roccoschili Chapter 215 Suburbs
Chapter 215 Suburbs
After a stalemate between the two, Bai Zhi finally took a step back and agreed to let Qiao Wanwan let her recuperate with the Bingshangfang and return to the team directly after she recovered.
Qiao Wanwan looked as if she had known this would happen. She staggered off Ji Feilan's back, steadied herself, and patted Bai Zhi's waist. She sighed, "Looking back now, I was such a fool. I was afraid of everything. But when I really did something rebellious, it ended up like this. I didn't even get scolded. My fear and feelings were in vain."
Bai Zhi pinched Qiao Wanwan's paw and slapped her face: "I'll listen to your feelings after the battle. Miss Ji, I'll leave this fool to you. I still have to go pick up my brother and sister-in-law."
Ji Feilan nodded.
The western suburbs outside Wu County.
A narrow path was trampled out on the low hill with lush vegetation some years ago, and now a group of people are walking through it.
"Xiao Qi," the ragged old woman pulled up a small, unremarkable blade of grass and said tremblingly, "Is this it?"
Lin Chuqi took the grass and turned it over and over to examine it carefully. He hesitated and said, "It looks very similar, but it doesn't seem to be it." He handed it to Qiaoqiao who came closer. "What do you think?"
Qiaoqiao mumbled for a long time before finally saying, "Let's ask Brother Cheng."
The younger, dark-skinned woman wiped the sweat from her head and complained, "How can a medicine for a cold be so hard to find... Where did Brother Cheng go?"
Qiaoqiao pointed forward and said, "Brother Cheng is very fast and has already gone to the front."
The old lady couldn't walk any longer, so she found a nearby tree stump to sit down and rest. She said worriedly, "It's dangerous to leave the city. We can't go too far away from Xiaomao."
The dark-skinned elder sister said nonchalantly, "What are you afraid of, Third Aunt? We've already fought the barbarians. We're safe here. We fought a while ago here, and the White Tiger Army didn't have time to clean up, so the brave ones sneaked out to pick up things. They picked up a lot of spears, swords, and clothes. They're all military belongings, and they're worth a lot of money on the black market. After I finish looking for herbs, I want to go over and feel some too."
Lin Chuqi's face suddenly turned cold, and he turned around and walked forward, saying only, "I'm going to find Brother Cheng."
The old lady here shook her head and sighed: "How can you make money like this? Isn't this just profiting from the national disaster..."
The dark-skinned elder sister frowned and said, "Third Aunt, we're at war now. We can only take care of today and not tomorrow. Don't worry about whether the country is in trouble or not. If you make more money, you can eat more meals. If you don't have money, you can't even afford to treat your grandson's illness..."
Qiaoqiao looked at Lin Chuqi who was walking forward, then looked at the two aunts and nieces, and after weighing the pros and cons, she decided to stay where she was.
After a while, Qiaoqiao faintly smelled the aroma of meat.
It had only been two days since she had eaten meat, so she didn't feel greedy, but just thought it was interesting - they were still fighting, who had the leisure time to run to the mountains to cook meat?
Almost at the same time, the dark-skinned elder sister and the old lady also smelled the aroma of meat. The dark-skinned elder sister sniffed and swallowed her saliva: "Who eats meat?"
The old lady was old and had no interest in meat, but she was thinking about her little grandson, so she stood up tremblingly: "Is there any wild game in this mountain? I can bring some back to nourish the child."
Even without the old lady's advice, the dark-skinned elder sister was already eager to go over and take a look. She found a thick, half-broken branch, kicked it in half, and used it as a weapon. She took a few steps forward and said, "Xiaoying, Third Aunt, you two come with me. Let's not separate."
Qiaoqiao thought the old lady was just joking and was laughing along, but when she saw that the dark-skinned sister was actually planning to go, she quickly stopped her in front of her and said, "Sister Liu, let's wait for Brother Cheng and Chuqi to come back and go together, otherwise they won't be able to find us when they come back."
"Oh, don't be afraid. Brother Cheng has gone so far. We can come back soon and get back before them."
"But……"
The dark-skinned elder sister laughed: "Girl, why are you so timid?"
Qiaoqiao: “…”
Unable to persuade her, Qiaoqiao had to agree hesitantly. While helping the old lady up, she repeatedly told the dark-skinned sister not to go too far.
The dark-skinned sister took the lead, waving branches to scatter the broken branches and leaves blocking the way, and explored step by step into the depths of the forest.
With every step you take, the meat becomes more fragrant.
"If they can eat meat secretly here, there must be a good place for hunting. We'll say something nice to them later. Even if we can't find out the place, it won't be a wasted trip if we can get a couple of wild rabbits or something." The dark-skinned sister was very excited and walked faster and faster.
Suddenly a shout was heard not far away.
It sounded festive, like the person cooking the meat letting out a roar of delight. The three of them looked at each other and couldn't help laughing.
In a moment, a chorus of shouts rose, accompanied by the sound of chaotic footsteps approaching. The dark-skinned elder sister's right eyelid twitched twice, and she immediately sensed something was wrong. She immediately squatted down to protect Qiaoqiao and the old lady.
The group finally stopped less than half a mile ahead. It was too noisy just now to make out what they were shouting, but now that they were closer, Qiaoqiao could clearly hear that it wasn't Dayan dialect.
When the two armies were fighting, if it wasn't Dayan's words, then it was—
"Damn it, how could there be barbarians here!" The dark-skinned elder sister said in a hurried voice with sweat all over her forehead.
It sounded like there were quite a few barbarians. The old lady was so frightened that she collapsed on the ground. She immediately grabbed Qiaoqiao and the dark-skinned elder sister's sleeves and said, "Hurry, run!"
"Don't run yet, Third Aunt." The dark-skinned elder sister suppressed her voice in her throat, "Wait until they leave before running. Otherwise, if we are discovered so close, they can shoot the three of us through with one arrow..."
Qiaoqiao couldn't hear what was said after that. Her heartbeat grew heavier and heavier, gradually blurring into her ears and pulsing throughout her body. She could hear her heartbeat, her fingers could hear it, and even the backs of her ears could hear it. The beating made her heart feel like it was growing more and more panic that she couldn't control.
After spending nearly three months at the border, this was the first time she actually saw the enemy.
It was also the first time I was only half a mile away from death.
"Xiaoying!"
Qiaoqiao was startled awake by the voice right next to her ear. The dark-skinned elder sister took a deep breath and said with undeniable composure, "We'll both hold Third Aunt between us and retreat little by little. We'll walk while squatting. Our movements must be very gentle. We'd rather stay where we are than make any noise. Do you understand?"
Qiaoqiao no longer had the energy to think and could only nod.
"Luckily they were so busy looking at the flowers that they didn't notice us."
Qiaoqiao: "Look at the flowers?"
The dark-skinned woman had already helped the old woman up and began to squat slowly. "They were surrounding a flower, making noises and squatting on the ground to smell it. I couldn't understand what they were doing."
The smell of meat, a flower. Qiaoqiao suddenly understood: it was the Red Mother's Flower. It was the magical medicine that had saved her sister, the one that gave off a strange, meaty aroma.
Perhaps the barbarian had come specifically to find medicine, or perhaps he had been drawn in by the aroma of meat. Regardless, the three of them were safe for the time being.
Qiaoqiao cheered herself up, curled up her legs and retreated together.
After cautiously retreating twenty or so steps, a horrific scream erupted from the barbarian's side, shocking the three of them. The dark-skinned woman bravely raised her head to take a look, then shuddered. She grabbed Qiaoqiao and the old woman and ran away, "There's a bear!"