Chapter 52

Mo Yin wanted to distance himself from others, and he could do it thoroughly and faultlessly with just four words: business is business.

When Mo Yin reported to He Xuan about the intention to increase the troops by another two thousand, his demeanor and tone were both rigid and formal. He Xuan carefully listened and then agreed without hesitation.

After receiving the approval, Mo Yin immediately took his leave without any lingering, not even making eye contact with He Xuan.

Once He Xuan and the others left, he clenched his fists with a tense expression.

What had he done to offend him?

Thinking back, it seemed to be related to those pills. But he had only meant well. What was wrong with that?

He Xuan picked up the documents from the table, his brows furrowed tightly. He held the documents so tightly in his palm that they seemed about to crumble. He flattened them out and began reviewing them with a pen in hand.

The border remained calm, and the weather grew hotter day by day. This year’s weather seemed exceptionally scorching. The Longting River battle had driven back two tribes of the Miao, easing the water shortage in the military camps and cities. The soldiers could now bathe and wash their horses without worry.

After the training session, the soldiers bathed themselves and their horses. In the military camp, where only men were present, everyone stripped naked and washed, chatting and laughing softly as they worked.

They dared not speak too loudly, fearing to disturb their strategist.

In the hearts of the soldiers of the Yingfu Army, there was both reverence and fear for Mo Yin. Their awe of Mo Yin even surpassed their respect for He Xuan. At least, if they were to encounter He Xuan while naked, they might not feel embarrassed. But if they saw Mo Yin, they would surely feel ashamed and cover themselves up. They felt as though they had defiled their strategist’s eyes.

“Strategist, the water is here,” Zhou Yong said, carrying two buckets of hot water into the tent.

Mo Yin tilted his head slightly to the right.

Zhou Yong nodded slightly and carefully poured one of the buckets into the wooden tub.

As he poured the water, Mo Yin began to undress. His body had suffered severe injuries when he first entered this world. Even in the scorching summer, he couldn’t use cold water for bathing; he had to use hot water.

After Zhou Yong poured both buckets of water and left with the empty ones, Mo Yin had already started undressing. He would bathe with just a thin shirt on, even in the scorching heat. He could only use hot water for bathing due to his injuries.

Mo Yin’s body was different from the others. While everyone else was covered in dust and grime from the wind and sun in the military camp, Mo Yin’s pale face never showed a speck of dirt. Only when he drank too much did a faint blush appear. His strikingly pale face stood out in the military camp, where there were no women. 

If Mo Yin were an ordinary soldier, others might have different thoughts about him. But Mo Yin was their strategist. He had trained them and made them proficient in archery and combat. He had trained them harshly, and whatever demands he made of them, he could easily fulfill himself.

Mo Yin seemed completely indifferent to how others saw him. Despite his sensitivity to cold and heat, after bathing, he would only wear a thin shirt. He would then sit on a large stone in the shade of the mountain behind the military camp to cool off, enjoying the coolness of the night while sipping wine and admiring the moon.

This place had originally been the most suitable spot in the Yingfu Army for cooling off. The night was cool, the stars were twinkling, and it was perfect for escaping the summer heat. But ever since one day when Mo Yin had come wearing a thin summer shirt, revealing his fair chest under the open collar, the soldiers who were chatting here had been startled and immediately stood up to kneel and salute him.

Mo Yin raised his hand slightly and sat directly on the large stone. He slightly bent one long leg, his thin shirt sliding down slightly to reveal his pale, muscular calf. The soldiers took a quick glance and then lowered their heads, too afraid to look again. They quickly retreated, sweating profusely.

Since then, this place has become Mo Yin’s territory alone, and everyone has avoided it like the plague.

If someone came, Mo Yin didn’t mind, but if no one came, he cared even less. He lifted his robe and lay down directly on the big stone as if it were a natural, hard bed to rest on. The stone was cool at night, and very comfortable to lie on, with the tree shade on his face and a gentle breeze swaying, it was perfect for dozing off.

Zhou Yong guarded not far away. Although no one in the Firefly Army dared disturb at this time, it was also unpredictable if there would be any urgent matters. Some careless soldiers from other armies might come and accidentally bump into the military advisor.

