Ignoring the many people watching, Qin Rui habitually reached out his arms for Qin Chu to hug him.
Qin Chu couldn't help but laugh, and bent down to help Qin Rui onto the horse.
No matter how much he grows up, Qin Rui will always be a little radish in his eyes.
He led Qin Rui into the city, then reported to the general, informing him of the terrain around Cangqing Prefecture and the enemy's encampment.
He gave a brief explanation, saying that after settling things in the military camp tomorrow, the generals would have a more detailed discussion.
A short while later, Qin Chu came out.
Qin Rui remained seated on his horse, waiting patiently for him. Qin Chu, however, did not mount his horse but instead led it around the city.
He didn't expect Qin Rui to run to the city gate to greet him.
Before he set off, some people saw him off with reluctance, and when he returned, others eagerly awaited his return. Although the person waiting for him was just a little kid of a few years old, and although Qin Rui was essentially unrelated to him, Qin Chu still felt a special kind of warmth.
Have you been sleeping well these days?
As Qin Chu walked, he looked up and asked Qin Rui on horseback.
The child, who was craning his neck to look at everything arranged in the city, nodded vigorously upon hearing this: "I've been sleeping well every day, I haven't caused any trouble, and I even help out in the kitchen. The head chef in the kitchen even praised me."
Qin Rui's words were full of self-praise; he genuinely thought he had done a great job. He knocked himself unconscious every day, often ran away at night, and even considered killing Lao Qi; he was indeed quite well-behaved in the kitchen, but he intentionally injured two helpers.
Qin Rui had long forgotten about those minor flaws; in front of Qin Chu, he was just a sweet and obedient boy.
Qin Chu didn't think much of it, only noticing that the child had indeed grown up a bit in just a few days. He gave a faint smile and led Qin Rui towards his residence.
Qin Rui, on horseback, was dissatisfied. He kicked his feet, pulled on the reins, looked down at Qin Chu, and said with some grievance, "Brother, why don't you praise me!"
Qin Chu: "..."
Qin Chu immediately retracted his assessment that he had grown up.
He reached out and patted Qin Rui on the shoulder, offering a dry compliment: "Hmm, quite well-behaved."
The praise sounded perfunctory, but Qin Rui was very satisfied and smiled happily as he continued walking forward.
The journey wasn't long, and Qin Rui sat on his horse, looking around the whole way. He had been in the city for a day, but before that, he had been preoccupied with Qin Chu, so it was as if he hadn't come at all. As a result, he only now realized that the scenery of Cangqing Prefecture was different from that of the imperial city.
He looked around curiously the whole way, and every now and then he would point at something and ask Qin Chu.
Qin Chu unexpectedly activated his "answer all questions" mode, and if there was anything he didn't know, he would expose Noah for cheating.
After wandering around the city, they entered a spacious courtyard with rows of tents where the soldiers Qin Chu had taken with him were staying.
The moment Qin Rui saw the tent, his mood plummeted. He thought of the tent that Qin Chu had been forcibly dismantled.
Qin Rui thought they would be staying in tents now, but to his surprise, Qin Chu lifted him off the horse, led him to a row of houses in front, pushed open the door of the main house, and led him inside.
The house was large, divided into two rooms, an inner room and an outer room, with an adjoining side room next to it.
Qin Rui stood in front of the door with his eyes wide open. He squeezed Qin Chu's hand, looked up and asked him, "Brother, are we going to stay here?"
Qin Chu nodded: "I'll be living here for a long time."
Upon hearing this, Qin Rui immediately perked up. He let go of Qin Chu's hand and ran inside. He first peeked into the inner room and the side room, and then, like a little dog patrolling its territory, circled every corner of the room.
He was clearly very happy, but after patrolling once, he suddenly ran back and buried his head in Qin Chu's arms without saying a word, just holding him like that.
Qin Chu was jolted by the bump, and he was a little confused. He couldn't understand why the child was so cheerful one second and then looked like he was about to cry the next.
But after taking care of the child for so long, even though Qin Chu wasn't very good at it, he had gotten used to it by now.
He touched the back of Qin Rui's head and asked, "What's wrong?"
Qin Rui lifted her face from his embrace, revealing a pair of red eyes.
He opened and closed his lips slightly, as if afraid of disturbing a dream, and cautiously asked Qin Chu, "Brother, is this our home? Do I have a home now?"
Although he was born in the palace, he never had a stable place to live. After escaping, he was constantly on the run. Finally, he met Qin Chu and got a tent that could shelter him from the wind and rain.
But after Qin Chu left, the tent was dismantled.
Just when he thought he was going to be homeless again, Qin Chu led him into a sturdy and spacious house.
Qin Rui first felt scared, and then felt it was unreal.
He wondered, how could he possibly have a home? He should have been a wanderer, always alone, witnessing the coldness and warmth of the world, until he became a monster who cared about nothing.
It seems that this is how he has always lived, and he will continue to live this way in the future.
Qin Rui couldn't believe what was happening. Eager to confirm, he tugged at Qin Chu's clothes and asked, "Can I stay here forever? Will someone kick me out?"
Qin Chu was surprised that he would ask such a question.
He led Qin Rui into the house, sat him down on a chair, then picked him up and said earnestly, "No one will kick you out. We will live here happily."
Qin Chu has made a decision not to bring Qin Rui back to the capital, so this will be their permanent residence.
Hearing Qin Chu's words, Qin Rui felt relieved, knowing that Qin Chu wouldn't lie to him.
Qin Chu, however, keenly sensed that Qin Rui's question was not normal. He looked down at the child and asked, "Why would you ask that? Who kicked you out?"
Qin Rui's eyes, which had just faded, reddened again.
In fact, he doesn't like to cry at all, and he has hardly cried since birth. The few times he did cry were only to gain sympathy and to survive.
