Chapter 943 - 945 - Heading to Xuantian Mountain_1
Bai Ruozhu had already seen that he wasn’t lying, and naturally felt conflicted in her heart. How could she be at ease with him risking danger, especially when he was under the influence of Wu Wanqing’s "Life-Devouring Gu"?
"Are you still going to work with the officials from the Bureau of Communications this time?" Bai Ruozhu asked.
Jiang Yichun shook his head. "No, the bandit suppression is the responsibility of the Northwest Main Camp; my master is only in charge of investigating Prince Duan’s rebellion."
When he mentioned "master," a flicker of unnaturalness and a hint of guilt crossed his face. Bai Ruozhu could only pretend not to see it, not wanting to bring up Wu Yunfeng and upset him further.
"Can’t you postpone your departure by a few days? I’m somewhat worried about my second brother participating in the Rural Examination," Bai Ruozhu said.
"The order has already been given from above, and military commands cannot be altered; otherwise, I wouldn’t be in such a rush to leave. Your second brother will be fine with family guards and dark guards protecting him. Going with me to suppress the bandits may even allow Little Furball to make considerable progress," Jiang Yichun said as he fiddled with her fingers and whispered, "Could it be that in your heart, I don’t hold as much importance as your second brother?"
Bai Ruozhu tapped him on the head and said, "My second brother is my family; I can’t neglect my kin just because I have you, and besides, isn’t he also your family member?"
This left Jiang Yichun at a loss for words; he awkwardly avoided Bai Ruozhu’s gaze, thinking she might accuse him of not considering her family as his own if she knew he was even jealous of her second brother.
However, after Bai Ruozhu calmed down and thought it over carefully, she decided to go with Jiang Yichun to Xuantian Mountain. Jiang Yichun was right; her second brother would be in Beiyu City, surrounded by family and guards, and nothing should go wrong.
Once the decision to leave was made, Bai Ruozhu informed her family. To be more cautious, she gave her brother many spare pills and left some for Lin Ping’er as well before hastily packing and departing the next day.
Because they were pressed for time on this journey, they couldn’t bring Little Dengdeng along. Bai Ruozhu was quite reluctant to leave him, but Little Dengdeng’s round, black eyes were fixed only on his little sister Chenxi. He couldn’t care less about his parents leaving. When Bai Ruozhu told him they were leaving, he just hummed in acknowledgment, as if to say, "Go ahead and leave, so you won’t interrupt me playing with my sister. You’ll be back soon anyway."
Bai Ruozhu felt a sourness in her heart. Her child was simply too heartless. Before, he would forget his mother at the sight of his father, and now, he forgot her at the sight of Sister Chenxi. Even his sister had surpassed her in his affections.
Lin Ping’er found it amusing and joked, "Our Dengdeng likes Sister Chenxi so much, why not marry her when they grow up, to double the kinship?"
Old folks enjoyed teasing little children about marrying in the future, of course, only when they were young and it was all in good humor. It wouldn’t be appropriate to joke like that once they were grown.
But Bai Ruozhu reacted immediately and insisted, "No way!"
Lin Ping’er and Wan Caiyue by her side were taken aback and showed an expression of embarrassment. Wan Caiyue also thought the idea was nice, but ultimately, the children would make their own choices when they grew up. It was just a playful remark, after all. Yet, both were surprised by Bai Ruozhu’s vehement response, and Wan Caiyue suddenly remembered that Jiang Yichun was now a fifth-rank officer, and her expression dimmed.
Bai Ruozhu quickly noticed her mother’s surprise and her sister-in-law’s disappointment and internally blamed herself for overreacting. She hastily explained, "I didn’t mean anything else by it; Dengdeng and Chenxi are close relatives, with a very close blood relationship. I’ve read in medical books that marrying close relatives can affect the offspring, and may even result in children born with innate defects."
She was afraid that people from ancient times wouldn’t believe her, so she quickly racked her brain for examples, "Previously, at the East End of the Village, the Wang Family married within relatives, and they had a child who was born with intellectual disabilities, likely due to this very reason."
Lin Ping’er and Wan Caiyue immediately recalled the two "fools" that the village children always laughed at—one was Xiaosi, and the other was the Wang Family’s child. Xiaosi was made that way by an injury and wasn’t intellectually disabled but had autism, while the Wang Family’s child had been born with the disability.
Then Lin Ping’er and Wan Caiyue both understood Bai Ruozhu’s meaning. Wan Caiyue was an open-hearted person and even smiled apologetically at Bai Ruozhu, saying, "Little sister, it seems I misunderstood you."
"I also didn’t explain to you, and since ancient times, nobody has opposed close kin marrying; on the contrary, such unions have always been celebrated. It’s not that you were overthinking it," Bai Ruozhu said.
Bai Ruozhu’s medical skills had already won the approval of everyone in the Bai Family. If she said that marriage among close relatives was not good, it certainly was so. Lin Ping’er slapped her head and said, "Oh, a few days ago your aunt sent a letter, asking about Zeji’s marriage prospects, saying that she planned to arrange a marriage with a girl from her maternal family. Isn’t that a close relative? I must quickly reply to Zeji’s mother."
"Mother, phrase it more diplomatically, as ordinary people might not accept this reasoning," Bai Ruozhu reminded her, lest her well-meaning mother offend their relatives.
"Mmm, I understand, now hurry up and be on your way, don’t keep Yichun waiting," Lin Ping’er said.
To not delay the journey, Bai Ruozhu did not take a horse carriage this time but rode a horse instead. The soldiers in the Northwest Main Camp respected her greatly, immediately greeting her with utmost courtesy upon seeing her. Tu Lie was extremely surprised by this sight; he knew these senior men were often proud and difficult to manage, yet they were so respectful to a woman.
Bai Ruozhu also turned to look at Tu Lie and respectfully greeted him, showcasing the attitude of the younger generation towards an elder. Tu Lie inwardly nodded, feeling that Bai Ruozhu was not the uncouth and arrogant person he had heard of in rumors, and it was no wonder that his son and daughter liked to associate with Bai Ruozhu.
Tu Lie saw no sign of Tu Ying by his side but saw Tu Bai. As soon as Tu Bai saw Bai Ruozhu, he immediately smiled and waved at her, saying, "Ruozhu, Tu Ying asked me to pass on a message, saying that she’ll find you to play after you return to Beiyu City."
Bai Ruozhu knew that Tu Ying was staying at home to accompany Lady Tu, so she didn’t ask why Tu Ying hadn’t come, but just smiled and said to Tu Bai, "You’ve recovered well? Just take it easy, all right?"
"Don’t worry, I won’t be that reckless anymore." Tu Bai’s face still wore his straightforward smile, but his eyes were filled with a much sturdier light, showing that the rebellion had forced this young man to grow up a lot, though that growth had come with blood and tears.
The army marched towards Xuantian Mountain without almost any delay and only rested for one night near Tianshan Town.
The army pitched camp, and Jiang Yichun discussed the next day’s action with Tu Lie and other officers. He also invited Bai Ruozhu to join the meeting. An officer who had not gone to Jiangnan and was unfamiliar with Bai Ruozhu was quite critical of this, with one hot-tempered right-wing Team Leader grumbling discontentedly, "Since when could women participate in politics?"
Jiang Yichun glared at him, very displeased that subordinates dared to question his wife. He was on the brink of lashing out.
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