Chapter 640: Ambush
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan’s room was beside theirs. They only had to turn left and take a few steps.
Two acquaintances stood at the door. It was Granny Xiu Yan and Ling Hai, whom they had not seen for a long time.
As soon as they saw Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan, their eyes immediately turned red.
Granny Xiu Yan looked much older. Her hair, which was originally only mixed with traces of white hair, had turned completely white and she had lost a lot of weight.
“Greetings, Your Highness and Princess Consort.”
With that, she knelt down shakily.
Yu Niaoniao hurriedly reached out to support her. “We’re all family. There’s no need to be so polite.”
Granny Xiu Yan first looked at Yu Niaoniao, then at Xiao Juan. There were tears in her eyes, but a gratified smile appeared on her face.
“That’s great. You’re all fine. That’s great!”
During this period of time, Granny Xiu Yan had been worried about Xiao Juan and Yu Niaoniao every day. She was so worried that she could not sleep at night. She could not do anything but pray for the two of them day and night, hoping that they would be safe.
Now that she saw with her own eyes that they were all fine, Granny Xiu Yan could finally relax.
For a moment, Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan felt rather guilty.
Granny Xiu Yan was already so old and should be at home enjoying her life, but she still had to be implicated by them and live in fear all day.
Yu Niaoniao comforted her gently for a while before asking Granny Xiu Yan to stop crying.
Granny Xiu Yan wiped her tears. “Don’t stand here. Go in and rest. Little Hai, boil water for the Duke and Princess Consort to bathe. I’ll get some food. I’ll be back soon.”
Yu Niaoniao stopped her. “Stop working. We’re not hungry.”
Granny Xiu Yan said, “You’ve been running around for so long. How can you not be hungry? Don’t worry, my old bones can’t do anything else, but I can cook.”
Ling Hai added, “I can help Granny. I won’t tire her out.”
Seeing their insistence, Yu Niaoniao could only let them be.
The small wooden house was very simple. There was a bed against the wall and a cabinet beside it. There was a set of tables and chairs in the middle of the room. There was nothing else.
Fortunately, Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan were not picky people. They were used to the current conditions.
The bed was covered in bedding. It looked old. Fortunately, it had been washed clean and had been exposed to the sun for almost two days. It was soft to the touch.
Soon, Granny Xiu Yan and Ling Hai returned.
They brought food and hot water.
The food was very simple. There were only cornmeal steamed buns and stir-fried wild vegetables. There was also a pot of wild chicken soup.
Granny Xiu Yan was originally a little worried that Xiao Juan would not be able to eat. After all, his stomach had always been weak.
It was not until she saw that Xiao Juan had finished a cornmeal steamed bun in two or three bites and did not look uncomfortable that she was relieved.
As Yu Niaoniao ate, she asked, “Have you eaten? If not, eat together.”
Granny Xiu Yan hurriedly said, “We’ve all eaten. Take your time. Let us know if you have any instructions. We’ll go out and get busy first.”
With that, she left with Ling Hai.
After Yu Niaoniao and Xiao Juan ate and drank their fill, they wiped their bodies with hot water from the bucket, changed into clean clothes, and lay on the bed to rest.
They slept exceptionally peacefully.
Under Xiao Juan’s arrangements, the shadow guards disguised themselves and sneaked into the city.
After figuring out the nearest military camp of the Chen Nation, they sneaked into the military camp at night and found the exact location of the granary.
The next day, Xiao Juan and Tang Guixi led 100,000 Eastern Expedition troops to raid the enemy camp, catching the Chen Nation’s army off guard.
Because Yu Niaoniao could not help, she could only stay in the camp with the other old, weak, women, and children.
She was bored, so she practiced archery on the drill ground.
Although it was called a drill ground, it was actually an empty space temporarily opened up by the Eastern Expedition Army. There were dozens of targets erected in the empty space. This was where the soldiers usually trained.
Today, they had all gone out to fight. The sky above the drill ground was empty and very quiet.
Yu Niaoniao drew her bow and nocked an arrow, aiming at the distant target.
Releasing her index finger, the arrow flew out with a whoosh and hit the bullseye.
She shot more than ten arrows in a row.
The sound of arrows could be heard clearly on the quiet drill ground.
She felt her arm ache, so she put down her bow and arrow, planning to move her arm before continuing to practice.
At this moment, two young ladies carefully leaned over.
When Yu Niaoniao heard footsteps, she looked over and recognized the two girls from the Li family village. The taller one was called Li Hongye, and the shorter one was called Li Xing’er.
Li Hongye was bolder. She spoke first.
“Princess Consort, I’m Hongye from the Li family village.”
With that, she elbowed the girl beside her, hinting at her to speak quickly.
The other girl whispered, “My name is Xing’er, Li Xing’er.”
Yu Niaoniao smiled. “I know. I still remember you.”
They were both delighted to hear that.
She had thought that the Princess Consort would not take it to heart about small fries like them. She did not expect her to remember them.
This was a great encouragement to them.
Both of them looked excited.
Yu Niaoniao asked, “Why are you looking for me?”
Li Hongye rubbed her hands in embarrassment. “We saw you shooting arrows here just now, so we came over to take a look out of curiosity. I didn’t expect your archery to be so good. I know our request might be a little presumptuous, but I still want to ask you if you can teach us archery?”
Yu Niaoniao was stunned.
Yu Niaoniao was stunned.
She had not expected such a request.
Seeing that she was silent, Li Hongye and Li Xing’er were very uneasy.
Li Xing’er wanted to beat a retreat, but Li Hongye refused to give up. She bit her lower lip and gritted her teeth to kneel down to Yu Niaoniao.
“Please teach us. We’re willing to work for you!”
Yu Niaoniao helped her up. “You don’t have to do this. It’s not impossible for me to teach you archery, but you have to tell me why you want to learn archery.”
Hearing that she was willing to teach, Li Hongye’s eyes immediately lit up and she hurriedly replied.
“Almost all the men in our Li Village are dead. Almost all the young people who are still alive are girls. If we don’t want to be bullied, we can only think of a way to learn some life-saving skills.”
Li Xing’er nodded vigorously in agreement.
Yu Niaoniao understood. “I see. When do you plan to start learning?”
Li Hongye looked impatient. “Can I do it now?”
Yu Niaoniao smiled again. “Sure.”
She pointed at the bamboo basket with bows and arrows beside her and said, “Go and choose a suitable bow and arrow yourself.”
They obeyed.
It was their first time using bows and arrows. They didn’t even know how to put their hands.
Yu Niaoniao could only teach them from the most basic posture.
Li Hongye and Li Xing’er studied extremely seriously.
Shen Xu had come over.
“Yu Niaoniao, I want to ask you something.” Yu Niaoniao glanced at him. “What did you call me?”
Shen Xu was speechless.
He took a deep breath and endured the humiliation before changing his words.
‘Cousin-in-law, can I ask you something?”
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