The early bird catches the worm. The boat that works hard is the first to arrive. I beg for support.

~~~~~~

The night is already quite dark.

The newly built "viewing platform" at Mohekou was surrounded by several blazing bonfires, which were burning with a "cracking" sound.

The strong flames dispersed the biting wind and snow, isolated the biting cold, and made Li Yuanqing's handsome face look somewhat ethereal and confusing.

Just now, the night watchman announced the time. It was already past midnight, and it was the beginning of Chou hour, which was probably a little more than one o'clock in the morning.

Beside him, Niu Gensheng and a dozen soldiers, all wrapped in furs and quilts, were leaning against the campfire, fast asleep in a corner sheltered from the wind, with even snoring mixed in their ears.

But Li Yuanqing didn't feel sleepy at all.

His eyes were full of energy, looking quietly to the northwest at the confused and misty night sky, wondering what he was thinking about.

Not far behind Li Yuanqing, there was a small figure of a soldier, who had already woken up from his sleep.

When Mu Ran saw this, Li Yuanqing was still standing like an ice sculpture in the biting and manic cold wind. She was a little dazed for a moment and rubbed her eyes vigorously.

After a moment, she also realized that she was right, Li Yuanqing was really not asleep yet and had been standing here the whole time.

In an instant, a soft spot in her heart was lightly touched. She quickly and carefully came to Li Yuanqing's side and said carefully: "Master, it's so late, there will definitely be no Tatars coming. Let's, let's go back."

have a rest?"

Li Yuanqing looked back at her, and his handsome face like an ice sculpture slowly showed a smile. For a moment, the smile became warmer and warmer, as if it was about to melt the frozen world, "What's wrong?

?Can't stand the environment here? I'll ask the soldiers to take you back, and go back and have a good sleep."

Zhao Mei nodded in confusion, but after a moment, she realized what she was doing, and hurriedly took Li Yuanqing's big hand and said, "Master, then~~, don't you go back and rest?"

Li Yuanqing smiled and said, "I am very energetic today and I don't feel sleepy at all. You can go back to sleep. If there is a battle tomorrow morning, I will send someone to ask you to watch the battle."

Zhao Mei shook her head vigorously: "If you don't leave, then I won't leave either. I want to stay here with you."

Looking at her pretty and stubborn face, Li Yuanqing's smile became softer and softer, "Well, you can sleep here. I will be watching over you."

"Um."

Zhao Mei nodded obediently.

But after a moment, she also remembered and said hurriedly: "Sir, aren't you going to sleep? It's so cold today, it's very hurtful."

The smile on Li Yuanqing's face couldn't help but get bigger: "My Xiaomei can also love others. Not bad. Very good."

Zhao Mei's pretty face turned a little red, and she didn't know what she was feeling in her heart at this time.

Sometimes, she felt that Li Yuanqing was a complete devil, so cruel and inhumane that there was no room for negotiation when he attacked her brother Zhao Yigun.

But there were many times when Li Yuanqing was as gentle as water and took care of her in every possible way, allowing her to enjoy a wonderful life that she had never even imagined before.

Originally, Zhao Mei thought that in Li Yuanqing's position, there were too many things that could only be done with words. How could Li Yuanqing do the most 'lowly' hard work like being on duty himself?

?

But at this time, even the soldiers were already fast asleep, but Li Yuanqing was still here standing firm all night, as if he didn't know what fatigue was. This...

"Master, you, you won't sleep. Then, Xiaomei won't sleep either." Zhao Mei leaned against Li Yuanqing and murmured softly.

Li Yuanqing couldn't help but smile, "That's fine. You can chat with me here for a while. The scenery tonight is quite good."

Zhao Mei nodded obediently, like a kitten, hugged Li Yuanqing's arm, and leaned gently on Li Yuanqing's shoulder.

After a moment, she suddenly remembered and said hurriedly: "Sir, it's already so late. Can't you leave the night watch to other officers? Why are you here in person? Isn't this..."

Li Yuanqing smiled faintly: "Do you think this job is despicable? I did it myself, but it's a bit of a loss of status?"

Although Zhao Mei didn't understand what 'losing one's status' meant, looking at Li Yuanqing's expression, she roughly understood what Li Yuanqing meant, "Master, it's not...ah. How should I put it? I just feel that you are in control of the overall situation."

General, why would you do such a thing yourself? Besides, the Tatars will never come in this kind of weather, right?"

"hehe."

Li Yuanqing smiled and slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, which formed a line of white smoke in the air and then dissipated.

"Xiaomei, let me tell you this. In life, there are many jobs. In fact, there is no distinction between high and low. And what separates people from high and low... do you know what it is?"

Zhao Mei shook her head in confusion, opened her big eyes, and looked at Li Yuanqing.

Tonight, Li Yuanqing was going to stay on duty. When Zhao Mei found out, she implored Li Yuanqing to come too.

She also wanted to understand what kind of regulations the Ming Dynasty's orthodox officers and soldiers, and the world-famous Changsheng Battalion, had during night watch, especially during wartime.

Unfortunately, the night watch work was extremely boring. She stayed here for a short time before leaning against the warm blanket in the corner and fell into a deep sleep.

