My vicious dog, my horse, I can do whatever I want with it

"Hehe..." Bai Xiujun scratched his head and smiled.

"Is everything okay in the ghost camp?" Zong Yanli asked while drinking soup.

"Everything is fine!" During the period when Zong Yanli was recuperating, Bai Xiuyun was the only one who took care of all the affairs in the ghost camp. It was not that Bai Xiuyun wanted to do it, but Wen Nian just didn't care about anything. He always ignored other people and only put Zong Yanli first.

Bai Xiuyun had a really hard time during this period, as he had to shoulder this heavy burden.

Watching Wen Nian practicing martial arts and staying outside Zong Yanli's tent all day long, he didn't go near to ask any questions, just standing there like a dog.

There were many visitors, and Kuang Xingquan and others came and left in a hurry, and could not stay for long as they followed the army.

The last person to come was Peng Deqing. However, after not seeing him for a few days, Zong Yanli felt that Peng Deqing seemed to have aged a lot overnight, and even his beard had a few white hairs growing out.

"Shi Potian still has a wife and children at home. This general has sent his battle axe and armor relics back to his home." Peng Deqing looked at Zong Yanli for a long while before saying, "You have done your best. The situation on the battlefield changes rapidly. Swords and knives are blind and there are countless casualties."

"Recover from your injuries and return to lead the troops as soon as possible. Don't blame yourself too much." Peng Deqing said a little dryly: "It's a pity that Jinda is still young and has no offspring..."

Peng Deqing sighed as he spoke. Although he felt extremely regretful and heartbroken, there was nothing he could do about it.

He was worried that Zong Yanli was still young and could not withstand such a blow, and he would blame himself and dare not make any more friends in the future, so he came here to give him some advice.

Zong Yanli lowered his head for a long time before he said, "General Peng, can you leave me the addresses of Shi Potian and Jin Da's homes?"

Peng Deqing probably saw what Zong Yanli meant, so he shook his head and said, "I know you feel uneasy and want to make amends, but you have to remember that this matter has nothing to do with you! Even if it is to comfort the orphans of the loyal martyrs, it is my job to do it."

"Zong Yanli, you have a heavy responsibility on your shoulders. You should carry on carrying their legacy and move forward."

"It is not to disappoint them, but to remove the memory of the deceased."

"There are tens of thousands of soldiers in the army, and the ones who are still alive are the ones you should lead and protect."

"Understand!"

Zong Yanli's eyes suddenly turned red, and after a long while he replied in a hoarse voice, "Yes."

If the most difficult thing about recuperating from an injury is the difficulty of growing new flesh during the wound healing period, Zong Yanli couldn't sleep well at night. He was trapped in this tent all day long. It was really frustrating that he couldn't practice martial arts or wield a sword!

She had no choice but to ask her fourth uncle to find some military books for her to read to pass the time.

As late autumn approached, Zong Yanli finally got confirmation from a military doctor that his injuries had healed. He immediately put on his armor and headed straight for Gaoyang City where the army was.

Behind Gaoyang City is Nankang Royal City, where Zong Yanyin was hung on the city wall of Gaoyang City.

After a generation, Zong Yanli stood outside the city again.

This time...

“Attack the city——!”

"kill--!"

The black flag fluttered in the wind. It was the flag of the Ghost Camp. This time, the soldiers clearly saw how the Ghost Camp soldiers climbed to the top of the city wall without ladders. Watching the flag of King Nankang being cut down, it seemed to have laid the foundation for the demise of a country.

Inside the Nankang Royal City.

The king, sitting high on the throne, listened to the reports of the city's destruction, which were getting louder and louder, and the shouts of killing outside the palace that were getting closer and closer, and his expression became numb.

"If you don't let me establish my throne, why did you make Nankang my kingdom?" The monarch standing on the throne cursed angrily, his eyes filled with grief and indignation. He suddenly drew out his sword and pointed it at the sky, saying, "Why! Why?"

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, please flee! The enemy has entered the palace!" The eunuch who was kneeling on the ground below him was wiping his tears and still admonishing.

"Escape? Hahahaha..." The king lowered his eyes and suddenly laughed.

He suddenly raised the sword to his neck and said with bloodshot eyes: "I was defeated by fate! I was defeated by! Fate!"

The blinding red surged out, and the eunuch kneeling on the ground suddenly widened his eyes, witnessing with his own eyes the king he respected and admired slashing his sword and falling on the throne. The palace door was slammed open, and he turned around to see the enemy army entering the palace.

The black armor, with the iron mask of an evil spirit on their faces, made them look like the enemy army that was killing the gods.

