Ling Zhang's words were heard by not only Jiang Xi but also some others. He neither downplayed nor dramatized it but just expressed his real opinions about it in a matter-of-fact way. His voice was not as sonorous as that of a serviceman, but he sounded sincere and affable, his eyes bright and sparkling, making every one of his listeners feel an upsurge of affection for him.

Jiang Xi laughed, "Haha... Although you didn't guess any of the three greatest features, those things also count as characteristics of this city, but speaking of the highest ramparts, the most conscientious soldiers and the most straightforward residents, you should wait until you visit the border city in Shengzhou to draw a conclusion. That place is our headquarters. Some day when you get there, you'll know what I mean."

Ling Zhang said, "I look forward to it."

Jiang Xi burst into laughter.

After he finished laughing, Ling Zhang asked, "So what are the three greatest features that you just mentioned?"

Having no intention to keep him in suspense, Jiang Xi replied, "The strongest liquor, the fiercest winds, and the most henpecked husbands."

Ling Zhang's eyes slightly dilated. "I understand what you mean by 'the strongest liquor' and 'the fiercest winds', but what is 'the most henpecked husbands' about?"

Jiang Xi threw a significant glance at Yuwen Tong and then answered with a smile, "That's because most people living in this city, except for merchants, are kin to troops of the North-western Army. Many servicemen's family members live here. When soldiers are fighting a war, their wives are worried about them all the time, which is something soldiers always feel guilty about. In addition, whenever the troops return from the battlefield, their wives always prepare the most delicious food for them to eat and the warmest beds for them to sleep in, treating their husbands as the light of their lives. As a result, although in this city men always act like they were the mightiest warriors in the world, at home all of them are the most henpecked husbands, because they don't have the heart to anger their wives. As for the Marshal... haha... naturally he'd outshine most of the others in this regard. Childe Ling, you may rest absolutely assured that the Marshal will be very good to you after you two get married."

Most of his words sounded reasonable and sensible, but the last remark...

Ling Zhang flushed, casting a sideward glance at Yuwen Tong.

Appearing very composed, Yuwen Tong looked back at him innocently as if saying, "Jiang Xi is telling the truth."

Ling Zhang, "..."

Seeing the two of them start to exchange amorous glances again, Jiang Xi smugly twisted his head around and grimaced at the others.

"That sounds a pretty sweet feature," observed Ling Zhang. Anxious to steer the conversation away from this feature, he added, "I'd like to hear more details about the strongest liquor and the fiercest winds."

Jiang Xi, who had a sense of propriety and didn't dare go too far, responded, "The strongest liquor is called Raging Flame, which could only be made in Youzhou. It's available in all these roadside taverns and eateries. If you want to find out how it tastes, you may have the Marshal spare some time to take you here to give it a try. The owner of the tavern or the eatery would definitely entertain you with the best Raging Flame he has. A small bowl of Raging Flame is enough to bring a man with a decent tolerance to alcohol to the ground.

As regards the fiercest winds, what with the special geographical location of this city, in winter there are wild gales from the direction of the Luohai Kingdom, and soldiers on the rampart facing that direction would be blown away if they don't tie themselves to the battlements with ropes."

"I see. This is indeed something I've never heard of before," said Ling Zhang, getting somewhat curious.

Having worked himself up, Jiang Xi was just about to continue when Yuwen Tong shot him a disgruntled glance and with that Jiang Xi held back the words that had sprang to the tip of his tongue.

"I'll tell you whatever you want to know. We've just won a fight, so the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom won't be making trouble for us in the next couple of days, which means I can spare some time and show you around the city," Yuwen Tong said to Ling Zhang gently after he silenced Jiang Xi.

Ling Zhang's attention was instantly drawn to Yuwen Tong. "Great. So where are the coalition forces of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom now? Did they retreat?"

"They backed away fifty miles. Currently, our troops are stationed outside the city. Sooner or later there will be a large-scale final battle," replied Yuwen Tong.

Seeing Ling Zhang's attention had shifted completely away from him, Jiang Xi, who had just received an admonitory look from the Marshal, knew that if he uttered another word, he would anger the person he couldn't afford to anger, so he curled his lip, slowed his horse down and lagged behind to progress with his comrade-in-arms.

