Chapter 317: This Isn't the Eagle I Raised

Listening to his words, Bai Wei could not help but feel a pang of heartache.

The other sons of the old Emperor all grew up in the palace, living in luxury and being pampered.

Only Xiao Moting was sent to this bitter, cold place of Beijiang when he was just six years old.

His alertness was entirely muscle memory forged from a life of blood and carnage.

How could a normal person, sleeping soundly in the middle of the night, jump up at the slightest disturbance?

Xiao Moting walked out of the room and closed the door.

In truth, he was reluctant to leave, but the night was truly deep, and he had to rise early tomorrow; he could not delay Bai Wei's rest.

Furthermore, for a man and a woman to be alone in one room—if word got out, it would damage Bai Wei's reputation.

Qin Zhan was waiting outside the door; seeing Xiao Moting come out, he immediately stepped forward.

"Prince, will you be staying in the room next door? Shall I have someone lay out your bedding?"

"No need." Xiao Moting looked around. "Just leave the bedding at the doorway."

Qin Zhan was immediately surprised. "You are not going back to sleep in a room, you are going to sleep on the floor?"

Xiao Moting gave a faint "Mm." "I will sleep outside Bai's door for the night, to avoid any unexpected incidents."

The matter of the "Goddess" could no longer be kept under wraps; Yuan Canghai's side also knew the news of the "Goddess," and last time, they even sent assassins to try and abduct Bai Wei.

Therefore, he could not afford to let his guard down.

Although Bai Wei had learned some basic martial arts from him, her skills were still a bit weak for dealing with the assassins of Daliang.

Even in the base camp of the Northern Frontier Army, Xiao Moting could not set his mind at ease.

Only by guarding Bai Wei's door himself and keeping a constant watch on the surroundings could he feel at peace.

Seeing that Xiao Moting had made up his mind, Qin Zhan nodded.

"Very well, then I will have someone bring the bedding over."

"I will not sleep tonight either; I will take the soldiers and stand guard outside the door to keep watch for Bai."

Bai Wei's importance went without saying.

It was not just Xiao Moting who cared; all the soldiers of the Northern Frontier Army would also risk their lives to protect her safety.

Early the next morning.

The sound of birds chirping outside the window woke Bai Wei up.

She rubbed her eyes and sat up.

In truth, she had not slept very well that night, tossing and turning until the middle of the night before finally falling asleep.

After all, this was Daliang, not the village she was familiar with.

"Knock, knock, knock."

There was a knocking sound at the door.

Bai Wei hurriedly said, "Come in."

With a creak, the door opened, and Han Guiying walked in holding a set of brand-new clothes.

"Bai, these are what the Prince asked me to bring to you."

"Alright, you can put them there."

Bai Wei walked forward and saw that what was on the table was a set of ancient women's clothing; she immediately picked it up to hold it against herself, and the size was surprisingly a perfect fit, as if it had been tailored to her own figure.

Her cheeks flushed red.

It was truly rare for Xiao Moting to be so attentive, remembering her clothing size so clearly.

"Caw, caw."

The bird chirping sounded again outside the window.

Bai Wei hurried over, and as soon as she opened the window, a large bird flew in fiercely.

Upon seeing the large bird, Bai Wei patted her chest and said.

"Cang Yun, you scared me to death."

"Where did you run off to yesterday?"

Before she came over yesterday, she had sent Cang Yun over first, but she never expected that as soon as she arrived, the bird would be nowhere to be seen.

"Caw, caw." Cang Yun chirped twice, then set down the Ham Sausage it had been carrying in its beak.

Bai Wei was stunned. "You mean, as soon as you returned to Daliang yesterday, you went to snatch a Ham Sausage from Xiao Dabao?"

"Caw!" Cang Yun immediately chirped, then lowered its head and used its hard beak to nudge the Ham Sausage, moving it toward Bai Wei to signal her to eat quickly.

Seeing this, Bai Wei was left between laughter and tears.

