Half Armor, Xiao Jinghong!

"Woo!!"

At that moment, within the Black Armored Army Town a thousand li from Shuzhou City, a long, resonant horn call sounded.

Twenty thousand soldiers clad in crimson scale armor, wielding Horse-Chopping Sabers, drilled in perfect formation with five hundred men per phalanx.

"Hah!"

"Hah!"

These soldiers wore solemn expressions, their frames robust, swinging six-foot Horse-Chopping Sabers with such force that the ground trembled from their momentum.

On the high platform before them, three crimson banners flew high, each embroidered with a ferocious tiger's head in golden thread.

Below, a figure stood beneath the banners, clad in silver-white scale armor. Her build was leaner and shorter than the soldiers', but the eyes hidden behind a Half Armor Mask were calm as still water.

—This was none other than Xiao Jinghong, the second legitimate granddaughter of the current Marquis Dingyuan, Xiao Yuan!

She watched the soldier formations before her, pondering the current situation, and thought to herself: "They are far from enough."

As the southernmost point of the Great Wei Dynasty, Shuzhou was surrounded by enemies on three sides.

To the south lay the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, bordering the barbarian tribes. There, amidst towering peaks and dense forests, countless barbarian clans dwelled. Since the great war twenty years ago, they had periodically raided northward through the passes.

To the southwest was the Poshir Kingdom, an eastern outpost of the Western Buddhist Kingdom. Dressed in silks and satins, they were men; a change of garb turned them into bandits ravaging the Tea Horse Road.

To the southeast lay the inner sea, where pirates occasionally appeared, attacking passing merchant ships. The bolder ones would even come ashore to raid wealthy households or trading firms.

Thus, since the founding of Great Wei, three military towns had been established in Shuzhou—named "Iron Wall," "Azure Wolf," and "Black Armor"—garrisoned with military households who farmed the land and built fortifications for defense.

At the same time, the Shu Prefecture Protectorate, the Supervision Court, and a hereditary Marquis of Military were set up to jointly guard the region.

Among them, the Marquis of Military overseeing Shuzhou's Three Towns was the Dingyuan Marquis's Xiao Family, to which Xiao Jinghong belonged.

After the time it takes an incense stick to burn...

The Black Armor soldiers finished their drills, stood still with blades at rest, and fixed their sharp gazes on the high platform, awaiting the generals' address.

A middle-aged general stepped forward from the edge of the platform, cupped his hands, and asked, "General Jinghong, are you satisfied?"

Xiao Jinghong's eyes remained fixed on the Black Armor soldiers as she flatly uttered two words: "Barely acceptable."

The middle-aged general hesitated, then said, "General Jinghong, if you have any criticisms, please speak freely. We will report them to the Commander later."

Xiao Jinghong tilted her head slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "Their Aura is passable, but their Cultivation Base is too low. Against Poshir's horse bandits, they can hold one against two, but they still fall short against Barbarian Warriors."

"This..."

Several officers exchanged glances, each seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes.

A Barbarian Warrior, relying on raw brute strength alone, could match a Ninth Rank, Upper Stage martial artist. If clad in heavy armor and wielding sharp weapons, even an ordinary Eighth Rank Realm martial artist might not necessarily prevail in one-on-one combat.

And these Black Armor soldiers were the cream of the crop, handpicked by the town's Deputy Commander from the best available, barely reaching twenty thousand martial artists at Ninth Rank, Middle Stage. Achieving their current momentum was already no small feat.

Before the officers could respond, Xiao Jinghong spoke again: "Stop the formation drills here. Further practice yields little gain. Capture some pirates and bandits to give them real combat experience."

The middle-aged general thought it over, then gritted his teeth and agreed: "This officer will follow General Jinghong's orders. After reporting to the Commander, I will dispatch men to sweep the area."

Hearing this, Xiao Jinghong gave a slight nod and turned to walk out of the training ground.

"All troops, hear my command! Your performance is still insufficient. Today, add extra drills with the Horse-Chopping Saber..."

"Yes, sir!"

A moment later.

Xiao Jinghong returned to her tent. Inside, she paused at the sight of a figure slumped over a desk, fast asleep.

Two female soldiers in soft armor helped her remove the heavy scale armor, took her helmet, tidied up briefly, and stood guard outside.

