The Choice (Seeking Bookmarks and Recommendations)

"Pfft..."

Just then, an uncontrollable peal of feminine laughter rang out. Gao Hong shot Sun Ji an annoyed glare, then looked at Jiang Qing and said gently:

"All right! Stop being angry. Xiao Ji was teasing you. Don't you know his personality? Besides, you know your brother's temper well enough. Even if Xiao Ji wanted to do that, Brother Jiang wouldn't agree! Xiao Ji was clearly suggesting that we join the army and seek a future for ourselves!"

As she spoke, her gaze toward Jiang Yao was filled with tenderness and trust.

"Ah?" Jiang Qing froze, then turned to look at her brother, Jiang Yao.

"Ridiculous! At a time like this, you still have the mood to joke around!"

With thick brows and large eyes, the stern-looking Jiang Yao glared at Sun Ji and rebuked him. After a pause, he looked apologetically at Jian Shang, who had risen and retreated several steps away in wary vigilance.

"Don't mind him, brother! Xiao Ji just likes making jokes!"

"It's fine! It's fine!"

Jian Shang secretly let out a breath of relief and forced out a rather speechless smile.

To be honest, Jian Shang had truly thought Sun Ji wanted to rob him just now. After all, he had indeed failed to dress properly earlier, exposing the Golden-Silk Inner Armor.

Men died for wealth; birds died for food. An ancient saying, true through the ages.

Seeing everyone weighed down and in low spirits, Sun Ji, who had been wearing a serious expression moments ago, suddenly grinned mischievously.

"I was just making a joke to ease the atmosphere! The dead are gone! Though we've lost our homes, the greatest blessing is that we can still be together. Anywhere is fine!"

After a pause, he looked at Jiang Qing ingratiatingly and smiled.

"Wasn't I only trying to make everyone feel better? Still, one thing I said earlier was right—the Otherworlders truly can't be trusted. Think about it the other way around. If he really trusted us, he wouldn't have pulled away from us earlier and guarded himself so completely!"

"Boring!"

Jiang Qing glanced from the corner of her eye at Jian Shang. Seeing that he really had backed several steps away, disappointment flashed across her face. She could only roll her eyes at Sun Ji, turn her head aside, and scold him.

"Hehe..."

Sun Ji did not dare argue. He merely laughed awkwardly, then pulled out a fist-sized bundle from his robes. He untied it and held it before Jiang Qing ingratiatingly. "We left in too much of a hurry and went through such a tense battle! These are your favorite chestnut cakes! Don't be angry anymore!"

"Hmph!"

Jiang Qing gave a delicate snort, but she still accepted the little bundle happily and leaned close to Gao Hong to whisper with her.

A young girl was still a young girl. The winds and clouds changed in an instant; dark clouds came quickly and dispersed just as quickly!

Jian Shang stood alone to one side, feeling both speechless and depressed. This truly was a disaster falling from the sky—Sun Ji had schemed against him for no reason at all!

Still, this Sun Ji truly had quite the mind. Without making it obvious, he had isolated Jian Shang. Most importantly, he had made Jiang Qing, who had originally been quite friendly toward Jian Shang, become much more distant.

Yet Jian Shang did not seem entirely innocent either. Who told him to be so intimate with Jiang Qing? He had held her for so long, making Sun Ji, who had not even touched Jiang Qing's little hand, burn with jealousy...

"Why aren't you apologizing to Brother Jian Shang? Look at what you've done!"

As Jian Shang was brooding, Jiang Yao glanced at the silent Jian Shang, glared at Sun Ji, and snapped.

"Hehe... Sorry! Sorry! Surely, for the sake of everyone breaking out with a better mood, Brother Jian Shang won't be so petty, right?"

Sun Ji did not argue. Obediently, he looked at Jian Shang with a grin and apologized repeatedly, though the triumph in his eyes was quite obvious.

"It's nothing, just a small matter! Brother Sun Ji truly has a good mind, but it would be best if you used it on the right path!"

Jian Shang waved a hand in reply. Jiang Yao had noticed his mood, so he was clearly meticulous and perceptive. It seemed there was good reason he had become everyone's big brother.

Sun Ji naturally understood the meaning behind Jian Shang's words, but he merely curled his lips in disdain, clearly unconvinced.

