Chapter Thirty-One: The Prefect and the Petty Rogues

Half-awake, Qin Cheng seemed to have returned to the twenty-first century, to the familiar city of W in Hubei Province. Scenes of leading his brothers into late-night street battles against rival gangs replayed vividly before him. He watched as comrades who had fought life and death by his side fell one by one, and finally, even his boss collapsed in a pool of blood.

Suddenly, the bloody scene shifted to a snowy spring countryside, where a graceful figure danced lightly across the snow. Her beautiful face, so familiar to Qin Cheng, smiled brightly, occasionally casting him a playful glance. Qin Cheng couldn’t help but smile back—a rare, genuine smile.

The scene changed again. He was in a cold, abandoned factory, his body covered in blood, leaning against a window. Outside, sirens wailed, and countless heavily armed police trained their weapons on the window where Qin Cheng was hiding. He glanced at a fallen brother nearby, shot through the head, his blood pooling beneath him. The brother’s lifeless eyes remained open, gazing at Qin Cheng with regret for failing to protect him. Qin Cheng took a deep breath, glanced at the police car where a stunning woman nestled beside a wealthy middle-aged man, looked up at the sky, murmured something, and then suddenly leapt out the window...

Qin Cheng jolted awake, sitting up abruptly, only to feel a sharp pain in his back. He quickly slipped back into unconsciousness.

...

“Master, is he dead?” Qin Cheng heard a voice nearby.

“Shut your cursed mouth! If he’s dead, I might lose my own head!” an older, slightly hoarse voice replied.

“Master, I heard he killed the Huns’ Right Bone Captain—is he really that formidable? I heard the Left Bone Captain is even stronger!” The youthful voice continued.

“No matter how fierce the Huns are, could they be fiercer than us Han people?” the old voice retorted, tinged with displeasure. “This fellow is truly remarkable—not only did he behead the Huns’ Left Bone Captain, but he also drove their Left Wise King to flee in disgrace amidst thousands of troops! Do you know who the Left Wise King is? He’s second only to the Huns’ Chanyu!”

“Wow, he’s really that strong?” The youthful voice sounded stunned. “He doesn’t look like someone with three heads and six arms! Oh no! Oh no, oh no!”

Suddenly, the young voice cried out in panic.

“What’s the matter, shouting like that?” the old voice scolded impatiently.

“It’s over, Master! I didn’t know he was so powerful! Last night I fed him medicine with Da Huang’s bowl... Do you think he’ll kill me?”

“That mangy female dog’s bowl?!”

...

Qin Cheng couldn’t be bothered to listen to their words anymore. He had intended to feign sleep a while longer, curious to hear his glorious deeds exaggerated, but he could no longer contain himself. He sat up abruptly, ignoring the pain in his back, jumped out of bed, and ran to the doorway, retching.

The old and young pair stared at him, mouths agape. The boy, no more than eleven or twelve, had turned pale.

Qin Cheng dry-heaved for a while, but after days without food, only bitter yellow bile came up. When he finished, he turned around to see the pale, bewildered boy staring at him with wide, round eyes.

The boy, frightened by Qin Cheng’s fierce gaze, quickly hid behind the old medical officer, trembling.

“Uh...” The old officer felt awkward, forced a smile, and said, “Lord Qin, you’re awake?”

Qin Cheng shot him a glance, thinking, can’t you see I’m awake? Why ask?

“Sir, where is this place?” Qin Cheng asked, suppressing his frustration.

“This is the medical hall of the Qiansang City military camp. I am the medical officer here, and I treated your wounds,” the old man replied, as if seeking favor, worried Qin Cheng might blame the boy’s carelessness.

“How long was I unconscious?”

“Not long, just five days...”

“Qin Cheng, you’re awake!” A loud voice sounded behind him, and someone strode in quickly.

Qin Cheng frowned, annoyed by such trivial questions. Turning, he saw it was Le Yi, which made him feel somewhat better. Behind Le Yi, cavalry captain Ji Zhu also entered, smiling in greeting upon seeing Qin Cheng awake.

“This room is cramped. Let’s talk outside,” Le Yi said, pulling Qin Cheng with him and offering a smile to the old and young pair inside.

