Chapter 270 – Feeling Cared For
The steaming meat buns had almost all disappeared into Yan Xiaosi’s mouth, while the War King only drank two bowls of vegetable porridge. However, the War King had no complaints; in fact, he felt that this morning’s vegetable porridge was exceptionally fragrant, sweet, and soft.
“Who made the vegetable porridge this morning?”
“Huh?”
Long Yi was momentarily caught off guard, staring at his master with a bewildered expression.
His master, in high spirits, spoke again in a tone more gentle than usual: “This morning’s vegetable porridge was excellent. Have whoever made it continue to make the porridge from now on.”
“Yes, sir.”
Long Yi had also consumed two bowls of vegetable porridge this morning and thought it tasted no different from before, but if his master said it was delicious, then delicious it was.
“I will inquire at the kitchen shortly.”
His master nodded. “Hmm, the meat buns this morning were also quite good. Have the same person make buns from now on.”
Long Yi glanced at young Master Yan, who was hungrily devouring a bun with great relish, and suddenly understood.
It wasn’t that the vegetable porridge and meat buns were particularly delicious this morning; rather, it was because his master was sharing a table with young Master Yan, and seeing the young master eat with such appetite had put his master in a good mood.
“Master, there seems to be unusual activity from the Rongdi.”
“I’m aware. Instruct Zhao Ben and the others to carefully monitor the opposite shore. They must not be careless.”
Long Yu seemed to have anticipated this and showed no surprise at Long Yi’s report.
Rongdi King Chunyu Hanfeng had planted many spies in Great Chu; the news of the missing military funds reaching Chunyu Hanfeng’s ears was only a matter of time.
Yan Xiaosi felt a moment of tension.
“How did they find out so quickly? What happened just yesterday has already reached Rongdi today.”
Long Er frowned and said, “Over the years, the Rongdi King has planted numerous spies in the Great Chu Dynasty. Some people in the court have colluded with the Rongdi King, selling Great Chu’s military intelligence to Rongdi.”
Yan Xiaosi couldn’t help but sigh. The Great Chu Dynasty truly faced troubles both internally and externally.
Long Yu, in his position, must be under tremendous pressure.
“To achieve peace in the Great Chu Dynasty, one must first repel external threats before resolving internal issues, right?”
She couldn’t help expressing her heartfelt sentiments.
Several gazes were immediately drawn to her.
No one expected that Young Master Yan, at such a tender age, would understand such concepts as repelling external threats before resolving internal issues.
Long Yi and Long Er instantly regarded her with newfound respect.
With one sentence, she had articulated exactly what their master was thinking.
Long Yu looked at her, his eyes unable to hide his admiration.
“Yes, first we must drive back the Rongdi, then deal with those old foxes in the court, as well as the spies planted in the Great Chu Dynasty by the Rongdi King.”
Yan Xiaosi had merely spoken casually but hadn’t expected the man before her to seriously discuss matters with her. Suddenly, she felt valued.
“Then I wish you success. I’ve eaten my fill and will now go contact that friend to raise military supplies for you.”
Yan Xiaosi put down her chopsticks, rose to her feet, wiped her mouth, and walked toward the tent exit. Long Yu’s gaze softened as he followed her small retreating figure until it disappeared from sight.
That phrase “I wish you success,” though he had never heard it before, he understood its meaning.
That little one actually cared about him.
He smiled slightly, and a touch of tenderness suddenly appeared in his usually ice-cold heart.
The scene shifts to the opposite shore of the Yunluo River.
In the Rongdi camp, Chunyu Hanfeng was supervising military drills.
His troops were mighty, but crossing the river would be difficult.
The Rongdi men had all grown up galloping across the vast grasslands, and almost none knew how to swim. Fighting the Great Chu forces on the Yunluo River would be extremely disadvantageous.
The Great Chu Dynasty covered vast territories with numerous rivers and lakes, and over eighty percent of the soldiers under Long Yu knew how to swim.
Chunyu Hanfeng stood on a tall observation platform, frowning as he watched the turbulent waters of the Yunluo River. The more he looked, the deeper his frown became.
To make matters worse, the autumn floods had recently caused the Yunluo River to rise, and the current was stronger than before. If not for this river between them, he would have long since led his army to invade this western territory of the Great Chu Dynasty.
Hearing footsteps behind him, he didn’t need to turn around to know that it was Military Strategist Tantai Yi.
Tantai Yi walked to his side and spoke in a very gentle tone: “Is the King observing the Yunluo River’s water level again?”
After several days of observation, Chunyu Hanfeng had discovered that the Yunluo River’s water level was steadily rising, and it would probably only recede after the autumn floods ended.
“My Rongdi army does not know how to swim and cannot cross the Yunluo River. Even though we’ve received news of Long Yu’s injury and loss of military supplies, it’s of little use.”
Originally, he had planned to develop cannons to engage with the Great Chu Dynasty across the river, using the cannons’ attack range, but that plan was now shelved.
That damned Long Yu had discovered that the most crucial component for making cannons was saltpeter, and had secretly replaced the saltpeter on Four Sisters Mountain with talc, leaving him without saltpeter to use. He was now spending a fortune searching for saltpeter in various countries and regions.
Damn it!
Recalling this matter, he gritted his teeth in anger, his fists clenched.
“Military Strategist, it’s been a whole night. Have you thought of a way to cross the river safely?”
Tantai Yi, as the Rongdi military strategist, was extremely intelligent and full of devious plans, but he too was a man of the Rongdi grasslands who did not know how to swim. From last night until now, he had not been able to devise a solution for crossing the river.
“I apologize, but I haven’t thought of a solution yet.”
Chunyu Hanfeng took a deep breath, suppressing his urge to rage.
“Our Rongdi people only excel at galloping across the grasslands. This is not your fault.”
“Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty.”
“However, you must quickly devise a plan to cross the river. Given enough time, Long Yu will recover from his injuries and replenish his supplies, and we will have lost our opportunity.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The thunderous sounds of military drills from the Rongdi camp reached the Great Chu army. Zhao Ben and other deputy generals observed along the river but saw no signs of the Rongdi army attempting to cross.
From this, Zhao Ben and the deputy generals concluded that the Rongdi feared water, became timid at the sight of rivers, and dared not advance.
Zhao Ben breathed a sigh of relief and went to report to the commander’s tent: “Your Highness, the Rongdi army fears water. They seem to be merely making noise on the opposite shore but dare not cross the river to attack. Those big, burly bastards are all landlubbers who can’t swim.”
Long Yu, however, was not as optimistic.
He knew very well what kind of person Chunyu Hanfeng was—an extremely self-centered man. Moreover, he had killed that man’s father. Upon hearing of his injury and the loss of half the military supplies, that man would surely want to grow wings and attack. The Yunluo River could only hold them back temporarily.
“Do not be careless. Continue patrolling along the river. Report to me immediately if you notice anything unusual.”
The scene shifts to a quiet path.
Yan Xiaosi rode a chestnut horse, moving neither fast nor slow, pondering a matter.
How could she take food out of her Portable Space in a way that wouldn’t arouse suspicion from those around her?
This was truly a headache-inducing problem.
She scratched her forehead in frustration while continuing to ride her chestnut horse toward Daxing Town.
Never mind, she thought. First, she would go to Daxing Town to find a grain merchant, and then decide what to do based on the situation.
