novelhk Chapter 146 Arrival in Fufang County
Chapter 146 Arrival in Fufang County
The city wall was extended for another ten miles to the north, and the soldiers patrolling along the way all saw this somewhat thin, lightly dressed young woman.
She strolled leisurely along the city wall, as comfortable as if she were in her own home, occasionally glancing out from the crenellations. She would look down and ponder for a moment, then continue her leisurely stroll.
Behind her, a squad leader followed at a distance, arranged by Li Jia. Once Ning Xiaoxi was off the city wall, he could return to his post.
At the end of the city wall, she saw a small mountain peak, not very high, only a few hundred feet high, connected to the city wall, forming a natural barrier.
Amidst the shocked gazes of the guards, Ning Xiaoxi jumped directly off the city wall.
Everyone rushed to the top of the wall to check on the little girl who had jumped down.
Her petite figure landed steadily on the ground, waved to the sky, and then headed north.
The squad leader who had been following her breathed a sigh of relief. Ning Xiaoxi's jump had really frightened him; he couldn't bear the responsibility if anything had happened.
Ning Xiaoxi regretted it as soon as she landed; she had forgotten that she had already released the reindeer. Now that she had jumped off the city wall, where was she going to find another means of transportation?
Although the soles of the boots are waterproof and the felt uppers are warm, they are not suitable for long treks in the snow.
Sigh, the weather in the North is so cold. It's already May, and the ground is still covered in ice and snow.
Looking at the black earth that occasionally appeared beneath her feet, which was the ground exposed by the melted snow, she hopped and hopped, trying to land her feet on the exposed black ground.
Just as she was playing hopscotch on the ground, a pair of hooves suddenly appeared in front of her.
Ning Xiaoxi looked up at the familiar reindeer face and tilted her head slightly. "You haven't gone home yet?"
The reindeer stared at her with its big, wet eyes.
"Alright! Then you'll follow me from now on!"
Ning Xiaoxi happily flipped and jumped onto the reindeer's back, pointing straight north, "Forward!"
After another three days of travel, Ning Xiaoxi smiled as she looked at the city appearing on the horizon.
Fufang County is one of the ten border defense counties. It is a county town located towards the east and is the third county town from the east.
The city of Youdu, where the King of Youzhou resides, is located in the middle, separated from Fufang County by a border fort.
The county town is surrounded by rolling mountains, like a winding dragon tightly embracing it. The mountains are covered with snow, which shimmers with a cool light under the sun, as if nature has built a natural barrier for this border town.
The reindeer carried Ning Xiaoxi slowly closer. Beneath their feet lay a plain, with occasional glimpses of black earth peeking through the white snow—apparently, this was the land cultivated by the border people of Youzhou. The snow and ice of May hadn't completely melted yet. Looking up at the sun, at this temperature, the snow wouldn't melt until late May, meaning planting wouldn't begin until June. There was a growing season of about two or three months, after which the weather would start to get cold in September, lasting from October to the following June.
Ning Xiaoxi couldn't help but gasp. With such a climate, how could the King of Youzhou support an army of a million? The harvest from the north could never possibly supply such a large army!
From afar, a rider came galloping towards them. Ning Xiaoxi didn't pay much attention at first, but as she watched, a wide smile crept onto her face.
"Brother!" Standing on the back of a reindeer, the little girl raised her arms high and waved them, her slightly shrill voice piercing through the air.
Ning Ziqing, whom I hadn't seen for almost a month, rode over on horseback, her face beaming with the same undisguised smile.
As Ning Ziqing pulled the horse closer, she looked at her younger sister with eyes sparkling like stars.
"Brother, I'm back!" Ning Xiaoxi stood on the back of the moose, a proud little expression on her face.
Ning Ziqing pulled the horse's head aside to avoid the reindeer's massive antlers, then reached out and lifted his younger sister by the armpits, pulling her to sit in front of him. He pulled off his fur cloak and wrapped it around her. "I received news from Lord Tianji a few days ago that you had set off for Fufang, but half a month has passed and we haven't seen you. Father and Mother are very worried. I've been guarding the city gate every day. I just saw you, and I've already sent Zhou Xin back to deliver a message to Father and Mother. I estimate we'll see them when we reach the city gate."
Ning Xiaoxi nestled quietly in her brother's arms, listening to his rambling.
“Fufang County is actually quite large, and the people are very simple and honest, completely different from the royal city. We are all assigned to the border garrison in the northern district, where the houses are all uniformly built. Although we are criminals, thanks to the grace of the King of Youzhou, there is no special hard labor here.” Ning Ziqing slowed down, and the reindeer obediently followed behind. “Father and several officials have been assigned tasks according to their previous duties, but there is no pay, so our families have to find their own way to make a living.”
Ning Xiaoxi took out a water bag from her bosom and handed it to her brother so he could moisten his throat.
Ning Ziqing had just seen her younger sister looking refreshed, without even a small bundle, yet calmly taking out a water bag.
Ning Xiaoxi took out another water bag, opened it, and took a sip of the mulberry tree sap. "The space talisman given by Master Tianji is very useful. It can hold a lot of miscellaneous items. It's both convenient and easy to use."
Ning Ziqing already knew that her younger sister could easily store many items, and now, with the spatial talisman given by Tianji, there was no need to be particularly discreet. She opened the water bag and took a sip. The water was cool and slightly sweet at first, but it began to heat up as it went down her throat, reaching her chest like a warm current that rushed down to her lower abdomen and then flowed to her limbs. Instantly, her feet, which had become icy cold from waiting in the cold weather for so long, warmed up.
"Xiaoxi, what is this?"
“The sap of the Three Mulberry Trees is a specialty of the Kuafu tribe,” Ning Xiaoxi said softly. “However, the Kuafu tribe has already closed itself off. I only have a few bags that Kuiwei Shanyue gave me when he left. Once I finish drinking them, there won’t be any left.”
"They've been sealed off like the Tushan clan?" Ning Ziqing asked, his expression unchanged.
"Ah."
"My second cousin, Jizong, from my maternal uncle's family, has also arrived. Originally, the furthest our maternal relatives' caravans went was Beixiao City, but this time my maternal uncle specially sent my second cousin to Fufang, intending to open a shop here. The day before yesterday, we settled on a shop in the eastern district facing the main street. The shop isn't big, it's three-bay, three stories high, and there's a courtyard in the back. My second cousin has been taking care of it and cleaning it these past two days, and we'll hang up the signboard in a couple of days when the sun is shining."
"This place mainly deals in leather goods. I have some top-quality leather goods that can be sold in my cousin's shop."
"The northern regions mainly deal in furs and food, and there aren't many other goods. We can explore further and see what goods we can transport."
Although the two walked slowly, they arrived near the city gate.
Before even getting close to the city gate, Ning Xiaoxi saw Ning Shi and Ming Luoying standing on the snow outside the city gate.