13 Chapter 13

◎ Still Silver Moon Valley◎

"Ahem."

Li Hengqing cleared his throat behind the little girl who was enjoying the storybooks, wanting to ask them to lower their voices. Unexpectedly, Lang Yue turned around and said with a beaming face, "Princess, let me tell you, the storybooks I found this time are really good! I always say that women should be like those men in Nansheng, with women on both sides to be considered elegant..."

She became more and more excited as she spoke, leaning forward slightly, and said with great interest: "I think that pretty boy Cen is quite handsome, and he can speak Northern Di dialect, eh——"

Li Hengqing couldn't bear to listen any longer, so he put his finger in front of her lips and signaled her to be quiet.

The sound insulation of grassland tents is poor. If you howl slightly, the whole area can hear it. Even if the population density is not high, it is still very dangerous.

If these words that cheated on Helian Xiao were heard by others and taken out of context to make a fuss, even if she could save herself, would this impetuous little girl still be alive?

"That's all for today." Li Heng smiled wryly, looking down at the bright moon. "Next time you read to them like this, they have to teach them every word. They have to be able to read and write. I want to test their grades."

Langyue's eyes rolled and he thought: That's not impossible.

Seeing her unrepentant expression, Li Hengqing sighed, "Go check the accounts now. I'll check them in a few days. If there are any omissions, I'll hold you accountable."

In fact, she was not that angry with these girls, so her tone was not very fierce.

Lang Yue quickly jumped up and said, "I'll go right away, right away! If you want to punish them, punish me, but don't blame them."

Only then did a genuine smile appear on Li Hengqing's lips.

Besides Cen Jue, another surprise on this trip to Yunzhou was Lang Yue. She knew the little girl was clever the moment they met, and had asked her to learn accounting from the system's textbooks a few days ago, but she hadn't held out much hope.

But Langyue was truly a gem in the rough. She was an instant business savvy, calculating accounts quickly and accurately. She'd saved Li Hengqing a lot of money by following a list and speaking clumsy Chinese. So, this highly anticipated return trip was largely due to this little girl's contributions.

As for those storybooks? In the eyes of Li Hengqing, a modern soul, they were not anything extraordinary at all. In fact, a bit of unconventionality was more to her liking.

*

While everyone here is having fun, the Black Hawk tribe is feeling depressed and gloomy, as if a storm is about to come, and even the birds perched on the branches are trembling with fear.

The ominous cry of jackdaws cut through the sky. Burke stood outside the tent with his hands behind his back, wearing thin clothes and with a sullen face.

The attendant was holding a robe and trying to put it on his shoulders, but he received a sharp look and knocked the robe off his shoulders: "You are acting on your own initiative!"

"Chief, Chief." The follower's voice trembled as he forced himself to remain calm. "The wind is strong tonight. If you get hurt, our tribe will be left without a backbone..."

"No backbone?" Burke snorted coldly, not buying it. "I think those people are very determined!"

The flattery failed and instead touched his sore spot. The follower finally fell silent and retreated to the side silently.

Who are those people? Naturally, they are the people who escaped from the Black Hawk tribe.

It is the nature of nomadic people to live by following water and grass. Some people have been ready to make a move early on, but most people are still afraid of the reputation that Tug and Berk, father and son, have accumulated over the years, so only a few people have fled.

As soon as that witch's recruitment order came out, Burke felt something was wrong and asked his guards to keep a close eye on everyone.

But those deserters had some tricks up their sleeves and managed to pry open the ranks of his proud personal guards, and instigated several of Burke's proud young men to escape with them!

Burke clenched his fists so hard that they made crackling sounds, and the followers who retreated to the side were terrified and frightened.

A hoarse, gentle voice drifted over at the right moment: "Step back. I want to talk to the leader."

It was Hu Shan. Despite receiving aid from the Black Hawk Tribe these days, life had been extremely difficult. Yet, he showed no signs of thinness or fatigue, remaining a modest gentleman.

When Burke saw him, his irritability subsided a little. He sighed deeply and said, "What advice do you have, Advisor?"

