Chapter 6

Li Guang was a very straightforward and honest person, not one for pretense. He chopped a whole fat sheep a few times and threw it into the pot to boil. This left Yun Xiao wide-eyed and amazed; he had heard of roasting a whole sheep, but never of boiling one.

The mutton soup, which smelled strongly of game, was enjoyed by Li Guang and Xiao Bai. Seeing Xiao Bai still eager for more, Yun Xiao handed him a piece of succulent mutton, thinking it was a good time for him to eat more while he was growing.

Xiao Bai whimpered in thanks and continued to fight with the mutton.

Old Li, watching Yun Xiao drink the mutton soup as if it were medicine, couldn't help but feel puzzled.

"Yun, is the food not to your taste?"

Yun Xiao looked at his thin arms and legs, unable to associate himself with the word 'hero.' He took a packet of seasoning from his backpack, and with a military knife, quickly whittled a chopstick into a point.

He cut a few pieces of mutton and skewered them on the chopstick, then placed them by the fire to roast, turning them and sprinkling seasoning as he went. Soon, the rich smell of cumin filled the entire general's residence.

Li Guang's initial curiosity turned to amazement. He sniffed the air and squatted in front of Yun Xiao. The Xinjiang-style meat skewer, not yet fully cooked, was snatched away by the impatient Li Guang. After eating just one piece, he closed his eyes in enjoyment and finished it in a few bites, leaving only a bare stick. He patted Yun Xiao's shoulder, urging him to hurry up and roast more.

A young man in armor, with a small beard, saw the situation and promptly handed Yun Xiao a skewer of mutton.

Yun Xiao smiled politely at the young man, who chuckled and introduced himself, "I am Li Gan."

It turned out to be the unfortunate man who was killed by Huo Qubing. Yun Xiao took the mutton skewer and continued roasting it.

Old Li had a great appetite, and the chopsticks were no longer sufficient. Now, the arrow shafts had become the new skewers, as they were long enough to hold a lot of meat. However, roasting half a pound of meat at once would take a long time. Yun Xiao handed the roasting job to Little Li, thinking to himself, "I'm not some street vendor, Uncle Maimaiti."

Clearly, Little Li, who was roasting for the first time, lacked experience. Seeing Old Li gasp and inhale, Yun Xiao knew he had used too much chili powder. He took a big gulp of wine to wash it down. Old Li exhaled deeply, "Painful, but really, really painful."

"Yun, please stay in Mayi for two days. Once the head of the Left Daxuwu is delivered to the court, you will be rewarded."

Old Li slapped the inexperienced Little Li and patted his belly before going to patrol the city.

"Yun, what is this red stuff? It feels like fire in my mouth. It doesn't look like it would kill someone, does it?"

Little Li's brain development clearly lagged behind his physical growth, no wonder he was killed by Huo Qubing. Yun Xiao thought, "I'm not some assassin, and I'm not here to poison your father."

Ignoring the somewhat dazed Little Li, Yun Xiao hurried to roast a few skewers for himself. There wasn't much mutton left, and a strong, bull-like Little Li was standing nearby. If he didn't act quickly, he'd be left with only bones.

The barbecue was dry, so he took a sip of the wine Little Li was drinking. Yun Xiao immediately spat it out; it tasted like dishwater, and the yellowish liquid looked more like urine.

He rummaged through his backpack and found a bottle of a liter of Red Star Erguotou. He took a small sip, and Little Li, with his keen sense of smell, greedily stared at the bottle in Yun Xiao's hand.

Unable to bear Little Li's gaze, Yun Xiao handed him the bottle after taking a sip.

Little Li took the bottle, sniffed it, and then tilted his head back, drinking it like a whale. "Damn, 52 degrees of Red Star Erguotou," Yun Xiao thought, eagerly waiting for Little Li's reaction.

Little Li's face turned from yellow to red, then to purple. His body swayed, and his steps became dreamlike, almost like Michael Jackson's moonwalk.

Little Li walked in circles in the courtyard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. Clearly, his stomach couldn't handle such strong liquor, and he was trying hard to suppress the nausea.

Little Li persisted, but he couldn't hold it. The pressure in his stomach caused the alcohol to spray out over a meter.

The dreamlike steps didn't stop. Little Li started to do drunken boxing, his hoarse voice screaming in a way that reminded Yun Xiao of the band Power Station.

The soldiers nearby scattered, and Xiao Bai, frightened, dropped the mutton and ran to Yun Xiao's arms, watching the swaying Little Li warily. Liu Cheng quickly took Yun Xiao away to avoid any trouble. He didn't believe Yun Xiao was there to poison the young general.

