Chapter 116

He squinted, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him. Why was someone who, according to his rowdy friends' taunts, would never set foot in this restaurant showing up here?

Zhao He slapped his own face, making sure he wasn't seeing things—it really was Huo Jilin. When Zhao He realized the position he was in, his face turned a deep, purplish red as the alcohol rushed to his cheeks. He clenched his fists and tried to scramble up, but a sharp pain shot through his foot, sending him crashing back down—kneeling again!

By now, all the diners on the first floor had turned to look. They didn't dare laugh out loud at Zhao He, but amusement was written all over their faces.

Zhao He pounded his fist on the ground. In his whole life, he, the young Marquis Zhao, had only ever knelt in the ancestral hall—never did he think he'd kneel twice in one day before Huo Jilin, the man he hated most!

"Damn it," he muttered curses under his breath, sitting on the ground and reaching for his foot. Falling apart at the worst possible moment was beyond frustrating.

Chen Jue stopped him: "Don't move. You might've twisted your ankle."

He and Huo Jilin had just stepped out of the private room when they saw Zhao He trying to dodge the blind woman.

Zhao He had twisted as he fell, stumbling down the stairs at an awkward angle. His right foot hit the ground awkwardly, he lurched, and then he went down face-first to the right. If he'd guessed right, the foot was twisted.

"What?" Zhao He stared at the man in front of him, feeling like an idiot. He'd drunk way too much today. He was never drinking again!

Chen Jue crouched down and pulled off Zhao He's boots, then his socks. He moved fast, and Zhao He, slowed by the booze, pulled his foot back a beat too late.

"You... who're you?"

Zhao He stared at Chen Jue, shaking his head. He had no recollection of this guy. If he'd ever seen someone this good-looking, he'd have remembered them for sure.

Did he come with Huo Jilin? What was he to him? He'd seen all of Huo Jilin's personal guards—was this guy a relative?

Zhao He never considered that Chen Jue might be Huo Jilin's husband. First, Chen Jue was too tall to pass for one of the capital's delicate young men; second, he was literally holding Zhao He's foot—if he were one of those, he'd have to keep his distance.

Chen Jue replied, "I know a little medicine. Don't move—it's already swelling."

Chen Jue held his leg, and Zhao He could already see his ankle swelling up. He cursed "damn it" again. He had tomorrow off, but what about the day after?

With Huo Jilin's brutal training schedule, was he supposed to hobble through drills the day after?

Zhao He frowned. "Is it bad?"

Chen Jue nodded: "Bad. The joint's out of place and it's swelling. You're young, so it's just a misalignment—if you were old, this fall would've snapped a bone."

Chen Jue glanced at Huo Jilin, who got the hint. Looking down at Zhao He, whose brows were furrowed in deep resentment, he asked, "What does regulation thirteen say?"

Zhao He went, "Huh? What?"

Huo Jilin repeated: "Why are you drinking while on duty? Recite the regs."

Soldiers weren't like civil officials. Civil officials could have a drink after their shift, but soldiers couldn't. Those on duty had to stay sober all day, ready for surprise attacks or defense.

That's also why modern armies do midnight drills—so they can quickly assemble and counterattack when an enemy strikes.

So Huo Jilin was totally in the right. Zhao He knew he'd broken military discipline, and his face went red. Just as he was about to recite the regs in front of everyone, a sharp, needle-like pain shot through his ankle. He yelped and turned to look at the guy who knew a bit of medicine.

"Alright, get up and try walking."

Chen Jue let go of his foot and stood up.

A waiter hurried over with a towel—the service was top-notch, since the clientele here were all rich or noble.

He still didn't know Huo Jilin and Chen Jue were the "country bumpkins" everyone in the capital gossiped about, because just by looks, you'd think they were princes or royalty.

Zhao He had already slipped his shoes on and walked a few laps, even hopping down from the stairs, to confirm it didn't hurt when he landed anymore. He turned and clasped his hands toward Chen Jue: "Thanks, brother. May I ask your name? Ziqin will definitely bring a generous gift to call on you!"

