After half a month, Yu Cong, leading three hundred elite soldiers, finally arrived at a small county town on the border of two provinces to meet Han Ji. This place was not far from Maluo Mountain.
Han Ji was overjoyed to see Yu Cong. The twenty thousand dan of grain he was escorting had been seized by the bandits of Maluo Mountain. The bandits demanded a toll of two thousand taels of silver for the grain passage, threatening not to let them pass without payment. Had it been the usual Wu family escorting the provisions, they would probably have paid. However, Han Ji had concerns; he was from the Yun family and represented the face of the Yun family. If he paid the toll, it would be as if their family had compromised with the bandits. Han Ji was not a naive man who had just left his home; he knew if this matter spread, it would damage their General's reputation. Therefore, instead of compromising, he immediately sent someone to inform Yun Qing and Yuxi in Yu City to seek their advice.
After hearing Han Ji's words, Yu Cong sneered. "They sure have the nerve to even dare to demand a toll from us!" It was a pity that they didn't have many men with them this time; otherwise, they could have directly led the troops to wipe out this gang of bandits like Feng Dajun had done.
Han Ji reminded, "General, these bandits are extremely fierce; we should not provoke them." Han Ji was thinking ahead; all the goods purchased from Jiangnan had to pass through Maluo Mountain. If they provoked the bandits, they would only suffer losses. After all, no matter how powerful the Northwest Army was, they were still a thousand miles away! As for Yun Qing leading troops to wipe out the bandits in Maluo Mountain, he thought it was even rather unlikely. If it were so easy for Yun Qing to send troops, then the Shizi2 of Taining wouldn't have any problems.
After contemplating, Yu Cong said, "They want a toll, don't they? Tomorrow, we'll take the money to the mountain stronghold to pay it." His mocking expression indicated that his words did not reflect his true thoughts.
Han Ji hesitated before asking, "Yu Daren3, isn't that a bit inappropriate?" He was worried that those bandits would chop off Yu Cong's head the moment they saw him.
Yu Cong laughed heartily. "I'm not even afraid of the northern barbarians, so why should I be afraid of a few bandits?" Unless these people were born with a death wish, they would never dare to kill him.
Seeing this, Han Ji said, "Then I'll go with you." Although Yu Cong was not tyrannical, he was definitely not as good a negotiator as Han Ji.
The next day, Yu Cong and Han Ji went up Maluo Mountain.
As they entered the mountain stronghold, they were greeted by rows and rows of tall and burly bandits, each holding a large knife in their hands. Anyone with a slightly weak mentality would be scared to death by such a scene.
Yu Cong had been through all sorts of situations with Yun Qing and didn't take this view seriously at all. Han Ji, on the other hand, was a bit weaker in terms of mental strength and was so scared that his legs were trembling. Seeing Yu Cong walking forward as if nothing was wrong, Han Ji wiped the sweat from his forehead and followed with heavy steps.
The leader of the Maluo Mountain bandits was called Hong Feihu, a burly man with a full beard covering his face. Seeing Yu Cong's calm demeanour, Hong Feihu praised him, "Brother, you have guts." He had arranged the previous display of force to test Yu Cong's courage.
As Yu Cong had expected, Hong Feihu did not dare to kill him. Hong Feihu was no fool. The Northwest Army was incredibly powerful, and while seizing their supplies would leave them room for negotiation, killing their men might provoke retaliation from Yun Qing, possibly leading to the total destruction of the Maluo Mountain bandits.
Yu Cong showed disdain as he said, "I faced over 100,000 northern barbarians without blinking an eye. Do you think your petty games can intimidate me?" He sneered and continued, "But you have the nerve to even dare to seize our grain. Some time ago, bandits in Longxian County hijacked our supplies. Our General was furious and sent out 600 elite soldiers. In just one night, they wiped out the 1,600 bandits."
Hong Feihu's pupils constricted.
The second-in-command of Maluo Mountain burst out laughing at these words. After finishing, he stared at Yu Cong gloomily before saying, "I wasn't born scared. Didn't that Lord Shizi or whatever say he would wipe us out? And what happened now? He's lying in bed, half dead."
Yu Cong sneered and asked Hong Feihu, "So, you're not planning to let us pass?" If he had brought more men this time, he wouldn't be wasting time talking to these fools. He would have simply led his troops to wipe them out.
A man dressed in a long robe with a fair complexion stood beside Hong Feihu. He said, "If we just let you pass through like this, how will we maintain our reputation in the jianghu4? However, if you pass our test, we will not only release your provisions, but we won't trouble the Northwest Army anymore in the future. How does that sound?" Yun Qing's notorious reputation for bloodshed and bloodthirsty nature still instilled fear in these people.
Yu Cong replied with a blank expression, "Who is actually in charge here on Maluo Mountain?" It was impertinent for someone to interfere like this; they were a group of bandits without a shred of discipline. If the General remained silent, no one in the Northwest Army would dare to speak out. Despite Yun Qing's accommodating nature in front of Yuxi, his authority remained high among the soldiers.
Hong Feihu concurred, "The strategist's words align with my own intentions." Their hesitation was due to Yun Qing's formidable reputation and the strength of the Northwest Army; otherwise, they wouldn't have allowed Yu Cong to ascend the mountain.
A hint of mockery played on Yu Cong's lips as he agreed, "Very well." His unwavering self-confidence led him to accept the details of the test without question.
