The Eighth Prince (Rewriting) (Barely Updates)

6: Cave behind the waterfall

Co-authored by Relendria

Guang Chia-Hao sat quietly in his tent waiting for the Colonel to come and collect him.  In his past life he had been sent off to the caves with 40 men as a protection detail. He didn’t expect this life to be any different. The soldiers hadn't taken kindly to him since they felt “babysitting” was beneath them. Guang Chia-Hao was preparing himself mentally to withstand their subtle aggressions – from marching so fast he was unable to keep up, to preparing meals that were inedible. They had all died two years later when his brother had come to the front to take charge so Guang Chia-Hao didn’t see any need to take offense at their petty actions.
 

This time he planned to handle things differently. While the General planned and executed the opening salvo of their counteroffensive against the Zhuang army, he will build his own warriors, including those doomed 40 men. This time he will contribute and gain merit and glory. This time he will survive and not fall to a miserable death. With any luck at all, this time his men will survive with him. Above all else, he was determined to survive the next two years.
 
"Your Highness, 8th Prince," the Colonel’s respectful voice sounded outside his tent.
 
Guang Chia-Hao’s eyes opened and smiled grimly. It was time to begin.
 
"Jin, Tao," he said in a calm and soft voice.
 
"Yes, Your Highness!" Two men in black appeared from nowhere and greeted their new master with respect.
 
"Prepare our men," he ordered. “Follow me and join me when the soldiers have set up camp.”
 
He expected to be taken to the caves but he had already changed things so he couldn’t be sure. It was better to have Jin and Tao lead his men directly to where he would be staying in case the General had chosen a different hiding place. The caves would be best for his plans, however, so he intended to suggest them if the Colonel hadn’t already arranged that location. 
 
Neither Shadow Guard asked questions. They simply chanted, "Yes, Your Highness!"  
 
Guang Chia-Hao stood as the two men vanished. They were decent Shadow Guards even though they were young and mostly untried. They were five years older than Guang Chia-Hao’s current age but because he had been reborn, they seemed much younger than he did.
 
Guang Chia-Hao opened the tent flap with unhurried grace.
 
"Yes?" He asked with one slightly raised eyebrow.
 
"Pardon this lowly one's intrusion, but General Song ordered that Your Highness be relocated to a safer place," Colonel Wang explained with perfect courtesy and an unyielding expression. Guang Chia-Hao nodded once with no expression on his face.
 
In the previous life, he had argued and created trouble, but this time he would cooperate calmly. The Colonel was relieved at the Prince’s calm acceptance and gestured to the man standing slightly behind him.
 
“This is Sergeant Chu. He will be in charge of your safety while you are away from camp.”
 
The Colonel’s last few concerns vanished as Guang Chia-Hao nodded and then turned to the Sergeant.
 
“I am troubling you,” he said politely.
 
Sergeant Chu also relaxed imperceptibly. He had done security detail for nobles before and this calm cooperation was rare. His opinion of Guang Chia-Hao rose. He had expected prideful resistance but to his relief the Eighth Prince seemed to understand the situation at hand.
 
“Please, Your Highness, follow me,” he gestured respectfully and the two men walked away, leaving a much more relaxed Colonel standing by the tent.
 
When they reached the 40 men assigned to protect him, Guang Chia-Hao sensed a slight difference. Sergeant Chu’s attitude towards him was sincerely respectful and the men, while still displeased at being assigned to babysit a useless prince, were slightly more respectful as a result.
 
“I will have to impose on Your Highness,” Sergeant Chu explained with some trepidation. “We need to travel silently which means no horses or carriage.”
 
“I understand, Sergeant,” Guang Chia-Hao assured him. “I will do my best to keep up.”
 
The Sergeant gestured at the small troop and they set out at a brisk walk. This life Guang Chia-Hao had prepared for his trip to the battlefront. He had been exercising daily during the past month. The rapid pace pushed his limits but, to Guang Chia-Hao’s pleasure, it didn’t pass his limits. He was perspiring freely when they reached the caves but he hadn’t needed to ask the men to stop once.
 
If he was a person who smiled easily, he would have been grinning from ear to ear.
 
Guang Chia-Hao waited quietly while the Sergeant set up a guard rotation, sent men to hunt and forage to supplement the supplies they had brought, and set the rest to making the caves habitable. As soon as he was done assigning tasks, Guang Chia-Hao asked to speak with him privately.
 
“What do you need, my Prince?”
 
“I have something to confess.”
 
Sergeant Chu was too well trained to let his expression reveal his unease but Guang Chia-Hao sensed it anyway.
 
“I have 110 men who will be joining us here in some time soon,” Guang Chia-Hao explained.
 
Sergeant Chu was shocked but after thinking about it, it made sense for the 8th Prince to have at least a small force at his disposal. This created a new problem, however. How was he going to feed 110 useless Capital troops?
 
“Don’t worry, Sergeant,” Guang Chia-Hao reassured him. “They are bringing their own supplies and have done some training while on the road here. What I want is for them to train and hone their abilities with your soldiers while we are here. I would also like you to assign a trainer for me. I might as well learn to handle a sword and bow while we are waiting for the General to call us back to camp.”
 
Sergeant Chu didn’t particularly like this plan. If the Prince were harmed on his watch – his life wouldn’t be enough to repay it! On the other hand, any man worth his salt would want to be able to defend himself on the battlefront. He sighed and nodded at the Prince.
 
“Excellent. I will leave you to make plans for them. I am going to bathe in the river and I will rejoin the camp shortly,” Guang Chia-Hao told him. His body had cooled down and the sweat was beginning to itch.
 
Sergeant Chu had already assigned two soldiers experienced in escort duties to serve Guang Chia-Hao directly so he gestured to them. Guang Chia-Hao went to the bundle one of the soldiers had carried up for him and pulled out some clean clothes before heading to the river.
 
Once they arrived at the small pool at the base of the waterfall, the guards turned to face away from the river and Chia-Hao quickly removed his clothes. He threw the dirty clothes to the edge of the river before entering the small pool. The cool water shocked his warm skin but he quickly adjusted to it. After scrubbing his body with the soap nuts he had bundled in his clean clothes, he lathered and rinsed his hair. Then he gathered his clothes and gave them a good scrub before leaving the water. The soldiers guarding him were mildly impressed that a useless Prince was willing to wash his own clothes.
 
 
Guang Chia-Hao wrung out his long hair and dressed himself as soon as his skin had dried some. While he finger-combed his hair to help it dry, he looked up at the top of the waterfall. He observed it thoughtfully for many long minutes before turning to bundle his wet clothes together. He would dry them at camp.
 
"Why are you staring at the top of the waterfall?” one of the soldiers asked. “Is there a problem up there?”
 
"Hmm…" 
 
The soldier felt a bit perturbed when the Prince’s gaze was removed from the top of the waterfall to him. Rumor said that the Prince was cowardly, weak, and useless but his soldier’s instincts wondered what part of this young man was cowardly. The Prince had held to their rapid march without complaint and the gaze he had just given had nothing weak about it. He could feel that the Prince was assessing everything about him. He even felt a vague threat from the Prince, as if the prince were a predator who was assessing if he were prey. He had the fanciful notion that the Prince might bare his fangs and growl out a threat at any moment.
 
He shook off those disturbing thoughts as they made their way back to the caves. The man might be more capable than rumors would have it but he was clearly not a predator!