Transmigration: The Fate of the Villainess

139 Distance did not lead his trust astray Part I

Bai Yu arrived at the border in the middle of the night the next day. The military camp at the border was arranged neatly into rows of tents. As soon as Ouyang Mingxian’s troop reached it, everyone noticed its silence. For the army that lost its commander, the strain appeared in mere days.

“Greetings to Qin Wang.”

Without Ouyang Feilong, the highest-ranked person here was Yue Huiling, the lieutenant-general. She was in full armor, and behind her were other generals in the army who had come to welcome their new commander with blank faces. There was no gladness to be felt among them.

For the soldiers who had been in war for the majority of their lives, Ouyang Mingxian, who had never been in battle, would not easily earn their respect. If there were no royal decree, Yue Huiling would never come out and wait for Ouyang Mingxian like this. The current war was a significant test for him.

“Call a meeting.” Ouyang Mingxian ignored the meaning in the soldiers’ eyes. He ignored even his own fatigue. He headed toward the large tent that should be for a Wangye with his same calmness and composure.

“Lead her to her tent.” Before he could walk further away, he cast a glance toward her as he spoke to a soldier in front of his tent in a cold voice.

Bai Yu understood that she was useless here. She had no knowledge that could be of any help at all, and yet she still came here, pretending to be Bai Hua, a royal doctor. She obligingly followed the soldier, while the generals followed Ouyang Mingxian into the large tent.

She walked to another tent a short distance away. Before leaving, the soldier told her that there were no other women in the army apart from her and Yue Huiling, whose tent was next to hers. If she needed assistance, she could tell the soldier who guarded her tent or go to Yue Huiling, a fellow woman. Bai Yu smiled as she acknowledged his words.

The soldier then farewelled her, astonished that a noble lady like her did not show dissatisfaction when informed that, on top of having to live in a tent, there would be no maids to help ease the hardship.

.....

But for Bai Yu, this camp was having a shoot out in the wilderness. And obviously, she was with the army, and in the middle of the war, she should not trouble others by asking for more comfort than they could provide. If her biaojie could live like this, then she should be able to as well!

As soon as she was left alone, Bai Yu fell onto the soft mattress on top of the raised platform. There was a blanket and a pillow provided already. Her journey here was with Ouyang Mingxian and the soldiers, whose magic levels were not as high as Ouyang Feilong and his group, so it took longer to reach the border than she had last time.

She might have silver magic that could greatly aid her speed, but she could not control it yet, so she had to seal it within the black jade. Moreover, she had to match the speed of others in the group, so she only used black-level magic on her way here.

She was exhausted. Drowsiness loomed over her as soon as her head touched the pillow. Bai Yu slowly closed her eyes.

No!

She immediately sprang up from the mattress when she recalled what she had to do. Bai Yu adjusted her clothes and hair, then tightened the string of her veil before leaving her tent, despite the time being late at night.

“Benxiaojie would like to see the wounded. Could you lead the way?” When she stepped outside, the two soldiers’ eyes were instantly on her. It was impolite, but Bai Yu understood that it was their duty to protect her.

One of them nodded and gave a respectful affirmative before leading the way. Another stayed behind to guard the tent. There was no need for Bai Yu to announce her identity; the royal decree had arrived before her, detailing the arriving people and their duties. No one batted an eye when they saw a woman walking around in the camp. She was merely doing what she was expected to do for her job.

The tent for the wounded was large, located far away from her own. Bai Yu was unsure if she could find the way back to her tent, so she asked the soldier who had brought her here to wait for her.

She did not intend to treat anyone here. She knew she could not attempt what the real Bai Hua could, though at least she had to come to raise the spirits of the injured soldiers and even fellow doctors.

“You are...”

The first thing she noticed when she entered the tent was an unexpected calmness and silence. It was possibly because the patients were currently sleeping. There were a few doctors scattered throughout the tent. Bai Yu approached a senior man with high-level magic who looked like he could use healing magic. However, the current of his magic felt weak. Bai Yu guessed that he was the chief medic in the army, the same person she had met at the village during the epidemic. She headed toward him first, as a manner of respect, though he did not seem to remember her.

“Chief doctor, I am Bai Hua.” She gave the elderly man a curtsy.

“Thank you for coming all this way, Miss Bai.” Fatigue was apparent in his voice and on his face, yet he smiled without being suspicious whether she was the real ‘Bai Hua’ or not. No one would have the energy to suspect anyone in a time like this.

The information Bai Yu received from the doctor was that there were many wounded in the battle several days ago. Though their injuries were not too severe, there were only three doctors here, and they were clearly short-handed. During that battle, they were so busy that they did not have time to sleep. Today was the same; they had to constantly check up on the soldiers’ conditions, unable to take a rest in their own tents.

Bai Yu was slightly more relieved now that she knew no one was in such a critical condition that they would require Bai Hua’s skill, otherwise she would not be able to do anything for them. Because the situation was not too bad, Bai Hua in the series then had enough time to help Ouyang Mingxian with his battle strategies, huh? And you said you needed a doctor and the wounded needed morale. Fate, oh, fate. Do you think you can just put two people together so easily like that?

“I hurried here with Qin Wang’s troop ahead of the other doctors. I’m afraid I might not be much of a help today.”

“Miss Bai can rest assured. The condition of these soldiers is not too serious. We can handle it for now, as long as another battle doesn’t start.”

Their conditions might not be severe, but the problem of being short-staffed could not be ignored. Bai Yu continued to ponder that problem in her tent after being urged to take a rest by the chief doctor, who feared that she might fall ill after overexerting herself too much. Da Yang’s royal doctors were all men, and Bai Hua was the only exception among them. On the other hand, Bai Yu had never heard of those doctors having assistants at all. Bai Yu was unsure of how the injured soldiers would be treated in this era, or whether all doctors normally had to work day and night. But she was sure that the situation should not continue like this.