The autumn geese flew diagonally across the sky, and the osmanthus trees gave off a sweet fragrance. The heat of summer had finally faded away, leaving behind only the coldness of late autumn.
Early in the morning, when He Yan woke up, Xiao Mai handed her a pear. "I picked it from the forest beside the training field. I've already washed it. Try it."
He Yan had just washed up, so she took a bite. It was so sour that her teeth almost fell out. Seeing her squint her eyes, Xiao Mai scratched her head in embarrassment. "The ones in the wild forest aren't very ripe yet. It should be sweeter after a while. But since it's autumn now, there are a lot of wild fruits in the forest. We can secretly pick a few every day after training. Marinate these sour pears with sugar and make them into rock sugar snow pears. They're very delicious! "
This child only thought about eating every day. He Yan said, "There's no sugar here."
Xiao Mai was stunned for a moment, then she seemed to realize something. She said with some disappointment, "That's true."
"Not necessarily." Hong Shan, who had been watching them talk from the side, interjected, "Aren't we going to talk about merits today? Ah He, you and Shi Tou got first place in the competition for the flag last time. Who knows, there might be candy in your reward today. Maybe there's something delicious, like rock sugar snow pears! "
When this was mentioned, Xiao Mai suddenly became excited. She said, "That's right, A He Ge. We're going to talk about merits tonight. Have you thought about what you want?"
"I can't get whatever I want." He Yan smiled. "The garrison isn't the capital, so there's a shortage of resources."
"Sigh, he just wants to enter the Vanguard Battalion." Hong Shan also took a bite of the pear and said vaguely, "This request will definitely be fulfilled."
He Yan smiled. These past few days, although she appeared very calm, in the end, she was still somewhat excited. Once she entered the Nine Flags Battalion, it meant that she was one step closer to Xiao Jue. She would also be able to openly deal with the He Clan's matter. Thinking about it, she would be able to fulfill her wish tonight. Up until now, her path in the army had been quite smooth.
After all, being a General Feihong was something that people would fight over no matter where she went. He Yan felt a little proud.
During the day, he went to the Martial Arts Practice Field as usual. However, at night, everyone was admiring the moon in the open space near the foot of the mountain outside the martial arts field. Liangzhou was not like the capital. Naturally, it would not be like the wealthy families of the past. They would either hold banquets in their own courtyards, restaurants, or pleasure boats. They would invite their colleagues and friends and fill the table with delicacies. Admiring the moon in Liangzhou was nothing more than lighting a bonfire. The recruits would sit in a circle and eat something rare. Perhaps there would be rice wine. His companions bragged, gossiped, drank wine, ate meat, and looked at the moon. That was all.
In the afternoon, He Yan went back to his room and changed into a clean set of clothes. The new recruits of the Liang Province Guard had uniforms for spring, summer, autumn, and winter. They could wear spring and autumn clothes, and there were two in total, one red and one black. The style was simple and resistant to dirt. He Yan changed into a red one and went to look for Cheng Lisu.
Cheng Lisu had already come to the martial arts arena in the morning and told He Yan to look for him in his room in the evening. He Yan guessed that Cheng Lisu wanted to give him something to eat. As expected, when he saw Cheng Lisu, the young man handed her a mahogany basket.
The basket was exquisitely made, and there was an image of Chang 'e flying to the moon carved on top. When he opened it, he saw neatly arranged moon pastries. The fragrance assailed his nostrils. They were beautifully made and seemed to be delicious.
"He Dage, this is for you," Cheng Lisu said in a small voice. "The moon pastries distributed by the Liang Province Guard are too rough. I'll give you the one someone gave me."
He Yan said, "Thank you." In reality, she was not particularly interested in pastries. However, if she gave this basket of moon pastries to Xiao Mai, the child would probably jump for joy.
"You've never eaten this before, have you?" A trace of sympathy flashed through Cheng Lisu's eyes. She was also a bit proud. "This is not the best. The pastries from Shuo capital's Zuiyu Restaurant are the best in the world. In the future, when we return to the capital together, I'll treat you to a meal at Zuiyu Restaurant. I'll tell you a secret. "Cheng Lisu said as if she was presenting a treasure." My uncle also likes the food at Zuiyu Restaurant. "
He Yan thought that Cheng Lisu was the same as He Yunsheng. She worshipped and admired Xiao Jue unconditionally. She thought that if she received Xiao Jue's approval, then she would not be bad.
However, to be honest, Xiao Jue was indeed not bad.
