The Zhou family members had not expected to travel with these soldiers all the way to their destination.
"Brother, I've heard people say that Mengjia Town is very prosperous now. I hear the town mayor, Meng, is also a rare good person. He manages Mengjia Town in an orderly fashion, and it's well-known throughout the Northern Frontier. Why don't we settle down there?"
"Although Mengjia Town is good, it's a border town. If the Tatars attack, what will happen to our entire family?"
"Brother, we didn't stay close to the border before, but what was the result? We still had to leave our homeland to survive."
"That's right. If that's the case, I'd rather go to Mengjia Town. Even if the Tatars come, our entire family is not afraid of death. Fighting back against the Tatars is better than dying in anguish at the hands of those wicked people who rob and seize what isn't theirs."
"Father, Third Uncle is right." Zhou Dalang, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke. "Rather than our family constantly being schemed against by wicked people, it's better to go to Mengjia Town. It's far from the emperor's reach, and our family can live more freely."
Seeing that his son, who had been dejected for days, finally spoke, Old Man Zhou nodded in agreement, "Then our entire family will go to Mengjia Town and start our new life."
Old Jin and Fu Xinci, who had been paying attention to the Zhou family, were happy about their decision.
The following days were surprisingly peaceful. The men in black seemed to have been completely eradicated, as they never appeared again.
Bandits and brigands also disappeared. Lonely days were hard to endure. Pang Dun'er had grumbled several times, "Where have all the highwaymen hidden? Why don't a couple of groups come out to play with me?"
If the highwaymen knew what this young master was thinking, they would have cried tears of blood and kowtowed to him, begging to reform and become new people, never daring to rob again.
They had no choice but to reform. This young master would either make the ground shake, traverse mountains, or level the mountain paths by two inches. What mortal could withstand him playing like this? At least they couldn't.
They had all hidden themselves like cowards and were still being thought of by this young master. They might as well cry themselves to death.
...
After a long journey, the caravan finally entered the territory of the Northern Frontier.
Looking at the familiar mountain range in the distance, not only the young men but also Old Jin felt a sense of closeness.
"Haha, the mountains and rivers here are still the best. They look so familiar. Yo-ho, yo-ho!"
Old Jin's two loud cries echoed far into the mountains.
The young men also shouted along, "Yo-ho, yo-ho!"
Seeing Captain Jin and his soldiers shouting like they had arrived home.
The faces of Old Man Zhou and his family, weary from the journey, also showed smiles.
Old Man Zhou even personally came forward to ask, "Captain Jin, how much longer until we reach Mengjia Town?"
"We'll definitely reach home before nightfall today."
"Oh." Old Man Zhou felt both joy and a hint of apprehension upon hearing this.
From now on, his family would settle in Mengjia Town. He felt a mix of emotions.
However, as their caravan approached Eaglebeak Cliff, Qi Yuanshan led the way to meet them.
The old father's eyes were glued to his son, unwilling to look away. He carefully counted the number of people returning, and not a single one was missing. Qi Yuanshan smiled, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to have doubled.
Qi He: He suddenly felt that his father had aged. The wrinkles on his father's face didn't seem to be this many before they went to the capital.
Also, his father's temples had turned white? He didn't think that was the case before they went to the capital either.
"Dad."
If it weren't for the many people around and the fact that he was still in his military uniform, he would have run over and hugged his father, refusing to let go.
"Ah."
Seeing his son's expression, Qi Yuanshan's paternal heart trembled.
He understood his son's feelings. He hadn't slept well these past few days either, worrying about his son and these soldiers.
Now that they had all returned, his anxious heart could finally rest.
Qi Yuanshan's gaze then fell on Xinci and her companions. He didn't know how to thank them. Tonight, he would definitely have a good drink with Long Teng and the others, to the point of getting completely drunk.
The captain, seeing the sparks in Qi Yuanshan's eyes, guessed his intentions.
He liked to have a drink, but they had been away from Longcheng for quite some time, and they had to go back.
The captain, having made up his mind, winked at Xinci, "Xinci, we've been out for many days too. It's time to go back to Longcheng. I reckon Uncle Xu and Uncle Sun must be missing us very much."
"Mm." Fu Xinci looked at the sky. The sun was about to set, and she voiced her thoughts.
"Captain, it's getting dark. Stay at my place tonight. After breakfast tomorrow, I'll escort you back."
"Alright, we'll follow Xinci's arrangements."