Chapter 1: Conscription (Part 1)

Before she reached the door, someone inside had already opened it. The woman from the Zhang family in the neighboring village came out and, upon seeing Ziqing returning with water, smiled at her in a meaningful and particularly intimate manner. Ziqing, feeling somewhat unaccustomed, nodded slightly and, before she could speak, had already lowered her head and quickly entered. The young man inside who was seeing guests off hurriedly stepped aside to make way for her.

Delicate snowflakes danced as they fell onto her hair and brows, quickly melting away. A faint chill penetrated her skin, and Ziqing gently shook her head, exhaling deeply, as the white mist of warm breath swiftly dissipated into the air

Although it was not the first time he had seen her chopping wood, Yi Ye could not help but admire her martial-like efficiency, and he smiled, saying: "No wonder the Zhang family came to propose marriage; with your capabilities, you can do the work of two people by yourself in their household"

Uncertain of which marriage he was referring to, she momentarily did not know how to respond. Ziqing lowered her head slightly, pursed her lips, and did not answer. She returned to the kitchen, took a bundle of straw rope, tied it around her waist, and then retrieved an iron axe

Zi Qing shook his head

Yi Ye understood its meaning, lowered his voice, and his eyes could not hide the mockery as he said: "The Zhang family has come to propose marriage to you"

Yi Ye smiled to himself, shook his head, and quickly caught up with her

He went straight into the kitchen on the east side and poured all the water he had carried into the water tank. Ziqing placed the wooden bucket and shoulder pole neatly in the corner, then turned around and saw that there was not much firewood left, so he took the iron axe again

Yi Ye looked at her tying another bundle of firewood with a sense of envy. Since he could not be of any help, he bent down to casually rummage through the dry grass, searching for some usable herbs to take back.

Along the way, Yi Ye began to hum a song again, perhaps due to the absence of Yi Xi, his voice was slightly louder, and the words could be faintly heard:

The iron axe was chopping swiftly, while Ziqing was focused on his work, paying no attention to his words

It turns out they hoped to marry Yi Ye.

Seeing her ask this question, Yi Ye smiled slightly, brushed off the dirt from the roots of the herbs, and then said: "You are with me every day, how could you not know this?"

As the two of them arrived at the halfway point of the mountain, Yi Ye could no longer contain himself and could not calm down to search for herbs, so he called out loudly to Zi Qing, who was bent down picking up dry branches: "Zi Qing, have you agreed to the marriage proposal from the Zhang family?"

Yi Ye gently brushed the snowflakes off her head before fastening the bamboo hat.

Your strength...

Yi Xi nodded with a smile

Zi Qing remained silent, raising her iron axe to begin chopping at a small, withered tree nearby. Bang, bang, bang... In just a few strikes, she had created a notch. She gestured to Yi Ye, signaling him to stand aside, then struck the tree trunk lightly with the back of the axe, causing the withered tree to fall in the direction she intended. She stepped forward, casually twirled the axe in her hand, crouched down, and started chopping off the branches to gather them into bundles

The old well creaked and groaned as the bucket was drawn up. Before long, a full bucket of water was hoisted up from the bottom of the well. A girl, appearing to be around seventeen or eighteen years old, carried it over and poured the water into a wooden barrel with a splash. The old ceramic bucket, with its pointed bottom, made several trips up and down, finally filling two wooden barrels. She skillfully placed a yoke on her shoulders, lifted it, and walked forward, carefully avoiding splashing water on the other people by the well. The girl was dressed in brown plain coarse cloth; although her frame was somewhat slender, her steps while carrying the water were steady. The old ceramic bucket, with its pointed bottom, made several trips up and down, finally filling two wooden barrels. She skillfully placed a yoke on her shoulders, lifted it, and walked forward, carefully avoiding splashing water on the other people by the well. The girl was dressed in brown plain coarse cloth; although her frame was somewhat slender, her steps while carrying the water were steady.

Easy Second Brother

Zi Qing's footsteps slowed down slightly, as he reduced his pace

Yi Ye was momentarily taken aback, and upon regaining her senses, she hurriedly shouldered the torch and quickly walked down the mountain with her.

