Yuan Xi rarely acted recklessly, and the negative emotions caused by fighting on the battlefield for several months were relieved a lot.
From the wooden barrel to the ground, to the edge of the bed, and then to the mat on the ground, there was water everywhere. The weather had begun to turn cold at that time, so Yuan Xi specially closed the doors and windows to prevent people from catching a cold.
After some fun, the two girls saw that Yuan Xi was a little tired. After helping Yuan Xi to sleep, they tidied their clothes and went out with red faces.
Yuan Xi woke up, not knowing how long he had slept. He felt quite hungry, so he opened the window and saw that the sun had already set and the sunset covered half the sky.
He put on his clothes and walked to the center of the yard. Feeling refreshed and in high spirits, he walked to the wooden building in the corner of the yard and slowly climbed up the creaky wooden stairs.
He sat at the window of the small house at the top and looked outside the mansion. Most of Beixin City was in his sight.
In the military camp in the distance, soldiers lined up and conducted patrol drills in an orderly manner.
On the streets, laborers pushed small carts, transporting grain to various granaries.
The people returned home from outside the city, carrying farm tools and firewood.
A young scholar in Confucian robes, holding bamboo slips in his hands, walked and talked loudly.
By the small river flowing through the city, women placed their wet clothes on the bluestone slabs and beat them with wooden mallets.
Yuan Xi had seen similar familiar scenes before, but now the familiar feeling was mixed with a sense of strangeness.
He felt that his life was gradually moving away from such peace and tranquility.
In the days to come, he will face more blood and fire on the battlefield, more frantic fights, and more cruel deaths of lives.
The success of a general is the result of the sacrifice of countless lives. If you want peace in the world, you must sacrifice countless lives.
Yuan Xi didn't know how many people in the city would be able to survive in the next ten years. He didn't even know if he could live to see that day.
Before that, he can only try to live every day well.
He withdrew his gaze from the distance and looked inside the mansion. At this moment, he could see the situation in each room clearly.
Wu Zhao was copying bamboo slips in the study, Cao Xian was washing wild vegetables with his maid in the kitchen, and Guo Jia was hugging his concubine in front of the window, with his hand reaching into her arms, fiddling with something.
Guo Jia seemed to have sensed something, looked up at the small building, then cursed and slammed the window shut.
Yuan Xi had to shift his gaze, and suddenly he found someone in the garden walking towards the small building with her head down. She was wearing the clothes of a maid.
There are still more than a dozen maids in the mansion who have not been sent out, and the mansion is usually quite relaxed. Yuan Xi wondered which maid ran out to be lazy?
Then there were the sounds of footsteps coming from the wooden stairs downstairs, and the maid actually climbed up the ladder.
Yuan Xi found it funny in his heart but said nothing. The maid climbed the wooden ladder with difficulty and crawled halfway in through the narrow door of the wooden house on her knees. When she looked up, she found someone inside.
She screamed and tried to leave, but in her haste she panicked and hit her head on the low roof and fell to the ground.
She sat up in a panic, holding her head, but Yuan Xi recognized her and asked in surprise, "Why are you in the mansion?"
When the woman heard Yuan Xi's voice, she raised her head and said in a lost voice, "Sir?"
She quickly fell to the ground and bowed, "I didn't know you were here, please forgive me for trespassing."
Yuan Xi did not expect to see this person here, because this was actually Gongsun Zan's widow Hou.
He waved his hand and said, "It's okay. I just don't understand. Didn't I ask Mr. Fengxiao to arrange accommodation for Madam?"
After hearing this, Mrs. Hou lay on the ground and said anxiously, "Mr. Fengxiao has already arranged accommodation for my late husband's other family members outside the mansion."
"Mr. Fengxiao said he was worried that someone might harm me and my son, so he arranged a room in the mansion for me and my young son to stay."
Yuan Xi nodded slightly. He understood Guo Jia's idea. He wanted to keep a close eye on Hou's mother and son to prevent them from being held hostage and used by the remnants of Gongsun Zan.
He thought that there were all kinds of people in this mansion. If he were to marry Zhen Mi in the future and see all these strange people, he wondered what she would think.
He didn't say anything, and Hou didn't dare to raise her head. She could only lie there, her body trembling slightly.
Looking at it from this angle, Yuan Xi saw that Hou's clothes were stretched very tight by this movement, revealing her body curves and a section of her fair neck was exposed between her loose hair.
Yuan Xi suddenly felt a little dry in the mouth and coughed involuntarily, which scared Hou so much that her body trembled.
Yuan Xi said, "You get up first."
Hou then slowly straightened up and knelt on the floor, still not daring to raise her head.
Yuan Xi didn't know what to say for a moment, so he said, "I heard that Madam's youngest son choked on some smoke from the fire that day, and he hasn't recovered yet?"
Hou's eyebrows showed a trace of worry after hearing this, but she still replied: "Thank you for your trouble, Master Fengxiao has already asked a doctor to prescribe medicine, and I just fed him the medicine and coaxed him to sleep."
Yuan Xi saw that Hou spoke in a dignified manner and in a soft voice, showing the demeanor of a noble person.
He said aloud: "Ji Hou. What a pity."
"Madam, do you hate me?"
Hou heard this and said softly, "No, I am very grateful for what you have done, young master."
