Quick Wear: Under the Skirt, All Beings Are Equal

Chapter 156 Young General: It's getting late, and the mountains and rivers are already winter

"Hey, hey, hey, Xu, what are you doing? Let me go. You dare to do this to me? When I return to the capital, I will let the Queen Mother punish you severely. It would be best if I could give you fifty lashes."

"Ah! You and I, the Xu, are irreconcilable. Today, it's either you or me."

Shu Yijin screamed in pain and was dragged away from Qingfeng Inn by Chang Qing. Only after they walked a long distance did Chang Qing let go of his arm.

At this time, Shu Yijin stopped shouting and pretended to rub his arm and said, "You were too cruel. You almost broke my bones."

"Don't yell. I know exactly how much effort I put in."

"Didn't you say that I'm too weak?" Shu Yijin snorted and laughed. Having known each other for such a long time, he already knew that although the man in front of him seemed very cold, he was actually very thoughtful.

"Ah, it's just a pity that there are so many beauties."

Shu Yijin sighed softly and said with a look of regret: "The girl just now had a very thin waist, delicate and smooth skin, and her breasts were not much smaller than those of the courtesans in the capital."

After he finished speaking, there was no response for a long time. Shu Yi Jin then realized that the person next to him was not his group of friends, but the young general. He immediately felt a little regretful. Why did he talk about this topic in front of this person?

Perhaps, no matter how dissolute one's image is, in front of the person one likes, one will pay special attention to not looking that bad in his eyes.

Shu Yijin hesitated for a while, feeling uneasy: "Xu Jinhuan, do you think I am particularly unbearable?"

Chang Qing paused for a moment, turned around and looked at Shu Yijin, and smiled softly: "I think you are not that kind of person, not the kind of person who willfully insults women and seeks that kind of vulgar and evil taste. I don't discuss with you because I know you don't care what I say, and I already have a fiancée, so I don't want to discuss other girls."

Although she had never been to a brothel, she could not help but think that Lin Ping'an and Lin Sui had been there, not to mention that Lin Ping'an was now in love with a prostitute and was preparing to save money to redeem the girl.

The girl said that the girls in those brothels all liked Shu Yijin very much. Although the young marquis did not have a very good reputation, he would always help the girls whenever they encountered difficulties. He spent a lot of money for this and never looked down on them.

Speaking of Lin Ping'an, Chang Qing felt a headache when he thought of the scenes of him staring blankly and laughing foolishly from time to time recently.

Originally, after Chang Qing knew about it, he wanted to help Lin Ping'an to redeem the girl, but Lin Ping'an said that he wanted to earn the dowry money for the girl he liked on his own, but if the person who held the wedding had money, Chang Qing could pay for it.

This matter had been kept secret from Lin Sui. Lin Ping'an knew his brother's character and would definitely not agree to him marrying a brothel girl, so after redeeming the girl, he asked Chang Qing to arrange the marriage for her in a small courtyard in the capital, planning to take advantage of this opportunity to suppress the bandits and earn enough military merit to hold the wedding in the cold winter.

Instead of going back to sleep, the two found a teahouse on the street, sat down and ordered two side dishes.

"You should behave yourself recently. We are now on someone else's territory, so you'd better be careful."

Shu Yijin frowned: "We have brought people with us, so we are not afraid of them, but,"

His expression suddenly became serious. He slowly closed the fan in his hand and looked at Chang Qing.

"Xu Jinhuan, although I am idle, I have been hanging around in the red-light district for a long time and have developed a pair of eyes. Those officials seem to respect us, but in fact, they don't take us seriously at all. I always feel that there is something wrong."

Shu Yijin has never been a waste. He understands the principle of keeping oneself safe better than anyone else.

Chang Qing was a little surprised by these words. He didn't expect that Shu Yi Jin was willing to put down his disguise in front of him.

"I know."

The two chatted from time to time. The person in the dark knew that Chang Qing was a very skilled martial artist and did not dare to get too close. He waited for a long time and when he saw that there was nothing unusual about the two of them, he disappeared from the spot.

Chang Qing glanced in that direction indifferently, then called Shu Yijin to get up and go back.

From the moment she arrived in Wancheng, she felt that someone was watching her. At first she thought it was someone sent by Prefect Lin. It was not until she left Qingfeng Inn that she was sure that the other person was not in the same group as Prefect Lin.