Today, someone careless did come, it was Li Yuan, in a hurry.

“Where’s the military advisor?”

The two had a succession relationship. Zhou Yong wasn’t particularly friendly towards Li Yuan, and coldly replied, “Cooling off inside.”

“The general has important matters to discuss with the military advisor.”

Zhou Yong, who took care of Mo Yin by his side, naturally understood Mo Yin’s thoughts. Mo Yin seemed to be at odds with the general now. As his subordinate, Zhou Yong naturally shared the same enmity towards the general’s people. He treated Li Yuan, the personal guard of He Xuan, with even more indifference, and hastily saluted, “Please wait.”

Mo Yin was resting with his eyes closed. When Zhou Yong came over, he didn’t dare to get too close. He whispered the reason, and Mo Yin glanced at the person waiting in the distance. He naturally knew that the person waiting was Li Yuan.

“What’s the matter?”

“I don’t know.”

Mo Yin got up, his hair still slightly wet. He said to Zhou Yong, “Let him go back first, I’ll go over immediately.”

Li Yuan returned to the tent and informed He Xuan that Mo Yin would come later. He Xuan’s face darkened, and he waved his hand impatiently, enduring for a while, his brows furrowing tighter and tighter.

Now, can’t they even call people for official business?

Even if they had personal grievances, although he didn’t know exactly what grievances existed between them, if it affected official matters, he would never allow it.

He Xuan felt a surge of frustration in his chest, his palms clenched tightly, the naturally dignified look in his eyes almost bursting into flames.

“General.”

He Xuan suddenly turned his head, his cold eyes freezing instantly.

The military affairs were busy, and coupled with Mo Yin deliberately keeping his distance, the two hadn’t seen each other for over two months. In He Xuan’s memory, Mo Yin was still wearing a cloak, wrapping himself tightly from head to toe, with sleeves and hand warmers given by him, but his face showed disdain towards him.

Now that the weather was hot, Mo Yin wore only two thin shirts, a deep brown inner shirt, and a green outer shirt, a very ordinary men’s outfit. But worn by him, it made his complexion even more fair, his neck long and graceful, quite ethereal.

“General summoned me late at night, I wonder what it’s about?”

Mo Yin made a polite gesture, his robe sliding slightly, revealing the faint pink scar on his wrist.

“Sit.” He Xuan said briefly.

Mo Yin lifted his robe and sat down, his attitude calm, “Please, General, speak.”

He Xuan also suppressed the anger in his heart, “There have been some movements in the Barbarian Tribe recently.”

“Movements?”

“Regarding provisions.”

“When?”

“Within these few days.”

“Can we take preemptive action?”

“Our scouts are dead.”

The conversation between the two was extremely concise, without the need for many words. They both understood each other’s meaning, and the communication was extremely smooth. This made He Xuan puzzled. They were obviously so taciturn, why was Mo Yin so indifferent to him?

He Xuan realized that he had momentarily lost focus on official business. He immediately concentrated again, got up, and walked to the sand table, gesturing for Mo Yin to come over.

The sand table, which was empty when he first arrived, was now filled with various markings under He Xuan’s arrangement.

Chang Sansi was indeed lazy and lacked ambition. He only wanted to hold his ground and be satisfied. The army didn’t have much information about the surrounding Barbarian Tribes, which required He Xuan to collect bit by bit. Many scouts were sacrificed. The barbarians were very cunning. Even with so many scouts dead, the intelligence gathered was only approximate.

The Yingfu Army’s first battle caused heavy casualties among the barbarians. The revengeful barbarians unexpectedly shrank back. Without provocation, He Xuan didn’t slack off. He deeply realized that if the barbarian tribes launched another attack, it would be an extremely fierce life-and-death battle.

He Xuan had been keeping a low profile, waiting for this battle to come.

And now, he seemed to smell the scent of war.

He Xuan pointed to the markings on the sand table and said, “The Barbarian Tribe is divided into sixteen parts. The two parts of Changdeng River have been destroyed by the Firefly Army. The remaining tribes are deterred, and in the past year, they have all been adjusting around the Hake Tribe, forming a pattern where many tribes are like stars surrounding the moon. Among the sixteen tribes, the Hake Tribe is the leader, and their alliance is already formed. The queen of the Hake Tribe comes from the Yingchao. Recently, scouts found that there are a large number of vehicles and horses moving from the Yingchao to the Barbarian Tribe, continuously transporting provisions.”