Zi Qing stopped in his tracks, looked at the old man, and politely nodded, saying: "Yes."

Zi Qing did not understand why she would ask such a question. After a moment of hesitation, she finally replied, "No."

"Ziqing, is Mr. Yi at home? My back has been hurting again these past few days, I need to find him to give it a massage." an elderly man, leaning on a cane and slowly walking with a hand on his waist, inquired.

"Not bad," Lady Yi nodded with a smile, "When you first arrived, you were merely a twelve-year-old girl, and in the blink of an eye, you have become a young lady. You know, a couple of years ago, there were suitors who came to propose to you, but at that time, I was not particularly satisfied with the families of those suitors. Moreover, you had just reached the age of coming of age, and you were still quite young, so I was not in a hurry. Now, at the age of twenty-nine, it is indeed time for you to consider marriage."

"Qing'er, do you have someone else in mind?" Lady Yi asked gently

Although it is like bitter tea, wearing white garments and eating reed, it can still provide some amusement

Zi Qing then nodded, performed a bow, and withdrew.

Yi Ye was momentarily at a loss for words and said, "How could you not recognize him? He previously made excuses to come see the doctor several times, but it seems he was actually here to see you. You must have seen him before."

Ziqing finally lifted the thick grass curtain and entered. Inside the room, a brazier was lit, radiating warmth. On the couch sat a man and a woman. The man, having surpassed the age of destiny, had a long beard that hung to his chest and occasionally coughed a few times. The woman, though past the age of understanding, had a plump figure, yet traces of her past beauty could still be seen in her eyebrows and eyes.

Thank you very much. Ziqing took a step back to express gratitude, and then said no more, striding towards the back mountain.

Yi Ye sighed with a smile, saying, "Indeed, you are always so focused on your work that even if he comes by seventeen or eighteen times a day, you may not necessarily remember what he looks like"

Having said that, she lowered her head, skillfully balancing two large buckets of water, and briskly made her way in the direction of home

Ziqing was taken aback, the image of Yi Ye flashed through her mind, with his smiling brows and eyes and his teasing voice that bore no malice, warm like flowing water. However, she had never considered that he would become her husband. Yet, this was not important—this was a poor village, and the Yi family, who made a living through medicine, struggled to make ends meet, often relying on selling firewood and herbal medicine in the town to survive. If he were to marry another woman, the Yi family would not be able to afford a bride price for Yi Ye; the Yi couple were already advanced in age, and since they heard of their eldest son Yi Pan's sacrifice at the border, their health had deteriorated even further. They had shown her kindness, and she should take care of them with all her heart and effort...

In the early years of the Yuanjiao era, in early spring

Madam Yi looked at her affectionately and gently asked, "Qing'er, do you still remember how many years you have been here?"

Please put it on quickly

"Are you going to chop wood?" Yi Ye hurriedly replied, "Wait for me, I still need to go up the mountain to look for herbs. There are still two types that Father specified that I have not gathered."

After digging up a few medicinal herbs, Yi Ye turned around and saw Zi Qing staring at him in a daze. He asked in surprise, "What’s wrong? Qing'er?"

Hearing someone calling her from the main hall, Ziqing put the iron axe back in its original place and turned to see Yi Ye, who had just been responsible for seeing off the guests, leaning against the kitchen door, and thus she inquired with a glance at him

After the two exchanged greetings, Ziqing took a seat at the lower end of the table. Although she had a general idea of what she was being summoned for, she did not rashly inquire about it.

Seeing her with her head down and not speaking, Lady Yi took it to be shyness and, not wanting to press her, smiled and said: "We are all family here, this matter is not urgent, you can take your time to consider it."

"Silly girl, being so polite all the time makes it seem distant."