After he thanked Cheng Lisu for her gift, the sky gradually darkened. He Yan carried the basket of pastries out the door. At this moment, a bonfire had already been lit in the wilderness at the foot of the mountain. The bonfire was bright. Many new recruits had already arrived and were sitting on the ground near the bonfire. It was said that every new recruit would receive meat pies and oranges. There were also wooden sticks set up near the bonfire. Rabbits and fish were strung on them. It was obvious that they had been hunted on Baiyue Mountain.
It seemed that there would be meat to eat today.
He Yan was in an extremely good mood. He even swung the basket one after the other. The aroma of roasted game lingered nearby, making people feel hungry. She also saw that there was a large wine jar near each bonfire. The wine was probably not good wine. The smell was a bit pungent. However, at this time, only strong wine would be comfortable.
She came a bit late. She first went to find Xiao Mai and the others. When she passed by the other new recruits, they all looked at her with a strange expression.
They were probably guessing what good things she would get today.
He Yan happily walked forward. When he reached a place near the foot of the mountain, he saw Xiao Mai and the others. Xiao Mai and the others were surrounding a bonfire. He Yan waved at him from afar and called out: "Xiao Mai!"
When the young man heard her voice, he turned his head and looked over. However, he did not respond to her as enthusiastically as usual. He seemed to be a little hesitant. He Yan walked closer to take a look. Other than Hong Shan and Shi Tou, Jiang Jiao, Wang Ba, and Huang Xiong were also there. The three of them gathered together. He Yan put down the basket in his hand and sat down cross-legged. He opened the basket lid and said with a smile: "Look what I brought for you? You don't have to thank me. "
She picked up an exquisite moon ball and handed it to Xiao Mai. This child was used to being greedy. She said: "Here!"
Xiao Mai was stunned for a moment. She slowly reached out and took it. She opened her mouth and wanted to say something but did not say it. He Yan said to the others: "If you want to eat, take it yourself."
No one responded to her.
He Yan raised his head. Everyone was staring at him. The way they looked at him was a little strange. Even the carefree Hong Shan was strangely silent. He Yan asked suspiciously: "What's wrong? Why do you all look like you've seen a ghost? Did something happen? "
Hong Shan turned his head. Jiang Jiao's eyes flashed with a trace of sympathy. He said: "He Yan, don't be sad."
"Why would I be sad?" He Yan was confused.
The atmosphere was suffocating. He Yan looked at Huang Xiong. Huang Xiong looked away and rubbed the prayer beads in front of his chest. He looked like he had nothing to do with the affairs of the world. However, Wang Ba could not help but say: "… Well, even if you didn't enter the Vanguard, don't be too sad. Where there's a will, there's a way."
He Yan breathed a sigh of relief and said: "I was wondering what happened. How could I not enter the Vanguard, I …" Her words suddenly stopped. She looked at everyone. Everyone's faces were unbearable. She moved her lips and heard her own voice. It was as if it was floating in the air: "You really didn't enter?"
"When you weren't here, Chief Instructor Shen went over there. Lei Hou entered the Vanguard. You … you weren't mentioned." Xiao Mai carefully chose her words.
"Did they miss out?" He Yan still had a trace of luck in his heart. "Maybe it's because I didn't come just now."
"I asked Chief Instructor for you." Shi Tou said softly: "In this battle for the flag, none of us entered the Vanguard. Among the others, apart from the others, that Lei Hou luckily entered. "
He Yan became silent.
Everyone stared at him nervously. He Yan wanted to enter the Vanguard. This matter was obvious to everyone. When he first came to Liangzhou, he could barely run while carrying weights. At that time, this youth forcefully endured it for the sake of entering the Vanguard. His skills were so outstanding, and he even obtained first place in the battle for the flag. Not only did he not understand, but even in the eyes of the people around him, they also felt that it was incomprehensible.
"It's okay, don't be angry." Hong Shan comforted her. "Isn't it just the Vanguard? We don't care. Let's go to another camp. Infantry camp, cavalry camp? As long as you have the ability, why worry about not being appreciated? A He is such a fine horse, he needs to be appreciated by Bo Le. If they don't want you, it's because they don't have the foresight! "
"That's right." Jiang Jiao also felt sorry for her. He Yan was far more worthy of being an opponent than Lei Hou. "You're so strong. You're like a raging fire that can see true gold. In the future, people will know."
