Zhi Bai gave Zhou Gu a detailed account of his discovery of the Nangong Family’s people causing chaos and destroying the grain storehouse. They couldn’t allow these people to continue their destructive efforts. If the grain storehouses were destroyed, it would prove disastrous for Nanchu. Therefore, he decided to take people with him to wipe them out.
These troublemakers were all masters. Fortunately, he brought over a thousand men with him, winning by sheer numbers. It took them substantial amounts of time and effort. He thought he had helped the Fourth Young Master, but it turned out that he unknowingly put the princess in danger by arriving late.
When he arrived today and heard about the dangerous situation yesterday, he felt overwhelming regret.
Zhou Gu patted him on the shoulder. "Well done, these people also jeopardize Nanchu by burning the grain storehouse. Now as Dawei is invading, the supplies from the rear of Nanchu must not be cut off. If they were, it would be a catastrophe. You did nothing wrong."
He gave a sigh of relief, "It seems Su Rong really does have good luck. Yesterday if my cousins had been a quarter late with their men, it would have been the end. This must be what they call the fate of a dragon and phoenix."
Zhi Bai looked at Zhou Gu, "It’s all thanks to the people from Qinghe Cui family, Mister Cui is very wise."
Zhou Gu nodded.
Zhi Bai continued: "I heard that the princess stayed on the battlefield to save you yesterday..."
Zhou Gu nodded again, "That’s why I’m very angry. I didn’t speak to her all night."
Because Su Rong was unconscious, Zhou Gu couldn’t vent his anger. All that was left was for him to be angry on his own.
Zhi Bai said, "From now on, we, your subordinates, will follow you, Fourth Young Master, and will pledge our loyalty to the princess to the death."
Zhou Gu laughed, "Alright."
The two chatted for a while before Lan Zhi served them some food. Zhi Bai and Zhou Gu had a meal together. Afterward, Zhou Gu let Zhi Bai rest. Hearing that Ye Guixue was awake, Zhou Gu got up to visit him.
After being unconscious for a day and a night, Ye Guixue had just woken up not long ago. He had sustained heavy injuries from protecting Zhou Gu during their escape. He couldn’t get out of bed and had to be fed his meals and medicine.
Zhou Gu arrived before he finished his bowl of medicine.
Upon entering, Zhou Gu looked at Ye Guixue, "This is the price for forcefully protecting me. Otherwise, would you have been injured so grievously?"
He had nearly lost his life.
Ye Guixue forced a smile, adjusting the corner of his mouth. "I cannot possibly disobey the princess’ order."
Zhou Gu asked him, "Brother Guixue, how can I repay you for saving my life? Would you like me to feed you your medicine?"
Ye Guixue quickly shook his head, "No need, no need."
Zhou Gu didn’t pay him any mind and took the medicine from one of the guards to feed it to Ye Guixue himself.
Feeling helpless, Ye Guixue said, "Brother Zhou Gu, please don’t make it difficult for me. I can’t afford you feeding me medicine."
"No, during the critical moment, Brother Guixue, you knew that the princess, as the future queen of Nanchu, is our hope. But you unquestioningly followed her order to protect me without any hesitation. Even though I was very unhappy about it and almost drew my sword against you, I must acknowledge that you are a loyal servant for obeying her orders. It’s not surprising that she has promised you a great position like the Auxiliary Minister. You protected me without any consideration for yourself." Zhou Gu scooped a spoonful of medicine and brought it to Ye Guixue’s mouth, "Brother Guixue, don’t make me hold this for too long, drink up!"
Feeling a bit overwhelmed by Zhou Gu’s active demeanor, Ye Guixue replied, "Brother Zhou, perhaps we can get someone else to do this!"
Zhou Gu looked at him, "Shouldn’t we, as brothers, put aside the formalities? If you don’t drink the medicine, I will feel guilty for your injuries."
