Zhou Sui was stunned. "What... what did you say?"
Jiang Jin's lips curled up in an amused smile. "Didn't Jiao Liang want me to be his plaything? It just so happens that I also want to go to Liang City to restock my supplies. I'd like to see who becomes whose plaything!"
Jiang Jin held grudges. She would feel she was doing herself a disservice if she didn't turn Liang City upside down.
Zhou Sui thought he had misheard, staring dumbfounded at the petite woman who only reached his chest.
He hadn't met Princess Jinyang before, but he had heard she spent most of her time raised in Yinshan Temple. He wondered if her impressive skills were taught by the eminent monks there.
It was a pity that the century-old Yinshan Temple was burned to the ground by the Jiao barbarians, leaving no survivors among the monks.
Princess Jinyang had been escorted back to Dingyang, where she watched her royal father and mother die tragic deaths with her own eyes.
Over the past few days, Princess Jinyang had been in a daze, as if she had lost her soul. He never expected her to suddenly erupt today.
However, even at their maximum count, there were only five of them. Eunuch Dong and the two imperial concubines had zero combat ability. Did she really think just the two of them could turn Jiao Liang into a plaything?!
Was he underestimating himself too much, or was Princess Jinyang overestimating herself?!
Zhou Sui doubted his whole life for a moment. "Are you sure?"
Jiang Jin glanced at him. "If you want to go to Sizhou, I won't stop you."
The First Prince, Jiang Chun, born to Noble Consort Feng, appeared gentle on the surface but was actually an extreme egoist.
Jiang Jin could guarantee that if she sought refuge with this older brother, he would likely turn around and hand her over in exchange for Sizhou's temporary peace.
Moreover, given the current situation, Jiang Chun probably wouldn't be able to hold onto Sizhou anyway.
Zhou Sui fell silent. After a long while, he made up his mind and bowed to Jiang Jin. "This subject is willing to follow the Princess to Liang City."
"Alright." Remembering something, she asked, "Is there a water source nearby?"
She was covered in blood and dirt, sticky and reeking of gore. Traveling like this would easily arouse suspicion.
Zhou Sui was similarly covered in blood, but having spent his life in the military, he was long used to the smell of blood.
"There is a small stream about two miles ahead. The Princess can wash up there."
Jiang Jin nodded. "Good. Bring all the swords and weapons and put them in the carriage. We should be able to use them later."
Zhou Sui replied, "Understood."
He turned to clear the battlefield, collecting all the usable weapons from the soldiers' bodies.
Between Commandant Zhao and the soldiers, there were nineteen people in total, yielding nineteen swords and two daggers.
Zhou Sui moved all the weapons onto the carriage.
Speaking of which, this carriage had been specially prepared for Jiang Jin to prevent her delicate, fair skin from getting tanned or rough, thus ensuring her perfection as a plaything.
Clang.
Dong Si placed all the copper coins he had looted from the corpses at the front of the carriage, looking very excited. "Princess, this servant has gathered a total of one string of cash and two hundred and six copper coins."
Jiang Jin nodded. "Very good."
The productivity level of this era was similar to the late Wei and Jin dynasties. Silver notes hadn't appeared yet, and copper coins and silk fabrics were the main circulating currencies.
Gold and silver existed too, but they were mostly used for large transactions, hoarding, or by nobles to reward meritorious subordinates.
Encouraged, Dong Si felt he could stand a little straighter. He then went to fetch the soldiers' rations, water skins, and two cooking cauldrons, bringing them to the carriage.
This place was only about twenty miles from Liang City. According to the plan, they were supposed to arrive today, so the soldiers didn't have much food left.
Seeing that Jiang Jin was about to leave, the two imperial concubines were terrified. Supporting each other, they came to the front of the carriage and knelt down. "We beg the Princess to take us with you."
In such chaotic times, if the two of them were left here, they would undoubtedly die, and their deaths would be miserable.
Dong Si pursed his lips, knowing Jiang Jin probably didn't recognize them. He introduced them in a low voice: "The slightly taller one on the left is Beauty Feng, and the one on the right is Talent Liu."
