The road ahead was not easy, and even though Zhu Changle approached it with a "come what may" attitude, she was still secretly anxious.
This was different from her usual wanderings where she might get into a fight here and there. The people under her protection now were all her family. If any of them got even a small scratch, she would feel the pain. She couldn't afford to lose any of them.
Someone tapped her shoulder. Zhu Changle knew who it was without looking at the horse riding beside her, but she still had to look to understand what he wanted to express...
Qiuli pointed his fan at the carriage, then at her.
"Get in the carriage? Me? You want me to go in the carriage?"
Qiuli nodded.
Lan Ping rode up from the other side: "Go rest. You didn't sleep at all last night."
Thinking that with Lan Ping there she could indeed relax, Zhu Changle obediently got into her Grandmother's carriage. She tried to sleep leaning against her Grandmother, but she tossed and turned from left to right, and even climbed onto her Grandmother's lap, but still couldn't fall asleep.
The old lady held her like a child, gently patting her back. "Don't worry, as long as you've done your best, that's enough."
"Grandmother, I'm a little scared," Zhu Changle burrowed into the old lady's embrace, her voice muffled. "Not scared of not being able to beat them, but scared of not being able to take care of everyone. Big Brother said if I can't take care of everyone, I should focus on the most important ones. But for me, they're all important. I need to take care of all of them."
The old lady smiled and stroked her head. "It's not a bad thing to have some fear in your heart. It will always remind you not to be careless. You've been scared like this all the way here, haven't you?"
Zhu Changle nuzzled closer, not saying anything. How could she not be afraid? She had the ability to protect herself, and even if she got hurt, she healed easily. But her family members were all frail scholars, far less able to withstand hardship than her, and their recovery abilities weren't as good as hers. An injury that would be minor for her could be fatal for Big Brother.
Just thinking about this made Zhu Changle's heart race. She quickly pushed this terrible thought out of her mind. Such a thing could never happen!
Zhu Changle decided to clear her mind by practicing her martial arts for the rest of the journey. By the time they entered the chaotic no-man's land, she had calmed herself down.
This place was vast, with irregular streets and low, dilapidated houses. Most people wore tattered clothes, or rather, pieces of cloth piled on their bodies, and they watched the group pass with blank expressions.
In this early spring chill, children sitting on the ground wore only straw sandals, their blackened toes exposed. Whether from the cold or something else, their toes looked swollen and raised.
But it wasn't all like this. Zhu Changle patted Little Tail, who was snorting in response to the hostility he sensed, and turned to look at a nearby tavern. The people eating and drinking at one table were clearly wearing and using expensive items.
"Miss, let me go ahead and scout," Aunt Feng came forward and said in a low voice.
For safety reasons, Zhu Changle had not allowed her to act alone since they were still some distance from this place, and naturally wouldn't agree now either. Looking at the dim sky, she made a decisive move. She pulled on the reins to move to one side, then whipped the horses of the first carriage, saying in a low voice, "Speed up."
The carriages behind immediately followed, with the others guarding both sides as they moved forward.
It was as if a switch had been flipped - everyone sprang into action. Several trip wires emerged from the ground with clods of dirt. Lan Ping leapt into the air, bringing her heavy sword down hard, slashing several times to render the trip wires completely useless.
Zhu Changle and Dingding slapped the sleeve arrows on their wrists, repelling the knife-wielding attackers rushing out from both sides.
At this point, people ahead pushed out five or six chevaux de frise to block the road. They were crudely made things, but effective!
"Little Bottle Cap!"
No further words were needed. Lan Ping's heavy sword was most useful at times like this. With great sweeping strikes, she hacked the obstacles to pieces, and the carriages didn't slow down.
Seeing more people appear ahead, Zhu Changle drew her Tidal Sword, threw down a "go faster" and galloped to the front. Using both her sleeve arrows and sword techniques, she actually managed to create an unstoppable momentum.
"Chirp!"
This was Little Golden's warning!
Zhu Changle reined in Little Tail, turned around and galloped back, shouting loudly, "Be careful! Stop!"
The coachmen had been instructed earlier to follow the fourth miss's orders, so they immediately tightened the reins to slow down. At this moment, a sudden unfamiliar and extremely hoarse voice rang out, "Abandon the horses! Hold on tight!"
At the same time, Qiuli's figure appeared on the last carriage. With a wave of his fan, he cut the reins. The horses ran off, and as the carriage tilted forward, the coachman, being very experienced, grabbed the crossbar tightly to avoid falling off.
Aunt Feng, Dingding, and Ban Lian were surprised for a moment that he could speak, but seeing his actions, they immediately understood and did the same. Lan Ping and Zhu Changle were a step slower but also cut the reins of the two front carriages.
The people in the carriages were jolted and disoriented, but because of the timely warning, they had managed to hold on and not be thrown out. At this moment, no one spoke. Madam Xu didn't need to be prompted; she very conscientiously took out a medicine bottle and let the crying child smell it.
Seeing that the child indeed gradually stopped crying and soon fell asleep, Zhu Changning felt even more guilty. If they had used this medicine that day, today's danger could have been avoided.
While it takes a thousand words to describe, it all happened in an instant. As soon as the horses ran off, arrows came flying from all directions.
Zhu Changle inwardly bowed to Qiuli in gratitude. While swinging her long sword, she shouted, "Don't lean against the carriage! Lie down!"
The arrow rain stopped. The archers nocked their arrows, drew their bows fully, and aimed at the few of them. The knife-wielders who were originally at the back now stood at the front.
Dingding turned around on the spot and clicked his tongue. "Hey, Little Zhu, look at these numbers. We've made it big."
"We've always been impressive. They're just proving it once again," Zhu Changle didn't know the situation of her family members in the carriages and didn't dare waste time. She arranged, "Aunt Feng, you and Qiuli protect the carriages. Qiuli, is that okay?"
Qiuli nodded.
Without another word, Zhu Changle whistled and leapt onto the roof on the left. She had to deal with the archers first.
The enemy hadn't expected Zhu Changle to take the initiative to attack. The black-clothed men with knives met her, but Zhu Changle wasn't alone. Little Golden dove down, and the speed alone created a wind that instinctively made people want to retreat. As he retreated, he backed right into Zhu Changle's Tidal Sword.
Having Little Golden with her truly increased her battle strength by more than half.
Zhu Changle was extremely annoyed and showed no mercy. She didn't entangle herself with the knife-wielding men in black, but locked onto the archers as her target. In no time, the master and pet had torn open a gap on this side.
The other three also each charged towards a direction, but with so many enemies, it was impossible to block them all.
Aunt Feng's long whip complemented Qiuli's fan well, one for long-range attacks and one for close combat. This was exactly what Zhu Changle had planned.
Seeing the enemies closing in, Aunt Feng looked back only to see Qiuli tucking his fan into his waist.