klisemfg Chapter 1 They were a gay couple!
Chapter 1 They were a gay couple!
On a cold winter night, as snowflakes fluttered down, it was the perfect time for people to stay indoors and light fires for warmth.
In a remote mountain forest a hundred miles from the capital, a breathtaking and tense scene unfolded.
A group of more than a dozen bulky-looking farmers, armed with pitchforks and wooden sticks, were confronting a pack of wolves. A few torches were scattered among the crowd, their orange-red light reflecting off the deep, smooth snow, illuminating much of the surrounding area.
In the interplay of light and shadow, a relatively clean-cut man urged the people carrying numerous weapons at the front of the crowd in a low voice.
"Li Yi! You're the only hunter in our village! Think of something quick, or we'll all die here!"
As soon as the man finished speaking, two or three people next to him impatiently chimed in to urge him on.
"That's right, the village head is right. Li the hunter, you'd better come up with a plan quickly..."
"We've hardly ever been to the mountains, we don't know anything about it!"
"Tell me what to do! I just got married, I don't want to die!"
"Old Li, you..."
"Shut up, all of you!" A low shout interrupted the group's commotion. "Didn't our Brother Yi warn you every few days not to go into the mountains? You just wouldn't listen and insisted on going. Now that something's happened, you're forcing us to rescue people?"
The group fell silent for a moment, then the same village headman spoke up again, somewhat sheepishly: "Young man Yu Sheng, that's not how it works. They're all neighbors..."
"Ha, you never said anything when you looked down on us... Yi-ge! To the left!"
As Yu Sheng uttered his terrified words, a wolf suddenly leaped out from the side of the crowd, lunging straight at Li Yi, who was standing in front. In the nick of time, Li Yi deftly dodged the pounce, drew his sword, and slashed the wolf across the neck, causing blood to gush out instantly.
A few breaths later, the wolf that had been slashed and thrown to the ground twitched a few times and died.
Those around them then realized what was happening and gasped in surprise.
The wolves seemed stunned by what had just happened, and they all took a step back in unison.
"They should be scared away by now, right?"
"No." Li Yi, who had been silent until now, finally spoke, his voice hoarse and his tone heavy.
Yu Sheng stood still, frowned and examined the wolf carcass on the ground, then explained, "This was an old and weak wolf; they were probably just testing the waters."
"Can you see what's happening on the other side?" Li Yi's expression was somewhat solemn, and he tightened his grip on the broadsword.
"There are seven in front of us, all of them are agile. There's one hidden to the east, which sounds like it's in its prime." After a pause, Yu Sheng continued, "These are just the ones I can find."
That means at least eight.
It seems that not many people will be leaving today. Li Yi sighed softly, without turning around.
“Ah Sheng, you have good eyesight. Take the torch and lead the younger ones ahead. I'll cover the rear.”
"Li the Hunter, what do you mean by that?" Before Yu Sheng could say anything, an urgent voice rang out from the crowd, "Are we all going to die here today?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the wolf pack that had been standing in a standoff for a long time finally found an opportunity to move. Several strong wolves rushed towards them in an instant, while the wolf that had been waiting on the east side also leaped into the crowd at the same time.
Suddenly, panicked screams and ferocious wolf howls rose and fell. The group of men, with their eyes closed, haphazardly waved their wooden sticks, pitchforks, and torches, trying to drive away the wolves that kept attacking them.
"Help! Help me!"
"I don't want to die!"
Just as the group was screaming in terror, a sharp ray of moonlight suddenly flashed by, followed by the sound of several heavy objects hitting the ground.
"Alright, stop howling. They've all been killed."
Accompanied by these clear and handsome words he had never heard before, the group of villagers, who had been terrified, finally stopped waving their hands and opened their eyes tremblingly.
The snowflakes continued to fall heavily, and in front of me lay the corpses of ten wolves lying in disarray.
Amidst the wolf corpses stood a tall, slender young man, dressed in luxurious yet thin clothes, holding a sword.
At this moment, the handsome young man with bright eyes sheathed his sword and casually and precisely bypassed the bloodstains on the ground to walk up to Yu Sheng, who was still panting heavily after the fight. Then, under Yu Sheng's puzzled gaze, he stared at him with great interest for a long time.
Yu Sheng felt his hair stand on end from the stare. Li Yi strode over and stood in front of Yu Sheng, saying, "Young master, thank you for saving my life."
Lin Shiming chuckled lightly, "Don't be nervous. I am Lin Shiming, the second young master of the Lin family, the Duke of Zhenguo. I was just passing by on my way back to the capital, so I thought I'd lend you a hand."
The Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion has held most of the military power in Changping since the founding of the state nearly two hundred years ago. It has fought in all directions and guarded the world. Its iron-hat title is known to all. It has been deeply favored by the emperor and has stood firm.
Therefore, as soon as Lin Shiming said this, everyone present changed their expressions and gathered around.
"The young master of the Duke of Zhenguo?" The village head was the first to speak, his tone filled with disbelief and excitement. "Greetings, Second Young Master Lin. I am the village head of Li Family Village at the foot of this mountain..."
"I'm not interested in you." Lin Shiming interrupted the village headman without any emotion, his gaze still fixed on Li Yi and Yu Sheng, who were standing one in front of him and the other behind him. "I'm more interested in the two of you."
As he spoke, Lin Shiming's eyes became much more serious, though a smile still lingered on his lips. "You two, one sharp-eyed and the other agile, make a very good pair. I just wonder where you learned all these skills. It's a waste to be hunters in this village."
