Chapter 12

  The rain in the south, fine and dense, only on the coldest day, a light snow floated by for a day, and then it was still drizzling. Jiang Wanru stood under the eaves of the house in the courtyard, looking at the sky in all directions, thinking about some things in her mind. Inside the house, Mu Niang and Ji Yan were watching over Jiang Feiyang and Jiang Lanyan who had fallen asleep after lunch.

  Jiang Wanru nodded with a smile, agreeing to this matter. Some time ago, she had asked Mugen to bring over some of the latest fabrics from the capital through the escort team, and chose a few suitable ones to send over. Shang's wife and Wen Jiuniang accepted them with smiles. The two families thus became closer, frequently visiting each other. Jiang Feiyang and Jiang Lanyu spent more time in the Shang family courtyard than their own, so Mugen's mother and Jiyi often stayed there too to take care of them.

  Jiang Wanmu smiled and walked over, bending down to get close to the two children, kissing one on the cheek, hugging one in her arms, with identical small faces, having the same joyful expression. Ji Yan stood behind Jiang Wanmu, smiling and teasing Jiang Lazi, saying: "Little girl, do you want Auntie to take you to find big brother to play?" Ji Yan's words were always effective, Jiang Lazi immediately stretched out her hand towards Ji Yan wanting to be hugged, Jiang Wanmu let go of her.

  Jiang Wanru felt that her days were getting better and better in Zhongnan. Watching the two children grow up day by day, she felt that life had a good prospect. Her expression became more and more gentle. Jiang Wanru heard many messages from outside while staying in Shang's house, so she naturally knew that the current Ning dynasty was a time of trouble. The unrest on the border was even more severe than what the emperor had imagined. The emperor originally just wanted to show off his power once, but unexpectedly, the enemy country did not let him have his way. They were used to making small troubles and then hiding immediately.

  The Emperor originally wanted to take this opportunity, while the old generals with actual combat experience were still alive, to hone the military officers well with the old and new, and also select some suitable generals. At the border, the other side had hung up a truce sign for several days, and Lian Hao returned from patrolling the city wall, received a messenger who came to his side, and was told to hurry over as the Great General had something to discuss with him. He glanced at his armor, patted it a few times, followed the messenger, and hastily rushed to the Great General's tent.

  The general, when he was a young marshal, recruited soldiers and was impressed by Lian Hua's vigor. He pointed at him a few times, and Lian Hua followed him to join the army. Over the years, Lian Hua grew from a young soldier to a young commander under the general's leadership. The general felt a special pride in his heart as he watched Lian Hua grow up. He looked at Lian Hua, who had just arrived, and pointed to the side, where a table with wine, rice, and dishes was already set, saying: "Sit down."

  Although Lian Hao's nature is not constrained, he won't do things without any sense of propriety. After understanding the general's bottom line and knowing that the general doesn't mind small matters, whenever the general hides good wine, nine out of ten times it's him who finds it and takes it out to share with the team members. The general listened to his words, smiled and looked at him saying: "Since you came under me, the wine by my side has never been left undisturbed for a few days. This jar of good wine was just brought over, so I'll open it myself and give it to you to drink, lest when I smell the fragrance of the wine, I rush over only to find that you've intentionally left a cup of wine water for me."

  The general's wife came from a prestigious family and was very good at socializing, so she would naturally prepare one portion for these low-ranking soldiers and another for her husband. After the soldiers finished their own share of wine, they would often use the excuse of exhaustion from training to search for the hidden portion under Lian Hua's lead, leaving only a cup of water at the bottom of the general's jug. Lian Hua recalled past events, smiled, and raised his glass in a toast to the general, saying: "General, this one cup is for my ignorance in my youth, please forgive me."

  The general pointed to the dishes on the table with his chopsticks and said, "This dish is naturally not as good as those cooked in Beijing, but the cook has also made an effort. You eat some food and drink wine, we'll talk slowly." Lian Hao listened to his words, refilled a cup of wine, nodded and said, "Good, I'll listen to General's words." The general looked at Lian Hao with a smile on his face, sighed and said, "You don't want to laugh, you don't have to force yourself to laugh in front of me. You've been like this for a year now, I think something is wrong.

  "My judgment of you back then wasn't wrong, and you should also believe that you didn't follow the wrong person. Lianhao, once we're on the battlefield, it's a matter of life and death. If there's something unpleasant in your heart, speak up. Even if I can't help you, I won't add to your troubles. You've been hiding and suppressing your feelings, which is unbearable. Every time we charge forward, you're recklessly rushing ahead without the same level of caution as before. This behavior is really unacceptable. Remember, it's by sacrificing the enemy that we gain our own people's safety - including yours."

  Lian Hao looked at him with a bitter smile and said: "General, the day I entered the camp was for you. Up to now, except for my grandfather and father, I believe in your words the most. General, it's not that I didn't want to explain that matter to you first, but that matter is hard to bring up, and I don't know how to start talking about it. Alas, saying family secrets is not good, but at most, it can only be considered as me losing face and dignity."

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  By Cat Pounce Chinese