Hu Shan's eyes were filled with an unfathomable smile. He leaned towards Burke and whispered, "I just received a letter from Tana Gege flying falcon..."

*

In Silver Moon Valley, the clouds are light and the sky is clear.

After the caravan returned to the tribe, Li Hengqing did not rest for too long. He asked Langyue to check the accounts and then led his men to Silver Moon Valley again the next day.

This time she has manpower, at least a few hundred people. Although not many, one cannot become fat in one breath. It is a great thing that the construction of Silver Moon Valley can officially start.

Li Hengqing is used to planning for the long term, but even the smallest progress at the moment is enough to make her happy. As the saying goes, contentment is the greatest happiness, and the two are not contradictory.

The gentle slopes of the settlement area were flourishing. Standing at the foot of the mountain, she had a panoramic view of the entire Silvermoon Valley. The recruits who had come to reclaim the land wore gloves made in the new camp and used the latest Han-style farm tools, newly imitated by the tribal artisans, to work with the unbridled growth of black thyme. They cut the tough stems and leaves, dug up the wildfire-like roots, and then used simple handheld seed drills to sow new seeds.

The nomadic civilization had no shortage of cattle and sheep, and the urgently trained oxen were sufficient to meet the current needs. The experience gained from building pastures in the spring turned into a huge advantage at this moment. Although it was already summer, it still quietly brought hope to Silver Moon Valley.

For reasons of efficiency in dealing with the poisonous weeds, Li Hengqing ultimately chose soybeans. Soybeans can be extracted for oil, and the other byproducts produced during processing are also very valuable. The storage difficulty is also acceptable.

After the black thyme is removed next year, more varieties of crops will be planted here.

The first batch of saplings for the windbreak have been planted and are being carefully cared for by patrol teams.

On the other side, the planned workshop area has just completed the laying of the foundation and the tamping of the walls.

"Khatun, look!" Agula's dark face was like a ripe buckwheat cake, tired yet happy. He pointed at several newly roofed earthen houses and said, "According to your plan, the sites for the paper mill, printing house, and textile workshop have been separated. It's just..."

He looked troubled. "Those new spinning wheels and that iron printing press you drew on your drawings are incredibly complex. I've been working with my team for days, but we've only managed to create a few parts. Building the entire machine will probably take a long time."

"That's fine," Li Hengqing encouraged. "Let's use these Han Chinese spinning wheels first so we can all hone our skills. I believe that Master Agula will be able to make a better spinning wheel for us in no time."

Agula's dark face flushed faintly at these words, and he quickly led her into the weaving workshop. Inside were the same Han-style hand-cranked spinning wheels they'd traded from Yunzhou City. There weren't many of them, and the most skilled women had already mastered the basics and were sharing their experiences with the others, creating a lively atmosphere. Naren had also joined Agula. She was staring at the spinning wheel, studying it with such skill that she didn't even notice anyone had come in.

The cashmere was sorted, cleaned, and combed, then spun into yarn. Though the movements of the people inside were still unfamiliar, the yarn was uniform in thickness. Li Hengqing reached out and touched it; it was warm and soft like a cloud.

[Progress has been detected in the education system construction task. Please continue your efforts.]

The system, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly came back to life, and she couldn't help but raise her eyebrows in satisfaction.

Agula couldn't help wiping the sweat from his forehead and muttered, "After I build all these big guys, I have to rest for a month. It's too tiring..."

Li Hengqing was just about to tease him with a smile when a clear falcon cry suddenly came from the sky outside.

As she walked out the door, a well-trained falcon circled down, retracted its sharp claws and landed precisely on Li Hengqing's leather arm guard.

Li Hengqing untied the letter tube. It was an urgent letter from Helian Xiao, sent from the new camp. She glanced at it quickly, then patted Agula's shoulder and said with an apologetic smile, "Master Agula, I'm afraid you can't rest for a while."

"Ah?" Agula was stunned.

"The Great Khan wrote," Li Hengqing raised the letter in his hand, "that from the Black Hawk Tribe...nearly a thousand people have come here with their families. I'm afraid we'll need to add to our huts, so Master Chef will have to trouble us."