The scene fell silent for a moment. After a long while, the village head, who had been "uninterested," shamelessly approached again. "Young Master Lin, I do know something about this. They came to our village two years ago, and their household registrations were only completed at the beginning of this year."
This time, Lin Shiming finally spared a glance for the village head, "An outsider?"
"Yes, yes, yes," the village head became excited again, straightening his thick cotton coat and showing a contemptuous expression. "Young master, you don't know, they are a gay couple!"
"Hmm?" Something interesting has happened! Lin Shiming raised an eyebrow. He had initially been suspicious of the two people's backgrounds, but he hadn't expected this part to happen later.
Seeing that Young Master Lin seemed very interested in this matter, the village head became even more enthusiastic, as if he had received an imperial decree of reward. "I wouldn't dare to lie to you, those two..."
"Young Master Lin!" Before the village head could continue sharing his intelligence, Li Yi, one of the main figures in the conversation, couldn't help but interject. He bowed his head and gave Lin Shiming a military salute. "I am Li Yi."
As he spoke, he stepped aside, revealing the person who had been hidden behind him. "This, this is my wife. Her name is Yu Sheng." After speaking, Yu Sheng stepped forward and stood shoulder to shoulder with Li Yi, also giving a military salute.
Lin Shiming straightened his face, nodded in return, and then turned to the village head, who was still angry because his words had been interrupted, and said, "I heard several breathing sounds coming from a small cave to the east. I would appreciate it if the village head could go and find it."
"This this..."
"Don't worry, they're probably just wolf cubs from that pack. They're not dangerous."
Hearing this, the village headman finally relaxed. He raised his hand to wipe the sweat that had just appeared from his anxiety. "Don't worry, young master, I will immediately lead them to find it safe and sound for you."
Lin Shiming nodded perfunctorily, "Also, have two people clean up these corpses, and you can divide the rest as you see fit. Just pick out a few pretty and sharp wolf fangs for me." He hadn't prepared a New Year's gift for his one-and-a-half-year-old nephew yet, and these wolf fang bracelets would be perfect for warding off evil spirits.
Having received his orders, the village headman, being quite perceptive, immediately led his men to get to work. Once everyone was gone and the surrounding area was bustling with activity, Lin Shiming slowly turned his attention back to the "couple."
"You are giving the Tingyun Army's military salute."
The military of Changping Kingdom, like its army, is divided into three categories: one is the army directly under the royal family, another is other garrison troops and border troops, and the third is the 100,000-strong Tingyun Army directly commanded by the Lin family, the Duke of Zhenguo. Every soldier in the army is a master who can fight ten men at once and has his own unique strengths.
“Exactly.” Li Yi said solemnly, “We were originally reserve officers in the Tingyun Army. But during the final assessment, people found out about our relationship and said that our lowly relationship would not be selected and that we would be despised or even punished. So we had no choice but to give up the assessment and go back to our hometown.”
"But I never expected that our relationship would not be accepted by our families after we returned. With no other choice, I had to take him away from our hometown and settle here as a hunter. Today's incident is because someone from the village went into the mountains and did not return for several days. Therefore, his family went to the village head, who brought us here to look for him. However, after we found him, we encountered a pack of wolves, which is why you rescued us."
Lin Shiming remained silent for a long time, somewhat speechless. "You think the Tingyun Army would refuse or even punish you two because of the homosexuality?"
Li Yi didn't understand why he would ask that, but still answered seriously: "Yes, it was told to me by our comrade who shared a room with us back then. He said he had connections."
"..."
"You guys aren't quite right in the head!" Lin Shiming chuckled at their stupidity. "Isn't it possible that you've also heard that our Lin family has had homosexuals in the past?"
When new recruits join the Tingyun Army, they are arranged to visit the military history museum in batches. This is a rule established by the first Duke Zhenguo, who fought alongside the founding emperor, when he was in charge of the army. Among the characters introduced in the military history museum is a homosexual general from the Lin family.
The scene fell silent for a moment. A series of expressions flashed across Li Yi and Yu Sheng's faces: bewilderment, shock, understanding, and confusion, before finally settling on grief and indignation.
The two stared at each other for a long time before Yu Sheng finally had the strength to speak, "Brother Yi, it seems like we've been tricked."
Lin Shiming scoffed, looking at the two of them as if they were idiots.
They were definitely fooled! How could they believe such a clumsy lie? What else could they be but idiots?
However, the comrade who deceived them cannot be blamed. As the saying goes, "all's fair in war," and the Tingyun Army's officer assessments have always been unconventional, allowing participants to eliminate their opponents in any non-lethal way. Lin Shiming wouldn't even bother asking about a deception of this magnitude.
Only a military idiot would believe that if they maxed out those two skill points.
Well, it could also be because they are overly concerned about their homosexuality.
“Our Tingyun Army has strict rules. Anything not listed in the announcement will not be considered as a selection criterion.” After seeing enough of their tearful and regretful expressions, Lin Shiming mercifully spoke up, “Don’t say you’re gay. Even if you like a cat, a dog, or even a pen, we will still accept you.”
What's the big deal? Liking something is always unpredictable and has nothing to do with right or wrong. It's often a completely different matter from a person's character, so there's nothing to care about.
Unexpectedly, as soon as Lin Shiming finished speaking, Li Yi, this burly and determined man, suddenly burst into tears, collapsed to the ground, hugged Yu Sheng's legs, and began to chant and sang, "Waaaaah, Yu Sheng, I'm so sorry! If I hadn't believed his lies, how could I have dragged you into this? Waaaaah, I'm such a fool..."
This scene is truly like Lu Zhishen imitating Lin Daiyu's lamentations; it's utterly disgusting.