Enemy artillery
After tidying himself up, Yi Shen changed his bedding, wiped Wu Qi's body clean with a damp cloth, and took out a new nightgown for her to change into. As Wu Qi lay on the bed watching him bustling around with his hair down, a word suddenly popped into her mind inappropriately—virtuous and capable.
"Are you feeling unwell?" Yi Shen asked.
"No," Wu Qi replied.
"It's chilly at night. You've been sweating again. Would you like some ginger tea?"
"No need. Don't worry, I'm not cold." Wu Qi pulled back the covers. "Yi Shen, go to sleep!"
Seeing that she didn't seem to have caught a cold, Yi Shen lay down beside her, wrapped her in the blanket, and rubbed her wrist. Wu Qi didn't know when she fell asleep, only that when she was almost asleep, Yi Shen was still rubbing her wrist. She mumbled, "Don't rub it anymore, Yi Shen, it's okay, you should go to sleep."
If we don't go to sleep soon, it will be dawn.
On the winter solstice, the soldiers dared not slack off, much less celebrate with the people.
Wu Qi was also afraid that the enemy might suddenly attack, so she didn't sleep well. When she woke up, Yi Shen told her that it was snowing. She got dressed, and before she went out, Yi Shen pulled her to put on a scarf and gloves.
Even in Lanbing City, Yi Shen had to wear a veil. After seeing him wearing a veil, the soldiers and civilians wondered what mistake the Third Young Master Yi had made that made him have to wear a veil. However, Yi Shen didn't seem to care much about it and put on the veil before going out.
As soon as the door opened, Yi Shen pulled Wu Qi behind him, blocking him with his hand. Wu Qi peeked out and saw a small pile of snow on the ground.
The snow in Lanbing City was heavier than in the capital. When the students woke up, they saw a thick layer of snow on the ground, so they made snowballs and threw them at each other. Lin Kuo woke up a little earlier today. He made a snowball, quietly opened Ning Xunxu's door, and seeing that he was still fast asleep, he lifted his blanket and threw the snowball into his arms. The whole action was done in one smooth motion, and the cold made Ning Xunxu shiver and wake up instantly.
After waking up, Ning Xuxu naturally wouldn't let it go. She made a snowball about half a leg high and was about to throw it at Lin Kuo. Lin Kuo dodged and weaved in the courtyard. He had originally been hiding behind Song Yinxing, but fearing that Ning Xuxu would throw a snowball at her, he kissed her and hurriedly hid behind someone else.
Everyone was terrified of Ning Xunxu's snowball, which was half a leg high, so they cursed Lin Kuo while hiding.
In the end, the snowball still managed to hit its target.
Lin Kuo was covered in snow, and others were also accidentally injured. Then, it turned into a multi-person melee. It's unclear who suggested it, but everyone aimed snowballs at Yi Shen's room, waiting for the door to open so they could hurl them at him.
Unexpectedly, the door opened and the snowball was thrown, but Yi Shen blocked it.
"This is boring. I thought I could hit Weichong!"
"How could you possibly hit him? He already knew we were throwing snowballs at people."
"I thought he hadn't woken up yet."
Ning Xunxu said, "But Brother Chong has never slept in since he was a child. I still find it terrifying that he can do that."
Everyone nodded.
—Never stays in bed late, that's terrifying.
Seeing that Wu Qi was awake, everyone started playing with him. The snow was soft and crumbled as soon as it hit them, and since everyone was dressed thickly, they didn't feel any pain. Ning Xunxu then made a snowball that was half a leg high, which startled everyone, causing them to scream and run away with their heads covered. Lin Kuo, not believing in such an event, secretly squatted in a corner and made a snowball to throw at Ning Xunxu. However, before he could even finish making it, he was hit on the back by Ning Xunxu's half-leg-high snowball.
The snowflakes crumbled, covering his head in snow.
Lin Kuo was naturally not going to accept this, and he pulled everyone to start making snowballs. As he made them, he said to Ning Xunxu, "Han Su, don't blame your brother if we make you cry."
Ning Xunxu retorted, not to be outdone, "Brother Lian Shi, you'd better not cry then."
Amid the commotion, He Qi stood next to Yi Shen and said, "You shouldn't have been so disrespectful to Xiao Qi."
Yi Shen glanced at him and said, "No."
He Qi gritted his teeth and said, "She's only seventeen."
Yi Shen said, "Young Master He, your thoughts do not represent my actions."
He Qi retorted angrily, "Just now, she came out of your room! What do you mean by 'what I think'?"
Yi Shen looked at Wu Qi, who was making a snowball in the snow, and said to He Qi with suppressed anger, "This is between her and me, and you have no right to interfere. Also, don't think about her like that in the future."
He was surprised to find himself outmaneuvered and retorted, "You pretentious hypocrite!"
Yi Shen said calmly, "What's it to you?"
He Qi said, "Yi Shen, you...!"
This was the first time the two had such an unpleasant argument since He Qi publicly confessed his feelings to Wu Qi. Even several days after the winter solstice, they remained silent when they met. The students of Gezhong had long anticipated this day. If it were anyone else, they might have given up on Wu Qi and hoped to remain classmates. But for He Qi, giving up on Wu Qi was extremely difficult.
Lin Kuo said, "I don't quite understand whether he genuinely likes Xiao Qi or if it just so happens that Wei Chong also likes Xiao Qi and he wants to compete with her."
