Boys will be boys. Upon hearing that the Tatars were thrown into a mountain gully to be fed to wolves, their eyes immediately darted about, as if wishing they could go and see for themselves.
Fu Xinci, however, gave them no such opportunity. "Come here, let's think of a way to bury the bloodstains on the ground."
"Alright."
The three of them broke off branches from the pine trees on the hillside to use as brooms. They swept sand and soil together, little by little, to cover the bloodstains.
"Okay, that's about enough. Let's go back."
"Yes, we'll listen to Big Sister."
When Jin Xiaoqi and his men returned from the gully, they saw that the bloodstains on the main road had been covered.
Even more unexpected was the sight of dust flying up not far ahead. Through the swirling dust, the three little ones were dragging pine branches, concealing the tracks left by the injured horses.
He followed behind and took a look. It was indeed well done; an amateur would not be able to detect it.
Qi He lay on a large rock, his eyes fixed on the main road ahead as if he had lost his soul.
Qi Xi, with his men, squatted at the mouth of the mountain pass, also in a state of extreme anxiety.
Only when Qi He loudly announced that their own people were returning did Qi Xi's worry lessen somewhat.
Lying on the large rock, Qi He was no different.
Originally, after the signal fires were lit, Qi Yuanshan had led the elite soldiers from the garrison to confront the enemy head-on, leaving only Jin Xiaoqi with ten elderly and infirm men to guard the stronghold.
It was like this every year, and the people of Wujia Village had grown accustomed to it. Apart from sending some children in pairs to gather news from time to time, they had no other recourse.
But today was different. Not only did they hear that people from outside had escaped, but they also saw the Tatars pursuing them closely.
Then they heard that Jin Xiaoqi and the first squad had gone out to rescue them. The people of Mengjia Village became restless. Regardless of age or gender, they all grabbed their weapons and came to the mountain pass to await news.
They were ready to charge out and fight those beasts if any bad news arrived.
Because they were all thinking of their own loved ones, they had long forgotten what fear was.
The wait was agonizing. The women had tears in their eyes, and their hands gripped their cleavers and scissors tighter.
Finally, they heard Qi He's voice, "Everyone has returned."
The taut nerves finally relaxed. Some people could no longer hold on and slumped onto the ground. They didn't care that the frozen earth was icy cold in this season.
Qi He's eyes were constantly scanning the large group. When everyone arrived outside the stone formation, dragging seven injured horses, the Wang family, covered in blood, was among them, driving an ox cart.
Qi He's eyes searched the crowd several times, but he couldn't find the person he was looking for. His heart began to panic again.
Fortunately, after months of tempering, his mind had matured considerably. He noticed that Uncle Jin, Meng Yutang, and Meng Yuluo were not in the crowd either, so he guessed that Fu Xinci might be with them.
But no matter how much he guessed, he really wished he could be by Sister Fu's side.
He completely forgot the chaos in front of the stone formation and at the mountain pass.
People from both sides were trying their best to cause minimal damage to the stone formation, so they could get the ox cart and the seven horses through.
However, their wishes were beautiful, but the execution was not so smooth.
Qi He ignored the clamor below, his eyes still fixed resolutely in one direction.
Finally, after countless calls from his heart, Sister Fu appeared in his line of sight, dragging pine branches.
At this moment, Qi He's lips couldn't stop curving upwards, and his heart settled back into its place.
"Sister Fu, Sister Fu," he said, waving his hands to greet Fu Xinci.
"Yes!" Fu Xinci also raised her small arms in response.
Jin Xiaoqi, walking at the very back, finally saw the troublesome scene ahead and, with a sigh of helplessness, loudly ordered, "Everyone quickly bring everything in. Don't worry about the stone formation for now."
"Yes."
Following Jin Xiaoqi's instructions, everyone's movements quickened. In no time, they had brought the horses and the ox cart into the mountain pass.
Jin Xiaoqi then led his men to restore the stone formation to its original state.
Almost everyone from the two villages was at the mouth of the mountain pass. Seeing that their loved ones had returned safely, there was a flood of crying.
It was Jin Xiaoqi who knew how to lighten the mood. He immediately and loudly ordered the two cooks nearby, "Zhang Xiaonao, Li Sanpang, while those horses are still alive, hurry up and butcher them and divide the meat."
"Xiaoqi, those are seven horses! How can two people handle them?" Zhang Xiaonao looked at the fat and strong seven horses, lamenting inwardly. What a shame they were injured!
"Aren't they all people?" After speaking to the two cooks, Jin Xiaoqi turned with a relatively pleasant smile to the men, women, and children of the two villages and said, "You all must have been unable to stay at home today. It's better to help them with the work and pass the time."
Without hesitation, the people from the two villages felt that Jin Xiaoqi was right and agreed without a word.
After settling everyone down, Jin Xiaoqi made sure the Wang family was taken care of. Then, pretending nothing was amiss, he casually walked over to stand by Grandpa Meng and his grandchildren, chatting with Grandpa Meng intermittently.
Fu Xinci secretly thought, "This is a classic old fox (old sparrow) act. Is he taking me for a young, naive one (little sparrow)?"
He was a bit.
Jin Xiaoqi had no ill intentions. He just wanted to satisfy his curiosity and see what kind of weapon the little girl was holding.
At that time, when he examined the fatal wounds on the Tatar bodies, four of them had been shot in the heart from behind.
Having been a soldier for thirty years, he had seen almost every type of arrow produced by the Ministry of War of the Ming Dynasty that was sent to the northern frontier.
However, the wounds on the Tatars just now were unlike anything he had ever seen before.
Therefore, he was extremely curious about what kind of crossbow the little girl was using.
With this thought, Jin Xiaoqi subtly glanced at the little girl again.
Apart from her cotton-padded clothes, the little girl was also wearing a small cape. No matter how he looked, he couldn't see anywhere on her body where a weapon could be hidden.
The old fox kept observing, but the little sparrow had already taken precautions. Her right hand was hidden in her cape, refusing to be revealed.
It wasn't until Fu Yu came to deliver their midday meal that Fu Xinci, with a gentle smile, ran towards her supposed father.
The little girl ran very fast, the hem of her small cape lifted by the wind. This happened at just the right moment for Jin Xiaoqi to catch a glimpse of the small crossbow she was holding in her right hand.
With just one glance, Jin Xiaoqi knew it was a good thing.
It could be held comfortably by an eight-year-old girl, and the crossbow seemed to be only slightly larger than an adult man's palm.
Such a small and exquisite crossbow could be carried around at any time.
Jin Xiaoqi then thought of the wounds on the Tatar bodies, and his eyes became even more fervent, almost burning.
Fu Xinci was now a little afraid to look back; Jin Xiaoqi's gaze was too terrifying.