Another woman in a long dress, wearing a Half Armor Mask like Xiao Jinghong's, presented two booklets.

Xiao Jinghong took them, flipping through as she pointed at the figure at the desk. "When did she arrive?"

"Not long after you left for the training ground."

As if hearing the voice, the figure on the desk let out a muffled sound and lifted her head, revealing a round, tender face. A string of silver bells around her neck jingled with the movement.

She blinked groggily, looking around until her eyes landed on Xiao Jinghong. Then she jumped up, eyes wide, and said cheerfully:

"Sister Jinghong, you're finally back! I waited so long I fell asleep."

Xiao Jinghong glanced at her and said flatly, "Pei Guanli, this is a military town. It's no place for you."

"I know, but Grandma insisted I come find you."

Pei Guanli looked young, shorter than Xiao Jinghong, but her figure was full beneath the vibrant dress, especially her bare feet, pale and luminous like jade.

"Speak. What do you want?"

"The tribe's Torch Festival is coming soon. Grandma wants to invite you." Pei Guanli, seeing Xiao Jinghong not even look up, sidled over to read the booklets with her.

"Grandma says thanks to your care all these years, the tribe is better off than ever. She wants you to come—first for the Torch Festival, and second to discuss the Mutual Market."

"Mutual Market?" Xiao Jinghong paused. "The Thirteen Tribes, or just yours?"

"All thirteen tribes together, of course," Pei Guanli giggled. "Sister Jinghong, are you satisfied?"

"Give me the specific date. I'll send someone to discuss it with the tribal elders."

"Ah? You're not going?"

"Not going." Xiao Jinghong closed the ledger and sat down at the desk. "Grandfather's sixtieth birthday is coming up soon. I need to head back."

"Birthday? A birthday banquet?" Pei Guanli's eyes darted around, a small canine tooth peeking from the corner of her mouth as she hurriedly asked, "Can I come?"

"No."

"Why not? You didn't let me come for your wedding last time, and now Grandpa Xiao's birthday—I want to go, okay? Please?"

"No."

"Sister Jinghong, if I hadn't helped hold him back during your wedding, my brother would have already led people to snatch the bride. Consider it repaying me, alright?"

"He would die at the Xiao Family." Xiao Jinghong's tone remained flat.

"B-but..." Pei Guanli stared at her with watery, wide eyes, pouting pitifully. "Just let me go, Sister Jinghong."

"I'll break your legs!"

"..."

Pei Guanli pursed her lips, then turned and walked out. "Fine, don't let me. Like I even care."

She reached the tent entrance, but no sound came from behind her.

Pei Guanli stomped her foot in frustration, leaving a clear footprint on the ground, and strode straight out of the tent.

Not long after.

Xiao Jinghong heard Pei Guanli's voice shouting from afar: "Xiao Jinghong, you won't let me go, but I'm going anyway! And I'm going to teach that runaway groom a lesson..."

The female official beside her heard this and asked, "General, should we send someone to stop her?"

Xiao Jinghong shook her head slightly. "Forget it. Let her be."

"But what about the son-in-law..."

"Pei Guanli knows her limits. She won't do anything to him." Xiao Jinghong asked, "Any more letters from home?"

"Second Master sent one."

"What did it say?"

The female official hesitated. "He said the son-in-law started cultivating the Martial Path a few days ago, but his talent is poor, and he's, well, not putting in effort. He's lazy and useless for anything important."

A faint smile touched Xiao Jinghong's vermilion lips beneath her half armor. "That's fine. Being an idle son-in-law is better than harboring ambition like before."

She didn't expect Chen Yi to strive for greatness. As long as he didn't embarrass the Xiao Family by fleeing the wedding again, she wouldn't say a word about his laziness or uselessness.

"General, you're... not angry about him running from the wedding before?" the female official asked cautiously.

"Why would I be angry? Before the wedding, I already knew Grandfather's purpose in finding a son-in-law from the Chen Family." Xiao Jinghong's smile faded as she said, "Next year, Wu Ge will set out for Jinling as a hostage. The Xiao Family needs me here."

With that, Xiao Jinghong swept her gaze around and calmly ordered:

"Pack up. We set out tomorrow to head back. On the way, stop by the Protectorate and the Supervision Court. By my count, the Capital Prefecture's reply should be arriving soon."