His words were concise, attributing all the dangers along the way to a "mountain collapse and horse loss," and his tone was calm and even.
The captain's sharp gaze lingered for a moment on her hands, covered in tiny scratches and mud, and on her tattered, worn-out coat. Finally, he nodded slightly. "Military intelligence is urgent. Your timely delivery will exempt you from liability for delay! Please wait here a moment while the Commander-in-Chief reviews your report; a reply will follow!"
Jiang Chan bowed, "I understand. I only ask that the official document be delivered on time and that I do not fail the military order." Her attitude was respectful and restrained.
The captain said no more and led his men back to camp.
The guard captain gestured for Jiang Chan to wait outside the gate.
Jiang Chan did as instructed, walked to the side, sat down against a cold hitching post, closed her eyes to rest, and remained as still as a rock.
The grim atmosphere of the surrounding military camp seemed irrelevant to her; she focused solely on regaining her strength and awaiting the final proof.
Time passed amidst the faint sounds of commands and horses' hooves echoing from the military camp.
About half an hour later, the guard strode out again, holding a hard paper document stamped with a bright red seal.
"Zhang Xiaohe! The warlord has decreed: if the military intelligence is delivered in a timely manner, no penalty will be imposed for delay! This is the receipt; keep it safe!" The guard handed over the document.
The document clearly states the exact time and place of delivery and bears the official seal of the Governor's Office!
Jiang Chan took the thin yet incredibly heavy piece of paper with both hands and gripped it tightly!
It's done!
The steel knife that had been hanging over the necks of the original owner's entire family was finally removed!
I've got 100 jin (50 catties) of pork!
A surge of heat rushed through her chest, but she suppressed it with her powerful willpower, turning it into a fleeting glimmer of light deep in her eyes.
She bowed deeply to the guard, "Thank you, sir!"
The guards nodded.
Jiang Chan didn't linger. She carefully put the document away close to her body and turned to leave.
His steps remained steady, but were slightly lighter than when he arrived.
She needed to leave as soon as possible and take this life-saving certificate back to its original owner's home.
Only after leaving the sight of the military scouts did Jiang Chan truly slow down.
The sunlight finally pierced through the clouds with difficulty, shining on the muddy road home.
[Ding! Quest: The Poor Postman's Family (Completed)]
[Reward: 100 pieces of fresh pork (pending distribution), would you like to collect it now?]
The cold, mechanical voice echoed clearly in my mind.
She slightly twitched the corners of her mouth, her eyes shining.
...
A few days later, a simple tea stall was set up beside the official road near Qingshan Post Station.
"...Have you heard? A few days ago, they caught some defeated soldiers at Yingchoujian and locked them up in the county jail. They're just spouting nonsense all day long!" A man who looked like a traveling merchant took a swig of coarse tea and said in a low voice to the person at the table.
"Oh? What did they say? They were bragging about how many heads they chopped off again?" another person asked with interest.
"Pah! What nonsense! You're spouting nonsense!" the vendor scoffed. "What you're saying is... you saw an 'iron monster'! It doesn't have a horse, but it runs on its own, and its roar is louder than thunder! When it runs, mud splashes several meters high! It even has smoke coming out of its rear end, and its eyes shoot out terrifying white light!"
"Pfft!" The person at the table spat out a mouthful of tea, laughing so hard they slapped their thigh. "Hahaha! An iron-clad monster? Eyes glowing? Are these defeated soldiers scared out of their wits or drunk? You can't make up stories without some basis!"
"Exactly!" another man resting nearby sneered. "They probably lost a battle and got scared out of their wits! Why don't they say that monster can fly and disappear into the ground?! Running away without a horse? Breathing fire and emitting light? You're kidding me!"
"Absolutely!" the vendor laughed. "Even the jailers at the county yamen treat it as a joke, saying they'll starve them if they keep spouting nonsense! Where in this world would such a monster come from? If it really existed, would a few defeated soldiers have seen it and run away?"
Laughter erupted at the tea stall.
This absurd rumor, like a pebble thrown into a pond, only stirred up a small ripple and a few pointless laughs before being dismissed as the ravings of a cowardly soldier, dissipating in the rural breeze and fading into oblivion.
The deep, strange ruts in the mud at the back gate of Qingshan Post Station gradually blurred with the passage of time and the erosion of wind and rain, eventually becoming nothing more than the incoherent, unbelievable ramblings of Old Zhao, the post stationman, when he was occasionally drunk.
And that slender figure riding a strange two-wheeled vehicle, weaving through the forest like a forest sprite, only flashed briefly in the edge of a woodcutter's occasional dream, never to be seen again...
...
Jiang Chan's consciousness was abruptly pulled away from that world, and the dizziness receded like a tide. Her legs were firmly planted on the ground, and her whole body was unharmed. The previous pain had completely disappeared.
The old woman's words drifted to my ears, tinged with pride, "...That's why Zhang Dashan's family is the pride of our Qinghe Village! They did a good job at the post station, and the officials valued them, so the whole family moved to the city to enjoy a better life! After this house became vacant, the village chief has had people look after it, saying it's ancestral property and can't be wasted!"
Jiang Chan's heart was still pounding wildly, as if it wanted to break free of her chest!
She clenched her fist tightly, her nails digging into her palm. The real pain confirmed that she was back!
However, the old woman's words exploded in her ears like a thunderclap!
The whole family is moving away to enjoy a life of luxury?!
Wasn't he beheaded?!
She suddenly looked up at the old woman.
The old woman looked completely at ease, even with a hint of pride that someone in the village had emerged, showing none of the taboo and fear she had shown when the topic of "beheading" was mentioned earlier.
"Wait!" Chen Yan's voice was filled with obvious surprise and confusion. His brows were furrowed, and his sharp gaze was fixed on the old woman's face. "Auntie, you didn't say that just now! You clearly said that Zhang Dashan delayed military intelligence, his whole family was beheaded, and this house is a haunted house!"
The old woman was stunned, then looked as if she had been greatly insulted. Her face flushed red, and her voice rose, "Oh dear! You young man! How can you spout such nonsense and curse people?! When did I ever say such a ridiculous thing! Zhang Dashan did his job well, and the official even rewarded him with silver! Everyone in the village knows that his whole family moved away! You...you're just spouting nonsense! How can you curse people like that!"
She glared angrily at Chen Yan, as if he had committed a grave offense.
Zhou was also startled and quickly grabbed Chen Yan's arm, whispering, "Yan-ge'er! What nonsense are you talking about! Auntie just said that the Zhang family moved away and are enjoying their good fortune! How could you... how could you say that they were beheaded? That's so unlucky!" Her face was full of confusion and reproach for Chen Yan's slip of the tongue.
Jiang Chan's heart sank!
The event... has been modified!
Because she completed that damned task, the fate of Zhang Dashan's family was completely rewritten under her intervention?!
The tragic storyline of "delaying military intelligence and having the whole family beheaded" has disappeared, replaced by the normal storyline of "getting promoted and enjoying happiness after completing the task"!
This world even automatically corrected the memories of those involved!
Besides her and...him, who personally experienced completing the mission?
Her gaze was like lightning, instantly shooting towards Chen Yan!
Chen Yan's face showed genuine, immense confusion and bewilderment!
He glanced at the angry old woman, then at his master's wife who looked reproachful and bewildered, and finally glared at Jiang Chan. "Did you hear that? She clearly said 'beheading'! You heard it too, didn't you?!"
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