Chapter 112
The Xili army's concentrated attack had lasted for three days and three nights, and Shulang led his troops to defend Liangzhou City to the death.
Catapults, firearms, and rolling stones rained down on the city gate, causing it to tremble and shatter. The city wall was already charred black.
Outside the city gates, the An army and the Li army were locked in battle. Enveloped in thick smoke, the archers on the city walls were momentarily unable to distinguish friend from foe.
The prefect of Liangzhou was huddled in a corner, his head in his hands, and every booming sound as it struck the city gate sent a shiver down his spine.
The soldiers guarding the area looked on with disdain. While they were risking their lives on the frontier, these corrupt officials were lounging in their spacious mansions, enjoying freshly delivered fruits and vegetables. And now, as the war was lost and they retreated into the city to hold out, this man had already packed his family, valuables, and was ready to flee at any moment.
Thanks to General Shulang's foresight and his constant monitoring of the prefectural government's movements, the man was able to be stopped in time.
The soldier glared at him hatefully. If it weren't for this man, he could have been on the front lines fighting the enemy. Why was he stuck here like a coward, guarding this corner of the city wall and having to deal with this eyesore of a coward?
The battle is at a stalemate.
The soldier, anxious, glanced back at him coldly. Seeing the prefect slumped on the ground, so terrified he wished he could shrink into the wall, he figured there was no need for the soldier to keep an eye on him. The soldier tied the man up with a rope and stuffed a bundle of scraps of cloth into his mouth.
Although Shulang's orders to him were merely to keep an eye on the official and for the prefect to personally oversee the situation from the city walls no matter what happened, as the highest-ranking official of a prefecture, abandoning the city and fleeing, even if unsuccessful, had already violated the laws of Anguo. He would likely face serious consequences, including the loss of his fiefdom and severe punishment.
Therefore, even if he disrespected this disgraced official, the general would not blame him.
The soldiers quickly tied the man up and immediately focused all their attention on the city gate below, nocking arrows with their bows.
His archery skills were mediocre, but Anguo's defenses kept retreating, and the enemy's siege engines had already advanced to the city gate. At this distance, even he could hit his target every time.
But the Xili people kept coming one after another, and he couldn't shoot them all.
The soldier gritted his teeth, emptied his entire quiver of arrows, and then reached for the next quiver. His palms ached from constantly drawing the string and nocking the arrows.
If reinforcements haven't arrived before dark, I'm afraid...
The city wall beneath my feet swayed slightly, and dust rose in the distance.
The soldier's eyes lit up.
Reinforcements have arrived!
Gu Shuan arrived with 100,000 reinforcements, instantly reversing the situation. The An army formed a siege, forcing the Li army to the city gates, leaving them in a dilemma.
In this almost overwhelming battle, before everything became a foregone conclusion, the Li army concentrated its fire to break through the weakest point in the attack and defense, tearing a gap in the An army's encirclement and successfully retreating.
With the siege lifted, Shu Lang was overjoyed. After several days of fighting, his heart finally settled down when Gu Shu'an led his horse to him.
"Commander!"
Shulang quickly reported on the recent battle situation and the situation in Liangzhou.
"...The strangest thing is that I discovered that the firearms they used to attack the city are very similar to those used by my Anguo army."
Gu Shuan paused for a moment in his stride forward. "I'll report back on this in detail later. Where is the Prefect of Liangzhou?"
"This subordinate has already arranged for men to guard it, and it is currently..."
A man rushed towards them; it was the soldier he had assigned to guard the Liangzhou Prefect.
The soldier knelt on one knee, his tone filled with resentment and regret: "This humble servant failed in his duty, and he escaped!" In the short time it took to burn an incense stick to keep an eye on him, the man was already bound. It was truly unbelievable that the prefect, who couldn't even stand up after hearing the cannon fire, still had the audacity to flee.
Shulang spoke quickly: "Send men to search immediately and seal off the entire city!"
