"A great victory!" as County Magistrate An Deshan would say. Ma Xiaoda watched this thousand-strong bandit horde get whittled down bit by bit. From the initial charge he witnessed in the forest outside Flying Eagle Prefecture, to the siege of Feiyu County where he was trapped in the inn by Bai Shi and Jing Lue—though he later heard all the details—now, having personally slain several bandits, the exhilaration swelling in his chest was immense.

The old and young officials in the imperial court were all terrified of the horse-bandits from the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom. Now, Ma Xiaoda finally understood: bandits were just men; they weren't necessarily much superior to the people of the Twin Cities Kingdom. Coupled with the few dozen yamen runners from Feiyu County and the hundreds of garrison soldiers from Flying Eagle Prefecture, this thousand-man bandit force was effectively wiped out by only a few hundred defenders. Such an achievement was simply unattainable by anyone else.

Ma Xiaoda stood with his hands on his hips on the stone slab near the pond where executions were performed. "Old Zhao, your merit is massive. I'll tell my father to praise you later—no, no, just praise isn't enough, I must reward you."

I sat by the pond washing my feet and replied, "I don't want any of your rewards. What use is a pile of scrap iron? Carrying it is just a nuisance."

Ma Xiaoda sat down beside me. "If you don't want money, what is it you do want?"

I said, "Forget it, I don't want anything. I just want to be able to find my other friends."

Ma Xiaoda sighed. "Ay, why are you rushing about this matter? My father already agreed to help you look, so why worry? But refusing the reward is impossible; it would lead people to gossip that our court is ungrateful—the kind that burns the bridge after crossing or slaughters the donkey after it grinds the grain. Neither my father nor I can afford that reputation."

"I truly need nothing. I won't be living here long-term. Giving me houses is useless, and I won't have time to live in any land you give me. I have food and clothing; I don't need a heap of broken metal. Tell me, what should I want?"

Ma Xiaoda mused, "Indeed, it’s difficult. And you already have a wife, several of them, in fact..."

"How do you know I have several wives? Don't spread rumors; it would be bad if someone overheard."

"Don't try to fool me. Sister Cheng treats you well, and Sister Yun is good to you too. Although Sister Zhou is silent, I know she’s always watching you. And that little girl, Xiao Si—she thinks I don't understand anything, but I understand everything. I am the Crown Prince; I am the cleverest and the most mature person in the world."

I couldn't be bothered to explain to Ma Xiaoda. Besides, those three were my wives, so it would be wrong if they weren't good to me. Ma Xiaoda continued, "You lack nothing—no money, no property, no women. This is troublesome. You saved me, killed over a thousand bandits, and captured more than a hundred fine horses. Such a monumental achievement hasn't been accomplished since the founding of the Twin Cities. To not reward you would fail to express the high regard our Ma Dynasty holds for you."

I paused, then smiled. "If you truly feel uneasy, I will ask for a few special stones."

Ma Xiaoda beamed. "What special stones? Quick, tell me! Anything that belongs to our Twin Cities Kingdom, I can have Father Emperor grant to you."

I pulled out several diamonds from my pocket. "These. In my hometown, things like this are very valuable. Since they are not rare here, perhaps you could give them to me so I have an opportunity to take them back home and put them to use."

Ma Xiaoda casually picked up two, examined them, and tossed them back to me. "Done. This stuff isn't worth much. Though the luster is nice, it's too hard to polish into trinkets. All these pebbles within the borders of the Twin Cities Kingdom are yours to own and dispose of. However, this won't count towards your reward; I must find another way to express our gratitude."

Far off, Zhou Ni was also sitting by the pond, staring blankly at the water, silent. I knew she had been preoccupied these past two days. I should find an opportunity to properly talk to her; being so sullen all the time might harm her health.

Old Man Lai came rushing over, and I hastily stood up to greet him. "How was it, Old Father? Was everything settled?"

Old Man Lai announced, "All done! Da Li Wan and Yun Yao secretly took care of those dozen bandits in moments. Chang Feng and I organized those fine horses and sent them to the yamen. The County Magistrate was so thrilled he immediately awarded us a pile of iron coins, but we refused them. We traded them all for necessities and used the horses to carry them back. This salt and tea is enough for us to live here for a lifetime!"

