Chapter 8: Brother, I Want It!

  Back to the barracks, a lively scene, the Tang army was excited and couldn't stop talking about the battle, the more they talked, the more spirited they became, looking at them like that, even if they talked for ten days and nights, it wouldn't be a problem.

  Who would have thought that this battle was a fight against the odds, facing ten times as many enemies, they not only won but also annihilated all the invading enemies, without a single one escaping, which is extremely rare in military history.

  Kang De immediately gathered Li Changguo and others to discuss and decide unanimously, hastening to report the victory to the Anxi Protectorate.

  Reporting good news like this, who wouldn't be delighted? Kangde and the others can't wait to grow wings and fly to Suole.

  The fort must be guarded by someone and it's impossible for everyone to go, only a portion of people can be sent to Shule. Huolangkande must go, he is the most important official here and cannot be absent.

  Li Changguo must go, he is the greatest contributor to this battle, who has the face to go if he doesn't?

  It was soon settled that Huo Longkang would take twenty men to escort the captives to Shule, and Li Changguo's group had to go because of their relationship with Li Changguo.

  After the discussion, Kant immediately set off with his team.

  More than 200 prisoners were tied up with their hands behind their backs, and then bound together in a long string to prevent them from harboring evil intentions. In this way, it became a long snake formation, a very long procession.

  Shule was an important town of the Anxi Protectorate, together with Kucha, Shoyan and Hotan, known as the "Four Garrisons of Anxi". Li Changgui and his men went to Shule to report their victory.

  The fort is south of Kashgar, and you have to head north to get there.

  The mountains of Congling rose and fell, with thousands of peaks and ravines, majestic and awe-inspiring. A mountain path wound its way through the peaks, and Li Changguo and his companions advanced along it.

  XXXXXX

  "Woof! Woof! Woof!"

  A pack of barking dogs came through, a hound the size of a calf running through the woods chasing after a fox.

  This fox is a single piece of crimson red, with no miscellaneous colors on its body, and at first glance it looks like a flame, unspeakably beautiful.

  The hounds were hot on the heels, and this fox would occasionally glance back with a flash of cunning in its eyes. The fox was sly, and this one was giving a perfect interpretation, as if it wasn't being chased by the dogs, but rather leading them.

  There have been several times when the fox narrowly escaped being caught just in time.

  Chasing after this fox was a pair of mistress and servant, two women riding tall horses, one glance told they were fine horses from the Western Regions.

  A girl about seventeen or eighteen years old, with a melon-seed-shaped face, extremely well-proportioned, and a sweet image. Her figure is tall and slender, with curves that exude the aura of youth, having a fatally attractive charm to the opposite sex.

  Another woman was a young maid, about thirteen or fourteen years old, holding a bow in her hand but without an arrow on it, shouting incessantly.

  "Miss, miss, over here! The fox is over here!"

  The girl's voice was still a bit childish, full of anxiety and urgency, urging: "Miss, hurry up and shoot! Hurry up and shoot! If you don't shoot again, they'll escape! Miss, aim properly!"

  "Shut up!" The woman's voice was crisp and sweet, lightly scolding: "It's all because of you, this silly girl shouting and yelling, making people's hearts panic! If you didn't shout, no one would say you're mute!"

  The woman's face was tense, she glanced around for half a day before shooting an arrow at the fox.

  The fox's skull suddenly rose, and with a quick flash to the side, it easily dodged. The cunning fox bared its teeth, full of disdain and provocation. The woman saw this in her eyes, extremely angry, and fiercely said: "You sly fox, I don't believe you can't be killed! Today, I must kill you!"

  The fox jumped several times and escaped far away, which was the answer to the woman. The woman got angry, her pretty face covered with frost, she slapped the horse's back and chased after it.

  After chasing for a while, they only saw the fox rushing towards them, extremely frightened. The woman had been entangled with this fox for some time and had never seen it so frightened, feeling somewhat surprised, a pair of eyes that could speak were wide open.

  "Miss, shoot quickly!" The maid reminded her urgently.