"Humph. How could the Marshal kick down the ladder like that? Just now it was me who raised Childe Ling's spirits," snorted Jiang Xi under his breath.

Someone on the side said, "Don't be so bitter. Given how wary the Marshal is of other men Childe Ling speaks with, you should feel lucky that he let you talk to Childe Ling for that long."

Jiang Xi gave a dramatic chuckle and then lowered his voice. "That guy has been a bachelor for ages, and this time he hit a jackpot, so of course he's wary of other men."

The one on the side snickered but didn't dare make any other remarks.

...

The group of them went riding through a long street, took a turn and continued proceeding. It would take quite some time to traverse this large border city to the city gates on the other side.

Ling Zhang curiously asked Yuwen Tong, "How did you come to arrive so soon just now?"

"I did some calculation and figured you'd get here today or tomorrow, so yesterday I stayed in the General's Office," explained Yuwen Tong.

Comprehension dawned on Ling Zhang's face. In the knowledge that he'd been waiting for him for more than a day, Ling Zhang said, "I got a little bit sidetracked during the journey. Am I delaying your handling of any military affairs?"

Yuwen Tong shook his head. "I can deal with important issues in the General's Office just as well as I can in the encampment. As for small ones, my subordinates will handle them. Currently we are still waiting for the allied forces of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom to make their move. They've lost four battles running and been forced to back away fifty miles. There's a wide divergence of opinion inside the coalition and they're engaged in heated arguments. When they're done arguing, they'll launch another attack on us."

Ling Zhang's brow corrugated in a slight frown. The very mention of the names of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom made him feel uncomfortable.

"I..." Ling Zhang was just about to disclose that he'd caught a spy sent by the Luohai Kingdom when he realized they were on a street and forbore from doing so.

"What's the matter?" Yuwen Tong looked at him.

Ling Zhang shook his head. "I'll tell you in detail when we get there."

Yuwen Tong gave a bob of his head.

Also, it was inappropriate to neglect his father-in-law, so Yuwen Tong picked a topic and struck up a conversation with Ling Zhaowu, talking mostly about the situation in this border city. He didn't confide any confidential military information, of course. Their talk was basically about the general situation.

Ling Zhaowu's countenance had been calm all along. He'd been quite composed from the moment he'd entered this city, as though what he was seeing was utterly unsurprising. He appeared so placid that it seemed as if he'd seen this kind of scene many times.

Yuwen Tong looked at Ling Zhaowu, a faintly thoughtful look on his face. There was something about Ling Zhaowu that struck him as different from what he'd believed it to be, and the air Ling Zhaowu occasionally emanated was also something that shouldn't have radiated from the Ling Zhaowu he knew.

...

Gradually, the group of people exited the city and all of them slowly lapsed into silence after being greeted by the scene outside.

The damage left by the war could still be seen right and left, and the atmosphere became much more serious immediately after they went through the city gates.

As they rode away from the gateway, the seemingly boundless encampment of the army gradually came into view. It was such a spectacular sight that it was virtually unforgettable. Ling Zhang stared at the encampment ahead that was getting clearer and clearer, unable to take his eyes off it for quite a while.

At this moment night was falling, and soldiers in the encampment were lighting lanterns here and there. If it weren't for the grave mood of this point in time, the encampment studded with lighted lanterns would be as beautiful as the Milky Way in the night sky, making people slow their breathing in spite of themselves.

"We're almost there. You and my father-in-law must be quite tired after such a long journey. You should get something to eat at the welcome reception and then go to sleep early," said Yuwen Tong.

Ling Zhang nodded and then twisted his head around to look at Ling Zhaowu. "Father, are you feeling okay?"

Ling Zhaowu replied, "Yeah. I'm a bit weary, but we've already got here, and I'll be fine after a good night's sleep."

Some soldiers outside the encampment gates welcomed them. They chorused respectfully, "Welcome back to the encampment, Marshal!"

Yuwen Tong inclined his head and then led Ling Zhang and the others into the encampment. On entering the encampment, they felt the atmosphere that was peculiar to a military encampment. Soldiers all reverently addressed Yuwen Tong as "Marshal" at the sight of him coming and then curiously shifted their gaze to Ling Zhang and the others who were in the company of Yuwen Tong.

