Chapter 48

Chapter 48

Qingyang did not interject in the exchange between her father and her three elder brothers.

She had shared her eldest brother's concerns about the Western Hu, but at the time, her father had merely smiled without answering. She largely agreed with her second brother's analysis of the commanders and troop morale, though his defensive strategy against the Western Hu seemed quite unreliable. As for her third brother's confidence in their father, Qingyang shared it too; she was simply more curious about the specific arrangements her father had made.

The little princess walked quietly on the wild, unpaved ground, her hand held by her father. She looked every bit the nine-year-old girl, innocent of military affairs yet perfectly well-behaved.

Emperor Xingwu neither addressed his eldest son's concerns, nor criticized his second son's recklessness, nor dismissed his third son's lack of foresight. He also did not ask for his daughter's opinion. After patrolling the camp for about two *ke* (approximately 30 minutes), Emperor Xingwu instructed the four siblings to return to their respective tents to rest.

When Qingyang returned, she found Jie Yu and Qin Fang already there, tidying her tent.

"Get some rest, little sister," Qin Ren said, yawning.

Qingyang nodded, watching her second and third brothers walk toward the neighboring tent. Her gaze then shifted to Zhang Su's receding figure. Though some lanterns were lit in the camp, the vast, dark wilderness made them seem as faint as fireflies. The surrounding grasslands rang with the incessant chirping of insects. Everything felt unfamiliar, yet with her father, brothers, Zhang Su, Jie Yu, and Qin Fang—all familiar faces—by her side, Qingyang felt no fear at all.

"Your Highness, please rest for a while. This servant will send for hot water..."

"No need. Traveling with the army is inconvenient, so from now on, we should follow Father's lead regarding water. Let's set aside palace habits for now."

"As you wish."

A wooden plank bed was set up in the inner section of the tent, with pest-repelling powder sprinkled around it, giving off a slightly strong odor.

Qin Fang’s bedroll was laid out beside the bed. Qingyang lifted a corner of the mat and found that both sides were woven reed, with a layer of dry grass sandwiched in between to ward off dampness and chill from the ground. It was said that soldiers slept on such mats when camping—sleeping in their clothes in summer and adding a heavy blanket in winter.

Though she knew she should endure hardships on this journey, Qingyang worried that Qin Fang, accustomed to palace comforts and equally delicate, might catch a cold. She pushed her own quilt toward the inner side of the bed, freeing up half the space, and said to Qin Fang, "Sleep on the bed with me."

Qin Fang was taken aback. "I couldn't possibly—"

Qingyang cut her off. "If I say sleep here, then sleep here. If you catch a cold and fall ill, who will attend to me?"

She preferred to bring Jie Yu on outings, but for daily routines like bathing and changing, Qin Fang and the other palace maids usually attended to her.

Qin Fang’s eyes welled up as she acquiesced.

After a day in the carriage, she was indeed tired. Shortly after Qin Fang extinguished the lamp, the little princess fell asleep.

In the neighboring tent, Qin Ren and Qin Bing also shared a single bed. Qin Ren, exhausted, washed his feet and lay down first. Just as he was about to fall asleep, the bed shook—Qin Bing had sat down at the other end. Qin Ren wanted to remind his second brother to be gentler but couldn't muster the energy to speak. As he closed his eyes to sleep, he suddenly caught a pungent odor of foot sweat.

Qin Ren bolted upright and saw his second brother pulling off his second sock. Qin Ren asked in disbelief, "Aren't you going to wash your feet, Second Brother?"

Qin Bing glanced at him sideways. "Why bother? I'd rather use that time to sleep. Since you're still awake, go blow out the lamp. I forgot."

With that, he lay down, pulled up the quilt, and closed his eyes.

Faced with such a short-tempered, stubborn second brother who could overpower him, Qin Ren had no choice but to grudgingly blow out the lamp. When he returned, he wrapped himself in his own quilt and turned his back to his brother.

