Chapter 1186 - 864: Xuanjia Army
No wonder when she asked just now how much money was spent, Yu Wenye said, "I haven’t touched your money yet," meaning, they haven’t used it before, but if needed, they might have to use her money.
What a schemer.
She looked at Yu Wenye with a half-smile, her eyes shimmering.
And Yu Wenye looked back at her with a smile that was somewhat embarrassed at being seen through, yet had a certain frankness that he only showed towards her.
Mu Xian stood silently aside, while Tushere turned his head to watch them as well.
After a while, Shang Ruyi spoke, not addressing his last words, but instead walked over directly to grab the horse’s reins, and patted the stiff horse mane like steel needles, then looked at Yu Wenye opposite and asked, "What made you think of training such a troop?"
Yu Wenye said, "In chaotic times, troops are indeed the foundation of survival."
Hearing this, Shang Ruyi’s heart skipped a beat— this sentence was similar to what Lei Yu had said to her back in the day. It seemed that both were warriors at heart, inherently cherishing and relying on the troops.
And now, troops meant even more to Yu Wenye!
Yu Wenye continued, "Though Wang Shaoji is absurd and reckless, his Black Armored Cavalry has some combat strength. If not, Liang Shide wouldn’t have avoided his edge and let him directly come to trouble us."
"..."
"Also, at the Turkic Yatai, I saw Ashina Zhuxie’s Heavy Cavalry. If we don’t have a ’weapon’ that can match him in battle, in the future, even if we conquer the world, we’ll always be suppressed by the Turkic."
Shang Ruyi nodded; it turned out that Yu Wenye had learned this from those two, no wonder when she saw this troop just now, there was such a familiar feeling.
So she asked, "Wang Shaoji has the Black Armored Cavalry, Ashina Zhuxie has the Heavy Cavalry, yours is——?"
Yu Wenye looked at her, "What do you think this unit should be called?"
Shang Ruyi’s eyes brightened, "Listen to me?"
"Of course."
"I’m afraid it’s not such a cheap matter."
"So, are you willing?"
Shang Ruyi paused for a moment, then looked up at Yu Wenye’s deep, stern eyes, finally said, "Let’s call it the Xuanjia Army."
Yu Wenye smiled and said, "Alright."
After that, they led this troop into the barracks. Aside from this mighty Xuanjia Army, the training of the other cavalry and infantry did not slacken. However, the soldiers in the camp were somewhat surprised, not expecting the typically strict Prince Qin to bring women into the military camp. Some even sneaked out to watch the spectacle and jokes.
Until some veterans told them that in the Taiyuan army, this seemingly delicate Princess Qin once "lost" to Huang Gongyi and even competed in archery with the Turkic Cavalry in Yanmen County, then they realized that the phrase "women can be as brave as men" had practical significance.
And when inside the camp, Yuanyuan had also recovered.
He was just a full month old, his bones still soft, could only be wrapped in swaddling and carried around, but was extraordinarily excited, with his big eyes darting around as if he truly understood what this camp and these soldiers meant to them.
After staying in the camp for a while, past noon, Shang Ruyi and the others returned to the city.
But after returning to the city, they didn’t head straight back to the palace; the carriage turned a corner on Vermilion Bird Avenue and entered a familiar streetscape. In no time, it stopped outside the gate of the Shen Mansion.
This was also something the two had agreed upon.
With such a rare trip out of the palace, Shang Ruyi had long wanted to visit her uncle and aunt, and with Yuanyuan’s birth, it was also appropriate to let them see the child.
The Shen Mansion received the news and was immediately in a flurry. As Shang Ruyi got off the carriage with Yuanyuan in her arms, she heard a heavy and chaotic sound of footsteps and looked up to see Yu, with reddened eyes, almost stumbling out. Upon seeing Shang Ruyi, she was about to burst into tears.
"My Ru——"
Before finishing her words, Shen Shiyan pinched her from behind, making Yu bite her tongue and suppress her emotions, following Shen Shiyan to greet them, "Greetings, Prince Qin, and Princess."
Yu Wenye simply raised a hand to signal them not to stand on ceremony, then said, "Let’s talk inside."
Mr. and Mrs. Shen hurriedly welcomed the two into the mansion.
Once seated, with no outsiders around, Shang Ruyi blushed with tears in her eyes, softly saying, "Uncle, Aunt."
As soon as she spoke, the child in her arms let out a little sound.
Since the meeting began, Yu’s eyes had been busy, looking at Shang Ruyi, then at Yu Wenye, and now at the little one wriggling in the swaddle. Until this moment, she could no longer hold back, hurriedly asking, "Can I see the Young Master?"
Shang Ruyi quickly smiled and said, "I came today to let Aunt see him."
Yu and Shen Shiyan hastily stepped forward, carefully receiving the bundle from her arms, while Yu immediately exclaimed with joy, "Oh my, he’s so hefty."
Shen Shiyan quickly said, "This is the Young Master, how could he be hefty?"
"Yes, I misspoke. The Young Master is so sturdy."
"This child eats and sleeps well; just a month old, holding him for a while makes my arms sore."
"The Princess shouldn’t exert herself, She’er should take more care of the Young Master."
"Usually, she and the wet nurse are the ones looking after him."
"That’s good then."
Yu was overjoyed, chatting with Shang Ruyi endlessly, feeling for her because she couldn’t enter the palace to care for her after childbirth, yet also scolding her for going out just after the month and risking the wind. Shang Ruyi gently said, "Aunt, don’t worry, I’ve been taking good care of myself. Your Majesty still sends soup and medicine every day; I haven’t suffered a bit."
Yu took a closer look at her indeed, the Princess Qin looked spirited and rosy, indeed as if she hadn’t suffered any hardship.
Yet she still spoke tenderly, "You must take good care of yourself."
Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "Alright."
After having these small talks, she glanced around, lowered her voice, and asked, "By the way, what about Miss Lu Xiao?"
When Lu Xiao was mentioned, Yu’s expression changed slightly.
She whispered, "She lives in the backyard usually, with family delivering her tea and meals. She rarely comes out, and only when Wuzheng is at home, he sometimes chats with her briefly. But he doesn’t stay long."
This last sentence was less of a guarantee and more of an attitude.
Shang Ruyi understood and just smiled, then asked, "Has she never come out?"
At this moment, Shen Shiyan quietly said, "She doesn’t always stay in. A few days ago, she did come out."
"A few days ago?"
Upon this mention, Shang Ruyi and Yu Wenye exchanged a glance and asked, "Just when the army set off?"
"Mm,"
Shen Shiyan nodded, "We went to take a look from afar, and when we returned, we unexpectedly met her. She seemed to have gone out to see someone off, but didn’t tell anyone."