Yi Ye turned around to grab the medicinal hoe, slung the lantern over his shoulder, and casually took two straw hats before quickly jogging out the door, where he saw Zi Qing standing outside waiting for him

While he was still deep in thought, Ziqing had quickly stacked several bundles of firewood, tied them with a rope, and hoisted a pile of firewood that was more than a person's height onto her back. Turning around, she saw Yiye standing still and called out in surprise

The village is not large, but the houses are somewhat scattered. Ziqing carried water and walked around two earthen slopes before finally seeing the house ahead. The house is not made of bricks; instead, it has walls made of rammed earth. To save money or effort, the walls have not even been plastered, and the imprints of the ropes used during the rammed earth process are clearly visible. After more than ten years of wind and rain, the inner ropes have long since rotted away

This is the signal for the head of the pavilion to summon the villagers, and it is always the case when there is an important announcement.

Yi Ye went around to the other side, gathering the dry branches into bundles for her, and then tied them up with grass rope. Zi Qing glanced over and said, "It's too loose, it will come apart." After saying this, she put down the iron axe, stepped onto the pile of firewood, and tightened the rope firmly with her hands.

Yi Ye was squatting in the courtyard, sorting through the herbs in the bamboo basket, softly humming a tune that was difficult to discern. When he saw Zi Qing come out, he smiled and approached her, asking: "How is it? Have you agreed?"

It was evident that she mistook her hesitation for the shyness of a young girl trying to evade the issue. Knowing that this child was usually taciturn, she would certainly not speak of such matters lightly. Lady Yi smiled and said, "Alright, alright, I won't ask you. ... ... Ye'er has long since passed the age of twenty. I think about how you and Ye'er have grown up together over the years, and you are both familiar with each other's temperaments. My husband and I regard you as our own daughter, so naturally, we cannot bear to see you marry into another family. If you and Ye'er could be together, that would be the best outcome."

Yi Ye furrowed his brows, a vague sense of foreboding stirring within him. Over the years, the current emperor had waged war against the Xiongnu annually, with conscription, taxation, and requisitioning of horses occurring in succession. What could this time bring?

Madam... Zi Qing originally wanted to convey Lady Yi's words, but upon reconsideration, she thought that if Yi Ye already had someone else in mind, her rash mention of this matter would only put him in a difficult position. Thus, she said: "Madam is concerned about your marriage, Yi Er Ge. I wonder if you have someone in mind already"

It seemed that Lady Yi had anticipated her response, as a look of expected delight appeared on her face. She smiled at her husband, Yi Xi, saying, "See, I told you this child is unwilling."

I did not pay attention to it" Zi Qing said淡道

Upon hearing this, Ziqing raised his head, seemingly wanting to say something. However, seeing that the lady had not finished speaking, he continued to listen quietly.

"Come in," said the person inside the room

Upon hearing this, Ziqing let out a quiet sigh, took a step towards the main hall, and stopped outside the threshold, respectfully saying: "Sir"

Six years and three months, Zi Qing replied with her head slightly lowered

This girl, why is she so oblivious to everything! Yi Ye sighed softly, staring at her for a while, just as he was about to speak, he heard a crisp sound coming from the village below the mountain, "Dang! Dang! Dang!" It was the sound of someone striking a thick iron block hanging from a tree with a hammer.

Ziqing did not respond, lowering her head to continue picking up firewood. Yi Ye then picked up a dry branch to poke her in the waist, but she dodged and straightened up, frowning as she replied: "I do not know that young master from the Zhang family."

She paused for a moment, looking at Ziqing with a smile, "... just now, the Zhang family from the neighboring village came to propose marriage. I only spoke the truth; I know their son, and he is of good character. Although he is somewhat frail, he is certainly not a person of ill fortune. If you marry him, his family will not treat you poorly. Qinger, do you wish to?"

Zi Qing shook her head quietly: "Zi Qing is unwilling"

Zi Qing shook his head honestly: "I did not pay attention. ... ... Whose daughter is she?"

Seeing Ziqing bend down to pick up firewood, he also stepped forward to help her gather it, and then asked, "Why are you not responding?"

After completely decomposing the dead trees and bundling them into piles, Ziqing finally stopped, turned around, and stared at Yiye's figure, recalling the words of Madam Yi...

Qing'er