Essence 〖Chronicles of Heroes in Groups Two and Three: The Adventure of the Young Ranger Ji〗 - Unexpected

Picking up the pen again to continue it is very important to prove that Ao Xiang is still here at 7723. — Blessings to Ao Xiang.
_____“Stop! Ranger Xiao Ji!” After escaping the government by climbing over the wall, it has now been more than two li away from the government offices, yet the shouting has never ceased.\_____Xiao Ji slightly turned his head and saw that the pursuer was only Tomato, riding a somewhat unsteady yellow bay horse, and he let out a faint smile. Pulling on the reins, the black horse, which had been galloping and gasping for breath, slowed its pace.\_____Tomato caught up, but he seemed unable to hold the reins steadily while bouncing on the horse, and the yellow bay horse went out of control, heading straight for the front. The black horse, finally able to stop, intended to glare fiercely at Xiao Ji, who had given it a few months worth of exercise, but as soon as it turned its head, what came into view was a massive, seemingly crazed horse charging toward it with a twisted-faced person on top! Its eyes went wide, and it immediately turned away, screaming and fleeing. Yet at that moment, the reins were pulled tight by Xiao Ji, who also struck it with a foot. Seeing the yellow bay horse charging toward him, Xiao Ji leapt from the horse, landing sideways on the ground, and as the yellow bay horse approached, he grabbed the reins from the side and, using the downward momentum, flipped his body and landed steadily on the ground, stopping the horse.\_____“Se-Senior Xiao Ji, thank you…” Tomato hugged the horse's neck, still in shock. He tried to get down but was stopped by Xiao Ji's outstretched hand. “The one you should be thanking is me. The plan has gone smoothly so far, and your assistance has been invaluable. The fact that you were still able to shout at me just now to stop—I really admire your endurance.” “Hehe. Senior Xiao Ji, you overstate it. I only did what I could. After all, you had need of me, and I could handle it. If you hadn't escaped the previous danger, it would have been a grave responsibility of mine, as someone whose life was once saved by you.” Xiao Ji smiled: “Tomato, you now have the qualities of a commander who could dominate a region… Hmm. Even now, everything has gone as expected, and the plan is nearing its conclusion. So, Tomato, are you willing to take the final step that will make change happen?”Tomato's expression suddenly became surprised, and he repeated two key words: "Commander, change?"\_____ The repeatedly tormented black horse stared intently at the two people in front of it with eyes full of deep resentment, noticing that Tomato, who had been unlucky since their first encounter, kept sniffing and sticking out his tongue when facing it. "Senior Xiao Ji, what exactly is the change you keep mentioning? Can you explain it clearly to me?" "It's about the battle situation. Tomato, have you heard the news that the army of Qingcheng will attack the assassins? To attack the assassins, they deliberately passed through Tancheng, which has always remained neutral. Although the situation was turbulent, it had not suffered any harm and had a rare peaceful environment. After years of development and management, and the gathering of countless wealthy gentry and merchants, Tancheng had become a 'Golden City' adorned with gold and silver. Does Qingcheng really intend to simply expend blood and fight the assassins? Naturally, this leads people to speculate, right?" Tomato, after hearing a few explanations from Xiao Ji, seemed to understand something and widened his eyes, saying: "So, this means the army of Qingcheng originally came from Tancheng... This is wolfish ambition, and the 'borrowed path' excuse is nonsense! Could the long-time lord of Tancheng not see such a plot? Tancheng has existed for so long; it can't be captured so easily, right?" Tomato, having grown up in Tancheng, was anticipating the outcome, but even so, he seemed unable to accept it.\_____ "That's why I went to test the lord of Tancheng. But I think you already know the result. The lord was lured by wealth and fine horses, accepted the gifts without hesitation, and no longer considered anything further. He still adhered to rules, believing that Tancheng, which had flourished despite the test of time, could not be conquered. Therefore, once inside Tancheng, turn against them suddenly, capture the lord of Tancheng, and attack from within. With no defense, even the strongest Tancheng could be dismantled..." Xiao Ji spoke earnestly to Tomato, whose mind was somewhat shaken, directly voicing the result that had been on Tomato's mind: "No one wishes for such a thing to happen. Since we have thought of it, we absolutely cannot ignore it. But our power is weak, and any attempt carries great risk. Your bright future has just begun, and to intervene would put it at stake..." Tomato tugged hard on the reins of the horse, and the previously quiet bay horse suddenly raised its front hooves and let out a loud neigh."Senior Xiaoji, don't you realize