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Fei Qian considered himself quite adept at reading people's minds. After all, he had spent a long time navigating the workplace in his past life. Though he never climbed to any high-ranking positions, it wasn't because he was stupid—just lazy.
Being a low-level employee was easy. Finish your tasks, clock out, and leave without a care. If you liked your boss, you could say goodbye; if not, you could pretend to check your phone and slip away unnoticed.
But being a small-time supervisor? That required more thought. You couldn't leave early—you had to linger for a while, pretending to be busy whether you were or not. Otherwise, both your superiors and subordinates would have complaints.
Putting aside the matter of Huang Zhong for now, just looking at Liu Pan—whom Liu Biao had sent along—Fei Qian could detect a hint of dismissive contempt in his eyes.
But in a way, Liu Pan underestimating him was a good thing.
Fei Qian guessed that Liu Biao must have given Liu Pan some instructions before departure. After all, all Fei Qian had in hand was a basic diplomatic letter of greeting and Liu Biao's ceremonial staff mounted on his carriage—nothing of real substance.
On paper, Liu Pan was the deputy envoy, but in reality, he commanded eight hundred soldiers. In a sense, his authority outweighed Fei Qian's.
But still…
When Fei Qian's group arrived at the relay station, there was no way to accommodate the entire party inside, so they set up tents along the station's outer wall.
The wagons were arranged in a ring to form a makeshift barricade, while soldiers went to chop down trees to construct temporary defensive gates…
Fei Qian shook his head. They'd have to make do—after all, military command wasn't in his hands.
By protocol, Fei Qian could have rested inside the station. Even the worst conditions there would be more comfortable than a tent in the wild. But he felt it was better to stay outside.
From his carriage, Fei Qian quietly summoned Huang Cheng, handed him some silver coins, and gave him instructions. Huang Cheng nodded and left to carry them out.
In the Han dynasty, there were no specialized engineering troops. Every soldier was expected to be versatile. Archers didn't just shoot arrows—they could also draw their swords and fight when needed, not to mention setting up tents or chopping wood.
According to military regulations, ten men shared a tent—and they also ate from the same pot. Hence, a shi (squad of ten) was also called a huo (lit. "meal group").
Winter days were short. Not long after the camp was set up, the sky began to darken.
Fei Qian stepped out of his carriage and entered his tent.
It wasn't particularly large—certainly not a grand command tent—but it didn't need to be.
Fei Qian shared it with Huang Zhong and Huang Cheng. Three people could manage just fine. Huang Dou, the craftsman accompanying the army, also served as Fei Qian's carriage driver during the day, so he usually slept in the carriage to guard against theft.
The most important task after setting up camp was cooking. Since there were no dedicated cooks, cooking utensils were distributed to each tent, and the soldiers prepared their own meals. Most ordinary soldiers made porridge, tossing in whatever wild vegetables they had and boiling them into a simple stew.
Huang Cheng returned after a while and gave Fei Qian a silent nod, signaling that his earlier task had been completed.
Huang Zhong didn't know what was going on, but he didn't ask. He just sat quietly, as if nothing in the world mattered more than his son's illness.
The medical notes Fei Qian had kept were now carefully tucked inside Huang Zhong's robe, and he occasionally touched them as if to reassure himself they were still there.
Fei Qian wasn't sure if Liu Pan would fall into the trap he had set. It was a simple calculation—if Liu Pan was even slightly clever…
Soon, smoke rose from the cooking fires as tents across the camp began preparing meals. The smell of porridge and other ingredients wafted through the air…
Before long, a faint commotion broke out outside…
Huang Cheng set up a small tripod with sticks and hung a pot over it to start cooking.
Fei Qian watched silently, waiting.
A short while later, footsteps approached, and Liu Pan strode into the tent with a scowl. He gave Fei Qian a perfunctory salute with clasped hands.
Fei Qian smiled. "Ah, Zhongjian, perfect timing. The food's almost ready—care to join us?"
Mentioning the meal only made Liu Pan angrier. He raised his voice. "Deputy Inspector Fei, why the favoritism? Are my men not also under your command?"
Fei Qian feigned confusion. "What do you mean?"
Liu Pan glanced at the pot and sneered, pointing. "Why is it that all hundred-plus men you brought get to eat meat, while my men get none at all? And you ask me what I mean?"
Fei Qian's expression darkened. He turned to Huang Cheng. "Shuye, is this true?"
Huang Cheng immediately knelt and bowed his head. "...It is true..."
Liu Pan let out a mocking laugh. "Deputy Inspector Fei, is this how you lead an army? The most important thing in the military is fairness and discipline. Distributing supplies based on personal preference is disgraceful—"
Huang Cheng suddenly cut him off. "—But the meat wasn't from military supplies! We bought it ourselves from the relay station!"
Liu Pan choked mid-sentence, his mouth hanging open for a moment before he managed to sputter, "Uh..."
Huang Cheng continued, "Since it was our first time meeting our fellow soldiers, and the station happened to have meat for sale, we pooled our money to buy some as a treat. Is that wrong? Or would you rather the men eat nothing but wild greens?"
Fei Qian ordered someone to bring out all the dried meat stored in the supply wagons. He then opened the inventory ledger. "Four bags of dried meat, totaling one hundred jin—all accounted for, seals intact, untouched..."
He smiled at Liu Pan. "See, Zhongjian? Any other concerns?"
Liu Pan forced an awkward grin. "No... nothing else."
"Good." Fei Qian nodded, then abruptly dropped his smile. "Since you're done, let's talk about my concerns now. As you said, fairness and discipline are paramount in the military..."
"What is the penalty for barging into the commander's tent without permission? What is the penalty for spreading false rumors and disrupting order? What is the penalty for insolent insults and needlessly alarming the troops?"
With each question, Liu Pan's face cycled through shades of pale and red. He clenched his teeth but noticed Huang Zhong stepping behind Fei Qian, hand resting on his sword.