Wang Shijing returned home during lunchtime. After they finished eating, he took the four dogs away and Shao Yunan took the three children and three tigers to the tea processing room. As usual, he sent the three children into the space and the three tigers expressed their dissatisfaction. But no matter how they requested or acted coquettishly (Little Gold) or roared (Brother Tiger), Shao Yunan remained unmoved.

Brother Tiger circled around Shao Yunan’s feet a few times and then bit his pants, trying to pull him outside. “Hey, hey, slow down! You’ll trip me!” Wang Shijing went to save his wife, but he was also caught by Big Gold, biting his pants. The two of them were dragged outside by the three tigers in a terrible state and Wang Shijing shouted, “Don’t drag! We’re coming with you! Lead the way!”

Brother Tiger loosened his mouth and when Big and Little Gold saw that, they also loosened their mouths. After adjusting their clothes, Wang Shijing held Shao Yunan’s hand and led him outside. Shao Yunan shouted, “Let me put away the tea leaves first. It seems they will have to be brewed tomorrow.”

After Shao Yunan stored all the tea leaves in the space and brought out the three children, he locked the door of the tea-making room, secured the four dogs, and then informed Yan Fusheng and Qin Niang before following the three big cats up the mountain with the children. 

Uncle Zhou accompanied Auntie Zhou to go to the bag store. The business at the bag store was booming and Auntie Zhou now only made limited-edition bags. The larger orders were given to other artisans they hired. Now Auntie Zhou was also responsible for the quality and updating of the bags in the store. When she had no work on hand, she would go to the bag store to check on things.

Aunt Zhou’s family used to be well-known for embroidery and tailoring, but due to family changes, they fell into poverty, and she married uncle Zhou, who came from a humble family in Xiushui Village. Later, Zhou Tianbao also became mentally disabled, and Auntie Zhou was often bullied by some people in the village. But things have changed now. 

Aunt Zhou could now be considered a boss and their family no longer had to worry about their livelihood. Their son was becoming smarter every day and many people wanted to establish a relationship with them. Aunt Zhou now also had more confidence and didn’t hesitate to speak up when others tried to bully her. 

However, in front of Shao Yunan and Wang Shijing, Aunt Zhou would always be the same Aunt Zhou. She still made clothes for the whole Wang family, inside and out. Even if she made fewer bags, she would never skimp on the clothes for the Wang family.

Brother Tiger, and Little and Big Gold led the two adults and three children up the mountain. They didn’t take the same path they normally use to climb the mountain and the three children found it difficult. Shao Yunan asked Brother Tiger if it could carry the three children and to his surprise, Brother Tiger agreed. Brother Tiger carried Jiang Moxi and Nizi. Since Nizi was small, she couldn’t sit on the back of a tiger without a saddle, so Jiang Moxi held onto the thick fur of the tiger’s neck while also holding Nizi. Big Gold carried Wang Qing and Little Gold happily ran ahead, clearing the way.

On the way, they encountered many animals, including wild rabbits, pheasants, foxes, and herds of deer. The children were very excited as they rarely had the chance to see so many wild animals living in the village. However, these wild animals were unhappy to see them and quickly fled in all directions. But Big and Little Gold showed no interest in them; it seemed that the place they were heading to was more important than these wild creatures.

They soon entered the deep forest in the mountains. Shao Yunan took out a blanket from the space to wrap the children in and put a down jacket on himself, while Wang Shijing didn’t feel the cold so didn’t need one. By the time it started to get dark, they hadn’t reached their destination yet. Shao Yunan sent the three children into the space and mounted Brother Tiger as he couldn’t walk any further. Wang Shijing had no problem walking and went ahead with Big Gold and Little Gold.

As the night grew darker, Shao Yunan could no longer distinguish the direction they were going in. Both he and Wang Shijing held emergency lights in their hands. When the emergency lights turned on, Big Gold and Little Gold became so scared they almost jumped, but Brother Tiger was quite calm. Shao Yunan did not ask Brother Tiger where he was taking them; even if he asked, it would be futile since Brother Tiger couldn’t speak. Anyway, they had already come this far and couldn’t turn back.

“Shijing, you go into the space first and I’ll bring you out when we arrive.”

“I’m not tired.” Wang Shijing would never leave his wife behind. Shao Yunan knew this very well, so he could only take out a bottle of water and two bread rolls to fill his stomach temporarily. The three tigers protested immediately, so he had to take out three more bottles of water and over a dozen apples. 

They quickly finished eating and drinking, and Brother Tiger continued moving forward. Mist rose in the woods and the eerie rustling sounds from all directions, coupled with the insect chirping that seemed particularly peaceful in movies and TV shows, now made people’s hearts race. If Shao Yunan was alone, he would never come to such a place, even if he was beaten to death.

“Wife, are you cold?”

“Not cold, just feeling nervous. Have you been here before?”

“No, I’ve never been beyond the tea trees on this mountain before.”

“Where is Brother Tiger taking us? We definitely won’t make it back tonight.”

“We’ve been walking for so long and we’ve already crossed over one hill. It’s probably some magical place. Ah! It’s so far. You must be tired. Let’s rest for a while.”

“Not tired. Compared to the roads I traveled during the war, this distance is much shorter. During the war, I couldn’t sleep for days and nights, with my nerves stretched tight. This is just walking, it’s not tiring.”

If it were when they had just gotten married, Shao Yunan would simply sigh at Wang Shijing’s hardships as a soldier, but now, hearing it, he felt very distressed.

“There probably won’t be another war for a while, at least.”

