Chapter 782: Morning Sickness
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Okay.” Jing Yi agreed without any hesitation. He looked at the ginger soup on the table that was almost cold. “Drink the ginger soup first.” Su Xiaoxiao picked up the ginger soup and took a sip, frowning.
“What’s wrong?” Jing Yi asked.
Su Xiaoxiao suppressed the discomfort in her stomach and said, “It’s nothing. I probably haven’t drunk it in a long time and I’m not used to it.”
When she drank again, the nausea and retching were gone.
She finished the ginger soup in one go and broke out in a sweat. She felt much better.
The next morning, she was woken up by a commotion. It was the county magistrate of Jia County.
This county magistrate’s surname was Yuan. He was once a scholar who came from two rankings. Because his outstanding performance attracted Xiao Duye’s attention, he was personally picked up by Xiao Duye. Unfortunately, this person was an alcoholic and was demoted to a bitter place after working in the
Hanlin Academy for a few days.
He happened to have something to do yesterday and went to Broken North Pa.s.s. He saw two carriages parked beside the official road.
The carriage was not the main point. He recognized the long follower of the First Prince’s residence who often accompanied Xiao Duye.
The guard pretended not to know him, but he was sure that he was not wrong. Look, he had found a courier station today.
Su Xiaoxiao washed up and dressed. When she walked out of the door, Jing Yi was already waiting under the corridor with his sword.
“Have you waited long?” Su Xiaoxiao asked.
“No, I just arrived,” Jing Yi said. “There’s a situation. The county magistrate of Jia County is here and wants to invite King Liang to the county office to recuperate. ”
Su Xiaoxiao said, “Recuperation means…”
JingYi said calmly, “Oh, King Liang is sick.”
Xiao Duye was freezing in the snow mountain and started to feel uncomfortable in the middle of the night. This morning, he had a high fever. County Magistrate Yuan came to pay his respects and was frightened to death by his pale face. However, since he was already here, he could only brace himself and invite Xiao Duye to the county office to recuperate.
“Should we let him go?” Jing Yi asked.
Su Xiaoxiao thought for a moment. “Let him go. We’re going to buy rations in the next few days. We can’t care less about him. Let the county magistrate watch him. He’s more dedicated than us.”
At this moment, in the room next door, Xiao Duye was sitting cross-legged on the bed with a thick cotton blanket. He said to County Magistrate Yuan in a hoa.r.s.e voice, “I’m traveling incognito this time. Remember, you can’t expose my ident.i.ty.”
“Yes, yes, yes!” County Magistrate Yuan hurriedly agreed. “I’ll them everyone that you’re a distant relative of mine.”
Xiao Duye weakly gave him a cold gaze that was harmless.
County Magistrate Yuan lowered his head.
Xiao Duye said, “I shall pose as a merchant. You can call me Boss Xiao.”
County Magistrate Yuan hurriedly said, “I understand.”
Su Xiaoxiao and Jing Yi came over.
Su Xiaoxiao took Xiao Duye’s pulse.
County Magistrate Yuan sized up Su Xiaoxiao. “This is…” Xiao Duye said calmly, “My medicine woman’s surname is Qin.”
“Miss Qin.” County Magistrate Yuan cupped his hands.
A medicine woman had a lowly status in the Great Zhou, but as the saying went, a seventh-grade official in front of the Prime Minister was not someone a county magistrate like him could neglect.
He looked at Jing Yi beside him. He had not been in the capital for long and had never seen Young Marquis Jing.
Xiao Duye continued, “My guard’s surname is Jing.”
Qin and Jing were famous surnames in the capital.
However, the two of them should not have anything to do with the Protecto Duke’s Estate and the Marquis of Weiwu’s Estate. Otherwise, how could they be a medicine woman and a guard beside King Liang?
“I’m going out with Jing Yi,” Su Xiaoxiao said to Xiao Duye. Xiao Duye asked warily, “What are you doing now?”
Su Xiaoxiao said seriously, “To get medicine for His Highness.”
Xiao Duye snorted. “At least you have a conscience.”
Xiao Duye was brought to the county office by County Magistrate Yuan.
