Chapter 392: Startled Upright from a Deathbed Illness

Li Li Xuewu reached out and ruffled his younger brother's head, smiling as he said, "Don't try to scare me; I'm easily frightened."

"Second Brother!"

"What is it?"

Li Xucai lifted his eyes to look at his second brother, pursed his lips, and said, "If you're going to tell lies, your expression needs to be convincing."

While speaking of 'Second Brother,' Li Xucai...

"Young Master of the Marquis, please get up quickly; it is our turn for patrol."

"Where am I?"

Qin Hu sat up in a daze, feeling chilly all over; outside, a strong wind was howling, instantly filling his heart with strangeness.

"Oh, Young Master, how can you be so confused? We are in the military camp. It is our shift to stand guard at this hour; if you don't get up, you will be punished by military law, and even the Old Marquis cannot protect you now."

"What?"

Qin Hu opened his eyes and saw that he was currently inside a tent, with a small soldier wearing leather armor standing before him.

Just as he was about to open his mouth to ask something, suddenly a splitting headache struck, and a massive stream of information rushed into his mind; a few seconds later, he knew he had transmigrated.

He had transmigrated from a modern special forces soldier into the body of a Young Marquis also named Qin Hu, the leader of the Seven Evil Young Masters of Jingcheng!

As for this era called the Great Yu Dynasty, it simply did not exist in history.

Qin Hu's ancestors were among the Four Dukes and Twenty-Eight Marquises who founded the Great Yu; three months ago, his father fell ill and died, and Qin Hu inherited the title, becoming the new Marquis of Champion.

Qin Hu had been spoiled by his parents since childhood; he disliked studying and practicing martial arts, indulging only in play, eating, drinking, and having fun, running rampant through Jingcheng.

When he grew older, his family wanted him to settle down, so they arranged a marriage for him; the woman was the eldest daughter of the Duke of Chen, named Chen Chen Ruoli, a noble lady who was beautiful on the outside and wise within.

This Qin Hu was vicious and cruel to everyone else, yet toward this flower-like fiancée of his, he was obedient in every way, treating her like a precious treasure.

But the trouble arose precisely because of this childhood sweetheart, the Eldest Miss Chen.

According to Qin Hu's memories, on that day he accompanied his fiancée into the palace to pay respects to the current Princess Chang'an; since the Princess and Chen Chen Ruoli had been close since childhood, she arranged a banquet.

But later, Qin Hu drank until he blacked out, and when he woke up, he was already in the Imperial Prison of the Internal Guard. He was informed that he had drunkenly harassed the Princess and intended to commit misconduct.

Even more bizarrely, Chen Chen Ruoli subsequently submitted a memorial impeaching her fiancé Qin Hu for seventy-two illegal acts, each and every one supported by evidence.

At that moment, Qin Hu felt as if struck by five thunderbolts; he simply could not believe his ears...

The imperial edict soon arrived; considering that Qin Hu's ancestors had rendered meritorious service, his capital crime could be spared but his lesser crimes could not escape punishment, so he was exiled to Youzhou to serve in the army, retaining his title pending future conduct.

However, after arriving in Youzhou, he was quickly assigned to the front lines—to serve at the vanguard tent.

After these events flashed through Qin Hu's mind, he basically understood; this must have been a trap.

Because the Duke of Chen had long wanted to break off the engagement with him.

The Qin and Chen families were originally a political marriage; both families wanted to grow stronger and larger, but the later Qin Hu was nothing but a prodigal son, almost good for nothing, and could be said to have completely disgraced the Marquis of Champion's household.

It must be known that every generation of Marquises of Champion had been heroic figures with unparalleled influence in the military, yet precisely in this generation, a good-for-nothing who had never stepped onto a battlefield appeared.

While the Old Marquis was alive, the Duke of Chen still showed face; once the Old Marquis died, the Duke of Chen turned heartless and actually staged a scene of breaking off the engagement right in the mourning hall.

But Qin Hu deeply loved Chen Chen Ruoli and refused to agree no matter what, while Chen Chen Ruoli had long been extremely disgusted by this evil young master of hers.

