Chapter 28: Black Feather Army
At this moment, even though Jin Sui couldn’t see her own eyes, she knew they must be glowing green like those of the soldiers.
Han Xing first got her food: four chicken legs and two large flatbreads.
She cast a resentful glance at Han Xing. Did I not deserve to eat ribs, pork belly, pig snouts, or pig trotters?
But Han Xing misunderstood her gaze and quickly said, “Your Highness, rest assured, this chicken was stewed separately and did not pick up any pork smell.”
She then realized that in this era, people of status did not eat pork; nobles ate more lamb.
This was because pigs were not castrated in this era and were fed unclean things. Giving pork to Li King would be an insult.
Jin Sui sniffed and smelled the pork soup bubbling in the large pot. Indeed, without cooking wine, ginger, or scallions, the fishy smell was extremely strong.
I’d rather eat chicken legs!
When we reach Yandi, I’ll teach Black Feather nutritional pig-raising techniques, guaranteeing the raising of plump, fragrant pigs.
When she saw Han Xing ordering over a dozen people to eat first, she realized these soldiers were injured.
She was both angry and regretful. Damn it, she had forgotten to make Jiang Nansheng pay for medical expenses!
She said to Han Xing:
“Next time this happens, you must tell me sooner!
We should ‘extort,’ no, we must make him compensate for the medical expenses!”
Han Xing said a little sheepishly, “But we injured more of their soldiers.”
Jin Sui felt no guilt whatsoever. “That’s because they are weak!”
Han Xing: …
No one told me Li King was so protective and unreasonable.
After the first group finished eating, Jin Sui told them to go dig for wild vegetables and pick wild fruits, not just to eat meat, but to supplement vitamins.
She, on the other hand, examined and bandaged the injured soldiers, giving them medicine from the laboratory.
After resting for an hour on the spot, barely getting a short nap, Han Xing called for them to continue their journey.
He still insisted on leaving Huai Prefecture as quickly as possible.
Jin Sui could barely stand; she was so sleepy she didn’t even want her head anymore.
Sleepiness was like invisible chains, pulling her down into dreams.
She desperately missed the Big Green Donkey; she could sleep while riding on its back.
But she was afraid of falling off if she slept on horseback.
Moreover, she was riding with Han Xing. She had wanted to ride with Hei Hu, but Hei Hu was too large, and his horse couldn’t bear the weight.
At first, she tried her best not to doze off, as she was Li King now.
If she fell asleep in Han Xing’s arms while sitting in front of him, she imagined the scene and felt she would have disgraced Li King’s reputation completely!
In the future, she would return this “title” to Gu Changxiao, who would surely refuse out of shame.
But this thing called sleep, it’s truly irresistible!
Perhaps Han Xing also felt it would be too awkward for the King to sleep in his arms, and since the King was too sleepy, he actually came up with a good idea.
That was to have Jin Sui lie across the horse’s back, looking like a bandit’s captured wife.
Jin Sui hesitated for a second between losing face and sleeping, then felt that second was too wasteful.
It wasn’t her face being lost, but Li King’s!
But she was the one dying of sleepiness!
So she really lay across the horse’s back, letting Han Xing carry her. Even with the bumpy ride, like a roller coaster, she fell asleep!
Han Xing’s perception of Li King was refreshed again: bold, protective, domineering, unreasonable, able to eat and sleep, and completely unconcerned with appearances…
Well, following such a Master wasn’t bad either.
When they successfully exited Huai Prefecture, everyone breathed a long sigh of relief.
Jin Sui insisted on resting. It wasn’t just her who couldn’t take it; these soldiers couldn’t either.
They had been traveling for ten days since leaving Yandi to pick up Li King, never eating their fill or sleeping soundly.
Han Xing saw his companions looking at him with pleading eyes, while Li King’s gaze was a mix of pleading and threat, as if he would tie Han Xing up if he refused to rest.
He could only say, “There’s a post station a few dozen miles ahead.”
Jin Sui quickly said, “We can’t go to the post station! Who knows if the enemy will ambush? We’ll camp in the wild.”
She wanted to minimize contact with outsiders to avoid being discovered.
