Chapter 99: We Must Get Pregnant!

It was the hour of the Dog.

In Yingtian Prefecture, the Wu Wang Fu was brightly lit.

When Zhu Yong returned from the palace, Guanyin Nu was embroidering something in the small pavilion in the back courtyard.

Seeing him enter, she hurriedly set aside the work in her hands and rose to greet him.

"Lord has returned," she said softly, wearing a light teal robe and skirt, her features gentle in the candlelight.

"Hmm, father ordered me to set out tomorrow," Zhu Yong sat on the stone bench, lifted the tea Guanyin Nu handed him, and took a sip.

Guanyin Nu's hand paused briefly, her fingertips turning slightly pale.

She sat opposite Zhu Yong and whispered, "So soon… the north just finished…"

"Goryeo and Nüzhen have jointly breached the border, Kaiyuan is besieged, we can't wait. Don't worry, I've fought many battles, it's fine," Zhu Yong set down his tea cup, looked at Guanyin Nu and comforted her.

"I know you, Lord, are brave, but…" Guanyin Nu bit her lip and did not continue.

She was the daughter of a military family, having heard her father and brothers speak of the battlefield since childhood, and knew that Sword and Spear have no eyes.

Moreover, this time they were heading to the bitterly cold lands of Liaodong, facing a joint Goryeo–Nüzhen force, not the already waning remnants of the Northern Yuan on the Grassland.

Seeing her worry, Zhu Yong gave a simple smile and said, "Really, it's nothing, Xu Shu, Chang Shu and the others have all gone; I'm the Vanguard, leading the Longxiang Army one step ahead."

"Vanguard…" Guanyin Nu grew even more concerned.

The Vanguard means being the first to engage the enemy, the most dangerous.

She suddenly stood, walked to Zhu Yong's side, and gently rested on his shoulder.

Zhu Yong was startled; this was the first time Guanyin Nu had been so forward.

"Lord, I've been married to you for several months, but when you were at home, it added up to less than a month," she said in a very soft, trembling voice.

Zhu Yong scratched his head, confirming that it was indeed so.

They had their grand wedding in February, then trained troops, and now they were to set out again.

"After this battle, I'll spend more time with you," he promised.

Guanyin Nu shook her head, lifted her gaze to him, candlelight reflecting the redness in her eyes: "Lord, I don't ask you to stay… I'm afraid…"

She could not continue.

Afraid of what?

Afraid that her husband would die on the battlefield, that she would become a widow shortly after marriage, afraid that the long years ahead she would only guard an empty Wang Fu…

She could not voice those words.

Zhu Yong understood.

He reached out, clumsily patting Guanyin Nu's back, and said, "Don't be afraid, truly, I'm tough; even Yama doesn't dare to claim me."

Guanyin Nu, amused by his words, burst into a smile and chided, "Pure nonsense."

The atmosphere lightened a bit.

Guanyin Nu sat up again, wiped the corner of her eye, and suddenly said, "Lord, I… I want to bear you a child."

Zhu Yong was stunned again.

Her face flushed, yet she gathered courage and said, "If we have a child, when you go to war I will have something to think of… when the child grows up, he can, like his father, protect the home and the nation."

The words were phrased gently, but Zhu Yong understood.

She wanted to use a child to tether him, so he would think of returning home more often.

Simple as he was, a warm feeling rose in his heart at that moment.

"Alright… I'll return," he nodded.

Guanyin Nu shook her head: "I… I want it now."

After saying that, her face reddened further, and she lowered her head, unwilling to look at Zhu Yong.

Zhu Yong looked at her shy demeanor, recalling that over the past two months Guanyin Nu had always been gentle and proper, never overstepping any bounds.

Her initiative tonight showed she truly feared he would not return.

He stood up and extended his hand toward Guanyin Nu.

Guanyin Nu looked up; in the candlelight her eyes held hope, shyness, and resolve.

She placed her hand into Zhu Yong's palm.

Zhu Yong took her hand and walked toward the main house in the back courtyard.

…

Night had deepened.

The Wang Fu was silent, only the occasional footsteps of patrolling Imperial Troops breaking the hush.

The candle in the main hall was still lit.

Guanyin Nu leaned in Zhu Yong's arms, her fingers gently tracing his chest.

"Lord, tell me about the battlefield," she said, turning over suddenly, lying on Zhu Yong's chest, her eyes bright as she looked at him.

"What is there to talk about on the battlefield? It's just fighting and killing," Zhu Yong replied.

"I want to hear… I want to hear how you broke Kaiping City Gate with three hammer blows, how you burst open Helin City Gate with a single blow, how… how you wiped out the Northern Yuan at Bu Yu Er Hai."

Guanyin Nu persisted.

In her eyes were admiration, curiosity, and tenderness.

Zhu Yong looked at her, feeling a soft spot in his heart.

He thought for a moment, then began, "That time at Kaiping was my first time on a great battlefield…"

He spoke plainly, without embellishment or exaggeration, just straightforward narration.

But Guanyin Nu listened intently.

When she heard him bearing the Battering Ram against the city gate, she clutched his arm tightly.

When she heard him charging amid the Arrow Rain, she held her breath.

When she heard him slaying Yesu, a light flashed in her eyes.

"Prince, when you go to war later, could you… think more of home, think of me," she said in a muffled voice.

"Hmm, I will think of it," Zhu Yong said seriously.

