Chapter 00295: A Jin
# A Jin
Chapter 295
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 295: A Jin
The soldier guarding the tent shifted his expression slightly, but his body remained still.
Then Zhao Pan’s voice came through: “Let him in.”
He Lingchuan strode inside and saw only He Chunhua and Zhao Pan in the tent.
Are these two the ones arguing?
“Father, what happened?”
He Chunhua plucked a twig from his hair. “I was just exchanging some thoughts with General Zhao.” He was covered head to toe in sand and dirt.
How did this kid manage to get himself looking like a muddy monkey?
“Winning or losing is common in warfare, but the disaster must not reach one’s family.” Zhao Pan didn’t bother to be polite to this father and son pair. “Director He, what you’ve done is a bit underhanded.”
“Disaster not reaching... family?” He Lingchuan was stunned.
What did Father do?
“They pillaged the people of Xiazhou and killed our local sons. Do you want me to talk about righteousness with these invaders?” He Chunhua sneered coldly. “General Zhao, you’re too conservative.”
“Righteousness is not useless,” Zhao Pan said solemnly. “You kidnapped Hong Chenglüe’s wife, he will surely use every means available against you.”
“He seized my supplies and harassed Xiazhou, even your frontline operations have been heavily affected. Isn’t that using every means?” He Chunhua shook his head. “War is all about deception. The people of Xunzhou can do whatever it takes to win. Did you see how Hong Chenglüe cast over a hundred wounded soldiers of his own as bait, throwing them to me so I could kill those burdens? What kind of good man could he be?”
The last time they crossed swords, he understood perfectly.
He sneered again: “General Zhao, that white flag you hang outside your camp—that’s nothing but a sham. The Xunzhou people will attack whenever they want, they won’t honor your agreement!”
“Hong Chenglüe is just fulfilling his duty, though blocking us,” Zhao Pan tried to be tactful.
What he really wanted to say was that Hong Chenglüe insulted He Chunhua’s face.
Director He was clever and capable, but cared too much about reputation and appearances.
Hong burned half his provisions; Zhao Pan wanted to make that up at all costs.
Otherwise, his prestige would suffer, and it would be difficult to govern the people or deal with the four great families once he returned to Dunyu.
“I’m not asking Hong Chenglüe to throw himself into the river,” He Chunhua chuckled. “Besides, the captives are already here. How can we just give up now?”
He Lingchuan understood: “Father, you found Hong Chenglüe’s wife?”
A few days ago, Father had asked him for a comb, but he hadn’t thought much of it.
Turns out that was the purpose.
Before battle, Hong Chenglüe must have hidden his wife safely.
Father really has his ways; just with a comb, he was able to find A Jin.
He Chunhua nodded. “So?”
He Lingchuan felt a little displeased—was his eldest brother going to object, too?
“It’s nothing.” As a soldier, obeying orders was his duty.
No matter what he thought inside, he could not oppose He Chunhua openly.
Especially not in front of an outsider like Zhao Pan.
He Chunhua snorted. “Good thing I brought you out with me.” If it were the second son accompanying the army, he probably would have had a softer heart.
He stood up and faced Zhao Pan. “My mind is made up. Let’s do it this way.” Then he held his head high and left.
He Lingchuan had to follow silently, whispering, “Father, how did you catch her?”
“A rather crude tracking technique,” He Chunhua said lightly. “Catching her puts us in an advantageous position—we’re no longer on the defensive.”
They’d been in the open, the enemy hidden in the shadows.
He Chunhua was sure the scouts sent by Hong Chenglüe were still lurking near the frontline, watching their every move.
Zhao Pan’s opponent was the Xunzhou army.
Hong Chenglüe had his eyes set on He Chunhua.
Hmph, intolerable.
He Lingchuan wanted to speak but hesitated, finally saying nothing.
The captives were here, the arrow already on the string.
Father was definitely going to see this through.
Outside, personal guards held up umbrellas, escorting the two men back to their respective tents.
The river water outside was murky yellow.
He Lingchuan took a bucket of clean water from his storage ring and washed off the mud and sand from head to toe, then changed into clean clothes.
Among the entire army, few could indulge in such luxury—using drinking water for a bath.
After the Panlong Desert adventure, he had developed a habit of stockpiling water and food.
The storage ring was large enough to support this.
Outside the wind and rain raged fiercely.
With nothing to do, he sat cross-legged in a chair and began to regulate his breath and meditate.
Perhaps the understanding gained from practicing the “Wave-Cleaving” sword technique at sea was helping, for his true energy circulation during a few cycle rounds was smoother than before.
Cultivation was like this—one’s Dao could deepen over time, but breakthroughs in realms depended on fate and insight.
Mysterious beyond words.
Hence great masters like General Hong and Xiao Maoliang emphasized real combat, understanding the Dao amid life and death.
……
This meditation lasted two hours.
When he completed it, He Lingchuan heard the howling wind and rain outside stronger than before, nearly drowning out the shouts of the soldiers.
A tent even got blown away.
He grabbed his rain cloak and stepped outside.
As soon as he left the tent, raindrops the size of soybeans exploded across his face.
The Han River was roaring violently.
