Chapter 623: Defense
Editor: Atlas Studios
Qi Haoran and the rest were received by the chieftains, while the women were received by Madam Alu and the others.
Everyone escorted Mu Yangling and Little Madam Xia in. Mu Yangling was carrying Little Bear in her arms.
The wives of the chiefs were all present. Most of them did not speak the common language, so it took Mu Yangling a long time to understand what they were trying to convey. Alu could not help but become anxious when she saw this. She shouted outside, and a young woman in a red Miao costume rushed over. Seeing Mu Yangling looking at her curiously, she bowed and introduced herself with a smile, “Greetings, Your Highness. I’m Ji’an Hanlan.” She was speaking the standard common language.
Mu Yangling smiled. “You’re Chief Ji’an’s eldest daughter? What a beauty.”
Seeing Jinhua squeezed in from behind and snorted, Hanlan frowned slightly. Didn’t she ask someone to keep a close eye on her? Why did she still run out?
Jinhua sat beside Mu Yangling and said, “You broke the table last time, so you must be quite strong. When are we going to use the whip to compete?”
Because there were many outsiders present, Mu Yangling didn’t want to ruin her reputation, so she didn’t mention the past. She only shook her head and said, “I’m not used to using whips.”
“Then what are you used to? A spear? A soft sword, a hard sword, or a saber?” Mu Yangling saw that there was pure curiosity in her eyes and said, “I’m used to using a dagger.”
Jinhua pursed her lips and said disdainfully, “The dagger is so short. With me using a whip, you won’t even be able to get close to me.”
Mu Yangling didn’t argue and looked at Hanlan with a smile. Hanlan quickly took the opportunity to change the topic and introduce the chieftains’ wives to Mu Yangling.
Actually, they were simply to sound out Mu Yangling about Qi Haoran’s attitude towards the Miao people. Moreover, since the new magistrate had yet to take office, they were curious as to what kind of person he was.
Liu Qing’s ties with Qi Haoran was not a secret. The Miao people did not know about it yet, but given sufficient time, they would definitely be able to find out that Liu Qing was once Bowen’s Teacher. Liu Qing had become an official through Fan Zijin, so Mu Yangling did not deliberately hide it. She only hinted that they were old friends with Liu Qing and that their relationship was alright. Meanwhile, Qi Haoran was filled with sympathy for the Miao people. He felt that be it the Han people or the Miao people, they were all citizens of Great Qi…
Although they were all politically correct things that every official would say, Mu Yangling’s attitude was sincere. Looking at her pure gaze, everyone unanimously trusted her. At the very least, they now had more hope for the Imperial Court.
The atmosphere instantly became lively. Everyone took the initiative to bring Mu Yangling and Little Madam Xia to play their stockade games and eat various folk snacks. Mu Yangling ate some and felt that it was not bad.
Seeing that the atmosphere was good, Mu Yangling started to ask about the lives of the Miao people. She didn’t ask about confidential matters and only asked about planting, harvesting, food, accommodation, and some trivial questions. Hanlan kept explaining with a smile on the side. Noticing that Jinhua was frowning at Hanlan, she asked a few more questions, then stopped. She turned to Hanlan with a smile. “I like the Miao costume you sent me. I just don’t know if any of you have children’s clothes. I want to prepare a few for my Little Bear.”
Hanlan said with a smile, “There are no new clothes suitable for Young Master, but you can give us his measurements. We’ll make them and send them to you the day after tomorrow.”
Mu Yangling was elated. “How many colors are there?” She said in embarrassment, “I just think that the Miao children look quite energetic in the Miao costume. It’s a delightful sight, so I want to tailor a few sets for my child to dress up. I wonder if I can pick a few colors.”
Hanlan stood up and said, “Then I’ll get someone to send you a few pieces of fabric.”
Mu Yangling nodded with a smile. “Go ahead. I’ll go eat with them.”
