Chapter 3.3

He asked incredulously, seeing from her demeanor that she came from a good family; why would a well-bred girl from a good family marry someone who is near death?

“That’s probably the case! The Qi family has taken control of my family’s business just to marry me off. They are quite desperate, fearing that their only heir might not survive the year, so they want to marry off a woman quickly to have children. I… have several older brothers, and they assumed I was destined to bear a son, promising my family that once… the Qi young master is gone, I could return to the Du family. If I could conceive and give birth to a son, they even planned to generously reward the Du family…” Her words grew more bitter. Under his stern gaze, she couldn’t say more, fearing he might think she was wallowing in self-pity. “I just want you to understand that the Qi young master might not be able to consummate the marriage. Since you’re marrying Yuhu, let her have a good life. Being a widow is my fate…” She even felt certain that Yuhu wouldn’t be mistreated in Yuan’s household! Yuan Buqu might seem hard to approach, but he wouldn’t deliberately mistreat anyone! He… was also a flirt… Li Yuhu would be happy! Her heart felt a pang of sadness.

“Eat!” He suddenly commanded, placing her in a chair.

She stared blankly at him sitting on the other side. Yes! Meals, she was here to serve him, but… she thought they needed to talk more. Had the issue been resolved? It didn’t seem so.

He saw through her thoughts and said, “Until I decide what to do, you must continue to dress as a man in the camp and avoid any contact with other men. I won’t deal with any personal matters until this war is over! You should return to Chang’an, but I don’t have time to escort you, so I made an exception to let you stay! But if your identity is revealed, you’ll be sent to a separate residence in the city as my woman. If you want to maintain your reputation, be careful. Don’t think I’ll be bothered with such trivial matters in the midst of a great battle.”

“Of course.” She murmured. Since the war demands victory, it requires full dedication. Compared to that, her issue was indeed trivial! Although it felt like the end of the world to her, she was not an unreasonable woman. If he didn’t worry about a tarnished reputation, so be it! If he could replace Yuhu without dragging a child into it, it would be fortunate! And another unbidden joy was that she could stay by his side longer! Even if just for a moment! She didn’t want to think about this mindset; for now, the feeling of happiness was enough!

Heaven knows she had never truly felt joy in her eighteen years of life. Now, just seeing him was enough! As for her own feelings of downfall, they were insignificant; she didn’t care.

Yuan Buqu seemed satisfied and nodded, adding a piece of meat to her bowl. Seeing her wide, round eyes, he said with some affection, “You’re too thin; I want to make you stronger.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t die easily!” She was a bit annoyed. She knew she was thinner than the women in the city, but she had seldom been sickly and wouldn’t suffer through winter like others claimed! Did Yuan Buqu also see her as half-dead?

“Eat!” He commanded again.

When he made a stern face, even someone who wasn’t hungry would feel compelled to eat three large bowls to respond to his authority! She quickly complied, murmuring to herself.

This man could be very frightening; however, when his brows relaxed, she lost all fear and retorted, questioning whether it was her recklessness or Yuan Buqu’s dual nature. She stole a glance at him.

He was also looking at her, his eyes like deep pools, seemingly gentle. But that wasn’t certain; he had just relaxed his brows, which didn’t necessarily mean he was gentle. After all, he had just kissed her painfully!

Yes! He—kissed her, shamelessly taking away what was exclusively her husband’s. But, heaven forgive her, she wasn’t too heartbroken!

“I really don’t understand why Du Bing has to follow Brother Yuan every day, even taking on the duties of a servant! After all, he is a skilled physician, right? Why is no one commenting on this strange situation? And Du Bing doesn’t say a word.” Sha Pingwei sat on the grass outside his tent, polishing his sword and bow during a break. He mumbled to himself.

Sha Shao, who was sitting nearby at a stone table enjoying tea and playing a game of chess with Feng Yufeng, heard him and smiled. “Perhaps the general intends to promote him! Once he gains the general’s favor, when the army returns to court and the emperor rewards achievements, he’ll surely get a position. It’s much faster than studying hard for ten years to gain fame. This kid has qualities that attract attention, which is not surprising! When Du Bing first arrived, didn’t you also keep a close eye on him? Doesn’t that mean others won’t gossip?”

Sha Pingwei scratched his head.

“It’s different! My concern for him is not the same as Brother Yuan’s! Anyway, they do seem quite odd. Father, what do you think?”

Sha Shao, fanning himself with a feather fan, asked, “Do you think Ziren has treated him poorly but insists on keeping him around unreasonably?”

“Yes! Yes! It’s not a promotion at all. Brother Yuan’s two servants privately complain that Du Bing took their jobs. Yet sometimes I feel that Brother Yuan looks at Du Bing with a strange gaze, not as if he’s trying to mistreat him.” The undercurrents between their brows left the rough and simple Sha Pingwei puzzled.

Sha Shao laughed and sighed, “If you could see that, you would already be a general! You still need to hone your skills for another decade or so to make some progress.”

“Brother Sha, that’s too harsh. Pingwei is straightforward and valiant, a rare and heroic man. His future is limitless. You underestimate your only son too much!” Feng Yufeng spoke candidly.

