Back to the Beginning of Ming to do Charity

Chapter 117: Ma shi

"Wasn't it just three buns?" Li Congrong muttered in complaint while scratching his belly. "It's not like it's a rare delicacy. When we go back, I will treat him to eat 30 buns."

Zhu Yuanzhang was riding on the horse, listening to Li Congrongs complaint, and laughed: "I heard that it was given by the South Bodhisattva. Even if you treat him to eat three hundred, it would not taste the same as these three."

Li Congrong was a little jealous: "Why didn't fourth brother remember me? It must be surnamed Chen who knows how to flatter too well!"

Zhu Yuanzhang refrained from laughing, and said solemnly: "Brother Li, why don't you go to the South Bodhisattva to speak bluntly and tell him to share a few steamed buns with you?"

"Am I the kind of person with such shallowness?" Li Congrong snorted, "It's just a few steamed buns, it's not like I can't afford it."

He was brazen with his words, but in his heart he was thinking, "I will secretly speak with fourth brother and ask him to reward me with some steamed buns, it'll make surnamed Chen envious."

Chen Baisong took the lead and walked at the forefront of the team.

He had a dark expression, and the personal guard riding beside him did not dare to speak.

The personal guard felt that since he gave the bun to General Li, if the generals anger spread to him, then he would be in bad luck. After all, not everyone could become the personal guard of the general. Generally speaking, the personal guards were the general's left and right hands and if they wefe valued, they would definitely be awarded military official posts.

It was not easy to climb to this position.

After all, no one did not want to climb up.

However, Chen Baisong's temper came and went quickly. By the time he arrived at the camp, he had calmed down completely, and he was even able to talk and laugh with Li Congrong.

Together, they went inside the tent and summarized the war report once again in front of Lin Yuan.

After hearing this, Lin Yuan said: "Keep it in mind yourselves, and when the war is over, everyone will then give me a written report."

Then he looked at Li Congrong: "Especially you."

Li Congrong looked troubled: "It's too difficult to recognize words! I only know how to write my own name."

Lin Yuan sighed: "Bai Song was also illiterate before."

Li Congrong glanced at Chen Baisong in shock, with an expression of "what kind of spell did you put fourth brother under?". He then said in an aggrieved manner: "I really can't learn it. I hired a teacher before, and the teacher said that I am a cow that can't be taught."

Zhu Yuanzhang coughed lightly: "It's a child who can't be taught."

Li Congrong: "It's almost the same regardless."

Lin Yuan almost spat out a sip of tea.

He said seriously: "You can dictate this year's military report to your personal guard or military strategist, and ask him to write it down for you, but if it remains the same next year, I will send someone to teach you."

Li Congrong was frightened: "Send who?"

Lin Yuan: "Mr. Song has enough qualifications to teach you."

Li Congrong thought of Song Shizhao's old wrinkled face, always looking at people with drooping eyelids, and his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Don't know why but he was not afraid of Lin Yuan, wars, or enemies. Only Song Shizhao he was afraid of.

Song Shizhao always made him feel uncomfortable. Every time Song Shizhao looked at him, it was like he was looking at a fool.

Although Li Congrong could not describe it, it did not affect him from feeling it.

Li Congrong didn't dare to speak anymore, he was afraid that Lin Yuan would show some more "care" towards him when he spoke.

He didn't dare to mention the steamed buns either.

Lin Yuan consoled and said: "When the situation is stable, I will invite over second and third brother. Us brothers have not gathered together for a long time."

When Li Congrong heard this, he immediately grinned so wide his teeth were exposed, and he even stuttered as he spoke, "Yes, yes. "

Just as the few people were talking, a small soldier from outside the tent came in to report.

"There is a woman among the prisoners of war." The little soldier also looked incredulous. There was a woman in the barracks? What was Sun Deya doing?

The few people in the tent were stunned. No matter how short of people, it wouldn't come to letting women enter the barracks, right? Especially when on a war expedition.

Even Lin Yuan, a "modern man", had never thought about recruiting female soldiers.

This was unrealistic. The first problem was the physical fitness of women. Their muscle composition was different from that of men, and their physical strength was not enough.

The second problem was the deep-rooted thinking of women at this time, and the social thinking they accepted did not allow them to serve as soldiers.

The third was the problem between men and women. It was easy to separate them during training, but everything was kept simple when marching. It was nothing new that female soldiers in modern country M were forcibly violated by male soldiers or instructors.

It was very dangerous for women in military camps.

Many soldiers in the army did not have a fixed sexual partner, the military discipline was also strict, and there was no opportunity for finding prostitutes.

It was not easy even to find a male sexual partner, because there were people everywhere, and there were strict curfews for bedtime.

The soldier: "She wiped her face with dirt and wore a hat. If we hadn't just checked, she would not have been found out so easily."

A woman disguised herself as a man, it was much like Hua Mulan. Lin Yuan became interested: "Bring her here."

The feasibility of disguising women as men depended on the environment. If it was the upper class which required a clean face and meticulous combing of hair, it was naturally easy to be recognized. Basically, those who could not be recognized were women with natural born masculine looks, who look like men pretending to be women even when they were dressed as women.

But when marching, the soldiers do not put much effort in cleaning themselves. It was normal for the soldiers to sport shaggy hair and unshaved beards as well as clothes stained by blood or mud. They could sleep immediately when they lay down, eat when they got up, and fight when they were half full.

