349: The Stranger (I)

"My Lord, I want to go back to the village." As Chen Xiaodou was taken away for investigation, Xing Daorong suddenly said thoughtfully.

"Hmm? What's wrong, A Rong?" Lin Yue asked.

Returning to his Fief had long been in his plans, but now was not the time. The great war had not ceased, and he could not abandon his post. He would have to wait until the border was completely stable before he could request leave.

"Just now I suddenly thought, if the spear tip had been half an inch off, would I have been completely castrated? And then, would Xia Lian and I have been fated to be apart?

My Lord, do you remember that day when we looked at the stars in Grass Valley?" Xing Daorong said with great emotion.

"Yes." Lin Yue nodded. That day they talked about their dreams, and A Rong said he wanted to always have enough to eat.

"At that time, you said that if you like someone, you should pursue them, and not wait until you lose them to regret it deeply." Xing Daorong spoke with great emotion; at this moment, he resembled a poet.

Lin Yue was stunned after hearing this. Did he really say that at the time?

But he still nodded and said, "Alright! Then wait another three to five days. When we can ride horses, I will ask for leave from the Great General, and we will return to the Fief together."

"Yes!" Xing Daorong said with a smile.

"Three to five days might not be enough; you'll have to wait a little longer.

Currently, the Army is advancing towards Xiangyang Mountain and Beijia. Half a month will be enough to occupy the entire territory. By then, His Majesty's decree of commendation should also arrive. A Rong, you should be granted a title. Won't it be wonderful to return home in glory then?" Wang Da Tou said with a smile.

"I can be granted a title?" Xing Daorong was stunned when he heard this, then asked in surprise.

"Most likely, but I can't guarantee it. Just wait, it won't be too long." Wang Da Tou said with a smile.

"Wait a bit longer. Your injury needs to fully heal before you can ride a horse, otherwise, the friction will cause it to fester badly. The weather is hot now, and if it festers, it won't be good for your recovery." Chun Xingde also chimed in.

"Alright, then I'll wait a bit longer!" Xing Daorong said with a smile, cupping his hands in thanks to the two of them.

If he had a title, Xia Lian would be even more fond of him, wouldn't she?

Lin Yue looked at his expression and knew what A Rong was thinking at the moment.

Actually, he didn't know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Xia Lian was merely deified by him. Given Xing Daorong's conditions, even if he didn't serve in the Great Wall Legion, even if he didn't have an official position and was just a commoner, he would still be more than enough for Xia Lian.

Because all the characters whose names could be left on the pages were the dragons and phoenixes among men of their generation, the protagonists of their own stories.

And although Xia Lian had some looks, beauty fades like flowers. Her looks were only temporary, and both Xia Qing and Xia Lian came from humble backgrounds without family backing. Falling in love with Xing Daorong should be the best possible outcome.

It could be said that on that night, when Xing Daorong was at his lowest, Xia Lian, who personally fed him, had already become Xing Daorong's 'white moonlight'.

But Lin Yue did not break his illusion, because such a thought, in Xing Daorong's eyes, was happiness.

Moreover, the Xia Lian sisters were inherently kind and of proper demeanor, so they were a good match. He didn't need to be the villain.

"Alright, then it's settled. Once the commendations come down, we'll ask for leave and return home!" Lin Yue said with a smile.

"Yes, My Lord!" Xing Daorong said with a smile.

Completely forgetting the vivid discussion those few Soldiers had just had about his 'little brother'.

But Lin Yue hadn't forgotten. He hadn't expected that players had also infiltrated the Great Wall Legion.

One must know that the Great Wall Legion's personnel had been finalized more than half a year ago, and they rarely replenished their ranks. Even if they did, it was from the Great Wall Legion's logistics units. For players to still be able to infiltrate under such circumstances, Lin Yue could only feel admiration.

Moreover, from what the Supervisor said, there really were players who ate dung? And quite a few of them!

It had even developed into a method of identifying players by their act of eating dung!

This piqued his curiosity. He had Yang Yanping push him towards where the Supervisor was, following him all the way.

Inside a barrack, Chen Xiaodou was already tied to a log. And Chen Xiaodou wasn't the only one tied up in this barrack; including him, there were seven Qin Soldiers!

