The crackling sound of the burning firewood in the stove masked Qin Rui's painful groans. He gritted his teeth and, after a long while, finally removed the stick.
As the bright red birthmark on his palm disappeared, leaving only a deep, bloody wound, Qin Rui felt a sweat bead on his forehead from the pain, but he couldn't help but let out a triumphant smile.
Qin Rui has always been very concerned about his status as a male servant.
It wasn't just because he was short, nor was it just because of what Dr. Su said. It was also because his identity was dangerous; he had accidentally revealed his birthmark at the inn, which attracted the attention of the soldiers.
If his identity is exposed again in the military camp... then Qin Chu's situation will become even more difficult.
But now things are much better; he no longer has to worry about holding Qin Chu back.
The wound on her hand healed very slowly. Qin Rui was afraid that it would still be red when it healed, so she burned it very deeply from the beginning. Later, when the wound scabbed over, she was even more careful.
Fortunately, his fears did not come true; a dozen days later, only an ugly scar remained on his palm.
But the burn was too deep, probably damaging tendons and bones. After the wound healed, his hand was never very flexible. Qin Rui thought it would stay like this forever, but unexpectedly, it slowly recovered after a few days.
It has been nearly twenty days since Qin Chu left.
These days, he still does what he did at the beginning: following Lao Qi back to his tent at night, only to be "knocked unconscious" by him. Then, after Lao Qi falls asleep, he sneaks back to Qin Chu's tent, and carefully returns to Lao Qi's place in the early morning after rolling up his bedding.
Lao Qi thought he was quite alert at night, but Qin Rui made such little noise that even after so many days, Lao Qi still hadn't noticed anything amiss.
But Qin Rui couldn't do what he used to do that day. When he returned from the kitchen and passed by Qin Chu's military tent, he saw a group of people gathered in front of the tent from a distance.
Qin Rui thought Qin Chu had returned, so he rushed over and saw that the group of people were actually dismantling Qin Chu's tent.
"What are you doing!" Without thinking, Qin Rui rushed over and pushed aside the people around the tent, spreading his arms to block the way. "This is my brother's military tent! He's coming back soon, why are you tearing it down!"
The soldiers, obeying orders, didn't dare to use force. They hadn't wanted to do such a despicable thing anyway, so they stopped and looked at their armored leader behind them, asking, "Captain Zhang, what should we do..."
Captain Zhang glanced at Qin Rui and said in surprise, "I didn't expect Qin Chu to have a child with him."
After saying that, he smiled knowingly and said something in a low voice that Qin Rui couldn't hear clearly, but judging from his lip movements, it seemed to be something like, "Young master..."
Then he waved his hand and said, "Keep taking it apart. He's not in the army now, so we can't leave such a big tent empty and taking up space. Take it apart and put it back up, and move all the weapons from my army's tent over here."
A hint of malice flashed in Qin Rui's eyes. He pushed aside the soldiers who surrounded him and said, "He was fighting desperately against the enemy outside, and you're here dismantling his tent?"
Upon hearing this, Captain Zhang laughed: "Fighting? It's better to just send people to their deaths. No one lives in these tents now, and no one will live in them in the future. What's the point of keeping them? Tear them down!"
Qin Rui certainly wouldn't let them make a move.
This is his and Qin Chu's home. He doesn't even let Lao Qi in, so how could he tolerate someone tearing down their tent?
However, the seventh and third brothers rushed over to stop Qin Rui upon hearing the news.
The seventh brother grabbed Qin Rui and pulled him aside, while the third brother explained in his ear, "This Captain Zhang's family has considerable influence. He's just trying to earn some merit in the army. If you go against him, won't you be even more miserable?"
Qin Rui gritted his teeth and remained silent, but he also stopped struggling. His dark eyes were fixed ahead as he watched the captain direct his men to dismantle Qin Chu's tent.
The contents of the tent were thrown out, and it gradually collapsed, turning from a shelter from the wind and rain into a soft, tattered rag.
Qin Rui stared intently into his dark eyes, watching everything unfold, observing everyone gathered around the tent.
The third brother and the seventh brother, who was holding him, almost dared not look into his eyes, because the child's eyes were like those of a crouching wolf, and no one knew whether he had given up or wanted to pounce and bite someone's throat.