Snowflake, Ling Zhang's white horse, was very conspicuous in this place. Owing to his temperament which was far removed from a military encampment, all soldiers couldn't help looking in his direction, and they were doing this in a very bold way.

"So that person is Childe Ling?"

"Our marshal's future marriage partner?"

"Considering the Marshal personally led him here, he surely is. Didn't the deputy commander say that the Marshal's marriage partner would come here in a day or two? And he told us to behave ourselves and not to be too noisy lest the Marshal's marriage partner be scared."

"Pity he's too far away. I didn't even see his face clearly. I wish it were daytime."

Distantly, the four words "the Marshal's marriage partner" smote Ling Zhang's ears, and this form of address was being mentioned again and again... Ling Zhang tightened his grip on the reins, his face tense. He turned his head around to gaze at Yuwen Tong and then said through gritted teeth, "What's going on? Why are they calling me... calling me... What kind of stupid form of address is that?!"

Yuwen Tong seemed as though he was utterly blameless. "I can't eavesdrop on them and monitor what kind of form of address they use. They mean no harm, and they've all been looking forward to seeing you since they were told that you'd come here."

Ling Zhang said, "I didn't say that they were malevolent. It's just I don't want them to call me that. You must've heard it before. Why didn't you stop them?"

Yuwen Tong still appeared quite innocent. "I've never heard that. Although my sense of hearing is amazingly sharp, I haven't been eavesdropping on people's personal conversations all the time. In addition, I'm a very busy man and I don't have the time to find out how they call you in private. Besides... that's a nice form of address, isn't it?"

Under the cover of night, Ling Zhang reached out a hand to give Yuwen Tong a hard pinch and demanded through clenched teeth, "What did you say?"

Preparing trousseaus had already made him feel that he should've acted sooner, that Yuwen Tong had taken advantage of him. If all troops of the North-western Army called him "the Marshal's Marriage Partner"... he really couldn't imagine how weird it would be. The very thought of it gave Ling Zhang goosebumps.

Yuwen Tong lightly gasped in pain. Seeing Ling Zhang was indeed annoyed, he hurriedly said, "I'll tell them not to call you that again. Stop pinching me."

The corners of Ling Zhang's mouth twitched and with that he let go of Yuwen Tong's arm, gave a cold snort and then ignored him.

Jiang Xi and the others, who were following in their wake, all secretly lowered their heads, snickering.

Ling Zhang's arrival caused a commotion in the military encampment. After Ling Zhang and Yuwen Tong went into the main tent, the commotion gradually subsided.

The security around the main tent was very tight, and the atmosphere in this area was even more serious than it was outside.

"Marshal, the welcome reception is ready."

"Okay. Good job."

The location for the welcome reception is a tent next to the main tent. What with the limited space, arrangements were made for Wang Dashan and the other twenty-three bodyguards as well as the ten guards from the Millennium Pavilion to take seats in another tent which was a certain distance away from the main tent. Wang Dashan and the others, who had a sense of propriety and knew their place, had stopped at the periphery of their own accord instead of following Ling Zhang to the main tent.

Sitting in the main tent were eight people: Ling Zhang, Yuwen Tong, Ling Zhaowu, Jiang Xi and four leading generals, including Shao Feng, the general who used to be in charge of the defense of Youzhou.

"Childe Ling, our supplies of food are limited, so these dishes are probably nothing compared to what they have in the capital city. I'm sorry you have to put up with this," said Shao Feng.

"Not at all, General Shao. I'm just a common man, the same as any of the soldiers guarding this city. It doesn't matter what we have on the table. What matters is that we're now all sitting here around the same table," observed Ling Zhang.

"I told you you overthought it, Lao Shao. Childe Ling is nothing like any of those rich boys," said Jiang Xi.

Ling Zhang gave a smile. These people were tactfully sounding him out, and they were doing it in such a natural and frank way that he was unable to take a dislike for them.

Although it was wartime, there was no sign of nervousness or unease in the encampment. In everybody's eyes was only staunchness.

The welcome reception was quite simple. Considering Ling Zhang and Ling Zhaowu had just finished a long journey, the couple of generals took their leave after only a short time.

Yuwen Tong, Jiang Xi, Ling Zhang and Ling Zhaowu were the only ones left in the tent.

