“Guess!” Qiao Mu replied with a self-satisfied look as she poured herself a bowl of wine.

Xiao Yingtao looked at her, brow furrowed.

Feng Jiu’er took another light sip of wine, not even lifting her eyes. “It must have been on the carriage,” she said, her tone unhurried.

“Of course it was.” Qiao Mu glanced sideways at Feng Jiu’er. “A jar this big — you think I could just plop it openly on a horse’s back?”

“On the carriage? That cannot be right.” Xiao Yingtao shook her head. “The supplies on the carriages have basically all been checked by me. I never saw anything like that.”

“Tonight two carriages came in — Carriage No. 1 carries grain and medicinal herbs, and Carriage No. 4 carries everyday supplies.”

Xiao Yingtao looked past Feng Jiu’er and fixed her gaze on Qiao Mu. “Which carriage did you actually hide the wine in?”

“Carriage No. 1,” Feng Jiu’er said without a moment’s hesitation.

All the carriages had been assigned numbers, and each numbered carriage was responsible for carrying different things — this had been Feng Jiu’er’s arrangement.

That way, everything ran smoothly, and Xiao Yingtao was naturally happy to follow Feng Jiu’er’s system to the letter.

“Carriage No. 1?” Xiao Yingtao looked at Feng Jiu’er, blinking. “Jiu’er, how can you be so certain? Surely you did not already know that Qiao Mu had hidden wine?”

“How could that be?” Feng Jiu’er gave Xiao Yingtao a sidelong glance. “Saying one thing and doing another in front of our brothers — that is something I could never do.”

“What do you mean ‘saying one thing and doing another’?” Qiao Mu drained her bowl and looked at Feng Jiu’er, narrowing her eyes slightly.

“If it were not for someone like me, where would you even find wine to drink right now? It is not going to affect our march or our battles, is it?”

“So is it actually in Carriage No. 1 or not?”

Xiao Yingtao had no interest in entertaining Qiao Mu’s justifications — she only wanted to know where exactly she had slipped up, that Qiao Mu had managed to stash wine right under her watch without her knowing.

Qiao Mu paid her no attention and simply poured herself another bowl.

“This jar of wine cost me a good deal of silver. I originally planned to keep it for myself to enjoy in private. I only opened it today for your sake — and still you are not satisfied?”

Feng Jiu’er watched Qiao Mu set the jar back down, then quickly reached out with one hand and slid it across to Xiao Yingtao’s side.

“Since you opened it for me, why have you been drinking so much of it yourself? I have not had nearly enough yet.”

Xiao Yingtao hugged the wine jar and pressed on. “So is it really hidden in Carriage No. 1? Where exactly was it hidden?”

“Ask Jiu’er.” Qiao Mu waved her hand dismissively. “Sharp as she is, she will certainly be able to figure it out.”

Xiao Yingtao blinked and turned her gaze to Feng Jiu’er.

No matter what, she was going to get to the bottom of this.

“Jiu’er, did you just guess? Why did you think she would hide the wine in Carriage No. 1?”

Feng Jiu’er turned to look at Xiao Yingtao and asked lightly, “How did we number the carriages in the first place?”

“By order of importance — you said so yourself at the time. You told us to sort our supplies by how urgently we might need them, with the most important items on the carriage at the front.”

As if something had just clicked, Xiao Yingtao’s eyes brightened.

“So that means Qiao Mu knew that I would almost always have Carriage No. 1 nearby wherever I went, and so she hid the wine in Carriage No. 1.”

“Carriage No. 1 carries the most critical supplies — I would sooner lose myself than lose Carriage No. 1. Qiao Mu, you really are clever!”

Xiao Yingtao shot Qiao Mu a look, her words tinged with a touch of disdain.

“But of course.” Qiao Mu curved her lips into a faint smile. “If even Jiu’er could think of it, how could I possibly not?”

She turned to look at Feng Jiu’er, and the curve of Qiao Mu’s lips deepened a little more.

“Then Jiu’er should already know where I hid the wine, yes? It was not easy fooling someone as meticulous as Xiao Yingtao — I had to work for it.”

“So where exactly was it hidden?” Xiao Yingtao asked, for what must have been the umpteenth time.

“You know better than anyone where on the carriage you did not check,” Feng Jiu’er replied softly.

Xiao Yingtao looked at her, and after quite a long moment, slowly narrowed her eyes.

“Could it have been underneath the carriage? I check the items inside the carriage every few days — especially Carriages No. 1 through 3.”

“Other than underneath the carriage, I truly cannot think of where something that large could have been stored without me ever noticing.”

“Not entirely without brains.” Qiao Mu stretched out a long arm past Feng Jiu’er and patted Xiao Yingtao on the shoulder.

“Lucky for me I had not opened the seal yet. With that nose of yours, even the most cleverly hidden jar would have been useless.”

“Honestly, Qiao Mu.” Xiao Yingtao leaned against Feng Jiu’er and gave Qiao Mu a shove.

“One moment you say I am meticulous, the next you call me a hunting dog’s nose. What exactly do you mean by that?”

“Calling you a hunting dog’s nose is a compliment, you know.” Qiao Mu raised an eyebrow.

“A dog’s nose is far more sensitive than a human’s. I used to keep two dogs myself — and whatever I needed to find, they could always track it down.”

“It is just that they both disappeared later on. I imagine the people from a neighboring hilltop must have killed them.”

“My Zhong and Liang were not only good at tracking things down — they were also imposing and formidable, which had long rubbed certain people in the area the wrong way.”

Qiao Mu raised her bowl and drained it in one go.

“What a pity about my Zhong and Liang. If they were still here, they could certainly help me do many great things.”

“Zhong and Liang?” Feng Jiu’er looked at Qiao Mu, frowning slightly.

“Mm.” Qiao Mu met her gaze and nodded. “Those were the names of my two hunting dogs. One was called Zhong, and the other Liang.”

“We were so deeply bonded. Even though they are gone, they will surely find their way back to me one day.”

“Today, when I spotted dogs of the same breed as my Zhong and Liang in the forest, I had a strong urge to bring them along with me.”

“With their help, so many things would be so much more convenient.”

Feng Jiu’er cradled her bowl, took a small sip of wine, drew her knees up, and looked toward Qiao Mu.

“If you can truly tame them, it would indeed be useful to keep a few by your side.”

Feng Jiu’er knew very well just how keen a dog’s nose could be.

The police dogs of the modern era were a perfect example — though she herself had never kept one, she had seen them in action.

Qiao Mu turned her head and met Feng Jiu’er’s gaze, frowning faintly.

“As for taming them, I am fairly confident I can. But…”

“Qiao Mu, is it that you are afraid of them disappearing from your life again?” Xiao Yingtao asked. “It seems you have never forgotten Zhong and Liang.”

“Of course I have not forgotten them.” Qiao Mu raised an eyebrow. “Still, when I think about it — Zhong and Liang have been gone from my life for so many years now. Perhaps it is time to find a new pair of companions.”

The moment the words were out, Qiao Mu leaned toward Feng Jiu’er and reached past her to take the wine jar from Xiao Yingtao’s arms.

“The two of you cannot drink that much anyway — give me a little more.”

Xiao Yingtao clutched the wine jar and looked to Feng Jiu’er.

Feng Jiu’er glanced back and arched one of her fine crescent brows. “Give her a little. We really cannot finish it all anyway.”

Xiao Yingtao pursed her lips and released her hold on the jar.

Qiao Mu took it with one hand and poured herself yet another full bowl.