"Cang Yun, you returned to Daliang yesterday, and instead of seeing your master first, you actually went to find a welcome gift for me... no, you went to find a welcome gift?"

"Caw, caw." Cang Yun immediately flapped its wings.

Bai Wei burst into a laugh.

She reached out her hand and stroked Cang Yun's head.

She never expected this bird to be so human-like; after having good food and drink at her place for a while, the first thing it did upon returning to Daliang was to get food for her as well.

Knowing gratitude and repaying kindness—this was a good bird!

It was just that... it was so focused on finding a welcome gift for her that it forgot its master, Xiao Moting.

"Let's go, I'll take you to see your master."

Bai Wei changed into the clothes and opened the door.

As soon as the door opened, a shadow fell across her.

Bai Wei almost bumped into Xiao Moting and hurriedly stopped in her tracks.

"Xiao Moting, why are you standing at the doorway?"

"Bai, my apologies." Xiao Moting lowered his head, "I was waiting at the door for you to wake up..."

Before he could finish, he suddenly saw Cang Yun, and his black pupils instantly constricted.

"What is this bird?"

Only then did Bai Wei remember, and she hurriedly said in surprise, "Xiao Moting, it's Cang Yun. Can't you recognize it?"

"Cang Yun?" Xiao Moting was even more astonished, his expression shocked, "How is that possible?"

"It's true."

"It is not." Xiao Moting flatly denied it, "I raised Cang Yun from a chick; I know exactly what it looks like. An eagle this fat is definitely not the gyrfalcon I raised."

Only then did Bai Wei remember that Cang Yun had been eating and drinking well at her place every day, and had grown as fat as a ball.

She hurriedly said, "This is Cang Yun, it's just that it ate too well at my place and got a little bit fat."

At this moment, Cang Yun probably realized Xiao Moting didn't recognize it, so it protested by flapping its wings and letting out a loud "Quack."

Hearing the familiar bird call, Xiao Moting recognized it too.

He stared fixedly at Cang Yun, his handsome face filled with disbelief.

"Cang Yun, how did you get so fat? Like this, can you even fly?"

"Quack." Cang Yun let out a dissatisfied cry, meaning it wasn't allowed to call it fat.

Xiao Moting turned his head to look at Bai Wei.

Bai Wei's face turned red, and she whispered, "It's all my fault for feeding it too much, its figure..."

"Bai, this matter has nothing to do with you; it is Cang Yun that is gluttonous." Xiao Moting's handsome face turned cold, "Someone, find an empty room, put it inside, and from now on, control its diet daily to make it lose weight."

After speaking, he paused.

"Have Xiao Dabao go out for a ten-mile morning run every day, and take Cang Yun for a walk while he's at it."

If the bird needs to lose weight, the person does too, so they might as well do it together.

Xiao Dabao, who had just walked to the door, was instantly stunned.

"Prince, I'm not fat."

"This is a Military Order." Xiao Moting's handsome face darkened, "Someone, while Bai and I are away in Yannan, have Deputy General Xiao take Cang Yun for a morning run every day. If he dares not to comply, punish him according to military law."

"Prince, please don't."

Xiao Dabao nearly collapsed to the ground.

What on earth had he done wrong? He hadn't gotten any good food, and now he had to jump rope three thousand times a day and take an eagle for a ten-mile morning run.

Who had he offended?

At this moment, Qin Zhan hurried over.

"Prince, the carriage and horses are already prepared outside the camp. It is now noon; would you like to have lunch before leaving, or depart now?"

Before Xiao Moting could open his mouth, Bai Wei's eyes widened.

"What, it's already noon?"

This was a huge embarrassment.

The Northern Frontier Army had strict discipline; all soldiers were required to finish washing up and head to the training grounds for drills before the hour of the dragon.

She hadn't expected that she would sleep until the sun was high in the sky.

Doesn't this mean the entire army watched her sleep in?