After Chang Qing and Shu Yi Jin left, the atmosphere in the room of Qing Feng Inn suddenly froze. Governor Li waved his hand, and the women left the room one after another.

"Humph, what a bullshit little marquis, he really thinks he is so important, picking on me here, ugh."

"Sir, why should we be afraid of them? We should show them some respect and take advantage of them."

Magistrate Li no longer had the gentleness he had before. For decades, no one had dared to disrespect him like this. Even if the prince from the capital came to Wancheng, he would not be so arrogant.

He reached out and touched his beard, his eyelids drooped slightly to hide the coldness in his eyes, and he listened silently to the people around him complaining, waiting until everyone had finished complaining.

"Okay, stop talking. Is a brainless waste worthy of your anger? Am I afraid of him? I am concerned about the Marquisate behind him. The Crown Prince and the Second Prince are fighting fiercely right now. Don't ruin the master's business, or you will be in trouble."

"Since Shu Yijin is greedy and lustful, then you should go down and make good preparations. Send people to serve him well. When he gets tired of playing, he will naturally return to the capital. As for Xu Jinhuan,"

Li Zhifu frowned slightly, feeling a little unsure about Chang Qing's preferences, and he had never heard of any hobbies. After thinking for a while, he said, "He is not here to suppress bandits. Go and talk to the people on Longhu Mountain and ask them to restrain themselves recently. Send some small fish and shrimps out to explain, and quickly send them away."

After explaining the matter, Li Zhifu sat in the carriage and closed his eyes to take a rest. Suddenly he said, "Let's not go back to the mansion yet. Let's go to the pavilion."

The moonlight was dim, and it felt cold and without any warmth. Occasionally, one could hear a few dogs barking in the city. The carriage was moving slowly in the silent city, and finally stopped under a high wall.

Then, the curtain of the carriage was opened with a rustle, and under the dim light, a man in his thirties or forties got out of the carriage. His expression was unclear. He tidied himself up, put on his hat, walked down with light steps, and stopped in front of a tall red round archway.

"Li Zai Cheng, requesting to see His Highness."

He stood in front of the door, keeping his head down and his eyes submissive. After about half an incense stick of time, the guard saw a little girl with light steps coming out from inside. She waved gently at them, then nodded and opened the door.

The little girl said, "Your Highness was just discussing something with the gentleman, which is why you have been waiting for a while. Your Highness knows why you are here today. Come in quickly, Your Highness is waiting for you inside."

"Thank you, young lady."

Even though the status of the girl in front of him was very different from his own, Li Zhifu still treated her with great respect, because the girl was someone who stayed by his master's side.

Listening to the dull sound of the door opening, Magistrate Li felt that the sound made his heart beat faster in the night. He took a deep breath and then walked into the high wall.

In the hazy pavilion, there was only a dim lantern hanging. There was a person with his back to him, gently plucking the strings of a musical instrument with his fingers, which harmonized with the sound of water flowing from the rockery in front of him.

Looking at the person playing the piano under the moon, he performed the etiquette between a monarch and his subject with great respect.

"Your Highness, I pay my respects to you."

"Get up."

"Your Highness, Xu Jinhuan has arrived in Wancheng, and he is accompanied by the young marquis Shu Yijin. From my observation, this General Xu is just like the legend says, with a cold and arrogant personality. He doesn't speak well to women other than the Fifth Princess. However, I think this man can be used. If you can get his full support, Your Highness will be able to regain his orthodox status in no time."

"Uncle Chengzai has always been prudent, so I'll leave this matter to you. However, please don't reveal my existence for now, so as not to arouse the fear of others."

The prince never turned his head from beginning to end, but just sat there playing the piano alone, his posture upright and elegant, he closed his eyes, listened to the sounds around him and then responded with the music of the piano.

Unlike the prosperous Wancheng, the western suburbs looked particularly shabby and desolate. Changqing went out early in the morning to check the situation of the plague and found that most of them had been abandoned. All the shops were closed and the streets were empty and desolate.

After walking for a while, they saw a butcher carrying a butcher knife passing by in a hurry. They went up to ask him and learned from his impatient tone that the people here had contracted the plague and were all thrown into Dengjia Village, Lijia Village and Sansaigou in the western suburbs.