Neither of them held a high rank in the harem, but due to their outstanding looks, they caught the eye of Jiao Kang and were bundled together as a gift for Jiao Liang.
He paused for a moment and added, "When they were in the palace, they were honest people, and they can read and write."
Jiang Jin looked down at the two trembling figures kneeling on the ground. After a long time, she uttered a single word: "Granted."
Jiang Jin didn't know why she had come to this chaotic world, but in such a turbulent situation, if she wasn't strong herself, she would only be slaughtered.
She refused to be a lamb waiting to be slaughtered; she refused to be manipulated by others!
Therefore, she had to build her own faction, a faction where she made the rules.
But for someone who had nothing, building her own faction was no easy task, and recruiting talent was one of the keys.
In this ancient society where education was not widespread, being able to read was quite remarkable.
Of course, if she found out later that there was a problem with these two, it wouldn't be too late to deal with them then.
Fifteen minutes later, the group arrived at the small stream Zhou Sui had mentioned.
Jiang Jin jumped down from the carriage and instructed, "Wash yourselves and eat something. We will set off in the time it takes two incense sticks to burn."
After saying that, she walked upstream, passing a patch of withered grass and turning a corner. Only after confirming there was no one around did she step into the stream to wash up.
As the coolness washed over her, she sighed comfortably and took out her toiletries from her dimension space.
She came from the 25th century. At that time, humanity had suffered an invasion by alien species. Over decades, much of civilization and heritage had been lost.
Fortunately, humans had also awakened superpowers, preventing their extinction, but the resistance was incredibly difficult, and their habitats were growing smaller and smaller.
Humanity could only place various supplies into the spaces of spatial ability users for preservation, allowing for quick relocation during enemy attacks.
As a rare spatial ability user, her space contained all sorts of data and seeds.
This was the legacy of human civilization, the hope for its continuation, and the foundation for rebuilding humanity's home.
Fortunately, such important resources were not placed solely on her. Even if she were gone, there were others.
Jiang Jin was very fast. She finished washing up in less than fifteen minutes and put on the underwear and close-fitting clothes from her space.
Her space was well-stocked with various daily necessities in all sizes, which came in handy right now.
She washed her bloodstained dress completely clean, wrung it out, shook off the excess water vigorously, and hung it to dry on the withered grass by the stream.
She had no other choice. The Jiao tribesmen hadn't prepared any extra clothes for her, so she could only wear this outfit again.
Fortunately, it was noon, the sun was fierce, and the clothing was light and thin.
She squatted in the shade of the grass by the stream, took out some biscuits and bottled water from her space, and slowly began to eat and drink.
Her brain was working furiously, thinking about her next move and how she should navigate the path ahead.
She had food and drink in her space, but not much, just enough to feed her alone for ten years.
If she wanted to develop her own faction, food would be the top priority. Going to Liang City would be the perfect opportunity to confiscate all of Jiao Liang's grain and fodder.
The time it takes for two incense sticks to burn passed quickly. Jiang Jin put her half-dry clothes back on.
When she returned to the previous spot, she saw that Zhou Sui and the others were also wearing half-dry clothes. Obviously, everyone had washed up.
Looking at them, her eyes lit up. Aside from Zhou Sui, who looked like a rough fellow, the other three were all beauties.
Not to mention that Beauty Feng and Talent Liu were as beautiful as a painting, even Dong Si had red lips and white teeth. No wonder they were selected by Jiao Kang to be sent to Jiao Liang.
It was just a pity that after the wind and sun of the past few days, their skin had become a bit rough and slightly tanned.
"Princess," they said in unison.
Jiang Jin nodded. "From now on, call me My Lady or Sixth Lady."
The four of them agreed without hesitation: As you command.
[Note: The 25th century that the female lead comes from is facing an alien invasion, with all of humanity united to fight the threat. It is entirely different from the typical apocalyptic world where morality has completely collapsed and humans slaughter each other over resources. In her world, crop yields are incredibly high, and with various advanced cultivation technologies, there is absolutely no shortage of food. The government apparatus is also still fully functional.]
