For the southern ice, a tip of 1 to 2 million starting coins for additional updates (5)
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Perhaps because she had never been praised before, Zhao Hanqing felt somewhat awkward and lowered her head, looking at her hands and tapping her toes on the soil.
"What's so impressive about that," she muttered softly, "it's just darts."
Miss Jun watched the darts hanging around her waist and then looked at the bow and arrows on her back.
"Then you must be very good at archery too?" she asked.
Zhao Hanqing made an affirmative noise.
"I can do it. Uncle Yang taught me," she said.
"Come on, show me," Miss Jun urged her, pulling her along.
Zhao Hanqing was a bit constrained but nevertheless took down the bow and arrows, scanned the forest intently, and then suddenly pulled the string and released. With a buzzing sound, the arrow shot out like a meteor, and a rabbit in the grass was pinned to the ground, twitching for a moment before it lay still.
Cheers from Miss Jun rang out in the forest.
"You are amazing, just amazing," she exclaimed, patting Zhao Hanqing's shoulder.
Is it really that impressive? It's just a rabbit... Zhao Hanqing felt out of place, yet still managed a smile.
"Your father never taught me archery," said Miss Jun, her eyes lighting up, "How about this, Hanqing, you teach me archery and I'll teach you how to recognize medicinal herbs."
"Can I really learn?" Zhao Hanqing hesitated before asking, her gaze filled with both anticipation and unease.
"Of course, you can. Let's go," Miss Jun said with a smile, taking her hand, "First, we'll find some herbs for bruises and sprains."
Zhao Hanqing let herself be led away, following with a touch of bewilderment.
Come on, let me pass on to you what your father taught me, everything he did with me, played with me, and fed me, I'll take you through it all.
Miss Jun turned back to smile at her, gripping her hand firmly.
Watching the two girls holding hands and walking through the forest, Yang Jing, standing not far away, showed a smile before quickly putting it away.
"Sister-in-law, Niuniu's curiosity about the older brother is something we can't help; please don't blame her," he said.
Xiao Zhi standing to the side simply smiled.
"How could I? It's a natural father-daughter relationship. How could I suppress her because of my own preferences?" she said.
The term "father-daughter" brought a sense of delight to Yang Jing's face.
"Sister-in-law, then do you mean older brother can..." he couldn't resist asking.
"Cannot," Xiao Zhi cut him off firmly, "cannot forgive."
Yang Jing hurriedly lowered his head and agreed.
A cold rain fell, blanketing the mountain in fallen leaves, and when the north wind suddenly picked up, the new foot that Miss Jun made for Iron Foot was completed.
After a period of recuperation, Iron Foot's worn shin healed. Watching Iron Foot cautious step into his new foot and carefully take the first step, onlookers cheered loudly.
"Iron Foot, take another step."
"Iron Foot, try running."
The crowd laughed, shouted, and teased, and the usually taciturn Iron Foot was overcome with excitement, his face flushed red. He not only wanted to walk but also grabbed Xia Yong and insisted on riding a horse.
"We don't have horses here," laughed Xia Yong.
The horses that had been brought initially had all aged and died. People had a hard enough time sustaining themselves, let alone affording to buy and maintain horses.
"Do you want a horse?" Liu'er, standing on the side, perked up her ears when she heard this and immediately shouted, "I'll go buy one tomorrow."
Liu'er's manner no longer made everyone feel embarrassed or awkward, and upon hearing her, they all laughed.
"You don't have to laugh, I mean what I say," Liu'er stated proudly, then turned her head and saw several people riding horses approaching on the main road. She exclaimed in surprise, "Look, Shopkeeper De Sheng Chang is coming; I'll talk to him."
Leaving the merry crowd, Miss Jun walked to the entrance of the village and watched as Shopkeeper De Sheng Chang from Qingyuan Prefecture dismounted his horse.
His expression was somewhat anxious as he bowed deeply.
"Miss Jun, there's been trouble," he said in a low voice, "the Jurchen people and great Zhou have officially gone to war."
Official, war.
Miss Jun's expression also grew somber.
The Jurchen people and great Zhou had coexisted peacefully ever since signing a treaty ten years ago.