"My late husband was a very stubborn person. The young master risked his life to save my son and me. I don't understand why."
"Why would you save the family of your enemy?"
Yuan Xi thought to himself, of course it's because you are useful.
If Gongsun Zan had survived, he might have been used to contain Gongsun Du's forces in Liaodong, but since Gongsun Zan was dead, we could only use his family.
But he couldn't say this openly, so he could only pretend, "Ji Hou is also a hero. He fought with my father for the world, and it's hard to say who is right or wrong."
After hearing this, Hou was a little surprised and couldn't help but raise her head.
Yuan Xi discovered that Hou was indeed very beautiful. She should be less than 30 years old, and she was well maintained, with a slim figure and charming looks.
When Hou saw Yuan Xi looking at her, she lowered her head again and said, "After my husband died, I always felt guilty towards him and wanted to die, but I didn't have the courage. I thought of my young son several times, so I lived on until now."
"Just seeing the wooden building reminded me of the watchtower, which was burned to ashes in a fire."
"I wanted to come up and take a look, but I ran into you, sir. I am willing to accept the punishment."
Yuan Xi thought to himself, any punishment is acceptable?
He suppressed the evil thoughts in his heart and said, "It's not a big deal, Madam, don't take it to heart."
"By the way, Madam's father was originally the governor of Zhuo County? And he also knew Mr. Zigan (Lu Zhi)?"
Hou's eyes flashed with memories after hearing this, and she said softly, "My father passed away a few years ago."
"My father is indeed good friends with Mr. Zigan, and he is also quite popular among the scholars in Zhuo County. Before I got married, scholars often came to my house to discuss and exchange ideas."
"But after my father passed away, my late husband disliked scholars, and gradually we stopped interacting with them."
Yuan Xi thought that this relationship might be useful, so he said, "Thank you for your hard work, Madam. If I want to meet the scholars of Zhuo County in the future, can I borrow the name of my father?"
Hou naturally did not dare to refuse, and immediately responded: "I am willing to serve you, sir."
The two were speechless for a while, and the atmosphere fell into silence. Hou lowered his head, sweat seeping out of his vest, and his heartbeat gradually quickened.
Yuan Xi suddenly moved, and Hou's body trembled slightly. Yuan Xi said, "Sorry to bother you, Madam. Please go back first."
Hou finally felt relieved. She backed away and tried to go down the stairs, but she stepped on empty air and she screamed, and was about to fall.
Yuan Xi suddenly reached out and grabbed Hou's wrist, and Hou was able to steady herself.
Her face suddenly turned red as she recalled that day on the watchtower when she rushed over the wooden board, it was Yuan Xi who pulled her over.
The two of them paused for a moment, and Yuan Xi said, "Madam, please step firmly."
Hou finally woke up from her dream and quickly stepped on the ladder.
She waited for a while and found that Yuan Xi was still holding her wrist. She whispered, "Sir, you can let go now."
Yuan Xi said "oh" and then let go of his hand. Hou climbed down in a panic. When she stood on the ground, she bowed her head and saluted, then ran away like a frightened rabbit.
Yuan Xi looked at his palms, shook the hem of his clothes vigorously, and sat upright for a long time before the area underneath his robe returned to normal.
He felt a little ashamed. He had clearly vented his anger with Wu Zhao and Cao Xian before, so why did he have such a big reaction when he touched Hou's hand?
Has he been holding it in for too long, or does he have some special interest in women of Hou's status?
Hou fled back to the house and saw that her young son was still sleeping soundly, and she felt relieved.
She cursed herself inwardly for being shameless. How could she be involved with another man right after her husband died? What's more, that man was the son of her husband's enemy!
But thinking about how she had always been obedient to Gongsun Zan over the years, but in the end Gongsun Zan disregarded their friendship and wanted to kill her and her child, Hou felt resentful.
Thinking about the feeling of her body during the two physical contacts with Yuan Xi, she unconsciously covered her chest with her hands, feeling a decadent pleasure of revenge.
Soon it was the day for Yuan Xi to set off.
Under the leadership of Qu Yi and Tian Yu, soldiers and civilians demarcated boundaries around the city, drove in wooden stakes, and dug deep trenches to expand the territory of Beixin City.
The corresponding work was extremely complicated, including leveling the ground, diverting river water, and cutting down trees, which made Qu Yi, who was not good at this, suffer terribly.
However, Tian Yu, who was only a few years older than Yuan Xi, showed extraordinary talent in domestic affairs and arranged these things in an orderly manner, which made Yuan Xi sigh that some people are indeed talented.
All we can say is that Liu Bei missed out on Tian Yu, which was a huge loss.
Yuan Xi was accompanied by Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci when he went back this time. The existing five to six thousand soldiers in Beixin City were temporarily led by Qu Yi and Tian Yu. He was not too worried because the biggest threat now was the Black Mountain Army, which was badly damaged and was facing winter, so they probably would not attack.
Yuan Xi, Wu Zhao and Cao Xian rode in one carriage, Guo Jia and his concubines rode in another carriage, Zhao Yun and Taishi Ci rode on horses, and they were accompanied by dozens of cavalry guards. On a clear autumn day, they left Beixin City and set out on the journey back to Yecheng.