The Supervisor was quietly watching them from behind a desk, not using force. Although they were "outsiders" who had infiltrated the Army and been caught, they were, after all, former comrades and hadn't harmed them. So, no harsh methods were used.

He was merely preparing to report to his superiors after their identities were confirmed.

"Chen Xiaodou, Wu Feng... do you seven plead guilty?

If you do, This one will consider your attitude good. Great Qin now recognizes you 'outsiders.' Although you will be expelled from the Military Camp, there may be other paths for you.

But if you don't admit it, This one will have to interrogate you thoroughly to see if any of you are spies from enemy nations, trying to infiltrate the Military Camp with malicious intent!" The Supervisor said with a sinister smile.

Just then, the Supervisor suddenly noticed Lin Yue outside the tent and asked with a smile, "General Lin, are your injuries better?"

"Thank you for your concern, Supervisor. This humble general is fine." Lin Yue cupped his hands and said with a smile.

He had only met this Supervisor a few times and didn't know him very well, only that his surname was Zhao. Wang Da Tou and the others usually jokingly called him Old Zhao.

"That's good." Old Zhao nodded, then squinted and asked, "Is there an old acquaintance of yours among them?"

"No, no." Lin Yue waved his hand and said with a smile, "I just haven't seen an 'outsider' before and wanted to take a look."

Old Zhao scoffed when he heard this: "These 'outsiders' are no different from us, all with two eyes and one nose, and certainly not three heads and six arms.

But This one isn't boasting, even if these 'outsiders' were placed in front of General Lin, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart!"

"Oh? Then how does Supervisor distinguish them?" Lin Yue asked with a curious expression.

He also wanted to know how the officials of Great Qin distinguished 'outsiders'!

Knowing oneself and one's enemy would allow him to hide better!

"Heh heh, although This one only has a partial understanding, it's no problem to pick out these young rascals!"

"Please enlighten This humble general, Supervisor!" Lin Yue said with a smile.

Then Old Zhao cleared his throat and said:

"Firstly, these 'outsiders' refuse to farm and do not engage in production! They are naturally lazy, truly the woodworms of Great Qin!

This can be distinguished by observing their hands and soles of their feet!"

Lin Yue subconsciously looked at his own palms. Fortunately, after joining the Army, calluses had already formed, making them rough.

"Secondly, they have no sense of hierarchy, no regard for laws, and act as they please. One could say they have no reverence whatsoever!

This can be distinguished by observing their daily words and actions!"

Lin Yue suddenly thought of the many times he had disobeyed orders and acted on his own. Wasn't this exactly describing him!

But fortunately, the Great Wall Legion was full of scoundrels, and She Jian, Wang Da Tou, and others all did the same, so he didn't stand out as much.

But he also needed to be more careful in the future. This was indeed a common problem for players, because in the eyes of players, ascension was just a highly realistic game. Naturally, they acted as they pleased, doing whatever they wanted. Who would care about the lives of NPC pedestrians on the streets of Los Santos?

But from the perspective of the so-called "NPC natives," death represents the end of life, the separation of loved ones, so they have an added sense of reverence!

On this point, players and natives are truly poles apart!

"There's also their cognition!" Old Zhao continued.

"His Majesty previously pitied these 'outsiders' and issued a decree: as long as they were willing to labor for Great Qin for three years, they could obtain household registration in Great Qin, and thereafter be treated equally with the people of Great Qin.

At the same time, for 'outsiders' who had rendered meritorious service, they were allowed to be exempt from labor and directly become citizens of our Great Qin.

But Great Qin is too vast, leading to varying qualities among its officials. It is inevitable that some with wavering wills are bribed by 'outsiders' to provide them with so-called 'conveniences'!

Some 'outsiders' use gold and silver to gain household registration without any merit, which is an insult to the law and an injustice to others.

But what's real can't be faked, and what's fake can't be real.

These 'outsiders' sometimes make people laugh out loud!"

Supervisor Old Zhao said with a sinister laugh.

Then he suddenly turned to Chen Xiaodou and asked, "Chen Xiaodou, in what year were you born? How old are you this year?"