Everyone was talking at once to comfort her. But when they saw the youth, who had always been bright and cheerful, for the first time, lowering his head and not saying a word, his entire body filled with dispiritedness and dejection, they gradually quieted down.
Hong Shan poked Xiao Mai's arm, indicating for Xiao Mai to say a few words. Xiao Mai was racking her brain to think of something to say when He Yan suddenly stood up. Without saying a word, he was about to walk out.
"Hey, hey, hey, where are you going?" Huang Xiong grabbed him.
The youth hatefully said: "I'm going to find Xiao Jue and ask him why he chose Lei Hou and not me. What part of me can't compare to Lei Hou? My name isn't even in the Vanguard! "
Hong Shan was shocked. He didn't think that He Yan would angrily call out the Governor's name. He hurriedly stopped He Yan's movements. "You can't be so impulsive! If you go find Military Governor Xiao now, it will only make him unhappy. In the future, it will be even more impossible for you to go to the Vanguard. "
"Yes, yes." Xiao Mai clumsily tried to persuade him. "A He Ge, Military Governor Xiao might be deliberately keeping you around so that you can do something else, such as go to another battalion. You're so powerful, there's no reason for him not to choose you! "
"I'm powerful." He Yan was so angry that his face turned green. "Let Xiao Jue stand in front of me and we fight. I don't think he'll be able to beat me!"
Jiang Jiao hurriedly covered He Yan's mouth. For him to say such words, it could be seen that he was really angry.
Everyone was afraid that he would find trouble with Xiao Jue in a fit of anger, so they hurriedly pulled him back to his seat. Huang Xiong said, "Young man, don't be so impatient. As long as you're alive, you won't have to worry about firewood. Right now, he's the Military Governor and you're a new recruit. How can you speak to him as an equal? Wait until you become an official and a general in the future, then you can look at him again!"
"Then we'll have to wait eight to ten years." Wang Ba muttered, "Who knows if he'll become a general."
Jiang Jiao also said, "This Military Governor Xiao is really something. We're clearly first, and Lei Hou was defeated by He Yan. Why would he abandon He Yan and choose Lei Hou?"
"I heard," Wang Ba thought for a moment. "That Lei Hou seems to have some relationship with one of the instructors here. They might be relatives. Maybe he got in through the back door. I think these nobles have power and influence, so they don't care about the lower class. "
Xiao Mai couldn't help but say, "Military Governor Xiao isn't that kind of person! There must be some misunderstanding! "
Wang Ba rolled his eyes at him. "Whose side are you on?"
Xiao Mai didn't say anything.
"Everyone," He Yan suppressed his anger and said, "I have a terrible headache. Can you give me some peace and quiet for a while?"
Everyone immediately fell silent.
The bonfire danced in front of them. The night sky was dyed red by the flames. He Yan couldn't understand why Xiao Jue would choose Lei Hou to enter the Vanguard Battalion.
She admitted that she had been blind for some time, but compared to Xiao Jue's blindness, she was still far from it. Could it be that she didn't perform well in the Liang Province Guard? She couldn't have performed better. Didn't she fight for many flags? She didn't leave any face for others. She even broke through a formation that a normal recruit found difficult to break. How could Xiao Jue not be moved by such a talent?
She wanted to take back her words about Xiao Jue not being bad!
He Yan only felt his liver hurt from anger. He didn't think that this wasn't the end. After a while, Chief Instructor Shen walked over.
Under everyone's gaze, he ordered people to carry a small box over. He said to everyone, "You're all here. It's good that we won first place in this flag battle. Tonight is also the Mid-Autumn Festival. This is your prize."
Xiao Mai went over and opened the box. She saw a small jar of wine and a few ingots of silver inside.
"This is' Eighteen Immortals'. Such a small jar is worth a hundred taels," Chief Instructor Shen said with satisfaction, "You can drink tonight. Don't be greedy."
"Eighteen Immortals," Wang Ba smacked his lips, "I didn't think that I would be able to drink 'Eighteen Immortals' here. My life was worth it!"
In an instant, he forgot who was the one who had just cursed "powerful nobles".
Huang Xiong also swallowed. They were all heroes and loved wine. Moreover, it was precious wine. Even someone as young as Xiao Mai who didn't like wine grabbed an ingot of silver and took a bite.
This prize wasn't big, but it definitely wasn't small. Among the joy, He Yan appeared particularly unique.
She only glanced at the box and suddenly laughed, "It seems that our Commander in Chief doesn't have a good life."
Shen Han was stunned.