my determination yet? I will not back down! Just tell me directly, how should I 'change the outcome'!" \_____The edge of the straw hat was grabbed and lifted by hand, and then the entire hat was taken off from the head. A few strands of hair, escaping from the style tied up above, fluttered across the forehead, revealing the face that had been hidden under the hat; it was not exactly a handsome face, perhaps even a bit gaunt, and the slightly long shape made the otherwise well-proportioned features look more striking. However, there were two striking features on an otherwise unremarkable face: the eyes beneath the hair, flashing with a sharp, bright, and keen gaze, and a vivid red, peculiarly shaped symbol on the temple, whose origin was unknown. It was hard to imagine that such a brave, composed, and seemingly all-controlling person could look so ordinary. \_____Tomato witnessed Xiaoji removing the hat he had always worn, feeling surprised and confused: "S-Senior Xiaoji, you... what are you doing...?" Xiaoji remained silent, wearing his habitual smile, and placed the hat on Tomato's lap. "The hat was taken by Tomato and brought back, just like this. After being pursued and with nowhere to run, the ranger Xiaoji was caught by Tomato; Tomato drew his horse knife and cut Xiaoji off his horse as he tried to escape out of fear, but unexpectedly, Xiaoji did not die. Taking advantage of Tomato being unprepared, he escaped clumsily after splashing sand in the horse's eyes, but the hat was left behind, so Tomato chased the ranger Xiaoji, completed the pursuit, and brought back the hat..." Tomato showed an expression of reluctance and said, "Senior Xiaoji, this..." Xiaoji kept smiling and patted the horse's back: "You are the hero, I am not. You are the one who can 'change the ending,' and at the same time, you will open the bright beginning of your dream. This is what you can do, and what you should do. Take my hat back with you, and you will be able to secure your footing under my command. Also, because you will receive the status of one of my soldiers, only you can do this, and thus you can freely enter and exit the stables. When you see smoke rising from the city gate, open the stables and release all the horses, drive them to the main street, then grab your weapons and follow the horses. When you encounter the city's soldiers, just kill them. Don't worry, most of them are no longer combat capable. All right. Don't say I helped you, Tomato, because your future is something you must fight for yourself."Stick to the goal you set for yourself and go for it! You have more strengths than I do!” Without waiting for Tomato to respond, Little Ji suddenly pressed harder on the horse's back; the yellow-bay horse winced in pain and immediately bolted forward with Tomato for several dozen paces. Turning to see the trusting look in Little Ji's eyes, Tomato seemed to understand something. Instead of coming back, it turned its back, tightened the reins, and shouted loudly, “I will do it!” After finishing speaking, it kicked the horse's belly and, surprisingly, was able to sit steadily on the horse and gallop away.\_____Little Ji watched Tomato gallop away. Could it be that Tomato's excellent potential had already allowed him to grasp the key to horse riding? This was only his second time riding a horse, right?\_____“Everything is already arranged; now we just have to wait for the final result…” Little Ji turned and walked to the black horse, “By the way, there are still things I need to do. Black horse, thank you for your hard work. It's almost over. Let's go to the city gate together. After this is done, we can drink together!” The black horse, which had been protesting with a resentful look, perked up immediately upon hearing Little Ji's words, especially the last part. Little Ji smiled and mounted the black horse.\_____Due to the quick effect of the notice, the entry and exit restrictions seemed to directly hit the economy of the city of Tan, and even accounting for the merchant caravans at the city gate, there weren't many people around. Little Ji glanced at the downtrodden expressions of the citizens waiting to pass through the gate and quickly swept past them on the black horse. At that moment, a figure suddenly blocked the way ahead of Little Ji.\_____“Stop! Who are you and where are you going?”\(End of the main post)\Keywords in the next post: struggle\— — — — —\〖Mini Drama〗
_____At the training ground, after learning about Cunwo's deal with Qingcheng and receiving goods and horses, Little Ji, in order to make Cunwo aware of the pros and cons, suggested a horse race.\Little Ji: Cunwo! Let's race horses!\Cunwo: Sure! I love this! Let's have one! How do we race?\Little Ji: It's simple, just see whose horse is faster: mine or yours!\Cunwo: …\Little Ji: Cunwo, why aren't you saying anything?\Cunwo: Uh, I'm just thinking, how can your horse compete with mine…\Following the direction Cunwo pointed, Little Ji saw the black horse lying in a star shape on the ground, foaming at the mouth and twitching.\Little Ji: ... (How could I know such a cunning, cowardly horse)