Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
âWhatâs the name of the great general in our village? Hu Da?â Wang Wulang could not remember. The generalâs temple in Hu Family Village was just called âGeneralâs Templeâ. There was a generalâs tablet inside that wrote âThe position of Great General Hu.â
âHeâs called Hu Da.â Little Ah Yu confirmed. âBut thatâs his common name. His other name is Hu Dingbang. Itâs a name given to him by Emperor Gaozu.â Wang Wulang was shocked. âHow did you know?â
âGrandpa Hu said so. When we returned to the village, he would always be at the village entrance telling the people from the other villages. Every time someone comes, he will tell them. Fifth Brother, didnât you listen?â Little Air Yu saw Wang Wulangâs ashamed expression and said earnestly, âFifth Brother, you have to be more alert. When we go back, you still have to take the county level imperial exam. Donât fail the exam when Sixth Brother passes.â
The Wang family membersâ memories were especially good. Although they did not have a photographic memory, they could basically remember most of the things they had heard and read.
However, Fifth Big Brother didnât seem to care. He had better not fail the exam.
Little Ah Yu was worried.
Wang Wulang:ââ¦â
It hurt.
When Hu Rui heard Hu Daâs name, he was shocked. When he heard Hu Dingbang, he said in surprise, âIs your place really General Huâs hometown?!â
âLittle General, you know General Hu?â Everyone was puzzled.
Hu Rui invited everyone into the magistrateâs office and explained it to the Wang Family in detail. Only then did everyone know that Hu Rui was actually the youngest son of the current border general, General Hu.
He only knew that his ancestors had once produced a great general. However, because more than a hundred years had passed and they had experienced war during this period, many of the documents and files from various places had already disappeared. Those who knew were either dead or missing. There was no way to find out.
Unexpectedly, he was only here to help his uncle, but he had actually met a possible descendant of Great General Hu.
When he found out that General Hu had a large group of descendants and had even formed a Hu Family Village, Hu Rui was especially excited and immediately expressed his desire to escort everyone back to Hu Family Village.
Little Ah Yu and the others waved their hands. âNo, no, no. Weâre not the descendants of General Hu. Our Wang Family moved in later. However, weâre not planning to go home now. We still have to continue traveling and studying.â
Hu Rui said in admiration, âYouâre so young, but youâre actually able to leave your elders to study alone. However, your temperaments are really extraordinary. Youâll definitely become great people in the future!â
Wang Wulang laughed loudly. âLittle General, you donât look much older than us. Youâre actually leading troops to war. Compared to you, weâre like playing house.â
âIâve only been influenced since 1 was young and inherited my fatherâs job. If 1 was just an ordinary child, I definitely wouldnât be able to compare to you.â Although Hu Rui said that, he was still very happy with Wang Wulangâs praise. He immediately said, â1 saw you fight just now. Your skills should be not bad. Youâve practiced before, right?â
He heard that they had only started learning martial arts three to four years ago, but they already had true qi and internal force. Wang Wulang could even climb up a twenty-foot-tall wall. Hu Rui immediately treated him as an equal.
He even said to Wang Wulang, âIf youâre interested in joining the army in the future, you can look for me in Xi Liang City. Iâll introduce you to the army. You definitely wonât have to start as a nameless soldier.â
Wang Wulang did not expect such a pleasant surprise. He immediately cupped his hands and said, âThen I wonât stand on ceremony with you. If thereâs really a chance in the future, Iâll definitely disturb you.â
His wish was to become a general. In the future, as long as he convinced his family, he would go out and join the army.
This saved him the trouble of starting at the bottom. He was naturally happy.
Because they had helped a lot this time, especially Qin Huaiâs Crimson Guards, not only did they not take the opportunity to disturb the structure of the prison, but they also helped subdue the rebels and captured a few people in the lead, allowing them to quickly control the situation.
The local magistrate and the general guarding the city praised them greatly.
Hu Rui also remembered that they were from Hu Family Village, so he naturally helped to raise their value.
The border was bitterly cold, and the magistrate could not give them much money. Knowing that they were going to continue traveling, he gave them some documents and tokens to pass the checkpoints and let them enjoy the high-level treatment of the courier stations along the way.
There was no need to pay additional fees and they could live comfortably.
Of course, other than this, the magistrate and the general guarding the city did not hide their situation in the past two years. They submitted a petition for merit to Wanning City overnight and mentioned this group of traveling children.
Ten days later, Emperor Minghua received an urgent report. When he saw that the general guarding the city had been captured and East Peak City almost became a breakthrough point for the remaining survivors of the neighboring country, he was so angry that his beard curled up.
Just as he was about to flare up, he saw the petition and became even angrier.
âAs prefects and generals of the city, theyâre actually so useless. They actually have the cheek to ask for credit? Do they really think that Iâm a benevolent ruler and wonât chop off their heads?!â Emperor Minghua cursed. After a while, his voice faded and turned into surprise.
Then, there was joy.
âHuh? General Hu is truly a tiger father who has no mediocre child. This Hu Rui is young and promising!â Emperor Minghua was overjoyed and slammed the table repeatedly. When he looked again, he realized that there was a pile of names behind him. âWang Ziming, Wang Zhizhao, Wang Zilan, and Wang Ruyu. These children came from a poor family, but theyâre brave and fearless. Theyâre also good children. Qin Huai? Qin Huai?!â
When he saw the last name, Emperor Minghua suddenly stood up. He held the petition in his hand and could not hide the joy on his face.
When the eunuch beside him saw this, he probed, âYour Majesty, is it Young Master Qin Huai from the Dukeâs Estate?â
Emperor Minghua originally didnât know Qin Huaiâs identity until Qin Huai investigated Emperor Minghua and was captured by the secret guards raised by Emperor Minghua. Naturally, everything became clear.
Only then did he know that the child that the Empress had hidden for many years was actually raised under his nose.
No wonder he felt that the child looked very familiar previously.
He thought that the child had long since died.
Now that he saw that this child was alive and well and had even made a contribution, he was even more happy.
He waved his hand. âReward them all. I have to think carefully about how to reward these children!â
At this moment, Little All Yu and the others did not know that Emperor Minghuaâs thoughtful reward was on the way.
They only thought that what the magistrate had given them was already a very good reward.
Three months later, Little Ah Yu and the others arrived at a desert. There was 50 miles of yellow sand there that naturally lay in the middle of the two cities.
There were all kinds of risks in this yellow sand land. People often went there and did not return. Thus, there were orders by the prefects on both sides to not allow anyone to traverse there. Otherwise, they would bear the consequences themselves.
Only Little Ah Yu and the others were eager to try and cross the entire yellow sand land.
âPeople constantly enter but never come out. Either this is really a place of death, or thereâs something more powerful hidden inside.â Wang Wulang raised his chin and analyzed, âIâm more inclined to the second possibility.â
Qin Huai looked at Little Ah Yu. âDo you want to go?â
[Kid, you can go.]
Little Ah Yu nodded obediently. âYes, weâll go. If Fifth Brother wants to go, weâll accompany him.â
Wang Wulang was so touched that his tears flowed. âLittle Sister Ah Yu is still the best!â
âIn any case, it was Fifth Brother who suggested it. If anything happens to us, Grandma wonât be able to blame us in the future.â
Wang Wulang:ââ¦â
Give me back my tears!
When they were sufficiently prepared and entered the yellow sand wasteland, the Wang family, who was far away in Wangbei County City and worried about the children, and Duke Yong Manor in Wanning City, welcomed the sound of gongs and drums.
âGood news, good news!â