From the rear of the carriage, a spiral staircase leads up to the roof, where four Xuanjia soldiers are crouching by the railing, maintaining order.
They each crouched at one of the four corners, patrolling the surrounding area for any unusual activity, so they could report it to Runtu, who was driving ahead, as soon as possible.
As Zheng Quchi and Yuwen Sheng walked up, a soldier in the Xuanjia armor heard the noise and immediately turned around.
"General, Madam, why did you come up here?"
After a moment of surprise, the four hurriedly said, "General, Madam, I just saw a figure moving behind the rocky slope. Based on the terrain of the surrounding high ground and rocky slope, the enemy is probably deploying archers to shoot from the tunnels."
When people are in the open, they are more vulnerable to being shot from the shadows. Naturally, it is safer to have cover inside the carriage. However, in order to scout out enemy positions, someone must risk being shot by an arrow and keep watch on the roof.
Seeing that they deliberately crouched down and used the barely functional railings on the roof of the car for cover and to avoid danger, Zheng Quchi immediately said, "This won't do. Move aside and I'll set things up."
Should we make some arrangements?
What does this mean?
The five people on the roof of the car, including Yuwen Sheng, looked at her in confusion.
"Arrangements? What are you going to do?" Yuwen Sheng asked.
Zheng Quchi explained to them simply: "Actually, I originally planned to add some defensive functions to the design of this carriage roof. When I was designing it, I thought about how to fight back if such a large carriage is conspicuous and encounters danger."
However, time was too tight, and she had not yet been able to realize all her ideas.
The car was still moving. She steadied herself as she moved, took a step forward, and snapped off the pole on the roof with a "snap".
The poles are fixed together using mortise and tenon joints, and with skill and strength, they can be easily disassembled.
After disassembling this side, she took out a small hammer from her bag and began to vigorously hammer and knock the seat that was stuck in the groove. She was an expert in this area and worked quickly and efficiently. In just a few skillful moves, she turned the assembled chair into more than a dozen square boards.
Then she took out a carving knife, chisel, and some other handy tools and started carving away at the disassembled components.
Within minutes, she had reassembled them, carrying the boards and smoothly completing the installation process once again.
During this time, Yuwen Sheng and his men kept watch over the surrounding environment while watching her methodically carry out the carpentry work of disassembling and assembling the parts.
What was once a spacious and bright sightseeing vehicle has been transformed into a tank-like enclosed structure, with only a skylight exposed on the roof, while the other four sides are blocked off. However, in order not to affect the vehicle's speed, the front panel is angled at less than 45 degrees, which can effectively reduce the wind resistance on the vehicle.
"This...this works?!"
The Xuanjia soldiers were all stunned when they saw the vehicles being modified on site for the first time.
Zheng Quchi tapped on them to check their sturdiness. After confirming that there were no problems, she looked around and then remembered another problem: "Wait a moment, I need to make an opening in these boards, otherwise we won't be able to scout out the enemy situation outside."
She walked to the wooden board, took out a charcoal pencil, and without a ruler, neatly drew very standard horizontal and vertical lines on it. After comparing the size and dimensions to make sure it was correct, she turned to Yuwen Sheng and said, "General, did you see the lines I drew?"
Yuwen Sheng looked at her with a smile on his lips: "I saw it."
She instructed, "When you use your sword, be precise and don't go over the line. This width and length are just right for us to observe the outside, and it can also protect us from being hurt by arrows or spears thrown from the outside."
Yuwen Sheng understood, and asked with some surprise, "You want me to use my sword to cut grooves and dig holes for you?"
The Xuanjia Army was also shocked by the general's wife's audacity.
How could she dare ask the general to do such a thing? Moreover, to use the sword the general uses to kill enemies to whittle wood—it's utterly absurd!
If the lady is finished, the general will definitely turn on her, and might even give her a good scolding.
At that time, although they were of low status, they still had to plead for the general. After all, the general's wife had gone to great lengths to do all this for their benefit, and they couldn't just stand by and watch the general's wife be scolded and brought to tears by the general.
They knew all too well that when the general's words turned sharp, they could be deadly.
Zheng Quchi was completely unaware that she was in big trouble in other people's eyes. She said as if it were a matter of course, "I don't have any suitable tools. With your superb swordsmanship, you can just make a few strokes on it and it will be done."
Yuwen Sheng didn't speak for a moment, but just looked at her with a half-smile.
The Xuanjia Army soldiers immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Sure enough, the general would never agree to her request. Didn't they see the general's expression that said, "You're probably just dreaming"?
His expression, which made it impossible to discern his true intentions, made Zheng Quchi feel guilty.
She wondered to herself, "Could it be that his sword is destined to be used only for killing, and not as a tool?"
...Then forget it.
"Then I'll chisel it myself slowly."
She slumped her shoulders and gave in, taking out her carving knife and about to step forward when she saw Yuwen Sheng reach out and lightly pull her into his arms. He had already raised his sword and swung it, and streaks of cold light flashed before her eyes.
Zheng Quchi froze, even feeling a chill creep across her exposed skin, which immediately went numb.
The next second, Yuwen Sheng sheathed his sword, and all the strange sensations disappeared.
Zheng Quchi breathed a sigh of relief. When she looked up again, she saw that the wooden board she had painted seemed unchanged. But when she gently pressed it with her finger, a piece of the smooth, tofu-like scrap fell off.
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