Chen Jue just shook his head: "No need. It was nothing. I'm Chen Jue."

"Thanks for your help, Brother Chen. A great kindness doesn't need words. Another day, I'll buy you a drink at this place..."

Huo Jilin looked at him, and Zhao He thought he'd broken the rules again. He coughed and stressed: "I'll treat you on my day off. Tomorrow's my day off."

Huo Jilin kept looking at him: "Then I'm afraid you'll have to include me too."

"...Why should I?" Zhao He's dislike for Huo Jilin was all over his face. Huo Jilin smiled: "Because he's my husband."

With that, Huo Jilin pulled Chen Jue away, leaving Zhao He staring in shock.

Oh, and one last thing: "Regulation thirteen applies to everyone. Don't let it happen again."

That wasn't just for Zhao He—it was for the guys upstairs too.

Zhang Shaopu and the others, who'd been watching from the stairs, couldn't care less about the regs. What they cared about was his husband. They stared at the two retreating figures, dumbfounded. They'd spent the whole night mocking Huo Jilin.

Because Huo Jilin marrying a husband was supposedly embarrassing.

But now, if that husband was the guy who'd just acted so smoothly and looked so good... well, maybe there wasn't anything wrong with it after all.

Once Huo Jilin was out of sight, Zhang Shaopu and the others rushed down and surrounded Zhao He: "Was that really Huo Jilin's husband?"

"That's what I've heard. Isn't his husband the one who was granted the third-rank title for his medical skills?"

"I never would have thought... he's really..." Zhang Shaopu couldn't find the words. He wasn't willing to use "divine" just yet—he was still the most handsome man in the capital!

What was going on with the Huo family? Each one more attractive than the last!

Zhao He cut them off irritably: "Enough. You can talk trash about Huo Jilin all you want, but not his husband—he did me a solid!"

Feng Chunhe curled his lip: "He just realigned your bone. You're treating him like a lifesaver."

Zhao He shot back: "Right, just realigned a bone—better than some people who watched from the stairs with their hands in their pockets!"

Don't think he didn't know—those bastards had seen Huo Jilin and didn't dare come down!

They all knew drinking violated military discipline, yet every single one of them had drunk plenty.

"We'll recite the regulations together the day after!" Zhao He said irritably. Huo Jilin had seen them all!

But Zhang Shaopu and the others clasped their hands toward him: "We're counting on you, Brother Ziqin."

"Scram!"

Huo Jilin and Chen Jue rode their horses slowly through the streets. At this hour, the capital was still lively, and this bustling thoroughfare was ablaze with lights.

After passing through the street, Huo Jilin said to him: "The Zhao He you just helped is the Zhao Ziqin I told you about."

Chen Jue let out a surprised sound: "So that's him. No wonder—he has fine features. But... does he recognize you?"

Only Huo Jilin could understand that question. Huo Jilin shook his head: "He doesn't recognize me."

Chen Jue was silent for a moment, then said softly: "There are many people in this world who look alike. Perhaps it's just a coincidence. Let things take their course."

Huo Jilin chuckled too. "Yeah, let's get going—Xiaoyu's probably getting impatient."

They'd gone out to eat that night without Huo Yu.

If Huo Yu had come, he'd be staring at a table full of good food he couldn't eat—how sad is that, right?

The Huo family was now a full-fledged marquis household with plenty of good food, but he and Chen Jue still wanted some alone time, so they'd ditched Huo Yu to go eat out.

They'd promised Huo Yu they'd be home before his bedtime, and that the next day they'd take him horseback riding.

By the time they got home, Huo Yu was still awake, but barely. Steward Su was holding him and patting his back, and his eyelids were drooping from sleepiness.

Huo Jilin changed, took him, and after a few pats, Huo Yu was out like a light, snoring softly.

The next day was Huo Jilin's day off. He had court the day after, so his so-called weekend was really just that one day.