  The girl drew her bow and shot at the fox, still as inaccurate as ever, missing it by a wide margin, not even hitting a single hair.

  "Whoosh!"

  Suddenly, a sharp and piercing sound shook the sky, as if thousands of arrows were flying through the air, and the woman's eyebrows curved like crescent moons.

  "Pffft!"

  A dull thud echoed, accompanied by the fox's mournful cry. A sturdy and long arrow, unlike ordinary arrows, pinned the fox to the ground. The fox had not yet died, struggling constantly, wanting to escape, but the arrow was too deeply buried in the earth, no matter how hard it tried, it was all in vain.

  "Hit it!"

  The two men shouted in unison and galloped over, intending to catch the fox. Before they could reach it, a sturdy young man rode up on horseback, his long spear poking at the fox's body. The fox sprang up and slid along the spear shaft onto the saddle.

  Her skill was exquisite, the woman's eyebrows furrowed, staring intently at the young man, fully on guard, as if facing a formidable foe.

  "Don't be nervous!" The young man was Li Changguo, who flashed a kind smile at the girl and said, "I'm an official soldier, not a bandit!"

  "Oh!" The woman heard this and finally let out a breath of relief, sizing up Li Changguo.

  "Hey!" The little girl shouted at Li Changguo: "The fox is ours, put down the fox and spare you from being disrespectful!"

  "Sorry, I'm not surnamed Wei!" Li Changguo sized up this artless young girl with a glance and teased her.

  "Give me the fox!" The woman's white jade-like right hand stretched out to Li Changguo, with a commanding tone that made people somewhat unacceptable.

  Li Changguo furrowed his brow and said, "You have a bit of charm, but you're still quite far from my requirements. You need to work harder!" With that, he patted the horse's belly and was about to leave.

  This woman was stunningly beautiful, and every man who saw her couldn't help but be infatuated. Unexpectedly, Li Changguo looked down on her, which she found hard to accept. With a huff, she said: "This fox spirit is mine, you have to give her to me!"

  "Is it yours? Then why is it in my hands?" A hint of a charming smile flashed across Li Changguo's mouth.

  The woman saw it in her eyes and understood that it was sarcasm, and she couldn't help but get angrier, showing off her temper: "I say it's mine, then it's mine!"

  "How dare you mock Miss's archery skills!" The little maid spoke without reserve, blurting out the truth.

  This was a girl's embarrassing moment, her pretty face turned red in an instant, she glared fiercely at the young servant girl, let out a angry hum, the servant girl stuck out her tongue and quickly shut her mouth, with a demure and obedient expression: "Miss, I was wrong! You were right, isn't that enough?!"

  "Hmph! And remember this, you'll be punished for it too!" The woman scolded lightly and rushed to rebuke Li Changguo: "Will you give it or not?"

  First, it was a gentle rebuke, but now she's being arrogant and overbearing. Who knows which family's young lady she is? She has such a big temper! Li Changguo furrowed his brow even tighter, turned his eyes around, and said: "I can give it to you, but there are conditions. I won't just give it away for free, after all, I'm the one who shot it down."

  "Alright, what conditions do you want?" The woman had been chasing the fox for half a day, shooting multiple times, but hadn't even hit a single hair. Although she was overbearing, she couldn't be unreasonable.

  "You just need to say one sentence." A sly smile flashed across Li Changguo's face.

  "What did you say?" The woman asked hastily, it's not a question, this condition is too simple.

  "You say brother I want, and I'll give it to you." Li Changguo shook the fox, tempting: "This fox's fur is very smooth, and what's even more rare is that there isn't a single stray hair. My arrow was shot from the left eye into the right eye, without damaging the fur in the slightest. Such a rare treasure must be worth a thousand gold coins! Your one sentence is worth a thousand gold coins!"

  "I... killed you!"

  The woman was cleverer than others and would not be taken in by Li Changguo's evil scheme, so she angrily let out a loud roar, like the Lion of River East.

  "It's that you don't want it yourself, not that I won't give it!" Li Changguo was overjoyed at his successful trickery and rode off hastily with a smile.