Transmigration: A Farm Girl’s Brocade
Chapter 489 - 259 Good News_1

Chapter 489: Chapter 259 Good News_1

Hua Qiang’s errand was assigned by Prince Ning, who had him deliver a letter to Princess Ning and then make a return trip to the Qian family in Ji’an Province.

Hua Qiang brought a package of items and more than a dozen letters. Among them, a few were written by Qian Manjiang; there was one for each member of his family, as well as letters for Old man Qian, his spouse, and Qian Manxia. Another four letters were written by Liang Jinzhao: two were for the siblings Qian Yixiu and Qian Yijin, while the other two were for him to pass along to the Old Monk and Little Monk. There was also one unexpected letter from Li Shuanzi to Qian Mandua.

Hua Qiang said that Li Shuanzi was now working under Liang Jinzhao as an official of the eighth rank—Cannon Leader. A cannon crew comprised eight men, and the Cannon Leader was in charge of them. He was the only one among the villagers who had joined the military and risen to an official rank.

It was said that Li Shuanzi received a letter from home right before a battle. When he read about his wife and children being bullied by his own mother and brother and recalled how his brother had conspired with outsiders to swindle the money that the Yue family had contributed for his conscription fee, he was seething with rage and had no outlet for his fury. Coincidentally, battle ensued at that moment, and he unleashed all his pent-up anger on the enemy. He fought like a cornered beast, charging into the enemy’s ranks with bloodshot eyes, killing relentlessly and incidentally saving a superior officer.

Because of this battle, Li Shuanzi was promoted to a junior commander of the ninth rank.

Later, when Pili Camp arrived at the frontlines, Qian Manjiang introduced Li Shuanzi to Liang Jinzhao. This served both personal and professional interests: personally, because Li Shuanzi was his relative and as a artillerist, he could avoid facing the enemy directly; professionally, because Li Shuanzi had a unique skill, which was his exceptional accuracy in hitting targets. At that time, cannons weren’t equipped with sights, and aiming relied mainly on the individual’s judgment. Li Shuanzi’s natural laziness and poverty led him to sometimes throw stones at birds when he craved meat, or catch fish in the creek, inadvertently honing his accuracy in the process.

Ever since Li Shuanzi became an official, he worked even harder, and his performance in Pili Camp was outstanding. Several months later, he was promoted to Cannon Leader of the eighth rank.

The whole family was overjoyed for Li Shuanzi and Qian Mandua.

They also asked Hua Qiang about his injuries. Hua Qiang explained that Qian Manjiang was once accompanying Prince Ning on an inspection of a city when they encountered a small band of enemy combatants determined to assassinate them on the road. Prince Ning was unharmed, but the majority of their group was wounded. Qian Manjiang even took a sword blow for Prince Ning and injured his arm.

"You needn’t worry; General Qian’s injuries have all healed." Hua Qiang assured.

Everyone relaxed upon hearing that Qian Manjiang was fine.

Qian Sangui urged Su Siwu to quickly deliver the letters to Qian Manxia and Qian Mandua, and he sent Hua Qiang back home, providing him with a jar of strong spirits, a roast chicken, and a large bowl of braised meat to take with him. Then, everyone began to read their letters.

Almost all the letters first recounted the military’s victorious battles before mentioning their own affairs.

Currently, Prince Ning was leading the Great Qian Army in overwhelming the Dayuan Army, so much so that Dayuan had proposed a surrender to negotiate peace in exchange for ceding territory. Prince Ning, urgently requesting a directive from the Emperor over eight hundred miles, wanted to capitalize on the victory and eliminate Dayuan’s remaining military strength to avoid any possibility of them invading again within the next fifty years.

His Majesty the Emperor was overjoyed and approved the request. He sent an Imperial Envoy to the frontlines to convey his regards, bringing with him copious amounts of fine wine, pigs, sheep, and beauties to reward the meritorious soldiers. The rewards of the beauties were neither mentioned nor indulged in by Qian Manjiang and Liang Jinzhao in their letters; it was something Qian Yixiu learned about later.

The letter from Qian Manjiang brought Cheng Yue to tears, causing her to dab her eyes with a handkerchief while rereading parts aloud when they pleased her.

Seeing his daughter like this made Prince Consort Pan exceedingly jealous. He thought to himself, "What’s so special about that Qian Manjiang? Just an ordinary guy with no charisma or learning. How could he bewitch my daughter, who’s like a fairy, into this state? This is too much! Hmph, I’ll deal with him when he returns."

The letter from Liang Jinzhao to Qian Yijin was a full page written in large characters. After briefly discussing war matters, he wished him success in his studies, good health, and hoped he would grow up to be a promising young man.

However, the letter to Qian Yixiu from Liang Jinzhao spanned five pages filled with tiny characters. He didn’t write anything about romantic feelings, but he did write about their development of hand grenades resembling stones, the joy of winning battles, the passion amidst flying cannon fire, the boldness of galloping horses across the grasslands, and reminiscing about his youth, along with thoughts about Xiding Mountain...

He still addressed her as Yixiu, but his usual signature ’Liang Jinzhao’ had changed to just Jinzhao.

This letter was certainly not a love letter, nor was it filled with literary references; it read like a long and detailed account, as if an old friend far away was calling her to share about his work, life, philosophies, and emotions.