Chapter 204
Chapter 204
Rumble…
Not far from the fortress, terrifyingly large waves surged upon the sea. The massive waves crashed relentlessly against the reef, shattering the rocks to pieces. The sea wind howled, its roar carrying all the way to the white fortress. But even that sound couldn't cover up an even more unusual noise. Hearing it, the female warrior captain ran frantically toward Qiu Yao'er's room. There, she witnessed an unbelievable sight, and for a moment, she didn't know whether to be happy or sad. It was as if she'd been struck by lightning.
W-was this her master? Was this still her goddess? Qiu Yao'er seemed to have become a completely different person. She was like a stone, once cold as ice and never once kindled, now plunged into a furnace and burning with an impossible heat. The warrior stood stunned for a long time. The captain retreated and closed the door, as other female warriors approached one by one. Dozens of them stood guard outside Qiu Yao'er's room, striking their own armor with their swords. Only by making this clashing sound could they drown out all the others.
A quarter of an hour passed, then half an hour, then an hour, then two. Finally, everything fell silent once more!
* * *
Though she hadn't slept for days and nights, Mulan conscripted soldiers every day. She handled everything personally, determined to select the most elite young men from the militia and incorporate them into the estate's private army. Moreover, Mulan had to personally give the families of the new soldiers money to set up their households. It was a tradition of the Jin Clan. If she delegated this task to someone else, a hundred years from now, they would not be willing to fight and die for the master's authority.
In the past, Mulan wouldn't have cared about missing a few nights of sleep. But now, she was so concerned that she took out a mirror to check her face.
‘I haven’t gotten dark circles or broken out from staying up all night, have I?’
When no one was around, she even applied the special face mask Shen Lang had made.
‘I must be beautiful. I have to be beautiful. Otherwise, my husband might not like me anymore.’
Not only that, but despite being busy outside, she insisted on bathing twice a day. Since there was no hot water, she washed with cold water. Bathing in cold water in the middle of winter was uncomfortable, but it couldn't be helped. Though she was far from that scoundrel, she didn't want to be abandoned by him. What if he missed her and came running? There couldn't be even a hint of sweat or dirt on her. She even washed her hair every day and changed her clothes once a day. Even if she didn't sleep, she frequently drank honey water—honey water infused with oil from freshly picked flowers—so that her breath always smelled sweet. What if her scoundrel husband rushed over and tried to kiss her? Not a single part of her could be anything less than beautiful.
The female warriors around Mulan all found this marvelous.
‘The young lady hasn't slept for days, yet her face is still smooth and beautiful, not haggard at all. And even after marching for days, she’s still stunningly beautiful.’
Moreover, a pleasant fragrance always emanated from her. The female warriors who served her, of course, knew the reason, but they couldn't help but be amazed. Could the power of love be this great?
In truth, not sleeping for a few days was nothing to Mulan, but the one thing she found hard to bear was the longing. For the past few months, she had been with her scoundrel husband almost every day. Being separated for several days now was agonizing. So this was what they meant when they said a day apart felt like three years.
Mulan wanted to go home several times. Even if she did nothing, just seeing her husband for a hug and a kiss would be enough. Then she would willingly travel the long road back to the military camp. She almost did it, but in the end, the bigger picture was more important. Time was extremely tight; she had to finish conscription in the shortest time possible and send the majority of the main forces to Wang'ai Isle.
The golden island strategy had already begun, and the political situation was changing rapidly, allowing for no delay. For three full days and nights, Mulan visited every village in her fief, gathering two thousand young men to join her private army. To fill the vacancies in the militia, she went around the villages again, recruiting more men. In three days, she had distributed several thousand sets of armor and weapons and paid out nearly ten thousand gold coins.
The Jin Clan had forged new armor, leaving a large surplus of old armor and weapons, which were given to the new soldiers. Although the old armor and weapons were of lower quality, they were relatively new, so the recruits looked quite imposing in them. The two thousand new private soldiers, all armed, gathered and headed for the fortress of the Count of Xuanwu's Estate under the command of Jin Shiying. A thousand of them would stay to defend the fief, while the other thousand would head to Wang'ai Isle.
After finishing all her work, Mulan couldn't bear it any longer and rode home alone at top speed. She didn't need anything; a hug and a kiss from her scoundrel husband would be enough. Then, she planned to bathe, change her clothes, and lie down in her husband's bed for a sweet sleep. It would be nice if her scoundrel husband just stayed quietly by her side. If he started touching her, she wouldn't be able to fall asleep.
But the closer she got to home, the more her heart pounded for no reason. As her swift horse entered the fortress gates, the beautiful, fiery woman leaped straight off and ran toward her courtyard. But she found it empty; her husband wasn't there.
"Xiao Bing, where is the young master?"
Xiao Bing was in the courtyard, drying Shen Lang's things in the sun—items she didn't recognize at all. She was the one who organized, maintained, and cleaned them all. This was a task the young master had entrusted to her, so Xiao Bing took it very seriously.
‘The young master didn't entrust his things to anyone else, only me. I must be the one he cares for most in his heart.’
"The young master went out. I haven't seen him in days."
Xiao Bing was dejected. With the scoundrel who teased her gone for several days, she felt an emptiness in her heart.
"He went out? Where did he go?"
