Chapter 226: Old Faces

He Lingchuan took out a fluorescent spore to illuminate it; the snail in Liu Tong's hand was actually bright yellow, the color of Shoushan Tianhuang jelly, but with a bit of green and a bit of purple, as if it had been dyed very casually.

Casual, yet with a spiritual beauty, as if every stroke of color was the finishing touch.

"Candy snails are only produced in the caves of Yan Mountain, and Panlongcheng has people guarding them, not allowing private collection." Liu Tong laughed. "We made great contributions in the Ghost Needle Shi Lin, and this is a special reward."

Sparks burst from the skinny man's eyes: "This treasure is too beautiful!" One tael of silver is one thousand big coins! "Can we each take six?"

"Yes, but don't think about smuggling more." Liu Tong said seriously. "If discovered, our squad will be fined ten taels of silver instead, and military merits will be deducted!"

He stared at the skinny man, his tone turning severe: "Skinny, did you hear that!"

He was most worried about this guy.

The skinny man waved his hands repeatedly: "Don't worry, don't worry, I never do anything out of line!"

At that moment, everyone separated to search for snails in the cave.

It had just snowed heavily recently, and the cave was warm and humid, with lichens and moss even sprouting, making it a paradise for snails, so they were particularly active, crawling out of their hiding places to wander around.

In no time, everyone had collected enough.

Fists pressed against fists, and when palms were opened, dozens of snails gathered together, their colors as brilliant as a rainbow after rain.

Gold, red, blue, indigo, purple, yellow... there was nothing one couldn't think of, only colors they couldn't grow. Even the most skillful candy maker couldn't make such colorful candies.

"This is too beautiful!" Willow Strip exclaimed. "I won't sell it, I want to keep it!"

Making bracelets, pendants, hairpins, hair ornaments—wouldn't that leave common goods like pearls and agates streets behind? Door Panel heard this and scratched his head: "After going out, mine will be yours too."

Willow Strip was stunned: "Ah, okay, I'll buy it from you, but you have to give me a teammate discount."

"It's just something girls like; I can even give it to you."

Only then did Willow Strip smile like a flower.

The skinny man and He Lingchuan looked at each other and sighed.

On the way back to the city, it was peaceful.

Soon, the conspicuous gate of Panlongcheng appeared in their field of vision.

No matter when, this majestic pass always gave the military, civilians, and travelers the most solid confidence. However, He Lingchuan only realized after getting closer that crowds were streaming out of the city, all rolling up bedding, riding donkeys, and taking carriages.

This didn't look like a merchant caravan, but rather a migrating team.

Door Panel wondered: "What's going on?"

Panlongcheng rarely opened its gates to release so many people at once—except for the army.

It was always commoners dragging their families to move into the city; it was rare to see them moving out shoulder to shoulder.

He Lingchuan glanced over and actually discovered familiar faces in the crowd:

Liu Sanjiu and his wife, as well as a pair of children.

They were still leading that donkey, and the donkey was still carrying a huge bundle of luggage, their eyes filled with resentment.

When the former Weicheng fell, He Lingchuan mixed into the refugee team, and the first people he met were this family of Liu Sanjiu; they worked in a small winery in a town in Weicheng. He Lingchuan even chatted with them for half the journey until the Baling pursuers arrived.

He remembered the situation around that great battle vividly, so naturally, he couldn't forget these people.

These patrol guards were on the side of the road, and Liu Sanjiu also discovered him, saying "Ah" in surprise: "You, it's you...!"

Of course, he recognized the sturdy young man who helped him on the refugee road, but unfortunately, he couldn't remember the other party's surname no matter what, so he stammered and hurriedly said: "Are you okay? Do you want to go back together?"

"Go back?" He Lingchuan smiled. "Where?"

"Of course, to Weicheng." Liu Sanjiu was embarrassed. "General Hong recaptured Weicheng, and Governor Sun is taking us home."

He also remembered the situation during the escape clearly; seeing He Lingchuan again at this moment, his emotions were inevitably a bit subtle.

He Lingchuan's appearance seemed to remind him of how shameful and humble he was at the time.

He Lingchuan looked at the long line: "Are these all people from Weicheng?"

"Yes, yes." Liu Sanjiu's wife beamed. "I didn't expect that we could still go back in our lifetime."

The skinny man looked at them and suddenly said: "If Brother He hadn't sacrificed himself to blow up the spider monster's nest in the Ghost Needle Shi Lin, and if General Hong hadn't personally sneaked into Weicheng to recapture the city, you would only be huddled in Panlongcheng farming now, although I didn't think there was anything wrong with that!"

The smiles on Liu Sanjiu and his wife's faces froze slightly.

They didn't know much about the front lines, only that recapturing Weicheng was just one of General Hong's many battle achievements.

General Hong had won too many battles, and the commoners were numb to hearing the good news.

Liu Sanjiu bowed deeply to He Lingchuan: "Thank you, Brother He!"

He Lingchuan waved his hand: "Why do you want to go back to Weicheng? Isn't it safer in Panlongcheng?"

"Panlongcheng is a really good place, and the Chipa Plateau behind it is also like heaven." Liu Sanjiu looked at his wife. "It's just that we are not quite used to it. The hometown is still better."

