Xiao Chonghua looked like he had won, but in reality, he had suffered a crushing defeat.
In the first round, he relied on the sheer power of the repeating crossbow; in the second, he brought about his own downfall, and it was only because “Huo Ci” stepped in to save him that he resorted to using his lightness skill.
The third round hardly needs mentioning.
He had given it his all, eagerly hammering away at his opponent for the better part of an incense stick’s time, only to have “Huo Ci” even the score in the span of a single cup of tea.
And he still had the nerve to call that a draw?
What rotten luck!
He needed more practice!
Stirred to fight anew, Xiao Chonghua wiped the thin sheen of sweat from his brow and called out to the battalion commanders:
“The bout is over. Don’t just stand there—keep training!”
The commanders exchanged glances, each spotting surprise and amusement in the other’s eyes.
“Coming, coming!”
“His Third Highness really is diligent!”
“Is it my turn to drill—ah, I mean, my turn to spar with His Third Highness?”
Watching Xiao Chonghua gradually blend into the Huo Family Army, Jiang Xingyan didn’t find it a bad thing at all.
The Huo Family Army would have to be handed over sooner or later, and it was better to entrust the soldiers to someone familiar than to someone whose background was unknown.
Still, the person she had her eye on was Xiao Zhenhuai.
It was just a pity about his health—
Jiang Xingyan felt a gaze lingering on her.
She looked up instinctively and found herself locking eyes with Xiao Zhenhuai, who was up on a high spot.
The disappointment on his face hadn’t quite faded, and he forced a gentle smile that made him look rather pitiful.
Jiang Xingyan quickly pulled her thoughts back.
Hadn’t Brother Yun said he could cure Xiao Zhenhuai?
When the time came, she’d see how both he and Xiao Chonghua performed.
Jiang Xingyan took a handkerchief handed to her by a soldier and wiped the sweat from her face.
A guard on duty came to report: “Reporting, General! Minister Cui of the Dali Temple has come to see you.”
Jiang Xingyan was startled: “What? Minister Cui came in person?
Please, invite him in!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Oh, and bring in the newly arrived Deputy General Jiang. Let him sit in.”
“Yes, sir!”
——-
Jiang Xingyan changed into a dark blue round-collared robe woven with cloud-patterned brocade and ruyi motifs, pinned her black hair up with a white jade hairpin carved with auspicious clouds, and hurried to the central command tent.
Huo Ci was already waiting off to the side, curious as to why Cui Yu—a man with whom he had no connection—had come to the military camp.
“I’m sorry to have kept Minister Cui waiting. I’ve just finished training and I’m drenched in sweat. I hope you’ll forgive me, Minister Cui.”
Cui Yu quickly rose to return the greeting: “Not at all, not at all. It is I who have imposed upon General Huo.
I had intended to send someone else to deliver this, but my mother said that since the General is so diligent and eager to learn, how could I not treat this with the utmost care and deliver it myself?”
Jiang Xingyan thought to herself: Looking at Minister Cui, who was already past thirty, his family discipline was clearly so strict—it seemed the rumors were true.
“Minister Cui, you are truly a man of pure filial piety!”
At these words, Huo Ci—even if he hadn’t figured out the purpose of today’s visit by then—would have been no fit man to be the Grand General of the Northern Garrison.
He slowly lowered his head, wishing he could crawl into a crack in the rocks.
Back then, he had dismissed Cui Yu’s devotion to filial piety, yet it turned out Cui Yu was the truly dutiful son.
Cui Yu pulled a letter from his sleeve, written on fine rice paper and encased in a protective leather cover.
Jiang Xingyan couldn’t help but click her tongue in admiration.
So he had truly taken her words to heart.
“General Huo, these are a few rough remarks from our conversation this morning.
I presented them to my mother, and she added a few lines at the end.
Please, have a look.”
Jiang Xingyan kept a straight face, took it with solemn formality, and gently opened it.
There, in neat Yan-style calligraphy, she found more than a dozen pages of text.
At the very end was a line that read: “Your mother is a mother, and your wife is also a mother. To honor only your own mother and not another’s mother is a grievous error!”