The campsite was in a forest. Under such harsh conditions, Han Xing still managed to make a straw nest for her; what a considerate subordinate.
If I were truly Li King, I would definitely promote and give you a raise!
This time they rested for a full four hours, from dusk until just before dawn. Jin Sui fell asleep while still eating, without even putting down her bowl.
Finally, having slept enough, she woke up to see Hei Hu leaning against a tree not far away, snoring thunderously.
The birds in the forest were so scared they didn’t dare return to their nests all night.
She was even surprised that she could sleep through such loud snoring.
Han Xing led a group to keep watch and make breakfast.
They slept in shifts, but Jin Sui guessed that Han Xing, being a highly responsible old squad leader, slept for at most two hours.
The large pot of porridge was cooked with a lot of wild vegetables.
Some pork fat was left from yesterday’s pork stew, and it was used to make flatbread.
Don’t think this breakfast was lavish, because there were only two meals a day. After this meal, the next one wouldn’t be until the afternoon.
Jin Sui always felt these border soldiers were too pitiful; they had never eaten anything good, and a single piece of pork was treated like a delicacy.
Yesterday, Hei Hu was so moved when eating pork that tears streamed down his face, each tear as large as a popcorn kernel.
He ate the meat with rice, not even chewing, just shoveling it into his mouth, stretching his neck, and swallowing.
During this period, she exploited a loophole in the laboratory by taking energy bars out and then putting them back in.
The laboratory would automatically replenish the taken items, while the ones she put in would still exist.
She had used this method before to ensure she, Grandpa Ling, and Jin An had energy bars to eat every day.
She hadn’t eaten any recently and had saved quite a few. She decided to treat all the soldiers to an energy bar to supplement their sugar intake.
When all the soldiers got up, groomed their horses, and prepared their horse feed, they were ready for breakfast.
Jin Sui quietly took out a large bag of energy bars. One per person wouldn’t be enough, but one for every few people would be fine.
She unpacked them directly in her space and put them into a clean bag, then called Hei Hu:
“Take these and distribute them to the brothers.”
Hei Hu took them and ran off without asking any questions; this was Hei Hu’s greatest strength.
But others didn’t have this advantage. Hei Hu ran off like a black smoke and then ran back like a black smoke:
“Your Highness, they are asking where they came from?”
Jin Sui originally wanted to find a reasonable explanation, but then she thought, I am Li King now!
Does Li King need to explain to you? You’re not Grandpa Ling!
She waved her hand and said, “Anyone who asks doesn’t get any.”
Hei Hu said “Aye” and ran off again. When Jin Sui arrived at the kitchen range,
she saw a very amusing scene: over three hundred people were divided into two groups. One group was eating flatbread filled with softened energy bars, grinning happily.
Their faces were full of the happiness of consuming sugar, which was different from the happiness of eating meat.
The other group, holding bowls of porridge, looked at them enviously.
Jin Sui scanned the scene briefly. Yes, it was as she expected. Most of the group eating energy bars, like Hei Hu, had sincere and simple smiles.
The short person whose clothes Hei Hu had snatched also got one and was sitting next to Hei Hu. From behind, the two looked like Bear Two and Baldy Qiang.
Those who didn’t get any were the smart ones; Han Xing didn’t get any.
He was currently looking at Jin Sui resentfully. Li King suddenly produced a pile of unheard-of food. What was wrong with him asking where it came from?
Because of that, he missed out.
And Hei Hu, that stubborn fellow, executed the King’s orders perfectly. He truly didn’t give any to those who spoke out of turn and asked.
Han Xing guessed that these items must have been given by Li King’s secret guards.
He recalled Li King’s behavior in Huai Prefecture City, so bold, realizing that Jiang Nansheng wouldn’t dare to touch him.
His secret guards must have arrived then and protected him secretly along the way. Seeing that the King was eating too simply, they sent exquisite dim sum.
And the King insisted on eating and sleeping with the soldiers, which led Hei Hu to share the dim sum with everyone. But he had to be nosy and ask where it came from…
Uh, if Jin Sui knew what Han Xing was thinking at this moment, she would definitely tell him, “You are the strongest ‘brain-power’ king!”
