"Whether in Xiluo, Baling, Xianyou, or any other place reachable by trade routes, it is very popular. Just one of these snail shells can fetch at least one tael of silver in the market; if taken back to the Xiluo Kingdom, I hear selling it for two taels is no problem at all."
He Lingchuan brought out a fluorescent spore to shine some light. The snail in Liu Tong's hand was actually bright yellow, the shade of Shoushan Tianhuang jelly stone, but touched with a hint of green and a dab of purple, as if dyed completely on a whim.
Whimsical, yet endowed with a spiritual beauty, as if every stroke of color were the finishing touch.
"Candy snails only live in the caves of Yan Mountain. Panlong City stations guards here and forbids anyone from taking them without permission," Liu Tong said with a smile. "We achieved considerable merit in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest, so this is a special commendation."
Sparks instantly flashed in Skinny's eyes. "This treasure is gorgeous!" One tael of silver was a thousand copper cash! "Can each of us take six?"
"Yes, but don't even think about smuggling more," Liu Tong said sternly. "If caught, our squad will be fined ten taels of silver instead, and have our military merits docked!"
He glared at Skinny, his tone hardening. "Skinny, did you hear me!"
He was most worried about this guy.
Skinny waved his hands repeatedly. "Don't worry, don't worry! I never step out of line!"
With that, the group split up to search the cave for snails.
Heavy snow had fallen recently, leaving the cavern warm and humid. Lichen and moss had even begun sprouting tender shoots—it was practically paradise for snails. Thus they were exceptionally active, crawling out from their hiding places to wander about.
In no time at all, everyone had gathered their quota.
Fists pressed against fists, and when they opened their palms, dozens of snails gathered together, their colors as brilliant as a rainbow after rain.
Gold, red, blue, indigo, purple, yellow... there was no color they couldn't produce, only ones you couldn't imagine. Even the most skilled confectioner could never craft candy so kaleidoscopic.
"These are gorgeous!" Willow marveled. "I'm not selling mine, I'm keeping them!"
For bracelets, pendants, hairpins, or hair ornaments, wouldn't they blow common goods like pearls and agates out of the water?
Hearing this, Door Plank scratched his head. "Once we're out, I'll give you mine too."
Willow blinked. "Ah, all right, I'll buy them from you, but you have to give me a teammate discount."
"They're just trinkets that girls like anyway. I can just give them to you."
Only then did Willow beam like a blooming flower.
Skinny and He Lingchuan exchanged a look, both sighing in unison.
The journey back to the city was peaceful all the way.
Before long, the conspicuous gates of Panlong City came into view.
No matter the time, this formidable stronghold always instilled solid confidence in soldiers, citizens, and travelers alike. Yet as He Lingchuan drew closer, he noticed a steady stream of people pouring out of the city gates, carrying rolled-up bedrolls, riding donkeys, and traveling in carts.
This didn't look like a merchant caravan; rather, it resembled an exodus.
Door Plank said in wonder, "What's going on here?"
Panlong City rarely opened its gates wide to let so many people out at once—unless it was an army.
It had always been commoners dragging their families to move into the city; rarely did one see them rubbing shoulders on their way out.
He Lingchuan glanced over and unexpectedly spotted familiar faces in the crowd:
Liu Sanjiu and his wife, along with their son and daughter.
They were still leading that donkey, which was still loaded down with a massive bundle of luggage, resentment showing in its eyes.
When Weicheng had fallen, He Lingchuan had blended into the refugee column, and the first people he met were Liu Sanjiu's family, who worked at a small-town brewery in Weicheng. He Lingchuan had chatted with them halfway until the Baling pursuers caught up.
The events before and after that great battle remained vivid in He Lingchuan's mind, so of course he hadn't forgotten them.
With the patrol guards standing by the roadside, Liu Sanjiu spotted him as well. Giving an "Ah!", he said in pleasant surprise, "You, it's you...!"
He naturally recognized the fine young fellow who had helped him on the refugee trail, but for the life of him he couldn't recall the youth's family name. Stammering for a second, he quickly asked, "Are you well? Do you want to head back together?"
"Head back?" He Lingchuan smiled. "Where to?"
"To Weicheng, of course." Liu Sanjiu looked sheepish. "General Red retook Weicheng, and Prefect Sun is taking us home."
He remembered the circumstances of their flight just as clearly. Seeing He Lingchuan again now, his feelings were inevitably a little complicated.
He Lingchuan's presence seemed to remind him of how disgraceful and wretched he had been back then.
He Lingchuan looked at the long line. "Are all these people from Weicheng?"
"Yes, yes." Liu Sanjiu's wife beamed from ear to ear. "We never thought we'd be able to go back in our lifetimes."
Looking at them, Skinny piped up, "If Brother He hadn't risked his life to blow up the spider demon's lair in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest, and if General Red hadn't infiltrated Weicheng in person to retake it, you'd still be holed up in Panlong City farming—not that I think there's anything wrong with that!"
The smiles on the faces of Liu Sanjiu and his wife froze slightly.
They didn't know much about what happened on the front lines; all they knew was that retaking Weicheng was merely one of General Red's countless military achievements.
General Red had won so many victories that commoners had grown numb to the good news.
Liu Sanjiu bowed deeply to He Lingchuan. "Thank you, Brother He!"
He Lingchuan waved a hand. "Why do you want to go back to Weicheng? Isn't it safer here in Panlong City?"
"Panlong City truly is a wonderful place, and the Chipa Plateau behind it is like paradise." Liu Sanjiu exchanged a glance with his wife. "It's just that we're not quite used to it. There's really no place like home."
