Volume 2: The Country of Women Chapter 15: Military Supplies

  At the foot of the mountain, a long row of horse-drawn carriages was passing by, with 200 vehicles and horses looking quite spectacular. From this end to that end, I and Geng Ling were lying on the waist of the mountain, behind us were temporary part-time workers in a clothing factory... I looked at the front carriage with a large flag waving, with a "Su" character written on it that was similar but not identical to the Chinese character. The font was similar to that of the Federal Republic of Germany, and I could barely recognize it.

  I asked Qi Xiaohuan: "About how many of them are there?"

  Qī Xiǎo Huán said: "Each carriage has one coachman and over a hundred miscellaneous servants, totaling around 300 people."

  I anxiously asked: "Is there a bodyguard?"

  Mei Li Hong said: "Su's family runs a horse team, not a security firm, where did they get the escorts from?"

  I said: "Then aren't they afraid of being robbed?"

  Meili Hong sneered: "Who in the Sword God's household dares to rob? With that large flag as the best talisman, it's only you guys who have lost your minds that would dare to harbor such intentions."

  My face turned red, I clenched my fist and said: "What are we waiting for? Let's do it!"

  Meili Hong said: "I'm telling you straight out, what you want to do is your business, but don't drag me into it, I still want to live a few more days."

  I waved my hand and said: "Up!"

  Geng Ling led Wu Ying and they rushed down the mountain in a whoosh, forming a line at the foot of the mountain to block the way for the convoy.

  "Whoa......" The driver of the first horse cart, seeing that something was amiss, hastily pulled on the reins and exclaimed in surprise: "What kind of person?"

  I strolled down the mountain slowly and said slowly: "Can't you see that it's a robbery?"

  The coachman was originally tense, but when he saw that the roadblock was a group of men, he suddenly burst out laughing and rushed back to say: "Second master, there is a group of men who want to rob us."

  "Huh?" Someone in the car behind her said slowly, "Ask them who they are. If they're refugees, just give them some money and send them off. Do they need to ask me about this kind of thing?" He didn't even show his head from start to finish.

  "The coachman shouted loudly: 'Did you hear that? What kind of people are you?'"

  I'm so angry, if the other party relied on Su Jing's dominance and didn't fear robbery, that's one thing. But seeing that we are men, they don't even show their faces, it's clear that they despise and discriminate against us. Robbery isn't afraid of poverty or dominance, you should at least have some words to say. If you're penniless, saying a few good words can be intimidating, even if you say "I won't give you money, but I'll give you my life", it's still a response. At least the identity of the bandit is recognized, what kind of thing is it to treat people like beggars?

  "Cut the crap, leave the car behind! I'm not in a good mood today, so just forget about the person!"

  Just then, someone nearby giggled and said, "You really learn quickly." It turned out that Mei Lihong couldn't resist his curiosity after all, covered his face and followed.

  The horse driver turned back and said: "Second master, they are not refugees, they must be robbing us."

  "Rubbish!" The curtain of the carriage was lifted, and a woman in her forties poked her head out. She had thick hair tied up with a large wooden pin, no makeup on her face, dark skin, and a pair of bright, piercing eyes that shone like butterfly wings. She was clearly a strong and capable person. Her mouth was scolding the coachman, but her expression was smiling, and she didn't get out, only putting her hands together in a greeting towards me, saying politely: "I am the steward of the Zhongwei Horse Guild, young brother, what do you want to say to me?"

  "I'm fed up," I said impatiently. "I've already said enough, leave the stuff behind and get out of here."

  The lady housekeeper didn't get annoyed, but instead smiled and said: "It seems that little brother is really short of money. Let me give you a hint... She reached out and flicked the Su family's large flag on the carriage, saying: "This is indeed the Su family's goods..."

  "My dad robbed Su's family of their goods!"

  The woman's face changed, and she said with a deep sigh: "I can see that you are also desperate to make a living. Let me tell you something, this Su family is not just any ordinary Su family. Don't you even give the Sword God's face?"

  I looked up at the sky and laughed: "You just want to use Su Jing's little girl to scare me, right? If it wasn't for her old man, how would he have ended up in such a desperate situation?"

  The woman steward's face changed color, pointing at my nose and scolding: "You ungrateful thing, I was just being kind to you because I pitied you, but now you dare to rob us? You're just a few stinky fish and rotten shrimp, how dare you try to rob people?" The coachman, the cart drivers, and the porters all rushed to the front, holding whips and clubs, staring at us menacingly. Although they weren't guards, seeing men trying to rob them made them indignant, and they looked like they were itching for a fight.