Fortunately, this was not a warm and comfortable room, so she didn't sleep too deeply. She finally woke up in the middle of the night and noticed Li Yuanqing's night watch.

Even the head coach is like this, so you can imagine what the situation of the men on night duty is like.

Li Yuanqing put his big hands on Zhao Mei's supple waist and gently rubbed it.

Although he was wearing a thick cotton-padded jacket and couldn't appreciate the beauty of it, just this kind of curve and the familiar feel made Li Yuanqing enjoy it very much, or in other words - feel at ease.

Through Zhao Mei's young and energetic body, through her delicate and graceful curves, Li Yuanqing seemed to be able to confirm his true existence in this world.

This is a feeling beyond words.

In this vague and misty snowy night, Li Yuanqing seemed like a small boat floating on the sea. He knew the direction of the lighthouse but could never find the target. He floated and floated. He could only wait for time and use time.

~~, to prove the existence of everything.

But at this moment, feeling Zhao Mei's delicate body, smelling the faint fragrance from her hair under her fur hat, and feeling her quiet and rhythmic breathing, Li Yuanqing's boat felt like it had found a compass and started again.

Make sure you have the right direction.

"Xiaomei, are you literate?" Li Yuanqing suddenly asked.

Zhao Mei nodded, and after a moment, she slowly shook her head, "Master, when I was a child, I also attended private school for a few years, but unfortunately, I gave up soon. I can read some words, but now, I'm afraid

I’ve almost forgotten about it a long time ago…”

Seeing Zhao Mei's somewhat embarrassed look, Li Yuanqing couldn't help but laugh softly, "If you know it, you know it. It doesn't matter if you don't know it. I'll teach you."

With that said, Li Yuanqing took Zhao Mei's little hand, walked to the wooden table in the middle, took out the dagger from his boot, and carved the word "inferior" on the table with force.

Zhao Mei hurriedly said: "Sir, I recognize this word. Isn't this the word "good" or "bad"?

"hehe."

Li Yuanqing smiled: "That's right. My Xiaomei is really great. This word is exactly the difference between good and bad. But do you know what this word means?"

"What else can a word mean?"

Zhao Mei looked at Li Yuanqing with some confusion, waiting for Li Yuanqing's explanation.

Li Yuanqing smiled without deliberately showing off, and said with a smile: "This character has a profound meaning! You see, a word "shao" and a word "strength" make up this bad character. In fact, when our ancestors of the Han people were creating characters,

The meaning of this word has been explained very clearly. Inferior means less strength. It means that inferior people, or people at the bottom, often cannot move up because they do not have the strength to go down.

, change the status quo.”

Zhao Mei nodded somewhat speciously, but hurriedly said: "Master, you can't say that, right? Those old farmers work at sunrise and rest at sunset. They also work very hard, and they don't work hard. But

The weather is not good and there is no harvest in the fields. Is it their fault?"

"You asked a very good question."

Li Yuanqing smiled and inserted the dagger back into his boot, and explained carefully: "So, before exerting force, you must first find a direction. As the saying goes, men are afraid of entering the wrong profession, and women are afraid of marrying the wrong man. When you find out that you are wrong,

Sometimes, you should make corrections in time and don't be afraid of trouble. Try to keep yourself on the right path, and then continue to work hard."

As Li Yuanqing spoke, he let out a long breath and looked at the distant and misty night sky: "Everyone in the world knows that I, Li Yuanqing, am good at fighting, can win battles, and dare to fight tough battles! But who knows?

Do you know how much sweat and hard work my brothers and I put in in our daily lives?"

"But it doesn't matter if a man is a little bitter or tired. The key is to stand up at critical moments. It can be as small as plowing the fields or as big as defending the home and country! Dare to fight and go up!

What's more important is that everything must be fully prepared. As the sage said, everything will be done in advance, otherwise it will be ruined! No matter how good your brain is, the things you come up with will never be as good as paper and paper.

Pen, write things down."

Zhao Mei could still somewhat understand what Li Yuanqing meant, but Li Yuanqing's thinking jumped too fast. The more she listened, the more confused she became, but she gained more understanding of Li Yuanqing.

This tall and proud man, despite his usual arrogant calmness, still doesn't know how much hard work he has put in secretly.

But Zhao Mei suddenly remembered the things about those dark clay pots during the day, and hurriedly said: "By the way, Master. Those are the things we got at the beach last night. What are they? You said you would give them to me."

The servant girl said it."

Looking at Zhao Mei's pretty face, Li Yuanqing smiled and kissed her gently on the forehead, "This thing is my treasure! It is also the path to the sky that widens the gap between me and mortals."

"Master... you, you and mortals... this... haha."

Zhao Mei couldn't react for a moment. For a moment, she couldn't help but smile and said: "Master, according to you, you are not a mortal anymore? Then~, then are you a god?"

Li Yuanqing laughed loudly: "Xiaomei, you can also think so. I am a god! Because all gods are man-made! In this land, I am the real god!"

"this……"

Looking at Li Yuanqing's domineering but confident face, Zhao Mei couldn't help but be speechless for a moment.

Although this man's words were mysterious and seemed a bit out of tune, she, why did she feel that what he said seemed to be true?

This, what on earth is going on?

Zhao Mei's little head was extremely confused for a moment.

***************************************************
Chapter completed!