The Hidden Beauty

Chapter 112 Leaning on Each Other
Meng Tingzhou paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, and the generals looked at him in silence.

After a while, Meng Tingzhou asked, "Xu Jing, what do you think?"

When his name was called all of a sudden, Xu was caught off guard. He looked around and saw that everyone lowered their heads. He cursed secretly in his heart.

He could only grit his teeth and said, "Commander-in-chief, in my humble opinion, I think Yu Bu's suggestion is a good one."

"The governor is the backbone of the army. If we rashly engage in battle with the Ministry of War, it will only disrupt the morale of the army. If Yu Bu takes people to explore the Ministry of War, we can also be prepared."

Meng Tingzhou's eyes briefly crossed with his, and then he said to Yu Bu, "If you meet someone from the Ministry of War, tell Lu Chong that as long as he can get me to retreat to the northern border, nothing will happen. Otherwise, don't blame me for turning my back on you."

Yu Bu accepted the order, clasped his fists and retreated.

The others also left one after another, leaving only Pei Qing waiting.

Meng Tingzhou sat alone on a bench, listening to the rustling of the wind and snow: "Pei Qing, what do you think?"

Pei Qing was still not able to react when he suddenly asked, "What did the governor say?"

"Do you also think that Jiang Shiwan will be an obstacle?"

Pei Qing thought for a moment and shook his head: "I dare not deceive the commander-in-chief. I don't know whether Madam will become an obstacle for the soldiers to fight the enemy."

“Yu Bu may have ulterior motives in what he said, but it will certainly stir up resentment among others.”

Meng Tingzhou sneered: "Why didn't Yu Bu say it earlier or later? Why did he say it at this time? It can't be said that he didn't have good intentions."

"After I leave, are we going to deal with him halfway?"

"No need. I asked him to go just to buy time. Lu Zheng has not yet arrived in the North Territory and cannot come to help me quickly."

Pei Qing looked puzzled: "Didn't the governor just say that Master Lu has arrived?"

Meng Tingzhou glanced at him and said, "This governor wants Yu Bu to bring this news to Lu Chong, so that Lu Chong can be restrained."

Pei Qing then realized that this was a trick, and nodded: "General, you are wise."

Meng Tingzhou coughed for a while, and fine beads of sweat oozed from his forehead.

Pei Qing saw that he looked unhappy, and asked hurriedly, "Is the governor in trouble?"

Meng Tingzhou covered his mouth with his fist: "Since my chest was injured, I feel a dull pain in my chest when it's cold."

Pei Qing stroked his back and said with concern, "It was my subordinates' negligence. Send someone to light a fire to keep warm."

Meng Tingzhou knew that firewood was in short supply, so he gave up and said, "It can be used to heat the rooms of the old lady and the young master."

Pei Qing agreed: "General, please go back to your room and rest first. I will ask Doctor Mei to take a look later."

Thinking that this would let Jiang Shiwan know, Meng Tingzhou refused without a second thought: "It's not a big deal, no need to look at it."

He really felt a chill all over his body, and only went back to his room to rest after his coughing stopped.

The room gradually became warmer with the firewood burning, and he couldn't help but sit closer.

Seeing that he looked unhappy after going out, Jiang Shiwan knew that he was in trouble.

She walked over and hugged him gently from behind.

Feeling her closeness, Meng Tingzhou turned his head slightly and put his face against her forehead.

The two leaned against each other quietly, and no one spoke.

"Dad! Cool!"

A call broke the silence.

The two looked at the bed. Ah You had woken up without knowing when. He held his blanket with one hand and pulled his collar with the other hand, looking at them sleepily. Jiang Shiwan quickly let go of his hand, walked over and picked up Ah You: "Are you awake?"

The aroma of food wafted from outside, and Ah You took a deep breath: "Eat...eat..."

He might be really hungry, and he was so anxious that he was about to cry.

Seeing this, Meng Tingzhou sighed helplessly, walked out and asked someone to bring in the food.

"It's cold outside, so don't go out with Ah You these days."

He had some selfish motives when he said this.

He didn't want her to feel the malice or even some unfriendly looks from the people below.

Jiang Shiwan thought he was joking: "I'm afraid of the cold, but Ah You isn't. You don't know his personality, do you think he can stay in the house?"

Meng Tingzhou suddenly appeared and said, "I'll take him out to play myself, or let Yu Feng take him out. You should try to go out less."

Seeing that he was a little stubborn, Jiang Shiwan thought that he didn't want to have a face-to-face conflict between himself and his mother, so he agreed: "I will try to go out less."

The food at the post station was simple, just two bowls of vegetarian noodles.

Jiang Shiwan fed Ah You slowly, and when he saw that she didn't move her chopsticks, Meng Tingzhou picked up the noodles in the bowl in front of her and put it into her mouth.

Seeing that she was a little confused, he said, "You should eat some too, otherwise the noodles will be cold by the time he finishes."

Jiang Shiwan's face turned slightly red.

I couldn't resist him and finally ate the noodles he handed to me.

The three of them slowly finished two bowls of noodles.

After eating, the two men wiped Ayou again. The father and son played happily on the bed, and Ayou screamed with joy.

Old Madam Meng from next door tossed and turned as she listened to the laughter and chatter, muttering, "How can it be so cold even though there's a fire in this room?"

Meng Shuyi handed her a hot water bottle and said, "Aunt, please be patient. This is the best room in the post station. The other soldiers don't have their own rooms."

Old Madam Meng had never had any special affection for her niece, nor did she have any extra thoughts about her.

They had been seeing each other for a while, and she had gradually grown fond of him. She even sighed to Nanny Chen in private, "If Shuyi had never been married, it would be nice to marry her to Tingzhou. At least I know him well."

After Nanny Chen failed in her attempt to kidnap Jiang Shiwan, she no longer dared to easily get involved in any topics or matters, and just agreed blindly.

She had already understood that no matter how evil this old lady was, she was still the governor's biological mother.

But I am just an old lady. If the governor dislikes me, killing me would be as easy as crushing an ant.

When Ayou was tired of playing, he lay between Meng Tingzhou and Jiang Shiwan, listening to Jiang Shiwan humming softly.

Meng Tingzhou also listened to her humming softly. In the darkness, her voice was particularly gentle and heartwarming.

I don’t know how much time had passed, but Ayou stopped making any noise, and I guess he had fallen asleep.

Passing Ah You, his large palms covered her waist: "Do you know how I feel?"

Jiang Shiwan also put his hand on the back of his hand: "How does it feel?"

"Growing up, because I was a bastard, my mother was not favored, and everything in the Meng family was headed by my eldest brother. Sometimes I felt that I was just surviving in the Meng family."

"Today, you, me and Ah You sit together to eat noodles, wash him together, play with him together, and accompany him to sleep together... These trivial and ordinary things make me feel at home for the first time in my life."

(End of this chapter)