A veteran of the frontier army, after marrying a wife, fought his way through the northern border.

"Master, you seem to know the border army's rules so well. Did you serve in the army yourself?"

"That's right, I worked as an armorer for General Gongsun's White Horse Cavalry for several years back then."

Don't take offense, but I'm afraid you'll cause a huge disaster and drag me down with you.

Master Li raised his voice a few decibels when he mentioned the White Horse Cavalry, as if he were quite proud.

Everyone knows that General Gongsun Zan was brave and skilled in battle, and was the most powerful general on the border of Youzhou.

The White Horse Cavalry, organized by Gongsun Zan, was the elite of the border cavalry.

"So, can you remelt and reforge these two swords?"

"Sure. Your knife is so rusted and the engravings are gone, it doesn't matter if it melts."

"I have a seven-pound piece of meteorite iron here, which can add weight to your horse-slaying sword."

The sword is eight feet long and weighs fifteen pounds. Elite soldiers can wield it to pierce armor and cut through horses.

Are you building this for yourself or for someone else?

"For personal use."

"Come back in seven days to collect it. The meteorite iron weighs three taels and five mace, and the forging fee is two taels."

"The border troops will receive a preferential treatment; the total charge is five taels of silver."

A fifteen-pound horse-slaying sword, if made at the original price, would cost at least twenty taels of silver.

Luo Yunxiao brought two knives with him as raw materials, which saved him a lot of money.

Just as he was about to take out his money, he inadvertently noticed two short steel knives on the counter shelf.

Each weapon is two feet long, compact in design, and already sharpened, making it ideal for close-quarters combat.

He already had the horse-slaying sword as a heavy weapon, but he still lacked a short weapon, and these two swords were just right.

The extra one can be given to Qin Hongxiu.

"Boss, how much are these two knives?"

"That's a short sword made of refined wrought iron, two taels of silver each."

"I'll take them all."

Luo Yunxiao handed over nine taels to Master Li.

Old Li gave him two knife sheaths for free.

Luo Yunxiao, carrying a knife, led the donkey cart to the market to meet up with Su Yunshang and the other two.

By this time, the three women had already bought bags and bags of things, and each of them was holding a roasted sweet potato and eating it.

The aroma is tangy.

Luo Yunxiao took a big bite of the sweet potato in Qin Hongxiu's hand, and the sweetness filled his mouth. He exclaimed how sweet it was.

Qin Hongxiu pouted and glared at Luo Yunxiao.

They seemed quite disgusted.

Luo Yunxiao smiled and handed her a short knife: "Take this for self-defense."

Qin Hongxiu was stunned for a moment, then snatched the short knife and drew it out, brandishing it a few times.

The blade gleams coldly, has a moderate weight, and is very easy to handle.

Seeing how much Qin Hongxiu loved it, Luo Yunxiao finished the remaining sweet potato in her hand in two bites.

He gently stroked her delicate nose: "Do you like it?"

"I like it, I like it very much, my husband is so thoughtful."

Qin Hongxiu's eyes seemed to hold a thousand stars.

"So it turns out that Hongxiu actually likes weapons."

Su Yunshang looked at Qin Hongxiu with her eyes crinkling, then turned to Luo Yunxiao and smiled, "My sister and I were just about to buy her some cosmetics, but she didn't even look at them."

You gave her a dagger, and look how much she treasured it.

Qin Hongxiu grew up in the military camp with her father and played with all kinds of weapons.

He was proficient in all eighteen weapons and would buy any weapon he found that suited him.

Every time her father, Qin Lie, won a battle, he would always choose a weapon from the spoils of war and give it to his daughter as a gift.

Holding the dagger in her hand, her thoughts drifted back to the days she spent with her father.

"For me, a handy weapon is much more interesting than pretty clothes and rouge."

Qin Hongxiu brandished the knife in her hand, a satisfied look on her face.

"We should head back now. We'll pick up our weapons and winter clothes in seven days."

"Wait, my husband, I just saw that there are sheepskin felts for sale in the South Market, eight coins a piece."

Let's buy some and build a warm shelter at the auxiliary troops' barracks.

"Why build a warm hut? Aren't there soldiers' barracks in the main camp?"

Luo Yunxiao was puzzled, and the Su sisters were also confused.

