Meng Liangping was completely unable to step out of his tent.
For one, his body was genuinely weak.
Secondly, he had no face to show anyone.
“It is all Yao’er’s fault. If Yao’er hadn’t been careless for a moment, that scoundrel wouldn’t have succeeded in his ambush, forcing me to reveal my true identity.” Meng Yao’s eyes were red, and she looked thoroughly remorseful.
Meng Liangping ground his back teeth.
The soldiers attending to him inside the tent were stealing glances at him.
Pressing a hand to his forehead, he took two deep breaths. “This matter cannot be blamed on you. The fortunes of war change in the blink of an eye. As long as you are unharmed, Grandfather thanks the heavens.”
Though words of comfort left his mouth, his heart burned with resentment.
Defeating ten to one and annihilating the entire enemy force!
A night raid on the Wei camp, wiping out all their provisions!
Such monumental, sky-shattering military merit—such magnificent merit!
How had it just slipped through his fingers?
If Meng Yao hadn’t exposed her identity, with today’s achievements, he would have advanced two ranks at the very least and secured the title of First-class General of the Second Rank.
Yet it had all been ruined at Meng Yao’s hands.
This eldest girl had always seemed rash and impatient, lacking even a shred of composure!
Now it was evident that she truly could never achieve great things.
He genuinely could not bear to look at her. “The battle the other day was truly taxing, and you have been watching over Grandfather here for two days straight. I fear your body cannot bear it. It is better that you return to your tent and rest.”
“Yao’er is not tired.”
“Grandfather knows of your filial piety, but my heart aches for you all the more. Be good, go back and rest. It is fine to have Liu Chuang and the others keep watch here.”
“Deputy General Liu is not in the camp today,” Meng Yao said, as if “suddenly” remembering. “Early this morning, he escorted those three thousand captives to the prisoner-of-war camp in Xingyang City.”
Sure enough, Meng Liangping nearly leapt out of bed.
“What? How could he send the captives there?” If General Wu, stationed at Xingyang City, were to find out, how could he possibly conceal Meng Yao’s military merit?
Meng Yao sneered inward, though her face was the very picture of innocence.
“Wasn’t transferring captives to the prisoner-of-war camp a rule set down by you, Grandfather?” See how obedient she was. “Besides, those men consume four wagonloads of grain and rice a day. How could our Changshan Military Camp afford to feed them?”
Meng Liangping: “…”
“Furthermore, if the Wei Army should get any ideas and come to recapture the prisoners, wouldn’t our Changshan Military Camp be in grave danger?”
Enough, stop talking…!!
The more reasonable she sounded, the more Meng Liangping’s heart ached.
That sky-shattering merit, that monumental military merit, ah!
Meng Yao exited the Central Army Tent, and Qingluan hurried forward to meet her. “Miss must be exhausted.”
“Tired from acting,” Meng Yao said with a faint laugh.
“Miss is truly mischievous these days,” Qingluan said with a smile, tying Meng Yao’s cloak for her. “The wind has been harsh these past few days. Miss, please be mindful of your cough and wheezing.”
In the entire Meng family, only Qingluan cared about her health.
Yet in her past life, when Qingluan was beaten to death by the Meng family, she had been tied to a couch like an utter invalid, unable to move.
She could do nothing but let tears stream down her face over Qingluan’s corpse.
“Qingluan, do you want to return to the capital?” she asked suddenly.
“Of course!” Qingluan’s eyes lit up.
Yet they dimmed almost immediately. “But Miss still has two years before you can return…”
Five years ago, the Old Madam had suddenly fallen gravely ill, and the household physicians were at their wits’ end.
In the end, they invited the abbess of Lingmiao Nunnery, who claimed the Eldest Miss possessed too heavy a baleful aura and would bring misfortune to the Old Madam. She had to stay far away, and the curse would not be dispelled until she turned seventeen.
Thus, at ten years old, the Eldest Miss had no choice but to follow the Old Master to the frontier.
Now, with the term not yet fulfilled, she feared the Meng family would never agree to Miss returning to the capital.
Meng Yao smiled gently. “Do not worry. We will be going back soon.”
“Truly?”
“When have I ever lied to you? Half a month at the most, and the Old Master will personally send people to escort us back.”
…
Fourteen days later.
People arrived from the imperial palace.
Meng Liangping’s spirits instantly surged!
A few days ago, a letter had arrived from the capital: everything had been arranged properly.
When the Eldest Imperial Prince entered the capital, Meng Huaiyi personally went to the city gates to receive him.
Having accepted bribes from the Meng family, the eunuch Jiang Yu allowed Meng Huaiyi onto the Eldest Imperial Prince’s carriage.
Under the guise of paying respects and offering apologies, Meng Huaiyi repeatedly mentioned Meng Rou: It was Meng Rou who had rescued His Highness while visiting her grandfather at the frontier. Rou’er was young and acted brashly; he begged His Highness not to blame her…
The Eldest Imperial Prince had looked as though he only half-understood, but once the words finished, he kept chanting: Meng Rou, good, is a good person.
