Chapter 106 The Hungry God
"When the lord charged in alone, to be honest... we were all sweating."
Qiu Liming put down the wine bowl in his hand and said to Shen Yuexi with a beaming expression.
"Originally, we planned to burn the enemy's food supplies and then retreat, but the enemy general suddenly appeared, and the lord said he wanted to try to take his head amidst the vast army, so he stopped us halfway and prepared crossbows to support us."
Shen Yuexi's heart trembled when she heard this, and she glared at Xiao Zhuo beside her. Xiao Zhuo was drinking leisurely, just pretending not to know.
She had been standing on the mountaintop with her military advisor, Song Zhen, and when they saw the Xirong camp on fire in the distance, she felt uneasy, worried that something might have happened to Xiao Zhuo. Only when the four hundred soldiers returned triumphantly, beating drums and gongs, did she feel relieved and go down the mountain to greet them.
This time the raid on the camp was a complete success, the enemy's food supplies were burned, and no one was injured.
In her eyes, fighting was full of dangers. Xiao Zhuo might get hurt any day, so she couldn't just stand by and watch. Making a sturdy suit of armor for Xiao Zhuo would probably help.
The armor produced by the universal manufacturing machine with its advanced technology is absolutely top-notch.
Just as she was thinking about the style of the armor, Qiu Liming's words interrupted her.
"...As expected, the enemy recklessly pursued us. We fired a barrage of crossbows, shooting them all to the ground. Haha, what a pleasure!"
"That's right, they rushed out in a hurry without even a shield." Meng Yue tilted his head back and drank another bowl.
"Your Majesty, this move not only burns the enemy's food supplies but also disrupts their original plan. It truly kills two birds with one stone." Song Zhen raised his wine bowl and said to the generals in the tent, "Everyone, let's toast to your Majesty again."
Shen Yuexi didn't drink, so she said goodbye to everyone and left the general's tent.
There was jubilation in the camp on the top of the mountain. Although it was already three o'clock in the morning, the soldiers were all talking around the campfire.
The flames of the Xirong camp to the north continued. Before the problem of food and fodder was resolved, the Xirong people had no time to launch a surprise attack on them.
"Madam Pei, look at how miserable the Xirong people are." Yang Cong appeared out of nowhere, stood beside her, and pointed happily at the fire in the north. "It's a pity that the young master didn't let me go with you."
Yang Cong has joined the army, but Xiao Zhuo does not allow her to participate in the war.
Shen Yuexi asked with a smile: "You didn't go to bed?"
"How can I sleep with all this noise? I've been so excited these past two days that only one or two hours of sleep a day is enough."
Shen Yuexi knew that Yang Cong's insomnia was caused by excessive tension. With such a powerful enemy at the door, it was natural for civilians like them, who had never participated in a war, to be unable to sleep. He was afraid that the villagers of Xiaogang Village were no exception.
From what she knew about the history of ancient wars, wherever the army went, most people would leave their homes and flee to places where there was no fighting.
This time, Xiaogang Village was different. The people inexplicably believed in Xiao Zhuo, almost to the point of blind worship. Even though everyone knew he was outnumbered by 500 to 10,000, no one fled. Instead, more people flocked to Xiaogang Village.
Everyone continuously provided the army with food, drinks, and supplies, which was the root of Xiao Zhuo's army's constant fighting spirit. The army's victory in every battle, in turn, gave the people in the rear greater confidence.
Xiao Zhuo must have been under immense pressure, having to strategize and defeat the enemy with fewer troops. It was like walking a thin tightrope over a precipitous abyss; a single misstep would mean death.
He was surrounded by five hundred soldiers and followed by thousands of civilians. He was protecting everyone.
Thinking of this, she was no longer angry about his risky decision to rush into the enemy camp alone to kill the enemy general.
The Xirong's vanguard of a thousand men had been routed on the spot because their captain, Dan, had died of an eye disease. Without a general, an army of ten thousand men would disintegrate without a fight.
Xiao Zhuo was trying to end the war, but the price was his life.