Qin Hongxiu said seriously, "It seems you know nothing about the situation of the auxiliary troops camp."

Preparing only food supplies is far from enough.

"My father was once a border army captain. I followed him in the army when I was eight years old, so I know the details of the auxiliary troops best."

Combat soldiers not only received higher pay than auxiliary soldiers, but also enjoyed much better food and lodging.

The knives issued by the camp were either rusted and couldn't be pulled out, or they were hoes with broken handles.

Some auxiliary soldiers didn't even have tents; in the dead of winter, they could only sleep huddled together in the trenches.

"Such a thing really happened?"

Luo Yunxiao couldn't help but frown.

If Qin Hongxiu hadn't told him, he would never have known that the environment in the auxiliary troops camp was so harsh.

"Now that winter has arrived, do you know why the court has conscripted you, an old soldier nearing fifty, into the army?"

A military commander's camp had 500 soldiers, including nearly 200 auxiliary soldiers. Every winter, dozens of auxiliary soldiers would freeze or starve to death.

Digging trenches, transporting supplies, carrying the wounded, burying the dead—these were the dirty and tiring jobs that soldiers didn't want to do.

If you don't finish your work, you'll get whipped by your superiors.

The Su sisters were terrified and remained silent.

He couldn't help but worry about Luo Yunxiao's future, and even more so about his own.

"I know my husband is incredibly brave, far beyond what ordinary people can match. Perhaps he can achieve military merit and be promoted to squad leader or platoon leader."

He might even be promoted to captain.

However, before being promoted, these dirty jobs are always unavoidable.

If you don't want to freeze to death, living in a tent is not an option; you have to build your own warm shelter.

In addition, prepare some silver; if you don't give your superiors some benefits, you might not even have a warm house to live in.

My father often said that in chaotic times, only the strong can survive.

From now on, in the army camp, my husband, you only need to fight, and I will cover your rear, so you won't have any worries.

Qin Hongxiu gazed at Luo Yunxiao with her beautiful eyes.

"Understood, let's do as you say."

He spent five taels of silver to buy fifteen sheepskin felts, folded them up, and put them on the donkey cart.

The four of them started heading back.

On the way back, the sky began to darken and the temperature dropped.

Luo Yunxiao suddenly saw a donkey cart traveling the same way as him ahead.

Upon closer inspection, he realized that the people sitting in the car were Wang San, Ma Liu, and Zhao Yaodi, whom he had beaten up a few days ago.

The other person is Liu Wangcai.

After finishing their shopping in the county town, these people returned to their village ahead of others.

The two groups of people were about two hundred paces apart, one in front of the other.

Wang San and the others also saw Luo Yunxiao and his group, and their faces showed embarrassment.

"Big brother, it's Luo Yunxiao and his wife. Shall we make our move now?"

Ma Liu said in a low voice.

"It's inconvenient during the day, let's talk about it at night."

So Wang San picked up the whip and lashed the donkey, and the two distanced themselves a little further.

At this moment, more than thirty people suddenly emerged from the woods on the right side of the road.

He held a broadsword, a long spear, an iron fork, and a wooden club.

Several of them were still wearing leather armor.

Each of them exuded murderous intent, their faces revealing a fierce glint.

Luo Yunxiao saw from afar that Wang San's donkey cart had been stopped by a group of people.

Begging gang?

It's them again!

As they drew closer to the beggar gang ahead, Su Yunshang and her sister nervously clutched their skirts: "Husband, they outnumber us. Let's take another route."

They are now on a mountain road, with dense forest on their right.

To the left is a cliff tens of meters high.

If you want to turn back, you can only go back the way you came.

But the donkey cart was carrying four people and so much stuff.

They might not be able to outrun these bandits.

"No need, my husband and I are more than capable of dealing with these scoundrels."

Qin Hongxiu remained calm, seemingly unafraid of the bandits.

"Don't be afraid, they've brought us money."

Luo Yunxiao smiled nonchalantly.

He'd been bursting with energy these past few days and was itching to get his hands dirty, so these bandits delivered themselves right to his doorstep.

Moreover, he discovered that at least twenty of these people had light spots of varying sizes on their bodies.

If we kill them, we can make up for the money we spent on today's purchases.