Exile at the start? The princess is no ordinary woman.

"Not a loss"

Jun Yanchen agreed.

Inspired by the lady's boldness, Cang Ling and the others no longer hesitated and downed their drinks in one gulp.

Thank you, Madam.

"You're welcome, come on, help yourself."

Gu Nanzhi enjoyed relaxed interactions, and her thinking wasn't bound by ancient rules, making her appear somewhat casual and laid-back.

Pointing at Jun Yanchen, he said, "You can only have two cups at most; don't overindulge."

"it is good"

No one dared to point at him like that, and in such a commanding tone. Gu Nanzhi was the first, but Jun Yanchen didn't mind at all and readily accepted the command.

Gu Nanzhi didn't overindulge; she only drank two small cups, just to taste the good wine people had described. After all, they were in the wild, and she didn't know how well the original owner of this body could tolerate alcohol.

So she remained vigilant. Jun Yanchen only clinked glasses with her twice. Since their master didn't move, Cang Ling and the others, as his subordinates, were even more discreet. Moreover, it was nighttime, and they were protecting their master's safety, so drinking was inappropriate.

Gu Nanzhi turned her life in exile into a picnic. While other exiled prisoners were starving and eating black bread, she and a few others were enjoying themselves here.

After finishing her meal, Gu Nanzhi instructed, "Uncle Li, everything I brought back—pots, pans, grains, and so on—is provided. From now on, please prepare your own meals each day."

"Yes, ma'am"

"Okay, you guys pack up and get ready. I'll take Taxue over to graze and digest. Make sure Taxue is well-fed, since it'll be pulling the cart tomorrow."

Speaking of horses, Cang Ling couldn't help but ask again, "Madam, why did you take a liking to this horse?"

"Hmm?" Li Luxi raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised that Cang Ling would ask such a question. She glanced at Cang Ling and Jun Yanchen and his servant.

"I chose it because it's a fine steed. Don't tell me you can't see that. Are you trying to test me?"

Cang Ling is innocent. He absolutely did not intend to test her. He was simply curious to know whether the lady truly understood horses or had chosen them randomly...

"Madam, that's not what I meant. I was just curious whether you are knowledgeable about horses, or if there's another reason. This horse is indeed a fine steed, but it's currently too thin and weak; someone who doesn't know much about horses wouldn't choose it."

"You said yourself that Ta Xue is just a little thin right now, but she'll get better after some rest. From now on, you'll be responsible for Ta Xue's fodder."

Since you're asking so many pointless questions, then you might as well focus on fattening up her Snow Treader!

Cang Ling willingly accepted the task, and was also surprised that the lady knew about horses.

"Yes, ma'am"

"Yes, let's go, the grass is so tender over there."

Gu Nanzhi had essentially become a horse herder, but she hadn't gone far. At this time of year, there were green meadows everywhere, and just a short walk to the side provided fresh grass to eat while treading on the snow.

"Eat up, snow, you'll have the energy to work."

Ta Xue sniffed the grass on the ground and glanced at Gu Nanzhi with a hint of disdain.

"You little brat, Ta Xue, you're still picking such tender grass? Hurry up and eat it, and I'll give you water to drink," Gu Nanzhi scolded, slapping Ta Xue's head.

Ta Xue let out a neigh before reluctantly lowering its head to eat the grass;

"My lord, Madam's performance along the way has been extraordinary. She is skilled in medicine, knows powerful weapons like pistols, and even understands horses..."

Looking at the person and horse in the distance, Cang Ling said to his master, "I don't understand your wife's actions at all. I can't figure out where a young woman of sixteen or seventeen years old like you learned these skills."

"Um"

Jun Yanchen did not react much to this, remaining calm as he gazed at the figure in the distance, making it even more difficult to guess his thoughts.

Gu Nanzhi let the horse graze for a while, then remembered there was something she had forgotten to tell them. So she let Ta Xue graze in a visible spot and returned with light steps.

Arriving at the place where the luggage was placed, he opened one of the large bundles, inside which were further divided into several smaller bundles.

She took out the small bundles and distributed them, saying, "These are clothes I bought for you, Xia He, here you go."

"This is for Jun Yanchen, this is for Cang Ling, this is for Uncle Li, and this last one is for Zhou Cai. Uncle Li, you can give it to him when he comes back with the firewood."

She divided the items among them according to the sizes that the shopkeeper had packed for each person when they bought them;

It's quite frustrating to think about; she's like a mother hen now, taking care of all these people, providing them with food and clothing.

"Thank you, Madam."

"Thank you, Madam."

"Thank you, miss."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Night fell as expected. Under the twinkling starlight and firelight, the camp fell silent. Everyone sat on the ground, supporting each other and huddling together to get through the night.

After everyone had fallen asleep, a figure stealthily got up and cautiously approached the location of the group from the Yan Prince's residence.

The figure was extremely cautious, making no sound as he approached Gu Nanzhi and the others' luggage. He assumed no one had noticed his movements.

In fact, several pairs of eyes had already spotted him in the darkness, just as he reached for the luggage piled on the ground.

Just as Gu Nanzhi, who was among them, noticed his eyes and was about to teach him a lesson, another member of their team beat her to it.

Cang Ling used his inner strength to slam the figure to the ground.

"Well"

Before the man could react, Cang Ling was already in front of him, punching and kicking him. The man, already feeling guilty for being discovered, panicked and didn't have time to run away.

He was suppressed by Cang Ling and relentlessly punched and kicked. Unable to resist, he could only shout loudly.

"Help! Murder!"

"Ahhh, murder! Help!"

Cang Ling was only focused on reprimanding the person, so Gu Nanzhi hesitated but still woke up, stepped forward to signal to Cang Ling, and shouted, "Where did this thief come from? How dare he steal things! Cang Ling, hit him! Hit him hard!"

The commotion woke up everyone who was asleep, and they instinctively looked in the direction of the noise even before their eyes were fully open.

The escorts had also arranged for people to keep watch at night, but they weren't very diligent and were also drowsy. They immediately rushed over when they heard the commotion.

"Stop! What happened?"

The arrival of the escorts caused Cang Ling to stop what he was doing. The man had already been beaten black and blue; he wondered if his own mother would even recognize him.

"Officer, a thief has been caught trying to steal something," Gu Nanzhi said, pointing to the person groaning on the ground.

"Ah, I'm not a thief, I don't have anything."

The man was so badly beaten by Cang Ling that he could barely speak, which showed just how much force Cang Ling had used.

"Get up, you bastard! Tell me, whose family are you?"

The man, wincing in pain, struggled to his feet. "Officer Da Wen," he cried, "I didn't steal anything! They're framing me! Look at the state they've left me in! They're trying to kill me! Please teach them a lesson!"

The person who was assaulted was caught red-handed and still tried to deny it.

The other party was Gu Nanzhi and her group, so the escorts naturally didn't believe her story. One of the escorts even managed to recognize the person who had been beaten.

"You're a member of the Zhao family. Why aren't you resting at night? What else could it be but stealing?"