"I don't know. The young master didn't tell me."
Then, Xiao Bing pointed to the top of Mulan's head and asked.
"My lady, there seems to be something green on your head. What is it?"
Mulan reached up and plucked it off—it was a green leaf. She had rushed back in such a hurry that she hadn't even noticed a leaf falling on her head. For a leaf to still be green in winter… Mulan left the courtyard and hurried to her father's study. Inside, Jin Mucong was copying a book again.
"What are you doing now?"
Jin Mucong replied.
"Copying a book."
Mulan saw that he was copying *Journey to the West*. She was the second person to read it, and she loved the story dearly. The part Jin Mucong was writing was the scene where Sun Wukong enters Princess Iron Fan's stomach and wreaks havoc.
"With Brother-in-law gone, I can't find out what happens next in *Journey to the West*. I was getting so anxious waiting that I started copying the old parts for fun. Brother-in-law said the Bull Demon King was cuckolded, but no matter how many times I read it, I just don't see it. Nothing happened between Sun Wukong and Princess Iron Fan."
Mulan asked impatiently.
"Where is your brother-in-law? Where did he go?"
"He went to Raging Tide City."
Mulan was startled and asked.
"Why did he go to Raging Tide City? Does he know how dangerous that place is? Did anyone go with him for protection?"
"A woman from the Heavenly Dao Society went with him to protect him."
"A woman from the Heavenly Dao Society? What does she look like?"
"Brother-in-law said she's uglier than me, but I thought she looked quite all right."
The moment Mulan looked at her brother's face, she felt a sense of relief.
"Do you know why Brother-in-law went to Raging Tide City? Did something important happen? Otherwise, a man so afraid of death wouldn't take such a risk."
"A secret letter came from Xu Qianqian. She said Qiu Yao'er suddenly fell ill and her life is in danger. So, Brother-in-law went to save her."
This was a top secret, and only two people knew the details: one was the Count of Xuanwu, Jin Zhuo, and the other was Jin Mucong. Their mother didn't know, nor did Jin Hui or Thirteen. The Count of Xuanwu and Shen Lang were trying to cultivate Jin Mucong as a talent. Although the chubby Jin Mucong was a bit foolish and only interested in copying books, not actively participating in affairs, he, as the heir, was entitled to know all secrets. Moreover, they believed that being privy to all these secrets would be of great help to him when he eventually took over the duties of the Count of Xuanwu's Estate. The future Count of Xuanwu, Jin Mucong, might be foolish and incompetent, but he had to have perspective. It was like in *The Legend of the Condor Heroes*, where the Foolish Aunt, despite being a fool, became a master without realizing it simply by following the highly skilled Huang Yaoshi around every day.
‘He went to save Qiu Yao'er?’
Hearing that, Mulan's heart began to race, and she grew anxious.
‘Calm down, calm down. Don't let your imagination run wild. Even if I can't trust my scoundrel husband, I should trust Qiu Yao'er's character.’
For a moment, she was so anxious she wanted to go to Raging Tide City immediately and bring Shen Lang back, but she forced herself to suppress the thought.
Jin Mucong suddenly said.
"Sister, that new skirt is pretty."
"Really?"
The skirt she had made this time was of green silk with a hint of blue. Shen Lang had once taken a similar celadon-green skirt of hers, done unspeakable things with it, and then claimed to have burned it. Since then, Mulan had thought Shen Lang had a particular fondness for such green skirts and had several made. She went to great lengths to capture her husband's attention. She had no choice. There were too many beautiful women out there, and her husband just had to be a womanizing scoundrel.
Jin Mucong said.
"Yes. That shade of green isn't gaudy, so it looks especially pretty."
Of course, those were Shen Lang's words. Jin Mucong had no such aesthetic sense; in his eyes, everything was pretty. If it was a skirt, it was pretty. If it was a woman, she was pretty. Mulan was in no mood to discuss skirts with her brother. She just wanted to climb to the highest point of the fortress and gaze eastward, even though she knew she wouldn't see anything from up there.
‘My husband, you absolutely must not let anything happen to you. Just be safe. Nothing else matters. As long as you're not hurt, even if you sleep with another woman, I… I will… I'll grit my teeth and bear it. At worst, I'll just trample you soundly when you get back. Just don't get hurt. Absolutely nothing must happen to you.’
* * *
Qiu Xiao returned to the governor's mansion, fuming. He raged at his father.
"Father, how long are you going to tolerate Qiu Yao'er? She has ten thousand pirates under her command. If you let her be, she'll grow too powerful for us to control. Besides, she's not even your real daughter, is she?"
The pirate king, Qiu Tianwei, glared murderously at Wang'ai Isle on the map hanging on the wall. He had painted the island with gold dust, making it stand out even more. Just moments ago, when discussing Wang'ai Isle with Tang Lun, it was Tang Lun who had seemed urgent while Qiu Tianwei appeared calm. But in reality, he coveted Wang'ai Isle even more than Tang Lun did. As a pirate king, his desire for plunder and gold was insatiable.
Qiu Xiao asked.
"Father, are you listening to me? The two thousand elite soldiers under Qiu Yao'er's command don't even move on your orders. Aren't you worried that one day I'll be killed by her, and she'll become the new lord of Raging Tide City in my place?"