The Youngest Daughter, Chang Le

Chapter 27

Laughter and chirping accompanied the group, who seemed more like they were on a leisure outing rather than a demotion.

Zhu Changle tried every possible posture while riding - sitting, lying, standing, hanging, and even crawling. He entertained himself greatly.

As they passed through the woods, he mischievously disturbed the peace by making noises on the left and right, never straying far but never staying calm either.

"Qiuli, look at this."

Zhu Changle leaped from a treetop and landed on the pony's back. He squeezed the horse's belly to move closer to Qiuli and held something in front of his face.

Qiuli examined it but could not identify it, so he turned to Zhu Changle.

"You don't recognize it, do you? Hehehe, I'm not telling." The mischievous Zhu Changle then presented his treasure to the family elders.

The old lady smiled as she took a piece, "I've seen it back home, but I can't remember what it's called."

"Hahaha, no one recognizes it, right? Ask me, ask me quickly."

Dingding raised his hand eagerly, "I know..."

"Don't you dare say it!" Zhu Changle shot a warning glare at Dingding. They had played together in the mud and climbed trees since childhood, so of course Dingding knew what it was too. That's why Zhu Changle had excluded him from the start and didn't present the object to him.

But Dingding wouldn't listen, grinning as he said, "This thing is called..."

"Tea crisp!" Zhu Changle cut him off. "Dingding, you're in trouble now!"

"I'm not afraid of you. You'll be in trouble before me." Dingding shouted back. "Brother, don't worry if you've forgotten what she said earlier. I'll remind you whenever you need it."

Zhu Changwang smiled and waved from the window. "Good job."

Dingding lifted his chin smugly at Zhu Changle, making her itch to retaliate. She tossed the handful of tea crisps into Qiuli's arms and chased after Dingding on horseback, shouting, "You better not run!"

Dingding didn't dare run, not because he feared his friend's threat but because he couldn't risk letting the enemy take advantage of a gap. Of course, Zhu Changle had calculated this, and the two chased each other around the carriages.

Qiuli looked at the armful of crisps, considering whether to pretend to accidentally drop them. The bickering duo approached him, took a few pieces from his arms, and popped them into their mouths, laughing as they told him, "Qiuli, you can eat these. Try them, they're delicious."

Qiuli had no curiosity about these unfamiliar things and still wanted to drop them...

"Excuse me, Sir Qiuli, could you toss me a few to try?" Zhu Changwang smiled and gestured from the window.

Qiuli obligingly opened his hand, letting a few crisps fall to the ground, and tossed some accurately into Zhu Changwang's hand.

"Thank you."

"Give some to my old lady as well."

Zhu Maonian held out his hand. "Let me try too."

Qiuli gave them each a few, and finally Zhu Changning couldn't resist, "Let me have a taste too and see what it's like."

Great, Qiuli had distributed all the tea crisps. He dusted off his hands, took out his fan from his waist, and leisurely listened to the varying opinions about the taste from the carriages. Unexpectedly, or perhaps not so unexpectedly, they had actually eaten them. This Zhu family... was quite interesting.

"Whew!"

A shrill sound rang out faintly - it was Aunt Feng's warning signal!

Exchanging a glance with Dingding, the two leaped off their horses simultaneously. At the apex, Dingding held up his cudgel, and Zhu Changle used it as a stepping stone to propel herself higher. Dingding then landed back on his horse.

Everyone looked up and watched as she ascended, then descended back to the ground.

"Aunt Feng is under attack. Dingding, go help her."

Without a word, Dingding spurred his horse forward at full speed. Qiuli calmly guided his horse to Dingding's previous position.

Zhu Changle pursed her lips. She trusted her instincts, but she was still cautious around Qiuli. Seeing him take up the defensive position put her mind at ease.

"Changle."

She refocused and turned with a smile. "Don't worry, Brother. It's nothing."

Zhu Changwang waved the map in his hand. "We'd better retreat to the long pavilion we passed earlier. We won't be surrounded there."

Recalling the geography of the pavilion, Zhu Changle nodded without hesitation. "Let's retreat."

It was only about two hundred steps away, and they arrived shortly. Learning from her previous mistake, Zhu Changle ordered the servants to unhitch the carriages, allowing all the horses to be led away separately. The same trick wouldn't work on them a second time.

Zhu Changwang lifted the curtain and beckoned his sister into the carriage. "Where are the enemies likely to be?"

"Here." After some consideration, Zhu Changle pointed to a location on the map.

"Have you spotted Aunt Feng? Is she having trouble handling them?"

"These are stronger than the previous groups." Zhu Changle could tell because Aunt Feng had used her whip, an unusual weapon with barbs on the end - very vicious. Aunt Feng wouldn't use it casually; she usually just kept it tied at her waist. When Zhu Changle was young, she had even worried for a long time that Aunt Feng might accidentally hurt herself with it.

Zhu Changle lowered her gaze to the map, considering how they should proceed.

Zhu Changwang was pondering the same problem. "We could turn back and take this route instead, but the biggest issue isn't the longer distance. It's that they might still catch up to us."

"They've already targeted us. Whichever route we take is the same." Zhu Changle explained to her brother. "We're already on their turf. They can ambush us on any road... Wait, on their turf?"

Realization dawned on Zhu Changle, and she had an idea!

Glancing at Qiuli, who was leaning against a tree playing with his folding fan, she grinned mischievously. "Brother, give me some paper and a charcoal stick."

Seeing her scheming expression, Zhu Changwang suppressed a laugh and retrieved the requested items for her.

Zhu Changle walked out a few steps, then turned back and took a book from her brother's collection. She ran over to Qiuli and asked casually, "Qiuli, are you familiar with the power dynamics in this area?"

Qiuli didn't know what she was up to, but judging from her expression, he knew it wasn't anything good. He cautiously indicated a small amount with his pinky finger.

"You know a little, and I know a little. Together, it'll be enough." Zhu Changle plopped down, swept her hand over the space beside her, and patted the ground, smiling up at him. "Come, sit."

Qiuli gave her a look, then smiled too. He lifted his robe and sat down. So much for scheming - it was more like willingly walking into a trap.

"Like this, cross your legs." Zhu Changle demonstrated.

Qiuli followed suit.

Then a book was placed on his crossed legs, with paper and a charcoal pencil on top.

"Write down or draw whatever you're familiar with, as much as you know."

Qiuli raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry.

"Earlier, Dingding discovered that the local martial artists have been acting strangely. To fulfill my father's order, they must have paid a hefty price to clear this entire route. When Aunt Feng and the others return, we'll be able to confirm this. Most likely, that's the case, and they've become so blatant because they're certain we won't make it out alive."

Zhu Changle let out a cold laugh, revealing a glimpse of the sharp determination usually hidden beneath her cheerfulness. "Since we already know who did this, it would be foolish of me to continue taking a passive beating. If my master finds out I made such a stupid mistake, he'll send me back to the island for another two years of training."