A group of people arrived at the rest stop, and Fang Heng left with his men shortly after.
Only three were left to drink hot water and fill their hungry stomachs.
They were like all ordinary merchants, chatting about everything from national affairs to family matters while eating.
"The rest stops here on the border are just small huts that can shelter from the wind and rain, and allow you to eat a meal. Extremely simple," Wang Xiaosong chatted endlessly. "The rest stops in Jiangnan are completely different. There are tea houses where the tea is free, and you can drink as much as you want."
"Tea houses? Wouldn't that be drafty on all sides and freeze you to death?" Yang Zhi asked blankly.
Wang Xiaosong laughed. "Jiangnan is warm. Without any wind, you'd be hot to death. It's precisely the wind coming in from all sides in the tea houses that cools you comfortably. And having a bowl of shaved ice dessert, ah that's just perfect."
Yang Zhi's expression changed from blankness to yearning.
He was born in the northern borderlands, and the farthest he had ever gone was on a trip to Anshui Prefecture. He had never been to the legendary land of richness that was Jiangnan, and could not imagine what it was like at all.
"Good lad, stick with brother and I'll bring you to Jiangnan to eat delicious food in the future," Wang Xiaosong boasted. "The roast duck there is so cheap, only a few dozen wen each."
Yang Zhi looked at him with absolute admiration, nodding earnestly.
After eating their fill, the three got up and continued on their way.
Wang Xiaosong remembered Fang Heng's urging to remain cautious. Their pace varied, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, and they would occasionally complain a little.
After about half an hour, the surroundings were still quietly peaceful.
Wang Xiaosong was beginning to wonder if the Tatars had left, when suddenly there were sounds of movement from behind, mixed with joyful shouts and unintelligible language.
In the blink of an eye, their cart was stopped. Over a dozen Tatars grinned as they surrounded them, raising their blades to slaughter.
They did not waste words or dally. Their purpose was very clear: to kill and hijack goods.
The long blue-tinged blades they wielded had reaped the lives of countless Dayu citizens.
Wang Xiaosong gritted his teeth to restrain his fear.
The curtain at the back of the cart was flipped open. Jiang Qi, Jiang Ba and Fifth Jiang burst out, long blades in hand, fighting the Tatars in close combat.
In that moment, the air was filled with flashing blades and spurting blood.
The Tatars were shocked and panicked, thinking they had encountered an ambush. When they realized it was only three people, they wanted to end it quickly.
The pressure on the Jiang siblings was considerable.
Not only did they have to protect Wang Xiaosong and the others behind them, they also had to delay the Tatars until the main force arrived.
And without horses, they could only rely on their own agility to maneuver through the crowd, slashing and killing the enemy.
If the Jiang siblings were like battle gods descended to earth,
then the three laborers were like wild grass trembling in the biting winter wind, clinging together yet still shivering.
Recognizing them as bait, the Tatars cursed as five long blades slashed towards them simultaneously.
Jiang Qi and Jiang Ba cried out, each rushing to block a blade.
That left three more headed for the necks of the laborers.
In a flash, Fifth Jiang rolled forward from where she stood. Grasping a long sword in her right hand and a seized cleaver in her left, she braced her injured back to single-handedly block three long blades.
"Fifth sis... brother." Jiang Ba's eyes were red. "Hold on, the captain will be here soon."
Fifth Jiang shook her head, indicating she was fine. Raising a hand, she deflected the Tatar blades before spinning and slicing off the hand of the Tatar behind her who held a knife.
"Ah..." The Tatar screamed in pain.
Fifth Jiang's expression did not change. Her left hand threw the long blade, directly knocking the Tatar off his horse.
Those years of hardship were not suffered in vain. To those who were cruel to her, she would be even crueler to the enemy.
Despite looking like a delicate flower of a young lady, she had to live in the army camp as a man. Although her brothers helped cover for her, Fifth Jiang's ruthlessness accounted for the majority.
She did not care whether she was a daughter. She did not care about the calluses on her palms, the scars on her body, whether her hair was beautiful, or if her face was aging.
She only wanted to prove that she was no worse than any man.
And she had succeeded.
Galloping at full speed, Fang Heng reined in his horse just in time to see the blood flowing down Fifth Jiang's back. His eyes flashed with anger.
The horse neighed and reared up, then stumbled forward two steps from momentum before landing squarely on top of the Tatar from before.
Amid wretched screams, Fang Heng shouted furiously, long blade in hand, "Kill them all!"
If the initial delay was thanks to the Jiang siblings, now it was the one-sided slaughter of the Dayu army. Even with equal numbers, the Tatars had no chance as long as they could not escape.
In the blink of an eye, over a dozen ferocious fighters were either dead or gravely injured, with only one straggler barely escaping on horseback. But that was just a final struggle.
Because Fang Heng had already nocked an arrow behind him, aimed at the Tatar's back.
With the arrow loosed, the Tatar fell lifeless to the ground.
The men of the tenth company cheered happily at their victory. Some collected weapons, some moved bodies, some led horses.
Such was the way of war.
With limited iron ore reserves, being able to equip all army soldiers with long blades had already drained most of the national reserves.
Yet each battle used up many blades and killed many people.
To conserve resources, intact blades were collected for reuse, broken bits taken to blacksmiths for reforging, good horses brought back for the army, and dead ones skinned for meat.
But the greatest spoils were not these.
Sitting atop his horse, Fang Heng stared at the shivering Wang Xiaosong and his two companions, recalling the key to luring the enemy in just now. His eyes shone incredibly bright.
Counting the years of skirmishes between the Dayu and the Tatars, all sorts of ploys to lure the enemy in had failed.
Why was that?
Because they lacked authenticity.
Wang Xiaosong and the others could serve as bait because they were genuinely transporting goods, genuinely afraid, and genuinely fleeing for their lives.
All façades could only fool idiots. Only real behavior could attract the Tatars and achieve the goal of luring them in.
While refusing to use commoners as bait, if the troops lived like ordinary people - transporting goods, arguing, bickering, boasting - not pretending temporarily or role playing, but genuinely living that way to become ordinary people to attract the Tatars...
The years of stalemate seemed to have a breakthrough.
Sitting tall atop his horse, the youthful heroism of Fang Heng stirred, stars flashing in his eyes as he gazed into the distance.
In two different directions, one boy sketching maps for expansion in all four directions, another sitting quietly reading a book awaiting the exam results. Like three shining stars, they slowly ascended.
The positions they occupied coincidentally formed a triangle.
Sensing their younger brother's gaze, Zheng Ruqian and Xu Mo looked up at the same time.
One saw the Prince of Fugong who had personally delivered a letter.
The other stared at his sister rushing through the doorway, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Eldest brother, the results are out," Jiang Sheng said through gritted teeth, her tone pained. "But your name isn't on there."