However, Sha Pingwei didn’t mind and laughed heartily.

“Uncle Feng, don’t flatter me! Think about it—my father is a top strategist, while I’m just a warrior. It’s only natural that he feels some regret. But I’ve always been diligent and earnest, so he finds some comfort in that! Whether I’m good or bad, no one knows better than my father!”

Sha Shao nodded with a smile; though his son was a bit rough around the edges, he was upright and broad-minded, and he was the greatest pride of his life.

“However, seriously speaking, someone needs to remind Brother Yuan about his unfair treatment of Du Bing.” Sha Pingwei couldn’t let go of the fact that Du Bing was being used as a servant. He wanted to speak up for him and rescue him from his plight.

“Let it be for now. When you have the chance, you can help Du Bing more, which might subtly hint to Ziren that he’s mistreating a talent. He’ll pay ‘special’ attention!” Sha Shao said with a deep smile, his eyes gleaming with cunning.

“That’s a great idea! I was planning to do just that! Sometimes Brother Yuan is quite stubborn; if even I, the Captain, start doing menial work, he’ll get the message!” Sha Pingwei jumped up, quickly putting away his weapons and rushing towards the command tent.

Watching him leave, Feng Yufeng looked at Sha Shao with confusion. “Brother Sha, is this really a good idea? The military discipline might be disrupted, and the general might not be pleased. If he gets angry, he might punish Pingwei with a military stick.”

“He’s the one breaking the rules himself, so he cannot use military discipline to deal with it; otherwise, he wouldn’t stand a chance! Let Pingwei stir things up a bit; nothing will happen!” Sha Shao said confidently.

Feng Yufeng pondered, “Why do I feel there’s a lot more to this? And the situation seems quite alarming. Is there something happening that I don’t know about?” He had a premonition that the key to the situation was Du Bing, whom he had introduced, but he didn’t understand why.

“Let’s wait and see how things develop. I’m also waiting for the truth to be revealed.” Sha Shao raised two cups of tea, handing one to Feng Yufeng, and they toasted. “Here’s to everything going smoothly and ending well.”

He finished his tea in one gulp.

Feng Yufeng, still somewhat puzzled, also drank his tea in one gulp. Yes, let’s hope for the best! At least it meant that a good show would soon unfold, and everyone could have some excitement. Perhaps Du Bing was someone extraordinary after all!

Du Bingyan sat at a low table in a corner of the general’s tent, grinding medicinal herbs. Nearby, two sullen-faced youths watched her. They were new recruits in the Eagle Army, still not officially soldiers. They now served as the general’s attendants, seeing their duties as a great honor, and viewed the general as greater than the gods! Now, a frail youth was taking their job, which made them seethe with anger. What was even more infuriating was that all three were eighteen and still growing; why did the general only instruct Du Bing to eat more? That kid was becoming more and more annoying to them!

Zhu Cunshan and Wang Hao were busy polishing swords and repairing the iron plates on the armor for the general, occasionally throwing dissatisfied glances at Du Bing. They didn’t understand why a half-baked doctor was competing with them for their jobs! He wasn’t going to the battlefield, so no matter how much the general valued him, it was useless! Plus, he was so thin and effeminate, it made people want to take care of him! After three months in the army, a sow could surpass Diao Chan in beauty, and with no sows around, Du Bing’s feminine appearance was even more noticeable! Originally, who the general favored was none of their business, but if he took their jobs, it was a huge issue!

Du Bingyan divided the medicinal powder into jars, glancing at the weather. The sky was gray with some moisture, indicating a possible rain. Rain in this area typically occurred only two or three times a year, but when it did, it was as if it were the total annual rainfall. That’s why Yuan Buqu had been urging the soldiers to dig wells and excavate lakes to prepare for water storage. The citizens of the city also cooperated fully and were very grateful for Yuan Buqu’s care! Severe water shortages had been a major problem for the city’s residents for centuries, and Yuan Buqu, of course, would not ignore it. He took advantage of the war to mobilize the digging of wells on a large scale. To prevent water from evaporating too quickly, he and Sha Shao studied for a long time to come up with a method; anticipating heavy rain soon, he sped up the well-digging process to replace artificial lakes with sealed wells.

His shoulder injury had only just begun to heal!

Du Bingyan sighed! This enigmatic man, intimidating in appearance, had a mind so complex it was hard to see through. Yet, some of his actions seemed both passionate and considerate. A military general shouldn’t be expected to have much of a brain—how could someone whose profession was killing have a kind heart? But he was different. He “might” be very intelligent… she scrunched her nose. Maybe? If she were more “willing,” she would admit that this man was “very” smart. His calligraphy flowed like a stream, full of vigor, undoubtedly the result of diligent effort; his tent had a wall of books, mostly on military strategy and weapons, but it was surprising that he was so close to books, which were considered the realm of scholars! Moreover, he lost his parents at a young age, was mistreated, and then engaged in battles south and north—where did he find time to learn to read and write?

Alas! In just over ten days of interaction, her perception of him kept changing, constantly overturning the stereotyped image she had in mind. She didn’t like this feeling at all; it was too dangerous for her.

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