The door of the study was closed. Only a few windows were open in the room, and the orange afterglow slipped in through them.
The colorful light in the room spread from the window towards the inside, gradually fading from the brightest at the edge to the dimmest near the long table.
The light and shadow grew dim there. A man in a black robe sat like a mountain in front of the table. He had a majestic figure. With his arms outstretched and then drawn in, he encircled the person in front of him. The wide sleeves with dark patterns slid up a bit, revealing his muscular forearms.
The warmth behind her approached, and the man's breath fanned across her nape, making it itch. Pei Ying dodged to the side. Just as she was about to turn sideways to get him to sit farther away, her nape was rubbed.
It was just an ordinary itch at first, but now it was a stinging pain.
The stubble on his jaw had just grown out.
"Huò Tíngshān," Pei Ying called him, her voice tinged with dissatisfaction.
The man gave a soft laugh. The arm around her waist tightened, and at the same time, he kissed her fair earlobe that was so close, "So my wife knows about military strategies."
"I don't," Pei Ying tried to pry the big hand off her waist. After failing, she had no choice but to give up. "I'm just learning from history. In the ancient times of my era, there was a powerful northern warlord who wanted to unify the south. He used the method of chaining ships together to cross the river. But in the end, the enemy set fire to his ships, and they were all burned to ashes. Until his death, he never established his own kingdom."
"That's because my wife is knowledgeable and well - traveled," Huò Tíngshān placed his left arm on the table and casually held her left hand. His palm was so big that it easily enveloped hers. "Would my wife come to the study with me from now on?"
Pei Ying turned her head and glanced at the man behind her. "What would I do when you're having discussions?"
Today was a special case. She had spent the whole afternoon here and had finished all her work.
The man pinched her fingertips and casually said, "You can read some books or take a nap on the couch in the inner room."
Pei Ying thought this man was crazy. But with the table in front and her way back blocked, she was trapped in a small space. Her hand was held, and only her right hand was free. It was inconvenient to push him away while sitting sideways. "It's inappropriate. What would your subordinates think?"
"Who cares about them?" Huò Tíngshān laughed. "But my wife is wrong. After today, they're quite happy for you to be here and listen in."
Pei Ying was not happy about it. She came up with another reason. "Well, I have an issue with it. I don't feel comfortable here."
After he distributed the refined steel today, she always felt burning gazes stealing glances at her throughout the afternoon.
They looked at her as if she were some rare animal, as if they wanted to put her on a pedestal, which made her extremely uncomfortable.
It took her the whole afternoon to copy several brochures.
Huò Tíngshān held her left hand, and his rough thumb stroked her palm intermittently. "Then my wife doesn't have to come every time. Come once every three times."
Her palm tickled, and Pei Ying tried to pull her hand back but failed. "What do you want me to listen in for? I opposed the proposal of chaining the ships together just because I happened to know about a similar failed case. I don't really understand military strategies. I can't help you by listening in."
"I don't expect my wife to help me. The refined steel is my wife's achievement. I'm not the kind of person who would take credit for others' work. They should be grateful to you. Isn't it more straightforward for them to thank you in person?" The man gave such a reply.
Pei Ying frowned. She somehow felt that he wasn't telling the truth. She had done more than just the refined steel. And the military officers had already thanked her today. Why did she have to come to the study again and again? "Huò Tíngshān, you'd better tell me the truth. If you do, I'll consider it. Otherwise, there's no way."
The man fell silent.
Pei Ying didn't urge him. She used her right hand to try to pry the long arm off her waist again.
She tried but still couldn't get it off.
This man was incredibly strong. Once he didn't want to let go, his hand was as firm as if it were made of iron.
"You listened to the whole discussion in the study today. I'm sure you're well - aware that Wei of Yizhou has three legitimate sons," Huò Tíngshān said at this time.
Pei Ying stopped her movements. Although she didn't understand why he suddenly brought up Wei of Yizhou, she still responded with a soft "yes".
He continued, "Wei of Yizhou and his wife were childhood sweethearts. His wife is in good health, so these three legitimate sons were all born to her. In other words, Eldest Wei, Second Wei, and Third Wei are full - blooded brothers from the same mother."
As long as the children are born to a wife, they are of the legitimate line, whether it's the first wife or a second wife.
Pei Ying pondered over this.
Huò Tíngshān said, "Maybe my wife doesn't know that before Wei of Yizhou staged the 'fish belly note' and 'campfire fox cry' to build up momentum for himself, he actually spread some rumors. He once claimed that his three full - blooded sons had a very good relationship and were truly of one heart. Whatever the eldest brother needed, the two younger brothers would do their best to fulfill; whatever the younger brothers asked for, the eldest brother would never refuse. At first, he even declared that the three brothers didn't have their own subordinate camps because they were so close that there was no need to divide them."
At the end, Huò Tíngshān let out a laugh, full of mockery. "But in fact, the Wei brothers were not as inseparable as the rumors said. The so - called 'no separate subordinate camps' they boasted about later became a big joke. They were full - blooded brothers. No matter how fraternal and affectionate they seemed before, they still turned against each other. In the end, it's very likely that Eldest Wei and Second Wei were both killed by Third Wei."
Pei Ying was not stupid. He was talking about the Wei family, but it wasn't really about the Wei family.
"Huò Tíngshān, it's different. They had conflicts of interest, so it turned out like that," Pei Ying said in a low voice.
There was always a competitive relationship among brothers. Even full - blooded brothers were the same because the root of the competition was the conflict of interest.
