Chapter 303 Gorgeous

Chapter 303: Extremely Beautiful

As soon as the words fell, he seemed to feel the invisible pressure around Cui Ji ease a little.

His large hand, holding the clay figurine, carefully tucked it into his sleeve pocket, as if it were some rare treasure.

Just as Cui Ji was about to speak, Cheng Ge felt a tickle in his throat.

He quickly turned his head, covering his mouth with his sleeve, and coughed heavily several times, his body quivering slightly with each cough.

Cui Ji frowned slightly, almost instinctively taking half a step forward, turning sideways to shield him from the blowing sand with his shoulder and back.

His voice was low: "Official business can wait. Rest and recuperate for a good while first."

Cheng Ge thought that made sense. For such a large organization to suddenly have a high-ranking executive parachute in, indeed required proper groundwork—couldn't rush it.

He broke into a smile, stepped forward casually, and threw an arm around Cui Ji's shoulders.

"You're right! Do you have any food? I'm hungry. Oh, and..." He remembered something important and added, "Can you get the kid some goat's milk?"

Just then, that diligent patrol team, for the umpteenth time, made their rounds nearby.

The squad leader took a deep breath, about to shout another resounding "General!"

But Cui Ji raised his eyes, cast a cold glance over, and cut him off directly, saying coldly, in a voice devoid of warmth: "Double today's training for the entire unit."

The squad leader's body stiffened, and he responded loudly: "Yes!"

At the same time, his gaze involuntarily darted to Cheng Ge, and just then a gust of wind lifted a corner of the veiled hat's light gauze.

The sight made the squad leader freeze for a moment; he hastily averted his eyes and then led the team away, walking away with a stiff, clumsy gait.

Cui Ji ignored them and turned to Cheng Ge: "It's very windy and sandy outside. Let's head into the tent first."

Cheng Ge nodded and was about to step forward, but his peripheral vision caught sight of countless heads peeking out from behind the grain carts and along the fence, packed tightly. He looked at Cui Ji with some confusion.

Cui Ji's gaze followed, cold and sharp, almost tangible.

The peeking soldiers scattered in panic like startled rabbits, vanishing in an instant.

In some corner outside the camp, a group of soldiers who had just run back huddled together, whispering excitedly.

"Did you see that? Did you see that?"

"Saw it, saw it! Even though it was just a glance, good heavens, she's extremely beautiful! Like a fairy stepping out of a painting! Just her voice is a bit hoarse..."

"Hah! I told you, just from seeing the General's Wife's figure and aura from a distance, she had to be gorgeous! It must be that the wind and sand here are heavy, and she's tired from the journey, so her throat is uncomfortable... I think the wife's tall too, standing next to our general—truly a perfect match! I'm sure the young master will be tall and strong in the future!"

"Hey, did you see what the wife gave the general?"

"Saw it! A little clay figurine! In the general's likeness! The craftsmanship... well, you can't fault the affection!"

From the sound of it, it was made by the General's Wife herself, specially for the General! The General's Wife truly loves our General deeply!

"But... the General's Wife seems unwell. I heard her coughing."

"She must have just given birth and hasn't fully recovered before traveling thousands of miles to find our General! Now that's true love and devotion!

I'll have to tell Old Zhang in the kitchen to get more old hens, red dates, and longan when purchasing. We must make sure the Lady gets proper nourishment and doesn't develop any long-term health issues!"

These rugged men had reached an unspoken consensus.

They must protect their delicate, devoted General's Wife, as well as their young master!

Cheng Ge followed Cui Ji into the Chief Commander's tent, where a charcoal brazier was burning, chasing away some of the northern chill.

Before long, a soldier entered, head bowed, quickly set out the meal on the low table, and then quickly withdrew.

Cui Ji lifted his eyes and glanced casually at the food on the table. He usually ate simply, just whatever the mess hall made.

Today, busy picking up Cheng Ge, he hadn't given any special instructions to the kitchen.

Yet the spread of this meal was clearly on a different level from his usual simple meals.

He sat down beside Cheng Ge. Cheng Ge eyed the delicious-looking food before him and swallowed instinctively. The fatigue and hunger from the journey instantly intensified.

Cui Ji reached out and gently lifted the lid off the soup pot.

Instantly, an even richer aroma spread out. It was a bowl of golden chicken soup, dotted with a few red goji berries, that looked warm and comforting.

He picked up the ladle, carefully filled a big bowl for Cheng Ge, and pushed it in front of him.

It's cold out, so you can drink it straight—it'll warm your stomach.

Cheng Ge carefully took the bowl, feeling its warmth. He sniffed.

He reached up, took off the veiled hat, and casually placed it beside him.

He picked up a spoon, scooped some soup, blew on it, and put it in his mouth.

The chicken soup was perfectly simmered, savory and rich—surprisingly delicious.

Cui Ji watched him, noticing how much thinner this man had gotten, and his heart ached for him.

Traveling all the way, eating and sleeping in the open, Cheng Ge had hardly had a proper meal. Now his hunger was fully awakened.

At this moment, he couldn't care about anything else—his mind was only on eating!

Cheng Ge devoured the meal like a whirlwind, cleaning up most of the dishes.

With hot food in his stomach, some color finally returned to his pale face, and the exhaustion from days of travel seemed somewhat dispelled.

He had just put down his chopsticks when, after a moment, Lü Rou called softly from outside the tent: "Young master."

Cheng Ge quickly responded, and Lü Rou entered, carrying a bowl of thick black medicinal soup, her head bowed as she walked in carefully.

As soon as the smell of the medicine wafted in, Cheng Ge's face fell instantly, his brows furrowed so tightly they could crush a fly.

No matter how many times he drank it, he would never love the taste of this stuff.

But to keep his life, no matter how bitter, he had to swallow it.

Taking a deep breath, as if stepping onto an execution ground, he took the bowl of medicine, held his breath, and with a look of profound bitterness, began downing it in one gulp.

The medicine was extremely bitter, triggering a strong sense of revulsion as it slid down his throat, his face scrunched up tightly, his entire face contorted in bitterness.

Lü Rou, her heart aching for him, quickly pulled a small paper packet from her sleeve, opened it, and took out a piece of rock candy.

She whispered, "Young master, I couldn’t find any candied fruit in the nearby town in time, so please make do with this for now."

Cheng Ge said nothing, quickly popping the piece of rock candy into his mouth.

The sweetness slowly spread through his mouth, barely suppressing the nauseating bitterness, and only then did he feel a little alive again.

"Has the little one been fed?" Cheng Ge asked hoarsely.

Lü Rou promptly replied, "Funiang is looking after him in the nearby tent, and the goat's milk has been warmed up. You don’t need to worry, young master."

Cheng Ge nodded, feeling somewhat reassured. Thankfully, Funiang and Lü Rou were there to help.

Otherwise, forcing him—a "forever alone" guy who couldn't even take care of himself—to look after a baby would have been quite the challenge. They'd probably both have starved.