She could never allow this to happen.
"Let's go, Yang Cong," Shen Yuexi took Yang Cong's hand, "let's go to the workshop."
"Madam Pei, what are you doing there? It's so noisy with all the clanging."
"Just follow me."
Shen Yuexi dragged Yang Cong out of the camp, walked down the mountain road, and came to the workshop where the iron mine was located.
Just as Yang Cong had said, the workshop was brightly lit and bustling with people. All the sheds were busy, the clanging of ironwork blending into one, mingling with the hiss and mist of arrows being dipped into cold water.
The blacksmith in charge saw the two men coming and hurried forward to greet them.
"Madam Pei, we have over 200 people here now, divided into three shifts," the blacksmith pointed at the men sweating profusely in the shed, "Now that everyone is skilled, forging 4,000 a day is no problem."
Shen Yuexi looked at a case at the edge of the workshop: "Hasn't it been removed yet?"
On the table was a statue of a deity, with dozens of incense sticks in front of it, creating a thick cloud of smoke that made passersby cough.
"Madam Pei, we can't retreat now," the blacksmith lowered his voice. "The gods are secretly blessing Master Pei and our Xiaogang Village. We must offer sacrifices every morning before we start work."
After two days of hard work, they crafted four thousand of them. Then, suddenly, so many more appeared in the warehouse. To this day, no one has figured out how they came about. The ancients were superstitious, and ultimately attributed it to the gods secretly supporting Master Pei.
This deity must be nearby.
After searching Xiaogang Village for a while, they found a dilapidated statue of a deity that had once been a blessing for harvests. They all agreed that this deity had manifested and produced 40,000 crossbow arrows. They then brought the statue to the workshop and enshrined it.
While the soldiers on the front line are fighting, the soldiers in the rear are also not idle.
"Master Li, I don't think you're sincere," Yang Cong interrupted. "Even though you're worshipping every day, the crossbow production hasn't increased."
"Perhaps the offerings weren't rich enough?" the blacksmith scratched his head. "The food we're making now is being fed to the soldiers on the front lines first. Naturally, the gods won't get as much..."
Shen Yuexi nodded solemnly, "It's okay. God must know that your conditions are difficult. I'll make up for it later."
The villagers themselves found the "reason" for the increase in crossbow production, and she took advantage of the situation.
After pretending to inspect the mine with Yang Cong, Shen Yuexi went into the mine again and took the opportunity to ask Daxiong to collect enough raw materials.
Yang Cong thought she was just checking the progress of the crossbow making and didn't investigate further.
After leaving the factory, Shen Yuexi said she was sleepy, broke up with Yang Cong, and returned to her residence in Houying.
Xiao Zhuo was reading a book in the tent. When he saw her lift the curtain and come in, his eyes lit up. He put down the "Tiangong Wushu" in his hand and stood up to greet her.
"Yuexi, where have you been?"
"Just wandering around."
Shen Yuexi walked forward with a smile, put her arms around Xiao Zhuo's neck, and looked straight at him with clear eyes: "Husband, I was very worried about you rushing into the enemy camp."
Xiao Zhuo put his arms around her waist and whispered, "How could I possibly want to go into a place of death?"
"Why take such a risk?"
"I am the commander-in-chief. How can the soldiers be willing to serve a cowardly commander?"
Xiao Zhuo let go of Shen Yuexi and turned around: "Plots will eventually be seen through, and the two armies will eventually face off. Although we stole the enemy's camp this time and burned their food supplies, once they recover from the chaos, we will attack at all costs."
"Is it because they lost their food supplies?"
"That's right. If I were the enemy commander, I wouldn't continue to hold on. We would face nine thousand enemy troops head-on, and that would be the decisive battle."
"I know, this is what I prepared for my husband."
Hearing this, Xiao Zhuo turned around.
In the candlelight, Shen Yuexi shook open a chain mail made of woven iron rings, which emitted a cold white light.
"This armor can protect you from swords, spears, and arrows. Wear it under your outer robe. I wish you, my husband, great success."
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