The Farm Girl's Charismatic Fortune-Chapter 370 - 366: This Year’s Birthday Gift

Ruo Xuan, Xuanyuan Que, Zhou Ludong, and Yan Jiaojiao, along with the Shopkeeper, stood before a dense army.

The soldiers in front of them had some armor worn backward, and some hadn’t even managed to properly fasten the clothes under their armor.

General Qiu steadily approached Xuanyuan Que, "This general pays his respects to Prince Nine!"

Xuanyuan Que glanced at him and said indifferently, "Dispense with the formalities."

"Thank you, Prince Nine."

The Shopkeeper directly commanded, "General Qiu, heed the order!"

Qiu was momentarily stunned, then quickly knelt down, "This general heeds the order!"

"By imperial decree, Prince Nine appoints General Qiu as the Third Rank Great General of Zhengnan. From now on, all officers and soldiers in the Nanling military camp will be under your command and training. Those who disobey shall be executed immediately!"

The Shopkeeper handed him a bright yellow imperial edict.

This type of unsigned multiple-copy imperial edict had been given to the young master in many copies, for him to directly appoint officials and officers.

After the Shopkeeper finished speaking, Xuanyuan Que glanced at Ruo Xuan and said, "Let’s go!"

Ruo Xuan was dumbfounded, go?

She hadn’t even seen how the Divine Monarch would deal with them!

Usually, he was so strict with her, and now just like this?

Still, she responded, "Oh."

Thus, Xuanyuan Que and the others turned around and left.

Qiu was stunned, just like that?

Not just Qiu, Zhou Ludong was also stunned, just like that?

He thought Prince Nine would make a grand gesture, execute one to warn a hundred, and revitalize the military might.

But he just promoted one officer and that was it?

Yet Zhou Ludong, after all, was accustomed to big scenes and followed Xuanyuan Que expressionlessly.

Qiu snapped back to reality and promptly followed.

"Prince Nine, is there anything else you wish to instruct?"

Xuanyuan Que looked at him, "No, I know you can do it well."

Qiu was inwardly shaken but couldn’t believe it and couldn’t help asking, "What about the other officers?"

Xuanyuan Que grew visibly irritable, "You are the main commander now. Do you need me to teach you how to act?"

Xuanyuan Que’s impatience was so severe that even the words "this lord" slipped out!

He detested being asked obvious questions.

Yan Jiaojiao thought to herself, Watch this! Prince Nine’s patience is limited to a single sentence; any more and he becomes irritable.

Qiu felt a chill in his heart, "No need, I know what to do now!"

Xuanyuan Que simply walked away.

The Shopkeeper stayed behind and kindly reminded him, "In one month, Prince Nine wants to see results. The emperor trusts you, Prince Nine trusts you, and both the emperor and Prince Nine know everything, so go ahead with confidence! If you need anything you can find me, I have everything at my place."

"Prince Nine knows you and your soldiers have not slacked off for even a day. You only need to manage the military camp well, everything else is arranged by the emperor."

In the end, the Shopkeeper whispered this into his ear.

Qiu stared at the Shopkeeper, eyes wide.

This time Qiu truly believed that the emperor and Prince Nine knew everything.

Qiu knelt down, gazing after the departing figure of Xuanyuan Que, "I will not fail the emperor and Prince Nine!"

Qiu’s father was originally a general who had sacrificed himself over a decade ago.

His father’s greatest aspiration was to robustly guard Nanzhou, not yielding an inch of ground, and to protect the people of Nanzhou from the suffering of wars.

So, in these years, as the borders remained peaceful, all the soldiers relaxed, but he dared not relax.

At first, he had repeatedly suggested to the main commander that training should not be neglected even for a day, but to no avail.

As the years passed with peace on the borders, the soldiers became increasingly lax, living in comfort.

Being the smallest Deputy General in the military, he had the least say; whatever the other officers decided, if he persisted in opposing, he feared he might not even remain a minor officer.

If one day the enemy were to invade, they would be powerless to resist.

People tend to reject those who differ from them, so he could only pretend to relax along with everyone else.

He dared not relax; he could only secretly train and lead his soldiers to sleep during the day and secretly train at night.

But under his command, there were only five thousand soldiers, and over the years, he had grown increasingly anxious, always feeling that the neighboring country was harboring a major move.

Just as he was contemplating how to secretly send a message to General Yan, the emperor sent someone.

It turned out the emperor knew everything, ha ha!

Excellent!

Truly excellent!

...

In the days that followed, this prosperous little town in Nanzhou seemed unchanged.

The economic and trade relations between the two countries continued as usual.

At the docks, the soldiers collected silver as usual and permitted departures as usual, in the normal way.

No one knew that in this small town, on a certain day, the heavens had changed overnight.

The days appeared normal because many people were controlled, forced to continue their daily tasks to ensure everything proceeded as normal.

Some of them also wanted to send messages out.

But no matter what method they used, or which spy they employed, the messages they sent out invariably returned to their hands without fail!

It was terrifying!

The feeling of being completely stripped bare and then exposed right in front of oneself was terrifying.

It felt like they were not fighting against men, but against gods.

Everything was exposed!

They finally dared not harbor any thoughts of resistance.

A month later, in the early morning, the Empress Dowager once again ascended the mountain behind the military camp.

At the foot of the mountain, the soldiers practiced their spear techniques in unison, and the sound of the air being pierced by the long spears could even be heard by the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager finally cracked a smile.

This was how the soldiers of Xuanyuan Country should be.

If the enemy dared to come?

Then let them come and never return!

Ruo Xuan and Xuanyuan Que spent more than two months in Nanzhou together.

Since the New Year was approaching, they decided to stay in Shaxi County for the festivities before leaving.

New Year’s Eve was Xuanyuan Que’s birthday.

Ruo Xuan would personally make a piece of clothing for Xuanyuan Que every year.

This year was no exception!

Ruo Xuan happily handed a beautifully crafted wooden box to Xuanyuan Que, "Brother Xuanyuan, happy birthday!"

Xuanyuan Que took it and opened it.

Inside the black wooden box lay a red garment.

It had no embroidery, clearly a simple red undergarment.

It must have been an extra piece she made while embroidering her dowry.

He picked up the garment and inspected it, good, this time there was nothing inappropriate.

Although the stitching wasn’t fine and was uneven and crooked, at least it wasn’t like the times when the sleeve cuffs were sewn shut, or when sewing the straps and accidentally stitching the back piece as well, or when there was a hole at the armpit.

At least it was wearable clothes.

Ruo Xuan urged, "Try it on quickly, let me see if there are any problems."

"No need, there are no problems this time."

"Did I do well with the clothes this time?"

"Hmm."

Xuanyuan Que carefully folded the garment and placed it back in the wooden box, closing it.

Ruo Xuan stopped him from closing the wooden box, "Brother Xuanyuan, take a closer look."

Xuanyuan Que, puzzled, picked it up again and looked it over more closely.

Could there be something embroidered that he hadn’t noticed before?

After he searched the entire garment, Xuanyuan Que found nothing.

Ruo Xuan asked expectantly, "Have you finished looking?"