Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Jiang Yunsui dawdled as she walked inside, only to face the torment of that great demon, Ji Yan’an.

Her chubby little face was pinched until it turned red, and her hair became a bit of a mess.

Ji Yan’an treated her like a stress-relief toy, and his frustrations instantly dissipated as he continued his work.

While Jiang Yunsui smoothed down her hair, she shot him a resentful little look.

How hateful. Since he bullied her like this, she was going to eat an extra large chicken leg for dinner today!

Yesterday, Shen Qingzhu had managed to force some of the toxins out of his body, and Ji Yan’an did feel a bit more relaxed. However, his insomnia hadn’t improved much during the night.

That night of peaceful sleep had been as fleeting as a night-blooming cereus. He had thought it was the medicine, but when he drank the same brew as that night, it had no effect at all.

This made Ji Yan’an’s mood very irritable. Even more frustrating was that new problems had arisen with the Ji Family Army.

Military pay, food supplies, and internal power struggles.

“Come here and grind the ink for me.”

Jiang Yunsui patted her own cheeks, gave an “oh,” and slowly shuffled over.

“What’s wrong with your foot?”

Ji Yan’an stared at her leg, his brow furrowing slightly.

Jiang Yunsui mumbled complainingly, “When I tripped that bad person, I hurt my foot.”

“But I recover very quickly! Please don’t kick me out, okay?”

She remembered Cook Chen’s worry that she might be dismissed for making a mistake because of her bad foot.

She didn’t think she had made a mistake yet, but she was still a little afraid of being sent away.

The Little Mushroom drooped her large eyes, pleading piteously.

Ji Yan’an paused. “Stupid.”

Jiang Yunsui was so annoyed. Why did he always call her stupid? But she didn’t dare say anything back.

In reality, all her little emotions were written plainly on her face.

She looked like a pathetic little thing who desperately wanted to argue but didn’t have the guts.

Ji Yan’an’s voice was flat. “If you aren’t stupid, how did you manage to injure yourself? And yet you’re still defiant.”

Jiang Yunsui argued, “That’s because I’m still too small. That person was bigger than five of me!”

As she spoke, she raised her small arms above her head and stood on her tiptoes to show a very tall height.

Her expression was incredibly serious.

Ji Yan’an couldn’t help but chuckle, though he quickly regained his composure. He stood up, took a small bottle from a cabinet, and tossed it to her.

“Take it. Apply it to the injury when you go back.”

Jiang Yunsui hugged the small bottle and peeked at him, her clear eyes full of surprise.

She seemed shocked that he would actually give her medicine.

Ji Yan’an felt a bit awkward under her gaze, but he didn’t show it, maintaining his cold demeanor.

“It better be healed by tomorrow. If rumors spread that I’m bullying a little maidservant, then you won’t be staying here either.”

Jiang Yunsui hurriedly replied, “It won’t, it won’t!”

“What are you still standing there for? Come and grind the ink.”

The youth looked impatient.

Jiang Yunsui hurried over with small steps, though she was still limping.

The desk was a bit high for her, and the Little Mushroom didn’t know how to grind ink.

Scratching her head in distress, she tried hard to remember how the other servants had done it for him before.

But to Ji Yan’an, it just looked like she was dazing off.

“What are you thinking about?”

His chilly voice drifted over, giving Jiang Yunsui a start.

“I… I don’t know how.”

Ji Yan’an glanced at her. “Watch.”

He taught her once. “When adding water, you only need one or two drops. Grind the ink stick in slow circles until the ink is thick and dark…”

Jiang Yunsui listened very intently, nodding her little head from time to time like a well-behaved student.

This earnest learning attitude actually improved Ji Yan’an’s mood significantly.

“Alright, you do it next time.”

After saying that, he began reviewing documents again.

Some of the documents were a pure waste of his time, filled with trivial and meaningless chatter.

Ji Yan’an read through them calmly this time.

This situation was expected.

The Ji Family Army was divided into camps named after the seven stars of the Big Dipper.

They were the Celestial Pivot, Celestial Jade, Celestial Gem, Celestial Authority, Jade Balance, Opening Yang, and Shimmering Light battalions.
The Celestial Pivot was in charge of the infantry and was the most populous battalion.

