190 – Two Foals

Lei Tie nodded in silence and inquired if Chen Chuang needed something by the expression in his eyes.

The mighty golden eagle unhurriedly flew over and landed quietly on the guardrail of the city wall like a fallen leaf. Its pair of black bean-like eyes watched Lei Tie with loyalty.

Lei Tie raised his hand and gently held it on its back.

Chen Chuang looked at the enemy camp in the distance, “Our army suffered many casualties in the first battle yesterday. What’s Grand General’s plan next?”

Lei Tie stared at him for a moment, “This general has his own sense of propriety; Your Highness the First Prince doesn’t need to be troubled.” The so-called “military inspector” had two responsibilities: one, to supervise the commander-in-chief; two, to manage the meritorious deeds in the army and audit rewards and punishments. For Lei Tie, the prince had only the right to supervise, but not the right to intervene in the war.

Chen Chuang didn’t think he would be disobedient. He looked annoyed and ashamedly said, “Oh dear, this prince went overboard in a moment of desperation, asking Grand General not to blame. Grand General, it suddenly occurred to this prince that there is still business to be dealt with. Excuse my absence!”

“Your Highness the First Prince, do as you please,” said Lei Tie as he raised his hand in a “please” gesture.

After Chen Chuang left, he called in a subordinate and instructed, “Keep a close eye on His Highness.”

“Yes!”

Chen Chuang stepped down the wall along with the stone steps; his gentle eyes were full of bitterness. He was not only the son of the first empress but also the eldest son of the emperor. The Crown Prince’s position, even the throne, could only be his. How could State Defender Duke dare not pay attention to him? He would wait for Lei Tie to kneel in front of him one day!

……

The Capital was located to the north of Great Xia. The first snow of winter fell in the late 11th lunar month. The cold wind whistled at the corner of the wall, making a terrible whimper; the window lattices which were not secured enough were rattled by the wind. Large snowflakes fell like goose feathers floating in the wind. The sky was covered with dense snowflakes, and a thick layer of snow soon accumulated on the ground. Almost all shops hang heavy curtains to keep out the wind. The street vendors did not dare to set up stalls in this weather, so the streets were much wider than usual. The pedestrians on the road were sparse – they hid their hands in their sleeves, shrunk their necks in, and slightly squinted their eyes as they sped up their pace. When they lift the thick curtains of the tavern, a burst of heat wrapped in the attractive aroma of wine pounced on their faces. They were so comfortable that they couldn’t help moaning.

In the dining room of the State Defender Duke Establishment, however, it was very hot. The windows were closed and four charcoal braziers were placed in the four corners of the room. The charcoal burnt so well that the fire was blazing. On the round dining table in the middle of the room, in such a huge hot pot, the hot and red soup gurgled and the meatballs, chicken nuggets, and mushrooms kept disappear and reappear. On the side of the long table, the servants deftly cut all kinds of washed-clean ingredients, put them in white porcelain plates, and served them on the table. Sliced beef, sliced mutton, fish balls, meatballs, stuffed balls, lotus root balls, vermicelli, potato chips, spinach, cabbage, coriander, crab meat, tofu… it was extremely sumptuous. It was not appropriate to eat hot pot in the morning, but eating it in this weather was the most enjoyable. And, the family really hadn’t eaten hot pot for a long time.

Qin Mian was lying lazily on the settee with an account book in his left hand and a notebook on his knee – the writing brush in his hand scribbled on it from time to time.

Qin Ruiqi was sitting on the opposite single-settee diagonally with a chessboard in front of him. He was playing chess with himself. His small face was serious and his gaze was indifferent.

Qin Mian inwardly sighed. This appearance is exactly like his Old Dad.

Suddenly, he noticed that his youngest son was not there. He half-stood up and looked out the door.

Dressed in a white robe, Lei Ruilin stood in the corridor with his hands on his back. He looked up at the snowy sky with a melancholy expression and walked step by step. He leisurely recited, “The north wind sweeps the land white, breaks grasses; and the Capital City greatly welcomes the flying snow. It’s as if a spring breeze had blown overnight, blowing open the petals of ten thousand pear trees.”¹

Qin Mian burst out laughing; Lei Ruilin’s lips also burst into a faint smile.

“Alright, Great Poet. If you don’t come in, we’ll eat first.” Qin Mian put down the account book, stood up, and stretched out as he looked at the food on the table – he estimated that the food was enough for three people.

“Wait!” Lei Ruilin’s gifted-scholarly demeanor disappeared without a trace as he scurried to the table like a monkey, greedily looking at the gurgling hot pot, “Dad, can eat now?”

“En.” Qin Mian motioned the servants to retreat. “Your favorite chicken is cooked and Ruiqi’s favorite meatballs are cooked, too.”

Lei-Qin Le was the last to go out – he closed the door.

The two young brothers sat down beside their father.

Qin Mian took out the two cooked chicken drumsticks and put them in his sons’ bowls. “You’re hungry, right? Eat it.”

White Spot and Golden Fur had been “served a meal” earlier – there were two basins in front of them, and they ate with gusto.

Qin Ruiqi gave Qin Mian a clip of his favorite vermicelli.

Lei Ruilin scooped a few delicious balls into Qin Mian’s bowl with a colander. “Dad also eats.”

Qin Mian slightly smiled and didn’t forget to tell them to slow down and be careful of the heat.