Su Xiaoxiao brought Jing Yi and Fu Su to buy food.
Jing Yi took out all his a.s.sets and did not even hide a small piece of silver.
If Fu Su was poor, he would not have money.
“These don’t seem to be enough.” Young Marquis Jing didn’t know the price of food, but he felt that a few hundred taels seemed to be too little.
Su Xiaoxiao smiled. “Jing Yi, take the banknotes and silver back. I brought the military salary.”
Her pharmacy contained the White Lotus Society’s gold and all the a.s.sets she had extorted from Zhao Kangning. It was more than enough to buy rations.
She was not doing this for the Imperial Court, nor was she doing this for Emperor Jing Xuan. Instead, when they really fought, the ones fighting on the battlefield on their stomachs were Qin Canglan and Su MO, and the tens of thousands of soldiers under them.
“It’s still for you.” Jing Yi insisted on giving it to her.
Su Xiaoxiao had no choice but to accept it.
The three of them would buy it in Jia County first. They could not buy it all. They had to leave some for the commoners.
Fu Su looked at the spa.r.s.e five carts of rations. “These are not enough either.”
Su Xiaoxiao asked, “Which county is richer next door?”
Fu Su exclaimed, “Chong County! There are many caravans stationed there all year round. There are those from the Great Zhou, the Western Jin, and the Northern Yan. We can buy rations from the caravans.”
Su Xiaoxiao asked, “How far is Chong County?
Like Wei Ting, Fu Su had the habit of carrying a map with him. He spread it out and pointed at Su Xiaoxiao. “A hundred miles west.”
Su Xiaoxiao made a prompt decision. “Alright, go to Chong County.”
Before leaving, she grabbed a set of medicine and left a letter for herself to visit Qin Canglan in Zi Town. She found a shop a.s.sistant to send it to the county office.
“Ask Boss Xiao for the medicine money.”
She would not spend money for Xiao Duye.
The three of them immediately set off for Chong County.
50 miles east of Broken North Pa.s.s, there was a military camp. At this moment, the soldiers were training on the drill ground. Su MO chose a few soldiers to spar with him.
Qin Canglan and General Liu watched from the side.
General Liu smiled and said, “General Su’s martial arts have improved again.
When I saw him a few years ago, he didn’t seem to have such skills.”
Qin Canglan had long resigned from his position in the army and was no longer the Duke Protector, but Liu Ren still respected him as the Grand Marshal.
Qin Canglan placed his hands behind his back and looked at Su Mo. “This kid hasn’t revealed his true ability.”
“Oh?” Liu Ren was shocked.
Su MO knocked down the two soldiers with a spear and retaliated, sending the ambushers behind him flying.
He had shown mercy when they exchanged blows. Otherwise, they would have died these few days with those two moves just now, but the Grand Marshal said that he had not shown his true ability?
“How’s the salary of the various battalions?” Qin Canglan asked.
Liu Ren sighed. “Sigh, the military salary has been delayed. The soldiers have a lot of objections. You have to know that most of these soldiers are poor commoners. When they joined the army, they used their lives to exchange for food and surplus food for their families, but now…”
Qin Canglan only knew that the situation here was worse than he had imagined after coming to the border.
If this continued, the soldiers would not have the morale to fight.
“There’s something I don’t understand.”
“Tell me.”
Before the army arrived, the rations had to reach first. Since ancient times, it had always been like this when marching and fighting. After all, His Majesty had been the emperor for so many years. It was impossible for him not to know this.
Qin Canglan sneered. “His Majesty has no intention of starting a war.”
Emperor Jing Xuan only wanted to use Qin Canglan’s reputation to shock Northern Yan and make them not dare to invade.
However, he had underestimated the ambitions of the Northern Yan. Back then, when Qin Canglan and Lord Wu An guarded the border together, the Northern Yan did not give up, let alone now that they had lost Lord Wu An.
Northern Yan had tasted the sweetness of it. She would probably not let Qin Canglan return alive this time.
The last soldier was also beaten down by Su Mo.
Qin Canglan took a big step forward and grabbed a red ta.s.sel spear from the shelf. “Mo’er, exchange a few moves with me!”
Su MO said, “Okay!”