Chapter 34

Guang arrived at the village and washed himself in the Jinling River, which flowed nearby. His body was covered in blood. He also thoroughly washed the blood off his armor and horse armor. As he was washing diligently, Ma Hua approached and, seeing what he was doing, smiled gently.

"You seem to like being clean. But another battle will soon begin; there's no need to clean so thoroughly. Human blood has oil, so it won't rust if left alone."

"Hmm... But I don't feel good with blood all over me."

Ma Hua nodded as if understanding and then, in a senior's tone, advised:

"Thinking like that won't help you survive on the battlefield."

"..."

After washing thoroughly, Guang dried his armor roughly and put it back on. He also wiped the horse armor and put it back on the horse.

"I don't know if I'm doing the right thing..."

"What do you mean? Washing? I already said it's unnecessary now."

"No, I mean killing."

"Killing on the battlefield isn't murder. If we don't kill them, they will kill us."

"Hmm..."

Ma Hua, with a slightly teasing tone, pretended to be serious.

"Why are you like this? Are you trembling from the act of killing? The guilt of taking a life won't go away easily. It's normal at first, but as time passes, such thoughts will fade, so don't take it too seriously."

To his surprise, Guang shook his head sadly.

"No, it's not that. While killing many people, I felt a kind of pleasure. I felt nothing else. The excitement from seeing blood, the pungent smell of blood... I killed in a state of excitement, and yet, I can't help but wonder why I don't feel guilty. According to the books I've read, I should feel guilty... I'm talking nonsense. You should wash up too."

Ma Hua could only watch as Guang rode away.

'Worried because you don't feel guilty? What does that mean?'

The village had turned into a battlefield. Corpses were scattered everywhere, and women's screams and groans filled the air. As he rode past, he could guess what was happening inside the Mongol tents. Soldiers were dragging women into the tents, and some were even cutting old men in half in front of the tents.

Guang frowned and hurried to his tent. As he rode, a particularly sharp voice caught his attention.

"You bastards! No!"

Guang understood Mongolian after learning it from the Imperial Guard. He saw a woman trying to stop four soldiers from dragging a girl. One of the soldiers, annoyed, pulled out a knife and stabbed the woman. The girl, screaming, tried to reach her mother, but the soldiers forcibly dragged her into the tent. Guang felt an overwhelming sadness.

'Is this what we fought such a bloody battle for? What's the difference between the barbarians and the people of the Central Plains?'

The girl's crying stirred a strange emotion in Guang. It was a sense of longing.

'There's no way I've met this girl before... Have I seen a similar scene?'

Unable to stand it any longer, Guang dismounted and approached them. They were not from the Black Wind Corps, so his orders wouldn't be effective. As he approached, they became slightly wary and greeted him.

"Hello?"

They recognized him as a centurion from the numbers on his armor. Having worked with the Black Wind Corps for a long time, they knew the ranks and were naturally cautious, as the Black Wind Corps were all skilled officers.

"Can you give me that girl?"

The soldiers, guessing his intentions, chuckled.

"You seem to like her, but we found her first..."

"Hmm, how about this? I'll give you a silver coin each."

The mention of money caught their attention. A woman was just a woman, but silver coins were different. With so many women around, they could give up this one and choose another.

"Hehe, sure."

Guang threw a silver coin to each of them and said to the girl in Mongolian.

"Bring something that can be a memento of your parents."

The girl hesitated for a moment, then ran to a tent and came back with a wooden statue of a bodhisattva and a few other items that didn't seem valuable. The soldiers had already looted the tent, leaving nothing of value.

Guang decided to take the girl out of the village and release her. He put her on his horse and rode out. On the way, he met a Black Wind Corps member, who smiled at the sight of Guang holding the dirty girl.

"You've already found one. You're really the commander. You're going to use her as a servant, right? Even if the commander allowed it, I don't want a Mongol woman as a servant."

He looked at the girl closely and added:

"Well, she's not that ugly. Everyone has different tastes, though..."

He then rode away. Guang pondered the part about the commander allowing it.

'If the commander allowed using Mongol women as servants, there's no need to abandon her in the outskirts. I should keep her until I find someone who knows her and then hand her over.'

In Mongolia, abduction for marriage was common. If a man liked a woman, he would kidnap her and take her home. The woman would then serve her new husband. If she was kidnapped again, she would forget her previous husband and children and serve her new family. This might be an adaptation for women to survive in a world dominated by men with animal-like desires. Thus, the concept of chastity was weak among Mongol women. Anyone who wanted them could live with them.

Commander Yu Yingzhen, knowing Mongol customs, allowed the use of women as servants, thinking it would cause no trouble. The captured women were to be sold as slaves anyway, so using them as servants before selling them was not a big issue. They weren't like clothes that wear out with use...

With his mind made up, Guang headed for his tent. Soon, an unbearable smell filled his nose.

'What is this smell?'

He leaned down to smell the girl, and... ugh!

"How long has it been since you bathed?"

"What's a bath?"

She didn't understand the Mongolian word for bath, so he said it in Chinese, which she couldn't understand...

"You don't know what a bath is? It's washing your body."

"Last summer..."

In Mongolia, men and women wore thick leather clothes that doubled as blankets, and they didn't take them off until spring. It was natural not to bathe until the weather warmed up. Without a word, Guang turned his horse towards the Jinling River. Upon arrival, he threw the girl into the river. It was still spring, and the water from the mountains was very cold. The girl was startled.

"Aah!"

As she struggled and stood up, Guang said coldly:

"Hurry up and wash. Clean yourself. And wash your clothes. Wait a moment..."

He took a small piece of soap from his saddlebag and threw it to her.

"Use this to wash. If you don't, I'll push you underwater and let you freeze to death."

