“General Yang! How about we disembark and have some fun!”

Several soldiers, jostling each other, approached the vice-general, calling out.

These soldiers wore carefree smiles, but each possessed a fierce aura, clearly capable warriors.

Discipline was strict in the military, but now that they were withdrawn from the battlefield, everyone could relax a bit, inevitably indulging in some excess.

Yang Yin understood this perfectly well.

“Let’s wait until we’ve passed this stretch of water. I’ll allow you all a day of revelry in the next city. After that, we’ll be heading straight back to Nine Rivers Prefecture.”

The soldiers were somewhat disappointed, but none voiced any dissent. After all, they were the Nine Rivers Black Guard, the most elite army in the entire Zhuang Kingdom, and obedience was ingrained in their very being.

Having settled his men, Yang Yin bent over and entered the cabin, where he found his general brooding in a corner, as expected.

No lamps were lit, and he spoke not a word.

“You really deserve a good rest this time. Others have rotated back a dozen times, avoiding the front lines like the plague. You, on the other hand, insisted on staying there. If General Duan hadn’t directly ordered you back to Nine Rivers, you’d have charged right into Dingwu City.”

The General Duan he mentioned was Duan Li, the commander of the Nine Rivers Black Guard. Dingwu City was the capital of the Mo Kingdom, a nation that revered the military, hence the city’s name, which reeked of martial intent.

Yang Yin had intended to crack a joke to lighten the mood, but it clearly wasn’t very amusing.

At least, Du Yehue, with his full, bristly beard, failed to crack a smile.

“For me, the battlefield is where I rest,” Du Yehue grumbled. “Those demonic beasts in Nine Rivers Prefecture aren’t allowed to be killed in large numbers. There’s nothing left to slay.”

Yang Yin felt a slight headache coming on. “We in the military are destined for the battlefield, of course. But no one is made of iron. How can anyone endure endless years of slaughter? General Duan values you highly and has summoned you back to recuperate, fearing that you’ll lose your Dao heart and be consumed by bloodlust…”

Du Yehue shot him an impatient look. “Here you go again.”

“Alright, alright, I won’t say it.” Yang Yin raised his hands in surrender. Seeing Du Yehue’s mood improve slightly, he seized the opportunity. “Whether you like it or not, you’ve been recalled anyway. Military orders are not to be disobeyed, after all. While we’re not back at the garrison yet, and General Duan can’t keep an eye on us, how about we go ashore and have some fun? Find a few pretty ladies, listen to some tunes, what do you say?”

He urged him enthusiastically, “You’ve got nowhere to spend your俸祿anyway. You’ve earned so much prize money; you can’t possibly drink it all away. Might as well let your brothers benefit!”

“Yang Yin ah,” Du Yehue said, leaning his head against the cabin wall. Through the thick wooden planks, he couldn’t see the scenery outside, but he knew where they were.

Where they were approaching.

“Do you hear it?” he asked.

“Hear what?”

“There are some voices, constantly calling out in my ears.”

Yang Yin heard the sound of the river waves crashing against the warship’s sides, the sound of soldiers pacing back and forth on the deck, but he didn’t hear any calls, let alone several.

Not even a single shout, so where did the ‘some’ come from?

He swallowed hard and asked, “Calling out what?”

“They’re asking.” Du Yehue furrowed his thick brows in pain. “They’re asking me—why aren’t you here?”

Before Yang Yin could say anything, Du Yehue suddenly sat up, grabbing a military saber. “Are there any mountain bandits, river pirates, or any kind of evildoers nearby? Quick!”

Yang Yin shuddered and quickly pulled out a small booklet, flipping through it. “Thirty li ahead by water, then forty li directly east, there’s a bandit lair. It’s the local City Dao Academy disciples’ trial this year…”

Before he could finish, Du Yehue had already grabbed a handful of military sabers and strode out, alone.

Yang Yin sat in the cabin, stunned for a moment before putting away the booklet.

Of course, he knew what Du Yehue was going to do. He was almost used to this sort of thing.

But what worried him was that Du Yehue’s condition seemed to be deteriorating, his bloodlust becoming increasingly difficult to control.

Yang Yin silently sat in meditation, while Du Yehue, alone, flew far away from the ship. The warship continued to sail at a steady pace along the Clear River.

