Transmigrated as a Cannon Fodder Wife A in Ancient Times - Chapter 84

Chapter 84

After Fan Chuan returned to the military camp for a few days, she handled military affairs and then went back home.

At that time, they had been back in the Northern Desert for a month. Fan Chuan had already dealt with the accumulated military matters. She called all the main generals of the Fan Family Army to the military supply camp north of Zhuozhou. She planned to brief these generals first.

Soon, the generals gradually entered Fan Chuan’s tent.

Fan Chuan asked everyone to sit down one by one. She let her personal guards serve tea to refresh everyone.

Fan Chuan’s gaze swept over the crowd. She spoke, “I just returned from the capital not long ago. I haven’t seen you all for a while. Is everyone doing well?”

“We’re definitely doing well, Marshal. Why does His Majesty act like this? He summons you back every year. We’re so far from the capital. Isn’t this just tossing people back and forth?” Kang Bo, a capable general under Fan Chuan, was a straightforward female Qianyuan. She couldn’t help but complain.

Others chimed in as well. The court was truly inhumane. Those royal officials sitting comfortably in the capital—how could they know the hardships of these soldiers?

“Exactly. I speak bluntly, but His Majesty’s actions really chill people’s hearts,” another general said.

“Sigh, not only do they make things difficult for us everywhere, but they also often delay military funds. It’s been two months already. The soldiers are suffering,” another added.

“The previous military funds were even partly covered by the Marshal herself. If you ask me, this court is pretty much useless,” a general in his forties with a beard cursed.

After complaining, the ten people in the tent cautiously glanced at Fan Chuan’s expression.

Fan Chuan sighed. She spoke, “It’s indeed as everyone said. Human hearts are made of flesh and can grow cold. My Fan family has been loyal through and through, but now I’m the only one left alive. Yet His Majesty still doesn’t trust me and refuses to give the Fan Family Army the treatment it deserves. Such a court isn’t worth keeping.”

The generals below brightened their eyes. They exchanged glances with each other.

Finally, the bearded general named Guo Jie cautiously asked, “Does the Marshal mean to rebel?”

Fan Chuan sat upright at the desk, unmoving. She nodded slightly, “Yes and no. The Fan Family Army is full of loyalty. I naturally won’t rashly raise an army. There needs to be a justification.”

Hearing that Fan Chuan truly had thoughts of breaking away, the generals below immediately grew excited. “Marshal, when will we raise the army?” Kang Bo asked excitedly.

“We’ll talk about it after the capital falls into chaos,” Fan Chuan said calmly. After a long pause, she sighed again, “Don’t inform the soldiers about this yet. You can brief the generals under your command. As for military funds, I’ll cover them from my personal treasury for now.”

“Marshal, using your personal treasury again? Those court officials are just a bunch of freeloaders,” Guo Jie couldn’t help but curse.

“When distributing silver to the soldiers, you can mention more about the royal family’s incompetence and their disregard for the Northern Desert soldiers’ lives. Our Fan Family Army must be united,” Fan Chuan said.

Several generals immediately stood up, saluted Fan Chuan with clasped hands, and said, “We obey your orders.”

“Go prepare. There may be tough battles ahead,” Fan Chuan said.

“Yes,” the generals replied with clasped hands. Then they left the tent.

The generals who left were all beaming with joy. The court had been unfair to the Northern Desert soldiers, and delayed provisions were a common occurrence. They had long been dissatisfied with the court. If it weren’t for the Marshal, they would have quit long ago. This time, they couldn’t support the Marshal’s decision more.

Fan Chuan, sitting in the tent, sighed. She actually didn’t have much silver left. If the court didn’t allocate funds soon, the Fan Family Army might not even have enough provisions to march to the capital.

While she was thinking about these matters, a personal guard returned from outside the tent.

The guard bowed to Fan Chuan and hurriedly said, “Marshal, one of Madam’s guards wanted to leave the city to deliver a letter but was detained by the secret guards. The person has been brought here.”