Thus, a calamity descended upon him!

As for Princess Chang'an, the matter was even simpler; she was the female cousin of Qin Hu's older male cousin, so once Qin Hu died, the vast family assets of the Marquis of Champion's household would naturally all fall into the hands of this male cousin.

These several factions, each seeking what they needed, colluded together, and thus rapidly united...

Indeed, once one enters the gates of a marquisate, it is as deep as the sea; there are truly many people who want him dead.

"Qin An, shall we find a place to shelter from the wind?"

Under the bright moonlight, the rough northern wind carried a piercing whistle as it swept across the empty plains, blowing the few torches until they flickered on and off, cutting against human skin like countless flying knives.

"We cannot, Young Master; we would be punished by military law."

Qin Hu and Qin An, shrinking their heads and tucking in their limbs against the wind, ran out from the camp, stepping on thick snow as they moved forward.

The frail Qin An, caught off guard, was immediately knocked over by the strong wind.

Two sentries changing shifts saw them come out, exchanged sinister smiles, scooped up two handfuls of snow to extinguish the warming bonfire, and then crawled into their tent.

Damn it, even the small soldiers have been bought off; they want to freeze Laozi to death!

This was a very small camp, with about twenty tents, surrounded by wagons; the outer perimeter had not even arranged horse barriers or antlers, the nearby terrain was flat with no defensible positions, and at a glance, it was clear they had no intention of stationing there long-term.

According to Qin Hu's memories from his previous life, about two hundred men were stationed here; they were the vanguard camp of Li Qin, the General Who Conquers the North of the Yu Dynasty.

The target of Li Qin's twenty-thousand-strong army on this campaign was the Yu Dynasty's sworn enemy on the border, the State of Liaodong.

"Cough, cough, Young Master, do you think we can still make it back alive?" Qin An curled his entire body up on the snowy ground; his lips and face were blue, and his voice was weak and breathless, as if he might die at any moment.

Qin Hu sighed inwardly; Qin An was purely implicated by him, and if things continued to develop this way, both of them would surely die.

Those who wanted him dead, having failed to kill him in the imperial court, were now using underhanded tricks and blunt clubs in the military camp, trying to beat him to death.

But Qin Hu was absolutely not someone who would sit waiting for death; this was clearly a case of being framed, and he could not let it rest.

Life is inherently an endless struggle for survival; just wait, Laozi will not only survive but will also kill my way back to Jingcheng to settle accounts with you all.

"Qin An, when we left home, how many silver notes did we bring?"

"There are no silver notes left; I only have twenty taels of silver on me. The imperial edict stated that we are exiled as convicts, and our family assets are sealed and confiscated."

Qin An was only sixteen years old this year; he was Qin Hu's personal book boy, very frail in appearance, already unable to bear the torment, looking as if he had only one breath left.

Actually, Qin Hu was not much better off; in recent days, the vanguard camp marched thirty li every day, and the work they did was clearing roads when encountering mountains and building bridges when meeting water, chopping firewood and making fires, digging ditches and carrying water, and constructing camps.

And what situation would these two tender-skinned fellows face when staying together with several hundred burly soldiers every day?

Definitely doing the most exhausting work, eating the worst food, suffering the most vicious beatings, and enduring the greatest humiliation...

Qin Hu estimated that his predecessor had probably been tortured to death.

It could also be said that he deserved such retribution.

It was just that this bitterness must now be borne by him; if he could not bear it, he would also die.

"Give it to me."

Qin Hu had made up his mind; he must first find a way to save Qin An's life, and only then consider other options.

Saving a life was actually not difficult; the simplest method was bribery. As the saying goes, wealth can reach the gods; although this method was primitive, it always worked.

But under the current circumstances, he could not possibly bribe high officials, since no one dared to associate with him. Besides, he had no money.

So the person who came to his mind was Li Li Xiaokun, a Centurion.

He was currently the top leader of the Vanguard Camp. To read the latest chapter content, please download for ad-free free reading of the latest chapter content.