Xiao Hongyu immediately ducked behind Zhang Mai after hearing such a sinister sound from He Changdi.
The wooden chair by the side table was taken up by Captain Guo. The tent was furnished very simply and there weren’t any extra chairs around, so He Changdi could only stand to one side once he joined the group.
Captain Guo smiled and gave a meaningful look at the fleece blanket embroidered with flowers, which clearly didn’t belong to a man, on He Changdi’s bed. He then patted the bedding folded up nearly on the side table and shook his head. “I was worrying about Zixiang’s health, having to sleep on such a cold bed all the time, so I requested for a new set of bedding from the great general. It looks like it’s not needed anymore.”
After saying so, he tossed the bedding to Xiao Hongyu, “How lucky for you, brat!”
Xiao Hongyu chuckled but he didn’t accept the bedding. He turned and pushed it into Zhang Mai’s arms. “Brother Zhang has some old injuries, we can’t let him suffer the cold. I’m still young so that fleece blanket that Brother He gave me will be enough for me to pass this winter.”
The sun didn’t shine much out here in the north and temperatures were extremely low. Although Captain Guo and Zhang Mai were only in their thirties and they looked healthy and strong in their armour, the many years of army life had already left unseen marks on their bodies.
When it was cloudy, rainy or cold, especially in this winter season, their old injuries would flare up.
The court hadn’t been able to send supplies to them, so they were severely lacking in not only food, but warm cotton-padded blankets and clothes to survive the winter. Great General Qian had not only personally met Chu Lian out of respect for the Empress Dowager, but also because the supplies that Chu Lian had brought over were just what they needed.
Even now, many of the foot soldiers didn’t have cotton-padded blankets or clothes. Most of them were using dried grass to make do. This was also why Captain Guo had to go to Great General Qian personally just to request for a set of bedding.
If this were any other camp, they might still be able to ask the citizens nearby to donate some supplies. However, there weren’t many people in the north they could ask for supplies from. Liangzhou was practically a shell of a city with only their troops left to defend it. Thus, the situation was looking quite bad.
In the end, the bedding that Captain Guo had brought over ended up with Zhang Mai.
Captain Guo shot a glance at the package that He Changdi was carrying and smiled. “Seeing how lovey-dovey you and your wife are is making me miss my own. I wonder how she and the kids are doing in the capital.”
All the routes over land or water had been blocked by the snows. Letters hadn’t been able to pass through for some time. Even the officers like Captain Guo and the rest hadn’t been able to receive any letters from home for a month or two.
Captain Guo’s words made the originally lively atmosphere in the camp quieten down to a dead silence.
He Sanlang’s thoughts were also drawn out. He thought of his grandmother back in the capital, as well as his sickly bedridden mother.
In the end, Captain Guo realised that the air didn’t seem right and tried to lighten the atmosphere, “Alright, alright. What are you all thinking about? Our fifty thousand brothers-in-arms here in the north all share the same fate now. If all our brothers start becoming as gloomy as you guys, then how are we going to fight off the Tuhuns?”
Xiao Hongyu rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath, “And who was the one who mentioned that topic in the first place…”
“Xiao Hongyu! I see that you’re just bent on looking for trouble! Hmph, I’ll loose my temper on you!” Captain Guo stood up and acted as if he was going to give Xiao Hongyu two black eyes.
After playing around for a bit, the sad atmosphere from before completely dissipated.