They arrived at the inn, and Liu Cheng had food brought in. Yun Xiao had barely eaten enough, and the tasteless porridge was hard to swallow.

"Yun, is the food not to your taste? I can have it changed."

"No, Liu, is salt scarce in the army? Why is the food so bland?"

"Liu, you don't know. The salt in the army is transported from Chang'an over long distances. The journey is long, and there are many bandits along the way. Sometimes they even dare to rob the military salt. Guanzhong and Longyou have always lacked salt. The few salt mines have been mined for over a hundred years, and the output is severely insufficient.

Guanzhong is far from the sea, and transporting sea salt is very difficult. The lack of salt is one of the reasons why the Han army is weak. If we had enough salt, we wouldn't have been defeated by the Xiongnu."

"Then the Xiongnu don't lack salt?"

"I don't know, but it seems they don't lack salt. The grasslands have few people. Five years ago, my fief of Mayi had thirty thousand households and a million people. It probably had more people than the Xiongnu combined. The annual salt demand was enormous. The court encourages private salt transportation, but the journey is long, and there are many bandits. Even official salt is robbed, let alone private salt. The people of Guanzhong and Longyou suffer."

"Does the court allow private salt transportation?"

"In every dynasty, private salt transportation is forbidden, which is why we have people like Cheng Yaojin. I never thought the current court would encourage private salt transportation."

"I passed by a salt flat, which stretches as far as the eye can see."

"Yun, are you talking about the Ghost Salt Flat? The salt there is deadly."

"I have a method to make the salt there edible and safe."

"Really?"

Liu Cheng's eyes lit up. He knew how much profit this could bring.

"Really."

"Brother, if you teach me this method, I will ensure you are ennobled and given a fief of at least five hundred households."

"Ennobled?"

Yun Xiao didn't think being ennobled was a big deal; it was just a title, not as practical as real money.

Seeing Yun Xiao's hesitation, Liu Cheng quickly added, "To be honest, I am the second son of Liu Ao, the current Minister of Clan Affairs. The current emperor is my clan uncle. My promise is absolutely valid. Additionally, I can give you a 20% share. What do you think?"

So, he's a second-generation official, no, a second-generation royal. No wonder he has such a big mouth. A 20% share is a huge benefit. Yun Xiao, having no roots in the Han dynasty, knew that too much benefit could be dangerous. Li Ka-shing said it's better to have a stake than full control.

"Since Liu is so generous, I cannot refuse."

"Shall we go now?"

"I need some things prepared by Liu."

"Yun, just tell me what you need."

Yun Xiao dictated, and Liu Cheng recorded a long list on a piece of silk.

Children are always carefree. Wei Qing and Wei Zifu were playing with Xiao Bai. It was good to let the little guy exercise during the day, or he would run around at night catching mice. Yun Xiao didn't want to wake up to dead mice every morning.

Taking advantage of the time, he quickly packed his backpack.

A set of camouflage clothing, a military knife, and a Swiss Army knife. A multifunctional entrenching tool, no food left, half a bag of monosodium glutamate, and half a bag of salt. Oh, the hot peppers he bought in Xishuangbanna were still there. They were very spicy. Yun Xiao bought a large bag in a Miao village, planning to plant them at home. His wife loved spicy and numbing hotpot, and this was the perfect way to please her.

Thinking of his wife and son in the other world, Yun Xiao's mood turned melancholy.

In two months, his son would take the high school entrance exam. He wondered if his absence would affect his studies and whether he could get into a good high school.

His father, a lifelong professor of Chinese literature, should be able to tutor his son.

Thinking of his aging parents, Yun Xiao's eyes reddened. For so many years, he had been running around, unable to properly take care of them. "When you want to, your parents are no longer there." No, that's not right; it's "When you want to, you are no longer there."

He packed while tears streamed down his face.

"Missing home?" Wei Auntie walked up to Yun Xiao.

"Yes."

"Ah, going to the Xiongnu. Ten people go, but not all ten return. If you can come back, it's a blessing. Alright, it's dark. Wash up and go to bed."

That night, Yun Xiao dreamed of his parents and wife. He dreamed of making a big table of food, with the whole family gathered around. The scene was warm and touching. His son was gnawing on a pork knuckle, his mouth dripping with oil, and refusing to pour wine for his grandfather.

His father's wine glass, greasy from his son's hands, slipped and fell. He quickly leaned down to lick the spilled wine from the table.

"Guizhou Maotai, I don't get to drink it often."

Yun Xiao smiled, and tears mingled with his smile.

Suddenly, the world shook, and Yun Xiao opened his eyes to see a face full of ridicule in front of him.

---

The page turned, and the advertisement began.

The page turned, and the advertisement ended.