Chapter 20: Deceiving a Child

Duan Yue feigned heartbreak, putting on a performance for Jiang Ye’s benefit. Jiang Ye, a truly kind-hearted child, felt anxious seeing Duan Yue so “distressed.” “No, Brother Duan, you’re very kind.”

Watching the child fall into his trap, Duan Yue proceeded to coax him step by step. “It’s just that I miss the days when I used to take care of my younger brothers.”

Seeing the desolate look on Duan Yue’s face, a surge of sympathy arose in Jiang Ye’s heart. He set down the snack in his hand and said earnestly, “Brother Duan, please don’t be sad. Actually, I think your brothers might have just grown up and have their own ideas now. In their hearts, they must still really love you.”

Duan Yue sighed, feigning helplessness. “But I really miss the times when they were little, always following behind me, calling me ‘Brother,’ and pestering me to play with them. Now, they are all busy with their own affairs; we barely even have the chance to see each other.”

Jiang Ye tilted his head and thought for a moment. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. “Brother Duan, how about this! I can play with you, just like your brothers did when they were little. I can call you ‘Brother Duan,’ chat with you, and keep you company while you do whatever you want.”

Duan Yue felt a secret thrill, though he maintained his melancholic expression. “Really? That would be wonderful. But you mustn’t force yourself; after all, you are still young and have your own things to do.”

Jiang Ye shook his head firmly. “It’s no trouble at all! I like Brother Duan very much and would love to keep you company. Besides, I don’t think Brother Duan is fierce at all—you’re actually very gentle.”

Hearing this, Duan Yue felt a warmth in his heart. He couldn’t help but reach out to pat Jiang Ye’s head, laughing. “You child, you are truly so sensible. Alright then, from today on, you’ll be my little brother, how about that?”

Jiang Ye nodded happily and chirped, “Okay, Brother Duan!”

Duan Yue smiled with satisfaction, thinking to himself: *This is great; finally, someone to play with. My two brothers are all grown up and stay so busy they’re impossible to find. With Jiang Ye here, I can finally make up for that regret.*

When Yang Bin arrived, he saw Duan Yue wearing a face that screamed “I’m swindling a child.” The General was in the midst of bamboozling Jiang Ye by talking about wanting to reminisce about the days of feeding his younger brothers. He then craftily broke off a large piece of rose cake and stuffed it into the child’s mouth. Jiang Ye, being very earnest, swallowed it, only to find himself in the tragic position of being unable to close his mouth. He had to chew with great effort until his cheeks ached, finally managing to gulp it down.

After Yang Bin arrived, Duan Yue sent Jiang Ye to the inner room to play while they discussed business in the outer room. Yang Bin looked at the renowned General Duan with a complex expression. “General, is it fun?”

“It’s very fun,” the General replied with great excitement. “Do you know, everything Jiang Ye says and does is just like Zhongxuan when he was a child, only even more obedient.”

The military advisor dared not comment on the obedience; if one were any more “obedient” under the General’s care, they might be fed to death. Looking at the child’s bulging cheeks just now—while certainly cute—one had to worry about him choking.

Yang Bin cast a disdainful glance at Duan Yue and changed the subject, though he made a mental note to remind Jiang Bai not to leave the child in the General’s hands. This wasn’t raising a child; it was playing with one.

“General, look, these are the results of the interrogation.” Yang Bin handed over a stack of documents detailing the process. “There are still many suspicious points.”

The General took the documents, his gaze drifting over the pages. “Suspicious points?” he repeated in a low voice, a trace of imperceptible coldness in his tone.

Yang Bin nodded, pointing to one of the pages. “Look here. At the time, Wang Da had sent someone to Jiang Bai’s quarters. We questioned Chen Jie, and it was confirmed that Wang Da had stolen Chen Jie’s ancestral medical prescription that morning and planted it in Jiang Bai’s tent, intending to frame the physician. But when we tracked down this thief, we found that he had already committed suicide.”

The General tapped his fingers rhythmically against the tabletop. His gaze lingered on the interrogation record, where the dense handwriting seemed to be concealing something.

“Keep investigating,” he finally said, his voice low and firm. “I don’t believe someone would commit suicide over stealing a single item. There must be another reason.”

Yang Bin nodded in acknowledgment and turned to leave. Just then, the General called him back. “Wait.”

Yang Bin turned to see the General standing by the window. In the night, the city’s lights twinkled like distant stars, yet they could not illuminate the haze in his eyes.

“What do you think is the reason behind this?” the General asked softly, as if speaking to himself.

Yang Bin was silent for a moment before answering cautiously, “It’s hard to say for now. But, in my opinion, his target might not have been Physician Jiang Bai.”

The General said nothing, lost in thought as he gazed out into the night. After a long while, he turned around. “Go. Report to me immediately if there is any progress.”

After Yang Bin left, the General sat back in his chair and reopened the interrogation records. His eyes rested on a single line: “Li Er, native of Chang City, joined the Red Eyebrow Army two years ago.”

Jiang Bai returned to the barracks to pick up Jiang Ye from General Duan’s quarters. After the siblings shared a brief moment of affection, they rested for the night, as they had to visit the military pharmacy the next day.

Chen Jie, having heard that Jiang Bai was going to teach the pharmacy apprentices how to process medicine, was quite curious. After consulting with Jiang Bai, he decided to wait there.

Jiang Bai’s gaze swept calmly over the dozen or so apprentices. Most of them were quite young, their faces still bearing traces of childishness, and they looked at him with a mixture of curiosity and awe.

“Today, I will teach you how to process ginger.” Jiang Bai’s voice was not loud, yet it reached everyone clearly. He gestured, and the apprentice behind him immediately brought over a basket of ginger.

The apprentices crowded around; some could not resist reaching out to touch the medicine, which was still covered in soil. Jiang Bai suddenly spoke up: “Stop.”

The apprentice, startled, pulled his hand back, his face turning pale. Jiang Bai did not scold him, merely saying coolly, “The medicinal herbs are not yet clean; they must not be touched directly.” As he spoke, he took a white silk handkerchief from his sleeve and carefully wiped his hands.

This action caused the apprentices to exchange bewildered glances. They had never seen such a fastidious method of processing medicine; usually, they just went straight to work with their hands and had never thought about using a handkerchief.

“Now, take the ‘mother-and-son’ ginger to use as the raw material for dried ginger.” Once the apprentices had wiped their hands, Jiang Bai began his instructions.

One of them, not quite understanding, couldn’t help but ask, “Mr. Jiang, what is ‘mother-and-son’ ginger? We’ve only heard of simmered ginger, roasted ginger, and charred ginger, but those all seem to use regular ginger. We’ve never heard of this ‘mother-and-son’ variety.”

Jiang Bai looked at the young man who dared to ask and replied, “Mother-and-son ginger is when you take the ginger seed that sprouted last year, plant it in the ground this year, and let it grow. The shoots on the outside are the ‘children,’ and the part inside is the ‘dried ginger.’”