The small Mobei town wasn’t large. The border it shared with Xiliang to the west wasn’t especially long, and the border connecting it to the Xiongnu to the north wasn’t very long either.

For mercenaries who had received professional training, with the assistance of the Xijing soldiers, a defensive line was quickly and quietly established.

Ziqing had made her base in Xuanyuan Lige’s courtyard, with the two defensive lines set up close by on either side.

These two lines formed a V-shape, encircling the small Mobei town.

The Mobei tribespeople had all taken shelter in the forested mountains within the defensive perimeter. The moment Yingzi carried Ziqing’s words to the Mobei clan elder, the elder erupted in fury on the spot!

Without giving Yingzi any reply at all, he led a large group of elders, marching straight toward Ziqing in a rage!

At that moment, Xuanyuan Lige’s courtyard had taken on the unmistakable look of a military encampment!

Several tables had been pushed together to form one large surface, spread with a large topographical map. The small courtyard had been divided into a strategy area and a treatment area, while the rooms at the back had been split into a medical room and a makeshift storage room!

Han Ziqing, dressed in black battle attire with a wide, blood-red cloak draped over her shoulders, stood beside the map, her pale, delicate face set off strikingly against the fabric, looking even more porcelain-white and coldly aloof. Her eyes were lowered, focused entirely on the map, a short whip in hand occasionally tapping at various points.

The Mobei clan elder and the tribal elders stormed all the way to the courtyard gate in a fury, but the moment they saw the woman standing inside, they inexplicably came to a halt, momentarily stunned.

They could only sense that this quiet woman radiated, without any visible effort, an aura of awe-inspiring sharpness — sharp enough that no one dared provoke her carelessly, dared approach her without caution.

She was, plainly, just a woman. And yet, for some inexplicable reason, she possessed this quiet, overwhelming, magnetic presence that left the Mobei clan elder and the gathered tribal elders utterly frozen.

Only when Ziqing turned her head to look at them did they finally snap back to their senses!

“Da Zhou’s Princess Consort Yao!”

The Mobei clan elder snapped sharply, striding in first. “What exactly do you mean by this?”

Ziqing merely glanced at them once, her attention immediately returning to the map. As she studied it, she asked coldly, without looking up, “Yingzi, I don’t recall telling you to bring them here.”

Yingzi materialized out of thin air, thoroughly helpless. “Your Highness, an entire crowd of elderly folks was already headed this way — I… couldn’t very well stop them!”

These days, if he’d knocked over some elderly man or woman, upright Yingzi would never be able to bear that kind of responsibility!

No sooner had he spoken than the Mobei clan elder had already arrived before her, his beard white, his face flushed, panting as he spoke. “Princess Yao, Mobei is not Da Zhou’s territory, nor is it Xijing’s territory. Mobei belongs jointly to the Xiongnu and Xijing. You will withdraw from Mobei at once — Mobei does not welcome you!”

Ziqing paid him no attention at all, not even sparing him a second glance, her focus entirely on the map. She simply said coldly, “Yingzi, this is too noisy. Drive them all out.”

But just as Yingzi was about to act, the Mobei clan elder plopped himself right down on top of the map spread across the table, hands on his hips, letting out a cold “Hmph!” directly at Ziqing.

And beside him, several elderly elders followed suit, all sitting down cross-legged on the spot, refusing to leave!

A flash of coldness crossed Ziqing’s eyes, and she finally lifted her head to look — and at that very moment, an entire crowd of elderly folk came sweeping in from outside the courtyard in a great wave.

Seeing them arrive, the Mobei clan elder immediately bellowed, “Everyone sit down! Surround their position!”

He truly was the clan elder — one call, and hundreds responded. Several hundred elderly villagers genuinely surrounded the courtyard and sat themselves down on the spot!

This… was this the beginning of some kind of sit-in protest?