At that moment, the future seemed to be imprinted in the eunuch's panicked eyes. He seemed to see the world falling apart and eventually being mixed together by a big hand.

"The King of Nankang is dead, and all members of the royal family were slaughtered, leaving no one alive." There is no mercy in war, and the fall of a dynasty always brings about the annihilation of the roots. Your mercy will not be favored by God, but will only make them come back with family feuds and national hatred!

Then the next time you suffer massacre, it will be your country.

Zong Yanli picked up his sword and without hesitation chopped down the eunuch in front of the palace. He stepped into the palace on the bloodstains on the ground to wipe out the culprit completely!

At this point, Nankang was completely destroyed.

The royal city has been occupied by our army, and the emperor will send princes to take over soon. The matter of rectification and reorganization will have nothing to do with Zong Yanli.

At this moment, she has already embarked on the journey home.

The winter wind made people's cheeks hurt. In order to avoid being blocked from walking, Zong Yanli took off her face mask and hung it around her waist, took off her heavy armor and put it on the horse's back, and only wore soft armor and wrapped herself in winter clothes to hurry home. Wen Nian followed her and was dressed the same as her.

"Your wine is here!" There were people walking in twos and threes in the small taverns along the road. Zong Yanli and Wen Nian stopped here to avoid the wind and snow.

"Auspicious snow means a good harvest! What a good sign!" The shopkeeper rubbed his hands and exhaled, and gave Zong Yanli and the other man an extra plate of peanuts to go with the wine.

The journey made people feel stiff with cold, but after drinking two bowls of warm wine, they felt warm all over.

Even someone like Zong Yanli, who doesn't like drinking, couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

The shopkeeper smiled and said to them: "You two look like soldiers. Did you win a battle and are you returning home now?"

Zong Yanli's eyes were slightly warm, and he smiled and replied: "The shopkeeper has a good eye."

"Hahaha! I've been selling wine here for years, and I've seen a lot of people coming and going. In previous years, I didn't see many military households." The shopkeeper was also happy, and added a few more words: "The soldiers have worked hard in the battles outside. Now they can finally take a breath and go home to celebrate the New Year!"

"This plate of beef is for the two generals." The shopkeeper was also generous. He immediately ordered someone to cut a plate of minced meat. Although it was in pieces, it was still a plate of meat after all.

"No, no, no!" Zong Yanli quickly stood up and refused.

"Don't be polite, sir. We are just happy about the victory!" After the victory, more people came to travel. Those caravans did not celebrate the New Year and hurried to develop in Nankang, hoping to take advantage of the situation and develop their own industries as soon as possible.

With more business travelers, the business of his tavern naturally became much better. How could he not be happy?

Zong Yanli had no choice but to accept the offer.

As the wind and snow outside got worse, the sky gradually darkened.

The innkeeper took a look and said, "The snow will not stop tonight. I'm afraid it will be difficult for the two officers to travel. If you don't mind, why don't you stay in my woodshed for one night?"

“Although it’s not a good place to sleep, it can at least keep you out of the wind.” The shopkeeper said enthusiastically.

"Thank you very much. This little bit of silver is a token of our appreciation." Zong Yanli took the initiative to give the money. The shopkeeper refused to accept it at first, but when Zong Yanli insisted, he accepted it.

The shop owner's surname is Liu, his nickname is Luzi, and people call him Liuzi.

Liuzi's home was just a low house with a small courtyard. His wife and children were holding a babbling baby, and a little girl about thirteen or fourteen years old was sitting at their feet. The family did not look wealthy, but they had enough food and clothing. The children were all wearing cotton clothes and roasting charcoal fires.

It can be seen that Liuzi is a man who treats his wife and children with love. You know, charcoal is the most expensive thing in winter these days.

The sudden appearance of the two men naturally scared the wife and daughter in the house. Zong Yanli and Wen Nian, who had been fighting for many years, had some of the blood of soldiers even without wearing armor. Moreover, their tall stature made the low house seem a bit crowded when they walked into it.

Zong Yanli paused, then stepped back and stood outside the house.

"Why don't you come in? It's snowing outside." Liuzi was stunned when he saw Zong Yanli and Wen Nian standing outside the house.

"We won't go in." Zong Yanli lowered his head a little embarrassedly and said, "My brother and I are covered in dust from the journey. Please point out where the firewood room is and we will go there by ourselves. We won't bother you any more."

"Hey! Now that you're home, you should at least have some hot tea." Liuzi said hurriedly.

"Don't bother, we rough guys can handle it for one night." Zong Yanli refused to go into the house, and Liuzi had no choice but to point the door for him.

When he returned to the house and saw the confused and frightened expressions of his wife and children, he suddenly realized what was going on. He knew that Zong Yanli and the other man had left the house because they felt that they had disturbed his wife and daughter. For a moment, he thought that they were really kind-hearted.

