"I won!"
As they reached the entrance of the guard station, Li Qilang looked at Li Wuya with a smug expression, having outpaced her by a few steps.
"Yeah."
Li Wuya responded absentmindedly, sounding somewhat weak.
At that moment, Jin Yue'e and the others noticed Li Wuya's unnaturally pale complexion.
"Wuya, what's wrong?" Jin Yue'e asked anxiously.
Rubbing her throbbing head, Li Wuya muttered, "I ran too fast just now. I'll be fine after a little rest."
Frustrated and concerned, Jin Yue'e said with a mix of annoyance and helplessness, "Don't run like that next time."
Leaning on Jin Yue'e as if pretending to rest, Li Wuya kept her attention on the two Bei Yan men who had followed them.
Seeing that she seemed to be recovering as she rested for a while, Jin Yue'e and the others began to relax.
The Bei Yan men, upon seeing Li Wuya and her group enter the guard station, hesitated for a moment, then disappeared into the crowd with displeased expressions.
Seeing them leave, Li Wuya's anxiety finally subsided. She shook her head at Li Sanlang, who was trying his best to appear composed, indicating that the danger had passed.
Li Erya noticed the unusual behaviour of her siblings. She glanced at Li Wuya, then at Li Sanlang, and asked in a hushed voice, "What are you two up to?"
They were walking just fine, so why did they suddenly start running?
Li Wuya hadn't decided whether or not to reveal the fact that they were being followed by the Bei Yan men. She decisively shifted the question to Li Sanlang, saying, "Ask your brother."
Li Erya turned her gaze to Li Sanlang, waiting for his response.
Li Sanlang: ...
He hadn't figured out what to do yet!
To reveal the truth would undoubtedly cause their family to panic. If their mother found out, she would surely tell their father. Their father was heading to the battlefield, which was dangerous enough without him worrying about family matters.
And besides, even if he told, it wouldn't solve the problem. It would only increase their worries.
But if he didn't tell, what if the Bei Yan men came back for revenge and caught them off guard?
Li Sanlang hesitated. He subconsciously looked at Li Wuya.
Seeing her little sister's tense and pale expression, looking genuinely troubled, while her oblivious little brother, Li Qilang, was carefree and innocent, the stark contrast struck Li Sanlang.
Seeing this scene, he suddenly jolted and realized that his thoughts and actions were wrong.
He was the older brother, and in times like these, he should be the one figuring out solutions. He couldn't just shift the worry onto his younger sister. After all, Li Wuya was only five years old, and she should be carefree like Li Qilang.
It was the shock and admiration he felt during the incident at the inn that made him subconsciously seek her help in times of trouble, forgetting completely about her age.
Seeing Li Sanlang silent, Li Erya rolled her eyes. She didn't want to pry while they were outside. She planned to interrogate her sister thoroughly once they got home.
Li Wuya was ticklish, but not Li Erya.
With their parents occupied in conversation, Li Wuya's family went ahead to the guard station's main area.
Along the way, Li Erya noticed Li Wuya and Li Sanlang's odd behaviour, so she decided to wait until they got home to question her sister.
As soon as they were inside, Li Wuya could finally let out a sigh of relief. "Finally safe."
Li Sanlang smiled wryly, "Yeah, but we still need to be careful."
Their parents' conversation was picking up, so they seized the opportunity to have a private chat.
"Brother, what do you think about telling Dad that those two Bei Yan men were following us, and then have him inform the officials at the guard station? Will they take care of it?"
Li Sanlang pondered for a moment before responding, "It's hard to say. If we do tell, it might cause unnecessary panic. But not telling means we might be caught off guard next time. It's a difficult choice."
Li Wuya frowned, clearly troubled by the situation. "Yeah, I just don't want them to harm our family."
Li Sanlang nodded in agreement. "Let's think about it carefully and discuss it with our parents. We'll find the best solution together."
Their conversation was interrupted as their parents walked back to them, and they all continued their walk together.
Li Sanlang expressed his doubts, "The officials at the guard station might not believe us."
Li Wuya nodded in agreement. She was only five years old, and even her older brother was just ten. In the eyes of outsiders, they were just two inexperienced children. Their claim of encountering Bei Yan men in the city wouldn't carry much credibility.
Li Sanlang continued, "And besides, Wuya, did you manage to see where those Bei Yan men are staying?"