I commented, "The terrain here is treacherous, serving as a border zone with the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom. It can be utilized well. It is entirely necessary to build up reserves regularly. Should the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom invade, this place can be like a spike driven deep behind them, causing them pain until the very end."

Ma Xiaoda exclaimed, "Zhao Qian, you truly think far ahead. I doubt anyone in the court possesses such insight."

Old Man Lai added, "You told us to select some strong mares and a few stallions to bring back. We chose nearly thirty. You can go look later and see if you are satisfied."

I smiled. "Can I not trust the work done by you and Uncle Chang Feng? My friend Ma Chong is skilled at raising horses. For now, let him instruct you in some techniques. Then, you can breed the horses here, and the advantage held by the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom will cease to exist. Then they won't dare threaten the border again."

Ma Xiaoda chimed in, "I also have shares in this horse farm! Food and fodder can be transported in by my father's people. But the horses raised must first be sold to our imperial court."

"Agreed, but it depends on whether the price is right, since it concerns the future happiness of Old Father and the others."

Ma Xiaoda was a little moved. "Zhao Qian, you really are a good person. In the time I've known you, you only consider others and never your own benefit. I truly admire you. Looking across the world, you might be the only one left like this."

I joked back, "Yes, I am like a candle, silently burning myself to illuminate others..."

Da Li Wan came running over from afar. "Brother Zhao Qian, did you bring back all the repair tools? Can you find that location yourself?"

I pointed to a pile of things by the pond. "Brought it all back. Ma Xiaoda and I were almost exhausted to death. We're just washing our dirty feet before heading home for dinner."

There were still over a dozen people left in the village. Er Danzi's family hadn't moved out. According to Chang Feng, their child was too young, and they wanted to wait until the child was older before relocating. However, Clan Chief Wa had already allotted them two iron coins, telling them to handle their own moving expenses then.

Apart from Er Danzi's family, Linglong's family, and Old Man Lai, the rest were all elders over seventy. But thankfully, they were remarkably fit. Although they couldn't ride horses, they moved with surprising speed leading them, and they could easily lift large stones weighing dozens of jin—truly worthy of my admiration.

The Clan Chief's family had already moved, so the few of us stayed in the house they vacated. After happily eating dinner, we discussed future horse breeding work. Hulufeng had vast forests and acres of grassland between them; raising several thousand horses wouldn't be an issue. If the dense timber were harvested rationally, the area around the two giant volcanic craters would be sufficient to pasture ten thousand warhorses.

The most critical factor was that this location was easy to defend and hard to attack, and the paths into the mountains were extremely difficult. This meant there was no need to fear secret sabotage from the horse-bandits. Nevertheless, as a precaution, the village's security could not be relaxed. Besides setting up a lookout post at the small pavilion, high stockades should be built at both the entrance and exit of the gorge. Furthermore, some hidden ambush points should be carved into the gorge walls, where a few people could hide, holding laser rifles capable of blocking an army of thousands trying to enter the village.

I gifted a laser rifle and a military knife each to Old Man Lai and Uncle Chang Feng. Linglong excitedly pulled her father out to teach him how to use them. Based on all the available data, Miss Linglong was also a capable martial artist. Old Man Lai was a very famous hunter in the village. Coupled with Uncle Chang Feng, even if Er Danzi's family didn't contribute, these three leading the dozen or so elderly people might just be able to defend the village.

Being able to stable livestock and not having to toil in the forest hunting was certainly a good thing. If life as a hunter hadn't been so difficult, Clan Chief Wa wouldn't have risked moving his villagers out of the mountains. Now, with food and breeding stock secured, once the horses multiplied, they could fully support these people's lives. Thinking of this, Old Man Lai showed a rare smile.

After finishing the discussion on horse breeding, everyone began chatting about strange sights and anecdotes from the mountains. Ma Chong stood up and left the room; I followed him out. Under the moonlight, everything was quiet and peaceful. Ma Chong stood at the courtyard gate and said to me, "Lord Zhao, if I didn't have to return to save my elderly mother, I would absolutely never leave when you needed my help. I will forever remember the kindness you showed me. I, Ma Chong, am not one for pretty words, but my promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold. As soon as I safely bring my mother back, I will definitely come to Hulufeng Village to assist you with the horse breeding."