So last night was just the two of them, and today was a family trip for all three.

Huo Jilin took Huo Yu to the Qiudi Hunting Grounds to ride horses. This was the imperial hunting ground. Except during the autumn royal hunt, when it was closed, and in spring, when the animals were breeding, the capital's noble scions could come anytime to race, hunt, and practice archery.

It was already early winter, and the autumn hunt was over, so fewer people came around.

Huo Jilin had two reasons for coming: one, to bring Chen Jue and Huo Yu out for fun, and two, to scout the area for future training with his troops—real weapons, real combat practice.

He hadn't developed firearms and gunpowder yet, so until then, he still needed cold-weapon training like archery and horseback riding.

Since noble scions often came here to hunt, the area had plenty of lodging facilities. After the steward got their carriage and luggage sorted, Huo Jilin and Chen Jue rode out on horseback.

Huo Yu stared at the vast grassland and yelled "Ah! Ah!" in excitement—he got so worked up he forgot the few words he'd just learned.

He pointed ahead with his little finger, wanting Chen Jue to take him for a ride. Chen Jue indulged him, strapped Huo Yu to his chest, and with a flick of the reins, they took off into the distance.

Huo Jilin rode alongside them, doing a full lap around the big prairie first. Old Horse Ancestor ran like crazy—it was the first time it had seen grassland since Huo Jilin bought it, and it was like its bloodline woke up. Huo Jilin let it run a few more laps.

Huo Yu was still little. Even with no wind and bright sun, riding fast made a breeze, so Chen Jue only took him on a short loop. When they got back, they went to play by the tent near the river.

Playing on the grass was way more fun.

It wasn't deep winter yet, and quite a few shepherds were grazing their flocks along the river where the grass was thick.

The snow-white sheep dotted the prairie like clouds, grazing lazily along the riverbank.

Huo Yu loved sheep—he'd been raised on goat's milk and still drank it every day.

Since Xiaohua wasn't there, the Huo family kept a few dairy goats in the back courtyard for him, and he checked on them every day. So now, seeing all these sheep, his eyes lit up and he started shuffling his little legs, trying to chase them.

The grassland wasn't as flat as a sports field, so the servant boy and the nursemaid each held one of his hands to keep him steady.

Huo Yu had a blast that morning, laughing happily every now and then. Once they saw his eyes were glued to the sheep instead of on them, Chen Jue and Huo Jilin rode off to check out the area.

Where Huo Yu and the others were was just the outer edge of the Qiudi Hunting Grounds—they hadn't gone into the deeper hunting area. If Huo Jilin was going to train his troops, they'd have to go deeper, where the soldiers could practice with real weapons.

Chen Jue looked at the dense forest deeper in the Qiudi Hunting Grounds and laughed, "You can train them here, let them go into the mountains—fine. But don't you dare go in alone."

Huo Jilin's riding was fine, but his archery was iffy. Haha, not that his aim was bad—he just didn't have the strength. His shoulder was still healing with medicine, and it'd take at least another six months.

Huo Jilin glanced at him: "I'm a general now—how could I not have a thousand men with me?"

He knew Chen Jue was worried, so he played along with the joke.

Chen Jue laughed too: "Good. With that many people, even a tiger would run away."

"That's too much!" Huo Jilin watched Chen Jue ride off and followed after him.

Even though Chen Jue was teasing him, he wasn't wrong—the military was never about individual heroics; it was about teamwork.

A lone rider going a thousand li to take an enemy's head wasn't a legend—it was a rout, a desperate gamble. If it came to that, you were already done for.

If tens of thousands of soldiers had all died, what was there to celebrate?

The narrow victory in the last battle was something Huo Jilin never wanted to go through again.

Even in the age of firearms, you needed careful planning and coordination, and in the cold-weapon era, you needed it even more.

The battle formations in history weren't as magical as later generations made them seem, but they had their own logic.

