On the other side, Haoyue Country, Qingxi Town
Song Lin informed everyone of the news he had recently learned, and everyone gathered in the backyard of the yamen's court for a small meeting.
Song Lin said, "Uncle Song and I have been secretly investigating these days. Now all the roads leading to Jiangling Prefecture have been blocked by soldiers. No news can enter Jiangling, let alone people."
"It seems that the imperial court is very wary of Jiangling Prefecture. If they start a rebellion, I'm afraid they will be suppressed quickly."
"Perhaps we could enter Xiling City in Yanyang Country, then go to Dongyi, and then cross the river from Dongyi to Jiangling Prefecture. Is that feasible?" Chen Xu suggested, pointing to the map. "Although this route is longer, we can bypass these checkpoints and send people to Jiangling."
"Not feasible!" Captain Song rejected it immediately. "The situation in Haoyue Nation is tense right now. Beihai and Yanyang are always eyeing us covetously. If we are exposed in other countries, the risk will be even greater. If they then siege us, Haoyue Nation will be in big trouble. It's better to hide in Qingzhou Prefecture and wait until the storm has subsided."
Song Lin nodded and said worriedly, "But it's too dangerous to keep hiding. If there's a chance, we still have to move them away."
"Why don't we flee to Xiling City in Yanyang Country before martial law is enforced..."
Captain Song immediately rejected it again: "No!"
"Once we get to Xiling City, we can disguise ourselves as merchants and head south..."
"No!" Captain Song interrupted her harshly, saying, "We won't leave Haoyue Country!"
"Ah, why?" Shen Xu looked up at Captain Song, puzzled.
"I said no and that's no!" Captain Song did not explain much, but insisted stubbornly not to leave Haoyue Country.
Song Lin pursed his lips. Seeing his uncle interrupting him so sternly, he was also confused. He whispered, "What if Xiuxiu is from Yanyang? Sooner or later, we will have to help her find her family."
"Let her go by herself. I will not leave Haoyue Country anyway!" Seeing Captain Song's stubborn look, everyone didn't know what to say, and the atmosphere became inexplicably stiff and cold.
Shen Xu had no choice but to come to the rescue and said, "Husband, let's think of another way. Besides, so many days have passed, and the court has only besieged the various checkpoints. There is no rumor that they are going to capture the Thirteenth Prince. Let's not lose our composure."
"Well, Xiuxiu is right. In short, we should follow Master Zhou's steps now and evacuate in time if necessary." Song Lin nodded in agreement.
Shen Xu asked Song Lin to bring out another box, which contained various novel weapons, mostly hidden weapons. She selected a suitable one for each person and taught everyone how to use it.
"This is the correct way to take out the canine talon arrow. There is a mechanism at the end. Pulling it out will make the canine talon active, allowing you to pull out the arrowhead directly." She explained several ways to use and defend against arrows, and gave everyone a folding crossbow and three quivers.
Even Mr. Zhou was armed. He asked worriedly, "Will I accidentally shoot myself in the middle of the night if I wear this thing to sleep?"
"No, there is a safety buckle. The crossbow will automatically unfold after the safety buckle is pulled out, and the crossbow arrow will be shot out only when the trigger is pulled." Shen Xu demonstrated how to use the folding crossbow. With a whoosh, the crossbow arrow shot through the open wooden door in the backyard and was firmly nailed to the wall behind the door.
"It's so exquisite! If our imperial army were equipped with this kind of thing, we would have no worries about conquering Beihai and Yanyang." Master Zhou couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. He was determined to serve his country. Although he only passed the examination to become a county magistrate, he managed Langya County in an orderly manner.
"This kind of thing can only be used for self-defense. If you encounter a fully armed army, a gun and an axe are more practical."
"Miss Shen, once you've overcome this difficulty, I'll recommend you to take the imperial examination. It's a shame to have such talented people like you and your wife buried in Qingxi Town copying books and working as constables."
Shen Xu smiled sweetly, glanced at Song Lin and said, "Of course I will follow my husband. Even if I become a small constable or a commoner, as long as I am kind, just, diligent and pragmatic, I will be serving my country."
"Xiu Xiu is right!" Song Lin stared at Shen Xu with admiration in his eyes. He gently stroked the folding crossbow in his hand, and felt more and more that his wife was a fairy. That's why she was so beautiful and could make such exquisite things.
"By the way, an informant reported that recently the Xuan Jing Division in the capital has been out in full force, sneaking into various provincial capitals, and has punished and killed hundreds of officials who disobeyed the orders of the Imperial Master. We did not hand over all the children last month, so Master Zhou must be careful." Master Ma reported.
Upon hearing this, Captain Song immediately requested, "Then Old Song will stay by the master's side to protect him for the time being."
"Xuan Jingsi... maybe we can do this." Shen Xu stroked his chin, spread out a piece of paper, wrote and drew on it with a pen, and told the people present the plan he suddenly thought of.
"This is too dangerous, what if..." Song Lin immediately objected: "I still support fleeing to Yanyang Country."
"I don't agree to escape!" Captain Song made his position clear.
Mr. Zhou agreed and said, "Miss Shen's idea is a good one. Instead of waiting for the Xuanjing Division to come and catch us all, we should find a way to survive."
In the end, everyone discussed several plans and agreed on secret codes to execute them immediately if anything happened.
A few days later at noon.
Shen Xu passed by a bookstall and saw that the owner of the bookstall, who had been closed for a long time, had reopened, so he waved and said hello.
"Miss Song, why are you still here?"
Shen Xu said politely: “Boss, you’ve opened your business again. How’s your business? Do you still need me to copy books?”
The boss shook his head and sighed, "Oh, forget it. Everyone's fleeing now, who's still reading? I have relatives in Yanyang Country, and now that I see this bookstall business can't continue, I'm planning to close the shop and head to Yanyang Country for shelter. Miss and Constable Song should also pack up and go."
"But the war hasn't spread to our Qingzhou Prefecture yet. We civilians shouldn't be so nervous, right?"
"I heard from the Chamber of Commerce that the imperial court recently sent the Xuanjingsi Yamen to execute a number of officials. Some of them could not pay their taxes, and some could not pay their children."
"People are in panic everywhere now. Our Master Zhou is a kind-hearted man. If he were to meet with a murderer because he failed to pay his taxes, our Langya County would fall sooner or later. We'd better run away while Master Zhou is still alive." The bookstall owner simply packed up a few valuable books and hurried away.
"Then what about the other books on this stall?" Shen Xu looked at the books she had copied and felt a little sorry. She picked up a book from the North Sea Kingdom and said in surprise, "Boss, you don't even want the second volume of "Treasure Hunting Records"? It's hard to find."
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