Another Mountain--Yin Mountain
The tent was also covered in silver, but the valley at the foot of the Yin Mountain looked even more somber. Unlike the dilapidated and desolate mountain gate, the tent deep in the valley was obviously much neater. In the middle of the tent, the charcoal fire in the iron bucket was burning brightly. The milk tea in the copper pot spilled out and dripped on the flame, making a constant sizzling sound.
A person wrapped in a thick fox fur coat sat on a low couch draped with tiger skin. Her face was hidden in the wind, and it was impossible to tell whether she was male or female. She propped her chin on her hand and looked at the complicated and heavy patterns on the thick curtain. Finally, a tall and solemn man with a solemn and cold face lifted the curtain and walked in. He took two steps forward and turned around to walk to the stove.
"How is it? Did you see it?" The person on the couch hurriedly got up, her urgent voice was clear. It was a woman, Yang Ping's cousin, Yang Shu. She was tall and had a woman's hair bun, and her bright eyes were full of burnt color.
The person's expression was stiff. He nodded and shook his head. It was obvious that he was quite cold. He poured a bowl of milk tea from the copper pot and drank it sip by sip. White mist spread from his head and body. He waved at the other party with one hand."Don't come over, your body is cold!"
The woman did not dodge. She pulled the wool shawl on her shoulder and hit Luo Xue on the man's shoulder."What exactly is it?"
After drinking a bowl of milk tea, he finally felt the blood in his body flowing again. He held the woman's shoulder with his big hand."As you said, I left the hairpin with Shopkeeper Liu in the tavern and watched outside for two hours. The snow was heavy, but no one went in. Just as we thought, Shopkeeper Liu locked the door and went to Ten Mile Castle. He knew that I was following him, so he didn't hide. He went into a house and didn't come out again.”
The woman clenched her fists." That's right. Grandma Ji's wisdom is unparalleled. It must be her!"”
The burly man held the woman in his arms and patted her back gently with his large palm."Zhu Er, don't be afraid. If anything goes wrong, I'll protect you even if I have to die!”
The woman gently covered the man's mouth with her hand.""Have you forgotten what Grandmother said? Let's all live well. I'm not afraid!”
The burly man held this hand and rubbed it carefully. The woman's slender fingers were a little cold and hard. There was a thin layer of calluses between her thumb and index finger. She said somewhat reluctantly,"I'll let Liu Yun and Qing Lan accompany you tomorrow. I'll bring Yang Ying and Yang Bao out.”
"Such heavy snow!"
"It's fine. We have sufficient provisions and clothes this year. The people who came back to inquire about the news said that because it snowed early this year, the preparations over there were not good. Many cattle and sheep froze to death. It's the time for chaos. After recuperating for such a long time, our brothers are all holding their breath.”
The woman held the other party's hand in her own and said earnestly,"Don't be careless. I'd rather be empty-handed than reckless. I'll guard the house well.”
"Don't worry, I'll let Yang Xiao stay behind to help you. After we get the goods, I'll let my second brother take them away.”
"Good!"
“……”
The two of them came to an agreement, and nothing happened throughout the night.
The next day, when Yang Shu woke up, Liu Yun and Qing Lan were roasting clothes for her by the stove while rolling noodles on the table at the other end of the tent. When they heard the commotion, the two of them turned around briskly. Liu Yun took the warm clothes over."Miss is awake? General Hu and the others left at the beginning of the morning…"
General Hu was the leader of the Twelve Iron Cavalry, Yang Hu. This title had been given to him when he was still a general. When the old lady entrusted her granddaughter to them, she betrothed her to Yang Hu, hoping that Yang Hu would protect her for the rest of her life. Liu Yun and Qing Lan were both Yang Shu's personal maidservants. Liu Yun had been practicing martial arts since he was young and was tall, more like a woman from the northwest. He was strong and did things neatly. Qing Lan was petite and delicate. She was meticulous and good at needlework and cooking. She was also very good at light movements. The two of them grew up with Yang Shu since they were young. Needless to say, they were loyal. In the past few years, they had married Yang Ying and Yang Bao of the "Twelve Iron Cavalry".
Qing Lan smiled gently." Miss, get up now that you're awake. I've fried beef. Let's eat minced meat noodles."”
Diced beef and radish were stir-fried together until they were fragrant and then poured on the chewy noodles. This was the favorite breakfast of the people in the caravan in winter. It was cold and hungry. Yang Shu did not know when she had adapted to this "rough" meal. She still remembered that the breakfast at that time was full of all kinds of congee, noodles, and side dishes. She and her second sister always picked and tasted them. She just did not know where her second sister was now. Was she eating beef minced meat noodles like her?
Seeing Yang Shu staring blankly at the noodles wrapped around her chopsticks, Qing Lan said softly,""Miss, Miss…"
"Huh?" Yang Shu snapped back to her senses.
"Is the taste of the noodles not delicious?"
"Oh, no-"
Miss, would you like some meat soup?" Liu Yun also put down his chopsticks." Miss, don't worry. I heard from Yang Ying that the plan this time is very thorough. It can be guaranteed to be foolproof."”
