Don't mess with that Miao boy, he's sickly and perverted.

Inside the Ouyang residence.

A man in his forties, dressed in brocade robes, with a gaunt face, was slowly strolling among the flowers in the garden, holding a pair of exquisite silver scissors.

The garden was full of colorful flowers. He would slowly reach out and pluck any that were in full bloom and growing vigorously. If he couldn't break them, he would simply cut them off along with the stems.

"Interesting, truly interesting," he muttered to himself, a playful smile playing on his lips. "To think that people from Miao territory, and even from the Witchcraft Clan, would appear in Thousand Mist Town. It seems the prize I prepared this time—the Ice Bow and Mystic Arrow—is quite enticing."

As he spoke, Ouyang Huai spotted a fiery red peony blooming brightly among the leaves. He reached out to break it off, but the branch was unusually hard and tough.

His eyes turned cold, and he gripped his wrist tightly, the silver scissors snapping shut with a "snip".

The entire peony, along with a broken branch, finally landed in his palm.

He hummed contentedly, brought the flower close to his nose, and took a deep sniff.

"So fragrant... Flowers are indeed most beautiful when picked at their most vibrant."

"What you say is true, sir," the steward of the manor stood by with his hands at his sides, offering a low compliment.

Ouyang Huai then changed the subject: "I didn't expect those witchcraft tribesmen to be so generous, exchanging a single Crimson Blood Silkworm for a piece of wood. Are they perhaps a bit foolish? Don't they know the market value of Crimson Blood Silkworms in the Central Plains?"

After a moment's thought, a smug look appeared in his eyes. In any case, he had ultimately profited from this deal.

"Grand Tutor Yin's men have arrived at just the right time. Have you sent them that Crimson Blood Silkworm?" Ouyang Huai suddenly asked.

The dozens of guards sent by Grand Tutor Yin are currently staying at his residence due to a shortage of rooms in the city's inns.

The steward bowed and replied, "I've already sent someone to deliver it to the side courtyard. I saw that they specially dispatched two guards, who rode at top speed away from Thousand Mist Town. It should be presented to our lord in a few days."

"Um."

Ouyang Huai responded, his fingertips gently tracing the delicate petals of the peony.

Its bright red color resembles something warm.

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The butler, adept at reading between the lines, asked knowingly, "Master, are you looking for something new again?"

"Let's wait a while, until the New Moon Arrow Duel is over." Ouyang Huai wantonly crushed the peony in his hand, letting the petals twist and deform between his thin, withered fingers.

Then, with a loosening of his grip, the withered and ruined peony lay dying on the soil.

"Where's Rui'er?" Ouyang Huai suddenly remembered something and looked up to ask, "He said he was going to check the storeroom, but he hasn't come out yet. What is he looking for?"

The butler hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Young Master said he's hosting a banquet tonight for some friends who have come from afar, and he'd like to pick out a rare item to give to a young lady."

"Oh?" Ouyang Huai seemed to have heard something unusual. "Rui'er actually has someone he likes? Which family's daughter is she?"

"She's... from out of town..." The butler paused, his tone hesitant. "I heard that the girl is already married and even has a child. But the young master is insistent that she's a fairy and he won't marry anyone else. He also says he wants to find a magical artifact that can ward off poison and curses, because the girl's husband seems to be from that witchcraft clan."

"Nonsense!" Ouyang Huai shouted suddenly.

After a moment of silence, he recalled the butler's words: "You mean, that person from Miao territory will also be attending the banquet tonight?"

The butler nodded in agreement.

"Have the dining hall prepare more delicacies," a glint of shrewdness flashed in Ouyang Huai's eyes, "I will personally step in to show my hospitality."

Since this Miao man could casually produce a Crimson Blood Silkworm, and perhaps even more, he could easily negotiate a deal with him and buy all the Crimson Blood Silkworms in his possession for a hefty sum.

Since they're willing to exchange a Crimson Blood Silkworm for a piece of wood, such a dullard shouldn't be too difficult to manipulate.

*

The outskirts of Qianwu Town are picturesque.

This is a wide, flat field, next to a clear lake. A sparse grove of low trees runs along the lakeshore, their shadows swaying gently on the ground in the wind.

This place was chosen by Wu Li.

He said that open spaces are good for practicing archery, the lakeside is a good place to wash hands, and if you get tired from practicing, the nearby woods are a good place to cool off and rest.

