Time Is Slow - Chapter 16

The Northern Expedition General, Shao Mingyuan, was evidently a popular topic in the capital and surrounding areas. The moment his name was mentioned, the atmosphere became lively.

“Tsk tsk, General Shao is truly remarkable. He was granted the title of Champion Marquis at just over twenty years old.”

“What’s so surprising about that? General Shao is a born military star! At just fourteen, he was already fighting alongside Old General Shao, conquering battlefields in the north and south. Now, he has reclaimed Yancheng City for the Great Liang, performing an extraordinary feat of service. The title of Champion Marquis is well deserved!”

Amid the clamor of discussion, one person suddenly sighed and said, “General Shao has sacrificed so much for the nation and its people. Have you heard? The northern barbarians captured his wife and tried to use her to force him to retreat!”

Divine Doctor Li, who had been idly listening to pass the time, suddenly clenched his teacup.

Qiao Zhao, however, remained composed. She took out a handkerchief to wipe her lips, then lifted her teacup and took a slow sip.

“Ah, did he retreat?” The travelers from the south, who had not yet heard this story, became tense with anticipation.

The tale of General Shao’s exploits had been told countless times, but the storyteller was clearly proud to recount it once more.

“Of course not! Back when the Qi people took Yancheng City from us, it was an unforgivable atrocity. They massacred the entire city, even newborn babies weren’t spared! Later, they relied on Yancheng City’s strategic location to suppress the Great Liang army at every turn. The people of the northern border have suffered terribly for years. Now that we finally had a chance to reclaim Yancheng City, do you think General Shao could afford to back down?”

“No! Absolutely not!” The listeners shook their heads in unison.

Great Liang had always prided itself as the supreme kingdom under heaven, and its people took pride in their identity as its citizens. Losing Yancheng City was like a slap in the face to every Liang citizen, a wound that had festered over the years, bringing both pain and humiliation.

“Then what happened to General Shao?” someone asked.

The storyteller downed his tea in one gulp, his eyes burning with fervent admiration.

“Before those barbarians could even finish speaking, General Shao drew his bow and shot his own wife dead! With nothing left for them to use as leverage, his troops’ morale surged, and they fought with renewed vigor!”

“Hiss—”

Gasps of shock rippled through the crowd.

A teacup suddenly crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces, drawing everyone’s attention.

Divine Doctor Li’s face was dark, his white beard trembling as he demanded, “General Shao killed his own wife?”

“Yes, sir! You must also feel that General Shao’s sacrifice was incredible, right? Sigh, he gave up so much for Great Liang—”

“Incredible, my ass!” Divine Doctor Li shot to his feet, cursing furiously.

Qiao Zhao nearly choked on her tea and had to cover her mouth with a handkerchief, coughing lightly.

“Hey, old man, watch your mouth!” The crowd was instantly displeased. How dare this old man insult General Shao?

Divine Doctor Li paid no attention to their outrage. Fuming, he continued, “You all keep saying how hard it was for him, what about his wife? Has anyone thought about how terribly she died? Hmph! I say that brat was just incompetent, letting his wife get captured by the Qi people in the first place—”

Before he could finish, a barrage of steamed buns, teacups, and even a tattered straw shoe came flying at him!

Having anticipated this reaction, Qiao Zhao quickly grabbed Divine Doctor Li and bolted. The guards, wary of drawing too much attention, didn’t dare harm the common folk, so they could only shield the old doctor from the onslaught.

Not until the group fled back to the carriage in disarray did the tea stall patrons finally calm down and resume their earlier discussion.

Standing beneath a poplar tree not far from the tea stall, Jiang Yuanchao silently watched the departing carriage, his lips pressed into a thin line, his gaze deep and unreadable.

So, she was dead.

Jiang Yuanchao tilted his head back, gazing at the clouds in the northern sky, and let out a quiet sigh.

He had always believed that a girl like her, whether married or not, would live a life of her choosing. But he never expected such an ending.

If he had known…

He didn’t let the thought continue. But a dull ache began to spread in his chest. It wasn’t sharp, but it had weight, pressing down on him until even his breaths felt heavy with pain.

It was faint, subtle, but no matter how composed and good-humored he usually was, it refused to dissipate.

“My lord—” The young man beside Jiang Yuanchao couldn’t help but call out.

Was it his imagination, or did the lord look truly sorrowful? The very idea was unnerving.

Jiang Yuanchao came back to himself, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Let’s go.”

—

Inside the carriage, Divine Doctor Li shook off Qiao Zhao’s grip, his face still burning with rage. “Why did you pull me away, dead girl? I hadn’t even had time to slip them some medicine yet!”

He had planned to mix up their medicine, giving them stomach trouble for days!

His voice was loud enough that the guards outside instinctively shrank their necks.

Traveling with the divine doctor was truly a hardship. Not only did they have to be constantly wary of being drugged by him, but they also had to worry about him drugging others. Worse, they had to clean up the messes he made with his reckless words.

The guards, who had left the capital full of energy but were now returning looking gaunt with sunken cheeks, remained silent as they reflected on their misfortune.

“Grandpa Li, why bother arguing with them?” The carriage was comfortably arranged, and Qiao Zhao leaned against an ink-patterned cushion, smiling faintly—completely devoid of any awareness that she was the unfortunate wife of General Shao they had just been discussing.

“They had it coming with their foul mouths!” Divine Doctor Li grew angrier the more he thought about it. “Not only are they foul-mouthed, but they’re stupid too! Haven’t they heard the saying, ‘Promotion, wealth, and the death of a wife’?! How is that little bastard Shao suffering? Just wait and see, once he returns to the capital, he might suddenly become the Emperor’s son-in-law. By then, who will even remember—”

At that, Divine Doctor Li couldn’t continue. He slumped against the carriage wall, panting heavily, his eyes gradually growing misty.

How could he not take it to heart? That was a child he had watched grow up.

He was a doctor and had long become accustomed to life and death. But that girl was different.

She was so intelligent, picking up anything she learned in an instant. And despite her intelligence, she had the patience and devotion to care for her grandfather, willingly delaying marriage and sacrificing her youthful years. Yet when her grandfather passed, she grieved but was not broken—she even comforted him instead.

Such a good girl… How could that little bastard—how could he bear to shoot her dead with an arrow?

“I wonder how good that little bastard’s archery actually is. Did he even shoot accurately?” Caught between grief and anger, Divine Doctor Li unknowingly voiced his thoughts aloud.

Qiao Zhao felt both sorrowful and amused. Understanding that he said this out of deep sadness, she didn’t want him to be too upset, so she replied, “Very accurate, right to the heart. One shot, instant death. Probably didn’t even hurt too much.”

Divine Doctor Li snapped back to reality. “Did I say that out loud?”

Qiao Zhao nodded. “Mm-hmm.”

Divine Doctor Li stared at her suspiciously. “And how do you know it didn’t hurt?”

Qiao Zhao’s expression remained calm as she explained, “Think about it. What kind of person is General Shao? He’s been on the battlefield since he was fourteen, and he rarely loses. Could his archery skills possibly be poor? Besides, that was his… wife. If he couldn’t even do that properly and made her suffer more, wouldn’t that be far too unkind?”

Hmm, looking at it that way, he really was quite a considerate husband.

Qiao Zhao almost laughed in exasperation at her own thoughts.