Yingzi shook his head helplessly. He remembered all too well how helpless he’d been against this crowd of old folks before — otherwise, Prince Yao’s own Shadow Guards wouldn’t have been stalled for so many days, unable to establish even the two defensive lines.

Ziqing swept her gaze across the surroundings, her sharp eyes landing on the Mobei clan elder.

Meeting her gaze, the clan elder flinched slightly, but immediately shook it off, saying coldly, “Princess Yao, Mobei is our home, the shared homeland of the Xiliang and Xiongnu peoples. If you intend to forcibly seize our homeland, then you might as well bury every one of our old bones right here in Mobei’s soil! Otherwise, take your troops and get out at once! We don’t welcome you here!”

Homeland?

“Who would allow their own homeland to be occupied by foreign troops? Would you?” Ziqing snorted coldly, her sharp eyes fixed directly on the Mobei clan elder.

“I… I have never allowed anyone to station troops here!” the clan elder protested hastily!

“Then what exactly are the Xijing and Xiongnu soldiers who’ve marched in from two directions? Are they here as guests?” Ziqing asked again.

“They… they are our kinsmen! They are the most welcome brothers of the Mobei tribe! They are not the same as you!” the clan elder continued to argue!

“What’s the difference, then? Is it that my troops are stationed here while their troops occupy the entire small Mobei town? Is it that my soldiers sleep out in the open in the forest, while they occupy your homes and force you to hide in the mountains?” Ziqing pressed again!

The clan elder found himself unable to counter a single word of this, and just then, an old man suddenly stood up from the crowd, pointing furiously at Ziqing and shouting, “This is a matter for our Mobei tribe! We are willing to help our kinsmen, willing to give everything for them! This has nothing to do with Xijing, nothing to do with Da Zhou! You bandits! You’ve occupied Mobei, yet you keep insisting we go home — such false benevolence, such hypocrisy, it’s shameful!”

The moment these words came out, they instantly stirred up the crowd’s emotions. The Mobei clan elder seized the moment to rise as well, stepping right onto Ziqing’s map, shouting loudly, “Bandits, get out of Mobei! Give us back our Mobei!”

Instantly, the call was echoed by all — the old man who’d spoken first moved with surprising speed, rushing forward to stand on the table alongside the clan elder, raising his fist and shouting.

“Bandits, get out of Mobei, give us back our Mobei!”

“Bullying the elderly — that’s Da Zhou’s way of doing things! Such false benevolence, it’s disgusting!”

After the sit-in, was a full-blown demonstration about to begin?

Ziqing narrowed her cold eyes, staring fixedly at the old man — then, without warning, she reached out herself and yanked him clean off the table!

She didn’t say a single word, offered no explanation whatsoever — but that single action alone was enough to instantly silence every voice of protest.

What was this woman about to do?

The old man ended up in an awkward position, one foot still on the table, one foot on the ground, one hand pressed against the tabletop, the other gripped tightly in Ziqing’s hand. In an instant, every eye in the crowd was fixed on the scene, and no one dared say a word.

Even Yingzi held his breath — as far as he knew, the princess consort had never been one to disrespect the elderly!

Respecting and caring for one’s elders was one of the most basic human virtues.

Ziqing was, of course, someone who respected the elderly. But she also had a particular disdain for this exact kind of stubborn, unyielding old fool who used their age as leverage to bully others.

She stared coldly at the old man, and slowly, the corner of her lips curved into a wicked, sinister smile.

The sight left the old man thoroughly terrified. He cried out at once, “You wretched girl, what do you think you’re doing? I’m ninety-eight years old this year, and you still dare to bully me — you… you… you’ll be condemned by the whole world for this! Heaven has eyes, and it’s watching — you’ll pay for this!”

Pay for it?

That was a problem for later!

Ziqing gave a sharp yank, immediately dragging the old man straight down onto the ground, and said coldly, “So what if you’re old? I’d genuinely like to see just how impressive being old can possibly be!”

With that, she seized the old man’s hand and began dragging him straight out of the courtyard.