  "I shrugged and said: 'Brothers, nothing more to say, let's get to work!'"

  Geng Ling swung his lone arm: "Up!"

  A chaotic battle unfolded at the foot of the mountain, although I knew we would definitely win, but the process was still beyond my expectation... In just 5 minutes, those horsemen who were shouting loudly were caught and thrown to the side by Geng Lian and others. In a strict sense, this didn't even qualify as a battle, it was simply men and women fighting... The men got annoyed and grabbed the women, throwing them aside. After being tempered through prison breaks, these guys under me are quite skilled at dealing with women.

  That female housekeeper was also dragged down to the ground by Ge Rong and sat on the ground, stunned for a while before reacting and crying out; "You bunch of heavenly murderers, you've almost taken my life..."

  "Women!" I sneered.

  Geng Ling and his men didn't care about them either, ignoring the scattered women, then driving their horses and carts, swaggering up the mountain.

  I'll take a look at that female housekeeper, smiling and squatting in front of her: "You go back and tell Su Chongwei, the thing is accepted by Laozi, just consider it as compensation for spiritual damages for his daughter."

  "Wait and see, you've gotten yourselves into big trouble."

  I no longer bother with her. As the crowd climbed up the mountain, Mei Li Hong smiled and said: "The kid has a great future ahead of him, why don't you formally join me?"

  "We aren't bandits."

  At this time, people were counting their spoils of war. Someone opened a trunk on the horse cart and suddenly shouted: "So much money!"

  I walked over to take a look, and saw that the ground was filled with boxes. I opened one of them and found it was full of silver ingots, each weighing 10 taels. After rough calculations, there were actually 200,000 taels!

  Mei Li Hong's face turned solemn as he said, "With so much money involved, I'm afraid that aside from the Su family not wanting to let you off easily, the original owner will also come knocking on your door."

  I smiled and said: "How much do you want to split? Say it."

  Meili Hong said straightforwardly: "Since I've already said I won't participate, I don't want a single penny of the things you're fighting for. Besides, I'm afraid you'll end up spitting it out after eating too much."

  Before I could even speak, I heard Qixiaohuan exclaim: "Dragon brother, come and see what this is!"

  I ran over to take a look and saw that the newly opened box in front of him was neatly stacked with knives, swords and arrow feathers. I scolded: "What's all the fuss about?"

  Qiao Xiaohuan said: "So many weapons, this is probably a military arsenal!"

  "Wu Yin also shouted from over there: 'Dragon Brother, come and take a look at this.'"

  Wu Ying took out a large number of flags from another trunk, and when she unfolded them, they all had the same phoenix pattern. Someone on the side said, "There's more!" The dozens of trunks behind were filled with military uniforms, and the edges and cuffs of those clothes were embroidered with golden patterns...

  The entire Shén Fēng Mountain suddenly fell silent! After a long while, Qí Xiǎo Huán murmured: "What we're robbing... is the Flying Phoenix Army's military supplies?"

  I looked at this and that, and said with a puzzled expression: "What's the big deal? What are you guys afraid of?"

  "What are you afraid of? Do you know what the Flying Phoenix Army is? That's the most elite troop in the entire Women's Country, and you've stolen their military supplies. Isn't this a clear case of treason?"

  "Brother Long, we've really gotten ourselves into big trouble this time," said Wu Yin, wiping away sweat.

  I said indifferently: "We've already offended Sword God, what's there to fear from Fei Feng Army?"

  Meili Hong said, "Even if the Sword God is formidable, our small skirmishes may not necessarily be able to lure her out personally. Moreover, as bandits, we can still dodge and hide in the east and west, but provoking the Feifeng Army would mean going against the imperial court, which would be a dead end with no way out!"

  I spread out my hands and said: "So what do you think we should do? The things have already been snatched, are we going to send them back to her?"

  "Brother, from now on you're on your own. I've also realized that this small temple can't keep a great god like you. Let's part ways here."

  I exclaimed in shock: "Are you driving us away?"

  Mei Li Hong shook her head and said, "Not only do you have to leave, but I also can't stay in this mountain stronghold anymore. Fortunately, I didn't reveal my name, and I hope there's still a chance for me to escape far away."