The Celestial Jade was in charge of the cavalry, as well as the breeding of horses and the Ji Family hounds. The Celestial Gem was the armory battalion, responsible for the research and improvement of weapons and equipment. The Celestial Authority handled the baggage train, which meant they were in charge of logistics.

The Jade Balance Army consisted of elites selected from various battalions. Aside from receiving military pay, all their resources and expenses were covered by the Ji Family.

The Jade Balance Army was not limited to a single branch of service; they were multi-talented individuals who often patrolled the Mobei borders. Once they discovered any unusual circumstances, they would send word directly to the Ji Family via carrier pigeon.

The Opening Yang Army, on the other hand, was the blade in the Ji Family’s hand. They reported directly to the Ji Family and held the authority to arrest officials from other military camps and major cities in Mobei. They performed the harshest and most reviled tasks, earning them the mocking nickname of the “Ji Family’s Hounds” among the people of Mobei.

The Shimmering Light served as the City Guard, primarily responsible for the security and management within the city walls.

However, there were actually two other special departments.

One was a group of hidden guards trained from orphans recruited in secret by the Ji Family. They were primarily responsible for protecting the Ji Family from the shadows and handling matters that could not be done openly; they were known as the Dongming Guard.

The other was a department actually established for the Crown Prince, specialized in gathering intelligence from across the land. Because the late Emperor had been muddled and neglected local governance, the court had fallen entirely under the control of various high-ranking officials. The Crown Prince, unwilling to be a ruler with his eyes blindfolded, had created this department.

No one knew of this department’s existence except for the head of the Ji Family and the Crown Prince.

This was the Yinyuan Pavilion.

On the day the Crown Prince died, he had handed the jade plaque of the Yinyuan Pavilion’s Master to Ji Yan’an.

Ji Yan’an touched the jade plaque hanging around his neck, which looked like a mere ornament.

It was a pity that no matter how excellent the Crown Prince was, or how hard he strove for the sake of the people, he was no match for the late Emperor’s incompetence and the myriad crises within the inner palace.

Such a noble and brilliant man had ultimately perished under the schemes of imperial power struggles.

The Ji Family had failed to protect him after all.

And his death had become the final straw that broke the Ji Family’s back.

Ji Yan’an took a deep breath, casting those stray thoughts aside.

Currently, aside from the Jade Balance and Opening Yang, the other military camps had all been infiltrated by people planted by other factions.

Among them, the Shimmering Light was occupied by the Emperor’s men in its leadership positions-specifically, it was controlled by that Left General Wang Hu who had arrived previously.

Wang Hu wouldn’t bother with the security of the cities in Mobei; his primary objective was to cause trouble for Ji Yan’an.

Everything currently being sent to Ji Yan’an’s desk consisted of troubles occurring within Zhenzhou City. Wang Hu’s words, both overt and implied, were for Ji Yan’an to resolve them, yet he wouldn’t provide a single soldier to help.

There were also many trivial matters, such as people arguing over something or someone’s sheep going missing, all of which he was expected to handle.

Heh…

Ji Yan’an let out a cold laugh of exasperation, though his emotions didn’t fluctuate much.

What did such petty tricks amount to?

Jiang Yunsui was startled by his sudden laughter. Her hand slipped, and the ink stick fell heavily, causing the ink in the stone to splash everywhere.

Black stains instantly bloomed across her clothes, face, and hands.

Jiang Yunsui hurriedly tried to wipe the ink from around her eyes.

It was an instinctive reaction.

However, ink was not something that decreased the more one wiped; it only smeared further.

In just a moment, her clean, fair little face had turned into that of a soot-covered little kitten.

Yet she remained unaware, looking down at the black ink on her hands with wide eyes full of confusion.

Ji Yan’an stared at his own sleeve, which was now stained with a patch of ink.

He had intended to scold the clumsy little maid, but when he looked up and saw her, he couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from twitching upward slightly.

“Clumsy.”

Jiang Yunsui felt wronged. If he hadn’t suddenly laughed like a madman for no reason, she wouldn’t have dropped the ink stick!

“You are scolding me.” It was a statement.

Jiang Yunsui shook her head frantically. “I’m not!”

Strange, how did he know!

The Little Mushroom’s eyes were filled with terror.