“You came specially to check on me?” Outside, Qin Cheng could finally see his surroundings: rows of neat buildings, each adjoining the next, all of the most common military camp style. Some doors were open, and inside were orderly beds—at a glance, there were at least ten beds per room. His own room, though small, had only one bed, clearly a special arrangement by Li Guang. The medical officer inside must be assigned to him alone.

“The general is busy with military duties, but he’s concerned about you, so he sent us to check in. Didn’t expect you’d finally wake up... The general himself visited yesterday,” Ji Zhu explained.

“You achieved great merit in this battle; even your hospital room was assigned by the general’s own order so you could recover well. When you returned, you gave us all a fright—we thought you wouldn’t survive, but your ability to cling to life matches your prowess in battle,” Le Yi said excitedly, wiping his foot in the grass by the roadside.

“Let the general know I appreciate it. Thank him for me,” Qin Cheng said to Ji Zhu, and shoved Le Yi. “What are you wiping?”

“Oh, I didn’t notice when I entered your room just now, but I accidentally stepped in a puddle of urine right outside your door—who knows which scoundrel left it there,” Le Yi replied, focused on wiping his shoe.

“Damn...” Qin Cheng thought of his miserable morning and the pool of bitter bile at the door, cursing angrily.

“Mud? There’s no mud...” Le Yi hadn’t heard clearly and looked around in confusion.

Qin Cheng decided not to bother explaining. He noticed that as some wounded soldiers passed him while strolling about, their eyes shone with admiration.

“Everyone knows about your deeds now, especially that you slew the Huns’ Left Bone Captain,” Ji Zhu explained upon seeing Qin Cheng’s puzzled expression.

Qin Cheng smiled ambiguously and suddenly asked, “By the way, during the last pursuit of the Huns’ cavalry, who shot me in the back? I fell from my horse and lost consciousness, didn’t get to see, but you two were behind me—you must have seen.”

Le Yi and Ji Zhu exchanged hesitant glances, sighing and looking as if they wanted to speak but couldn’t.

Qin Cheng sat atop a mound, watching their discomfort. Seeing they wouldn’t speak, he continued, “I remember a detachment of Han troops coming from the west, forcing the Huns to flee north. Though I charged ahead, I saw their military banner bore the name ‘Gongsun.’ From the west, Dai Commandery—yes, the governor there is General Gongsun Ao. So the one who mistakenly shot me must be from Gongsun Ao’s forces...”

Le Yi and Ji Zhu looked at each other, something passing between them.

Qin Cheng, seeing they still wouldn’t speak, went on, “In a military charge, the commander is always at the front. The arrow that struck my back was slightly off-target, but the force was tremendous—it pierced my armor in one shot, so it couldn’t have been an ordinary soldier. That means...”

“Lord Qin, don’t say any more!” Ji Zhu interrupted. He hadn’t expected Qin Cheng’s deduction to reveal the truth so quickly. He said awkwardly, “Le Yi has already reported it to the general, who has dealt with the matter. Don’t dwell on it—let it go!”

He shook his head again, full of regret and helplessness.

Qin Cheng smiled faintly, his expression dark, “At that moment, the Huns’ Left Wise King was retreating, wounded, right before me—I was so close to cutting him down. Yet some petty person, wanting to compete for merit, shot me instead, letting the Wise King escape. If I didn’t even know who did it, wouldn’t that be even more absurd than the event itself?”

Ji Zhu wanted to say more, but Le Yi spoke first, “You guessed right, Qin Cheng—it was that bastard Gongsun Ao! I reported it to the general, but he merely claimed his horse slipped and the arrow missed its mark. It infuriated me! If Ji Zhu hadn’t stopped me, I’d have cut him down myself!”

Ji Zhu squatted beside Qin Cheng, patting his shoulder consolingly, “I know you’re upset, but he’s a governor, and his excuse has no obvious flaw—there’s nothing the general can do to protect you. Let’s not cause more trouble for him. The general was deeply saddened when he heard, but powerless.”

Qin Cheng stood up and gave Le Yi and Ji Zhu a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. I know how to handle it.”