Hanlan was relieved. She had also noticed just now that Mu Yangling didn’t like to talk much when she was eating, so it was a good time for her to leave for a while.
As soon as Hanlan left, Mu Yangling took the initiative to go to the roasted meat and turned to ask Jinhua, “You speak Mandarin well, too.”
“Of course.” Jinhua raised her head proudly and said, “I learned it from my Big Brother’s teacher. Whatever my sister knows, I know too.”
Smiling, Mu Yangling asked, “Then can you help me translate?” Seeing the hesitation in her eyes, Mu Yangling said in distress, “I just think that your Miao language sounds lovely. If you draw out the tone a little, it’ll sound like you’re singing. It’s like music to the ears. I’d like to learn the Miao language.”
Mu Yangling had learned the Jin and West Xia languages with Qi Haoran back then, so her ability to learn languages was not bad. Just now, after carefully comparing the Miao language and Hanlan’s translation, she felt that sometimes, even though they were the same words, Hanlan’s translation would always be different. Moreover, Jinhua, who knew Mandarin, also had a strange expression.
Jinhua was more innocent or rather, stupid. When she heard Mu Yangling put it this way, she agreed happily.
Mu Yangling did not ask the same question as before. She just changed the angle and method of asking. From time to time, she would ask a few Miao words and ask Jinhua what she meant. Just like that, Mu Yangling managed to obtain a lot of information and roughly understood the situation of the various stockades.
Seeing Hanlan hurry over with a few pieces of cloth, Mu Yangling stopped asking. She waved the roasted meat in her hand and said, “You’re in luck. We just roasted it.”
Hanlan’s gaze swept across the crowd. Seeing that everyone was roasting meat, she smiled and asked, “What were you talking about just now? It looked like you were having a lively conversation from afar.”
Mu Yangling said with a smile, “I think that your Miao language sounds lovely and wanted to learn it. In the end, I only managed to learn a few Miao phrases. Look, I forgot about all that after you interrupted me.” As she spoke, she turned to Jinhua with a smile. “How do you say ‘roasted meat’ in the Miao language again?”
Jinhua rolled her eyes and said, “You’ve already asked this four or five times.” She articulated “roasted meat” in the Miao language. Then, when she saw Mu Yangling recite it three times, she snorted. “What’s the use of reciting it three times? Aren’t you just going to forget it the moment you turn around? What a waste of effort.”
Mu Yangling lowered her head and smiled in embarrassment.
Hanlan glared at her younger sister and said with a smile to Mu Yangling apologetically, “Jinhua is insensible. Your Highness, please don’t take offense. Look, this is the best fabric we have in our stockade. It’s most suitable for making clothes for the young lord.”
Mu Yangling took it and saw that there were different colors and patterns on it.
Other than the flower colors that were printed on the fabric at the beginning, when tailored into clothes, the Han costume would have embroidery and some beautiful patterns stitched upon it. However, the patterns on the Miao costume were all dyed or printed on the fabric itself. Moreover, there were brightly-colored flowers, grass, and birds on it, making for a gorgeous sight.
Mu Yangling placed Little Bear beside her and held the fabric against him one by one. Then, she asked everyone which piece was nice.
Everyone was talking at once. Even though there was a language barrier, it was very lively. Hanlan translated from the side. Seeing that Jinhua’s expression was calm, she knew that Hanlan had translated correctly. Mu Yangling pointed at a few pieces and took all the dark-colored ones and only an ivory-white one among the lighter colors. This way, she had chosen six pieces of cloth left. Mu Yangling said embarrassedly, “I like these. I wonder if you can help us tailor children’s clothing from these.”
Delighted to see that her stockade’s costume was appreciated, Hanlan hurriedly nodded and said, “Most certainly, Your Highness. We will definitely do a good job of it and get it done by the day after tomorrow.”
Mu Yangling thought for a moment and said, “Make two sets, including one for another child who’s not here. I’ll tell you his measurements later. Make another set according to the same style.”
Chapter end