They don't have time to care where their comrades went to urinate, or how long their leg hairs were.

Their lives were not even guaranteed, so who would have the idle interest to look at others' faces?

When Ma ahi was brought over, there was still mud on her face.

Lin Yuan took a closer look, and then he understood why she could mix with men without notice.

She was very ordinary looking, with a square face and thick earlobes. These were facial features that symbolized blessed fortune according to physiognomy. Her face and hands had black and gray soot spots as well as some mud which concealed her original complexion. She was not tall and if she stooped over she would look like an unremarkable short man.

Moreover, her feet were big, and Lin Yuan felt that his feet were probably similar to hers in size.

"What's your name?" Lin Yuan's tone was very gentle.

Ma shi's voice was very light and soft, not like a man at all: "This slave is Ma shi."

Lin Yuan was taken aback: "Guo Zixing is your foster father?"

Ma shi raised her head and looked at Lin Yuan with some surprise. She didn't know why the man in front of her knew this. After all, she had been raised in the deep boudoir before she escaped, and no one knew what she looked like.

Lin Yuan glanced at Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang was puzzled by Lin Yuan's look. This was Guo Zixing's adopted daughter and not his. What was the South Bodhisattva looking at him for?

Lin Yuan asked: "Why did you become part of the barracks? Do you know that as a woman, if you were found.."

Ma shj raised her head. Her parents only had her and she was regarded as a pearl in the palm of her parents' hand since she was a child. Later, her mother died early and her father entrusted her to her foster father. After her father died in a foreign region, her foster father pitied her and took her as his foster daughter. He taught her personally, and her foster mother also taught her knitting and embroidery. She loved history books and read often, not knowing day and night.

She fearlessly said to Lin Yuan: "My lord, even though this slave is a woman, I understand the saying that losers are always in the wrong. Now that this slave is captured by you, there is nothing to say, all I ask for is death!"

Lin Yuan: "If my lady wants to die, why did you escape from Haozhou?"

Ma shi gritted her teeth: "The thief, Sun, killed my foster father, this hatred will not be forgiven!"

She was a woman and had little power, but she grew up in the hands of her foster father. She knew all the fortresses in Haozhou clearly, which was why she had to come out and take a gamble! She was looking for a knife to avenge her foster father and foster mother.

"If I don't avenge my hatred, I will not fulfill my duty as a daughter!" Ma shi's eyes were tearful, but she didn't reach out to wipe the tears. She looked straight at Lin Yuan, her eyes firm and unshakable.

After she said these things, everyone's eyes changed when they looked at her.

Lin Yuan asked her softly: "Do you know the military secrets of Haozhou?"

Ma shi said firmly and loudly: "Very clearly!"

Lin Yuan asked again: "Do you know of the military placements in Haozhou?"

Ma shi nodded.

Lin Yuan: "The granary in Haozhou?"

Ma shi: "I will speak without reserve."

Lin Yuan looked at Ma shi and chuckled lightly: "Then you can stay."

Ma shi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. She was not afraid of death, but was afraid that she would not be able to avenge her foster parents.

Lin Yuan felt that Ma shi's appearance at this time was like a gift from God. No one knew the situation in Haozhou better than Ma shi. She was not an ordinary woman, her biological parents were not illiterate, and she was also the pearl in the palm of their hands. Naturally, she would have gotten a good education.

Then she was taught personally by Guo Zixing, and no matter what, Guo Zixing was regarded as a successful leader of an uprising.

She got an education that even many upper-class men could not get.

Lin Yuan asked her: "If you didn't run into me, who would you go to?"

Ma shi said calmly: "Go to Xu Shouhui."

Lin Yuan smiled and said, "Xu Shouhui doesn't have the ability to help you."

Ma shi nodded: "This slave knows that Xu Shouhui is short-sighted and has no real power. Even if there is no Ni Wenjun, there will be others."

Lin Yuan asked strangely: "Then why would you still go find him?"

Ma shi's lips pursed: "This slave can only gamble."

When she entered the barracks, the only possible way for her was to surrender to Xu Shouhui and betray Haozhou. If she did not march with the army, she might die before she could even go far, so she could only gamble.

"Take her to the nurse camp." Lin Yuan ordered, "Be courteous and don't be negligent."

The soldier hurriedly led Ma shi out. This woman who could win the favor of the South Bodhisattva was now his ancestor.

After Ma shi's departure, Li Congrong touched his chin and said, "This little lady is interesting, I admire her!"

Lin Yuan smiled and said, "How is your wife recently?"

Li Congrong shivered: "She? She is very good, wait! I don't mean that, I just admire her mettle, just admire only, besides, her face.."

It was covered in mud and ashes, so naturally it wouldn't look any good.

Lin Yuan sneered: "How superficial."

The several people looked at Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan: "What are you looking at?"

With an expression of "I understand everything", Li Congrong smiled and said, "A slender lady, a gentleman courts."

Zhu Yuanzhang sighed: "It's fair lady."

Li Congrong: "Same thing."

Lin Yuan: ".."

Could it be that in the eyes of this group of pigs, there could only be that thing between men and women?

Besides, Ma shi and Zhu Yuanzhang were the official CP, and let him snatch his subordinate's wife? Then he couldn't do it, he didn't even want to think about it.

Only Chen Baisong was silent on the side, his hands clenched into fists, his eyes lowered, and his teeth gritted. Veins could be seen popping on the back of his hands with how hard he clenched them.