Liuzi told his wife and children about the two men's origins. The woman was relieved and said, "You old donkey, you didn't even send someone to tell me."

Liuzi was not angry when his wife called him "old donkey". He chuckled and reached out to hug his son. The woman sighed and said, "It's very cold at night. There's a big hole in the window of the woodshed. Go and get the old quilt in the cupboard for the two soldiers."

"You are really thoughtful." Liuzi teased the child for a while, then stood up and brought the old quilt to Zong Yanli and the other two.

The wind and snow lasted until dawn.

When Liuzi stood up yawning, he saw that the two horses tied in the yard were gone.

He was slightly startled and quickly went to the woodroom. He saw that the woodroom was clean and tidy. Even the messy pile of firewood was put in order and the old quilt was folded on one side. However, Zong Yanli and Wen Nian were no longer in the woodroom.

Liuzi felt a little uncomfortable watching the scene in front of him. It is said that soldiers and rough warriors are the most rude.

Being rude is not what a warrior does, it is simply human nature.

This was just an insignificant incident on Zong Yanli's way home. At that time, the Zong Yan family had not yet moved to the capital, but was in Huai'an City, which was also the location of the Zong Yan family's ancestral home.

Huai'an City is neither big nor small. Perhaps because it is close to the end of the year, there are many more pedestrians on the streets. Zong Yanli and Wen Nian had to dismount and lead the way.

Zong Yanli's memory of Huai'an City was already a little fuzzy, but when he stepped into the city, the originally vague memory became clearer.

Before long, the emperor will reward Zong Yanhongjing for his merits and grant him a mansion in Kyoto. Zong Yan's family will move there and then move to the capital. It seems like an honor and favor, but in fact it is a threat to his wife and daughter so that Zong Yanhongjing can guard the territory for the emperor with peace of mind.

In his previous life, Zong Yanli did not return home. After the fall of Nankang, Zong Yanhongjing was ordered to rebuild the Pingnan Camp and rest the troops in preparation for war, so he also never returned home.

Even Zong Yanyin's funeral was handled hastily. In order to comfort Zong Yanhongjing for the pain of losing his daughter, the emperor gave her many rewards and personally sent someone to take her mother to his residence in the capital. That was all.

Her mother died alone in Beijing due to illness.

Zong Yanli stared at the bustling street, his hand holding the reins unconsciously tightened a bit, and with an extremely nervous and impatient mood, he finally saw the gate of Zong Yan's ancestral home. Two guards were standing in front of the vermilion lacquered door.

The gate was open, and one could see servants sweeping the road, carrying buckets of water as if they were going to sweep the huge mansion inside and out.

Zong Yanli paused for a long time before leading the horse closer.

The guard at the gate of the mansion looked over immediately, staring at the two people who suddenly approached with a slightly serious look. His eyes fell on Zong Yanli's face for a moment, and suddenly his eyes lit up with surprise: "Young Master!?"

"The eldest master is back!" The guards at the gate of the mansion almost all watched Zong Yanli grow up. They were often caught by Zong Yanli for sparring before. How could they not recognize their master?

"Brother——! Zong Yanyin came inside the mansion upon hearing the news. The girl dressed like a butterfly stepped out of the mansion and ran towards Zong Yanli.

Compared with her previous plain attire in Xitong City, Zong Yanyin wore a beautiful dress, delicate hairpins, and light makeup at home, as if she had turned into a grown-up girl overnight, so much so that Zong Yanli was a little stunned.

The little girl who rushed over had a fragrance and a soft and sticky appearance. This was something Zong Yanli had never seen before...

"I'm covered in dust, what should I do if I dirty your dress?" Zong Yanli felt helpless. Seeing that Zong Yanyin didn't care about her image and hung on his neck like she did when she was a child, he had to reach out and hold her and push her away.

"I don't dislike you, brother." Zong Yanyin was extremely excited. She held Zong Yanli's hand, lowered her eyes to look at the frostbite cracks on her hands, and was about to cry.

"Where is mother?" Zong Yanli quickly pulled back his hand and asked.

Zong Yanyin just remembered and quickly pulled Zong Yanli to the mansion and said, "Mother received the news that you were coming back and had people waiting for you early in the morning, but she didn't know you would come back so lightly! The people who were waiting there must have made a mistake!"

Zong Yanyin shouted forward: "Mother! Brother is back!"

Zong Yanli let Zong Yanyin lead him away. He had only taken two steps into the mansion when he raised his eyes and saw the woman hurrying out. Her hairpins and rings were swaying slightly and she seemed to be in a hurry.