Lei Ruilin bit the chicken drumstick. He was so happy that his eyes squinted, “It’s delicious. It’ll be nice if Old Dad is here.”

Qin Ruiqi looked at Qin Mian.

Qin Mian’s chopsticks paused. He comforted, “Don’t worry, your Old Dad will come back safely. When he comes back, our family can eat hot pot together.”

“En!” Lei Ruilin repeatedly nodded.

Qin Ruiqi asked, “Dad, can Old Dad rush home to celebrate the new year?”

Qin Mian confidently said, “Certainly. When he comes back, let ask him to take us to hunt. Then, our family will make a hot pot with the game we’ve hunted.”

The eyes of both Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin brightened, and they said, “Alright!”

“But Dad, Ge and I must have a foal first.” Lei Ruilin was excited when he thought of hunting.

“Sure.” Qin Mian said with a smile, “It’s said that the Western Barbarian has some breeds of horses which are much stronger than those in Great Xia. After eating, let’s write a letter to your Old Dad and ask him to catch two foals for you as the New Year’s gifts.”

“Oh, great!” Lei Ruilin couldn’t help cheering.

Qin Ruiqi smiled.

Qin Mian urged, “Quickly eat.”

After eating the hot pot, Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin ran to the side of the table and wrote a letter to Lei Tie. Head to head, the two brothers muttered to themselves. Lei Ruilin was in high spirits, and needless to say, even Qin Ruiqi, who had always been steady, was in high spirits.

Qin Mian shook his head with a smile and continued to look at the account book.

The servants cleaned up the table and quietly retreated.

The squeaking sound of feet treaded on the snow came closer and closer.

Steward Fu tightened his winter hat and stamped the snow on his feet in the corridor before knocking on the door.

“Reporting, my Lady. A person from the Weiyuan Marquis Establishment had just sent a piece of visitation note.”

Weiyuan Marquis Establishment was the home of the emperor’s father-in-law.

“Come in.” Qin Mian opened the note and read it. It turned out that the next holiday was Zhangsun Hong’s 8th birthday. Zhangsun Hong invited Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin to his home.

Because of Chen Mufeng’s friendship with Qin Mian and Lei Tie, Qin Ruiqi and Lei Ruilin got closer to Zhangsun Hong in Dongyang Academy. They were happy everywhere and became good friends later.

Qin Mian had always attached great importance to the cultivation of two children’s independent and decision-making abilities. He handed the note to Qin Ruiqi.

“Son, you decide to go or not.”

Qin Ruiqi had read the note and nodded to Qin Mian, “Go.”

Lei Ruilin had no objection.

Qin Mian then let Steward Fu reply to the note.

Lei Ruilin leaned on the back of the settee Qin Mian sat on and asked with his head crooked, “Dad, what gifts do Gege and I give to Zhangsun Hong?”

“What do you think?” Qin Mian teased him.

Lei Ruilin said in all seriousness, “Your son thinks that since we’re still young, the gifts don’t need to be too expensive; kindly feelings will suffice.”

Qin Mian admiringly stroked his little head.

“Well said. You discuss it with your Gege. If you can’t make up your mind, ask Dad again.”

“Alright.” Lei Ruilin ran back to his Gege.

It snowed until dark. Qin Mian thought of Lei Tie; he didn’t know if it was snowing at the border. Lei Tie was not afraid of cold, but when it snowed, it was prone to many problems – managing the army would be more troublesome.

After Qin Mian locked the door and turned off the light, he appeared in the space. Lei Tie could only find a chance to enter the space to meet him in the evening. He was just taking a chance tonight.

He first went to the garden to pick some vegetables, washed them by the river, and then went to the kitchen to clean up the other ingredients. Whenever Lei Tie came in, he could cook hot pot at any time. Lei Tie couldn’t eat any good food at the border – afraid that his sense of taste had been dulled. It was fortunate that he was a cultivator. Otherwise, he would become as thin as a bamboo pole after a few months in the western pass.

Imagining Lei Tie became as thin as a bamboo pole, Qin Mian couldn’t help laughing.

“Wife, what are you laughing at?” Lei Tie had been watching him from behind for a long time, and only then he softly spoke.

Qin Mian abruptly turned his head back. The pleasantly surprised mood made his eyes brighter. “I thought I wouldn’t see you today!” His nose caught a faint smell of blood – it was obvious that the battle occurred again today. He measured the man up and down and made sure the man was not hurt before he let go of his worry.

“How long can you stay? I’ll cook you hot pot.”

Lei Tie went to embrace him and gave him a hard kiss on the lips. He was reluctant to part, but he had to. “I’ve to go in a moment.”

Qin Mian put down his kitchen knife and hugged Lei Tie’s waist.

“Your sons want foals.”

Lei Tie’s chin brushed on Qin Mian’s side face. “What about you?”

“It’s enough for me if you come back unscathed.” Qin Mian rubbed against his shoulder socket; he didn’t want to let go.

“Worry not, I won’t let myself get hurt.” Lei Tie kissed him again. “There’s another important thing.”

“What is it?” Qin Mian recognized the gravity of his tone.

“In today’s battle, Tuluo seemed to know every move of our army. I suspect that First Prince colluded with Tuluo and revealed the marching formation of our army.” A cold light flashed from Lei Tie’s eyes. “First Prince is very ambitious. I’m afraid that if he doesn’t succeed, he’ll send someone to deal with you and the children. Be careful these days.”

T/N²

Footnotes