expression changed slightly. He looked at the wooden bed, then at the golden eagle pacing around it in the courtyard, his gaze deep.

There was no more space in the bedroom, and this broken wooden bed would most likely be placed in the side room.

It was almost imaginable, he would live in the side room like this foolish eagle, keeping it company…

Suddenly, he grabbed the golden eagle as it walked past. Startled, the golden eagle immediately flapped and cried out.

Li Chanxiu, in the kitchen, suddenly heard the golden eagle’s “miserable” cry, followed by a “crack” of something breaking. Thinking something had happened, he immediately rushed out without even having time to put down the ladle.

As soon as he reached the doorway and saw the situation in the courtyard, he froze.

Pei Er had somehow fallen to the ground in a sorry state. The golden eagle was stepping on his head, then flapped and jumped away. Behind him, or rather beneath him, was the wooden bed, its frame already broken.

Li Chanxiu stood there holding the ladle in a daze. Coming back to his senses, he quickly stepped forward to help Pei Er up and asked, “What happened?”

Pei Er covered his waist, his brows tightly furrowed, seeming to have fallen hard, and said, “I don’t know either. I walked here just now, and the golden eagle suddenly flew up and pecked me. I didn’t notice and fell…”

At this point, he pressed his lips together, his dark eyes flickering slightly, and his tone softened a little as he added, “I accidentally broke the bed.”

“…Ah, how could that be?” Li Chanxiu said in surprise, his tone also somewhat puzzled.

A bed that hadn’t broken when two people slept on it, how did one person break it? And the golden eagle was already familiar with them, why would it suddenly peck Pei Er?

Thinking this, he looked at the golden eagle in confusion.

The golden eagle was tilting its head, grooming its ruffled feathers. Perhaps sensing his gaze, it immediately lifted its head, staring with a pair of innocent round eyes.

Pei Er’s gaze flickered slightly. He pressed his lips together and said, “Maybe the bed was too old. It was probably about to break anyway.”

After speaking, he frowned and hissed in pain.

Li Chanxiu was immediately distracted again and hurriedly asked, “How bad is the fall? Is it serious? You weren’t pecked, were you?”

Pei Er let out a subtle sigh of relief and quickly shook his head.

But Li Chanxiu was still uneasy. He pulled him back into the room to check carefully, and even wanted to apply medicinal wine to the “injured” area.

By coincidence, the injury was right at the waist. Without thinking too much, Li Chanxiu poured some cool medicinal wine into his palm, warmed it by rubbing, and pressed it onto his lower back.

At the moment their skin touched, Li Chanxiu clearly felt the body under his palm tense abruptly. Pei Er’s entire back seemed to stiffen.

He froze as well, only then realizing something.

If it were before, he wouldn’t have thought anything improper about one man helping another apply medicinal wine. But after that night under the cliff, he could no longer naturally say things like “friends also help each other like this.”

His ears grew slightly warm. He quickly shifted his gaze away, not looking at the strong, lean waist before him, and only hurriedly rubbed the medicine in.

“All done.” He quickly finished and stood up in a rush, not noticing that Pei Er’s ears were also red. Avoiding eye contact, he said, “Y-you press it a bit more yourself.”

Pei Er gave an “Mm,” his voice also somewhat hoarse.

But Li Chanxiu didn’t have the mind to notice. He quickly found an excuse to leave. Pei Er couldn’t help but lift his head to look at his back, his gaze slightly darkening.

It wasn’t until dinner that the strange atmosphere between them eased somewhat.

While eating, Li Chanxiu suddenly sighed.

Pei Er raised his head in confusion. Seeing this, Li Chanxiu explained, “The newly built kang needs a few days before it can be used, and the bed is broken. Tonight we can only go back to the military camp’s infirmary to sleep.”

Pei Er: “……”

His chopsticks almost fell to the ground with a “clack,” and he inwardly lamented: D*mn, I forgot about this.

I should have broken the bed a few days later.

That night, Pei Er helped carry the old bedding. Under the gaze of the golden eagle poking its head out from the side room window, he gloomily escorted Li Chanxiu to the military camp.

***

The newly built kang had not yet been used. The next evening, General Chen was going to inspect the beacon tower and called for Li Chanxiu to go along.

It was said that a laborer there had developed a high fever and needed him to take a look.

Normally, a few convict laborers falling ill wouldn’t warrant General Chen’s attention, but this time seven or eight people had fallen sick in succession, and even two soldiers who had come into contact with them had also become ill.

General Chen was worried they might have contracted some kind of epidemic disease, or perhaps, like the previous salt shortage, were lacking something again.

It didn’t matter much if the laborers were sick, but when soldiers also fell ill, General Chen became more concerned.

Fortunately, the situation was not yet serious. General Chen’s tone remained relatively relaxed, telling Li Chanxiu not to rush, to bring more medicine and go together. It would be best to also bring a quilt, as they might not be able to return at night, and it was quite cold on the city wall.

Li Chanxiu nodded. After preparing the medicine, he remembered that Aunt Xu’s son was also doing hard labor on the city wall, so he went to ask if there was anything she wanted him to help bring.

Since being exiled to the military camp, Aunt Xu had not seen her son again and didn’t even know whether he was alive or dead. Hearing Li Chanxiu ask this, her eyes immediately reddened and her voice choked with emotion.

“Yes, yes, over there it’s cold. Help me bring him some thick clothes and a quilt, and also some steamed buns…” She hurriedly stood up, wiping her tears as she went to gather things.