She thought he was thinking too far ahead. Not to mention that there were no conflicts of interest between her and Ming Jizhi and Zhang, and not to mention that the two brothers were very respectful to her.
Just considering Huò Tíngshān, as long as he was still alive, his two sons definitely wouldn't dare to act recklessly.
The man leaned forward a little and planted a kiss on her fair cheek. His voice was also very low. "It's indeed different. But my wife, people's hearts are always changeable. Their past and present respect doesn't mean they'll still be the same in the future. Even though I know the probability is low, I still can't help thinking about that one - in - a - million chance."
Pei Ying pursed her lips.
Power was a wonderful thing. It was the sharpest sword that could kill people without a trace.
However, Pei Ying was very clear in her heart that the person who wielded this sword had to be ruthless and decisive enough. Indecision would only make the people around gradually become restless and develop the ambition to seize the sword and take over.
She was even afraid of dead people. In some aspects, her psychological quality was far inferior to that of the ancients.
Not to mention that she was born under the red flag and grew up on the campus of an ivory tower. After graduation, she was engaged in the work of teaching and educating people. Pei Ying had a clear self - awareness. She really couldn't do the kind of thing of killing people without bloodshed.
Moreover, it's not just doing it once or twice. It requires meticulous thinking every day and constant mental rotation.
One wrong move might lead to a complete loss.
Pei Ying thought for a moment and asked, "Huo Tingshan, aren't you afraid of making things worse?"
She understood that his many considerations were based on the assumption of his own death.
But she, a "person from the past" who had just stepped into this world halfway, was no match for those who were born and raised here. Not to mention that Ming Ji had been trained as an heir since childhood, with a temperament and means far beyond what she could compare with.
It would be even worse if a dispute was triggered because of this matter.
Huo Tingshan frowned imperceptibly and didn't speak for a long time.
Pei Ying sighed slightly and said, "Didn't you say you would live a long life with me? Why are you suddenly thinking about those things?"
"Yes, we'll be together until the end of our lives," he replied quickly.
Pei Ying said with a mix of amusement and helplessness, "Then why are you still talking about those things?"
The man deliberately rubbed his newly - stubbled chin against her cheek and asked, "Can't I talk about it?"
Pei Ying was left speechless.
"Madam, come to the study once every five days," Huo Tingshan readjusted the frequency.
Pei Ying was slightly stunned. She didn't expect that he still hadn't given up.
He held her fingertips. In an angle that Pei Ying couldn't see, the man's long and narrow eyes were as deep as a cold pool, unfathomable, but his tone was quite casual. "Just think of it as me having a bout of paranoia."
Pei Ying sighed helplessly.
"What's there to worry about? As long as your husband is alive, there's no need for you to worry," he said with a smile.
Pei Ying didn't want to talk to him.
But the hand that was originally around her waist moved up and finally stopped at her chin, gently turning her head to the side.
His kiss fell on her again.
...
After finalizing the plan to besiege Yanzhou, Huo Tingshan quickly formulated the subsequent combat plan.
The first thing on the list was the pre - war preparation. For a water battle, it wouldn't work if all the soldiers were landlubbers. So, Huo Tingshan waved his hand and ordered the soldiers to start learning to swim.
For the soldiers from Youzhou, who lived in the north all year round and took fewer baths than those in the south, this was no easy task.
Pei Ying had nothing to do one day and went to watch them for a while. She frowned as she watched.
The "swimming pool" in this era was really just a pool, completely natural, with overgrown waterweeds on the side.
The soldiers were floundering on the shore. A few rare ones who could swim were in the deep - water area far from the shore. Whenever a landlubber swam too far, they would go over and drag the person back to the shore to prevent drowning.
Pei Ying watched on the shore for a quarter of an hour. Her eyes hurt from watching. "Huo Tingshan, this won't work. There's no order at all."
Huo Tingshan also thought it was in a mess. But he had previously asked a few soldiers from Luoyang who could swim, and they all replied that they had learned to swim when they were young.
Specifically, they learned in the river and just learned as they swam.
Of course, some people demonstrated it in person, but this kind of teaching demonstration couldn't achieve immediate results. As the saying goes, the eyes seem to have learned, but the hands and feet have their own minds.
"Huo Tingshan, ask someone to get some gourds or the bladders of pigs, cattle, and sheep. After blowing air into the latter, they can float on the water. Tie the gourds or bladders to the soldiers' waists with a thin rope. In this way, even if the soldiers go to the deep - water area, they won't really drown. It'll be more effective than floundering on the shore," Pei Ying thought for a while and said. "If you can't collect that many gourds and bladders in a short time, thick round logs can be used instead."
"My wife is really smart," Huo Tingshan immediately smiled and then ordered his eldest son beside him, "Ming Ji, I'll leave this matter to you. Within five days, whether it's gourds, bladders, or round logs, I want to see a total of two thousand of them."
Huo Mingji just came to his senses from Pei Ying's words and immediately took on the task. "Son will surely live up to father's trust."
With this order, the bladders in the Luoyang meat market found a use. At the same time, led by Sha Ying, a group of soldiers entered the deep mountains and old forests outside Luoyang to cut down trees.
Batches of gourds and bladders were in place.
While the soldiers were learning to swim over there, Huo Tingshan turned his attention to other things here.
In addition to soldiers, warships were the most important thing for a water battle. It was time to build ships. But before building the ships, there was still the work of inspecting the ships to do.
"Madam, the weather is fine today. How about going for a river cruise with me?"
