It was getting late, Ding Changwang and a few archers took the drawings drawn by Li Changan and pondered them together.
They are not interested in any art of war or strategies.
Because they are just hard-working soldiers, low-quality warriors who are insignificant on the battlefield.
But the folding crossbow that Li Changan made was the lifeblood of their lives. If they didn't figure it out, they would be afraid of being laughed at by their brothers.
Zhang Fugui escorted Li Changan back.
On the way, Zhang Fugui hesitated for a long time, but couldn't help but ask, "Chang'an... have you really decided?"
Now all this is just a foreshadowing, but once it actually starts, no one knows what will happen.
It may be a vast sea and sky, or it may be a cliff thousands of feet high.
"Uncle Zhang... there is no way to retreat." Li Changan responded softly, "My status as a student in the academy seems to have a bright future, but as long as I don't reach the top, I won't be able to stand out at all."
"The Longhu Gang, including the government connections behind them, will not let us go just because I am an academy student."
"Especially with my identity, I can't see the light of day for the time being."
Zhang Fugui was silent for a moment, "Maybe we can leave the county?"
Li Changan slowed down slightly and said, "I can't walk anymore. Master spent a lot of kindness to send me to the academy. In another month, I will be able to confirm my status."
"If you leave at this time, all your efforts will be in vain."
Zhang Fugui said nothing more.
Li Changan and them have been tied together for a long time. Li Changan can't leave, and they can't leave either.
If you don’t have enough to eat in the county town, is it possible that you can have enough to eat somewhere else?
"Uncle Zhang, don't worry. I won't make fun of the lives of my brothers. When dealing with the Longhu Gang, I won't use drastic measures to aggravate the situation."
Understanding Zhang Fugui's concerns, Li Changan couldn't help but explain a little more,
"Actually, putting aside the relationship with the government, it should be easy for Uncle Zhang to deal with the Longhu Gang, right?"
Zhang Fugui watched the shadows under his feet slowly lengthen and nodded, "If we don't get surrounded by five hundred people and slowly assassinate and attack them, none of them will survive. The most likely reason is that after a hundred or so people died, they were so frightened that they collapsed."
"So the key to my plan is to blind the government, or to prevent them from taking care of it..."
"We'll wait until Brother Song finds out the details of the Longhu Gang first..."
The two of them were walking on a quiet gravel road. The courtyard where the veterans gathered was in Xiwanfang. It was relatively remote and full of people. Except for those who really had no money, most people would not choose to live here.
"As for the money, I will not take the profit distribution for the time being and give it all to everyone."
Approaching Tonglu Hutong, Zhang Fugui thought of something again, "Chang'an, what's the use of the folding crossbow you mentioned without crossbow arrows?"
"The easiest thing to see on the roadside." Li Changan found a small stone on the roadside, "Just polish it a little and make it smooth. This shouldn't be difficult, right?"
"It won't fly around?" Zhang Fugui still didn't believe it.
If he were to throw stones with his bare hands, he would naturally be able to kill people, but is the folding crossbow Li Changan mentioned also that powerful?
Even if it is really that powerful, if it can't hit anyone, it will be in vain.
"Maybe it's more accurate than before." Li Changan said with a smile, "Uncle Ding will make it and Uncle Zhang will know after he tries it."
…
The next day,
Li Changan woke up early, and there was a faint light falling from the window.
I went to bed early last night and fell asleep almost as soon as I touched the pillow. I turned my head and looked at Liu Zhiyin and Liu Linglong beside me. Li Changan's eyes were full of soft light.
Last night, before Li Changan lay down, Liu Linglong climbed onto the bed with the quilt in her arms and grabbed Li Changan's hand.
Liu Zhiyin was also pulled over by her. The two sisters were on one side, and the three of them slept on three quilts separately, but their hands were held tightly.
After getting over the initial panic, the two sisters have slowly recovered, but it will take time to fully recover.
Li Changan pulled his hand away little by little, not wanting to disturb them.
But he found that Liu Zhiyin's hand grabbed him again, turned his head, and looked into those gentle, watery eyes in the dim light, which caught him off guard and hit his heart.
"You're awake..." Liu Zhiyin spoke softly, not wanting to disturb Liu Linglong, "Lie down for a while."
Li Changan was stunned for a moment, and then he lay back down as he was told. He seemed to have forgotten to pull his hand back, and the two of them still held their hands together.
The air became quiet, and only the breathing of the three people could be heard.
Li Changan's heart was confused. In such a dark environment, especially when there was a beautiful woman lying next to him, it was most likely to arouse evil thoughts in his heart.
Li Changan felt that his palms were sweating and a little greasy, but he did not dare to move them.
Liu Zhiyin turned sideways, looked at Li Changan's face with a pair of beautiful eyes, and slowly came closer, his breath gently falling on Li Changan's ear,
"You and Uncle Zhang didn't do anything dangerous, right?"
The voice was so soft that it was almost inaudible. Maybe he didn't want to disturb Liu Linglong, but Li Changan's body felt like it was electrified, as if a feather was passing by his ears.
"No...no."
"Speaking of which, I haven't thanked Uncle Zhang and the others properly..." Liu Zhiyin seemed not to realize how ambiguous this posture was.
The two people in the darkness were almost close to each other.
Li Changan's mouth suddenly became dry, and his body felt like there were ants crawling around, making him feel itchy.
"Erlang, promise me, no matter what you do, you must remember that Linglong and I are still at home waiting for you." The faint voice was like a thread, tied to Li Changan's heart.
Li Changan's entire body turned to stone. Liu Zhiyin's breath was clear to his ears, almost touching him, and the fine hairs on the side of his face seemed to have felt a touch of warmth.
He didn't dare to move for fear of touching her lips.
Because once touched, he was afraid that he would not be able to suppress the evil thoughts in his heart.
She, after all, is...
Li Changan didn't say anything, but Liu Linglong on the other side suddenly smacked her lips, "Brother, give you half of my chicken drumstick..."
The charm in the room immediately dissipated.
Li Changan smiled slightly, and suddenly, he felt a little softness on his cheek unexpectedly, but it disappeared as soon as he touched it.
Li Changan froze again.
"You..." Liu Zhiyin's voice slowly moved away.
I don't know if he heard it wrong, but Li Changan clearly heard a trace of sadness that shouldn't be there in Liu Zhiyin's voice.
As the sky gets brighter,
Li Changan still wanted to regain the flutter he had just felt, but found that Liu Zhiyin had resumed the life of a good wife and mother as usual.
Light up the fire to cook, ask Liu Linglong to get up and wash up, then help Li Changan tidy up his collar, and then send Li Changan out of the house with Liu Linglong.
"Linglong and I have been at home recently. You should also pay attention to safety outside and come back early after your shift." Liu Zhiyin warned carefully.
Li Changan couldn't help but slowly moved his gaze from her eyes to her lips.
Sensing Li Changan's gaze, Liu Zhiyin's earlobes suddenly turned red. She was ashamed and angry, but reluctant to give up, so she just lightly stepped on Li Changan's foot.
Li Changan exaggeratedly hugged his feet and jumped out of the yard.
Liu Linglong's cry came from behind, "Sister, don't bully brother..."
"It's okay if he steps on me, but why don't you give him some chicken legs?"
"Ah...sister, how did you know?"
…
The sun in the sky was still shrouded by thin clouds, like a veil, but Li Changan's mood became particularly light.
The depression and dullness of the previous two days seemed to disappear in an instant.