Truthfully, I had no great ambition regarding the horse breeding. I only noticed that Old Man Lai and Chang Feng were living too frugally. If a herd of horses could be raised in the forest, slaughtering a dozen or so annually would be enough for their consumption, eliminating the need for arduous hunting. But the situation changed once Ma Xiaoda got involved. Now, it carried the implication of raising horses for the royal family. No matter how I looked at it, I couldn't be too careless with this task. I've ridden a horse only a few times; naturally, I know nothing about raising them. That’s why I sought help from Ma Chong, who had once been a bandit.

Because Ma Chong repeatedly failed in killing "enemies" and failed to gain his leader’s approval, his main duty among the bandits was training horses. Consequently, he had learned the sophisticated techniques of horse breeding and training used by the people of the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom. Having him supervise the horse farm would surely greatly enhance the combat capability of the warhorses. However, since Ma Chong must return to the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom to rescue his mother, he could only pass on the key points of horse management to Chang Feng and Old Man Lai.

I told him, "You don't need to dwell on this too much. The primary objective is to safely bring your mother back. We can discuss other matters later."

Ma Chong bowed. "Lord Zhao, thank you for not blaming me and for being understanding of my urgency to save my mother."

"No need for pleasantries. We are not in a superior-subordinate relationship; let's just treat each other as friends. It’s just that I also have more important missions to complete, otherwise I would accompany you to rescue your mother."

Ma Chong saluted. "Thank you for your kind intentions, Lord Zhao. However, returning to the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom is extremely dangerous, and moreover, you do not speak the horse language, and your bearing is entirely different from that of a bandit. I certainly won't let you take that risk. But as long as I live, I will bring my mother here to find you."

"Good, it’s a deal!"

Ma Chong continued, "I still need some time here to recuperate from my injuries, enough time to pass on all the horse-raising knowledge I possess to Old Father and the others. Even if my mother and I perish in the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom, the work on the horse farm won't be ruined." I insisted, "Don't speak such discouraging words. You must return alive."

Ma Chong nodded heavily, and the two of them animatedly chatted about the situation in the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom. It turned out that the ruler of the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom—the Emperor—was deeply enamored with the Twin Cities Kingdom's abundant resources and long culture. Occasional raiding could no longer satisfy the economic development needs of the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom, so the steps toward full invasion began.

First, the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom planted numerous spies within the Twin Cities Kingdom. These spies could relay the latest information about the Twin Cities Kingdom back to the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom, and based on this intelligence, the Ten Thousand Horse Kingdom would formulate its newest foreign policies. Ma Chong, being a minor figure, didn't know many specific details, but he did mention that their Empress had suddenly become extremely intelligent, and the strange siege equipment was her creation.

The two hadn't talked long before Old Man Lai emerged to inquire about horse breeding experience from Ma Chong. So, I strolled out of Clan Chief Wa's house and began walking along the edge of the pond.

I didn't know when, but Zhou Ni was sitting by the pond again, looking at the "Double H" shapes in the water, seemingly lost in thought. I quietly approached her from behind and asked, "Zhou Ni, why are you unhappy? Do you have something on your mind?"

Zhou Ni startled at my voice and turned around. "No, nothing. Oh, by the way, did you bring back any usable instruments or tools?"

I replied, "I only managed to find a portable grinding machine. You can use it to do some basic polishing on the diamonds. Several pieces of equipment are welded to the spaceship and couldn't be removed; we'll have to wait until the ship is repaired."

Zhou Ni suggested, "Actually, you could take me to the spaceship to familiarize myself with the route. Then, if I need to conduct experiments, I can ride there."

"You're right. With horses, the journey there would only take half a day."

Zhou Ni declared, "That settles it. Let's go see tonight."

I hesitated. "Tonight? That might be too dangerous."

Zhou Ni countered, "But you have to return to Feiyu County tomorrow to repair the escape pod. If we don't go tonight, when will we go?"

I considered it. "Time is indeed tight. Alright, let's go get the horses. We already went once during the day, so it probably won't be a big issue."

Zhou Ni was visibly delighted when I agreed. She said like a child, "Great! Let's go. Riding under the moonlight must be so romantic."

Sigh. So the issue wasn't the lack of time; it was that she wanted to ride horses under the moonlight.

The two of us went back to inform the others. Yun Yao was the first to express disagreement, wanting to take Zhou Ni there herself, as anti-gravity shoes would be both safe and fast. However, Cheng Susu discreetly pulled her aside; the two exchanged a knowing smile, and then she agreed.