Fan Chuan’s brow furrowed slightly. She nodded briefly and said, “Bring the person here.”

“Yes,” the guard immediately had Madam Shen Lingwei’s guard brought in.

The man’s mouth was gagged, and his entire body was tightly bound. Soldiers pressed him to the ground.

Fan Chuan waved her hand, signaling to remove the cloth from his mouth.

The guard was clearly panicked. He sweated profusely and spoke, “What does the Marshal mean by this? I was only delivering a family letter for Madam. Why did you capture me?”

“A family letter? A family letter for the Emperor?” Fan Chuan sneered and asked.

Hearing this, the guard’s face dripped with cold sweat. “I don’t understand what you’re saying,” he said.

“Whether you understand or not doesn’t matter. Search him,” Fan Chuan said coldly, looking at him.

Several soldiers immediately searched the guard’s body. They found a letter in his chest pocket.

“Marshal, it’s a letter. Please take a look,” the guard immediately handed the letter over.

Fan Chuan took the envelope in her hand. She glanced down and saw the envelope was the same as the previous one, with secret characters written on it.

Fan Chuan’s gaze turned to the guard. Too lazy to say more, she ordered, “Deal with him on the spot.”

“Yes, Marshal,” the soldiers replied.

Several soldiers held the guard down. One of them swung a blade at him. The man tried to say something more but was already dead.

Without Fan Chuan’s orders, the personal guards quickly dragged the body out and cleaned the bloodstains in the tent.

Fan Chuan clasped her hands together. Seeing this letter, her heart still felt some fear. She feared discovering that Shen Lingwei was truly working for the Emperor. If that happened, how would she deal with Shen Lingwei?

Fan Chuan took a few deep breaths. Since she had already chosen to raise an army, she had to be responsible for these soldiers at the very least. She couldn’t let Shen Lingwei derail the bigger plan.

Fan Chuan tore open the envelope and took out the six pages of letter paper. The handwriting was indeed Shen Lingwei’s.

Fan Chuan frowned and began reading. The more she read, the more her brow relaxed. The letter contained trivial daily matters or mentioned the hardships of the Northern Desert soldiers and Fan Chuan’s loyalty to the court. The content seemed substantial but was actually full of empty platitudes, with not a single substantial point.

Fan Chuan leaned back in her chair and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

These days, she had often gone to the military camp. If Shen Lingwei were truly sent by the Emperor, she would at least inform the Emperor that Fan Chuan handled military affairs behind her back and mention her days spent at the camp. But Shen Lingwei hadn’t done so.

So, was Shen Lingwei really helping her? If it was a one-time thing, Fan Chuan might have overthought it. But this was the second time, making it hard for her not to think more.

Her lips pressed together. If that was the case, why not take the initiative to test Shen Lingwei? Right now, Shen Lingwei and the Emperor’s remaining ten guards were all in the Northern Desert. If Shen Lingwei was on her side, that would be great. But if she truly reported her movements to the old Emperor, then Fan Chuan would confine her to the courtyard.

With this in mind, Fan Chuan took a sheet of paper. She lifted her brush and wrote about a page’s worth of content. Once the ink dried, she tucked the paper close to her body. Then she stood up and said to the guard beside her, “I’m heading back to the mansion first.”

As she spoke, Fan Chuan stood up. She used a flint to burn Shen Lingwei’s secret letter until it was reduced to ashes.

She put on her helmet, mounted her chestnut horse, and headed to the Marshal’s Mansion. Of course, since Yun Heng wasn’t there, Fan Chuan brought a dozen other personal guards.

They rode on horseback. About an hour later, they arrived at the Marshal’s Mansion. After dismounting, Fan Chuan handed the reins to a guard and walked straight into the mansion.

Her armor weighed over seventy pounds in total. If it weren’t for her strong physique honed by years of warfare, most people wouldn’t be able to bear it.