With no other choice, Ye Guixue had to open his mouth. Zhou Gu feeding him this medicine seemed to mask its bitterness, and he wished to drink it up as quickly as possible. But Zhou Gu’s pace was slow, the half bowl of medicine took a while to finish.
Sweat was starting to form on Ye Guixue’s forehead. Zhou Gu handed the empty bowl to a servant and turned to Ye Guixue with a smile, "Brother Guixue, this is nothing, you are just overly humble. In the past when I looked at you, to be honest, I was never quite comfortable. You know, because of Su Rong. But now, after several life-and-death experiences, I consider you my brother. Will you accept me as your brother?"
Ye Guixue couldn’t help but laugh, "Calling you Brother Zhou is fine for now, but once the Dawei army retreats, the Princess returns to the capital, and the king confers the title of crown princess to Su Rong and you as her husband, we will have to behave according to hierarchy. Then, calling you my brother would be inappropriate."
"In private." Zhou Gu said. "Unless you, Brother Guixue, look down on me."
Immediately shaking his head, Ye Guixue wanted to say ’How dare I look down on you? I respect you very much.’ He had already heard news about two sons of the Qinghe Cui family arriving with nearly two thousand men to support him and that the Duke Residence had also sent a thousand covert guards. Their timely arrival greatly increased their chances of successfully defending Heiya Pass while waiting for the reinforcements of two hundred thousand soldiers from Daliang.
Under Zhou Gu’s enthusiastic gaze, he agreed wholeheartedly, "Alright, privately, I also consider you as my brother, Brother Zhou."
Zhou Gu grinned, "Then it’s settled. You should rest and recover from your injuries! You just woke up; it’s not good to exhaust yourself. With me, Zhang Yun, and my two cousins here, you don’t need to worry about defending the city."
Ye Guixue said, "I’ve heard that the mechanism techniques of the Evil Ghost Sect are very beneficial when used to defend a city. It’s really thanks to them."
Zhou Gu nodded, "Indeed, that’s why you should just rest easy."
Ye Guixue nodded, "Alright."
After leaving Ye Guixue’s room, Zhou Gu went to check on Fen Ling, Ziye and Jiang Zhu. All three were still unconscious. After a glance, he went to see Xie Yuan next.
Seeing Zhou Gu arrive, Xie Yuan frowned, "Instead of resting, why are you wandering around? Do you think your injuries are minor?"
Getting admonished, Zhou Gu obediently sat down to explain, "I’ve been sleeping all day and can’t sleep anymore. I heard Brother Guixue was awake, so I came to see him and also to see Uncle Xie."
"I don’t need you to check on me," Xie Yuan grumbled.
Quickly changing his wording, Zhou Gu said, "Actually, I came to discuss our strategy. Today, the Dawei forces retreated after only an hour of attacking. They must be planning their next move. Tomorrow, they will inevitably launch a fierce attack. We’ll probably face another fierce battle. I’m not sure if their siege artillery, of which we destroyed four and they destroyed two, would be repaired within a short period of use on the battlefield."
Upon hearing this, Xie Yuan’s expression brightened slightly, "You have a point. But when you were fighting outside the city, I observed Dawei’s siege artillery with a telescope. The construction is quite complex, and despite the destruction not being total, they would need time to repair it. In the short term, it won’t be functional. What we should worry about is whether they will use the siege artillery in future battles."
Zhou Gu nodded, "My two older brothers and their troops will arrive at the earliest in ten days. If we can hold on for ten more days..." He looked at Xie Yuan, "Uncle Xie, do you think it’s a good idea to counterattack after ten days? The Dawei troops attacked Daliang’s border city. My grandfather has already gone there himself. Knowing my grandfather, he might take advantage of Dawei’s weakness and launch an attack. If that happens, Dawei will have to quickly send a message to Yuan Zhao ordering him to withdraw his troops, right? But what if we don’t let Dawei retreat?"
Xie Yuan looked at him, "You have a point, but does Nanchu have enough military provisions?"
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