Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks

Chapter 674 444: Reunion

"Good morning."

Jeanne stood on the watchtower, stretching her limbs after a night of curling up.

"You're up early too, Miss Jeanne. Our watchtower is quite cramped, it's been hard on you all."

"It's nothing much, really. We're not ordinary people; according to your terms here, we'd somewhat be considered Qi Refiners. Simply having a place that shields from wind and rain is already good enough."

Jeanne spoke freely. Back when she led the Holy Knights in the hunt of a "Cannibal Hag," they endured over ten days of harsh conditions in the Eastern European Grassland, before delving deep into a cavern to judge the Demon amidst endless decay of corpses.

She's been through a lot.

After exchanging a few words with Jeanne, Zhang San felt all woozy; even the glimpses of those women from his village or the brief sight of the concubine of the wealthy Li family official during market days seemed mundane compared to them.

If it was just the beauty of this Miss Jeanne, it would have been tolerable, but even the veiled women around her, with just their chin exposed and those figures, were assuredly beauties among thousands.

Are all women from foreign lands this extraordinarily beautiful?

"Are you planning to reunite with the delegation next?"

"That's right."

"The delegation accompanying His Majesty the Emperor has already left the Great Wall due to being constrained by supplies and having to split forces; finding them won't be easy."

Jeanne nodded: "So, we plan to go to Tumu Castle to search for His Majesty's imperial carriage. Our delegation hasn't prepared for a return; we must meet up with Your Majesty."

"I see..."

Zhang San's tone revealed a hint of reluctance.

Guarding the watchtower is tough; forgetting women, even a hen or a ewe, is hard to find in this grassland.

Privately trying to sew or do needlework, it's almost impossible to conjure an image of a woman in one's head anymore.

"Ladies, wait a moment, I'll go report to our captain."

Zhang San went into the tower, seeing the captain yawning, his eyes bloodshot, evidently having stayed awake all night: "Captain, you might be a bit overly cautious, don't you think?"

The junior officer lowered his voice angrily: "If all of you were like beasts, losing your minds at the sight of women, we'd all be corpses by now."

"Oh, didn't Old Fourth say he asked the Immortals about them? They're just ordinary women."

"Get lost."

The junior officer pushed Zhang San away irritably, thinking it nonsense that if Old Fourth really served the Immortals, he wouldn't be wasting away with them here, but would be strolling the streets, earning silver from the nobles.

These women, just for the leader's armor, it's not simple, and the extraordinary steed is one in a thousand, how could they be mere ordinary women?

If they were truly weak women, could they have arrived here by now? They would have been robbed by strongmen or road bandits long ago!

Unexpectedly, after preparing fodder for their steeds, these women threw away a few exquisitely crafted coins and swiftly departed.

Everyone watched them disappear at the foot of the distant mountain, making no further moves.

The junior officer breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhang San teased: "Captain, I told you that you were overly cautious. Miss Jeanne is such a heroic and straightforwardly beautiful woman, how could she be a bad person?"

The junior officer couldn't help but give him a kick: "Idiot, didn't you notice that last night, when those Hu girls entered the watchtower, even Second Tiger didn't dare bark? When a wolf demon infiltrated before, Second Tiger dared to rush and bite, why so afraid of these ordinary women?"

Second Tiger is a fiercely tempered dog kept at the tower, barking wildly at any unfamiliar presence, having saved more than a few lives.

"The captain's right. I didn't dare sleep all night, clutching the knife handle under my blanket."

"Hey, still, nothing happened."

The heedless tower guards and Zhang San gathered around, expressing their doubts.

"Captain, you're knowledgeable, tell us, are all Hu Ji this beautiful?"

The junior officer was speechless, cursing: "How would I be so knowledgeable? If I truly were, why would I still be here guarding the tower with you?"

He paused and then said: "However, these Hu Ji have indeed remarkable looks and figures; they seem like palace beauties, do they not?"

A quiet morning followed.

Just as the junior officer thought life was returning to normal, a sudden shout came from the lookout.

"Captain, come quickly, a large group is approaching!"

The junior officer kicked into high gear, climbing up to the lookout, peering into the distance, spotting the armored Iron Cavalry, stained with blood, approaching from afar.

"What banner are they flying?"

"I... I don't recognize it, a double-headed eagle?"

"Hold on, Miss Jeanne mentioned earlier that their foreign delegation seemed to fly such a banner!"

...

Two riders galloped from the ranks.

At a distance they were unclear, but drawing near, everyone gasped as the leader wore a golden mask, with the armor evidently matching Jeanne's style.

While impressive.

What truly shocked the watchtower soldiers was the giant steed under him; compared to the horse of his companion, the latter's horse seemed like a foal!

"Mother of God, this horse is so huge, it must be a magical creature, right?"

"Is this really the foreign delegation?"

The junior officer coldly ordered: "What are you waiting for, get ready."

The man beside the giant horse yelled: "Comrades, I am a night patrol flag of Datong Guard, entrusted to lead the delegation led by the Kazak King's Prince for the imperial rescue mission at Tumu Castle."

The junior officer leaned out and asked: "Do you have any proof?"

"Token for verification!"

The man shouted holding the token high.

Zhang San commented: "Captain, it should be real, these foreign Hu people look quite different than the Tatars and us, not easily impersonated, and their armor is distinct, fitting them well."

The junior officer paused, yelling: "You've been in combat, is that blood from a recent battle?"

Those below replied: "We encountered a group of hundreds of Tatar Riding Cavalry and annihilated them entirely."

The junior officer nodded: "I trust your identity, but the tower is too narrow to accommodate your entry; if you are indeed King Qin's army,"

A loud crack echoed.

The firearms of this era were unreliable.

Many weapons equipped by the Ming army had degraded compared to those during Emperor Yongle's north expeditions, without innovation, becoming worse.

Numerous firearms like

Even during firing squad times, the firearms' practical rate only maintained one shot a minute at best.