Abandoning literature for martial arts, starting by unleashing the beauty's bow.

After walking twenty miles of mountain road from the village entrance, we got onto the official road and continued walking in the opposite direction from Qinghe County.

The sun had already set behind the horizon, and the sky was beginning to darken.

Lu Fengnian finally breathed a sigh of relief. He was most afraid that the officials from Qinghe County would arrive too quickly and block his family on the mountain road, leaving them nowhere to escape.

Now that they were on the official road, which was easily accessible in all directions, it wouldn't be so easy for the officials from Qinghe County to catch them.

However, he did not let his guard down and decided to continue walking, covering several dozen miles overnight, in an effort to get out of Qinghe County as soon as possible.

Liu Yunjuan and Lu Xiaoyu felt the same way and both breathed a sigh of relief.

"Fengnian, we're leaving now. What about Manyue?" Liu Yunjuan had been thinking about this ever since she left home, and only now was she finally able to bring it up.

Lu Xiaoyu turned around as well, "Last time, didn't Big Brother say that it was possible to bring Second Brother home?"

Lu Fengnian hesitated for a moment, "The matter of Manyue has already made progress, and he most likely will not go to the front line."

"Once we find a place to settle down, I'll go back to Qinghe County to pick him up."

Upon hearing this, both Liu Yunjuan and Lu Xiaoyu showed great joy.

"A bumper harvest, is what you said true?" Liu Yunjuan exclaimed in surprise.

Lu Fengnian nodded. "I've been working on this, but I didn't tell you before because I didn't have a definite answer."

Today I went to the county and finally confirmed the information: Man Yue will be able to leave the military camp at noon the day after tomorrow.

My friends in the county will pick him up and take good care of him.

"Very good!"

Lu Xiaoyu cheered, "As long as Second Brother can come back, we can settle down anywhere and have no more worries or concerns."

Liu Yunjuan added, "Fengnian, shouldn't we find a place to hide first, instead of going too far?"

The day after tomorrow, we'll go pick up the baby again for the full moon celebration, and our whole family will go together again, going far away.

"Qinghe County is so big, if we find a place to hide, the county officials will definitely not be able to find us."

Lu Fengnian shook his head. "Mother, don't worry. As long as Manyue can leave the military camp, I will definitely be able to bring him home."

But now, I need to get you out of Qinghe County before I can deal with the full moon celebration in peace.

Lu Xiaoyu grabbed Liu Yunjuan's arm, "Mother, if my eldest brother was able to rescue my second brother from the military camp, he will definitely be able to bring him back, so you don't need to worry."

Once we leave Qinghe County, we won't hold our elder brother back or cause him any trouble.

Lu Fengnian laughed and scolded, "Silly girl, what do you mean by 'holding me back' or 'causing trouble'? Mother's leg is injured right now, and she can't travel around. Your older brother should quickly send you out of Qinghe County and find a stable place so that Mother can recover properly. That's the most important thing."

Liu Yunjuan nodded. "Mother will follow your arrangements. As long as you can come back for the full moon celebration, we are not afraid of anything."

…………

By the time the sun had completely set, Lu Fengnian had already traveled more than ten miles on the official road, pushing his wheelbarrow.

Just then, he heard the faint sound of horses' hooves behind him.

Lu Fengnian's heart tightened, and he quickly looked around. After a moment's hesitation, he pushed the wheelbarrow into a grove of trees beside the official road.

"What's wrong with Fengnian?" Liu Yunjuan asked in confusion.

Lu Xiaoyu was also completely confused.

Their hearing was far inferior to Lu Fengnian's, so they naturally couldn't hear the sound of horses' hooves.

Lu Fengnian said in a low voice, "Someone is coming from behind."

"Are they officials from Qinghe County?" Liu Yunjuan's face tightened.

Lu Fengnian shook his head. "I don't know yet, but just to be on the safe side, let's hide for now."

After hiding the wheelbarrow, Lu Fengnian returned to the official road, broke off a branch, swept away the wheel tracks on the road, and then retreated back into the woods to erase his own footprints.

Afterwards, he hid behind a patch of grass with Liu Yunjuan and Lu Xiaoyu.

At this moment, Liu Yunjuan and Lu Xiaoyu finally heard the sound of horses' hooves. Their faces turned noticeably pale, and they looked tense.

Lu Fengnian took their hands and whispered, "Don't be afraid, I'm here."

…………

Three knights rode swiftly along the official road.

They were all dressed the same: blue single-layer cloth short shirts, red back armor, rolled-up cuffs, loose leggings, and a white round cloth sewn on the front and back with the character "捕" (meaning "capture") written on it; they were the constables of Qinghe County.

The man in the middle was wearing a small black felt hat with a flat top. He was tall and burly, with broad shoulders and a thick waist.

The three men reined in their horses and stopped on the official road not far from the woods. The short constable on the right jumped off his horse, squatted down, and looked around the road.

He then cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to the burly man and said, "Chief Constable, the wheels will disappear here."

It turned out that the burly man was actually Ye Zhengtang, the chief constable of Qinghe County.

Ye Zhengtang jumped off his horse, briefly observed the situation on the road, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. "This Lu Fengnian is quite interesting."

After saying that, he looked at the short man and said, "Lu Fengnian's mother has a leg injury and can't go far. You ride your horse and chase after them for two miles. Whether you see them or not, come back and report immediately."

Remember, don't be greedy for credit. Lu Fengnian was able to break the limbs of more than a dozen people single-handedly, so his skills are not weak. Moreover, I've heard that his archery skills are quite remarkable.

If you see him, you'd better get out of there quickly, lest you be caught off guard and something goes wrong.

"Don't worry, Chief Constable, I know what I'm doing."

The short man cupped his hands in greeting to Ye Zhengtang, mounted his horse, and galloped off into the distance.

Another man, tall and thin, asked疑惑地问道, "Chief Constable, where are we going now?"

Ye Zhengtang turned his gaze to the woods not far away. "If they haven't left, they are very likely hiding in the woods. We can just guard this place."

The tall, thin man quickly took out a tinderbox, ready to light it.

Ye Zhengtang hissed, "How could you be so stupid? Lu Fengnian is a master archer. Are you trying to make yourself a sitting duck by lighting a torch in the middle of the night?"

The tall, thin man chuckled sheepishly. "Lu Fengnian is just a country bumpkin who was driven to desperation. In a moment of anger, he killed someone. Does he really dare to shoot us officials?"

Ye Zhengtang snorted coldly, "Foolish! Didn't you look at his information? Although this kid failed the imperial examination for five consecutive years, he is still a scholar."

A scholar who dares to kill must be a simple person.

Otherwise, why would I personally intervene today?

At this point, he frowned slightly, "I have a feeling of unease about this trip. I need to be careful, lest we really make a mess of things, which would be incredibly embarrassing."

The tall, thin man added, "Chief Constable, you're being too cautious. You're a second-rank martial artist, while Lu Fengnian is just a country boy with slightly better archery skills. With you in charge, isn't it a piece of cake to capture him?"