In his heart, nothing was more "right" than guarding Jiang Qing well!

"If no one has any objections, then we'll do as Xiao Ji says and head off to enlist in the army and seek a future? What Brother Jian Shang said also makes sense. Yongjia City is indeed a good choice!"

The earlier incident had merely been a minor interlude. To avoid damaging the relationship between both sides, Jiang Yao swiftly changed the subject.

"Great! Didn't we go there once a few years ago? We already know the way!"

Shi Jin's eyes lit up as he spoke eagerly. His fat face and large ears made him look rather lecherous, as if he had thought of something exciting.

"Yongjia City... I wonder whether Ye Caiyun, Drunken Star, and the others arrived safely? When we meet again, what kind of scene will it be?"

Thinking of everything that had happened when he first entered the Golden Roc Faction, Jian Shang's thoughts drifted afar.

"No! I don't agree with going to Yongjia City!"

Just then, Sun Ji suddenly spoke up. Jian Shang, Jiang Yao, and the others frowned and looked over, only to see Sun Ji continue with a serious expression:

"This concerns everyone's future, perhaps even our lives and deaths. I'm serious. I'm not joking, nor am I targeting you!"

At the end, he looked toward Jian Shang, clearly afraid everyone would misunderstand. Seeing Jian Shang smile understandingly and nod, Sun Ji quickly continued:

"Since we've decided to join the army, we naturally have to treat it seriously. First, Yongjia City is a mid-sized city, garrisoned by a hundred thousand troops. That sounds like a lot, but once they are spread across every front, there really aren't many left. At most, one-tenth can be used against the barbarians—that is, ten thousand men. The Northern Di Barbarian Cavalry raging at the foot of the mountain should number around five thousand. Do you think ten thousand Great Qin Army soldiers can defeat five thousand barbarian cavalry skilled in mounted warfare? And the Northern Di Barbarian Cavalry cannot possibly consist of only the force below the mountain. Can Yongjia City handle it? If it could, it would not allow the barbarians to ravage this region, slaughter and destroy village after village, town after town. Though the Great Qin Empire is corrupt, it has not yet reached the point of bringing about its own destruction. It is not that they stand by and watch people die—they simply lack the strength to help!"

"Indeed!" After hearing this, everyone nodded one after another. Jiang Yao even spoke in agreement.

"Second, since we intend to join the army and seek a future, we naturally must strive to distinguish ourselves and render meritorious service, not merely find a place to settle down and muddle through life waiting for death. If that is all we wanted, we might as well become bandits in the hills or retire into the mountains and forests."

Sun Ji pinched his smooth, beardless chin between his right thumb and forefinger, analyzing the matter with a solemn expression. Seeing no one object, he paused before continuing:

"A mid-sized city already has trouble defending itself, much less launching an expedition against the enemy. I believe this is also part of the strategy laid out by the Northern Frontier's Grand Marshal, Marquis White God—War God Bai Qi. Otherwise, he would not have allowed the Northern Di to come here and stir up trouble! Enlisting in a mid-sized city means merely muddling through the days. If we want to build merit and establish careers, we must go to a large city or a giant city, participate in large-scale wars, perhaps even campaigns."

"Mm, that makes sense!"

Everyone fell silent, digesting Sun Ji's analysis. Jiang Yao nodded lightly and murmured in thought.

"Of course, there are no large cities or giant cities within a thousand li of here. We would need to travel a thousand li, which is no short journey. That depends on how determined everyone is. But where there is effort, there should be reward. I believe our labor will not be wasted! Besides, we have Northern Di warhorses to do the work for us!"

Before anyone could object, Sun Ji had already raised the drawback himself and explained it away.

"All right! But where exactly should we go? Does anyone have any suggestions?"

Jiang Yao finally came around. He nodded heavily and looked toward everyone as he asked.

They looked at one another. The farthest any of them had ever gone was Yongjia City. How could they possibly have any suggestions?

"Don't look at me! You all know I've only just arrived here. Asking me is no better than looking at a map!"

In the end, everyone turned together toward the "miraculous" Otherworlder, Jian Shang. He could only answer with a bitter smile.

The problem was that on this sheepskin map, the largest city was Yongjia City, a mere mid-sized city. Its range covered only about a thousand li, meaning that Sun Ji's estimate of a thousand li was just speculation—it could very well be even farther...