  I see this fearless and daring female bandit suddenly looking disappointed, couldn't help but ask: "Since it's such important military supplies, why isn't there an army escort?"

  Meili Hong said: "I guess now that each force is tight, our daughter country in order to save military strength can only come up with this inferior strategy. It should be said that delivering goods to the Su family for transportation is also equally safe, but I didn't expect it to be robbed by you, this foolish boy!"

  "I'm really sorry about that, how about this: you take half the money and we'll split up and go our separate ways. After all, it's my fault you lost your counterfeit goods too."

  Meili Hong sighed, "It's not the time to talk about these things now, you'd better plan where to escape. As for me, don't worry." Meili Hong smiled and said, "We bandits are originally homeless, it's just a matter of finding a mountain and building a few more houses."

  I was both moved and embarrassed, at a loss for words: "I really don't know what to say... how about I keep you company while you sleep?"

  Everyone: "......"

  Geng Ling said, "Xiao Long, things have come to this point and we can't change much now. The money and weapons are useful to us, so let's take these things and go to another country to join the army. As for the flag and uniform, I think it's better to leave them here and return them to the Fei Feng Army. After all, we are people of the Female Country, and this is also a way to show our loyalty to our own country."

  I said: "Can't tell you're still a nationalist."

  Geng Lingdao said, "If it weren't for the fact that I had no other choice, I wouldn't have wanted to disturb the Flying Phoenix Army. The commander of the Flying Phoenix Army is our daughter country's great general Zhao Fanghua, whom I have always respected."

  I asked: "Does she have a nickname, 'Big Six'?" Geng Ling said: "That's right."

  This so-called great general, I often hear Su mention him, implying that she also has a lot of respect for her. It seems that Fei Feng's military exploits and Zhao Da Jiang Jun's reputation are well-known outside, even someone like Geng Ling is deeply respectful.

  Helpless, we had to make preparations for escape. Mei Li Hong only agreed to pay 50,000 taels of silver as compensation. That night, she ordered the whole mountain to pack up and bake dry rations. We could only prepare to part ways with her and planned to head southwest early the next morning.

  However, disaster struck one step ahead... Just before dawn, Qi Xiaohuan's scouting team reported: The foot of Shenfeng Mountain has already been surrounded by 3,000 imperial troops!

  When the news came, everyone was packing their luggage. As soon as it spread, people's hearts were in a flurry. I and Geng Lingmei Li Hong hurried to the front of the mountain cliff and looked down, only to see that the road below had been blocked by dense cavalry. They didn't set up camp, but sat quietly in front of their horses, their eyes flashing as they stared at us.

  Geng Ling observed for a moment and then said: "It seems they don't plan to stay long, they'll attack as soon as it's daylight."

  "Fortunately, it's not the Flying Phoenix Army. Look at the flag, they are soldiers under General Ye of Ye City."

  "What's your plan?"

  Mei Li Hong said: "For now, we can only take advantage of the darkness and make a dash for it. Whether or not we can escape is up to fate."

  Geng Ling shook his head and said, "Didn't you see the feathers on their backs? These people are archers, relying on us to charge down, we haven't even reached the front line yet and half of our men will be lost. Our men have no horses, in the end not one can escape."

  "What's your idea then? Can't just wait for them to come and kill us, can we?"

  "Let them go up and kill!"

  "What did you say?" Mei Li Hong said incredulously.

  Geng Ling said: "We are at a high position, their upward attack will be restricted in speed, only by making good use of this advantage do we have a chance to survive."

  "What will you do after attacking?"

  Geng Ling said, "Let's head back and settle our troops first. As we walk, I'll tell you - he came up to me and suddenly grasped my hand, saying, 'Xiao Long, this battle is one we can win!' I was perplexed and asked, 'What do you mean by "can win"?' Geng Ling said, 'We have 1,000 men, while the enemy has three times our number. However, if we don't let them utilize their advantage in cavalry archery on flat terrain, I'm confident we can emerge victorious!' I asked, 'Why is that?' Geng Ling looked at me and said word by word, 'Among our 1,000 men, 270 have already advanced to the Sword Child level. As far as I know, not even one army in the entire Da Li has a proportion of Sword Children exceeding 30%. In hand-to-hand combat, we won't lose to anyone!' I exclaimed in surprise, 'It's already that many?!'

  Geng Ling worried: "It's just that the brothers haven't gained confidence yet, how to make them dare to take a risk is a problem."