“Hard to say. If the country continues to be poor like this, even the Wing Tiger Army and the Flying Eagle Army won’t be able to hold on. Without military pay and insufficient food, they even have to figure out how to get a proper meal. If you can’t eat enough or stay warm, how can you fight? 

This time, if it weren’t for the young general’s surprise attack and killing their main commander, who was also the Khan’s legitimate son, the war wouldn’t have ended so quickly. But the Kingdom of Huhar itself is a belligerent country. They have coveted the fertile land and comfortable climate of our Great State of Yan for too long. The Kingdom of Huhar won’t stop easily.”

Shao Yunan said, “The Kingdom of Huhar is somewhat similar to the nomadic nations in our history, such as the Xiongnu, Turkic, and Khitan. We collectively refer to them as ‘Hu’ people and you call them ‘Hu Zi’. They live in a harsh environment and must certainly covet the fertile land and comfortable climate of the Great State of Yan. Throughout our history, from the founding of a dynasty to its downfall, there has been a history of fighting against foreign tribes along the border. The most famous and brutal period was the era of the Five Barbarians’ invasion of the Central Plains.

“At that time, the Hu people invaded the Central Plains, treating the Han people as pigs and dogs, calling them sheep. They not only slaughtered them but also roasted and ate them. The term ‘eating people’ originated from this. Later, a general issued an order to kill the Hu people. For every Hu person a Han person killed, they could claim a reward with their head, and the more they killed, the higher their rank.”

“Stimulated by such incentives, all Han people rose up and almost exterminated the Hu people. It can be said that this order to kill the Hu people saved the Han people at that time. During that period, the number of Han people left after being killed was only four to five million. The war stretched for thousands of miles, and only a few survived. The current environment is one where “they” are different from us, and their hearts are bound to be different. Don’t expect them to be genuinely friendly to us.”

Wang Shijing had experienced real cold weapon warfare, but although Shao Yunan spoke calmly, it sent shivers down his spine. The scene was chilling just to imagine. If one day, Huhar breached their defenses, then the fate awaiting the people of the Great State of Yan would be similar to the historical account as described by his wife. The people of Yan, including him, his wife, Qing, Nizi, Moxi, and all the people he cared about, would become sacrifices under the blades of the Huhar bandits, perhaps as food.

Wang Shijing shuddered. Even though the Great State of Yan was now starting to revitalize its economy with the help of his wife, it would still take many years to fully recover to a prosperous state. Could the borders of the Great State of Yan withstand it? Would the country of Huhar give them the time to prosper and flourish?

“Wife…” Wang Shijing opened his mouth subconsciously, but he didn’t know what to say. Shao Yunan looked at Wang Shijing and said seriously, “Shijing, the things in the space are mine and yours. The era always progresses forward and what is absent here now will eventually exist. Bringing things out in advance to use them will only accelerate the progress of history a little, but it won’t have a significant impact. Apart from the requirements at the technical level, you can decide on your own for things that can potentially be used. I won’t interfere.”

Wang Shijing swallowed and tightly held his wife’s slightly cold hand. “Shijing, I know that even though you have taken off the battle armor, you haven’t completely let go of it in your heart. The country is destroyed, and for the family to thrive, the nation must first be peaceful. Whatever decision you make, I support you.”

Holding his wife’s hand, Wang Shijing followed Brother Tiger’s footsteps for a long time and they remained silent for a while. Finally, Wang Shijing spoke, “Wife, I want to bring out the gunpowder. I want to bring out all the things from your space that can be useful in our era.”

“Okay.” Shao Yunan smiled gently, a smile that could truly be called tender, tender to the point of being rare. “I am responsible for earning money to support the family, and you are responsible for protecting the family and the country. We each have our own roles. You are my man and I am your male wife. I won’t rely on your wings to live and I also don’t like it when others think that you are lucky to have the life you have because of me. They don’t know that my man is also not an ordinary person.”

If he were an ordinary person, how could he be ‘allowed’ like this? How could he be so bold with his identity as an insider? If he were an ordinary person, how could he calmly accept his origin and help keep the secret of the space? It was because Wang Shijing was also not ordinary.

Wang Shijing was ignited by the tenderness of his spouse. He abruptly lifted Shao Yunan from Brother Tiger’s back and leaned down to kiss him. Shao Yunan wrapped his arms around Wang Shijing’s neck and tilted his head to meet his kiss, expressing his gratitude and happiness. The two of them kissed passionately and tenderly in the deserted jungle. 

The light from the two emergency lamps that had fallen on the ground was mostly blocked by dense weeds. Only a faint glow illuminated their bodies, but their lips pressed together in the darkness, hidden in the night. Not even a bug could peek into the almost soulful kiss they shared.

“Roar!” Unfortunately, someone ruined the atmosphere by interrupting the passionate moment between the two lovers. Wang Shijing let go of Shao Yunan and held him tightly as his body went limp. This was the most exhilarating kiss Shao Yunan had experienced since marrying Wang Shijing, leaving him completely drained of energy. 

Wang Shijing gently kissed his wife’s forehead and lifted him onto Brother Tiger’s back. Shao Yunan lay on Brother Tiger’s back, breathing heavily. Wang Shijing wasn’t doing much better; if it were daytime, you could definitely see his face blushing.

Picking up the emergency lamps and supporting his wife, Wang Shijing said to Brother Tiger. “Let’s go.” It seemed like a reminder for the two not to waste time as Brother Tiger started walking. Buried in Brother Tiger’s thick fur, Shao Yunan berated himself in his heart. He had almost reached climax from a kiss. Was his self-control so weak or did Wang Shijing’s kissing skills improve? Damn, he absolutely couldn’t tell that to Wang Shijing. It would be too embarrassing!

Edited by: Jaisland

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