Shaking her head, Li Wuya realized that they had discovered the Bei Yan men's presence too late.
Li Sanlang explained further, "Without knowing their exact location, it's difficult to catch them. If we want to apprehend them, the guards would need to search the entire city. The guard officials might not be willing to go to such lengths."
Li Wuya frowned in frustration, "So, what should we do?"
She showed regret on her face and continued, "It's my fault. Back at the inn, I was only thinking about using my power against those Bei Yan men. I didn't anticipate that disappearing would cause such a big problem."
Li Sanlang quickly reassured her, "Wuya, don't blame yourself. You're only five years old, and your quick thinking was already impressive. Even I can't match that."
Li Wuya didn't seem comforted at all, wearing a gloomy expression.
This situation could potentially lead their family into great trouble.
They had been careless; their family was too vulnerable. They needed to be incredibly discreet in their actions in the future. Li Wuya reminded herself sternly.
At this moment, a strong sense of crisis surged within Li Wuya.
Their strength was still insufficient.
Her psychic power was recovering too slowly. After forcibly overextending her psychic power to control objects earlier, her head was still throbbing.
Without sufficient psychic power, she couldn't defend herself effectively. She realized that for now, she had to rely on martial arts training.
No matter what, learning the martial arts of this world would equip her with various self-defence skills. She couldn't rely solely on her psychic power.
When martial arts came to her mind, Li Wuya couldn't help but think of Ye Mo. She asked eagerly, "Dad, how is Uncle Ye doing here in the guard station?"
Li Changsen's expression froze as he seemed to become cautious. He looked around before whispering, "Don't mention Ye Mo in the guard station."
Li Wuya was puzzled, "Why?"
Seeing Li Changsen's hesitation, Jin Yue'e quickly intervened, pulling Li Wuya aside, "Your dad told you not to mention it. Just remember that. Why ask so many questions?"
Li Wuya stopped asking, and after her headache subsided a bit, she extended her psychic power outward.
"We've arrived at the barracks!"
The guard station was vast, and her psychic power could only sense things within a ten-meter radius. Even after Li Changsen led them to their living quarters, Li Wuya still couldn't locate Ye Mo.
However, while her mother was updating her father about family matters, Li Wuya "overheard" a conversation between two soldiers in the adjacent room. They were discussing Ye Mo.
"Do you think Ye Lame can survive this time?"
"Hard to say. Ye Lame is pretty resilient. Every time we think he won't make it, he pulls through. I just passed by the training grounds, and he's been confined there for two days, and he's still spirited."
"Ye Lame does have some skills. Not only did he survive on the battlefield, but he's also withstanding the pressures from higher-ups."
"Well, I do know a bit of insider information. But I'll tell you, you can't spread it around."
"Come on, spit it out. I won't tell anyone."
"I heard it from an old soldier. Ye Lame's background is quite unusual. Rumour has it that he's from a prestigious family in the capital."
"Is that for real?!"
"Absolutely. Do you know why he has a limp? It's because someone pinned him down and snapped his tendons. They actually intended to cripple both his legs, but the higher-ups wanted him to suffer like a dog, so they spared one leg."
"Tsk tsk, what kind of grudge is this?!"
"Who knows!"
"I knew it! Even if Ye Lame looks dishevelled, the moment he stands among others, he becomes impossible to ignore. So, he was once an important person!"
"Hmph, what good does that do now? Regardless of his past status, he's living like a pig or dog. Even if he achieves something on the battlefield, someone above will suppress him. He's not even better off than us!"
"Well, Ye Mo has it tough. I think he's done for this time. The commanding officer threatened to keep him in the cold, snow-covered earth cage for seven days. With the weather so cold and snow falling constantly, even if he has a body of steel, he won't endure!"
"Dying is dying. People die all the time in this border region. With Bei Yan becoming more aggressive, we might not come back alive the next time we go to battle."
"True."
The conversation ended there, and the two soldiers left the barracks.
Li Wuya furrowed her brows, lost in thought. After a moment, she decided to take action.
Missing Ye Mo, she might not find another person skilled in internal martial arts.
Her father practised external martial arts, and she wasn't particularly keen on learning it. Moreover, his external martial arts weren't particularly advanced.
She made her decision quietly while the family was engaged in conversation. Sneaking out of the barracks, she was spotted by Li Sanlang before she could even reach the door.
Li Wuya quickly gestured to him, asking for his help.