"He's so poor." The young man didn't even look at him. He took a branch and fiddled with the firewood in the fire. He lowered his head and muttered to himself. Everyone could hear the sarcasm in his words.
Hong Shan covered her mouth and smiled apologetically to Shen Han, "This brother is drunk. He's drunk … he's talking nonsense. Chief Instructor, please don't lower yourself to the same level as a child."
Shen Han inexplicably left.
After Shen Han left, He Yan looked at the box on the ground and couldn't help but sneer, "This little thing, are you trying to dismiss a beggar?"
"Brother, this little thing is good enough." Huang Xiong patiently said, "You're taking your anger out on him."
He Yan was suppressing her anger and didn't want to speak.
Huang Xiong sat down beside her and held her shoulder. Looking at the dancing flames in front of him, he said in a low voice, "Young person, don't be disheartened. It's just that you've encountered a hurdle. Look at me." He pointed to himself, "You've only lost a chance to enter the Vanguard. Back then, I had nothing."
He couldn't bear to touch the jar of [Eighteen Immortals]. He only took the jar of yellow wine and poured two large bowls. He gave one to He Yan and took the other for himself. He tasted a mouthful, saying, "Such strong wine!"
Seeing that He Yan didn't speak, he pointed to the prayer beads around his neck, saying, "This, is my mother's."
The prayer beads were dark and flashed with a warm light. It was extremely incompatible with his valiant physique, but she had never seen Huang Xiong take it out before. He then pointed to the blade beside him, "This blade, has killed nineteen people."
These words were somewhat frightening. For a moment, even Wang Ba and the others looked at him. The light in He Yan's eyes moved slightly, looking at her.
Seeing that she finally reacted, Huang Xiong said in a low, muffled voice, "Back then, I was as old as you. Our family had a blade manual that was passed down from our ancestors. After someone found out, they came to buy it. My father refused to sell it. "
"At that time, my companions and I went outside to cool off. After we came back, our entire family was silenced. All of our belongings were still in the house, but the blade manual was missing."
Xiao Mai cried out in alarm, "This is …"
"For the blade manual, someone exterminated my entire Huang family." When Huang Xiong said this, his expression was very calm. She didn't know if it was because too much time had passed, or if it was because of something else. He said, "I reported it to the government, but the local officials couldn't do anything about it. Therefore, I personally investigated it. I used up all of my family's wealth and carried a blade for a thousand li alone, searching for traces of the culprits. After a full three years, I finally found where they were. "
"I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to take revenge and would instead lose my life. I wasn't afraid of death, but I didn't want to die in vain. I was the only one left in the Huang family. If I died, no one would seek justice for them. "
"Therefore, I pretended to be a coolie and entered that family's house. During the day, I observed the terrain and their daily habits. At night, I practiced my blade skills. A year and a half later, I found an opportunity and took revenge for my Huang family in one night. "
This story was thrilling, but he told it in a casual manner. The danger in it could be imagined. However, the bald man's eyes were only calm. He looked at He Yan and said, "Ten years is not too late for a gentleman to take revenge. If I risked my life to seek justice from them at that time, in the end, it would only be a life and death struggle. But now you see, the enemy is dead, and I'm still alive. I can even drink wine and eat meat with you here. Tell me, who won?"
He wanted to use his own matter to tell He Yan not to act on impulse.
He Yan smiled and was about to speak when he saw Jiang Jiao reach out and pour himself a bowl of yellow wine. He raised his head and took a big gulp. He was not as good at drinking as Huang Xiong. His face was red from the spiciness of the wine. He reached out to wipe the wine stain on his lips and blurted out, "That's right. Who doesn't feel sad at times? What are you doing? Look at me, the young master of the Martial Arts School. That sounds good. I also have a fiancée.
Xiao Mai widened her eyes and was about to ask, but Shi Tou nudged her and made her quiet down.
"Do you know how she died?" Jiang Jiao's eyes were a little red. He said in a muffled voice, "She died for love. She liked someone else and refused to marry me. She died for love with that scholar! Tell me, do you think I'm worse off than you? "
No wonder Jiang Jiao, with his good looks and skills, joined the army. After this incident, he was disheartened and left his hometown. What the eye doesn't see, the heart doesn't grieve over.
Everyone looked at Wang Ba. Wang Ba was puzzled and then said angrily, "Why are you all looking at me? I don't have a story! Are you all crazy? Why are you talking about this nonsense? Are you all here to see who is worse off? "
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