Huang Rong from The Return of the Condor Heroes: Brother Jing, let's get a divorce.

Early in the morning, Yang Guo had just finished eating half a cold steamed bun when Xiaolongnu was already standing in the courtyard waiting for him.

She wore a white dress and skirt, her long hair was tied into a ponytail, and a short ruler was tied at her waist.

She changed into a pair of thin-soled soft boots, clearly preparing for going up the mountain.

Yang Guo walked over, his gaze sweeping over the area from top to bottom, finally settling on the pair of soft boots.

"Teacher Long looks quite neat today."

Little Dragon Girl ignored those words and turned to leave.

Yang Guo followed, and the two left the backyard and walked up the mountain along the path on the east side of Chongyang Palace.

Today's task is to survey the main routes into Zhongnan Mountain and mark outposts and ambush points. Having lived in the Ancient Tomb for over a decade, Xiaolongnu knows the terrain of Zhongnan Mountain far better than these Taoist priests of the Quanzhen Sect.

The first road is the official road to the east.

This is the widest path, and it's the one most commonly used by outsiders entering the mountains. Little Dragon Girl stopped under an old pine tree by the roadside, crouched down, and examined the ground.

"Here." Little Dragon Girl drew a line on the muddy ground with a short ruler. "The path narrows, and there are stone walls on both sides, obstructing the view. Set up a hidden crossbow above the stone wall on the left, and use a thin wire to pull it to a bamboo whistle in the bushes on the right. When someone walks by, the wire will trip, the bamboo whistle will sound, and the hidden crossbow will fire at the same time. The disciples on duty will hear the whistle and cut off the retreat from the high ground behind."

Yang Guo took out paper and pen and squatted down to draw.

"Teacher Long, it would be great if we put a landmine here. It would explode as soon as you step on it, which would save us a lot of trouble."

Little Dragon Girl stood up and glanced at Yang Guo.

"What is a landmine?"

"Something buried underground that explodes when you step on it. Never mind, there's no gunpowder formula these days, so never mind."

Little Dragon Girl withdrew her gaze and continued walking forward.

The two walked along the official road for half an hour, during which Xiaolongnu marked six locations. Each location was extremely tricky, situated in blind spots and narrowing areas of the terrain, making it impossible for anyone entering to defend against them.

Yang Guo watched in amazement. The Ancient Tomb Sect's mechanical skills were truly legendary; the defensive logic in Xiaolongnu's mind would have made her a top-tier security engineer in her previous life.

The second road is the Hunter's Trail to the west.

The road was narrow and steep, and usually only hunters from the foot of the mountain occasionally traveled it. Little Dragon Girl stopped at a fork in the road and spent a long time examining it through the bushes.

"We don't need to set up hidden crossbows here," Xiaolongnu said to Yang Guo. "The middle path at the fork in the road is a dead end; going down it leads to a cliff. We'll make a fake signpost at the entrance to guide strangers to the middle path. The real path is on the left, concealed with fallen leaves and withered branches. The Quanzhen Sect disciples will take the left path, while outsiders will take the middle one. They'll be exposed when they reach the edge of the cliff."

Yang Guo slapped his thigh hard.

"Brilliant! What's this called? This is called entrapment!"

Little Dragon Girl didn't know what entrapment was, so she didn't respond.

The third road is the valley road to the north.

This path is the most secluded; following the stream upstream leads directly to the back mountain of Chongyang Palace. The last time the Golden Wheel Monk led his men in a sneak attack, they used this very path.

Little Dragon Girl stood at the entrance of the valley for a long time, her gaze sweeping back and forth between the mountain walls on both sides and the tree canopy above her head.

"This is the most dangerous place, but also the easiest to defend against." Little Dragon Girl squatted down, picked up a twig, and drew a diagram on the ground. "The mountain walls on both sides of the valley are steep, and there are a lot of old vines overhead. Use wire to string the old vines together and hang copper bells on them. Set up three tripwires in the valley, twenty feet apart. The first tripwire will trigger the copper bell alarm, the second tripwire will trigger the rockfall trap, and the third tripwire will be used to ambush crossbowmen. The three checkpoints are progressively more difficult. Even a top-notch expert would be badly injured if he broke in."

Yang Guo finished drawing the picture and blew on the ink.

"Professor Long, if you had that kind of brain in your past life, you would be a professor at a military academy."

What were you in your past life?

"It was in my past life."

"I didn't know you in my past life."

Yang Guo was momentarily speechless, then gave a dry laugh without replying.

Having surveyed all three main roads, the two had been walking in the mountains for nearly two hours. The midday sun hung high overhead, and the forest was hot and humid.

Little Dragon Girl led Yang Guo onto a side path. After walking about a hundred steps, a hidden mountain spring appeared ahead. The spring water flowed out from the cracks in the rocks, forming a small pool, crystal clear.

