ITOTIABSAM | Young General | 100
【General likes it?】
Tilting his head slightly, Xie Ye grabbed back the large hand and wrote in the palm, "Then shall I pick one for the General?"
Flowers paired with heroes would surely be wonderful.
Having spent enough time together, there was no need for eye contact to imagine the cunning in the young man's eyes. Allowing the other to pull his arm, Gu Cong moved the reins, and Ta Xue obediently turned towards the nearest cluster of golden dew plum blossoms, even sensibly leaning in to sniff them.
With a swift movement, Gu Cong accurately plucked the smallest flower from the bush, and with some awkwardness, he reached over Xie Ye's head to find a gap and inserted it beside the white jade hairpin.
The process was so quick that it didn't give Xie Ye a chance to refuse.
Then, still staring at his profile, Gu Cong earnestly examined him and remarked, "Looks good."
In Xie Ye's cognitive space, 1101 chuckled.
To be fair, with its host's appearance, not to mention a hairpin, even the most gorgeous dress could be fully supported by his aura without any sense of discordance.
But the slightly bewildered look on the other person as Gu Cong played with him revealed a rarely seen cuteness.
It made one want to pinch his cheeks.
Of course, once Xie Ye snapped out of it, someone would be in trouble.
Ta Xue's pace was fast, and he knew the way. When Lu Jin's team caught up with Gu Cong from behind, just as they came face to face, their pursuit was thwarted:
The reason was simple: on top of their own general's head was a strikingly eye-catching yellow flower.
This flower was probably a pair with the one worn by Xie Ye. Both had five petals, with overlapping edges. However, Xie Ye's flower was petite and exquisite, matching his appearance perfectly.
As for the flower on their general's head, it seemed to match his personality. It was probably the biggest and roundest in the entire flower cluster. Upon closer inspection, one could only say that his face was still handsome.
The guards behind him couldn't hold back either, and there was suddenly a chorus of fake coughs disguising laughter around.
As an outsider, Wu Qige was even more surprised. He had seen Gu Cong many times before, at the racetrack or on the battlefield. The impression he had always given was of a tall, fierce, and steady warrior, rarely speaking. Now, looking at him like this, what aspect was related to their general? If the other warriors in the tribe who had lost to him before saw him like this, they would probably be shocked.
What was so appealing about a man who couldn't shoulder or lift a hand?
Wu Qige's gaze turned to Xie Ye, and he couldn't figure out what kind of magic the other had that could make the former fierce warrior of the Yan Dynasty willingly bring along a tag-along. In terms of appearance, the girls of their grassland tribes were not inferior, and they were even healthier than this Xie Ye.
Unexpectedly, before he could come up with a reason, Gu Cong, not far away, seemed to have eyes on the back of his head. He adjusted his posture slightly and used his body to firmly block the person in his arms from view.
Wu Qige: Can't figure it out.
But he felt a lump in his throat.
After the horses had their fill of water and rested for a while, the group set off again. The site where the annual celebration was held was usually near the royal tent, quite a distance from Sanggan City. With the horses limited in stamina and no relay stations on the grassland to change mounts, even with their speed, they only arrived by evening after several stops along the way.
Considering the subtle relationship between the two parties, the tents allocated to everyone, although spacious and clean, were located on the periphery of the royal tent. As they dismounted, Wu Qige gestured, "Please."
"The Khan is waiting for you inside."
He was the bravest warrior of the grassland, a Batulu. In terms of rank, he was similar to Gu Cong, and they were of similar age, so there was no need for formal titles.
Knowing that the other party had no malicious intent, Gu Cong didn't care about useless formalities. He nodded and handed Ta Xue to the guards, leaving Xie Ye and Lu Jin by his side. "Lead the way."
Wu Qige frowned and quickly assessed Xie Ye. "Him as well?"
Regarding Gu Cong's marriage, ordinary people might have only heard about it vaguely, but he and the others in the royal tent were well informed.
The Xie family had no power in Yanjing and could even be called traitors. How could they casually go to see the Khan?
Without any intention of backing down, Gu Cong said lightly, "Yes."
Having just been an emperor in the previous world, visiting the royal tent and dealing with a group of so-called higher-ups held no attraction for Xie Ye.
But since Gu Cong wanted to support him, he couldn't just continue to be passive and ignore the other's face.
Cleverly pausing between words, Xie Ye lifted his gaze without flinching, meeting Wu Qige's wolf-like gray eyes squarely, and said, "What? Isn't the wife legally married by the General's Mansion qualified enough?"
Xie Ye han not uttered a word throughout the journey. Even Lu Jin and the other guards were startled by him. In the twilight of the setting sun, the youth stood alone, slender yet with a straight spine like a pine or bamboo. His skin was snowy white, while his pupils were pitch black and deep, with the corners of his eyes dangerously upturned. In a trance, Wu Qige felt as though he was being stared down by a newly awakened beast.
However, from Gu Cong's perspective, he couldn't see any of this.
Having spent years hunting, Wu Qige's intuition never failed him. He pursed his lips and changed his tone, "I apologize."
"It was my rudeness."
The chilling gaze swiftly receded, replaced by a soft, harmless smile as Xie Ye reached up and removed the forgotten wildflower from Gu Cong's head. "There. Let's go."
Immediately after, he weakly coughed twice, covering his lips with his hand.
On Wu Qige's back, there seemed to be another pair of eyes, cutting and sharp.
