The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan
Chapter 315 Khan Brings Food (First Watch)

Chapter 315: 315 Khan Brings Food (First Watch)

Nur had his soldiers ready, as they had been commanded. They came prepared, all dressed in light attire and carrying tools for digging and tamping the ground.

Li Xianyun looked to Nur and said, "I appreciate the hard work of the soldiers."

At that moment, the six individuals from the Department of Equipment sent by Sang Yanlin also gathered around, paying their respects to Li Xianyun.

Li Xianyun looked down and carefully reviewed the map he had drawn the day before before saying to Nur, "General, how many soldiers have been called in this time?"

"Including myself, a total of five hundred," Nur answered.

Yelu Yan had dispatched so many men all at once.

"Good," Li Xianyun said, "I’d like to ask the General to divide the troops into ten units, with twenty men each. Select a leader for each unit and have these ten leaders meet with me shortly. I’ll instruct them on how to lay the foundations."

Li Xianyun continued, "As for the remaining three hundred men, please delegate two hundred and fifty of them to assist in digging channels and helping the people build up the field ridges. The fifty left over should head to the Department of Equipment to await orders from Lord Sang Yanlin. General, what do you think? Will there be any difficulty?"

The Department of Equipment needed to transport a large amount of wood, and besides, there were arduous tasks such as sawing and polishing. The few people from the department couldn’t possibly handle it all.

An additional fifty men would certainly ease their load.

Nur saluted with a cupped arm and said, "There will be no difficulty. I’ll take care of it immediately."

This morning, the Khan himself had sent someone to Antler Camp to call up the troops and dispatch five hundred soldiers to the Northern Region for foundation excavation, with strict orders to follow Li Xianyun’s commands without question.

The fact that such a trivial matter as digging foundations could mobilize the Khan to call up soldiers, and moreover, specifically mention Li Xianyun’s name, indicated that this Li Xianyun must have quite a background, certainly no ordinary individual. Thus, everyone dared not treat him with negligence.

Nur went off to arrange the men as Li Xianyun had instructed.

Meanwhile, Li Xianyun continued to discuss the map with the people from the Department of Equipment. During this time, Li Xianyun inquired, "How is the progress on the Department of Equipment’s side?"

One of them replied, "Following the blueprint you provided, one tub cart has already been assembled, and we have started constructing the second tub cart. Lord Sang would like you to visit the Department of Equipment when you have time to see if anything is amiss. He hopes you can offer some guidance."

"Alright, I’ll come over after arranging things here," Li Xianyun said.

The soldiers from Antler Camp who had been dispatched this time were all outstanding, and among these, Nur was one of the most exceptional, with remarkable abilities.

He swiftly divided up the men as Li Xianyun had said, designating two hundred and fifty to dig trenches and build up field ridges, while the remaining fifty were quickly sent to the Department of Equipment.

The leaders of the ten units gathered around Li Xianyun—they included Nur.

Using the map, Li Xianyun assigned each leader their respective area of responsibility. Once they all understood, he explained in detail how to lay the foundations.

He went into great explanation about everything from the distance of the foundation from the bank to how to level the ground, how to tamp it down, and what standard needed to be achieved for the work to be considered satisfactory.

After the explanation, Li Xianyun asked the leaders if there was anything they did not understand.

When they raised questions, Li Xianyun always provided thorough and clear answers, ensuring they understood fully to avoid the need for rework later.

After a period of discussion and seeing the soldiers had no further objections, Li Xianyun assigned the six individuals from the Department of Equipment to six of the teams.

Although these people lacked previous experience in building tub carts and capstans, they were very clear about how to lay a foundation.

The remaining four teams would be personally supervised by Li Xianyun.

Li Xianyun asked Bater and Youlan to take down two large bundles from the cart and handed them to Nur.

"My lord, what are these?" Nur asked.

"Oilcloth for waterproofing," Li Xianyun replied, "The weather is getting cooler, and it’s quite cold to be in the water at this time. Getting shoes and pants wet can easily lead to illness. Have your men distribute these among two hundred soldiers. Before they enter the water, they can wrap their shoes and lower legs with the oilcloth to prevent getting wet."

Touched, Nur said, "Thank you for your consideration, young master."

It turns out not all good-looking people are just pretty faces.

Li Xianyun’s mind was sharp, his patience comprehensive, and his ability to empathize with the soldiers’ hardships was truly admirable.

Ten teams, after receiving their orders, each hurried to their respective assigned locations.

During this period, Li Xianyun primarily focused on the four teams under her charge, guiding them through the difficulties they encountered.

She also kept an eye on the other six teams.

The locations assigned to these ten teams varied, and some were even quite a distance apart; when Li Xianyun couldn’t travel by horse carriage, she had to walk at shallow fords.

She hadn’t stopped at all that morning, and her legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead.

As noon approached, Li Xianyun gave Nur a few hundred taels of silver and asked her to take a few soldiers to buy meals from the taverns in the market.

Wiping sweat from her forehead, Nur said, "Young master, please don’t worry about the meal; we can handle it ourselves."

Li Xianyun replied, "How can that be acceptable? The soldiers have been a great help and have worked very hard; it would be wrong not to ensure they have a good meal."

Just as Nur was about to refuse, her gaze inadvertently fell on a spot and she signaled to Li Xianyun, "Young master, is that someone you sent to deliver the food?"

Following Nur’s gaze, Li Xianyun saw seven or eight carriages laden with goods heading straight towards them from afar.

Jinwu was at the lead.

Yelu Yan had even thought of such a small matter; it was both surprising and delightful.

Li Xianyun looked intently and saw that following Jinwu, carrying food, were Yelu Yan’s personal guards, dressed in the clothes of common folk to hide their identities.

Li Xianyun’s brows furrowed slightly, unsure of what Yelu Yan was thinking.

Is it not an overkill to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut?

It was only a meal delivery; surely there was no need for those highly skilled personal guards.

The party drew closer and, at a distance of just over a mile from where Li Xianyun stood, one of the carriages stopped. The "coachman" tied the reins to a poplar tree and placed a footstool down from the back of the carriage.

The other carriages followed Jinwu and came nearer.

A thought struck Li Xianyun; could Yelu Yan have come too?

But with his busy official duties, how could he come to such a place?

As soon as he arrived, Jinwu smiled at Nur and said, "General, the young master specially had meals prepared to reward the soldiers. Could you help distribute the food to everyone?"

"Of course." After speaking, Nur turned to Li Xianyun with a smile, "Thank you, young master."

The other soldiers also thanked Li Xianyun with beaming smiles.

Li Xianyun, with a smile on her face, said, "You’ve all worked hard, soldiers. After eating, rest for a half-hour before we continue."

"Understood."

After Nur and the soldiers left, Li Xianyun turned to Jinwu and asked softly, "What exactly is going on?"

Jinwu replied respectfully with a smile, "The Khan was worried you might be hungry and sent me to deliver meals to you and the soldiers."

He added, "Your meal, young master, has been specially prepared. It’s on the furthest carriage. Please follow me."

Li Xianyun opened her mouth to decline; she wanted to share hardship and comfort with the soldiers and did not wish for special treatment.

Just as she was about to voice her refusal, Li Xianyun unintentionally caught sight of half a head peering out from the last carriage.

Li Xianyun’s brows arched slightly; why had he come?

Seeing that Li Xianyun had understood, Jinwu turned to Youlan and Bater and said, "The young master’s meal has been specially prepared; I shall bring it. You two wait here to eat."