Li Sanlang looked somewhat helpless. Before he could react, Li Wuya had vanished from his sight.
Considering the relative safety of the guard station, Li Sanlang hesitated but ultimately decided not to inform his parents.
By this time, Li Wuya had already left the barracks area. She wasn't worried about being seen; after all, she was just a five-year-old child. Kids tend to run around, and no one would pay too much attention.
However, she tried to avoid people as much as possible.
She had sensed the training ground on her way to the barracks earlier and easily navigated there.
At the entrance to the training ground, Li Wuya saw the "earth cage" mentioned by the soldiers and also saw Ye Mo.
The earth cage was embedded in the ground, a little over a foot high. Ye Mo lay flat inside, covered with a thin layer of snow. He was now so cold that his body was turning purple, and his lips had darkened.
The short, narrow cage didn't even allow him to roll over. Setting aside the cold weather, enduring seven days motionless within it wasn't something an ordinary person could manage.
Li Wuya used her psychic power to carefully assess Ye Mo's condition. She noticed his chest rising and falling, slow but rhythmic. Clearly, he was conserving his body's energy as much as possible.
It was evident that he hadn't given up on surviving yet.
Li Wuya unexpectedly felt relieved. While she was drawn to Ye Mo because of his knowledge of internal martial arts, she also recognized in him some qualities she had seen in those who fought to survive in the post-apocalyptic world.
Braving any storm, I'll survive on my own, never giving up, even if facing a tempest.
It felt so similar to the people who survived in the post-apocalyptic world.
At that moment, Ye Mo, who had been completely still like a frozen corpse, suddenly turned his head slightly and looked in the direction where Li Wuya was.
Li Wuya quickly hid behind a door.
His sensing ability is so acute!
Ye Mo's martial arts were undoubtedly powerful; otherwise, he wouldn't have detected her probing.
This only strengthened Li Wuya's determination to help Ye Mo. A person like him shouldn't be left to freeze to death silently in the snow.
Not staying for long, Li Wuya quickly returned to the barracks.
Once back, taking advantage of her mother's attention being on her father, Li Wuya secretly opened her bundle and took out the sliced blood ginseng.
"Wuya, what are you doing?"
Li Sanlang walked over.
Li Wuya thought for a moment and then decided to tell him about Ye Mo, "Uncle Ye saved us. I want to help him, and the blood ginseng can help him survive."
Li Sanlang fell silent, not stopping Li Wuya.
She took three slices from the bundle initially and then, considering that Ye Mo was to be confined for seven days and only two days had passed, she took out two more slices.
Five slices of blood ginseng, exactly one per day.
Li Wuya looked apologetically at her father and thought, Dad, I have to use a few of your blood ginseng to enable us to learn internal martial arts.
She tore half of the oil paper wrapping around the blood ginseng, enclosed the five slices, and then crept to find Li Qilang.
"Qilang, there's a lot of snow outside. Let's have a snowball fight."
Hearing this, Jin Yue'e immediately intervened, "This is the guard station. No fooling around here."
Li Changsen chuckled, "It's fine. We're not training today, and we're in the barracks. Let the kids play if they want."
Li Sanlang also chimed in, "Mom, I'll watch over them."
Seeing her husband and elder son both speaking up, Jin Yue'e decided not to continue objecting.
Li Wuya quickly grabbed Li Qilang's hand and ran outside. Li Sanlang followed closely behind.
Guided by Li Wuya, she and Li Qilang engaged in a snowball fight, continuing until they reached the training ground.
"Bang!"
The sound of snowballs hitting each other echoed, and Ye Mo, who had been closing his eyes the whole time, finally shifted his head slightly.
He had assumed it was someone from the guard station throwing snowballs at him, but the next moment, a snowball hit his hand with pinpoint accuracy.
Ye Mo immediately clutched the snowball with a "swish," and upon giving it a gentle squeeze, he sensed something unusual.
Then, he heard a familiar voice of a young girl.
"Brother, what's this place? Can we play with snowballs here?"
"No, Wuya. We can't run around in the guard station. Let's go back quickly."
The voices gradually faded away, and the training ground regained its quietness. Ye Mo scanned around, making sure there was no one nearby, before carefully opening the paper wrapping in his hand.
However, upon seeing the contents, Ye Mo's usually composed eyes showed ripples of emotion.
It was the longing for life!