Clouds and Moon Shadow

Along with the sound came a sharp branch that, with a soft "thud," pierced the tree trunk. Gu Qingyue's eyes lit up. What kind of master was this? Was this internal energy?

Rubbing her hands together excitedly, Gu Qingyue couldn't wait to see what level the ancient martial arts of this world could reach.

Before they could react, a man in black leaped to the foot of the tree, holding a long sword in his right hand, which was covered in blood, indicating that he had just been fighting.

Seeing that there was only one person coming, Gu Qingyue didn't plan to hide. Looking at the man in black under the tree, his prominent nose was very noticeable. He had a kind of broad and handsome appearance, but he was obviously very young, still a boy, at most seventeen or eighteen years old.

The boy in black also looked up at Gu Qingyue, and was taken aback. He obviously didn't expect that the person in the tree would be a small, thin child. Was he ten years old? However, the clothes looked somewhat familiar.

The four eyes stared at each other, neither making a move for a moment.

If Gu Qingyue had been awake last night, she would have realized that the black-clad youth in front of her was the one who had left her fever-reducing powder and wound medicine. Unfortunately, she had no idea.

With a whoosh, the man in black dropped Gu Qingyue and sped forward. A moment later, more than a dozen people flew past the tree where Gu Qingyue was.

No one noticed the child in the tree. Of course, Gu Qingyue had instantly concealed all her presence, so as long as you didn't look up, you wouldn't be able to spot her.

Watching the group of people gradually disappear into the distance, Gu Qingyue immediately jumped down from the tree, picked up the walking stick she had made while grilling the meat, and hurried towards the edge of the forest. It was best to leave this place of trouble as soon as possible. She weighed the branch walking stick in her hand. Well, it could serve as a makeshift weapon. She would make do for now.

A moment later, the faint sound of weapons clashing could be heard in the distance. Gu Qingyue paused, then walked outside. It was not appropriate for her to get involved in these matters now; she was still a child.

Along the way, there were people fleeing from the county town, with their families in tow, and most of them had miserable expressions on their faces. Gu Qingyue grabbed some mud and smeared it on her face a few times, then joined the group, following behind an old man and a little boy, walking and stopping intermittently.

We're almost at the town. There are no city gates, but you can see a huge rock at the town entrance with three large, bold characters on it: Rhinoceros Town. It looks very large from a distance.

Having finally reached the entrance to the town, Gu Qingyue opened her dry lips and emptied her water pouch upside down; not a single drop of water remained.

She plopped down on the roadside, too exhausted to walk any further. Her legs were trembling. What a wretched body she was in! She fanned herself with her hand, sighing inwardly.

"Brother, we're almost in town. Aren't you leaving?" The little boy who had been walking ahead turned around. He was about five or six years old, with a chubby face and bright, sparkling eyes as he looked at Gu Qingyue. He blinked very cutely.

Gu Qingyue couldn't resist ruffling the little boy's fluffy head: "Hello, what's your name?"

"Xiao Shun," the little boy puffed out his chest, blinked his eyes, and scratched his ear with his chubby little hands, looking incredibly cute.

"Hehe------" Gu Qingyue laughed, she hadn't seen such a pure and innocent smile in a long time.

Hearing someone talking to his grandson, the old man put down his bundle, stopped, and sat down next to Gu Qingyue.

"Young man, have you gotten separated from your family? Why are you all alone? The world is in chaos these days, it's very dangerous," the old man said with concern in his eyes. His wrinkled face was tanned dark by the sun, but his smile was honest and sincere.

Gu Qingyue looked at the grandfather and grandson. They were full of energy and seemed quite relaxed, indicating that their family was well-off. As someone who had spent all her spare time studying traditional Chinese medicine with her grandfather since childhood, it had become a habit for Gu Qingyue to first look at a person's complexion to determine their health.

Of course, upon hearing the old man's question, Gu Qingyue inwardly despised herself.

Along the way, she looked at the people fleeing with her and imagined countless scenarios of being scammed by strangers or chased by southern barbarians. She was extremely cautious and careful. Having just arrived in this strange world, she couldn't trust anyone.

She had even considered countless ways to save herself in case of the worst-case scenario, but the one thing she never expected was to encounter such genuine care.

As a former secret agent, she was always on edge in that world, moving among all kinds of people in different countries, and maintaining vigilance at all times had become a habit.

She felt a little uncomfortable with such caring looks.

Well, actually, she felt a little lost and uncertain, and somewhat confused about the future.

"Grandpa, why is this Rhino Town so big? It looks almost as big as a county town." Gu Qingyue wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand.

The original owner had visited Mingzhi County with his parents when he was a child and still had some impression of it.

“Oh, speaking of which, Rhino Town is a rather special town in our Mingzhi County,” the old man said, taking out his water bag and dripping the last two drops of water onto Xiao Shun’s dry lips. “This town has a history of two hundred years. Because it is located near the border, we have always traded goods with Nanzhao. It is close to Lipu County of Nanzhao Kingdom. When there is no war, the trade between our two countries is very prosperous. Many people come, so many houses are built.”

The old man paused for a moment, then added happily, "My son does business in this town, selling leather goods."

Looking at the expression in the old man's eyes, Gu Qingyue imagined the bustling scene of trade, which was quite rare in this desolate border region.

"Young man, judging from your accent, you're from around here. Haven't you ever been to this town with your family before?" The old man leaned back slightly against the earthen slope behind him, clearly exhausted.

"No, my home is a bit far from here, I've never been here before," Gu Qingyue didn't intend to tell him everything, not because she didn't trust him, but because there was no need to.

She came to this town purely because she was completely unfamiliar with this world. She was like someone opening blind boxes, wandering around randomly. She saw many people heading this way, so she came too. Only by coming to places where people gather can she better understand the situation of this world and decide what to do next.

"Grandpa, why is this town untouched even though the county seat has been looted by the Southern Barbarians?" Gu Qingyue finally asked the question. She could see people coming and going at the town entrance from afar, a scene of prosperity, without any looting by the Nanzhao people. But that was unlikely, since it was so close to the border. Why would the Southern Barbarians take a detour to rob people? Wouldn't they just rob anyone they saw and steal any valuables they could find?

"This kid doesn't seem to travel much. People from both countries live together in this town. According to the older generation, we and the Nanzhao Kingdom had an agreement when we opened this trading town to not disturb each other and to trade fairly. I don't know if that's true or not."

The old man thought that although his son's business was relatively stable, he rarely came home, and when he did, he would leave in a hurry. Sometimes he was also very secretive. He came to seek refuge with his son this time because he missed him and wanted to see him. The Nanzhao people had massacred Mingzhi County, and he was very worried about his son continuing to do business in Rhino Town. He had to see him safe and sound with his own eyes.

The old man patted Xiao Shun's head beside him, seemingly lost in thought as if remembering something.

After resting for a while, Gu Qingyue said goodbye to the grandfather and grandson, and patted Xiao Shun's head as she watched them walk away.

Xiao Shun followed his grandfather for a long distance, then turned back and waved his chubby little hand vigorously at her. Gu Qingyue's heart stirred slightly, and she waved back until the grandfather and grandson could no longer be seen.

"Hey, this kid's not bad looking!" Suddenly, a teasing voice came from behind, and then Gu Qingyue heard footsteps approaching her.