"When I return this time, I… I will bear the Prince several children; the son will be as brave as you, the daughter… the daughter will be like me, staying at home waiting for your return."

Guanyin Nu said, her face flushed.

"Fine, bear him seven or eight," Zhu Yong smiled.

"Then it won't be a pig," Guanyin Nu scolded, but her heart was sweet.

The two talked for a while longer; Guanyin Nu grew sleepy, leaned into Zhu Yong's arms, and fell asleep.

Zhu Yong, however, did not sleep.

He kept his eyes open, looking at the tent ceiling.

The breathing of the person in his arms was even, warm and soft.

He recalled that in his past-life memories, he was an ordinary person, working nine to five, marrying, having children, living a plain and stable life.

In this life, he became the Wu Prince of Great Ming, married Wang Baobao's sister, and was about to campaign against Korea and Nüzhen.

Life's circumstances are truly marvelous.

But he does not regret it.

In this life, there are parents, an elder brother, a wife, brothers, and things he must protect.

That is enough.

As for the battlefield…

He closed his eyes, and the terrain of Liaodong rose in his mind.

Korea comes from the east, Southern Barbarians from the north, Kaeyuan is besieged…

How should this battle be fought?

As he kept thinking, he also fell asleep.

……

The next day at the hour of Yin, the sky was still dark.

Zhu Yong rose gently, not waking Guanyin Nu.

He donned his armor, took up the Double Hammers, and left the room.

In Wang Fu, Zhang Wuhe and Chen Heng were already waiting in the front courtyard.

"Prince, the Longxiang Army has completed gathering outside the city," Zhang Wuhe reported.

"Grain and Fodder?" Zhu Yong asked.

"Already loaded onto carts, moving with the army," Chen Heng said.

Zhu Yong nodded, about to step out, when footsteps came from behind.

Guanyin Nu, wearing an outer coat, chased after him.

"Prince…" her eyes were red, clearly having cried.

Zhu Yong turned, looked at her and said, "Go back and sleep; the day is still early."

Guanyin Nu shook her head, walked to his front, took a Scent Pouch from her arms and said, "I embroidered this; inside is a peace talisman, Prince, take it with you."

Zhu Yong took the Scent Pouch; it was embroidered with a pair of mandarin ducks, the stitching fine.

"I will carry it," he said seriously.

Guanyin Nu also took out a bundle and said, "Inside are my dried meat; eat them if you get hungry on the road."

"Alright," Zhu Yong took it.

All that needed to be explained was explained, all that needed to be given was given.

The two stared at each other, momentarily speechless.

Finally Zhu Yong spoke, "I'm leaving; you stay well at home, wait for me to return."

"Okay! Prince, take care," Guanyin Nu nodded, tears finally falling.

Zhu Yong reached out, clumsily wiping away her tears, then turned and strode out.

Guanyin Nu stood at the courtyard gate, watching his silhouette vanish into the darkness before dawn.

She stood for a long time, until the sky turned a faint fish‑belly white, then gently touched her own lower belly.

"Must get pregnant…" she whispered in prayer.

……

Outside the city, the Longxiang Army Military Camp.

Ten thousand soldiers had finished forming ranks, a sea of black, silent as crows.

Zhu Yong rode his horse into the camp, arriving at the front of the formation.

Chang Mao, Wang Gui and other commanders came forward to greet him.

"General, the whole army has completed gathering, ready to depart at any time," Chang Mao said.

Zhu Yong nodded, looking at the ten thousand soldiers.

These men, he had trained for half a year, turning a group of recruits into an Obey Orders elite.

Now, they were to step onto a real battlefield.

"Brothers... Korea and Nüzhen have violated our borders, killed our soldiers, besieged our city; we, the Longxiang Army, are the capital camp elite, the blade of Great Ming.

This time, we will make those barbarians know that anyone who offends Great Ming, no matter how far, will be punished!" Zhu Yong opened, his voice not loud, yet carried far.

"Punish them even from afar! Punish them even from afar!" ten thousand roared together, their voices shaking the four corners.

Zhu Yong raised his right hand and shouted, "Depart!"

With a single command, the army set out.

Ten thousand Longxiang Army, with five thousand cavalry at the front, five thousand infantry behind, and supply wagons in the middle, marched north in a grand procession.

Zhu Yong rode at the forefront, with the Longxiang Army's flags behind him.

In the morning light, that flag rustled loudly.

On the walls of Yingtian City, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao stood side by side, watching the army disappear into the distance.

"Father, how long will it take for our second brother to be gone?" Zhu Biao asked.

"At least half a year, at most a year; the Goryeo Mountains have many fortified cities, and the Nüzhen excel at mountain‑forest warfare, making it hard to fight," Zhu Yuanzhang said.

"With the second brother present, it should be fine," Zhu Biao said.

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded, "We think the same; Yong Er is a lucky general, always able to win battles."

The father and son stood for a while longer, until the army vanished at the edge of their sight, then turned and left the city.

On the official road outside the city, Zhu Yong turned back and glanced at Yingtian City.

This departure, he did not know when he could return.

But he was not worried.

He had his parents, an elder brother, and a wife at home.

He only needed to win the battle and return early.

"Giddy up!" he urged his warhorse, quickening his pace.

Behind him, ten thousand Longxiang Army followed closely.

Dust rose, and the War Flags fluttered.