When Fan Chuan returned to the courtyard, she saw Shen Lingwei and Xiao Tao trimming the branches of flowers and plants in the garden outside. Shen Lingwei wore a white dress that day, with only a jade hairpin in her hair. The white dress made her skin look as fair as snow.

Noticing the movement from Fan Chuan’s side, Shen Lingwei stood up and looked toward her. Seeing Fan Chuan return, her eyes brightened slightly.

She quickly walked up to Fan Chuan and said, “Just got back? Why didn’t you send someone to let me know in advance? I could have had hot water prepared earlier.”

“It’s fine. Things over there are mostly handled. I can rest at the mansion for a few days,” Fan Chuan said, shifting her gaze away from Shen Lingwei’s face, not daring to look too long.

“Then come to the bedroom quickly. Let me help you take off your armor. You must be exhausted,” Shen Lingwei said, knowing Fan Chuan’s armor was heavy and wanting to help her remove it quickly.

“It’s fine. I’m used to it,” Fan Chuan said. She had started wearing armor and going into battle since childhood, sometimes needing to wear it day after day.

As they spoke, they returned to the bedroom. Shen Lingwei had the servants bring water. She washed her hands and dried them with a cloth before starting to help Fan Chuan remove her armor.

Fan Chuan’s gaze fell on Shen Lingwei’s fair wrist. Shen Lingwei’s hands were beautiful, with fair skin and slender fingers, unlike her own hands, which had calluses from years of wielding a sword.

As Shen Lingwei worked on the armor, she seemed to notice Fan Chuan’s gaze. The corners of her lips curved slightly, almost imperceptibly, and she continued her task.

Finally, she managed to undo Fan Chuan’s breastplate. It was a bit too heavy for her to handle alone, and since Fan Chuan was still distracted, Shen Lingwei reminded her, “Marshal? Help me out.”

Hearing Shen Lingwei’s voice, Fan Chuan snapped back to reality. She quickly helped hang the breastplate on the wooden rack.

Shen Lingwei smiled at her and began undoing the other parts of the armor.

Fan Chuan pursed her lips. Every time Shen Lingwei got close to her, she felt a bit nervous, sometimes even holding her breath.

Shen Lingwei carried a faint scent of cold orchid, light and pleasant. Fan Chuan bit her lower lip, warning herself not to overthink. What if Shen Lingwei was deliberately making her let her guard down? It wasn’t impossible.

With that thought, her mind cleared, and the fleeting tender feelings vanished completely.

She hung all the armor Shen Lingwei had undone on the wooden rack.

Shen Lingwei walked back to her, preparing to help her take off her dress. Since Fan Chuan had stayed in the camp for several days, she naturally hadn’t had time to change clothes.

Fan Chuan stepped back, worried that her body odor might bother Shen Lingwei.

Seeing her step back, Shen Lingwei looked up and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a smell on me. I’ll do it myself,” Fan Chuan said, preparing to take action.

Just as she started, Shen Lingwei stepped forward. She looked up at Fan Chuan and said softly, “We’re married. I won’t mind. Stand still and don’t move.”

Fan Chuan was frozen by her gentle voice and actually didn’t move again. By then, Shen Lingwei had already stepped close to her—no, more accurately, Shen Lingwei’s arms were behind her waist, undoing the buckle on her belt.

Fan Chuan’s ears suddenly turned red. If Shen Lingwei was truly on her side, that would be great, she thought to herself, closing her eyes briefly. When she opened them again, Shen Lingwei had already stepped back from her embrace.

Shen Lingwei placed the belt on a nearby stool and began untying Fan Chuan’s dress. As she worked, she said, “Are you going out again today? If not, take a bath and rest well.”

She looked up at Fan Chuan’s face. They hadn’t seen each other for six days, and she felt Fan Chuan looked thinner.

“I’m not going out. I’ll rest a bit today,” Fan Chuan replied.