Of course, the past decade of interaction had not been quite peaceful, but whether it was sporadic occurrences along the wilderness border, or sudden raids on towns for plunder, none of that counted as waging war, because the Jurchen people did it stealthily, the Zhou People fought back upon encounter, fled after battle, and ended by cursing their way out of the situation.
Now, to actually talk about formally going to war, the so-called formal war...
"A challenge has been issued." The Shopkeeper of Qingyuan De Sheng Chang stated solemnly, "At present, the Jin Army has amassed tens of thousands, pressing in from both the east and the west."
A challenge, tens of thousands of the Jin Army – indeed, this was no longer about hasty invasions and pillaging.
Miss Jun fell silent for a moment.
"Where do they get the confidence to do this?" she said.
"Perhaps they have accumulated strength over a decade and wish to test their might again," the Shopkeeper said.
"They may have built up over ten years, but the Duke of Chengguo has not wasted those years," Miss Jun said. "If they dare to come, naturally we are not afraid."
The Shopkeeper nodded in agreement.
"Yes, the Duke has already ordered all prefectures to prepare for war. The Yongxing Army and Guangcheng Army are also mobilizing," he said. "Right now, the lives of people in various places are still normal, stocking up on rice and food as required, reducing travel."
"We have enough rice and food here," Miss Jun said. "You don't need to worry for now."
The Shopkeeper voiced his assent.
"Miss Jun need not worry," he added with a smile, in a thick local accent, "We've encountered such situations before, where the Jin thief came with great fanfare only to be beaten back within half a month."
Miss Jun nodded with a smile.
"I believe the Duke has that ability." She said with not a hint of hesitation.
This was true belief, not just a polite gesture or self-comfort; she was neither afraid nor worried, and the Shopkeeper was somewhat surprised at the young lady's deep trust in the Duke.
"My father was once the Fu Ning County Magistrate," Miss Jun said with a smile. "I also grew up in the northern lands, and there isn't a person in the northern lands who doesn't trust the Duke."
That was indeed the case, the Shopkeeper laughed and then briefed her about the latest movements in the northern lands, left behind Fang Chengyu's letter from home, and was caught by Liu'er in the yard, who was intent on purchasing horses.
"We want to buy a lot, one for each person," she said.
The Shopkeeper raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but glance at Miss Jun.
He knew Miss Jun was very indulgent with this girl, buying whatever she asked for, but horses were not preserves – it wouldn't matter if anyone had a bag full of them.
"Go ahead and buy them, having horses makes it much more convenient to get around," said Miss Jun.
"One for each person?" the Shopkeeper asked. "If so, we'll need to re-prepare fodder and supplies."
"Let's start with ten horses," Miss Jun said. "That should be enough for everyday travel."
The Shopkeeper assented and took his leave with his people.
Liu'er immediately went off excitedly to announce the news about buying horses to everyone, stirring up another wave of excitement among the villagers.
Miss Jun then informed Xia Yong and Yang Jing about the news of going to war.
Upon hearing this, neither of them showed any panic.
"Miss Jun need not worry, our location is remote and is easy to defend but hard to attack," they simply said.
"This is Qingyuan Prefecture; if it really comes to that, it would mean that the dynasty's defense lines have been breached, and that would be the real cause for concern," Miss Jun said with a smile.
Yang Jing didn't smile, just hummed in response.
"That would be a worry for the dynasty and feudal authorities," he said impassively. "It's not our concern."
An enemy breakthrough, the country's insecurity, the distress of all living beings – these are things that everyone should be concerned about, especially those who claim themselves as government soldiers.
Government soldiers exist to protect their country and people, so how can they say it's of no concern to them?
Miss Jun looked at him with a probing gaze, and Xia Yong already coughed lightly.
"Of course it's a concern, of course it's related," he said earnestly. "We need to inform everyone about this situation; starting today, we must be even more vigilant."
Having said this, he pulled Yang Jing away to spread the word.
Miss Jun watched their departing figures thoughtfully.
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Thanks to MAX Stone, Leisurely Clumsy Immortal, Ice from the South, 11 pages of famous rewards and He's Bi, O(∩_∩)O
Thank you all, and continue to ask for monthly tickets.
Additionally, the WeChat public account with the name "Xi Xing" has been pre-registered by someone else, I haven't been able to retrieve it yet, so be careful not to be fooled.