The water reflected the sky, adorned with fluffy white clouds.

The boat traveled on the water as if riding the clouds.

Jiang An’an, up on the clouds, was troubled.

She felt that Sister Qingyu was acting very strange today.

She kept smiling whenever she saw her, without a clear reason.

*Did I forget to wipe my mouth after eating the chicken leg?*

Jiang An’an wiped her little mouth, clean as a whistle.

Ah, it wasn’t just Sister Qingyu; everyone was acting odd.

That round-faced, playful Senior Sister Xiao Wang—who also had a gentle older sister, the Great Senior Sister—had been persistently asking about her brother lately.

Things like how old he was, whether he was handsome… Of course, her brother was the most handsome in the world!

She also asked if her brother had a “荤配,” but Sister Qingyu grabbed her ear and shooed her away.

What was “荤配?” Was it a meat dish?

These people were really strange.

Little Jiang An’an felt weary.

So many people required her attention, big and small, a whole heap of things. She was bearing troubles beyond her years.

She really wanted to say, couldn’t you people focus on something important? You’re just playing around all day. Don’t you need to cultivate or study? I, Jiang An’an, have to practice my fist forms every day! And copy a calligraphy model!

And there was that annoying Senior Brother—originally called Senior Brother Mo Liang, but he was too annoying, so she renamed him Annoying Ghost Senior Brother—who had been hanging around her all day!

He was making her dizzy!

First, he brought this snack, then that snack, trying to apologize to her.

Did he think Jiang An’an was a pig? Trying to coax her with food?

She would eat his food, but she still wouldn’t forgive him. Humph!

And there was Senior Brother Fang—Senior Brother Fang wasn’t actually surnamed Fang, but he had a square face, so she called him Senior Brother Fang—who suddenly came over and said something about how a true woman never tattles, and the past should be left in the past.

But she had already told Uncle Ye about him stealing her chicken leg. That wasn’t tattling… Uncle Ye had secretly appointed her as an inspector! She was reporting her work…

They were always secretly roasting snow cranes to eat. They couldn’t blame her for punishing them. She couldn’t bend the law, could she…?

The more Jiang An’an thought about it, the more tired she felt. Her little brows furrowed together.

She would write a letter to her brother tonight and ask him what to do. Had she been discovered for reporting her work? Were they acting so strange today because they wanted to beat her…?

Thinking of this, Jiang An’an looked at each of her senior brothers and sisters, feeling that the situation looked more ominous than ever.

Well, maybe she should go hide with Uncle Ye first. Although Uncle Ye always liked to tell the same stories over and over, it was safe there. Her senior brothers and sisters were all afraid of him…

With her plan decided, Jiang An’an spun around and took off on her little legs.

“Eh!”

She ran into something soft.

Sister Qingyu had suddenly appeared in front of her. Jiang An’an bumped straight into her embrace.

“Running so fast, where are you going?” Ye Qingyu said affectionately.

Jiang An’an snuggled against her for a moment before looking up, blinking her eyes. “I’m going to play chess with Uncle Ye!”

Calling arranging chess pieces to form words playing chess? The two of them taking turns, you making a “Jiang” character, me making a “Ye” character. Was that really playing chess?

Ye Qingyu was somewhat helpless but still said, “Playing chess with an old man is too boring!”

She smiled. “How about I take you to a fun place?”

“What place?” Jiang An’an perked up immediately.

“You’ll find out when we get there!” Ye Qingyu said mysteriously. “I guarantee you’ll love it!”

Jiang An’an was about to agree instinctively, but she suddenly remembered her previous “terrible suspicion” and cleverly asked, “Just the two of us?”

“Of course.” Ye Qingyu was a little confused. “Who else did you want to bring?”

“Nobody!” Jiang An’an felt relieved, clenching her little fist. “Let’s go now!”

I hope that readers, upon reading the first half, can feel Du Yehue’s inner world.

And that, upon reading the second half, they can smile knowingly.

If a novel can make people share in its joys and sorrows, it should be considered successful.

I believe that success is not defined solely by subscription numbers, nor by whether a website recommends it.

Of course, successful writing does indeed require a lot of subscriptions to support it.

So, please, consider subscribing to the legitimate version on Qidian.