Shen Lingwei nodded, continuing her task. By then, she had already helped Fan Chuan take off the outer dress.

Soon, the maids prepared bathwater. Fan Chuan drank a cup of tea and said to Shen Lingwei, “I’ll go bathe now.”

“Hmm,” Shen Lingwei replied. She actually wanted to go in and help Fan Chuan bathe, as washing her back and hair alone wasn’t easy. But considering their current relationship, she thought Fan Chuan probably wouldn’t want that.

Shen Lingwei didn’t mention it. Instead, she took a travelogue and lay quietly on the soft couch, flipping through it.

Inside the screen, Fan Chuan soaked in hot water, feeling incredibly comfortable. Wearing armor for days was exhausting, and now a hot bath relaxed her completely.

Worried about any lingering odor, especially since she would share a bed with Shen Lingwei that night, she washed thoroughly. When she finished and came out, she saw Shen Lingwei asleep on the soft couch.

Fan Chuan wiped her wet hair and looked at Shen Lingwei lying on the couch. Her gaze traced from Shen Lingwei’s brows downward, unable to look away for a moment.

Normally, she didn’t dare meet Shen Lingwei’s eyes, always shifting her gaze elsewhere. But now that Shen Lingwei was asleep, she could look a bit longer. With that thought, Fan Chuan’s lips curved slightly.

She wiped her hair for a while, then switched to a new cloth. When her hair no longer dripped, she stopped.

Seeing the narrow space on the couch, Fan Chuan thought since she was going to sleep anyway, she might as well carry Shen Lingwei to the bed.

She recalled the last time she carried Shen Lingwei, when they were traveling, and Shen Lingwei was ill. She had carried her from the carriage to rest at a relay station.

Fan Chuan’s fingers curled slightly at her sides, her heart beating inexplicably faster. Doing this shouldn’t be overstepping, right? After all, she and Shen Lingwei were already married.

With that thought, Fan Chuan slowly walked to the couch. She carefully lifted Shen Lingwei’s back with one hand, passing her other arm under Shen Lingwei’s knees. With a gentle effort, she lifted Shen Lingwei.

But before she took two steps, Shen Lingwei stirred awake in her arms. Seeing herself held horizontally by Fan Chuan, Shen Lingwei’s heart pounded twice. She quickly grabbed Fan Chuan’s collar and said, “Put me down. I can walk myself.”

Fan Chuan hadn’t expected Shen Lingwei to wake up. She felt a bit awkward but said firmly, “It’s just a few steps. I’ll carry you to the bed. The couch is too small and uncomfortable.”

With that, Fan Chuan carried Shen Lingwei toward the bed.

Shen Lingwei’s entire face flushed red. The last time Fan Chuan carried her like this, she was sick and too unwell to care. But now, in broad daylight, being carried to the bed by a Qianyuan felt too bold.

As a refined young lady, Shen Lingwei couldn’t handle this. But before she could think further, Fan Chuan’s long legs moved quickly, and they were already at the bedside.

Before Shen Lingwei could react, Fan Chuan even tried to help her take off her shoes.

Shen Lingwei quickly pulled her legs to the side and said, “I can do it myself. No need to trouble the Marshal.”

Seeing that Shen Lingwei didn’t want her help, Fan Chuan stepped back. She sighed, blaming herself for acting impulsively. Had she scared Shen Lingwei?

While she pondered, Shen Lingwei had already taken off her shoes and slipped to the inner side of the bed, covering herself with the blanket without even removing her outer dress.

Fan Chuan looked at Shen Lingwei’s back with some distress. Had she really frightened her? She only meant to ensure Shen Lingwei slept comfortably, not to do anything intimate.

Fan Chuan sighed and got into bed, lying on her side facing Shen Lingwei’s back.

After thinking for a while, Fan Chuan felt she needed to apologize to Shen Lingwei. After all, she had indeed startled her.