A war's complete victory was never the work of one soldier or general, but the coordination of all the troops and the Commander's sound leadership.

Huo Jilin knew that no matter how good his shooting was, he still had to learn how to lead.

That was why he hadn't put down his military strategy books. Not all modern combat methods worked in this dynasty—he had to combine them with classical tactics.

The two of them ran a few more laps around the prairie. Huo Jilin was mostly just keeping Chen Jue company—he rode for who knows how many hours a day at camp, with a two-hour round trip just to get there and back.

But since Chen Jue married into the marquis household and became the marquis's consort, he rarely went out anymore. No matter how big the Hou Mansion's garden was, it was still just a garden—for a modern person, it was like being under house arrest.

The ancient noble ladies could be locked up because they'd never seen the outside world. But Chen Jue had—and before, he'd been up in the mountains every day.

Someone used to towering peaks and rushing rivers couldn't adapt to a fancy garden, even if life at the marquis household was much better.

Huo Jilin watched Chen Jue on horseback, glowing and grinning, and thought—he wouldn't let Chen Jue be cooped up at home all day. He was already scouting a location for "Chen's Pharmaceutical."

When they got older, he wanted to go back with Chen Jue to that place with mountains and water, or head to the northern frontier—somewhere so far from the capital the emperor couldn't reach them.

The capital was good for starting a business, not for retiring.

When both horses were tired out, the two men led them along the river, chatting casually.

"Do you like the old Pingshan Village, with its mountains and water, or the endless grasslands of the northern frontier?"

Huo Jilin asked. He was the type who, once he planned something, wanted to make it happen.

Chen Jue didn't know what he was planning, but he thought about it seriously: "Both are great. Pingshan Village has beautiful scenery—stand high and see far, the people are simple and honest, not much drama."

Though some villagers were narrow-minded and short-sighted, like Village Head Zhou, those small-time folks had never been a threat to Chen Jue before, let alone now.

So when Chen Jue thought back on Pingshan Village now, what he remembered was the mountain full of medicinal herbs, the tall trees, the rushing water.

It was the simple villagers like Uncle Liu and Zhang Yan.

And the northern frontier grassland—kind of like the Mongolian steppes or Lhasa in Tibet from his past life—was even more vast than the Qiudi Hunting Ground in front of him. An endless expanse, high mountains and snowy plains, sky and earth stretching forever, with the sky as a blanket and the ground as a bed, white clouds overhead and green grass underfoot—free and unrestrained, just thinking about it was refreshing.

So Chen Jue smiled at Huo Jilin and said, "The northern frontier's nice too. When we have time, let's take Huo Yu to see it. Oh," he paused, "can you even get that much time off?"

There were no planes in this era—getting there wouldn't be easy.

Huo Jilin led his horse and said, "We'll take a carriage. Travel day after day, and we'll get there eventually. By the time we arrive, I might already be retired."

Huo Jilin rarely spoke, but when he did, his words were always full of substance—even his deadpan jokes were a cut above everyone else's. Chen Jue laughed heartily. "Alright, then I'll wait until you make it to retirement."

By then, Huo Yu would be all grown up.

They could already make out Huo Yu's small figure. Today he was dressed in a red cotton outfit, standing out against the green grass, blue sky, and white sheep.

What's more, he was toddling along, unsteady on his feet, the little lambs clustering around him. He wasn't much taller than they were, and he was waving a little riding crop, yelling "Giddy-up! Giddy-up!"

His vocabulary was just the everyday words he'd heard—"papa," "dad," "uncle," "grandpa"—plus the horse commands he'd picked up from Huo Jilin when they rode together. That was all he'd learned so far, and today he'd finally put them to use.

From a distance, he looked just like a little shepherd boy.

It was quite amusing.

Steward Su and Li Jun, walking alongside him, were chuckling at the sight.

Huo Jilin and Chen Jue, as his biological parents, exchanged a glance and laughed without holding back.

Huo Yu was basically their little bundle of joy these days.