The once desolate valley is now covered with lush grass and wildflowers. In the middle, a patch of pebbles has been cleared away, and a dozen women are dancing gracefully.
With every gesture, her robes fluttered, making her appear like a fairy descended to earth, captivating all who looked away.
Some soldiers rubbed their eyes, even thinking they were hallucinating from exhaustion.
Fortunately, Li Laosi and Ye Shan were the first to react. One stepped forward to protect Jiayi and Liu Yang, while the other quickly surveyed the entire valley, including the caves and the lookout huts on both sides of the mountain.
At this moment, the children also realized that outsiders had broken in, and they scattered with screams, leaving flutes, erhus, and other musical instruments scattered all over the floor.
"Someone's coming! Quick, put down the rattan ladder!"
"Tour leader, tour leader, someone's here!"
"Help!"
The valley, which was just moments ago like a paradise on earth, was suddenly thrown into chaos, and all its beauty was gone.
Everyone awkwardly touched their noses and scratched the back of their heads, feeling quite aggrieved. They hadn't done anything at all.
Some soldiers were about to put down their bows and longswords, but Ye Shan stopped them.
"Warning! Don't be complacent just because it's a woman; this isn't a military camp!"
Li Laosi also said, "We've lived here for a winter. It's not easy to live here. Don't underestimate these women; some of them must know martial arts."
Sure enough, after the women scrambled into the various caves in a panic, a short while later, a woman in tight-fitting clothes jumped down from the largest cave and headed straight for the group.
The two sides were about five or six zhang apart when the woman stopped and carefully looked at the crowd. She saw that most of the people on Li Laosi's side were dressed as soldiers. Her expression was not good, and she clearly regarded the crowd as remnants of the army.
She gripped her longsword tightly and shouted, "This place is already occupied by us. Brave warriors, you should find another place to stay."
Li Laosi stepped forward and said, “We are not refugees or remnants of soldiers, nor are we here to stay. Last winter, we lived here for a few months and left behind some books in boxes. Because they were inconvenient to carry, we sealed them in the small cave on the far left. We are here to take them and will not disturb your life here.”
The woman's eyes flickered, and she loosened her grip on the longsword.
They arrived here three months ago and were overjoyed to find caves, crudely made tables and chairs, and even thatched huts and stoves.
Of course, they also discovered the box of books in the cave.
They had originally thought that if someone came to collect the books, they could go with them and leave the mountains.
But then, the people who came to collect the books arrived, and they weren't the gentle and refined scholars they had imagined; they were actually a group of soldiers...
Li Laosi also noticed that the entrance to the small cave had been opened. He frowned slightly and said, "You don't need to be afraid. We mean no harm. We just want to retrieve the books. You can use the rest of the things you need."
"If you are worried, we can set up camp at the edge of the woods. As long as you send over all 486 books, without missing a single one, we will not have any conflict."
The woman scrutinized them for a long time, neither agreeing nor refusing, before turning and leaving.
Seeing this, Ye Shan said, "Let's make a fire and take a break. Dealing with women is troublesome; it might take forever."
Li Laosi nodded and instructed everyone, "Half of you should start a fire and roast the rabbits and pheasants you hunt along the way to fill your stomachs, while the other half remain on guard and don't let your guard down."
Everyone immediately got to work, dividing tasks and cooperating efficiently without chaos.
In the largest cave in the distance, a woman stood at the entrance, gazing at the busy crowd at the edge of the forest.
She wore an ink-blue cardigan paired with an embroidered pleated chiffon skirt. Her black hair was styled into simple double buns, with a white jade hairpin inserted at an angle, which accentuated her beautiful features. Occasionally, when she raised her hand, a tourmaline bracelet with silk filling was visible on her fair wrist, adding a unique charm.
If it weren't for the fact that the surrounding caves were too crude, people would believe that she was a pampered noblewoman from a wealthy family.
The sword-wielding woman who had just spoken with Li Laosi and the others whispered, "Master, these people don't look like ordinary bandits or remnants of the army. They've even brought two young boys with them. One of the leaders looks like a manager, and the other, although he looks fierce, has the appearance of a farmer."
"The number of books they reported matches, so they must really be here to collect them. Do you think we should give them the books? Should we... should we go down the mountain with them?"
The beautiful woman gently shook her head and instructed, "Observe them further. We are all women; if we trust the wrong person, we won't even have a chance to turn things around. Go and tell them that we've been reading the books and need to organize them. Ask them to rest by the woods for a couple of days. Also, send them some gifts, and it would be best to find out more about their background."
“Alright, I’ll go find Xiaotong and Hui’er. They’re young, so no one will be on guard against them,” the woman with the sword agreed.
At the edge of the woods, a campfire had already been lit. The group hadn't caught much game along the way, but after rubbing it with fine salt and roasting it, they could still eat their fill with the dry white flour cakes they had brought from home.
Just as the rabbit was roasted, two young girls, about fifteen or sixteen years old, came over from the cave. They were petite, dressed plainly, and looked timid, like little rabbits.
The two men carried a small iron pot and a small cloth bag, stood a few steps away, and spoke to the crowd.
"My valiant warriors, our troupe leader says that the book boxes have been opened and it will take a day or two to gather them all together, so please wait a bit. Here we have an iron pot and some rice. You've all come a long way and must be tired. If you don't mind, we'll cook you some rice porridge to warm your stomachs."
No one would be wary of a girl like that.
Ye Shan and Li Laosi cupped their hands in greeting and replied, "Alright, please tell your troupe leader that not a single book can be missing. Also, we'll keep the iron pot as a loan, but you can take the rice back."
Perhaps they were speaking too loudly, because the two little girls shrank back in fright, their big eyes immediately filling with tears, as if they might fall at any moment.
Both Ye Shan and Li Laosi were embarrassed and subconsciously took a few steps back.
The two little girls clutched at their clothes, their tears falling even more rapidly.
"Our troupe leader ordered that if we take the rice back, we'll get scolded..."
One of the soldiers, feeling sorry for them, said, "Fourth Master, they're just two young girls. Why don't you treat them to a rabbit leg?"
"Yes, Fourth Master, let's cook some porridge. We've been eating dry rations all this way, and we really can't eat anymore."
Li Laosi frowned, but ultimately had to consider everyone's thoughts, so he nodded.
Immediately, someone led two little girls to sit on a large rock and gave them roasted rabbit legs.
The girls were initially a little reserved, but once they tasted the rabbit meat, they forgot everything.
"Waaah, this is so delicious! We haven't eaten meat in a year. We've been starving all the time, waaaah!"
"Me too, I thought I was going to starve to death in this forest."
The soldiers' hearts softened even more upon hearing this, and they broke off more dry biscuits for them, urging, "Eat slowly, you're so young, what are you doing in these deep mountains and forests?"
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