A cool sensation on my body roused me from my slumber. As I opened my eyes, I saw a fair-skinned, gentle woman wiping me down with a clean cloth.
A bucket of fresh water sat at her feet.
Watching her diligently wipe my body, I instinctively reached out and placed my hand on the full, rounded buttocks beneath her coarse cloth garment, gently kneading them.
"Oh? Your Highness, you're awake?"
She paid no mind to my brazen gesture; it seemed she was well accustomed to such sudden advances.
"Who are you?"
I asked softly.
"I'm one of the camp followers here; General Yang sent me to look after you. You were gang-raped by so many men yesterday—your body won't recover quickly, so you should rest a while longer."
A gentle, easygoing smile played on her face; she felt no sense of impropriety or inferiority regarding her status as a camp follower.
This fair-skinned, gentle woman wasn't strikingly beautiful, but she had a pleasant, enduring charm.
Moreover, her presence put me at ease; she exuded the aura of a devoted wife and mother.
A devoted wife and mother who was also a camp follower? I couldn't help but frown, wondering to myself, "Is that even possible?"
"Are you really a camp follower?"
I asked, puzzled.
"Mm-hmm! I am. Don't I look the part?"
The gentle woman replied with a relaxed air.
"Well... you don't, actually. In my mind, I always thought camp followers were..."
I stammered, at a loss for words. "Are they all low-status women who get fucked brutally every day and don't live very long?"
The gentle woman voiced the thought for me.
I nodded in agreement.
That was exactly how I imagined the life of a military prostitute—I even thought of the "comfort women," the most wretched of all military prostitutes in my past life.
The mere thought of comfort women made my blood boil.
If I ever had the chance to return to my old world, I'd tear down the Yasukuni Shrine and rape Abe's wife.
Then I'd give those Japanese militarists a real thrashing.
"Hehe! Silly girl, you must be talking about other armies! The status of military prostitutes in the Yang Army is much better; we're practically 'army wives' rather than just prostitutes. We're actually quite cherished in the ranks."
The gentle woman said.
I could sense that she was telling the truth; she was genuinely happy with her life in the camp.
"In the Yang Army, even though we can't freely choose our men, we only have to serve five of them a day before we can rest. It's worse in other armies, where you have to serve ten men before getting a break. Only female slaves—specifically those ordered by superiors to be raped to death—suffer the fate of being gang-raped until they die. Generally, the soldiers treat us very well. Since the number of prostitutes assigned to each unit is limited, if one of us is gone, they just have to wait. For a military prostitute, joining the Yang Army is the best possible outcome. In other armies, no one joins voluntarily; only the Yang Army has women who sign up of their own free will. Just like me."
The woman explained this to me as she gently wiped down my body. "Big sister, did you volunteer to become a camp follower?"
I looked at the woman in astonishment.
"Mm-hmm! I volunteered. My husband died in battle at the frontier five years ago. The soldiers of the Yang Army often visited my son and me, taking great care of us. Once, a soldier caught me masturbating; he had been pent-up for a long time, too. We ended up fucking that very night. Later, I learned there was a shortage of camp followers in the Yang Army—partly because they often let the women leave if they wanted—so I volunteered to join their ranks. Out here on the border, many widows are quite willing to serve as camp followers for the Yang Army. I've been doing this for four years now; besides making love to the men, I cook, do laundry, and handle mending and sewing for them. Calling us 'camp followers' doesn't quite do it justice—we're more like wives to all of them. I even had a baby last year; though I don't know who the father is, everyone treats the child as their own. I thought life would be miserable after my husband died, but being here has given me a real sense of family."
The woman explained this to me gently.
After listening to her, I slowly stood up, gave her breasts another fondle, and whispered into her ear, "Big sister, once I've recovered, I'm definitely going to enjoy you properly."
With that, I left the tent, leaving her looking puzzled.
Stepping outside, I saw that the sun had only just risen.
I sensed the surroundings and realized that both my mother and my wife were already up; however, instead of fucking the men, they were diligently guiding them in their martial arts training.
Compared to yesterday, my mother was far more serious, and my wife was deeply focused as well. After yesterday's events, both my wife and mother held these men in high regard and hoped that these good men would have a better chance of surviving on the battlefield.
I spent some time searching within my soul space and found a few sets of practical saber and spear techniques—perfect for killing enemies in combat—before going to see Yang Yi.
He was astonished when I handed him the manuals; they were, after all, incredibly valuable.
While these martial arts might not be particularly useful for the kind of duels found in the *jianghu* (martial arts world), their power would reach a whole new level if employed within a military formation.
After giving him the manuals, I shared some modern military training methods I knew from my past—things learned during military training and on the internet. He was amazed and kept pressing me for more details.
I could only share what I had picked up online or seen in movies, TV shows, and novels.
By the time I finished speaking, it was already midday.
He was still eager for more, but I had run out of ideas, so I quickly took my leave.
"Niece, I'll come see you tonight. Don't forget to wait for me."
That was what Yang Yi said to me as I left the tent.
The soldiers looked at us with knowing, suggestive smiles; they envied Yang Yi for getting to spend so much time in our company.
However, I knew full well that his reason for wanting to see me tonight was completely different from what they imagined.