Liu Bei POV
“Ah, it’s so hot!” I exclaimed as I fanned myself vigorously with a leaf fan as I sat in the courtyard. Even though we aren’t all that far from the river, the weather’s so cruelly hot, and there isn’t even the slightest of breezes to alleviate the heat.
“It’s nothing unusual, big brother, that’s what it’s like in the south.” Yun Chang with a slightly tired expression as she sat beside me, “From what my friends from the south tell me, unbearable heat is a sign that rain is near.”
The cruelty of the sun made me bury my head deeply. As I maintained that position, I spied at Yun Chang from the side and saw that she had done away with that thick outer coat of hers and was now wearing a thin, white dress with both sleeves rolled up to her shoulders, revealing thin and white arms. When the sun shone down on her, her dress seemed rather sheer and revealed her undergarments rather clearly.
(TL: By undergarments, it means 肚兜. Some sort of apron like cloth covering the chest and torso. Go ahead and Google it, it’s mostly SFW.)
“I’ve heard that from you many times over already but this evil weather is already into its 3rd day now.” I looked for a bit but then felt bad about it and hurriedly shifted my gaze away as I spoke up. I must say, compared to how stern and serious she usually looks with her long coat, this new look is rather refreshing and suits her more.
Of course, I won’t say this.
“The weather is indeed weird.” Yun Chang very seriously criticised the weather as she frowned, looking rather cute in her current outfit.
“Yeah.”
Even though I really want to say that there is a ravishing young girl beside me whose beauty can make me forget any torture from the elements, reality isn’t quite so romantic and the hot weather is hot nonetheless.
“Ah~~~ It’s so hot I’m going to die~~~~” Along with a yell, a figure came bursting out from the room, past the doorway, leapt down the steps and did a small twirl in the courtyard.
When I looked over, I found that it was Zhou Cang.
Zhou Cang’s clothing hasn’t changed much, she’s still wearing a sleeveless top along with a short skirt. The only thing that’s changed is that she’s taken off her long black socks, revealing shapely, white legs.
For someone like me who already thought Zhou Cang was a work of art physically speaking, this brought great enjoyment. If only she wasn’t such a weirdo, she would be perfect.
As I thought so, I got curious at what Zhou Cang was up to now, “Zhou Cang, what are you–”
“It’s so damn hot!!”
“So hot~”
Before I could finish, another 2 people came running out of the room, past the doorway, leapt down the steps and did a small twirl in the courtyard.
Ah, these 2 are… Guan Ping and little Mi Zhen. Their clothing doesn’t seem to have changed much from the outside but it’s clear that they’re wearing less than before.
“Twirl a bit faster, you girls.”
“Alright!”
“Ah, so hot, so hot~”
Zhou Cang actually gave further orders and moved off with the other 2 in tow.
“Oi, Guan Ping, what are you lot doing?”
“Ah, mother–”
“Please don’t call me that.” Yun Chang swiftly interrupted and corrected Guan Ping.
“–We heard that Zhou Cang has a good idea to allow one to cool oneself quickly so we came to try it out.”
But Yun Chang’s efforts were in vain as Guan Ping ignored her admonition.
A good idea huh… I can’t see how running under the burning sun is a good idea.
I looked at Yun Chang and saw that she was clueless as well so I decided to ask the main perpetrator. If Zhou Cang’s idea really does work, then I might try it out myself.
“Zhou Cang, what are you doing? Can you really cool down quickly this way?”
“Of course! I’m a lot cooler than before!” Zhou Cang yelled out loudly and rather joyfully as she ran towards me.
Does it really work? Looking at them, their expressions really do seem to have improved.
“My lord, it’s really simple.” Zhou Cang said, “You just need to run fast enough that it feels like there’s wind blowing.”
…
I really am too foolish for believing them for even an instant.
“Haha…” Yun Chang laughed dryly. She probably has the same thoughts as I do.
“There’s wind! There’s wind!”
“Guan Ping, cut it out, will you…” With a tinge of embarrassment, Yun Chang yelled out sharply at Guan Ping, who clearly still hadn’t understood the fallacy of Zhou Cang’s logic.
“Big brother, this is my responsibility, I should have taught her some common sense.”
“Haha, it’s fine. Un, it’s fine.”
I don’t feel like such things are meant to be taught… It’s fine anyway, they should understand after this round, or after they’ve stopped.
“Oyo, what’s going on here?”
Un? Just as I was about to turn around, the one behind me had already rested her shins against my back.
“Why is Xuan De foolishly sitting out here in the sun when it’s such a hot day?”
“It’s way too stuffy inside so I came out.”
I don’t know who it is but I still gave a reply anyway.
“Un? When did Zi Long come back?”
Because my back was locked by her shins, I couldn’t quite turn around but Yun Chang helped me solve the mystery.
“Is it Zi Long?” I asked.
“You should be able to tell from my voice.,
Ah… I did indeed recognise it somewhat. But there were some echoes hearing it from this angle, so I wasn’t sure.
Yesterday, Zi Long went to our encampment to execute the final touches to the organisation of our troops. Presently, be it the structure of each battalion or the equipment of the troops, our army is fully prepared. The bandits which Feng Xian took in a while ago have fully assimilated as well. From what the others say, their skills aren’t too bad given that they were bandits before after all.
Our strength is already at 30,000 huh. I’m a little afraid to think about it to be honest. Just when did our numbers starting going so high? It must have been because of our trip to Jiangdong.
“Zi Long, what’s the situation like over at the encampment?” I asked as I raised my head and looked at her.
With such hot weather, Zi Long did not wear her armour naturally and was lightly dressed. What surprised me though, was that the usually austere and plainly dressed her is actually wearing a light blue one piece long dress with a lotus imprint. I think I learnt what this piece of clothing is from one of Zi Zhong’s lessons but I can’t seem to recall the name.
Un… Bei Zi huh? I’ve definitely seen these in some television shows before.
(TL: I can’t translate 褙子. Google it, if you ever watched any medieval Chinese shows, you will instantly recognise it.)
“It’s not bad. We’re just waiting for you to give a speech in a few days.” Zi Long said as she lifted her legs, “The order to move out to Xinye must be given by our lord, you, after all.”
“Ah… Un.”
Of course, Zi Long was busy with the preparations to leave and begin moving out as well.