No matter how much he’d comprehended the “Wave-Cleaving” technique, if he jumped into the river now, he’d immediately become “Wave-rolled”—never to surface again.
Amid the storm, all soldiers were busy.
The personal guard told He Lingchuan that the water spirit said the flood season of the Han River had come early.
This place was no longer safe; the entire camp had to retreat to higher ground.
Moving an entire army camp was not easy, especially in such terrible weather.
Especially since there was a bunch of ox demons.
When the storm hit, the ox demons got frightened and needed calming.
Now they had to be moved along too.
Ox demons were notoriously bad-tempered.
The only good news was that the enemy would not attempt crossing the river by boat under these conditions.
He Lingchuan turned and suddenly saw a civilian horse cart.
The cart was very simple—no carriage, just cloth curtains on all sides.
In this heavy rain and wind, the curtains quickly soaked and stuck together.
He Lingchuan noticed a pile of dry hay in the cart, and on the hay lay a person covered with a blanket.
The cart driver urged the two horses forward, but the wheel had gotten stuck in a stone crevice and wouldn’t move.
He Lingchuan approached, bent down to grab the wheel and said to the driver, “Let me help you.”
While the driver whipped the horses, He Lingchuan channeled his true energy into his arms and squeezed from both sides.
The stuck wheel suddenly lifted, splashing out a wave of mud and water.
The cart wheels clicked forward once more.
Looking up, He Lingchuan saw the person on the cart was also looking his way, politely saying, “Thank you.”
It was a woman, her face pale, hair and blanket both soaked by the cold rain.
Then some soldiers came, pushing an old woman in front of the cart.
They shoved her to the side, shouting, “Watch her closely. No slacking off!”
The Yuan army had retreated more than fifty zhang from the riverbank to set up camp again.
Actually, the farther the safer, but Zhao Pan dared not go further.
He still had to guard the riverbank to prevent the enemy from crossing and seizing the shore.
The Han River was a natural fortress; if breached, the Yuan army would be at a disadvantage.
The civilian horse cart was pushed inside a narrow tent just big enough to cover it, nothing like the tents He Lingchuan’s group used.
But a fair number of soldiers guarded it, all from the supply team—on their own side.
The old woman who cared for the woman went to get a towel.
He Lingchuan stepped to the cart and looked down at her.
“Are you A Jin, Hong Chenglüe’s wife?”
Her lips curved slightly—half smile, half not—and then she sneezed.
He Lingchuan stepped out of the tent and called the old woman over. “Help her change into dry clothes and bedding. If she stays like this, she’ll get sick.”
The old woman seemed unwilling, but when He Lingchuan glared, she pouted and said, “There aren’t any spare blankets.”
He Lingchuan glanced at Shan Youjun behind him.
The latter understood and went outside, returning after a while with a dry, clean quilt.
He Lingchuan left to give A Jin space to change.
After a quarter of an hour, the old woman came out. “Done.”
He Lingchuan told her to get some hot water, then went back inside.
A Jin’s condition was much better, but she showed no smile at all.
She only looked at him and said, “What do you want?”
She’d noticed this young man held status within the army.
“To make you more comfortable.” Everyone harbors compassion; he was facing a crippled woman.
A Jin spoke slowly, “Whatever you want to do, you won’t succeed.”
“Oh?” He Lingchuan was curious. “What do you think we want to do?”
“Director He said he wants Hong Lang to withdraw his troops.” A Jin’s smile was weak. “Impossible. You’re with the army—you should know orders are law.”
He Lingchuan folded his arms, “I wonder—did he quit his career for your sake?” The more he knew about Hong Chenglüe, the more advantage he’d have in future battles.
The smile on A Jin’s face vanished and she fell silent.
“You’ve been living in seclusion in Bailu Town for years. Why would he break his oath now?”
“For me.” A Jin blinked. “The national teacher of Beijia promised to find a medicine that will let me stand again.”
He Lingchuan frowned. “Not for himself?”
“That kind of medicine isn’t easy to get, even if we returned to Beijia.”
“I heard from the old woman you are Director He’s son?” A Jin looked at him quietly. “People like you probably never tasted our suffering.”
He Lingchuan said nothing.
Indeed, he had not—not in two lives.
“When Hong Lang and I were kids, we escaped from a cannibal village, fought wild dogs for food, and were kicked down cliffs. We barely survived.” She recounted slowly. “Back then, he hoped to grow up strong and live well. But when he resigned and moved to Lingzhou, then Bailu Town, we realized there’s no such thing as seclusion in this world. Only struggle. Ordinary people have to fight just to survive.”
In chaotic times, human life was as worthless as grass.
Even the suffering of commoners was trivial and unworthy of mention.
Her eyes were calm but filled with sorrow: “If it were you, wouldn’t you want to go back and take up power again?”
He Lingchuan thought for a while, then asked, “You don’t think he will agree to Director He’s terms?”
A Jin looked up at the tent ceiling.
“I don’t know. Hopefully not.”
If Hong Chenglüe withdrew from Xiazhou, it would be disobeying his superiors’ orders.
He Lingchuan chuckled softly. “Looks like he’s someone who goes with the flow.”
“What do you mean by that?”
(End of chapter)