But after following Qin Chu, he often felt wronged and would frequently show a tearful expression in front of Qin Chu.
Qin Rui tried to hold it in, but failed, so she simply hugged Qin Chu and acted coquettishly.
He said sullenly, "Brother, our tent is gone. Someone took it down."
Qin Chu frowned. He had specifically instructed them before he left that no one would dismantle their tents.
He grabbed the child and asked, "Tell them, is anyone still living in the tent?"
Qin Rui nodded: "I told them, but they insisted on demolishing it. They also said, they also said..."
At this point, Qin Rui pursed his lips and paused for a moment before suppressing his intense malice and continuing in a normal child's tone, "They also said that you would never come back, brother!"
Qin Rui buried her face in Qin Chu's arms again.
He truly hated the people who were tearing down the tents, and he was even angrier at their words. Even though he trusted Qin Chu, he still couldn't help but feel afraid upon hearing them. Countless times, he felt his own weakness; he couldn't stop the people from tearing down the tents, nor could he go to the battlefield to save Qin Chu.
"Don't cry."
The warmth of Qin Chu's hand came from behind Qin Rui. He didn't actually cry, but he didn't look up.
If crying could make Qin Chu like him a little more, what did it matter if he cried in front of Qin Chu? He wanted to become stronger to protect Qin Chu, but he didn't want to show his strength in front of Qin Chu.
He just wanted Qin Chu to always cherish and protect him.
Qin Chu comforted Qin Rui for a while.
Calling it comforting wouldn't be accurate, because Qin Chu was completely incapable of comforting people. He could only repeatedly tell Qin Rui that he wouldn't let anyone kick him out.
He ran out of words at the end, so he put on a show of picking up a stone with his bare hands and promised Qin Rui that anyone who dared to kick him out would suffer the same fate.
Qin Rui originally wanted to keep up the act for a while longer, but he couldn't help but laugh, ruining the atmosphere.
Qin Chu treated him to a hot dinner. When it was time to sleep, he wanted to sleep separately from Qin Rui, but Qin Rui complained of being cold. Qin Chu was also worried that he might faint from being squeezed and fall off the bed in the middle of the night, so they slept together as before.
The next day, several generals in the military camp gathered together early in the morning to discuss the upcoming battle.
This victory in capturing the city was indeed exhilarating, bringing a glimmer of hope to the previously disadvantageous battle. As a result, the generals were all discussing it enthusiastically.
Qin Chu remained silent, simply sitting there and listening to their conversation.
He had always been like this; although his official rank was neither high nor low, making him the second-in-command in the military camp, he rarely spoke up. Previously, the group of generals had only regarded him as a figurehead general, and seeing this situation, no one paid any attention to him. But now, after expressing their opinions, they stopped and looked at Qin Chu.
The elderly general asked, "General Qin, what are your thoughts on the war?"
Qin Chu poured cold water on their enthusiasm: "The subsequent battles remain severe. The enemy troops that occupied Cangqing Prefecture were merely scouts; the real commanders are still behind."
These words were clearly not very pleasing, and the atmosphere in the room immediately cooled down.
No one could refute Qin Chu's words. The capture of the city proved that Qin Chu, as a general, was truly capable, and no one dared to mention the previous rumors about the young men.
After the meeting ended, Captain Zhang, who usually spoke eloquently, remained silent this time and quickly retreated along the corner of the wall.
Just as he was about to leave the meeting room, a chopstick flew over with a "whoosh" and stuck straight into the stone brick in front of his toes, half of the chopstick being embedded in the brick.
Captain Zhang was startled, and then heard a cold voice behind him: "You stay."
Author's Note:
Qin Rui: I managed to pull off another little trick today~
Chapter 70, Fourth Story (16)
Upon seeing this, not only Captain Zhang, but also the other generals who were about to get up and leave stopped in their tracks.
They looked at each other for a moment, both hesitant. This Captain Zhang and Qin Chu had been at odds for some time, but most people had turned a blind eye before.
The Zhang family wielded immense power in the capital, while Qin Chu was merely a figurehead general appointed by the emperor in a daze. These seasoned veterans knew exactly how to choose.
Although Captain Zhang went too far in dismantling the tents, no one stepped forward to intervene.
But things are different now. Qin Chu has reclaimed Cangqingzhou, and they immediately gained a favorable position. The border is far from the emperor's reach; everything is based on military merit, and survival is uncertain. The Zhang family's influence cannot extend here.
Therefore, when Qin Chu stopped Zhang Xiaowei, no one spoke up to stop him.
Although Zhang Xiaowei felt extremely embarrassed these past two days, he felt that people were talking about him behind his back wherever he went.
But he never expected that Qin Chu would disregard the Zhang family's power and humiliate him in public.
He turned to Qin Chu and bowed reluctantly: "What are your orders, General Qin?"
Qin Chu looked at him coldly, her thin lips parting slightly: "I heard you tore down my tent?"
Why is Qin Chu fussing over such a trivial matter?
Lieutenant Zhang had always disliked Qin Chu, the parachuted-in general. No matter how much he tried to calm himself down, he couldn't hold back anymore. He let out a strange laugh: "General Qin, you've won a battle and gained confidence, so you've come to settle scores with me?"
His words were sarcastic, implying that Qin Chu was petty and used his military achievements to make things difficult for him over such trivial matters.
When a normal person hears such accusations, they will either give up out of consideration for their reputation, or if they really want to settle scores later, they will find some respectable excuse.
Qin Chu merely glanced at him indifferently, and nodded in full view of everyone: "That's right."
The expressions on everyone's faces immediately turned strange, and Captain Zhang almost spat out a mouthful of blood. This "yes, I'm here to cause you trouble, what can you do about it?" attitude left everyone feeling helpless.