"Why are the people of Weicheng acting together?" Liu Tong thought from another angle. "Is someone summoning them?"

"I heard that Governor Sun requested to return to the city from Commander Zhong, and Commander Zhong agreed." Liu Sanjiu's wife replied. "Governor Sun released the news in the city, letting the Weicheng people who intend to go back register at the government office first, and then gather at the South Gate today to set off, also escorted by the army."

Indeed, there were figures of the Panlong Army patrolling near this team; it seemed Commander Zhong Shengquan was being a good person to the end, wanting to escort the Weicheng people home.

Liu Sanjiu looked at He Lingchuan, whose military armor was very conspicuous: "Brother He, did you join the army?"

He Lingchuan nodded.

"In Panlongcheng, you will definitely be able to stand out!" Liu Sanjiu cupped his hands. "Please be sure to stay safe."

Both sides waved goodbye and went their separate ways.

Both knew there was no promise of meeting again, so they smiled particularly sincerely.

"Alright, put away your fake smile." Willow Strip couldn't watch anymore and rolled her eyes at He Lingchuan. "Don't tell me you saved this family too?"

"Hmm—" He participated in Captain Xiao's rearguard action, winning more time for the commoners to escape, so, "I suppose so."

Willow Strip scoffed: "He can't even remember your surname." Liu Sanjiu's hesitant look couldn't escape her sharp eyes.

"It doesn't matter." He Lingchuan turned his horse's head and ran toward Panlongcheng.

Who told him he was a good person who didn't seek rewards?

After entering the city and waving goodbye to his teammates, He Lingchuan returned to his small house, where a pile of gifts was stacked outside the door again.

He moved everything inside, and the small courtyard was already half-occupied, with no place to even put the water vat.

He casually boiled some lukewarm water and washed away the frost and wind from his body.

Home, a home where one can light charcoal in winter, is the best harbor for the human heart.

As a result, just as he finished wiping his hair, he heard a flapping sound outside, something in the courtyard had fallen, accompanied by the mournful cries of a bird.

What happened? He pushed the door open and looked out. Black and white feathers were flying everywhere in the small courtyard, the only piece of furniture, a bench, had fallen, and there was a small pool of blood on the ground.

A raptor stood on the wall, brown feathers with white spots, pressing a magpie under its claws; the head was already gone, but the body was still twitching.

The raptor was plucking feathers with its sharp, hook-like beak, and those feathers were falling into He Lingchuan's courtyard with the wind, stained with blood.

Clearly, his courtyard had become a hunting ground.

He Lingchuan whistled, reminding the 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 also saw him walk out but didn't dodge, instead tilting its head to look him over twice, and suddenly spoke in human language: "So it's you."

As soon as it spoke, He Lingchuan also said "Oh": "So it's you."

Wasn't this the sparrowhawk he met in the Ghost Needle Shi Lin? At that time, this monster received orders from General Nanke to grab a fire bomb to blow up the spider nest, but who knew Zhu Xiuer's spider silk was too tough, so the mission had to be transferred to the Sun family garden and He Lingchuan.

After this incident, they could be considered comrades-in-arms, but He Lingchuan hadn't seen the sparrowhawk since then, thinking it must have followed the main force to carry out missions again.

He Lingchuan pointed to the magpie under its claws: "Thanks, this thing is always chirping and disturbing my sleep."

In winter, birds were basically extinct in Panlongcheng, only fat magpies were jumping around, often stealing grain from residents' homes. Spring hadn't arrived yet, and the magpies were so fat, if the raptor didn't catch them, who would it catch?

Since they were fated to meet again, he straightened the bench and poured a bowl of clean water for the sparrowhawk.

The sparrowhawk grabbed its trophy and flew down, stopping on the bench to drink several mouthfuls of water.

"Everything well?"

"I just returned from the Ghost Needle Shi Lin with General Hong." The sparrowhawk pecked at the meat, looking very hungry. "Going back and forth took two days."

He Lingchuan was stunned: "General Hong went to the Ghost Needle Shi Lin?"

"Yes, led troops to cut down Zhu Xiuer." The sparrowhawk said. "General Hong said he had to get back at them for last time."

The Baling people used schemes, utilizing the cave spiders of the Ghost Needle Shi Lin to deal with the Panlongcheng army. Zhu Xiuer personally took action, and General Nanke's team almost suffered heavy losses.

After the incident, Panlongcheng certainly couldn't tolerate it.

The Ghost Needle Shi Lin was an important passage for Puxiegou and other friendly cities to reach the southeast, and Panlongcheng also had the obligation to ensure the safety of friendly cities.

"And?"

"This time we were prepared, specifically looking for trouble with the cave spiders. Just the spider sub-nests burned down seven or eight, and Zhu Xiuer's disciples and grandchildren were killed by us by more than half. The main nest was an even fiercer battle. Zhu Xiuer, who had been setting traps for years, fell into the General's trap this time. The elite spider guards died by more than half, and it had two of its own legs broken, its belly almost pierced. The General threatened to burn its last nest with fire, so Zhu Xiuer had to sue for peace."

"Hiss—" He Lingchuan had seen Zhu Xiuer with his own eyes. This kind of great monster left over from ancient times wouldn't lack trump cards, yet it was beaten so miserably by General Hong.

Truly worthy of being a fierce God of War.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 227 =====