How strange.
A man with the air of a scholar, yet he had chosen to join the army.
Good iron is not made into nails; good men do not become soldiers.
So what had driven him down this path?
The woman dared not ask directly, afraid of offending him. Instead, she carefully changed the subject.
"Sir… where are you soldiers from? And where will you take us to settle?"
Zhuge Wangchan chuckled. "We're not exactly government soldiers. We're a militia from Gao Family Village. Our territory has grown quite large, so there are many places where you could settle."
He counted on his fingers. "We'll pass through Pingyang Prefecture, then Jishan County, Hejin County… and finally Gao Family Village itself. You may choose to stay anywhere along the way, or come back with us. The decision is entirely yours."
The women exchanged uneasy looks.
"Ah?" one of them said hesitantly. "'Decide for ourselves'? Does that mean… you'll abandon us halfway?"
Those words struck fear straight into their hearts.
Decide for ourselves.
To them, this was not freedom — it was terror.
They would rather cling to someone's authority, obey clear commands, and live under rules, than be told to choose their own path. In this world, how many women truly had the right to decide their fate?
Zhuge Wangchan immediately sensed their fear. He smiled and tapped the embroidered emblem on his chest.
"Don't be afraid," he said gently. "With Dao Xuan Tianzun watching over us, you will never be abandoned. You may not understand it now, but you will — in time."
Only then did the women slowly relax.
As their mothers loosened up, the children, emboldened, began creeping closer to the soldiers.
A boy of seven or eight years old edged up to a logistics soldier, staring wide-eyed at the Chassepot rifle slung over his shoulder.
"Uncle…" the boy whispered. "That thing… it looks really powerful. I saw it yesterday. It goes 'bang,' and the bad man far away just falls down."
The soldier laughed. "That's right. This is Gao Family Village's newest weapon. One shot can kill an enemy hundreds of meters away. Terrifying, isn't it?"
The boy swallowed. "C-can I touch it?"
After checking that the rifle was unloaded, the soldier carefully handed it over.
The boy's small hands trembled as they touched the cold metal.
"Wow!" he exclaimed. "I touched it! When I grow up, I want to be a powerful soldier like you, Uncle!"
The soldier shook his head with a grin. "That's not a good goal. A child your age should be going to school, studying for free, and growing up to be educated and cultured. Becoming a soldier like me? That's not something to aspire to."
The words were casual.
But they struck someone like a thunderbolt.
A young woman — the boy's mother, around twenty-five or twenty-six — rushed forward and grabbed the soldier's hand.
"Sir!" she blurted out. "Did you just say… school is free?"
The soldier stiffened, his face flushing. "Ah—yes, sister. All village schools under Gao Family Village offer free education."
Her voice trembled. "My child is seven and a half this year. Is that too old? Too young? Can he still attend?"
The soldier quickly replied, "Perfect age! Older or younger doesn't matter at all."
Her eyes shone.
She shook his hand vigorously. "Are there other requirements? Household registration, perhaps? If I marry someone from the village, would my son then qualify?"
The soldier stood there dumbfounded, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "Sister… that's a bit extreme. There's no need for that. Household registration isn't required."
Silence fell.
Around them, everyone froze.
Zhuge Wangchan burst out laughing and hurriedly scolded him. "Enough! Be careful what you say!"
Then he turned serious.
"Listen carefully," Zhuge Wangchan said to the soldiers. "Don't talk about things like marriage on this journey. These women have just escaped with their lives. Pressing such matters now would be exploiting their desperation."
He pointed at the emblem on his chest. "If Dao Xuan Tianzun found out, he'd slap you so hard you'd fly across the river!"
The logistics soldier jumped in fright and hurriedly bowed, whispering toward the emblem, "Dao Xuan Tianzun, forgive me. I truly meant no harm."
The young woman pulled her son back, though, truthfully, she wasn't angry.
In reality, this group of women desperately needed something to rely on. Knowing that someone might be willing to take her in brought her relief, not disgust.
Unbeknownst to them, Dao Xuan Tianzun had observed the entire exchange.
Yet he remained silent, as if absent.
Watching the women's reactions, he sighed inwardly.
How tragic.
Women in this old society… so fragile, so helpless.
Women who feel they cannot survive without leaning on a man — how pitiful, how heartbreaking.
That night, the logistics team camped in an abandoned village.
The women and children were housed in a derelict building, while the soldiers took turns standing guard outside. The sight filled them with a sense of security they had never known before.
At dawn, they resumed their journey.
From Qinzhou, they traveled southwest, marching from sunrise to sunset for many days until they finally reached Pingyang Prefecture.
Prefect Dou Wenda had been practically living on the city walls, staring northeast day after day, waiting for Commander Wang Xiaohua to return and garrison the city.
When he saw a group approaching, he jumped up in excitement — only to deflate when he realized it was merely the logistics team.
Without Commander Wang, his heart felt utterly empty.
The women and children gazed up at the towering prefectural city, awe and unease mingling in their hearts.
If we found a man here and married him… perhaps we could survive, they thought.
Such thoughts drifted quietly through their minds.
Zhuge Wangchan approached them and spoke softly. "Pingyang is large, but it isn't entirely within our territory. It would be better not to settle here. Of course, we won't stop you if you insist — this is only advice."
Given such a clear hint, the women immediately abandoned the idea.
They continued onward.
Before long, they arrived at Jishan County.
The fifth year of Chongzhen brought plentiful rain, not drought. Jishan, already a key agricultural region, had further benefited from Gao Family Village's fertilizer factory.
This year's harvest was abundant.
The entire county brimmed with vitality, every household preparing for the New Year.
The moment the women entered the city, warmth flooded their hearts.
"So prosperous…"
"If we married here… surely we could live."