After making his deployment, he looked at Gu Shuan and said, "This humble general has been keeping a close watch on things. Since he was stationed in Liangzhou, the prefect has not contacted Xili. It seems that this is not a case of collusion between inside and outside. A man who values his life so much would not risk his life to escape outside the city. He should be hiding inside the city."
"Investigate, and make sure to find the person as soon as possible and bring them before me. I want to interrogate them personally," Gu Shuan said.
Meanwhile, Xie Chengnan led the main attacking force deep into the grasslands. The vast plains stretched out before them, and the capital of Xili was clearly visible.
Although we were heading south, the temperature was getting colder day by day. While the warm cotton clothes provided some protection, they were still no match for the biting north wind.
Lin Yi stood by the crackling fire, lost in thought.
Gu Shuan and Zhan Xian split up their forces, which is not part of the original story. In the original book, Gu Shuan and Zhan Xian traveled together until the capture of Xili Royal City, while someone else returned to reinforce Liangzhou.
Originally, after the events in the capital were over, the Xili royal family, in order to protect themselves, would tear apart the truth buried beneath the chaos like dogs fighting each other, and the Zhan family's grievances would naturally melt away like snow with the victory of Anguo.
...
Is the change today due to Xie Chengnan, or because of her own actions?
Regardless, Lin Zhi only hoped that all the changes would not affect the ending, that Anguo would successfully defeat Xili, that the male and female protagonists would successfully uncover the truth of what happened back then, and that he himself would successfully complete his mission and survive with Xie Chengnan.
Xie Chengnan reached out and touched her red, frostbitten cheeks. He initially just poked them with his finger, but after feeling the icy temperature, he covered her cheeks with his entire palm, trying to warm them with his own. "What are you thinking about?"
His palms were warm, making one want to get closer and rely on them. Lin Yi rubbed against them comfortably. "I'm thinking, will we win?"
"Yes, we can only win."
The sandstorms that used to rage across the grasslands were gone, but the wind still swept across the open fields, bringing a chill. Without any obstruction, it pierced straight into the collars and cuffs of clothing, chilling the heart to the bone.
Xie Chengnan unfolded his cloak and wrapped it around the person. His fingers flew as he tied a knot, and when he looked up again, he saw Zhan Xian walking over with two wine pouches, gesturing to hand one to Xie Chengnan.
When Xie Chengnan took it, Zhan Xian had already taken a big gulp.
He unscrewed the cork, and the aroma of the wine wafted out. Xie Chengnan first handed it to Lin Yi and asked her, "Would you like some?"
Lin Yi hesitated for a moment, then nodded and took a sip.
In fact, she rarely drinks alcohol and doesn't understand why there are so many people who are addicted to alcohol, whether in ancient or modern times, even though it tastes spicy and astringent.
But after a few sips of warm wine, my internal organs felt soothed, and I felt very comfortable.
She returned the wine bag to Xie Chengnan, who didn't mind and took a sip from the spot where she had drunk.
As a general, Zhan Xian was clearly more responsible than Xie Chengnan.
After setting up camp, mustering troops, and inspecting equipment with the soldiers, they were busy for most of the day before finally getting a break.
Her eyes were filled with a deep weariness, like ink that couldn't be dissolved. In fact, she hadn't had a proper rest for two days; the arduous march had left her constantly unsettled. She had a feeling that this journey wouldn't be very smooth…
Lin noticed her exhaustion and told her to go and rest, but she tilted her head back and took another deep breath, saying, "I'll sit for a while longer."
Lin Yi disagreed, saying, "If you're tired, you should rest. Nothing is more important than getting some sleep right now... Your body needs enough sleep and relaxation to recover faster."
Zhan Xian smiled and said, "The patient has been feeling troubled lately, and this is the only time he has 'relaxed'. Please forgive him, Doctor."
Zhan Xian even managed to joke around with a smile. But when Doctor Qiu put on a stern face, he exuded the authority of a physician, remaining unmoved by either soft or hard approaches: "Your body hasn't fully recovered yet, you can't drink too much. This is a doctor's order, you can't disobey it."
