A Lonesome Fragrance Waiting to be Appreciated 4

17

When horses were fattened, sheep flocks were also doing well. The rainwater this year was decent, and the grass on the plains grew non-stop. The sheep, cattle and horses did not lack food so herding was comfortably done, as any random place would do.

Ze Yin was a man who had led armies to war so he was both strong and unafraid of hardship. He led Weiting grow food and look after the livestock, while Yangfeng weaved some cloth during her free time. They were self-sufficient and life was laid-back.

"Changxiao can walk now."

"Walk? I reckon he could run the moment his feet hit the ground. He's always wriggling; you have no idea how hard it is to catch him."

Pingting had given this child the right name as he indeed liked to laugh.

Yangfeng was delighted at the sight of him every time. "He's always in a jolly good mood, I wonder what he's laughing about?"

Pingting scooped tottering Changxiao and pointed at his nose, blaming, "Geez, your walking is unsteady enough; no need to run. How many times do you need to fall to feel pain?"

Ze Qing tugged at the corners of Pingting's clothing. "Carry."

Yangfeng hurriedly pulled her son to one side, holding back her laughter. "You're still young and shouldn't haul Changxiao at your pace. What if you drop him?" She shook her head before looking at Pingting. "I reckon you ought to let Changxiao and Qing'er become brothers. He truly loves to stick to Changxiao."

"Why bother? They're always together and look like actual brothers to anyone."

"How could they possibly look like actual brothers? Qing'er looks plain silly while Changxiao was born with a hint of dominance. Look at those eyes and that nose; he's literally a tiny..." The title, the Duke of Zhen-Bei was stuck in Yangfeng's throat, leaving her sentence suddenly cut by a lack of voice. She knew she had said the wrong thing. Her heart was uneasy as she raised her eyes to look at Pingting.

Pingting had been teasing her son when her face had paled. It was a long time before she smiled bitterly, "Not just his eyes and nose, but his expression too." She poked at her son's tender nose, unsatisfied as she whispered, "What's wrong with looking like Mother? Why must you look like that person?"

My son, do you know of the Duke of Zhen-Bei?

The Duke of Zhen-Bei's name is Chu Beijie.

He could wield a heavy sword, capture the enemy general's head from the middle of thousands of soldiers, and held the power and influence to conquer the world. Those will ill intentions would shiver in his presence.

He was intelligent, courageous, and dauntless -an unchallenged famous general on the battlefields.

He should be in the Dong Lin Royal Residence, right? When autumn passed and the days of winter arrived, there would be a grand celebration in honour of his birth.

The sixth, I remember.

His birthday was the sixth.

Yun Chang's army was threatening Dong Lin's borders, jolting the Dong Lin Royal House awake from the peaceful dreams, realising how insecure Dong Lin was without Chu Beijie. The Queen of Chu Beijie immediately retrieved the flag of command and commanded Chen Mu to lead the army opposing He Xia.

But the enemy general leading the troops to attack was He Xia. Whether it was the Queen of Dong Lin or Chen Mu in charge, both knew that it was a war with no hope.

When He Xia arrived at Dong Lin's borders, he immediately summoned all of the major generals and threw out their first task.

"The report of returning spies mention that enemy advisor Chen Mu is now on his way and Dong Lin's reinforcements will soon arrive here. My army must hold its ground. First conquer Yan Lin City. Which one amongst you will be willing to gain this first victory?" When He Xia finished speaking, he smiled as he scanned the familiar military generals around him.