Mo Yin chuckled coldly, “The Yilan, a small country, dares to meddle?”

“They’re outside the Barbarian Tribe’s encirclement line, probably thinking they’re very safe and want to profit from it.”

“Some people always dream of swallowing an elephant as a snake.”

Mo Yin pointed to the top of the sand table and said, “Since they want to get involved, why not fulfill their wish, General, and let them in too.”

He Xuan had this intention. Whether it was the Barbarian Tribe or Yilan, he didn’t want to let any of them slip by. But seeing the indifferent expression on Mo Yin’s face and the faint killing intent, a strand of black hair falling on his profile, lightly tapping his face, and leaving a trace of water stains, He Xuan looked carefully. He noticed that Mo Yin’s hair was still wet, hanging behind his shoulders, dampening his light blue outer robe, which hugged his body, outlining his intimate curves.

He Xuan was slightly stunned, quickly turning his face away.

His breathing became slightly disordered.

Mo Yin seemed unaware, “General?”

He Xuan wordlessly grabbed the robe hanging beside him and threw it to Mo Yin, “Put it on.”

Although Mo Yin took the robe, he still didn’t understand, “General, I’m not cold.”

“I told you to put it on, so put it on,” He Xuan turned away, avoiding eye contact, “It’s a military order.”

Mo Yin held the robe in his left hand, looked at it, then glanced at He Xuan, raised his hand and threw it back. He Xuan subconsciously caught it, preventing his own robe from being thrown on his face.

“I won’t obey such a military order.”

“The matter has been discussed, allow me to take my leave.”

Mo Yin arched his hand indifferently. As he turned around, his right shoulder was grabbed. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he reached out his left hand and twisted He Xuan’s wrist, which was resting on his shoulder, backward. He Xuan wouldn’t let him do as he pleased. He thrust his right arm forward, swiftly using a move to lock Mo Yin’s arms behind his back. Their initial intent was to discuss matters peacefully, but suddenly they started fighting.

Neither of them had weapons in their hands. They exchanged blows with fists and feet, seemingly in a martial arts spar, yet with a hint of genuine anger.

He Xuan didn’t expect Mo Yin to start a fight. After blocking, he saw that Mo Yin’s moves were merciless. His brows furrowed involuntarily. He extended both arms forward, swiftly using a move to lock Mo Yin’s arms behind his back. He stared at Mo Yin with fiery eyes and said, “Mo Zigui, where have I offended you!”

This move was originally used to control the enemy from behind, but He Xuan wanted to see how Mo Yin would react, so he flexibly changed it to frontal suppression. Mo Yin’s arms crossed like the wings of a goose and were held behind him. His chest and neck were slightly raised, his half-wet black hair cascading down, his icy eyes coldly staring at He Xuan without a reply.

He Xuan felt the fire within him unable to vent. This unfounded coldness almost filled all his thoughts beyond official matters. He really wanted—

He Xuan deeply exhaled, slowly relaxing his grip on Mo Yin’s hands, exhaling, “I’m sorry…”

As he loosened his grip, Mo Yin immediately countered with his hands, his flexible arms twisting around He Xuan’s, a knee striking He Xuan’s abdomen. He Xuan, instinctively acting from battlefield experience, subconsciously intercepted the person and attempted to toss him over his waist, but when he realized it was Mo Yin he was holding, he immediately eased his strength, changed direction, and used his body to cushion the fall.

He Xuan supported Mo Yin’s waist with his hands, in a protective posture. However, Mo Yin’s single arm gripped his throat, as if repaying kindness with enmity, their eyes met, revealing many unspoken emotions.

Two pairs of eyes, one cold and one hot, seemed to want to discover each other’s thoughts from their eyes.

He Xuan stared blankly at the face just a palm’s distance away, so cold, yet so resolute, a trace of determination appearing on the pale face…

Suddenly, He Xuan’s pupils contracted, and Mo Yin’s face changed as well, showing a look of disgust. He immediately stood up.

“General, please behave.”