Chapter 241: New Member

(Liang Jian Li Yunlong and Shenhua Gao Yao have joined the group; if you don't like it, feel free to skip)

In Xia Country, Jin region, a dilapidated peasant courtyard.

At this moment, a middle-aged man with a dark complexion, scars from shrapnel on his face, and a crumpled gray military uniform was pacing back and forth in the courtyard.

In his hand he held a cheap cigarette, yet he treated this inferior cigarette as a treasure, savoring it with great delight.

Just then, another middle-aged man in a gray military uniform entered the courtyard; his fingers were straight and slender, and his palm bore calluses from years of gripping a rifle.

Unlike the man smoking, this new arrival's uniform, though equally worn, was clean and neat, giving him the air of a scholar who had taken up arms.

If Lu Qingshan were here, he would immediately recognize these two as figures from a TV drama he knew intimately in his past life—a pair of perfectly in-sync partners who grew from strangers to close allies: Li Yunlong and Zhao Gang.

But now Li Yunlong and Zhao Gang had only just met, and their relationship was naturally far from harmonious; thus, when Li Yunlong had earlier sent his troops to "pursue side businesses," he had certainly not notified Zhao Gang in advance.

As one of the leaders of this unit, Zhao Gang, even if Li Yunlong deliberately kept him in the dark, naturally noticed when the troops were gone too long.

That was precisely why Zhao Gang had come now to confront Li Yunlong: "I'd like to ask, Commander, does the unit have any combat missions?"

"Combat missions?"

Upon hearing Zhao Gang's words, Li Yunlong replied naturally: "Nope! If there were, do you think I'd hide it from you?"

After saying this, Li Yunlong walked off to the side while smoking, trying to avoid Zhao Gang.

But Zhao Gang had no intention of letting Li Yunlong off so easily. He quickly caught up and blocked Li Yunlong's path, then pressed him about where the missing unit had gone!

Under Zhao Gang's questioning, Li Yunlong had no choice but to reveal that he had sent Kong Jie and the unit to Wanjia Town to "pick up some extra work."

Upon learning this news, Zhao Gang became extremely stern, even accusing Li Yunlong of deploying troops without authorization.

Seeing this partner he had never thought much of escalate the matter so seriously, Li Yunlong's face quickly flushed with anger, and he got into a heated argument with Zhao Gang on the spot.

Fortunately, Zhao Gang's temperament was still relatively mild, and having just arrived at the unit not long ago, he wasn't yet overly familiar with the internal situation.

So after Li Yunlong flew into a rage, Zhao Gang still managed to keep his emotions in check and began to discuss things properly with Li Yunlong.

Although Li Yunlong still didn't think much of Zhao Gang as a partner, seeing that the other man had no intention of relentlessly hounding him, his attitude immediately softened.

Just as the two continued their discussion, the unit Li Yunlong had sent out to "pick up some extra work" soon returned to base with the haul from this "side job"—the equipment of an entire cavalry battalion.

Hearing the commotion, Li Yunlong and Zhao Gang naturally hurried out to greet them. At the sight of a full cavalry battalion's worth of equipment, the minor disagreement between the two instantly vanished.

After all, Zhao Gang's earlier argument with Li Yunlong was only because the enemy situation at Wanjia Town was rather complicated, and he worried the troops would return empty-handed or even suffer heavy losses.

Having obtained a battalion's worth of horses and equipment, Li Yunlong was naturally overjoyed.

But just as he was planning to organize a new unit, the old-fashioned telephone inside suddenly rang.

Hearing the phone ring, Li Yunlong naturally hurried over to answer it.

And at this moment...

"Li Yunlong, congratulations on striking it rich!" A deep, resonant voice came from the other end of the line.

But upon hearing this congratulatory tone, Li Yunlong's face showed no joy at all; instead, his heart skipped a beat.

Because the person on the other end of the line was none other than his direct superior—his old leader.

This old leader had called right after he had just obtained a battalion's worth of horses and equipment, opening with congratulations—he was definitely going to demand a share of the spoils.