  I patted my chest and said, "Isn't this exactly what I, the political commissar, am for? Don't worry, I'll talk to them." Before long, we arrived at the conference hall of Shenfeng Village. The people who had been following me all gathered here, from Xiao Yanwu to everyone else, all with worried expressions, and others were even more panicked, seeing me arrive, they asked in unison: "Dragon Brother, what do we do now?"

  "Hey brothers, listen to me."

  The crowd slowly quieted down, and I smiled and said: "I want to tell everyone a secret."

  Everyone looked at each other and said: "At this critical moment, what secret is Dragon Brother going to reveal? Is there a hidden passage in Shenfeng Village?"

  I smiled and said, "This secret is indeed related to our current situation. Once this secret is made public, no one can stop us." Everyone urged, "Dragon Brother, speak quickly."

  I deliberately lowered my voice and said: "The secret is... actually, when it comes to fighting, women are no match for men." People were puzzled again: "What kind of secret is this?"

  I said, "Haven't you noticed that since our escape began, we've defeated many of those female guards, grooms and servants? As long as we dare to resist, women are not our opponents at all." Someone below shouted loudly, "But this time we're facing the army!" I said, "What's the big deal about the army? They're just a group of women wearing military uniforms. Many of you probably know that I'm actually from what you call 'Man Country', and in Man Country, when women wear military uniforms, they have only one purpose - to seduce men and sleep with them. This is called uniform temptation."

  Someone smiled awkwardly: "How did Dragon Brother bring up sleep again?" Someone immediately whispered to him: "Dragon Brother is from that background..." I was speechless for a moment, and continued: "Let me tell you what men should do. Men should fight, and their opponents can only be men. In our country of men, men can be beaten until they are covered in blood, they can give their lives on the battlefield, but they will never allow their dignity to be insulted. We won't live like you guys, being controlled by women. What right do women have to control us? They're not as intelligent as us, nor as physically strong..." Mei Li Hong coughed once.

  "I don't know what's wrong with this unlucky country of yours, but all the men are living in hiding like turtles."

  Everyone stared at me in shock, including the female bandits.

  "I don't care about anything, I said: 'It's okay to be like this in normal times, but now it's a matter of life and death. A group of old men are actually being blocked by a few women on the mountain and can only cry and whine. I'm so angry that I want to grab your big feet and pull you. I want to tell you one thing: if you want to get out alive, you must subdue them. All of you have this ability. If you want to live, follow me to deal with them. If you want to die, I suggest you don't waste other people's arrows, go find something to bump into and kill yourself, and don't lose the face of a man.' The people below were almost silent, and many of them looked at me with anger."

  I laughed and said, "Want to beat me up? Wait until I've settled the outside matters, then you can beat me up. But if anyone chickens out later, they'll have to admit that they're a turtle egg, a cowardly grandson..."

  Finally someone whispered: "Dragon brother seems to be right, they want to kill us, why don't we beat them up? We're not worse than them either."

  I waved my hand and said, "It's not that I'm not worse than them, it's definitely better than them. Moreover, if you say this kind of thing, don't call me brother, I won't be sisters with you!" A group of old men were squeezed by me until their faces were red and their ears were hot, and they exclaimed in unison: "Let's do it, let's fight to the death with them!"

  I cursed with a smile: "Damn, who told you to fight them to the death? I've said it before, women have never been our enemies, they just sometimes are a bit capricious and lonely, thinking of finding men to accompany them. The women at the foot of the mountain want to play a game with us, let's play along, but remember, no killing is allowed. Women are a very good thing, we must love them well." The people below also burst out laughing.

  "I said: 'Alright, let Geng Ling arrange what you should do next.' Geng Ling secretly gave me a thumbs up and began to deploy the troops."

  Meili Hong quietly pulled me and said: "You're really cheesy, you make my heart skip a beat."

  Geng Ying's plan was as follows: First, send someone to pretend to escape and lure the cavalry at the foot of the mountain to the middle of the mountain. Then use wooden stakes to block the road, forcing them to dismount and pursue on foot. Next, ambush them in the forest, with the goal of making these mounted archers unable to use their horses or bows and arrows, and engage us in close combat.

  Meili Hong hastily asked: "Then what should we do?" I said: "The matter originated from us, no need for you to dispatch any soldiers."

  Meili Hong said as usual: "Enough for you girls!" I corrected her: "From now on, say 'enough for you guys', when you can say this sentence fluently, I'll sleep with you."