“Um, I’m sorry. Did I scare you just now?” she asked.

Shen Lingwei’s ears were still red, her heart pounding. Her upbringing told her what just happened was absolutely improper, but her heart couldn’t lie—she felt a mix of shyness and a hint of joy.

Shen Lingwei calmed herself and said, “It’s fine. Just don’t do it again.”

“Okay,” Fan Chuan said, her eyes lowering slightly. As expected, she had upset her. She shouldn’t have carried her.

But there was no helping it—the deed was done. Fan Chuan’s mind alternated between thinking how to comfort Shen Lingwei and wondering whether Shen Lingwei was on her side or the old Emperor’s. Her thoughts were chaotic and exhausting, and soon she fell asleep.

Shen Lingwei noticed the steady breathing behind her and turned around.

She looked at Fan Chuan with some shyness. Seeing her asleep from exhaustion, she felt a pang of sympathy. After watching Fan Chuan for a while, Shen Lingwei propped herself up, carefully reached over Fan Chuan, and lowered the bed curtains.

The light inside the bed dimmed. Shen Lingwei closed her eyes, preparing to sleep.

When Fan Chuan woke again, the bedroom was already dim. Shen Lingwei was no longer beside her.

Fan Chuan sat up and pulled the bed curtains aside. Looking around the bedroom, she saw Shen Lingwei sitting upright at the round table, sipping tea, her posture as straight as a pine tree.

Fan Chuan’s lips curved slightly. She got up, preparing to put on her dress.

Noticing Fan Chuan was awake, Shen Lingwei walked over to her and said, “Let me help.”

Fan Chuan cautiously checked Shen Lingwei’s expression, confirming she wasn’t still upset. She relaxed slightly and said, “Thank you, Madam.”

Shen Lingwei raised an eyebrow at Fan Chuan. Fan Chuan usually only called her that in front of others. She gave Fan Chuan a faint smile and said, “Why so formal with me?”

Hadn’t she just carried her to the bed? Why was she so polite again after waking up?

Fan Chuan coughed lightly and let Shen Lingwei help her dress neatly.

“I still have some matters to handle. I’m going to the study and will be back soon. If you’re hungry, eat first,” Fan Chuan said.

“No rush. I’ll wait for you,” Shen Lingwei replied.

“Then I’m off,” Fan Chuan said. She left the room and headed to the study. At the same time, she had her personal guard notify the secret guards to keep watch over the bedroom and the adjacent courtyard.

She had deliberately dropped the paper she wrote on under the clothing rack earlier. Now that the rack was empty, the paper was surely visible. Shen Lingwei, being so perceptive, would definitely notice it. Fan Chuan wanted to see what Shen Lingwei would do.

The paper instructed her subordinates to prepare early, waiting only for chaos in the capital to raise the army.

Back in the bedroom, Shen Lingwei returned to the round table. She had Xiao Tao light a few more lamps and then sipped tea while waiting for Fan Chuan to return for dinner.

Her gaze casually swept over and noticed the folded paper under the clothing rack.

Shen Lingwei’s brow furrowed slightly. The bedroom was cleaned daily by maids. If there was such a large piece of scrap paper, it would have been cleared out long ago.

She thought for a moment and picked up the paper.

Shen Lingwei quickly read through it, naturally recognizing Fan Chuan’s handwriting. But Fan Chuan was always cautious. She never brought letters back to the bedroom or even the study.

Shen Lingwei clearly understood that Fan Chuan was guarding against her. This paper could only have been left here intentionally to test her.

Seeing Shen Lingwei staring at the paper in a daze, Xiao Tao hurriedly asked, “Miss, what’s written on this paper? Why are you looking at it for so long?”

Shen Lingwei’s gaze turned to Xiao Tao. She said lightly, “It says Fan Chuan and her people are preparing to rebel.”

Xiao Tao’s eyes widened, nearly crying from fear. She scurried around like an ant on a hot pan.

