Chapter 37: The Soul of a Soldier

This is like a small army; in terms of momentum and martial skill, it cannot be compared to ordinary guards.

They come from the battlefield; they are accustomed to life and death.

"Greetings, Princess Consort." The leader shouted, dropping to one knee with fists clasped—this person was missing an ear…

The people behind him seemed to have received some guidance.

"Greetings, Princess Consort."

In an instant, a large group fell, performing the same motion, the same posture.

The difference is that each person's wounds are in different places.

Some lack an arm, some are missing an ear, some lack fingers, some lack an eye.

These are minor wounds; those missing legs, and some with serious injuries, could not line up so neatly.

"Rise. In the Regent Prince's Manor, warriors need not kneel." Jiang Yun Chu said solemnly.

It is not courtesy, not disregard for the law, nor a desire to rebel against this age.

This is her respect for the soldiers, a lofty reverence, the military spirit she accumulated from over a decade on the battlefield.

"Outside, proper etiquette must not be abandoned; but within the manor, no warrior needs to kneel or perform rites." She looked at the hesitant fifty and repeated it solemnly.

"Princess Consort, that is against the rules." The one‑eared leader, though moved in his heart, said it was the rule.

Jiang Yun Chu smiled; her smile was somewhat arrogant, a bold spirit unmatched by anyone.

"Rules?"

"Hah!"

"Never mind the Regent Prince's Manor—my word, Jiang Yun Chu's, is the rule!"

"I'd like to see, in this Regent Prince's Manor, who dares to question my orders, who dares to oppose them?"

In an instant she was no longer a secluded lady of the inner chambers but a battlefield general, brandishing her spear forward, an unstoppable commander.

I dare not.

……

A faint voice, along with his slowly raised hand, indicated the source of the speech.

I also dare not.

The clear, childish tone, cute and lovable, with the jingle of bells on his head, made that adorable appearance soften everyone's hearts.

The two voices just now were Ning Hanmo and Ning Yue Xue.

"Stand up." Jiang Yun Chu looked at the fifty people.

Everyone, seeing the Princess Consort, felt as if they had seen the missing prince.

Although their eyes were icy, their appearances and temperaments differed, yet each possessed a compelling ability that inspired confidence.

"Yes!" the one‑eared leader shouted loudly.

In that single "yes," worldly conventions were shattered, the rules were broken.

At the same time, the distance between them and the Regent Prince's Manor was broken.

They had no home, but they could find a better place, earn higher wages, and live better lives.

But!

The prince has vanished; in this vast Regent Prince's Manor, the elderly, weak, women, and children need protection—so they would guard the manor, ensuring no one inside comes to harm.

But today, the Princess Consort's words shattered their reservations and threw their hearts into turmoil.

At that moment, a female voice continued to ring out.

"Shunzi, let Ning Hanmo sit on the stool."

Jiang Yun Chu suddenly spoke; no one knew what she intended—had they just gathered to find a venue?

But now it seems she is not in a hurry at all!

"Seated." The reply came not from Shunzi but from Ning Hanmo.

He gazed at the fifty people and the woman radiating fighting spirit; at six years old, he felt a surge of hot blood for the second time.

The first time was at the West Village racetrack.

Today is the second time; no one lifted a hand, merely a few light words were enough to make his blood boil.

"Ning Hanmo, look—look at each person's eyes, look at each person's wounds."

Jiang Yun Chu walked to Ning Hanmo's side; her tone was unprecedentedly stern, without her usual mockery or earnest instruction.

This was the first time she displayed such force, an irresistible dominance.

Ning Hanmo said nothing, gazing at each person's eyes and their wounds.

"He, to save an innocent girl, took an arrow to the ear—just a fraction off from striking the brow."

Jiang Yun Chu approached the leader and pointed to his wounded ear.

"He, in a campaign five years ago, broke his right arm."

"He, during a suppression of mountain strongholds eight years ago, suffered poison in his eyes; only one eye was saved, and his vision remains unclear."

"And he, five years ago, while escorting you and the prince back to the manor, fell into an ambush, sustaining a blade wound to the chest—he barely survived."

……

Person by person, wound by wound, when Jiang Yun Chu spoke she stood beside that individual, her voice cold.

Yet everyone present felt as if their hearts were placed in a furnace.

Those fifty men, when fighting they did not redden their eyes; even when wounded to the brink of death, they had already grown indifferent to life and death.

But……

At this moment!

After so long, someone still remembers their wounds.

Ning Hanmo, remember this: if you choose the path of the imperial examinations, I won't say so much to you today.

But!

You yourself chose the battlefield.

In the future, perhaps you'll wrap corpses in straw mats, perhaps return home in glory, perhaps be covered in wounds.

But the path you chose—no matter what happens in the future, you must keep walking it.

This is your mission, and also the path you chose for yourself.

Treat heroes well, so your future self won't feel chilled.

Jiang Yun Chu turned her back on Ning Hanmo, tightly shut her eyes, hiding the emotions in her pupils, feeling more reluctance and unwillingness.

Suddenly she turned around, her eyes fixed directly on Ning Hanmo.

The boy sitting on the stool, still unable to stand, asked, "Do you remember?"

Ning Hanmo was shocked; he had seen these people before, and even mocked them with his companions.

But only today did he realize that their bodies bore wounds, as well as battle achievements and merits.

"Remembered!" In a moment, he was pushed to grow up.

Jiang Yun Chu wondered, "Have I been too cruel?"

He is just a six‑year‑old child! He should have a happy childhood.

But……

Time won't give them much longer; the Cao family is just a breach—who knows who else will come in the future?

She can bear it, let him grow, give him time to grow, but he is destined never to have a childhood.

"You are heroes; in the Regent Prince's Manor, heroes do not kneel."

You are heroes.

Heroes do not kneel!

Every sentence struck home; the hearts of those fifty people were like coals in a furnace, blazing hot.

"Do you remember?"

Jiang Yun Chu's question was like ice piercing the heart, extinguishing their burning coals.

Yes!

Fifty people, in one voice.

The depression of the past few years—meaningless, unaware of the road ahead.

Suddenly it seemed to awaken something deep in the soul, something that had always been blazing.

They knew, that was the army's spirit!

The soul of soldiers.

A scholar dies for one who truly knows him!