Lieutenant Zhang was certain that Qin Chu would not return this time, so he didn't pay much attention to Qin Rui. He turned to his subordinate and laughed, "So what if Qin Chu was made a general? He doesn't even know the difficulty of capturing a city. When we asked him to go, he went without saying a word."
"Cangqingzhou is a place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. It would take at least five times the number of troops defending the city to have any chance of taking it. He took only a few thousand men. Isn't he just throwing his life away...?"
Qin Rui heard it all clearly. He clenched his fists and looked up at the third and seventh brothers: "Is he right? Is it as he said?"
The two of them kept their eyes down, neither looking at him nor answering.
Zhang Xiaowei's subordinate seemed to say something else, and Zhang Xiaowei immediately threw his head back and laughed loudly: "You're right, he might not necessarily die just because he's a young master. Young masters are also very rare among the Xiongnu!"
Qin Rui's mouth was almost watering at the taste of blood, and he almost couldn't resist the urge to rush up and bite the man to death.
Just then, a series of rapid hoofbeats suddenly came from the entrance of the military camp. The hoofbeats didn't stop or slow down after entering the camp; instead, they became even more rapid.
Everyone thought something terrible had happened and was wondering what was going on when they heard a shout from the man on horseback: "We've taken it! We've taken it! General Qin has recaptured Cangqingzhou!"
Qin Rui was stunned, and his heart, which had been in mid-air, suddenly stopped.
His body, which had been gathering strength, froze on the spot, staring blankly at the soldier who was about to come and deliver the good news.
Captain Zhang, who had just made those outrageous remarks, was also stunned on the spot. No one present could react to this surprising news.
Qin Rui reacted the fastest. He didn't care about the expressions on Zhang Xiaowei's face at all. He broke free from Lao Qi and rushed towards the horse's hooves.
"Where's my brother! Why didn't he come back? Why are you all alone?!"
The person who returned to deliver the message was none other than the fifth brother, who immediately smiled when he saw Qin Rui.
He was first surprised: "Xiao Rui, you've grown so much lately?" Then he said, "General Qin is waiting for you in Cangqing Prefecture. Let's go into the city together."
Qin Rui was slightly relieved.
But as her worries faded, her desire to see Qin Chu became even more urgent.
He ran right after Lao Wu's horse, looking up as he went and asking, "When are we going? Aren't you going back today? I want to go with your horse!"
The fifth brother had never seen Qin Rui so anxious before, but he still shook his head at him: "I have to go report the battle situation to the general. You wait patiently."
At this point, Lao Wu also noticed that Qin Chu's original military tent had become an empty space.
He glanced at them indifferently, nodded to the pale-faced Captain Zhang, and said, "The General must be very pleased to know that you dismantled your tents ahead of time and rushed to Cangqing Prefecture."
These words made Captain Zhang's face turn from white to green.
He was certain that Qin Chu would lose this battle, which is why he dared to dismantle Qin Chu's tents. If they failed to capture the city and lost so many soldiers, Qin Chu, this figurehead general, would be a sinner in the army camp, and no amount of accusation would be too much.
But now Qin and Chu have actually won?
This city capture was just a test. To put it bluntly, it was to send Qin Chu, the parachuted general, with several thousand cannon fodder to scout ahead, and to observe the enemy's reaction and assess their strength.
It's only been twenty days, and they haven't found out anything yet, but they're already being told that Qin and Chu have captured the city.
They captured a city with only a few thousand soldiers, and not only did they win, but the person leading the troops was also a young man.
Captain Zhang felt his face turn red as he thought about what he had just said.
This was completely unexpected by everyone.
The entire military camp fell into a strange state. At first, they were overjoyed that Cang Qingzhou had been recaptured, which was a great achievement and they were sure to be rewarded by their superiors!
Even if the rewards have nothing to do with them, being able to stay in the city is much better than what they are like now!
But upon reflection, they found it absurd.
During this period, rumors that Qin Chu was a boy spread like wildfire, and they were genuinely worried every day, believing that this attack on the city would definitely not end well.
Now that a good result has come knocking, it's been taken away by the very people they've been cursing every day.
This is a bitter pill to swallow; you want to gain something, but you also feel like you're losing face.
Damn it, Qin Chu captured the city, so Qin Chu must have done nothing wrong. They themselves are honest and kind-hearted, so they must not have done anything seriously wrong either. The ones who are wrong are the people who spread rumors in the first place.