But from beginning to end, only Chai Xiaomi actually took a break and rested in the shade of the tree.

She had lost count of how many times Wu Li had chased her back to the shade of the tree.

Not far away, under the scorching sun, a boy was tossing a handful of pebbles into the air one by one.

Song Yueyao was already able to shoot down several of them with her bow, her progress was astonishingly rapid.

Chai Xiaomi, on the other hand, was like a substitute player who was kept on the bench, with the head coach delaying calling her onto the field.

I would occasionally go over to learn for a while, but before long, he would send me back to the shade of the tree with a single sentence.

Seeing that she was really staring at him longingly, he would turn back and teach her a few basic postures and techniques, letting her practice drawing the bowstring in place to get used to the feel of it.

After teaching her, I went back to teach Song Yueyao practical skills.

It's just like the substitute players squatting on the sidelines practicing dribbling, while the starters are flying up for dunks on the court.

The head coach, on the other hand, has to travel back and forth.

After tugging at the bowstring for a while, Chai Xiaomi got tired of it. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention, she secretly picked up a twig and started scribbling on the ground out of boredom.

First, carefully outline two round eyes with a twig, then a small nose...

Occasionally, she would catch a glimpse of Wu Li's gaze sweeping over her, then quickly toss aside the branch and pretend to be engrossed in studying the bow in her hand.

As if sensing her slackness, when Wu Li approached her again, he glanced at the four people and one cat drawn on the ground and asked, "Would you like to learn the True Form Mirror?"

Chai Xiaomi instantly perked up: "Yes!"

As a result, the head coach was in an even worse situation.

They're teaching basketball on one side and soccer on the other.

Wu Li held up a thin twig to correct Song Yueyao's posture and hand shape, then ran back to teach her hand seals and incantations. After several repetitions, Chai Xiaomi actually grasped the essentials and learned almost everything.

Anyway, her main purpose wasn't to learn archery; she was just a supervisor to keep an eye on Wu Li and see if he would do anything underhanded.

She finally understood what was going on at the bow and arrow shop last time. Wu Li had repeatedly tried to make Song Yueyao take the initiative to contact him. So as long as Song Yueyao didn't take the initiative, she could just stay obediently.

At this moment, Song Yueyao was completely focused on drawing her bow and aiming, without any distractions.

Chai Xiaomi felt a little more at ease and lowered her head to draw again, including the big fat snake and the big eagle...

When she looked up again, she saw Wu Li walk to the lakeside, squat down, and casually roll up his sleeves.

She sensed something was wrong, so she dropped the branch and rushed over.

The lake water was warm from the blazing sun. Wu Li casually splashed it a few times, and the water became crystal clear. He scooped up a handful with both hands, about to bend down and drink, when a small hand suddenly stopped him—

"Don't drink it!"

Wu Li looked up and met Chai Xiaomi's furrowed brows. Her sudden nervousness startled him. "I'm thirsty."

The two of them were in such a hurry that they didn't bring any water bags.

He was so thirsty that he went to the lake to drink water.

Besides, he was used to drinking this kind of water when he was a child, and it was even much dirtier than the water in this lake.

"Even if you're thirsty, you can't drink the lake water, it's dirty." Watching the water slowly leak through his fingers, Chai Xiaomi grabbed his wrist, shook off all the remaining water, and said seriously, "Even raw water isn't clean, let alone water from wild lakes. There are parasites in it, what if you get a stomachache from drinking it?"

At this moment, Song Yueyao, who was concentrating on practicing archery, heard the noise, casually untied the water pouch from her waist, and tossed it over in this direction.

"Why didn't you say you were thirsty sooner? Don't be shy, drink mine!"

She grew up in the military camp with her grandfather and had long since forgotten about such trivial matters between men and women.

On the battlefield, nothing is more important than survival.

"Sister Yao is the best!" Chai Xiaomi snatched the water pouch, unscrewed the cap without a word, and handed it directly to Wu Li's lips. "Here, drink it."

The boy's originally pink lips were now slightly pale, with a few fine lines appearing on them.

The beads of sweat on the tip of his nose glistened in the sunlight.

He had to instruct Song Yueyao on one hand and throw pebbles for her on the other, while also keeping an eye on her under the shade of the tree from time to time. Running around, he was the one who sweated the most.

The water shortage is the most severe; they have indeed been thirsty for a long time.

Even so, when the water pouch was brought to his lips, he turned his head away and avoided it.