"Treasure? News from Iiyama?"
When Zhang Xianzong heard the news, he was a little stunned. His first reaction was that the news was fake.
He was at the World Society just two days ago, not far from Jingshan, so how come he didn't hear this news?
We've only just reached the border of Jiangnan, and suddenly news comes from Jingshan that there's treasure below.
How could this news travel faster than I did? Even with the fastest courier service, it couldn't have arrived this quickly.
"My lord, I really didn't lie. It's all over Jiangnan now. There's a treasure buried under Jingshan Mountain."
"Many martial arts sects are rushing towards Jingshan, afraid of missing this opportunity. If you don't believe me, you can go to the town ahead and ask."
"Many ordinary people are talking about this, and they know about it."
A wandering swordsman knelt on the ground, trembling as he looked at the dark mass of armored soldiers before him, his trousers soaked with sweat.
Good heavens, where did all these soldiers come from?
Previously, wandering knights were only heard of in storytellers' mouths, where large armies would gather, like dark clouds pressing down on the city, threatening to crush it, and a single roar would terrify even the most timid.
It sounded impressive, but I didn't really take it seriously; I didn't really grasp the concept.
But when he actually faced so many officers and soldiers, he realized the oppressive feeling that such a large army could bring.
Just looking at this dark mass of people, the wanderer felt his heart was in his throat.
Zhang Xianzong ignored the wandering knight's changing expression and instead stroked his chin in thought.
After a while, he stood up and said to Chen Da beside him, "I reckon something must have happened in Jingshan. We need to get there quickly."
"Otherwise, with only Zhang Sanfeng and his disciple by the prince's side, how could he possibly deal with so many people from the martial arts world?"
Chen Da nodded: "Then let all the cavalry in the army mount up lightly and head straight for Jingshan. The remaining infantry will continue on the original plan. What do you think?"
"good!"
Zhang Xianzong nodded. The army had not brought many horses on this trip, and if they wanted to reach Jingshan as soon as possible, they could only send the cavalry ahead.
Xiong Er had no objection. Let him fight on the front lines; he could be at the forefront. But if he had to use his brain, it would be better to just kill him.
After the plan was finalized, the three men notified the other generals to gather their cavalry and head towards the well.
As their orders were given, the atmosphere in the army became tense, and every soldier began to rub their hands together in anticipation.
The island nation's great victory gave them a taste of military merit.
Each of them was hoping to earn more military merits in the Jiangnan region, so that when they returned to Tai'an City, others would be celebrating with gongs and drums while they could only return home with a meager reward.
If others saw this, they would think that he was cowardly and afraid of trouble on the battlefield and did not fight for the prince.
"Chiyo, where are they going? Are they going to abandon us?"
Xiaochangtan held Chiyo's hand, watching the soldiers rubbing their hands together in anticipation, feeling a little scared.
She was the same age as Chiyo, and they were both rescued from a brothel by soldiers of the Ming Dynasty.
The only difference is that Chiyo hasn't received any customers yet, but she's already receiving customers at the brothel.
Because of a lack of men, the island nation abolished the crime of rape and ordered all women in the country to give birth if they became pregnant. If they dared to have an abortion, they would be arrested and sent to military camps to become military prostitutes.
In this situation, women in island nations live without any dignity. They might be abducted on the street and reduced to tools for reproduction.
Some families felt that girls would be bullied by others when they grew up, so they might as well send them to brothels to earn some money.
That's how Xiao Changtan was; she was sent to a brothel by her family.
Customers who like her age usually have some kind of perversion.
On days like these, Xiao Changtan became somewhat timid and fearful. She felt afraid of everyone she saw, always thinking that everyone was trying to bully her.
After spending so long in the prisoner-of-war camp, her ailment was barely cured. At least now she doesn't worry that these soldiers will do anything to her like those men from the island nation.
Her only worry was that these soldiers would abandon her, and then she would be bullied by others again.
Chiyo shook her head. Having spent so long in the prisoner-of-war camp, she had learned some Chinese. Holding Chotan's hand, she said, "These noble people seem to be saying that they are going to select some people to go to that deity's side. Aren't they going to abandon us? Don't worry, Chotan."
"Really?"
"Really, why would I lie to you?"
Xiaoqian nodded seriously, then said, "Xiaochangtan, you must learn the words of the noble people well. When you grow up, we will live here. If you don't know how to speak the words of the noble people, how will you serve them in the future?"
"I...I...I..."
Xiao Changtan was a little down. She really wanted to learn from the nobleman's words and wanted to be like Xiao Qiandai, able to please those noblemen.
Xiao Changtan found these noblemen strange. They didn't like slapping or hitting people, and they liked listening to Xiao Qiandai's broken Chinese.
They especially loved hearing Chiyo call them "brother." No matter who the nobleman was, hearing "brother" would make them smile happily, and sometimes they would even put a few copper coins into Chiyo's hand.
Xiao Changtan didn't want the copper coins; he also hoped that he could make those important people happy.
If it weren't for them, how could I be living such a good life now?
Seeing her like this, Yumi sighed: "Changtan, we've finally been rescued from hell, we must make the most of this opportunity."
“I don’t want to be like before, being pinned down by those men, slapped by them, eating their excrement, beaten half to death, and still not getting enough to eat.”
"This place is wonderful. As long as I learn the language of the noble people, I can eat fragrant rice, sleep in clean blankets, and not be beaten."
“I don’t want to leave here. I’d rather die than go back to living like that.”
Yumi's words were met with nods of agreement from the surrounding island captives.
When they were first captured and brought to the prisoner-of-war camp, they were terrified, and some of them even thought about escaping.
After eating steamed buns and pickled vegetables for a few days, they no longer thought about running away. After all, many of them had never eaten such good food in their lives.
Now, even if Li Chang'an wanted to send them away, they wouldn't leave.
In the minds of many of them, prisoner-of-war camps were paradise.
Here, they don't have to worry about being grabbed by a group of men and pinned to the ground for repeated humiliation while walking down the street.
Here, they don't have to worry about running out of food today and going hungry tomorrow.
No matter what, Li Chang'an couldn't possibly watch these people starve to death.
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