As Guang's eyes glinted, the girl, frightened, quickly began to undress and wash. Her young, pale body shivered. After washing her body and clothes, she walked out, shivering from the cold. Guang, realizing he had no spare clothes, approached her and placed his hand on her shoulder. The girl, seeing Guang in black armor with a face mask, felt fear but didn't resist. Guang channeled his inner energy into her body. As the powerful energy flowed through her, her shivering stopped, and the water quickly evaporated.

He then took the wet clothes from her and shook them, infusing them with his energy. The water evaporated instantly. Handing her the clean, dry clothes, Guang watched as she put them on, thinking she wasn't as ugly as his subordinate had said. He put her back on his horse and returned to his tent.

"You... how old are you?"

"Fifteen."

"Fifteen? Not that young. What's your name?"

"Ha Bu Er [Spring]."

"Ha Bu Er? That's a nice name. Whether you like it or not, you'll have to stay with me for a while. Don't think about running away. You don't know what might happen if you do..."

Upon arriving at his tent, the first thing Guang did was find spare clothes for Ha Bu Er. After preparing some clothes and household items, he gave them to her.

"Can you cook?"

"Yes."

...

As they conversed, a subordinate arrived and peeked into the tent.

"The commander is looking for you."

He smiled slyly as Guang came out.

"Wow, I didn't believe Jin when he said it... You're quite capable. Already got one?"

"Stop talking nonsense and get to work."

Upon entering the commander's tent, Yu Yingzhen greeted him warmly.

"Oh, you did a great job in this battle. Well done."

"Thank you."

"You've done a lot this time... I thought about what to give you and decided on this."

He handed Guang a sword. It was a magnificent sword, with jewels on the hilt and scabbard, and intricate patterns on the scabbard.

"I'm satisfied with my own sword."

"No, your sword is good for ordinary battles, but not for war. A 2.3-foot sword is too short for combat. This is a 3-foot long sword, which will be useful in cavalry battles. It's the Qing Xing Sword, given to me by the Emperor for my service in the war against the Jurchens. It doesn't suit me, so I want you to use it. It's not a legendary sword like the Mo Kun Sword, but it's sharper and stronger than ordinary swords, so there's no need to refuse."

"I understand. Thank you."

"By the way, I heard you got a Mongol woman?"

"Yes."

"Why, when you've always avoided women?"

"People's thoughts change. I'll take my leave now."

Guang, driven by compassion, had brought Ha Bu Er to his tent, but as night fell, he worried about what to do next. Living alone was easy, but with a roommate, things were complicated. Especially with this traumatized girl, he had no idea how to handle her, as this was the first time he had talked to a girl. He couldn't hand her over to Ma Hua or other female subordinates, as they would mock him.

When it was time to sleep, he took four thick furs from his luggage and laid one on each side, gesturing awkwardly.

"You sleep over there."

To hide his awkwardness, he quickly lay down and turned his back. He could hear Ha Bu Er lying down behind him. But the problem started soon after. Until then, he had been her conversation partner, but lying alone in the quiet night, Ha Bu Er began to cry softly. The sound was so low that anyone else might not have noticed, but it made Guang feel awkward. He couldn't pretend not to hear it, so he endured. But after about two hours, the crying continued, and Guang, frustrated, shouted.

"Hey! Can't you stop sniffling?"

Ha Bu Er, startled, cried even louder. Guang realized that shouting wouldn't solve the problem. Deciding to act, he got up, and Ha Bu Er's crying stopped. She was probably afraid of being hit.

But Guang changed his mind and lay down next to her. He gently hugged her and patted her back, speaking in the softest voice he could manage.

"Don't be too upset about what happened today. It was something you couldn't control, right?"

Ha Bu Er, hugging Guang, cried even louder but not for long. Guang infused his energy into her body, helping her relax and fall asleep. After a while, she stopped crying and fell asleep as intended.

"..."

He wanted to use a pressure point to make her sleep deeply and return to his side, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. After hesitating, he fell asleep too.

The next morning, they were found hugging each other. Suddenly, Ma Hua burst in.

"Commander!"

With a cheerful voice, she pulled back the tent flap, and the scene inside was clear. Ma Hua, who had a crush on Guang, was not pleased to see him hugging a Mongol girl. She shouted with a sharp tone.

"We have a mobilization order."

Guang, startled, sat up.

"Why? Didn't we have three days to rest?"

"At 140 li (about 56 kilometers) northeast, a group of fleeing Mongol soldiers was found. There are 8,000 of them! The 4th, 5th, and 6th thousand-man units have been ordered to mobilize. The 4th thousand-man unit is the vanguard, and Commander Guan has ordered our 400-man unit to lead the main force."

Guang quickly got up and started putting on his armor. Still half-asleep, his morning erection was still visible. Seeing it, Ma Hua blushed.

"I'll wait outside. Any orders?"

Ma Hua's blushing face didn't affect the indifferent Guang. He gave his orders confidently.

"We'll mobilize in one hour. Tell everyone to have a quick meal. The 1st, 6th, and 7th hundred-man units will lead the main force. Since it's a long journey, don't put on the horse armor."

"Understood."

Ma Hua ran off to relay the orders. Guang quickly put on his armor and stroked Ha Bu Er's head.

"Stay here until I return. Understand?"

Ha Bu Er, holding out Guang's Qing Xing Sword, replied.

"Be careful."

"Thank you..."

Guang took the sword and went outside, where his subordinates brought his horse. He nimbly mounted.

"Let's go quickly. Hey! Lin Zhong!"

"Sir."

"Has everyone packed enough food?"

Guang's "food" referred to dried meat, salted meat, and other provisions that could be eaten on the move. Lin Zhong confidently replied.

"Yes."