chapter 30

A black iron set of armor was carefully set on Gu Nan’s body . Although she wore several layers of clothing, the wintery metal sent a clear chill through her .

Underneath, Gu Nan had changed from the usual white gown into a fresh uniform . She also wore a pair of heavy leather boots . Xiao Lu stood behind her as she quietly arranged and tied her hair .

The departure date happened to be at the end of the year, which nullified Wei Lan’s annual feast preparations .

Gu Nan stood in front of a polished bronze mirror . Although she generally didn’t care to usee the mirror, today she was surprisingly curious .

Her black armor was a combination of leather and metal . Her black hair was being tied and organized . Her forearms were covered with a pair of bronze bracers . The white clothes underneath were tucked neatly but wrinkled by the tightly-strapped armor .

Gu Nan gave a simple glimpse and then smiled . I really didn’t think that I become like this one day .

“Miss . ” As Xiao Lu started on the finishing touches to her hair, she softly spoke, “Near the border, it’ll be colder than in Xianyang . You should wear more clothes when you’re there . ”

Gu Nan smiled and nodded . “Understood . ”

“Military camp isn’t like home . There’s less alcohol . I don’t really know the army’s regulations but there’s punishment for drinking . ”

“Understood . ”

“The rations in the army isn’t that much . Miss eats so much, I’m afraid you might not be used to it . But soon you need to learn to fight when hungry . ”

“Understood…”

Gu Nan stood up with her hair all completed .

Turning around, she found Xiao Lu red-eyed behind her .

Smiling, she reached out her hand and plucked the girl’s nose . “Hey, you better remember, when I get back, prepare some good food for me . And some good booze too . I want a feast . ”

“Got it…”

Laughing and hanging the sword on her waist, she grabbed the tall spear and stepped out the door .

…

Blackie was standing in his stall, munching on his fresh bundles of green grass . On this winter day, this lush material was not simply expensive, it basically eating money! It was near comparable to an entire household’s daily food expenditures .

Thankfully, Wu’an Manor doesn’t have to buy this themselves, the military encampment will always send more over .

Having been fed generously all this time, Blackie gained quite a bit of weight . Although he remained slightly thin, he seemed much bulkier and started to resemble a true, fully-fledged warhorse .

As the horse was going to take another mouthful, he suddenly stopped . The eye under the one scarred eyelid slanted to a certain place .

Gu Nan was sneaking around .

“Humph!” Blackie snorted in dissatisfaction, but no longer bothered to waste any more attention on her and resumed eating .

Of course, it knows why she’s here .

In Wu’an Manor, alcohol is forbidden, which is an issue for Gu Nan who is practically a raging alcoholic . To endure such loneliness, she found a place to stash some wine without risking having to sneak out .

Choosing a location was rather troublesome . It must be rather secluded and certainly not somewhere Bai Qi would walk casually .

Considering the criteria, there was nowhere more suitable than the horse stables .

Although it wasn’t the cleanest place, it’s probably the safest . Generally, Old Lian is the only that comes to feed the horses, tending to them is his duty as well .

Don’t look at his unemotional face, he’s quite easy to get along with .

After some friendly chats between the two, he would occasionally come and take a couple mouthfuls of wine here and there, eventually turning a blind eye to these misdemeanors .

Gu Nan checked around and determined that no one had slipped into Blackie’s stall .

Reaching out, she grabbed hold of the wine jar hidden in the stable’s thatched roof .

Squinting as she carefully unsealed the lid and quickly poured a mouthful of wine .

“Nhnn . ” Blackie obviously held strong contempt for a cowardly thief .

Of course, Gu Nan didn’t care about whether a horse looked down on her or not . And so, one person and one horse remained undisturbed in the stable, drinking and munching .

“Blackie, have you ever been in battle?”

The horse glanced at her, probably not understanding her question, but still shook his head .

She smiled . “It’s quite the terrible thing . But my fate will be with you, partner . ”

She took her wine jar and swallowed another cup .

Blackie’s ear twitched for a moment, then he resumed to silently eating his grass .

——————————————————————

It was about afternoon .

Gu Nan led Blackie to stand in front of the manor entrance . Bai Qi quickly arrived at her side .

Wei Lan was beside Gu Nan, finishing tidying her collar . “Our family’s Miss is so striking . ”

“When you get there, stay with your master . He must protect you well . If he lets you get hurt, tell me and I’ll smash in thoroughly . ”

Bai Qi suddenly felt a bit nervous but quickly whispered, “Madam, we’re on the street, in public . At least leave some face for your husband . ”

Gu Nan got on Blackie and lightly reminded him . Therefore, his speed was not too fast nor too slow, matching Bai Qi as they left Wu’an Manor .

“Hm? Did you just drink alcohol?” Bai Qi asked with a glance .

“…He he, master’s eyes are still ruthless . ” She understood the awkward predicament she was in, but she could only smirk it off .

“Muddled girl, you should learn what is good and bad, picking up these poor habits . It must be that Old Ghost taught you poorly . I’ll spare you this time, but again, it’ll be your turn to count your wrongs . ”

Bai Qi didn’t dare actually reprimand her right then, mostly because he could still feel his wife’s gaze from the distance .

Painting Fairy hadn’t come to send Gu Nan off, but yesterday she had presented a roll of cloth as a gift . It was a painting of when she was at the poetry gathering, drinking and looking out the window .

It just so happened to be small enough, and Gu Nan eventually folded it and tucked inside her inner robes .

Finally, she wanted to take another, last glance at the Wu’an Manor .

But Bai Qi’s voice was heard faintly from her side . “Do not look back . We must be steadfast, we are people going down a path of death . There is no path behind us . ”

Gu Nan nodded and clenched the cold spear in her hands .