However, since the leader hadn't explicitly stated his demand yet, Li Yunlong naturally wouldn't admit to anything, so he quickly replied: "Strike it rich? What riches? I'm so broke I'm about to beg for food!"

"You think you can pull the wool over my eyes? Let me tell you, I knew about it the very next day!"

The old leader on the other end laughed and said: "Own up honestly—how much did you rake in this time?"

"Not much!"

Seeing no way out, Li Yunlong could only answer truthfully: "Just the equipment of one cavalry battalion. I'm planning to organize a cavalry battalion!"

"Look at you, acting all high and mighty?"

Hearing Li Yunlong's words, the old leader on the other end burst into laughter: "You, with just one regiment, want to set up a cavalry battalion? Then I, with a whole brigade, shouldn't I have a cavalry regiment?"

"You should! You should!"

Even though they were communicating by phone, Li Yunlong still nodded and bowed as he spoke: "Given your status as my old leader, a cavalry division would be more fitting!"

But unfortunately, his act of deference was naturally not seen by the old leader on the other end.

Of course, even if he had seen it, this old leader would not have let him off so easily.

And so, after much back-and-forth, the old leader brought out the threat of "deploying troops without authorization," and Li Yunlong finally had no choice but to compromise.

"Sigh! An extra rank really does crush a man to death!"

Li Yunlong sighed, then lamented: "Fine, fine, fine! Leader, I give in!"

"If you want to rob me, just say so outright—what's the point of making up excuses?"

"Hahaha!"

Hearing Li Yunlong's words, the old leader on the other end quickly burst into laughter: "If I didn't make up an excuse, would you give it to me?"

In fact, this old leader's demand for Li Yunlong's captured spoils wasn't for his own benefit.

First, Li Yunlong's unit didn't control abundant resources and could hardly afford to maintain a battalion's worth of horses—after all, the daily fodder for warhorses alone was an astonishing expense;

Furthermore, as Li Yunlong's superior, he naturally had to consider the bigger picture. It was impossible for him to leave a battalion's worth of horses and equipment solely in Li Yunlong's unit, even if those horses and equipment had been captured by Li Yunlong.

After agreeing to the old leader's demand, Li Yunlong quickly had people prepare the horses and equipment he had promised, then dispatched them to the old leader.

After the team delivering the horses and equipment had departed, Li Yunlong winced in pain while secretly pondering who should lead the new cavalry company.

But just as a suitable candidate flashed through his mind, his expression involuntarily shifted slightly, because a very strange sound suddenly rang out in his head.

"Ding! Welcome to the Multiverse Chat Group!"

……

In Da Qin, Xianyang, inside a grand hall of the Qin Gong.

The hall was filled with bamboo scrolls, and a middle-aged man dressed as an eunuch was frantically searching through them.

This man was Gao Yao, who, due to an accident, had traveled back in time from over two thousand years in the future to ancient Qin.

After arriving in Qin, Gao Yao initially struggled to adapt and suffered greatly.

But he was naturally optimistic and possessed culinary skills far superior to those of ancient people, so after initially adjusting, he quickly became the head chef of a tavern.

Had no意外 occurred, Gao Yao, 凭借 his superior culinary skills, would surely have thrived in the Qin dynasty.

But while serving as head chef at the tavern, he unexpectedly encountered his fellow time-traveler, Yi Xiaochuan, over a dish from two thousand years in the future: "tomato scrambled eggs."

After sharing their respective experiences with Yi Xiaochuan, Gao Yao soon followed him to a mysterious place that might allow them to return to their original time.

Unfortunately, the master of that mysterious place refused to receive them, instead sending a young attendant to entertain them and instructing them to return in sixty years.

Sixty years is a full cycle; Gao Yao and Yi Xiaochuan naturally found this unacceptable, but no matter how hard they pleaded, the attendant revealed no useful information.

Helpless, they could only leave.

Being unable to return to their original time was naturally unbearable for Gao Yao.

Yet his optimistic nature allowed him to adapt quickly.

But just as he planned to make a name for himself in the Qin dynasty as the "Food God," he encountered Liu Bang—a vagrant at the time, yet the future founder of a dynasty known as the "Han Gaozu."