After the Eldest Imperial Prince entered the palace, the Meng family privately gifted Jiang Yu a set of jade antiques.
Jiang Yu stated that he indeed saw a woman at the Changshan Military Camp and heard the deputy general address her as “Miss.”
As for which miss of the Meng family she was, the deputy general hadn’t specified, and he had no desire to ask.
Thus, all was accomplished!
All that remained was to await the palace’s bestowal of honors!
Though they did not know when the decree of rewards would arrive, the entire Meng household was already prepared to express their gratitude.
The letter had asked the Old Master to make early preparations on his end as well and ensure Meng Yao was kept in the dark about the truth.
From the day he received the family letter, Meng Liangping barred Meng Yao from entering the Central Army Tent and had all letters from the capital intercepted.
Fortunately, that wench had been very obedient.
These past few days, she had focused solely on patrolling the camp without suspecting a thing. Yesterday, she had even instructed the kitchen to send him pastries.
Today, imperial envoys had arrived.
It was undoubtedly to confer rewards.
Yet why had the capital sent no word in advance?
Forget it! Never mind that, claiming the rewards was the priority!
“Quick! Attend to me as I change clothes.”
…
Meng Liangping waited in the central army for a full half-hour.
Yet the people from the palace still had not appeared.
This made no sense… Was his Changshan Camp that massive? Did it really take that long to walk from the camp gates to the Central Army Tent?
“Commander-in-Chief!” Deputy General Liu Chuang ran in, bursting with excitement. “A great joyous occasion! A joyous occasion!”
Meng Liangping sprang up with a whoosh. “Y-you already know?”
Liu Chuang was flushed with excitement. “Of course! The entire Changshan Camp knows that our Eldest Miss has been bestowed the title of Commandery Princess Changning!”
Meng Liangping froze entirely.
Meng Yao was bestowed the title of a commandery princess? And had even been granted an official title?
“His Majesty has also posthumously conferred upon the Eldest Miss’s birth mother, Madam Song, the title of decreed noblewoman!”
The Song clan? Meng Yao’s long-dead mother?
“His Majesty has further bestowed upon the Eldest Miss a Hundred-man Guard!”
To… to actually permit Meng Yao to raise private soldiers?
“His Majesty also decreed that the Eldest Miss may enter the palace at any time in the future!”
Such boundless wealth and honor!
“Then what about this general? Did His Majesty mention this general?” Meng Liangping asked, his face full of eager hope.
“He did! Of course he did!” Liu Chuang shouted loudly. “His Majesty said that to have a granddaughter like the Eldest Miss, who defeated ten times her number in the Wei Army, Commander-in-Chief, you are… truly blessed!”
…
Meng Yao had just received the imperial decree when she heard that Meng Liangping had fainted in his tent.
She sneered inwardly.
Yet from her lips came: “Grandfather must be overjoyed.”
The eunuch delivering the decree offered neither confirmation nor denial.
Meng Liangping had sent Meng Yao out to face the enemy; had it not been for that mishap back then, the merit of thoroughly defeating the enemy army would have fallen squarely on his head.
As for the rescue of the Eldest Imperial Prince, the official petition submitted by the Meng family had merely stated it was a daughter of the Meng family, while also mentioning that Meng Rou had traveled to the Changshan Military Camp to visit her grandfather some days ago.
Though they had not explicitly named the savior, who reading between the lines wouldn’t assume it was Meng Rou?
Had it not been for the Eldest Imperial Prince chanting like a monk, “My savior is Meng Yao, Meng Yao is my savior,” this torrent of rewards would have fallen onto someone else yet again.
A steady stream of rewards had bypassed the Central Army Tent and was brought straight to Meng Yao, which was more than enough to reveal the Emperor’s stance—he acknowledged only Meng Yao’s merit, not the Meng family.
He simply wondered whether Old General Meng and the Meng family possessed the wit to see it clearly.
Meng Yao glanced at the bestowed gifts. “Grandfather’s health has always been frail. May this century-old ginseng be passed to him to nourish his body?”
“The Commandery Princess is benevolent and filial,” the eunuch said aloud, though in his heart he lamented that this young lady was far too simple-minded.
Her world-shaking merit had nearly been snatched away, yet not only had she failed to realize it, but she was also eager to give away her precious rewards!
Still, in the end, it was someone else’s family matter and had nothing to do with him. “Since this ginseng was bestowed upon the Commandery Princess by His Majesty, the Commandery Princess may dispose of it as she sees fit.”
Meng Yao gestured for Qingluan to come over.
Handing the ginseng into her hands, she whispered a few words in her ear.
Qingluan was taken aback at first, only recovering her senses once she stepped outside the tent.
What her miss had just said was clearly:
“Keep this ginseng safe and put it away.”
“As for the Old Master, have someone boil some turnip water and send it over to relieve his gas.”
Since she was free to dispose of it, she no longer felt like giving it away.
They were returning to the capital soon; she was done playing her part in this farce!