"Mm." Yang Shu knew that they were thinking wrongly and did not explain much. She quickly finished the noodles in her bowl."Since it's not raining now, let's go to the horse track.”
The horse farm was not far from the tent they lived in. About three miles west, there was a frozen river. The river turned south along the mountain here. The bend was flat, and there were abundant water and grass in spring and summer. There were also mountains blocking the cold wind in the deep winter. It was a rare natural horse farm.
When they left the house, the three of them were all wrapped in thick fox fur coats. A huge golden mastiff followed behind them. The northwest wind raged like a wild horse that had lost its rein.
Even though they had walked thousands of times, the three of them were still very careful. Their riding boots left deep footprints in the snow that almost reached their calves. Liu Yun walked in front of Yang Shu to block the cold wind from the northwest." The first snow of the year is already this heavy. Fortunately, we reinforced the stables in advance…"
"Yeah!" Yang Shu also sighed." We also have sufficient reserves of fodder and charcoal. Tell them that the charcoal fire will burn brightly in the cold weather. There's no need to save it. However, they must watch over the fire at night, especially at the stockyard.”
Qing Lan took half a step back to support Yang Shu." Don't worry, Miss. We've arranged for people to take turns to guard everywhere!"”
Before they reached the fence, Yang Xiao had already come over. After bowing to Yang Shu, he frowned and glared at Liu Yun and Qing Lan. Clearly, he was scolding the two of them for letting Yang Shu out in such weather. Yang Shu smiled and said,"Don't blame them. I wanted to come over and take a look. It'll be snowing for the next few months.”
Yang Xiao was a man of few words. He had always been serious and serious, but his thoughts were the most meticulous. That was why Yang Hu had left him behind to watch the house. When he heard this, he retracted his gaze and led the three of them to the wooden house that guarded the horse farm."We sold a batch of horses before winter, and Big Brother took another batch away today. There aren't many left in the stable. Last night, two sheep froze to death. I just ordered someone to kill them and roast the sheep in the morning.”
"Alright!" It was common for sheep to freeze to death in winter. Most of the sheep in this circle would become their winter rations. Yang Shu smiled and said,"We might as well kill a few more and stew some mutton soup for Brother Hu and the others to drink when they come back.”
"Damn it! Wolf Fang, go!" Liu Yun didn't want to look at Yang Xiao's expressionless face, so he snatched the errand. Before he left, he even called the mastiff that was peeing by the fence. Qing Lan pursed her lips and snickered.
" Prepare the medicine and cotton cloth. When the sky is dark, start boiling water. Arrange for people to meet at the mountain pass…" Yang Xiao complied with the instructions. Everyone knew that no matter how well planned, casualties were inevitable.
"Mix the grass in advance and add some salt.”，The horses were slow in the snow. Each of them rode three or four horses this time. On the one hand, it was to change horses midway, and on the other hand, it was to drag items when they came. Yang Shu knew that Yang Xiao would arrange these things, but she still couldn't help but remind him.
Large dark clouds rolled down from the Yin Mountains, and the world was a vast expanse. A few men in sheepskin coats whipped the horses and started galloping. This was a necessary measure to ensure that the fierce horses maintained their combat strength. The hooves of the horses stepped on the snow and formed a galloping white wall. A few hounds also followed suit and galloped wildly.
Lang Ya returned and squatted beside Yang Shu to enjoy the unique scenery at the foot of the Yin Mountain.
Back then, Yang Shu had come to this remote area under the protection of the "Twelve Horsemen". They had gathered the remaining forces of the Yang Family Army and expanded rapidly. The "Twelve Horsemen" were all brave warriors in the army, and most of them were vanguards or scouts. They had great combat talent and were proficient in the art of war. In less than a year, they had destroyed or defeated all the horse gangs at the foot of the Yin Mountain. More than half of them had been under their command. Then, they continued to expand and devour the outside world. Using the method of combining vertical and horizontal forces, he controlled the entire foot of Yin Mountain in less than three years. He appeared to be a fierce horse bandit to the outside world. He was flexible in his actions and often sneaked into the border tribes of the Northern Tribes and the Western Xia. He also privately engaged in the business of transporting horses, grain, cloth, jade, salt, and tea.
They had more than a dozen horse farms like this. They were each other's horns and protected each other. On the surface, they were independent and even had friction, but on the inside, they were one family.
This was a force that could not be underestimated. The three countries were quite afraid of it, but they all tacitly allowed this force to exist. On the one hand, it was because of the constant "friction" that made them think that these horse gangs could involve each other and consume each other. On the other hand, they wanted these "tough bandits" to become a frontier between the other two countries. Once a war broke out, the horse gangs would become their own cannon fodder and pawns.
Little did they know that the Twelve Horsemen had seen through this point and used friction to confuse the outside world. They were using this to clean up the sect and polish the team. Then, they used the natural geographical conditions to manage this border area and protect Yang Shu well.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。