Xie Chengnan looked around, somewhat surprised: "When did you two become so close?"
Lin Yi looked at Zhan Xian and saw that she did not deny it outright, but rather seemed to agree with it. She couldn't help but feel a little smug: "We've always had a good relationship."
“The Xili people have known for a long time that we have entered their territory, but they have remained inactive. Either they are confident because they have a large army, or they have set a trap and are just waiting for us to fall into it,” Zhan Xian suddenly said.
Xie Chengnan: "I prefer the latter."
Like a hawk lurking in the darkness, it waits for them to reveal the slightest flaw before striking them with lightning speed.
"Attack the city tomorrow morning, the sooner the better." Zhan Xian tightened her grip on the wine bag slightly. "Although according to current intelligence, the main force of the Li army is attacking Liangzhou, we don't know the true strength of Xili, so we must not underestimate them."
Xie Chengnan wholeheartedly agreed: "After all, this is a royal city, unlike ordinary city-states, and the garrison will be substantial. But if we can achieve a decisive victory, the tide of battle will turn. Who is defending the city?"
"Hulunhe." She exhaled a breath of hot air, giving a faint, bitter smile. "Ten years ago, it was his father who was guarding the city."
Lin Yi did not participate in their discussions, and Xie Chengnan would not talk to her much after returning from each meeting. Therefore, this was the first time Lin Yi knew their exact strategic plans.
After listening for a while, Lin Yi spoke softly, "Can't we use fire?"
"Fire attacks are too dangerous on this grassland. Once launched, they are out of control. They may seem to harm the enemy, but they are very easy to be harmed in return. It is a tactic that kills a thousand enemies but also loses eight hundred of your own."
"The wind is very strong, and it won't stop tomorrow." Lin Yi looked up at the invisible, raging wind in the night. She just felt it would be a shame not to take advantage of such a good wind.
“The Li army won’t use fire attacks lightly. They know all too well what a single spark means on the grasslands,” Zhan Xian said.
Even a single spark can start a prairie fire.
“Not necessarily,” Xie Chengnan said. “They may not use it on the royal city, but they would probably be very willing to use it on us.”
Although Lin Yi's suggestion was just a flash of inspiration, it reminded him.
Xie Chengnan curled his lips into a smile, "I suddenly have a new idea..."
Lin Yi turned to look at him, her eyes sparkling: "I have one too."
As night fell, the Xili scouts responsible for monitoring the Anguo army saw flames rising from the Anguo camp and soldiers in chaos, seemingly having accidentally set fire to the area.
When the military report reached Hulunhe, he was drinking. Upon hearing the report, he scoffed, "The An people are really stupid."
"Take advantage of the chaos and don't let the fire go out." Sharp canine teeth gleamed brightly in the candlelight. "It would be best to burn them all to death, leave no one alive."
"Isn't this fire huge?" Lin Yi looked at the raging flames all around him, feeling a sense of instinctive fear.
“Not enough, make it bigger,” Xie Chengnan said.
Zhan Xian, expressionless, directed the cavalry archery battalion to pour in another barrel of kerosene.
Sensing General Poli's obvious dissatisfaction, Xie Chengnan explained without much guilt, "I just led them in clearing weeds, and I'm already very tired. We agreed beforehand that everyone would do their own job, and I absolutely did not mean to order you around. It wouldn't be right to make the army doctor do it, would it?"
Zhan Xian didn't say anything, but pushed the spreading fire aside, letting it burn along its predetermined path.
Lin Yi couldn't stand seeing a grown man bullying a little girl like that, so he reached out and poked him in the waist, causing the latter to let out a howl of surprise.
"How can you be so shameless? Go help."
Xie Chengnan coughed lightly, feeling a little embarrassed, but still did as she said, taking over the iron shovel from Zhan Xian and continuing to pry at the weeds.
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