After finally falling asleep despite the gradually fading scent of feet, Qin Ren was awakened sometime later by his stomach's loud grumbling. The more he tried to ignore it, the hungrier he felt. Groping in the dark, he got up and retrieved the half-eaten *bing* (a type of flatbread or wheat cake) his father had insisted he bring back from his outer robe hanging on a rack. Afraid of waking his second brother, Qin Ren squatted in the farthest corner of the tent and began nibbling on the *bing*, feeling rather sorry for himself.

The camp bed was far less comfortable than the palace bed, so Qingyang slept fitfully and woke early.

Seeing that Qin Fang was still asleep beside her, Qingyang drew on her outer robe and stepped into the outer area of the tent. As she lifted the curtain, she saw Jie Yu raise his head from his bedroll and quickly stand up—already fully dressed.

Qingyang asked softly, "When did you wake up?"

Jie Yu replied, "A while ago. It's not yet *maoshi* (5-7 a.m.). Would you like to sleep a bit longer?"

Qingyang shook her head. "I want to go outside and look around."

Jie Yu lit a lantern and followed the little princess out.

Outside the imperial family's tents, two guards were stationed each night, with an additional team of imperial guards patrolling the perimeter. Qingyang also spotted Fan Zhong, who had just approached.

The towering Fan Zhong quietly moved closer to the little princess and asked, "Why are you up so early, Your Highness?"

Qingyang pointed in the direction of some noise in the distance. Fan Zhong smiled and said, "That's the mess corps preparing breakfast. They're making *bing* for both morning and noon meals."

Qingyang said, "Go guard Father's tent. I'll take two guards with me to take a look."

Fan Zhong replied, "Allow me to escort you, Your Highness."

At this hour, even if the emperor was awake, there would be no urgent orders. Protecting the little princess was more important.

Thus, by the time Qin Hong woke his two younger brothers, the little princess had already seen most of the camp and returned.

The journey to Wuwei would take a month. During the initial period, it was mostly marching. After breakfast, Emperor Xingwu instructed his children: "Lin'er will ride in the carriage. The three of you will ride on horseback. The Crown Prince will remain at my side. The second prince will follow the Marquis of Weiyuan, and the third prince will follow the Duke of Ding. Shadow them like their own guards, follow their orders in all matters, and learn well."

Qin Bing responded excitedly and cheerfully took his place beside Meng Ji, who nodded humbly.

Qin Ren, sporting dark circles under his eyes, walked toward Deng Chong. Deng Chong glanced at the usually lazy third prince, then at the second prince beside Meng Ji, and said to Emperor Xingwu, "Your Majesty, I have a short fuse and fear I may not teach the third prince well. Perhaps you could assign the second prince to me instead—I think our temperaments would suit each other."

Emperor Xingwu replied, "It is precisely because the second prince’s quick temper resembles yours that I want him to learn Meng Ji’s steadiness."

Deng Chong asked, "Then what can I teach the third prince?"

Emperor Xingwu said, "Teach him what you can. If he slacks off, scold him freely—even use a whip if necessary. Do not hold back on my account."

Qin Ren: "..."

As the two older and two younger princes were about to leave, Zhang Su prepared to continue following the third prince. Emperor Xingwu noticed and called out to him, "During the march, stay by the princess’s side and make sure she doesn’t wander off."

Zhang Su bowed and accepted the order. "Yes."

The little princess’s carriage followed directly behind the Imperial carriage. Seeing that her father had mounted his horse and might not enter the carriage for some time, Qingyang obediently climbed into her own carriage.

The wind along the road blew dust kicked up by the carriage ahead, so Qingyang kept the curtain lowered and leaned inside to read.

The rocking of the carriage made reading for long periods irritating. After enduring it for a while, Qingyang set the book aside, moved to the window, and lifted a corner of the curtain.

Outside, Zhang Su was riding on horseback, dressed in a pale blue coarse robe with matching coarse trousers visible beneath, tucked into black military boots. The nearly eight-foot-tall young man stood tall and straight, and even on horseback, he cut an elegant figure, especially with his long legs.