In truth, Gao Yao had never heard of Liu Bang, the Han Gaozu, before.

But his friend Yi Xiaochuan had told him Liu Bang would become Emperor, so after meeting Liu Bang, Gao Yao remained humble and even warmly hosted him.

But Gao Yao did not realize that Liu Bang, true to his nature as a warlord, was already ruthless—even without his future achievements.

Under Liu Bang's scheme, Gao Yao and his friend Yi Xiaochuan soon became pawns, replacing two deserters and becoming conscript laborers.

After becoming laborers, Gao Yao was quickly sent to Xianyang, where, by chance, he became a eunuch.

When he first became a eunuch, Gao Yao was constantly bullied by others due to his low seniority and seemingly easy-to-pick-on appearance.

Thus, in the Imperial Kitchen, he was always assigned menial tasks like washing vegetables and chopping firewood, and was frequently beaten by other eunuchs.

Fortunately, heaven never closes a door without opening another: Prince Hu Hai, whose temper was violent, had already killed several chefs for poor cooking, so the prince's steward soon returned to the Imperial Kitchen to select a new chef.

Other chefs, fearing Prince Hu Hai and dreading they might be killed again for bad food, bribed the selecting officials to avoid this task, ultimately recommending the most easily bullied Gao Yao.

Fortunately, Gao Yao's culinary skills were superior; he soon won Prince Hu Hai's favor through his far-advanced cooking, greatly improving his living conditions and finally ending his abuse.

Later, Gao Yao remained as head chef in Prince Hu Hai's household until Princess Yu Shu of Tu'an arrived in Qin for a marriage alliance!

Princess Yu Shu already had a lover before the marriage alliance, so after arriving in the Qin capital, she refused to eat or drink, causing the Emperor, unaware of the truth, to grow deeply concerned.

Thus, Prince Hu Hai recommended Gao Yao from his household to the Emperor.

After carefully investigating, Gao Yao finally confirmed that Princess Yu Shu's loss of appetite stemmed from having already loved someone before.

Yet he did not directly inform the Emperor; instead, he subtly hinted to Princess Yu Shu through his cooking that only by staying alive could she wait for her beloved.

Later, Princess Yu Shu, moved by his hint, began eating again, and Gao Yao earned the Emperor's favor, becoming Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Kitchen.

And recently, Gao Yao reunited with his friend Yi Xiaochuan, which naturally filled him with joy.

Not long ago, Yi Xiaochuan sneaked into the palace to steal the Night Pearl and left behind a pulley.

The Emperor, enraged by the loss of the precious Night Pearl, saw the Chief of the Inner Court commit suicide out of fear of punishment.

At Princess Yu Shu's recommendation, the Emperor appointed Gao Yao as Chief of the Inner Court and tasked him with investigating the thief of the Night Pearl.

Though Gao Yao's body was mutilated, he was a man who repaid kindness; thus, he remained deeply grateful to Princess Yu Shu for recommending him and never considered revealing her prior love to the Emperor.

During the investigation, Gao Yao soon discovered the pulley left by his friend Yi Xiaochuan.

But Yi Xiaochuan was his friend; he naturally would not expose him.

So Gao Yao quickly blamed the theft on the eunuchs guarding the Night Pearl, successfully covering up the crime for his friend Yi Xiaochuan.

Now, Gao Yao was preparing for the future.

Because Yi Xiaochuan, who knew little of history, had told him that the Emperor would die in a few years, and a man named "Zhao Gao" would seize absolute power.

So he intended to use his current authority to find this Zhao Gao and pledge allegiance to him in advance.

As for Yi Xiaochuan's claim that Qin would eventually fall under Zhao Gao's hands, Gao Yao paid it no mind.

After all, he had no concept of country or realm; he only cared that he and his close friends could live well.

If he could also find those who had once bullied him and take revenge, so much the better.

That was precisely why Gao Yao had come to this palace, which recorded the data of everyone in the Qin palace, to search for Zhao Gao's information.

