Chapter 642: Chapter 414: Departure
Back home, they finally didn’t have to keep putting on an act, but Xiaomi had made up her mind: for at least half a month, whenever her brother went out, he had to be in makeup.
At the same time, Xiaomi also wrote a letter and had the Imperial Guards deliver it to her eldest brother in Anning Village, mainly asking him to hold back their parents so they wouldn’t come to Lishi City during this period.
Xiaomi only found out afterward that when the letter was leaving the city, it had actually been inspected by Lord Xie’s people; only after confirming there was no leak of secrets or anything like that did they let it pass.
Still, Xiaomi wasn’t angry—special times call for special measures.
Early the next morning, after breakfast, just as Xiaomi finished whitening Wei Ziang’s face, General Song’s carriage arrived to pick them up.
Only after getting in did they realize the carriage floor was padded with thick quilts so Wei Ziang could lie directly on top; you could say they were being very considerate.
Later, the coachman explained that this had actually been arranged by Lord Xie.
"Looks like this Lord Xie isn’t so bad."
Xiaomi muttered under her breath, and seeing Wei Ziang obediently lying on the quilts, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
"Brother, is that really necessary?"
Wei Ziang shook his head. "If I’m sick, I might as well look the part. The wind’s strong outside the city—what if the carriage curtain gets blown up?"
Fine then. Xiaomi said no more and sat obediently to the side.
Once they were out of the city, everyone else was already waiting for them outside the gate. Lord Xie even asked after them with concern from outside the carriage, and only then did they set off for the stone forest.
There were low hills outside the city, and the wind really was strong; the curtains were blown up several times, and anyone outside could see Wei Ziang lying there at a glance.
Xiaomi also lifted the window curtain and looked out curiously; front and back, there had to be at least a thousand people following.
She also noticed that besides Lord Xie’s carriage, there were several other carriages, all carefully guarded by escorts.
Xiaomi described this situation to Wei Ziang.
Wei Ziang thought for a moment. "The officials in those carriages are probably forging specialists from the Ministry of War."
The Ministry of War not only oversaw the selection of military officers nationwide, it also managed military rolls, weapons, military orders, and so on.
Among them were officials who specialized in researching weapon forging; these people ignored court politics and didn’t even have to attend court, devoting themselves to developing all sorts of formidable weapons. Their ranks could go as high as Senior Second Rank.
This time, with such a large iron mine discovered, it was impossible they’d send only a vice minister of the Ministry of War. These forging officials might not be very clear about court affairs, but when it came to iron ore, they absolutely knew it inside and out.
"I see."
Xiaomi nodded and touched the military dagger at her waist. It was in a leather sheath; as long as she didn’t draw it, no one could tell what it was.
Wei Ziang clearly saw Xiaomi’s movement, then glanced at her thoughtful expression, and his brow twitched.
"Xiaomi, what are you planning?"
Xiaomi came back to herself, noticed Wei Ziang’s gaze, and let go of her hand with a grin. Still, after thinking it over, she decided to say it out loud.
"Brother, you know, this world is very big."
Wei Ziang’s temples were already throbbing.
"These past days, you’ve practically gone through all the geography materials, haven’t you?"
She was talking about the geography knowledge of Earth from their last life, stored in the space. Only the two of them knew how big Earth was and how rich its resources were.
Wei Ziang had even taken the map of the entire Xuyu dynasty, scaled it down and superimposed it onto Earth, and it still wasn’t even a third the size of the country Xiaomi had lived in.
And according to Xiaomi, this world should be roughly the same size as Earth, because many of the geographical environments were almost identical.
Wei Ziang calmed down all at once. After pondering for a moment, he asked, "What do you want to do?"
Xiaomi smiled. "The world is so big—I want to go see it."
Wei Ziang fell silent, instead seriously thinking about something; who knew what was going through his mind. Xiaomi didn’t ask.
The carriage fell quiet all of a sudden. It stayed that way until the carriage stopped, when Wei Ziang suddenly spoke.
"If you want to do it, then do it. Just remember one thing: I’ll always be by your side. And—safety comes first."
She’d thought the topic was over, and hadn’t expected to suddenly hear something like that. Xiaomi was stunned for a moment, then broke into a brilliant smile.
"Okay, thank you, Brother. Don’t worry, even if I don’t think of myself, I have to think of you and our parents."
The coachman called from outside, "Chiliarch Wei, Miss Jiang, we’ve arrived."
"Coming, coming."
As she spoke, Xiaomi took a finely crafted hand crossbow out of her space and quickly strapped it to her wrist.
She adjusted it slightly, and it was completely hidden under her sleeve.
She also adjusted the military dagger at her waist, putting it in the most convenient position, and only then did she help Wei Ziang out of the carriage.
General Song and Lord Xie were already waiting at an entrance to the stone forest, studying a map and trying to find the corresponding spot on it.
The map did not mark the location of the iron mine; that way, even if the map was lost, others wouldn’t know.
A group of people stood around them, sizing up the stone forest ahead and discussing it with those beside them.
Most of them were tall and robust, especially with thick, powerful arms. Their hair and beards were rather scruffy, giving them a slightly unkempt look.
They really did seem like what Wei Ziang had said—those forging officials. Though they held office, their main work was forging; not only did they design weapons themselves, they had to personally forge their designs.
So of course they had to be strong and sturdy.
Seeing Wei Ziang and Xiaomi get down, General Song waved them over. "Xiao Wei, Xiaomi, hurry over. We’re about to head into the mountains. You know the way—lead us."
As he spoke, he signaled to the side.
Four soldiers jogged over carrying a stretcher. General Song said cheerfully, "Xiao Wei’s injuries haven’t healed yet; long treks aren’t suitable. Better to have him carried so his wounds don’t get worse."
Xiaomi swore she saw the teasing in General Song’s eyes!
But she still remembered the important matters; thanking him as she went, she helped Wei Ziang over and had him lie down on the stretcher.
"You’re Miss Jiang?" A burly man looked at her curiously. "You’re the siblings who discovered the iron mine?"
Xiaomi nodded. "Mm, yes, my brother and I found it."
"It’s getting late. Let’s set out first."
Lord Xie was a bit impatient. As soon as the words left his mouth, he had already stepped into the stone forest.
Some of the paths in the stone forest were quite narrow, unsuitable for carriages or litters, so everyone went on foot.
General Song quickly followed and tugged Lord Xie to slow down a bit, waiting for Xiaomi and Wei Ziang, since they still needed them to lead the way.
Xiaomi had a sand table in her space, much more convenient than the map. She led the way while extending her Spiritual Sense into the space to observe the sand table, without needing to glance at it physically.
However, after entering the stone forest, she soon began to act out a lack of energy, occasionally frowning, massaging her temples, and so on.
In General Song and Lord Xie’s eyes, this confirmed that Xiaomi didn’t need a map and could rely purely on her sixth sense to navigate in the stone forest.