Commander Liu quietly raised his eyes and saw Fang Tianba's expression indeed shift, so he continued slowly: "Logically speaking, refugees from the Central Plains make their living by farming, so why would one carry a nomadic deer whistle close to her body? Who can guarantee she isn't a spy sent by Western Xia, specifically here to gather intelligence on our military camp? With the military situation so tense now, our forces cannot afford to lower their guard. Out of an abundance of caution, your subordinate brought a few soldiers here to question her, but who would have thought this old woman would flatly deny it..."
A tall, thin confidant standing beside Commander Liu chimed in: "This old hag is utterly ungrateful! Commander Liu spoke to her in perfectly amicable terms, asking only that she clear up the origins of this deer whistle so she could be dealt with leniently. Who could have expected that not only would she refuse to cooperate, but she would even slander our commander's good name!"
"Oh? Old woman, have you heard every word these two officers said? Do you have anything to say for yourself? Let's hear it." Fang Tianba raised an eyebrow. Instead of picking up where Commander Liu left off, he lifted his gaze to examine the old woman before him. He saw that she was thin and frail, her coarse cloth tunic stained with years of unwashed yellow mud through its tears, as if she had traveled a very long road, looking weather-beaten and exhausted to the extreme. After a brie…
Chapter 24