From Gu Cong.
While others might see Xie Ye's withdrawal as a sign of deference after Gu Cong's intervention, Wu Qige understood that there was no bluff or intimidation involved. He truly sensed a signal of danger emanating from Xie Ye.
However, despite his frail appearance and apparent illness, Xie Ye seemed weak and feeble, with wrists so delicate they could be snapped with a single palm.
" Wu Qige," on the way to the royal tent, he heard Gu Cong call his name, "Have you ever been married?"
Married?
Wu Qige was puzzled, pausing for a moment before responding, "Never."
"No wonder," Gu Cong said earnestly, as if it were a matter of great importance, "If you haven't had a wife, you shouldn't be staring at someone else's."
Wu Qige's face flushed instantly.
Struggling to contain his laughter, Lu Jin's shoulders shook violently.
Fortunately, the nearby royal tent rescued Wu Qige from his embarrassment. Hastening his steps unconsciously, he just wanted to quickly get away from the witty and eccentric couple behind him.
Inside the royal tent, the newly appointed Khan was in his prime, appearing to be in his early forties, with his head adorned with distinctive ethnic braids. Solely based on his appearance, even 1101 couldn't help but find him a bit adorable.
The main seats on both sides were occupied by tribal leaders and princes of the grasslands, including several sons whom the Khan cherished the most. There was only one princess present, already of age, adorned in a red dress, exuding a noble and dignified air.
All parties were present, except for the Khan's legitimate wife — known as the Khanim among the people of the grasslands.
Jumping into the gossip, 1101 immediately chimed in, "Well, you see, this Khan has more than a dozen children in total, and that's counting only the ones who survived. There are countless concubines in the harem. If I were the Khanim, I wouldn't bother dealing with him either."
【There, on the left, that princess in the red dress is the Khanim's daughter, Anari. I did a real-time translation, and it seems to mean "pomegranate."】
As the story approached its conclusion, with peace between the grasslands and the Yan Dynasty remaining intact, there were no detailed descriptions of related settings in the original work. It all had to be filled in by the mini-world automatically.
With a rough understanding in mind, Xie Ye followed Gu Cong and bowed before taking his seat.
Attending merely as a guest to a celebration, Xie Ye deemed the internal dynamics and power distribution within the grasslands unimportant. In such occasions, simply enjoying a meal was already a luxury. Thanks to his low profile, most people discreetly ignored him when Xie Ye didn't feel like socializing.
In general, the thoughts of young ladies tend to be more delicate. Throughout the gathering, only Anari found the time to respectfully offer Xie Ye two cups of wine, without expecting him to return the gesture, simply wanting to indulge in some drinks.
By the time Gu Cong and Xie Ye returned to their tent, the moon was already high in the sky.
This was partly due to the upcoming Nadamu festival the next day.
Fortunately, with their identities and achievements, there were not many who dared to persuade Gu Cong to drink. Several times, they choked Wu Qige in the name of the couple, but there was only one set of bedding in the tent, already prepared. Gu Cong took out a small paper packet from his pocket and carefully sprinkled insect-repelling powder on the mattress and blankets.
The tent had a skylight at the top, and with no rain expected today, they didn't bother putting on the waterproof canvas cover. With a tilt of their heads, they could see the myriad stars hanging in the vast night sky.
Having arranged for a guard to help with brewing the medicine in advance, Gu Cong and Xie Ye informed each other and stepped out for a moment. In just a few minutes, they returned with a small food box and a large bucket of water.
"The water on the grasslands is precious, so we'll have to make do with it," Gu Cong said as he watched Xie Ye finish the medicine and handed him a piece of dried fruit along with the bowl. "Don't take the attitude of Wu Qige and the Khan's camp to heart today. In places of concentrated power, such situations are inevitable."
"It's only this one time we've come here. If we need to leave, we'll just send Lu Jin to say goodbye," he continued, his brows relaxing slightly as he saw Xie Ye was not feeling down. "As for tomorrow's martial arts competition and horsemanship, watch as I help win it for you."
At such a childish declaration of "revenge," Xie Ye couldn't help but laugh. "Why is the Great General so petty?"
“Not being petty,” Gu Cong explained seriously as he casually pushed the empty food box into the corner, "They don't understand your goodness, so they shouldn't judge you lightly."
But when he turned back around, he froze in place.
In just a few short sentences, Xie Ye had already loosened his belt, taken off his outer shirt, and seemed to be ready to continue undressing.
Compared to the furniture in Yanjing, the furnishings made on the grasslands were somewhat shorter. Innocently, Xie Ye knelt on the felt pad covering the entire tent floor, and turned his head to the side. "General?"
These were probably the two words that the young man could now smoothly say at any time.
Thunk.
The clean cloth fell into the wooden bucket, but the young man, who didn't get a response, leaned forward slightly, leaned in, and gently traced his palm.
【Didn't the General bring water? How can I clean myself?】
At a glance, Gu Cong noticed the faint blush hidden beneath the loose collar.
As if compelled by some unseen force, he raised his hand and plucked the white jade hairpin from the top of the young man's head.
His black hair scattered.
Gu Cong suddenly stood up, as if fleeing, turning his back to Xie Ye. But after taking a couple of steps, he hesitated and stopped, refusing to move too far away.
"Shadow."
"Your shadow will appear outside the tent."
"I'll block it for you."
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