Li Chanxiu couldn’t help but comfort her a few words, telling her not to rush, that he had plenty of time.

Aunt Xu’s family had been implicated by someone in their clan who committed a crime and were exiled because of it; they themselves had committed no offense. Her son doing hard labor on the city wall must be living a difficult life.

In the dream, after Li Chanxiu escaped from the military camp, he never saw them again and didn’t know what became of them.

However, if the Hu people attacked, and her son could seize the opportunity on the city wall to earn merit, and if they could hold the line this time, he might be exempted from hard labor.

But such things hadn’t happened, so Li Chanxiu could only think about them in his heart for now.

After taking the clothes and quilt from Aunt Xu, he went back to the infirmary to get his own.

Coincidentally, Pei Er was on night watch at the city wall tonight. Knowing Li Chanxiu was also going, he hurried over to help carry things.

With his tall build and long limbs, he easily lifted the bundled clothes and bedding with one hand and strode ahead.

The garrison was not far from the foot of the Great Wall. By the time they reached the wall, the setting sun was hanging on the distant line where sky met earth.

Outside the Great Wall, the ground was dyed golden. When the wind blew, yellow sand rose in the distance, bleak and vast.

General Chen stood by the beacon tower and sighed, “This whole area used to be territory of our Great Zhou. When spring came, snow melted, ice thawed, and green grass covered the land. Now there’s nothing left but bare yellow earth.”

Pei Er and Li Chanxiu also stood on the wall, gazing northward into the distance.

Looking at the endless yellow expanse where even withered grass or dead trees could not be seen, Li Chanxiu’s brows gradually filled with faint worry.

The Hu people lived by following water and grass. In winter, when the grass withered, it was the time they most often moved south.

General Chen came back to his senses and suddenly said to the two, “Let’s first go see those sick soldiers and laborers.”

As he spoke, he led them down from the beacon tower.

Li Chanxiu followed closely behind, while Pei Er walked alongside him.

The three first went to see the sick soldiers, but while Li Chanxiu was skilled in treating external injuries, he was not very proficient in treating illnesses. Unfortunately, Physician Hu was not here today, so Li Chanxiu had to come instead.

He carefully examined the two soldiers, felt their pulses, and checked their eyes, mouth, and tongue. It looked like an ordinary cold, nothing unusual. In the end, he prescribed medicine to reduce fever and stop coughing.

Then they went to see the seven or eight sick laborers. Their symptoms were the same as the two soldiers, looking like they had caught colds and passed it to the soldiers.

At this moment, the officer in charge of managing the laborers also said, “General, it’s probably just that these few have weak bodies. Once they caught a chill, they fell sick and happened to pass it to the soldiers who came into contact with them.”

There was some truth to that. These laborers were all exiled convicts, poorly fed and burdened with hard labor. Many wore insufficient clothing. Naturally, their health could not compare to the soldiers’, and they were indeed more prone to catching cold.

Li Chanxiu frowned and thought for a moment, then prescribed them the same formula as before.

Normally, the army would not provide medicine for these laborers. If they fell ill and wanted treatment, they had to find a way to buy medicine themselves. Of course, most could not afford it and could only endure the illness.

But this time the situation was different. Li Chanxiu suggested to General Chen, “General, I can’t determine the exact cause. To be cautious, it’s better to let them use the same medicine as the soldiers. If it’s not an epidemic, at most we waste some medicine. But if it is, it would be bad if it spreads.”

The officer managing the laborers shook his head immediately upon hearing this. He wasn’t stationed in the camp and didn’t know Li Chanxiu’s reputation. At the moment, he only felt this young lady was talking nonsense, epidemics usually occurred in spring or after disasters, and now it was midwinter with no calamity. Where would an epidemic come from?

But General Chen had more experience and was already concerned about this. Hearing this, he immediately nodded and ordered, “Let them use the same medicine as the soldiers.”

Since the general had spoken, the officer could only nod and comply.

After examining the sick, Li Chanxiu finally brought up a personal matter and asked the officer where Aunt Xu’s son was.

With General Chen and Pei Er present, the officer dared not withhold anything. He quickly called over a subordinate to ask. After inquiring, he replied, “Reporting to this young lady, unfortunately Ding Chenghai went outside the Great Wall today with seven or eight other laborers to transport sand. He probably won’t return until tonight.”

Hearing this, Li Chanxiu felt slightly disappointed. Besides asking him to bring thick clothes and a quilt, Aunt Xu had also asked him to bring steamed buns.

The clothes and quilt were fine, they could be handed directly to the officer. But the steamed buns were bought by Aunt Xu today at the kitchen using money she had saved. If they were also handed over to the officer and he didn’t take it seriously, just leaving them in Ding Chenghai’s lodging, they might be eaten by others, that wouldn’t be appropriate.

Thinking this, he only handed over the clothes and quilt to the officer and kept the buns, planning to give them personally to Ding Chenghai at night.

After leaving the laborers’ quarters, it was already getting dark.

General Chen had hunted a deer the previous day. Now on the city wall, with the weather cold, he simply ordered a fire to be lit, roasted the deer, mixed the deer blood with wine, and called over several close attendants to sit around the fire, eating meat and drinking wine.

Li Chanxiu and Pei Er also sat by the fire. Because of his weak health, Li Chanxiu usually did not drink alcohol, but tonight was cold, so he drank a little of the deer blood wine.

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