"Why are the people of Weicheng moving together like this?" Liu Tong looked at it from another angle. "Did someone organize it?"
"I heard Prefect Sun submitted a request to Commander Zhong to return to the city, and Commander Zhong agreed," Liu Sanjiu's wife replied. "Prefect Sun then sent word through the city, telling Weicheng people who intended to return to register at the government office first. Then today we gathered at the South Gate to set out, escorted by the army as well."
Indeed, Panlong soldiers could be seen patrolling near the column; it appeared Zhong Shengguang was seeing a good deed through to the end, escorting the people of Weicheng home.
Liu Sanjiu looked at He Lingchuan, whose military armor was very conspicuous. "Brother He, you joined the army?"
He Lingchuan nodded.
"In Panlong City, you will surely make a name for yourself!" Liu Sanjiu cupped his hands. "Please take care of yourself."
The two sides waved goodbye, each heading toward their own future.
Both knew they would likely never meet again, which made their smiles all the more sincere.
"All right, drop that fake smile." Willow couldn't bear to watch any longer and rolled her eyes at He Lingchuan. "Don't tell me you saved that family too?"
"Well..." He had participated in Captain Xiao's rearguard action, buying the civilians more time to escape, so, "You could say that."
Willow scoffed. "He couldn't even remember your family name." Liu Sanjiu's hesitant look had not escaped her sharp eyes.
"Doesn't matter." He Lingchuan turned his horse around and rode toward Panlong City.
Who told him to be a good man who expected nothing in return?
After entering the city and saying goodbye to his squadmates, He Lingchuan returned to his small house. Another pile of gifts was stacked outside his door.
He hauled everything inside. The tiny courtyard was already half-filled, to the point where there was barely even room for the water vat.
He heated up some lukewarm water and washed off the dust and fatigue of travel.
A home—a home where charcoal could be lit in winter—was the finest haven for the human heart.
Yet he had just finished drying his hair when he heard a flapping flutter outside; something in the courtyard toppled over, accompanied by the mournful cry of a bird.
What happened?
He pushed the door open and stepped outside to look. Black and white feathers were fluttering everywhere in the little courtyard. The only piece of furniture here, a wooden bench, had fallen over, and there was a small puddle of blood on the ground.
Perched atop the wall was a bird of prey with brown feathers and white spots. Pinned beneath its talons was a magpie whose head was already gone, its body still twitching.
The bird of prey was using its hooked beak to pluck feathers, which drifted down with the wind into He Lingchuan's courtyard, flecked with blood.
Clearly, his courtyard had become a hunting ground.
He Lingchuan whistled, reminding this uninvited guest to mind its table manners and not cause too much trouble for the owner.
Why did this bird look so familiar?
The raptor saw him come out, yet it did not flee. Instead, it tilted its head, studied him closely for a moment, and suddenly spoke in human tongue: "So it's you."
As soon as it spoke, He Lingchuan also let out an "Oh": "So it's you."
Wasn't this the sparrowhawk he had met in the Ghost Needle Stone Forest? Back then, this monster had received orders from General Nan Ke, gripping a command arrow fire bomb to blow up the spider lair, only for Zhu Erniang's rosy-cloud spider silk to prove too tough, forcing the mission to be passed over to Sun Jiayuan and He Lingchuan.
After that incident, they could be considered comrades-in-arms. However, He Lingchuan hadn't seen the sparrowhawk since, presuming it had accompanied the main force on other missions.
He Lingchuan pointed to the magpie under its talons. "Thanks. That thing was always chattering and keeping me from sleeping."
Come winter, birds all but vanished from Panlong City, leaving only fat magpies hopping around, often stealing grain from residents' homes. Spring had not yet arrived, yet the magpie was already this plump—if a bird of prey didn't catch them, what else would it catch?
Since fate had brought them together again, he set the bench upright, poured a bowl of clean water, and set it on top.
The sparrowhawk flew down clutching its prey and landed on the bench, taking several long sips of water.
"How have you been?"
"I just returned from the Ghost Needle Stone Forest with General Red." The sparrowhawk tore into the meat, looking ravenous. "Round trip took two days."
He Lingchuan paused in surprise. "General Red went to the Ghost Needle Stone Forest?"
"Yes, led troops to chastise Zhu Erniang," said the sparrowhawk. "General Red said she had to settle the score from last time."
The Baling forces had schemed, using the burrow spiders of the Ghost Needle Stone Forest against the Panlong army. Zhu Erniang had taken the field in person, nearly inflicting catastrophic losses on General Nan Ke's troops.
Afterward, Panlong City naturally couldn't let it slide.
Moreover, the Ghost Needle Stone Forest was a vital route connecting Puxigou and other allied cities to the southeast, and Panlong City was obligated to ensure the safety of its allies.
"How did it go?"
"We went prepared this time, specifically targeting the burrow spiders for payback. We burned down seven or eight secondary lairs alone, and slaughtered more than half of Zhu Erniang's spawn. At the primary nest, it was a ferocious battle. Zhu Erniang, who spends all year setting traps, walked right into the General's trap this time. More than half of her elite spider guardians were killed, two of her legs were broken, and her belly was nearly pierced clean through. When the General threatened to torch her last remaining stronghold, Zhu Erniang had no choice but to sue for peace."
"Hiss—" He Lingchuan had seen Zhu Erniang with his own eyes. An ancient remnant demon like her surely had no shortage of trump cards, yet she had been beaten so miserably by General Red.
She truly was a force of nature, a god of war.
Chapter 220