But as he searched for Zhao Gao's information, a sudden clamor of shouting erupted outside.

Disturbed by the shouting, Gao Yao grew irritable and quickly ordered the commotion stopped, rescuing the seemingly pitiful palace maid in the process.

But as the palace maid prepared to leave, Gao Yao froze—he suddenly realized this maid was his sister, Gao Lan.

Yet he did not know that the woman before him was merely a palace maid in Qin who bore an uncanny resemblance to his sister.

"Gao Lan!"

Regaining his composure, Gao Yao stepped forward two paces and helped the palace maid up, asking with deep concern: "What are you doing?"

"My lord!"

The palace maid, startled by Gao Yao's strange behavior, became deeply flustered.

"What 'lord'? I'm your big brother!" Gao Yao continued warmly addressing the palace maid.

But unfortunately, Gao Yao's warmth was seen by this palace maid as highly improper conduct.

Thus, the palace maid finally blurted out in panic that she was from Chu, had only a sister, and no brother.

Seeing the maid's expression was genuine, Gao Yao calmed down quickly and, guided by her, soon found the bamboo slip recording her information in the hall.

After reading the details, Gao Yao finally believed that the woman before him was merely a Qin palace maid who looked extremely like his sister.

Yet having traveled over two thousand years back to Qin, he was profoundly lonely, so he soon decided to adopt this maid named "Xiao Yue" as his sister.

Upon hearing Xiao Yue say "Big Brother," Gao Yao's heart melted.

Then Gao Yao lifted Xiao Yue up abruptly and joyfully declared: "Yes, you are Gao Lan—you're the sister I've been searching for! Big Brother has finally found you!"

Though he knew clearly that Xiao Yue was not his sister Gao Lan, he had already accepted her as his sister.

At this moment, the maid Xiao Yue was still terrified, but Gao Yao was Chief of the Inner Court; she dared not resist.

Then Gao Yao immediately took her to the Imperial Kitchen and personally prepared for her many delicious dishes.

After sensing Gao Yao's deep concern and care, the palace maid Xiao Yue finally lowered her guard.

After all, she had entered the Qin Gong as a maid at a very young age; for many years, she had suffered humiliation and beatings, with no one ever loving or cherishing her.

So the palace maid Xiao Yue quickly knelt on the ground and said very sincerely: "Today, I am fortunate to meet my lord. Xiao Yue swears that from now on, I will serve my lord as if serving my own elder brother!"

"Today is the happiest day since I came here!"

Gao Yao quickly stepped forward to help Xiao Yue up, then patted her arm and said: "Good sister, do not be afraid!"

"From today on, your elder brother will love and cherish you, and stand behind you; no one will dare to bully you again!"

For Gao Yao, his recent luck was absolutely very good.

Although due to various accidents he had become a eunuch within the Qin Gong, he had reunited with his old friend Yi Xiaochuan and also met his own sister.

From now on, although in a foreign land, with friends and family by his side, he would no longer feel lonely.

Looking at Gao Lan before him, Gao Yao quickly formed an idea in his heart.

It must be known that before crossing over, his friend Yi Xiaochuan had been his sister Gao Lan's boyfriend.

Although Gao Lan was not in the Qin State now, there was Xiao Yue.

He was now physically incomplete, but if Xiao Yue could get together with Yi Xiaochuan and bear several children later, then his life would be even more complete.

Thinking this, Gao Yao quickly thought secretly in his heart: "Xiaochuan, this time you really got a bargain, you kid!"

It must be known that he knew very clearly about the matter between Yi Xiaochuan and Lu Su back then.

If it were the modern era, Yi Xiaochuan would definitely be a second-time married man, plus widowed; he certainly would not easily marry his sister to such a person.

But now this is the Qin State; he has only Yi Xiaochuan as a friend, and only Xiao Yue as a sister, so naturally he would not mind these things!

But just as Gao Yao was planning to cut out a set of modern clothing for Xiao Yue to wear and tease Yi Xiaochuan, a strange voice suddenly sounded in his mind.

"Ding! Welcome to the Heavens Chat Group!"

(End of this chapter)