"I truly underestimated you!" Gao Dazhuang sneered. "Did you leave your face with Chu Dingjiang today too?"
"Mm." An Jiu nodded. "Luckily, I have Chu Dingjiang. Who did you leave yours with?"
"You—!" Gao Dazhuang's chest heaved with anger, his expression one of barely restrained fury, as if he wanted nothing more than to tear her apart.
Sui Yunzhu tugged at An Jiu's sleeve and pulled her outside.
Once they were away from the military camp, he whispered, "I was hoping to ask Lord Gao for help in keeping the recruitment notices posted in Xingzhou! Now that you've angered him like this, I can't even bring it up."
What use were the few people they could gather in such a short time? If the notices remained up, at least some might still consider heading to Hexi County.
"He's not someone who loses his temper easily." An Jiu couldn't read minds, but she was acutely sensitive to killing intent—Gao Dazhuang's was steady, his emotions clearly not as volatile as they seemed.
"But just now, he..."
"I don't know. I just know he doesn't want to kill me."
In An Jiu's eyes, Gao Dazhuang was an anomaly—a man who seemed to feel deeply yet maintained ironclad self-control.
"Say..." An Jiu mused. "Could Mo Sigui reattach Gao Dazhuang's... little rooster?"
Sui Yunzhu coughed awkwardly, unwilling to discuss such a topic with a young woman. "No idea. Let's stay another two days. Once Lord Gao cools down, I'll go see him again."
An Jiu nodded absently, lost in her own thoughts. "I wonder if he'd come with us if it could be fixed."
"Shi Si, Lord Gao is now an imperial official. Without The Emperor's permission, he can't go anywhere." Sui Yunzhu decisively crushed her unrealistic hopes. "Lord Gao also mentioned that he initially requested a transfer to Hejian Prefecture, but The Emperor rejected it. I suspect His Majesty has deeper reasons for assigning him here."
"What deeper reasons? Isn't it just because the Hebei Army isn't secure enough, so he's stationed here as a second line of defense? Once Ling Jiangjun returns to court, he'll take over the Hebei Army eventually. Why not have Gao Dazhuang as the first line and Ling Jiangjun as the second?" An Jiu looked at him seriously. "I only considered recruiting him because I heard he wanted to go to Hejian. Isn't there a chance?"
Sui Yunzhu sighed. "Your reasoning isn't wrong, but you've forgotten to consider Lord Gao's standing in The Emperor's favor."
An Jiu paused, then nodded in agreement.
The current Emperor had only recently ascended the throne, inheriting a mess of problems. With so few trustworthy officials at his disposal, loyalists like Gao Dazhuang were invaluable. Until His Majesty's position was fully secure, he would never allow Gao Dazhuang to take the front lines.
Sui Yunzhu smiled. "Still, your words reminded me—since Lord Gao is interested in Hejian Prefecture, he might still help us."
Realizing that recruiting Gao Dazhuang was impossible, An Jiu let out a lazy hum and offered no further opinion.
The two stayed in Xingzhou for two more days before Sui Yunzhu went alone to request Gao Dazhuang's assistance in keeping the recruitment notices posted.
True to form, Gao Dazhuang agreed without hesitation.
They returned to Hexi County with the sixty-some people they had recruited.
During their absence, Wu Lingyuan had already reorganized the county's internal affairs, and the delayed spring planting was now in full swing.
The sight of such vibrant activity made the newcomers feel they had made the right choice in coming.For so many years after being ravaged, Hexi County couldn't be said to be completely deserted, but over half of it had long been abandoned.
The houses, having been looted and left empty for so long, were more or less dilapidated. But these people were either homeless or living under others' roofs, so suddenly obtaining their own homes and farmland left them too excited to complain at all.
Apart from houses and land, on the first day Wu Lingyuan also had enough rice delivered to each household to last five days.
The yamen was short-staffed, so the moment Wu Lingyuan saw An Jiu return with a martial arts master, he immediately dragged him over to serve as constable.
This greatly troubled Blood Fiend, who caught An Jiu and lamented, "Didn't you say we were fighting the Liao people? I only know how to kill—what should I do?"
Unfortunately, Wu Lingyuan overheard this and confiscated his swords and hidden weapons, handing him instead a wooden stick as thick as a finger. "If anyone commits crimes, just beat them with this. Don't use your inner force."
Wu Lingyuan patted his shoulder. "A Jiu told me you were once very formidable. I believe in you. The yamen is short-handed, so bear with it for a few days."
Under Wu Lingyuan's expectant gaze, Blood Fiend gritted his teeth and accepted the stick. "Do constables get uniforms?"
"Ah, I just remembered there's something urgent I need to attend to. You two chat first; we'll discuss other matters tomorrow." Wu Lingyuan patted his forehead and hurried away.
An Jiu said, "Hexi County is poor. We can't afford uniforms yet, but I have some new clothes I can give you later."
Blood Fiend nodded, waving the stick. "Does he not know you can kill people with a stick too...?"
"He doesn't know martial arts," An Jiu replied. "Just give them a light beating. If you really encounter murder or arson, you can beat them to death—it'll be on Wu Lingyuan's head."
"Good." Blood Fiend tucked the stick into his belt.
An Jiu reminded him, "Hexi County has a small population. It's best to leave them alive."
Blood Fiend was puzzled. "What's the point of keeping criminals alive?"
Indeed, what was the point? It would just waste food! The county magistrate could barely feed himself, let alone provide prison rations. After careful thought, An Jiu finally came up with a reasonable explanation: "More people to reproduce."
Blood Fiend marveled, "I never expected someone so young to be so far-sighted."
An Jiu smiled modestly yet proudly. "I had good upbringing—it rubbed off on me. I'll introduce you to my Lord Chu when there's a chance."
Wu Lingyuan, who hadn't gone far, nearly choked trying to suppress his laughter at their conversation. What kind of nonsense was this? Eccentrics were everywhere, but the Crane Control Army seemed to have a special abundance of them. Wu Lingyuan was grateful that at least Sui Yunzhu and Li Qingzhi were relatively normal!
However, he soon witnessed Sui Yunzhu's own brand of "abnormality."
A month later, Chu Dingjiang sent another batch of supplies. The leader of the escort was a burly woman named Xu Huniu, twenty years old, whose fierce reputation and plain looks had left her unmarried.
Chu Dingjiang always took An Jiu's words to heart. She had asked him to find a fierce woman as a wife for Sui Yunzhu, so he promptly arranged this matchmaking.
After reading Chu Dingjiang's letter, An Jiu eagerly dragged Sui Yunzhu to meet the woman.
Xu Huniu was aware of the matchmaking too. The moment she laid eyes on the handsome Sui Yunzhu, she stared wide-eyed, her face radiating utter delight.Wu Lingyuan was inwardly lamenting how the usually reliable Chu Dingjiang seemed a bit unreliable this time when he saw Sui Yunzhu's handsome face flush slightly as he said, "Miss Xu is very nice."
That very day, the two of them were already holding hands to watch the sunset together...
Wu Lingyuan's worldview shattered into pieces, needing some time to recover.
Seeing his dejected state, An Jiu comforted him, "Don't be envious. I'll write a letter asking Chu Dingjiang to find one for you too."
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