Yi Qing told Xiao Tian about how she had disguised herself as a man and joined the military camp in order to find a place to stay.
Then she propped her chin up and asked with a smile, "Why have I never seen you before? Actually, I've met Xiao Jinghan a few times. But you know, he always wears a mask. And weren't you always by his side? You're so good-looking. I'm sure I'd remember if I'd seen you."
Xiao Tian replied expressionlessly, "Do you know what a shadow guard is?"
Yi Qing showed her eagerness to learn, "Is it someone who is elusive and mysterious?"
Xiao Tian said proudly, "Exactly."
Yi Qing showed great enthusiasm for the things she didn't know, "Then pretend to be my shadow guard now. Let me see if I can find you..."
Xiao Tian gave her a glare and turned around to leave.
"Hey, hey, hey—" Yi Qing shouted behind him, "Are you getting into character now?"
Xiao Tian almost tripped over the threshold. He flicked his sleeve and stomped off angrily, leaving Yi Qing laughing on the couch.
When Baozi came back and they had dinner as usual in the evening, Xiao Tian explained the reason why the old troops had come to the capital.
They had come to pay homage to Xiao Jinghan and to take Baozi to Li City.
Yi Qing was so shocked that her chopsticks dropped. "Are they crazy?"
Baozi was much calmer than her. He said calmly, "Mother, don't worry too much. Let Uncle Xiao finish speaking."
Xiao Tian gave him an approving look and then said, "They think the emperor has treated the general's mansion unfairly. They're worried that Baozi will be spoiled in the capital, so they want to take him to Li City."
Yi Qing rolled her eyes and waved away the new chopsticks Xiao Tian was handing her. "I'm not eating! I'm not in the mood. These people look tall and straight, and none of them seem stupid. But why do they do such stupid things?"
Xiao Tian: "..."
Yi Qing wasn't done scolding. "What do they think of the emperor? Do they want to take Baozi and set up their own faction?"
"There's no such intention. Don't talk nonsense."
"Is it me talking nonsense or them doing stupid things?" Yi Qing snorted. "Even if the emperor is good-tempered, don't forget that he's the emperor. If he finds out about this, won't he have an opinion of Baozi? These people, are they protecting Baozi or digging a pit for him?"
Xiao Tian said, "Anyway, they mean well. Lu Tianzuo and Chang Yuanzhi will persuade them to go back."
"Even so, we still have to think about how to show our loyalty to the emperor." Yi Qing stroked her chin and thought.
Baozi ate his food obediently and whispered, "Mother, why don't you let Uncle Xiao decide?"
Yi Qing: "What? Do you think your mother is useless?"
"No," Baozi said quickly. "I just think Uncle Xiao is more familiar with the emperor."
Yi Qing thought about it and couldn't find a counterargument.
Xiao Tian stroked Baozi's head. "Your mother is not as sensible as you. Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I'm here."
Yi Qing snorted. She thought that she would go to the medical clinic as usual the next day and ignore the things in the mansion. She would let Xiao Tian take Baozi to entertain those stupid fellows.
But the next day, before she could go out, someone came to visit her.
When she saw the visitor, a smile appeared on Yi Qing's face. "Huaisheng, why are you here?"
Meng Huaisheng, the disciple of Old Man Sun, had spent the most time with Yi Qing in the military camp, and they had gotten along quite well.
He was more like a son to Old Man Sun. He had followed Old Man Sun since he was a child. Among Old Man Sun's disciples, he was known for his honesty and hard work.
Meng Huaisheng stared at Yi Qing and rubbed his hands foolishly. "Yi Qing, so you're that Yi Qing. I'm really blind. We spent so much time together, and I didn't even realize you were a woman."
Xiao Tian, who was sitting in the inner room playing chess with Baozi but listening attentively, couldn't help but frown when he heard this.
The words "spent so much time together" made him feel like there was a fishbone stuck in his throat. Not to mention the familiarity in Yi Qing's call of "Huaisheng", which made his discomfort increase exponentially.
But since Meng Huaisheng didn't even know she was a woman, there should be no connection between them. Xiao Tian silently drew a small red tick for him in his heart—one suspect eliminated.
There were only about 200,000 people left in the military...
Yi Qing joked with a smile, "Isn't it because I'm good at disguising?"
"Yes, yes, yes," Meng Huaisheng blushed when he looked at Yi Qing. "I didn't recognize you yesterday. It was last night when Master was scolding you in his room. I was fetching water for his feet and heard it. I asked a question and then found out that you've become the general's wife. How did you become the general's wife?"
Xiao Tian couldn't help but snort.
If she didn't become the general's wife, was she going to become a doctor's wife?
Baozi, who was sitting opposite him and concentrating on the chess game, heard the snort and looked up at Xiao Tian strangely.
Only then did Xiao Tian realize that he had been too excited. He covered up awkwardly and said in a low voice, "It's okay. You continue."
So Baozi stared at the black-and-white chessboard and continued to think deeply.
Outside, Yi Qing's laughter was hearty. "Actually, I also want to know. It's just a coincidence. Mainly because I gave birth to a son for the general. Then I somehow became the general's wife."
Meng Huaisheng nodded. "Good, very good. We're all very grateful to you for leaving a descendant for the general. To be honest, at first we didn't believe it. It wasn't until we came to the capital this time and General Lu and General Chang both said that the child was really the general's that we dared to believe it. And when I saw that it was you who became the general's wife, I was even happier."
"Aren't you silly?" Yi Qing laughed. "Come and sit down. How have you been these years? Are you married?"
"Not yet." Meng Huaisheng sat down on the stone bench with her and scratched his head. "I've been too busy. I don't have time to think about those things. Besides, all the mosquitoes in the military camp are male. Who can I marry?"
Yi Qing asked the maid outside the courtyard to serve tea and snacks. She instructed, "If there's yellow pea cake, that would be best."
Meng Huaisheng was touched. "You still remember that I like yellow pea cake."
Xiao Tian almost crushed the chess piece in his hand.
Baozi was surprised to see his face turn red. "Uncle Xiao, don't you know where to place the chess piece?"
"No." Xiao Tian gritted his teeth and placed the white chess piece. The whole chess game suddenly changed.
Baozi was in a tough battle.
Originally, Xiao Tian had been patiently teaching Baozi how to play chess. But he was really angry just now—Yi Qing was flirting with someone right at the door. Did she think he was dead? So the move he made just now was very aggressive, which directly made it difficult for Baozi to defend.
And Yi Qing didn't know about his mood change at all. Even if she did, she would just retort with a "You can't control me even if you die" and continue to catch up with Meng Huaisheng.
"I can't forget even if I want to. I still remember the first time you ate yellow pea cake. You liked it very much, so you made it yourself. But you accidentally added croton to it. You almost broke the latrine. You're a doctor, after all. Hahaha..."