Ning Xunxu said, "Compete? Could it be that in his eyes, Sister Yaoling is just an object to be fought over?"
Wu Qi naturally noticed the unpleasantness between Yi Shen and He Qi, but she didn't intend to ask or intervene. Yi Shen also didn't mention his conversation with He Qi that day to Wu Qi. He was the kind of person who wouldn't publicize his disagreements with others, much less let personal matters interfere with public affairs. Naturally, he wouldn't deliberately avoid discussing the operation of the cannon with He Qi.
But to my surprise, he was so awkward and disrespectful when he saw Yi Shen, acting as if he didn't see him at all.
General Wei's old illness relapsed yesterday. If the enemy attacks, Wu Qi will have to take his place. At first, everyone sat together to discuss countermeasures and how to use the cannon to repel the enemy. But as they discussed, He Qi became a bit arrogant, and his words were full of contempt for Yi Shen.
Seeing that he was going too far, Wu Qi slammed his hand on the table and said in a deep voice, "He Qi, if you can't let go of your personal grudges, then please leave."
Wu Qi's original intention was that they didn't have much time left, and if they encountered heavy snow again, it would be even more difficult to defend the city. On top of that, General Wei's old illness had relapsed, and he was unable to get out of bed. If the enemy attacked the city at this time, how should they deal with it?
But to my surprise, it turned out to be a complete waste of time.
However, He Qi mistakenly believed that Wu Qi was biased towards Yi Shen, and left in a huff.
Wu Qi closed his eyes in anger and said, "Continue."
Just as dawn broke, General Wei suddenly developed a high fever, and the accompanying physician treated him with acupuncture throughout the night. Upon receiving the news, Wu Qi rushed over, and the physician said, "General, this fever has come on very suddenly. You will need to stay in bed for at least a while until the fever subsides before getting out of bed."
Wu Qi nodded, his heart pounding.
"Report!! The enemy is attacking the city!!"
The soldier who came to report spoke with a deep, resonant voice that Wu Qi couldn't stop. For some reason, after the soldier finished shouting, she turned to look at General Wei. General Wei, who had been lying on the bed with his eyes closed, suddenly opened his eyes, as if the words "siege the city" had forcibly pulled him out of his feverish coma.
He threw off the covers to get out of bed, but his high fever left him weak, and he collapsed to the ground.
The people in the room helped him to bed, and they heard him say, "Go to war, the city cannot be breached." The doctor advised that the weather was cold, and if he stayed in the cold wind for several hours, he might lose his life.
Wei Mao said, "My life is over? If we can't defend the city, millions of lives will be lost!"
At this moment, Wu Qi truly understood why Wei Mao, as a general, was so beloved by the soldiers and the people. At this moment, she suddenly felt that perhaps her life was not so important.
Because millions of people will die when the city gates are breached, and she will be the one to die.
"General, I'll go."
Wei Mao stared at Wu Qi, who continued, "In this battle, the enemy won't use their full strength; they'll probably only be able to muster 30%. I can handle that. But if you insist on going to the battlefield, and something unexpected happens, the enemy will definitely use their full strength to attack the city in the next battle. Without you, how will the soldiers defend the city? How can the people in the city feel at ease?"
"General Wei, I swear to you with my life that the city will never fall in this battle."
After a long while, Wei Mao said, "Pass on my order: in this battle, the three armies shall obey Wu Qi's orders. She shall be the general. Anyone who disobeys her orders shall be killed."
Before leaving, Wu Qi sighed and said, "General Wei, please investigate the people around you."
The recurrence of General Wei's old illness was a closely guarded secret in the army, known to very few. Even the students of the Imperial Academy were unaware that General Wei had suddenly developed a high fever. Yet, the enemy army attacked the city at this very moment, making it hard not to be suspicious.
If we don't investigate now, it will surely lead to disaster later.
Wu Qi closed the door and left. Wei Mao, delirious with fever, only remembered "the city cannot be breached" and Wu Qi's words—"General Wei, investigate those around you."
He ordered, "Investigate immediately! If you find out, kill them without mercy."
The city gates opened, signaling the start of battle.
Wu Qi held the command, clad in armor, her black hair tied high, devoid of any flowers. She stood atop the chariot, with nineteen cannon scales before her and thousands of troops behind her.
War is about weapons, soldiers, and momentum.
General Wei stood atop his chariot, his imposing presence commanding thousands of troops a testament to the power he had cultivated through countless battles and escapes from life and death. His scars and his weary eyes bore the best witness to this.
But Wu Qi had never experienced war after war, never witnessed the cruelty of those who shared life and death falling when swords clashed. Bloodshed and slaughter were far removed from her, yet when she first took command, she dared to swear to General Wei that the city would not fall this time.
Wu Qi knew her weaknesses well, and was also very familiar with her strengths.
The soldiers might not respect her, but they certainly trusted Paolin. They had unwavering faith in Paolin, a mindless creature with immense destructive power, and coincidentally, she was the one who developed it.
Having a cannon blade increases the chances of victory.
The two armies clashed like tigers and wolves, neither yielding an inch. Wu Qi mentally calculated how many cannon shots he could muster in this battle.
Suddenly, the enemy's war drums sounded, and the soldiers cleared a wide road for the enormous creature to pass through. The distant sound was a familiar, deep rumble, and only when the colossal creature appeared did everyone stare wide-eyed in disbelief.
It is a cannon blade.
In this battle, the enemy acquired artillery.
A total of ten.
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