A shichen5 later, Yu Cong and Han Ji safely descended the mountain. Two hundred thousand dan of provisions passed through Maluo Mountain without a hitch. That same night, however, Han Ji was plagued by nightmares in which he imagined himself traversing a mountain of blades and crossing seas of fire6, each time narrowly escaping death.
When he awoke, Han Ji wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered, "The General is surrounded by capable people." He was determined to inform Madam about this incident when he returned. Hmm, he also had to tell the Lord Duke about it.
A noob translator, きつね, translated this noob translation. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.site. If you read this in another location other than the site stated, it has been taken without the translator's permission. Please don't support this kind of act.
Meanwhile, Yuxi, the subject of Han Ji's thoughts, had called Physician Bai to check her pulse. Her monthly cycle was ten days late, and although she suspected she was pregnant, she wanted confirmation from the physician.
After examining Yuxi, Physician Bai beamed and announced, "Congratulations, Madam. You are indeed pregnant, and it has been a month."
Although she had expected it, Yuxi couldn't help but feel overjoyed. She gently placed her hand on her belly.
Upon hearing the news, Yun Qing rushed to Yuxi's side and asked, "Are you really pregnant?" He was torn between his desire for a child and the restriction it would put on their marital intimacy.
Yuxi shot him a playful glare. "What kind of question is that? Of course, it's true. I'm one month pregnant." She hoped this child would be a son who would relieve her from pressure.
Yun Qing replied, "Then you should concentrate on resting and leave the outside affairs to others." Yuxi had suffered a lot when she was pregnant with Zaozao.
Yuxi chuckled. "It's no big deal. I'm just talking anyway. But don't worry, I will know my limits. If my body can't handle it, I won't do it." She wasn't sure if she had too much free time in her past life, but now she liked to keep herself busy and didn't like idling around.
Yun Qing didn't stop Yuxi either as he nodded. "Alright." He was in the residence most of the time anyway, so he would know about everything inside.
Tu Shi was very jealous when she heard that Yuxi was pregnant. When she arrived at the Yun Residence, she said to Yuxi, "You got pregnant not long after weaning. That's great."
Yuxi responded, "If you take good care of your body, you can also get pregnant quickly."
Tu Shi nodded and chatted with Yuxi for a while, then suddenly asked, "Where is Zaozao? Why haven't I seen her after coming here for so long?"
Yuxi smiled and replied, "She's in the front courtyard, playing with her father." The most popular one in the Yun Residence was Zaozao. Every time Zaozao went to the front courtyard, that place became lively. Even if Yun Qing was very busy, Zaozao wouldn't be short of people to accompany her.
Tu Shi said with a hint of envy, "How wonderful. My husband hasn't even held the baby once, let alone helped raise the child."
Yuxi smiled and replied, "You need to instil this awareness in him." She had gradually guided Yun Qing in caring for their child, and now their relationship as parents was solid.
Tu Shi shook her head. "Forget it. If I do that, my parents-in-law will definitely be unhappy." In reality, this was just an excuse; she wouldn't actually let her husband look after the child. Men were expected to work hard outside, build a career and earn money to support the family, while childcare and household chores were considered a woman's responsibility.
Yuxi chuckled briefly and didn't pursue the topic further. Without in-laws, she could do as she pleased; if she had in-laws, they would probably have an opinion about her choices.
Tu Shi, being tactful, changed the subject. "Chen Shi has agreed to let General Fu take a concubine, but she won't allow him to take a second wife." At this point, Tu Shi seemed a little gleeful as she continued, "It serves her right. If that maid hadn't lost the baby, Old General Fu wouldn't have insisted General Fu take a second wife." Back then, everyone around Chen Shi said that she was carrying a male child, which gave her such confidence. Unfortunately, even midwives and physicians could make mistakes.
Yuxi said thoughtfully, "The main problem here is still with Fu Tianlei. If he had not agreed to take a second wife, Old General Fu would not have been able to force him."
Tu Shi nodded. "That's true. Speaking of which, the Fu family has too many problems these days. First, Fu Qingluo ran away, and now there's more fuss over the issue of heirs. With the household in such turmoil, how can General Fu concentrate on warfare?"
There was a hint of provocation in these words. Yuxi chuckled and skipped over the subject, saying, "I plan to open a general store in Yu City to sell daily necessities." It was a way of changing the subject; otherwise, she wouldn't have brought it up with Tu Shi!
When Tu Shi saw that Yuxi didn't react to her words, she felt slightly disappointed, but she collected herself and said, "How much money can you make by opening a general store? It's better to open a grain store."
Yuxi smiled and replied, "I'm opening this general store mainly to sell things from some of my estates." She didn't open the general store to make money but to benefit the people of Yu City. The prices in her general store would definitely be fair.
Tu Shi smiled and praised, "You really have the heart of a bodhisattva." The things Yuxi sold would certainly not be expensive; otherwise, she would have sold them directly to the military camp instead of opening a shop.
Footnotes Full List
- a traditional unit of volume, esp. for grain, equal to 100 sheng (市升), and equivalent to 100 litres or 176 pints
- heir to a noble house
- title of respect toward superiors
- lit. rivers and lakes—people who wander from place to place and live by their wits, e.g. fortune tellers, quack doctors, itinerant entertainers, etc., who are regarded as a social group
- 2 hours
- a metaphor for a dangerous and challenging situation
きつね's Musing
I wonder why Tu Shi wanted to turn Yun Qing against the Fu family. Is it because the Zhaos asked her to do it to promote Old General Zhao or one of his sons? I don't think Tu Shi is a calculating person or that she did it for her husband or her maternal family, right?
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi