Chapter 114: No Hero Has Ever Been a Good Man Since Time Immemorial

I am wounded, and not just in spirit, but in body as well. To be honest, I really didn't want to stab that clerk in the buttocks with my dagger. I had aimed for his kidney, but my stature was limited. After a short burst of movement, I somehow ended up stabbing him right in the rear.

The clerk had put his entire weight into that kick, and I felt as though my ribs were about to snap. By the time the soldiers dragged him away, I had already sent word to Li Er: boil him, braise him, just don't let me lay eyes on that piece of scum ever again.

Liu Wenjing has been here eight times, piling a whole room full of gifts, and every time he wails as if his heart were breaking. Anyone who didn't know better would think I was his own son. In the end, I had to tell Qi Biao and Lai Shun to beat him away. This fellow is currently in high favor with Li Yuan, so he’s not someone I can afford to mess with yet. But I’ve noted his name; when the chance arises, I will definitely set a trap for him—the kind where Li Yuan himself digs the pit to bury him.

"Nanny! Baby...! Hungry!" The childish voice rang out again, and I felt a wave of a headache coming on. This child is the one who was nearly starved to death, his grandfather hacked to pieces while begging for a morsel of food for him, and his mother stabbed to death by that accursed clerk for nothing more than a scream.

"Brother Hao, 'Roast Chicken' is hungry!" Qi Biao and Lai Shun absolutely detest the kid. Since his grandfather and mother died because of him, the two of them consider him a harbinger of bad luck and have repeatedly urged me to just dump him off at some family's house.

The boy has a bloated belly and limbs as thin as firewood sticks. He looks just like the roast chickens we prepare in the Yun household, and since he is slow to speak and can’t say his own name, Lai Shun and Qi Biao dubbed him "Roast Chicken."

Children raising a child—it’s not a normal state of affairs. I feel as though my temperament has changed significantly. Rationally, I know Qi Biao and Lai Shun are right; I’m not in a position to take care of a child this small. But whenever I look into Roast Chicken’s large, soulful eyes, my heart feels as though it’s been struck.

I have never seen eyes so pure, devoid of any impurity. They are as clear as the springs of Jiuzhaigou, revealing the very depths of his soul. In them, I see an insatiable thirst for life. Time and again, I’ve hardened my heart, yet I still cannot bring myself to abandon him.

Qi Biao and Lai Shun refuse to help with the boy, so I have to prepare his food myself. I have to watch him eat every bite, otherwise, those two would snatch it away, shamelessly claiming they just wanted to see if it was cooked through. My threats to pee in the porridge had no effect on them.

The porridge of this era is quite different from what I knew in the future. Back then, porridge was watery; here, it’s closer to dry rice, thick enough that a chopstick won't fall over if stuck in it. As I stirred the pot, I endured the throbbing in my chest—it’s been three days, and it still aches. I just hope there’s no lasting damage. I wonder if Li Er managed to take care of that clerk for me. I’ll have to ask him when I get the chance.

"Brother Hao! Roast Chicken pooped!" Lai Shun bellowed, stretching his neck like a goose.

"If he pooped, just clean it up! Can't you just scoop it out?" I decided right then that I’d put some croton in Lai Shun’s porridge later; the guy has too much fire in him lately and needs a good purge.

"He pooped on your bed!" That was Qi Biao’s voice. I bolted out of the room like a shot.

Country children aren't raised with manners; no one cares where they relieve themselves. They just go wherever! I can't really blame the kid; he’s probably never even seen a bed before in his life.

The bedding was ruined, so I rolled it up and tossed it outside. Looking at the biting wind, I had the urge to kick Roast Chicken, but when I saw those watery eyes, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I deeply regret picking this child up. It was enough to have picked up the little girl, and now this Roast Chicken. I must stop picking up strays, or my house will end up turning into an orphanage.

As I turned back into the room, I found a puddle of water behind the door, accompanied by the distinct stench of urine. Good heavens, picking up children is a terrible vice—I must quit, now, immediately, at once!

"Nanny, baby! Hug!" Two small arms reached out, and soon I had a new attachment clinging to my thigh. I looked up at the sky, speechless. What a debt of karma this is!

Li Yuan is injured, so he cannot stay in Huozhou for long. Returning to Jinyang to recover is the priority, and as a medical officer, I must accompany him. As for the affairs in Huozhou, Li Yuan handed them over to Wang Wei and Gao Junya; the fighting is over, anyway. The city of Huozhou has been left in ruins, and any profit to be made has already been scraped clean. Withdrawing now is the right move. Letting others be the scapegoats while keeping the credit for oneself—that is the fundamental skill of a hereditary official.

The journey back was much more leisurely than the way there. I was in the same carriage, surrounded by fierce soldiers. Gao Junya, Wang Wei, and that detestable Liu Wenjing all stood at the city gate to see the Duke of Tang off. I pulled back the curtain to look—very good, that clerk was nowhere to be seen. It seems Li Er had already finished him off.

Suddenly, near the city of Huozhou, I spotted a pyramid-like structure, its peak rising nearly higher than the city walls. During the battle, I was stationed on a hill just two miles away, yet I don't recall seeing such a thing. What on earth is that? Could it be that during the Sui and Tang dynasties, the Chinese people were building pyramids?

"What is that thing? I didn't see it a few days ago." I pointed at the pyramid and asked the two oafs. I’d been cooped up in the city recovering and hadn’t stepped foot outside.

"Oh, that! That’s a Jingguan!" Lai Shun glanced at it and said, heartlessly.

"Jingguan? What the hell is a Jingguan?" I didn't understand the term, and seeing Lai Shun’s impatient look, I turned to ask Qi Biao.

"You don't know what a Jingguan is? It’s where they bury the dead from the battlefield, along with the captives who were executed. When they were piling it up two days ago, it was terrifying. They cut off all the heads and stacked them right in the middle." Even as Qi Biao spoke, he still seemed haunted. It was clear the scene had left an indelible impression on him.

My hands and feet turned cold. Since ancient times, heroes have rarely been kind-hearted. I had thought Li Yuan wasn't a saint, but I never imagined he was a butcher. I had seen the captives—most were women, children, and the elderly. There were nearly twenty thousand of them. To think that in just a few short days, Li Yuan had ordered them all to be hacked to death. Ruthless and vicious—those words couldn't even begin to describe the extent of his cruelty.

"They were all killed?" My voice trembled, and the way I looked at Qi Biao changed. I desperately hoped there were some survivors, even just one. I didn't want to be tied to a man who was an unadulterated butcher.

"No! Isn't there one left?" Qi Biao pointed at Roast Chicken, who was huddled in the corner of the carriage.

"He... he is the only one who survived...!"