"The situation in the capital city has stabilized. Fang Quan and some others are in custody. We expect you to decide what to do with them after you go back there. As for Cangzhou, the General Zhongwu (AKA the General of Loyalty and Valor) is trying his best to suppress the rebellion. The garrison of Jiangzhou has been forced into retreating to Jiangzhou by the garrison of Shengzhou, and the commander of Jiangzhou garrison has died. Everything is under control for the moment. We're all waiting for this war to be over," said Ling Zhang.

Yuwen Tong said, "The allied forces of the Wan Kingdom and the Luohai Kingdom have lost several battles in a row and suffered heavy casualties. They're losing momentum and wavering in their determination. They won't be able to last long, and the next time they attack, they'll go all out."

"Presently we're making preparations for the oncoming final battle," said Jiang Xi.

Ling Zhang knew that he had limited knowledge in this regard, and he didn't dare make any ungrounded remarks before getting more acquainted with the lay of the land, so he just told them about that spy of the Luohai Kingdom that he'd caught during the journey.

"Right now, Chief He is guarded by Wang Dashan and the others. I'll leave it up to you to decide whether to kill him or release him."

Jiang Xi clapped his hands. "This is terrific. Let me deal with it, Marshal."

Yuwen Tong looked at Ling Zhang, who was just about to speak when Ling Zhaowu rose to his feet and said, "I'll go with you, General. I'm a little tired and I'd appreciate it if you would find me a bed."

"Sure. This way, please," said Jiang Xi immediately.

After Ling Zhaowu and Jiang Xi left, Yuwen Tong and Ling Zhang were the only ones left in the tent.

Ling Zhang looked at him. "I brought a lot of people here. Do you have enough space to accommodate all of us?"

Yuwen Tong said, "Jiang Xi will handle it. Pitching another couple of tents shouldn't be too much trouble."

Ling Zhang said, "Where am I sleeping?"

Yuwen Tong put his arm around Ling Zhang and swept him into his embrace. Looking him in the face, he said, "You're on my turf now. Where else do you think I'll let you sleep?"

After saying this, he gave Ling Zhang a kiss. Eyes going ardent, he was just about to continue kissing him when Ling Zhang hastily stopped him. "Wait a moment. I need to take a bath first."

Yuwen Tong said, "I don't mind that."

Ling Zhang gave him a dirty look. "I do."

Seeing Yuwen Tong still refused to let go, he patted Yuwen Tong. "Now get your hands off me and take me where I can have a bath."

Yuwen Tong cast a deep look at him, heaved a resigned sigh, reluctantly gave his cheek a neither hard nor light nibble, and then stood up, raising Ling Zhang to his feet, and led him towards the door of the tent.

Realizing that there were guards in the doorway, Ling Zhang tried to free his hand from Yuwen Tong's grip, but Yuwen Tong didn't let him. "You don't let me kiss you, and you don't even let me hold your hand. You're actually killing me."

Ling Zhang, "..."

"Your soldiers are standing right outside. What will they think of us if they see us like this?"

Yuwen Tong said, "Nothing. What's wrong with us holding each other's hands? Who would possibly have a problem with that?"

Saying this, Yuwen Tong forcibly drew Ling Zhang out of the tent. The soldiers on guard duty in the doorway didn't even glance at them.

Ling Zhang sneaked a look at the soldiers and felt a sense of relief as he saw that they were still impassive.

But in fact, after he and Yuwen Tong walked far away, the two soldiers guarding the tent exchanged knowing glances and secretly winked at each other.

Yuwen Tong brought Ling Zhang to the main tent which was the place he lived in. It was very roomy. The front of it was a meeting room with all necessities available: a table, some chairs, a sand table, maps, etc. Behind the meeting room was a bedroom, which was separated from the meeting room. The bedroom was quite spacious, too, with a bed, a desk, some chairs, a couple of chests, a long-legged teapoy and some other homeware in it. Ling Zhang's traveling bags which contained his clothes and other stuff had been moved into this tent and neatly placed on top of the chests.

"Grab your change of clothes. We'll go and have a bath," said Yuwen Tong.

Walking towards his baggage to unpack, Ling Zhang asked, "Where are we going?"