To actually say that a general like him is a guy who violated military regulations, that's really malicious!
For a moment, many people walked up to Captain Zhang's tent and couldn't help but mutter a few curses.
Qin Rui didn't care about any of that; he only had one thought every day: "When are we going to Cangqingzhou?"
He asked this question almost every time he saw the fifth brother, his eagerness making him seem like a complete child.
Amid Qin Rui's eager anticipation, the army finally began its slow march towards Cangqing Prefecture. Since the destination wasn't too far, the army didn't rest that night but instead continued their journey through the night.
During the journey, a strange phenomenon occurred.
Those soldiers who had once remained silent in the rumors now held their heads high, arrogant and haughty, their faces saying, "I look down on you bunch of idiots."
The man who boasted that Qin Chu was a tough guy, whose physique suggested he couldn't fight, took advantage of the meal to sidle up to him and subtly inquire about his treatment under Qin Chu.
It's not their fault. It was because the fifth brother inadvertently revealed some information: Qin Chu led several thousand men to attack the city, but in the end, only a hundred or so were killed. Although the others were wounded, they all survived.
This is a tremendous advantage in war.
They weren't afraid of dying on the battlefield, but everyone wanted to survive and return home to be able to hold their wives and children.
Along the way, people kept asking about the battle between Qin and Chu, expressing either surprise or admiration.
Only Qin Rui secretly found Lao Wu and asked him if Qin Chu was injured.
It's impossible to say there were no injuries at all, but the mere mention of any injuries immediately made Qin Rui extremely worried. After being bombarded with questions by the child for a long time, the fifth brother finally only managed to say, "You'll see for yourself when we get there."
Qin Rui was filled with a mix of joy and anticipation, as well as worry and anxiety, almost exhausting all the complex emotions he had ever experienced in his life. Just as he was beginning to feel anxious, the group finally arrived in Cangqing Prefecture.
But surprisingly, Qin Chu was not in the city.
Qin Rui waited from day to night, but Qin Chu never came.
Finally, Qin Rui couldn't resist any longer. He secretly slipped to the city gate, partly to ask the soldiers guarding the city where Qin Chu had gone, and partly to wait for Qin Chu to return.
If Qin Chu is outside the city, then as long as he stays here, he will definitely be the first to see Qin Chu!
However, Qin Rui slipped to the city gate, but instead of seeing Qin Chu, he heard Zhang Xiaowei spouting nonsense again.
"The city has been captured, but Qin Chu is nowhere to be found. Isn't that because he's guilty? He really is a bastard; he's afraid of being punished and doesn't dare to come back, is he?"
Qin Rui stood at the foot of the city wall, looking at Captain Zhang on the stairs, calmly thinking about how he could push this man off the city wall without leaving a trace.
He had a clue, but before he could put it into practice, a series of uniform hoofbeats suddenly came from outside the city gate.
Qin Rui disregarded everything else and immediately looked up, only to see a man in iron armor riding a warhorse, leading a troop of cavalry into the city gate.
This man had long hair tied up in a crown, and his posture was straight, like a drawn military knife, exuding a cold, bloody aura from head to toe.
A cold, indifferent voice, as if chilled by ice water, followed: "Who are you calling a 'brother'? Who is colluding with the enemy?"
This is a very dangerous man; his aura subconsciously makes people wary and keep their distance.
The captain Zhang, who had just uttered those arrogant words, turned pale and took a step back the moment he saw him. He almost fell down the stairs without Qin Rui even having to use any tricks.
The people around them fell silent, no one daring to utter a sound.
But Qin Rui was not afraid at all. He looked up at the person on horseback, feeling no fear or wariness, only a strong sense of closeness and satisfaction.
He barely cared about anything else, and the moment he saw Qin Chu, he jumped up and waved to him: "Brother!"
Qin Chu was still coldly staring at Zhang Xiaowei when he heard the shout. He immediately looked at Qin Rui, who had already quickly run to his horse.
Looking at the child standing in front of the horse, Qin Chu paused for two seconds, then subconsciously asked, "Qin Rui?"
No wonder Qin Chu didn't recognize him; in just over twenty days, Qin Rui had grown quite a bit taller, even his trousers were a little short. Perhaps because he had grown so fast, the child looked increasingly thin and frail.
"Brother, brother, why did you take so long to come back!"