Jiang Xingyan slapped her thigh: “Excellent! Absolutely excellent!
I will have the entire camp recite this every single day.
Your mother is truly a heroine among women, a model for all women in the realm—she deserves to be honored with a noble title!”
Cui Yu did not beam with pride at these words. Instead, he bowed respectfully to “Huo Ci.”
“My humble opinions, drawn from my mother’s lived experience—if they can be of any use to General Huo, then I have been blessed for many lifetimes.
My mother is not fond of commotion, so I dare not accept any title of nobility on her behalf.
If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave.”
Watching Cui Yu’s retreating figure, Jiang Xingyan sighed once more.
Such a pure soul was truly a rare find.
“Xiao Mi, assemble the entire camp and have them recite this letter.
At dawn and dusk, every single soldier shall read it aloud!”
Xiao Mi stood on the reviewing platform, cleared his throat, unfolded the letter, and read it word by word.
Whenever he came across a character he didn’t understand, he asked “Huo Ci” to explain it.
And so, the entire camp learned what true filial piety really meant.
Jiang Xingyan was genuinely afraid that bad habits would trickle down from the top, and that Huo Ci would lead a bunch of young lads astray.
Old Man Zhang savored the meaning of the words and nodded in approval.
“Our General has really grown up a lot, hasn’t he?”
Xiao Mi, his voice hoarse, rolled his eyes at him: “Hindsight.”
Huo Ci didn’t dare linger in Jiang Xingyan’s sight any longer. He secretly found a corner and copied out the letter from memory.
As he wrote, tears fell.
He didn’t want to cry, but the images of him blindly believing everything his mother said and harshly reproaching A-Yan came back to him all too clearly.
Back then, he had been so detestable—how could he have been worthy of A-Yan’s love and affection?
When children are at odds, the parents have failed in their duty.
He and A-Yan had been inseparable in Jiangnan—how had they grown so estranged after returning to the capital?
These were things he hadn’t wanted to think about before, but now that he did, it was already far too late.
A-Yan, can you please wait for me just a little longer?
——-
Jiang Xingyan had been busy the entire day, and by the time she remembered to head back to the residence, the moon was already perched above the willow branches.
She stretched her body and truly wished she could just bed down at the camp.
But she still had to put on a show for Xiao Ao, so she had no choice but to return home that night and perform a touching mother-son scene.
Exhausting!
Yet, thinking that if she didn’t do this, Xiao Ao would surely keep Xiao Ya hostage, she jolted awake and dared not slack off.
She called for Yun Chunfeng, scooped up the sleeping Xiao Ya, and headed out of the camp.
As soon as she stepped out of the tent, she saw Huo Ci standing at the entrance with his head lowered, his face full of shame and remorse.
“A-Yan, I—can I come back with you?”
Jiang Xingyan looked at him, amused: “That’s your home. If you want to go back, just go back. Why ask me?”
Huo Ci’s heart ached with a piercing pain.
That had once been their home.
He dared not say anything more and followed Jiang Xingyan and Yun Chunfeng step by step, listening to them chat and laugh, always having something to talk about.
It would be a lie to say he wasn’t jealous.
But what right did he have to be jealous?
He was the one who had let go of A-Yan first.
After all, it was he who had once walked side by side with A-Yan, and Yun Chunfeng was the one trailing behind.
He wallowed in his sorrow the whole way, and by the time they reached the camp gate, he suddenly heard someone sobbing softly.
Jiang Xingyan instantly fell silent and called out: “Wang Qi?”
The crying stopped abruptly, and Wang Qi quickly replied: “Ah, ah, General, I’m here. Please get in the carriage and head back to the residence.”
“Wang Qi, why are you crying?”
“Nothing, nothing, sir.”
“Tell me the truth!”
Wang Qi dropped to his knees with a thud: “I beg you, General, please save my brother! He’s been made to kneel in punishment by the Old Madam Huo for the entire day.
A few days ago, he fell off a carriage and broke his leg. If he keeps kneeling, he’ll be crippled for life!”