“Miss, what do we do? When do we run? The Marshal’s Mansion is heavily guarded. I don’t know if we can disguise ourselves as maids to escape,” Xiao Tao said in a hushed voice, on the verge of tears.

Shen Lingwei was amused by her and said, “Run from what?”

“No, Miss, wake up! The Marshal is good to you, but now that we know this, she’ll definitely kill us to silence us. Let’s run now. I’ll grab clothes and silver—yes, let’s run now,” Xiao Tao said, full of action, ready to drag Shen Lingwei away.

“Xiao Tao, it’s fine. She won’t harm us,” Shen Lingwei said, smiling at Xiao Tao. She even calmly took another sip of tea.

“Miss! You’re still drinking tea at a time like this? Run!” Xiao Tao urged.

Seeing Xiao Tao truly about to cry, Shen Lingwei smiled and explained, “She left this here on purpose. She’s showing goodwill to me and testing me at the same time.”

“Miss, what does that mean?” Xiao Tao didn’t understand. These clever people were always so complicated—she couldn’t follow.

“It means it’s fine. Just act as usual. When she comes back, we’ll eat together like before,” Shen Lingwei said calmly.

“Then what about this paper? Should I burn it?” Xiao Tao asked.

“No need. I’ll give it back to her,” Shen Lingwei said, shaking her head with a smile. Seeing Xiao Tao still scared, she reassured her, “Don’t worry. I guarantee you’ll be fine.”

Though Xiao Tao felt uneasy, she trusted her miss completely. Her miss was smart, and following her was never wrong.

“Miss, really no problem?” Xiao Tao asked.

“Really no problem,” Shen Lingwei said, smiling at her.

Fan Chuan waited in the study for nearly half an hour. There was still no movement from the bedroom. If Shen Lingwei were truly the Emperor’s person, seeing that letter would at least cause panic, and she’d likely meet with the guards. Why was there still no movement?

Did that mean Shen Lingwei was on her side? Or did she feel it wasn’t safe and planned to pass the message when Fan Chuan wasn’t at the mansion?

Fan Chuan couldn’t quite figure it out. Since there was no movement, waiting further was pointless. She stood up and walked back to the bedroom.

She knocked on the door and said, “Madam, I’ve already had dinner arranged.”

“Good. I’m just getting hungry,” Shen Lingwei said, smiling at Fan Chuan. The paper was still by her hand, folded twice so the writing wasn’t visible.

Xiao Tao was feeling guilty. Seeing Fan Chuan enter, she nearly cried, thinking the Marshal was about to silence her miss.

Shen Lingwei smiled at Fan Chuan and said to Xiao Tao, “Xiao Tao, go out. You don’t need to serve here. I have something to discuss with the Marshal alone.”

Xiao Tao was utterly shocked. If she stayed, she could at least shield her miss from a blade. What did her miss mean by sending her away? Could her miss’s delicate frame withstand a single punch from Fan Chuan?

Seeing Xiao Tao still standing there, Shen Lingwei urged, “Hurry up and go.”

“Yes,” Xiao Tao said, looking at her miss. She took reluctant steps, turning back every few paces. Though she said she’d leave, she didn’t dare go far and stood by the door.

Xiao Tao thought that if anything happened inside, she’d rush in first. Though she couldn’t beat Fan Chuan, she could at least block a few strikes for her miss.

The bedroom door closed, leaving only Shen Lingwei and Fan Chuan in the room. Their gazes met briefly, then shifted away.

Shen Lingwei smiled at Fan Chuan and picked up the folded paper with her left hand. “The Marshal is too careless. If such an important thing were seen by a villain, what then?” she said.

Fan Chuan’s throat tightened slightly. “You saw it all?” she asked.

Shen Lingwei nodded with a faint smile and said, “Hmm.”

She finished speaking and held the paper near the candle to burn it. When it was about to burn her hand, she tossed it to the ground. Soon, the paper turned to ashes.