Little Dragon Girl sat down on a large rock by the pool and took out a water bag from her waist to fill it with water.

Yang Guo found a rock nearby, sat down, and stretched.

"Teacher Long, you looked like a fairy walking around in the mountains in your white dress today, only you were missing wings."

Xiaolongnu screwed the cap off the water pouch and turned her head to look at Yang Guo.

His face was expressionless, but his gaze lingered on Yang Guo's face for a few seconds longer than usual.

Yang Guo grinned and moved closer. "What's wrong, Teacher Long? Are you embarrassed by my praise?"

"You went to Huang Rong's room the night before last."

Yang Guo's smile froze on his face.

Xiaolongnu lowered her eyes, her tone as calm as if she were saying that the weather was nice today.

"My room was next to hers. The bed made a noise. It kept making noise for a long time."

Yang Guo felt a tingling sensation at the back of his head, and sweat poured down his back.

Having acted for over a decade in his previous life, Yang Guo had seen countless storms and experienced all sorts of situations. But at this moment, sitting by the mountain spring and being questioned by Xiaolongnu in such a tone, Yang Guo's composure faltered drastically.

"Um, Teacher Long, you misheard me." Yang Guo coughed twice.

"You heard me right."

"You must have misheard. I was treating Chief Huang's injuries, and the bed frame loosened while I was practicing my internal energy. It was creaking. It's not what you think."

Little Dragon Girl placed the water pouch on her lap and tilted her head to look at Yang Guo.

Yang Guo was all too familiar with that look. Having been tormented so many times in the Ancient Tomb, he knew at a glance that this was a sign that the devilish older sister was about to deal with him.

"Circulate your internal energy." Little Dragon Girl repeated these two words.

"Yes, circulating internal energy. The circulation of Nine Yin True Qi requires the cooperation of two people. Chief Huang suffered internal injuries in the Ancient Tomb, so I need to help her clear her meridians."

Yang Guo spoke with such conviction, without batting an eye. This is where his acting prowess truly shone.

Little Dragon Girl remained silent for a while.

"Do you need to make a sound when practicing qigong?"

Yang Guo almost slipped off the rock.

"That hurts! It hurts when your meridians are opened! Don't you feel it too? Didn't you groan when I channeled my inner energy into you?"

Xiaolongnu didn't speak. She stood up, walked to Yang Guo, and looked down at him.

Yang Guo leaned back, but there were rocks behind him, leaving him nowhere to retreat.

Xiaolongnu reached out her hand, touched Yang Guo's forehead with her index finger, and pushed him back forcefully.

"Next time you practice, close the windows tightly."

Yang Guo stood frozen in place, not daring to move for a long time.

Xiaolongnu withdrew her finger, turned around, and walked back to the rock where she had been sitting. She sat down with her back to Yang Guo, picked up her water pouch, and took a sip of water.

Yang Guo stared at the white figure, the cold sweat on his back still damp.

He barely managed to get past this hurdle. But Yang Guo had no idea whether Xiaolongnu believed him or not.

This woman never loses her temper on the spot. Her method of settling scores is always to settle them later, and she never hesitates to do so.

Yang Guo wiped the sweat from his face and drank two mouthfuls of spring water to calm his nerves.

The two rested by the spring for a quarter of an hour before resuming their journey back to Chongyang Palace.

On the way, Xiaolongnu walked ahead without turning around or saying a word. Yang Guo followed behind, his eyes fixed on the hem of the white dress, his mind racing as he considered how to handle the situation.

It was already afternoon when we returned to Chongyang Palace.

Xiaolongnu stopped outside the council hall and turned to face Yang Guo.

"I'll release the defense plan tonight. But there's a problem."

Yang Guo quickly straightened his posture. "What's the problem?"

"The mechanisms and chains on the three mountain paths require 600 zhang of fine iron wire, 120 copper bells, and 24 hidden crossbows. The crossbows use the Ancient Tomb Sect's design and need to be made of fine steel. The Quanzhen Sect has no blacksmiths and no stock of them."

Yang Guo frowned.

"Six hundred feet of fine iron wire, twenty-four concealed crossbows. How much silver would that cost?"

"The iron wire and copper bell together will cost at least eighty taels. The crossbow mechanism needs to be custom-made by a master blacksmith, so I can't say for sure what the price will be; I'll have to go down the mountain to inquire."

Eighty taels.

Yang Guo's lips twitched. The Quanzhen Sect only had seven taels of silver in their pockets, not even a tenth of that.

"I'll figure out the materials." Yang Guo took the map with densely marked points from Xiaolongnu, folded it, and stuffed it into his pocket. "You draw up the plan first, and write down the specific dimensions and specifications clearly. I'll give it to Li Mochou's economic department to coordinate the procurement."