An Shuyi looked at the things in his hand; they were pastries. She took them and said, "Thank you, sir. Please also thank your master for me."
Could the official be the eunuch who read the imperial edict last time? I didn't see him, so I don't know. But there aren't many eunuchs as kind as him.
"No need to thank me. I'll head back now. Please make yourselves at home, ladies. If you need anything, just call me." With that, the soldier ran off into the distance.
"Huahua, do you think the eunuch who reads the imperial edict this time is the same one as last time?"
"I don't know. I didn't see anyone. It's dark now, so I can't see clearly. Besides, no one got off the carriage," Xia Hua said.
An Shuyi also felt that the question was a bit difficult, so she took out a silver needle from the warehouse and inserted it into the pastry. It didn't turn black, so she put the silver needle back into the warehouse with the pastry.
Although it was someone else's good intention, she had promised Huahua that she wouldn't eat other people's food, so she had to keep her word. Besides, Huahua was watching, so she couldn't make a mistake.
Xia Hua naturally watched her actions, but didn't say anything. The two of them took out two steamed buns from the warehouse, ate them, and then found a tree to lean against and rest.
When they woke up the next morning, the team in the distance was already packed and ready to set off. It was only just dawn, but the two of them didn't care at all and went back to sleep.
There were so many mosquitoes that night, buzzing around them constantly, making it hard to sleep. When the two of them woke up again, the sun had already risen. They took water from the warehouse, washed up, ate lunch, and then set off on horseback.
Since they were on horseback, they caught up with the soldiers' ranks in just one hour.
Looking at the procession ahead, the two of them didn't move forward, but followed behind them. It wasn't that they didn't want to move forward, but the road was too narrow, only wide enough for one carriage to pass, and they couldn't get through.
They followed for a while when suddenly the procession ahead stopped. The soldiers said that the wheels of the carriages ahead had broken. Upon hearing this, An Shuyi and Xia Hua wondered if there were any bandits or something.
After all, it couldn't have been any other time that the carriage broke down, but it had to happen now, and it was the very first carriage. There was no time for the two of them to think about it, because soon a lot of people appeared on the hillside.
Holding broadswords, they charged towards the front ranks. When the soldiers saw the bandits, they drew their broadswords to meet them. For a moment, the narrow space was filled with the sounds of swords clashing.
An Shuyi looked at the bandits, and then at the government soldiers who were clearly outnumbered by less than half. She had no choice but to take action, since the things in the carriage were all theirs, and there was also an imperial edict and the eunuch reading it.
He took the bow and arrows off the horse, drew the arrows, and shot them at the bandits. These bow and arrows were bought in the capital and were much better than the previous ones, which had long been thrown away.
There was originally only one bow, but the two liked it very much, so they asked the shopkeeper to make another one. The shopkeeper readily agreed, since a bow and twenty arrows would cost more than two thousand taels.
Two bows and arrows cost more than five thousand taels of silver. In addition to two hundred bows and forty arrows, the shopkeeper was asked to make forty more arrows, making a total of eighty. Although they were very expensive, they were very useful.
This bow is far more powerful than the previous one. An arrow shot from it can pierce through a body and fly far away.
Seeing the bandits fall beside them, the soldiers, realizing they had help, were greatly encouraged and swung their knives even faster. Before long, the bandits were all cut down.
An Shuyi and Xia Hua had also fired all the arrows in their hands. Not a single one of the eighty arrows missed, and there were no more bandits standing. The two jumped off their horses and went to pick up the arrows.
If any bandits were still alive, their necks were slashed open with a knife.
"Madam An, Madam Xia, how could it be you?"
The two men, who were still picking up arrows, turned around when they heard the sound. It was the same eunuch who had read the imperial edict last time. He was sitting in the carriage, his face pale, and he looked quite frightened.
“It is indeed us, Father-in-law, we meet again,” An Shuyi said. She hadn’t expected it to be such a coincidence that the same father-in-law was reading the imperial edict this time.
“Two ladies, no, now you are no longer ladies, but ladies of honor. Where did you two ladies of honor come from? We were on our way to Jinnan City to read out the imperial edict when we unexpectedly encountered you two.”
Looking at the corpses scattered on the ground, the father-in-law patted his chest and said, "I really have to thank you two ladies. If it weren't for you, my family would not be alive."
“These bandits are really courting death. They even dared to rob the imperial procession that was being conferred titles. When we get back to the palace, I have to report this to the Emperor.”
An Shuyi smiled and said, "No need to thank me, Father-in-law. It's all my pleasure. We also came from the capital. We originally had business to attend to in the capital, but when we heard that we had been conferred the title of Fourth-Rank Lady, we were afraid of delaying your time, so we rode here. We didn't expect to run into your entourage."
The eunuch said, “Before we entered the palace, our surname was Deng. You two ladies can just call me Eunuch Deng. I never expected that you two ladies would go to the capital. If it had been earlier, we could have read the imperial edict in the capital.”
"It's not suitable to read the imperial edict here either. My family and the two ladies will go to your village to read the edict and take a good look at your village. We didn't get a good look at it last time."
If it weren't for His Majesty's order to investigate the village of the two ladies and find out what kind of magical place it was that could produce two such capable people, he would have wanted to finish reading the imperial edict and return to the palace immediately.
"Everyone must be very happy to have someone like you, Father-in-law, come to the village. Let's set off now, otherwise it won't be safe to stay here too long." There are definitely still some of these bandits around; let's be careful that another wave doesn't come later.
Deng Gonggong nodded and ordered the soldiers to clear the road before setting off.
An Shuyi and Xia Hua retrieved the arrows. The soldiers threw the corpses down the hillside before the group set off. On horseback, the two women carefully wiped the arrows clean with a cloth.
When it got dark, everyone stopped to rest. The place was spacious, and the soldiers started cooking. Xia Hua knew that she would be traveling with them from here, so she sent Shu Shu hunting.
Actually, they just bought a few chickens, cleaned them, and brought them back to roast. The soldiers continued eating their meals, while Deng Gonggong ate with them and even brought out his snacks to share.
In his words, he was tired of the food the soldiers cooked, and he ate snacks every day. If he came across an inn or village, he would buy food with money.
Looking at the pot in front of the soldiers, at the rice inside, whether it was dry or watery, An Shuyi understood perfectly. She didn't want his snacks, but instead gave him a roast chicken, since they had roasted several of them.
Perhaps because they both shared a love of food, the two had a very good, even pleasant, conversation. Unlike other eunuchs, Eunuch Deng was quite knowledgeable.
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