When they arrived at Dengjia Village, they found that a group of soldiers had blocked the entrance to the village, preventing people from entering or leaving. At this time, a woman with a desperate face was sitting on the ground holding a baby and crying. Then she got up and tried to rush out desperately.

"Please let me go see a doctor. My child doesn't have the plague. If we delay any longer, she will die."

"Go in, go in. Don't go out and cause harm to others."

The officers and soldiers were already accustomed to such scenes. They didn't know how many people were carried out from here every day. Some people even had no time to drag them away and all lay on the ground. After pushing the woman to the ground, they raised their weapons and blocked the entrance to the village.

"Go in, go in. Don't go out and cause harm to others. Who knows if she has the plague? If we let her out, what if the adults blame us?"

The woman cried bitterly, tears streaming down her face, saying, "You were also born by my parents, how can you be so cruel? My daughter is only eight months old, she can't even call me mom yet. I beg you, please let me take her to see a doctor, if she keeps on having the fever, she will really die."

"Or, or, please help me find a doctor. I can pay for it. I can give you anything you want. Please, save my daughter."

Seeing that the woman's forehead was bleeding, someone couldn't bear to watch and sighed softly: "Madam, it's not that we don't want to help you, but the doctors in the city are too busy to help you now."

Besides, even dogs don’t want to come to this place now, let alone the doctors. If there were no orders from above, they would have to stay here out of necessity. Otherwise, who would be willing to risk their lives to stay at the entrance of the village and watch?

The officers and soldiers here have more or less some complaints in their hearts. Because of the plague, they are now unable to go home. They are always worried about whether they will be infected with the plague and are in fear every day.

After only a few days here, several brothers were infected and were carried in. For a time, everyone was in a panic and the atmosphere was very depressing. When they heard the woman crying, they were even more troubled: "Why are you crying? Howling, life and death are determined by fate, wealth and honor are determined by God. Even if you hit your head and die here today, there is nothing we can do. You have already stayed here, and you are still thinking about living or dying."

This was the scene that Chang Qing and his group saw when they arrived. Lin Ping'an walked up to ask what had happened.

"My Lords, this woman wants to leave the village. The plague is so serious now. If anyone dares to let her go, she will make a big fuss and refuse to leave."

Lin Ping'an glanced at the child in the woman's arms. The girl's whole face was burned red, and she was humming like a little kitten. If she didn't seek medical treatment from a doctor, based on the child's resistance, she might not survive the night.

Seeing how respectful those officers and soldiers were to these people, the woman immediately knelt on the ground and handed the child to Lin Ping'an with trembling hands: "Please save my daughter, sir. I will work like a cow or a horse to repay you for saving my life."

Lin Ping'an was dumbfounded and hurriedly took the child. He was a grown man who had been in the military camp all year round. How could he have any experience holding a child? The child cried out of discomfort just after being in his hands for a few seconds.

He was good at killing enemies with a knife, but he had no experience in coaxing children. Looking at this little child, it seemed as if the child would die if he used a little more force. Seeing that the child was crying more and more pitifully, Lin Ping'an's hands twitched violently.

He looked at Chang Qing with tears in his eyes: "General, this, this, this, she is crying, is she hungry? What should I do?"

"Are you stupid? Your general doesn't even know how to take care of a child."

Seeing that his hands were shaking badly, Shu Yijin took the child speechlessly, coaxed him softly, and looked at the child in his arms with curved brows and tender expression.

Seeing that the child really stopped crying, Lin Pingan's eyes became a little strange: "Huh, I didn't expect the young marquis to have this trick."

He leaned over to look at the child again. The child was very well-behaved, his eyes slightly narrowed and he smiled at him. Lin Ping'an was obviously stunned. A very strange feeling arose in his heart, and his rough and fierce eyebrows softened a little.

Perhaps, after risking their lives on the battlefield, this is all they seek.

"Grow up safely, little one."

He reached out and touched the child's tender cheek with his broad palm. The calluses left by long-term martial arts training made the child open his clear and bright eyes and look at him ignorantly.

Lin Ping'an smiled and suddenly wanted a daughter. At that time, he would tell his daughter stories about what happened at the border, about the blessing of peace sewn in the lining of the torn clothes that he fell to the ground, about the shy young men who gathered together and talked about what they would buy for their wives in the future, and the loud laughter that could be heard from far away in the cold wind and heavy snow.