The idle little princess looked Zhang Su up and down, from head to toe and back again.

Zhang Su had no choice but to ride closer to the carriage window and ask softly, "Does Your Highness have any orders?"

Qingyang had no orders. Instead, she looked at his sleeves and asked, "Are you wearing coarse cloth because silk wouldn’t hold up?"

Zhang Su replied, "...Yes."

His mother had packed two sets of silk clothing for him but specifically instructed him to wear coarse cloth while marching and riding to avoid wearing holes in his trousers and embarrassing himself.

Qingyang asked, "Second Brother and Third Brother are following the great generals to learn skills, but you’re stuck here with me. Are you unhappy about that?"

Zhang Su said, "No."

Qingyang pressed, "Why? Don’t you want to learn skills?" She herself would have liked to follow Meng Ji, and Deng Chong would have been acceptable too. Though Deng Chong was a blunt man, her father spoke of him as a talented commander, especially skilled in unconventional tactics.

Zhang Su replied, "During the march, what one learns mostly involves handling army affairs. By keeping my eyes and ears open, I can learn even while guarding Your Highness."

Qingyang laughed, "I thought you would say the Duke of Wei taught you ages ago."

Zhang Su lowered his gaze. His father had indeed taught him, but it was all theoretical. He cherished this opportunity to accompany the army on the march.

A gust of wind blew by, and Qingyang pulled the curtain down just in time. After a moment, she lifted it again and saw that Zhang Su had retreated several steps away.

Looking ahead, Qingyang instructed Zhang Su, "When Father gets into his carriage, remember to let me know."

Zhang Su nodded in acknowledgment.

A little while later, however, Emperor Xingwu rode over to his daughter's side on horseback and asked with a smile, "What are you doing, Lin'er?"

Through the carriage window, the little princess held up the book in her hand.

Emperor Xingwu said, "That's too hard on your eyes. Come, keep your father company and play a game of chess with me."

Without having the carriage driver stop, Emperor Xingwu guided his horse close to the carriage shaft. When his daughter emerged, he lifted her onto his horse, then rode to catch up with the imperial carriage ahead. He securely placed his daughter into his carriage before swinging straight from his horse into the carriage himself.

Qin Hong watched with a mix of awe and worry, feeling that this was one of the moments when his father and uncle most resembled real brothers.

The imperial carriage was spacious. Emperor Xingwu set up the chessboard and sat facing his daughter. As they played, he asked her about the places she had visited that morning.

Qingyang had watched the cooks making flatbreads, seen the logistics troops dismantling and loading tents onto carts, visited the horse pens and grain storage, and even observed the night watch soldiers.

Emperor Xingwu asked, "So, which do you think is more difficult: commanding an army or dealing with paperwork in the Secretariat?"

Qingyang replied, "Both are difficult, yet both are simple. As long as Father picks the right people, competent officials will naturally keep everything running smoothly."

Even a small kitchen involved numerous tasks—firewood, rice, oil, salt, cooking utensils, head cooks, and helpers all had their roles. What Qingyang saw was a group of cooks, under the supervision of their head, working like a well-oiled machine, busy but precise.

Emperor Xingwu praised, "Lin'er is right. The key lies in picking the right people. But those in power must first learn how to command armies and manage governance themselves. Only then will they know which of their subordinates are capable ministers and which are incompetent."

That was why he had brought all three of his sons along, to familiarize them with military affairs. The Crown Prince needed this experience to become an emperor who wouldn’t be deceived by his generals in the future. The second prince needed it to become a skilled general who could lead troops effectively. As for the third prince... if enduring some hardship could cure his laziness, this journey would not be in vain.

As for his little princess...

Emperor Xingwu looked down at the chessboard before him.

He had never forgotten Yan Xizheng’s question, but he still didn’t know what expectations he should have for his most intelligent child. He only knew that his daughter was interested in these matters, so he was willing to satisfy her thirst for knowledge while she was still young and he could freely spoil her.