Chapter 62: I'm not prejudiced against women
At the hour of Yin the next day, news arrived from Chen Nanyuan: huge rocks and arrows were ready on the Jiagu Mountain Road.
Jiang Cichen said, "Chen Nanyuan has already led his men to set up an ambush."
"How's Xie Yan?" Luo Wan asked, "How is he doing in Weizhou City?"
Jiang Cichen paused as he adjusted his wristband and said calmly, "He's very good at Qinggong. Even if he's discovered, they won't be able to catch him."
Before the Rain Festival, they made a plan and finalized all the details.
Chen Nanyuan led his troops to act as bandits, ambushing at Jiagu Road to rob food supplies. Xie Yan led a few unfamiliar soldiers to disguise themselves as civilians and sneak into Weizhou City. They were just waiting for the food supplies at Jiagu Road to be lost, and then they would spread rumors in Weizhou City.
Jiang Cichen was delayed for a while because he and Luo Wan were chosen as lucky stars, and the other soldiers were already in place. If it weren't for the lucky star incident, Jiang Cichen should have been in the Jiagu Road by now.
"I'll send someone to send Jiang Yuanan back to Liangding tomorrow. Remember to tell her later, or she'll get angry and refuse to leave."
Luo Wan said: "I will go to the Jiagu Road with you first."
Jiang Cichen frowned and said, "No."
Luo Wan said: "Why not? I am your ally."
Jiang Cichen said: "You stay here and help me guard Yinan City. If the Xiliang army attacks the city..."
Luo Wan interrupted him. "It's enough to have Qin Yue here. He's been guarding for over a decade and knows more about this than I do. You discussed everything with me, but in the end you didn't let me go. Or are you still prejudiced against women going to the battlefield?"
Jiang Cichen walked out of the tent: "It has nothing to do with this."
At the door of the stable, the steward had already led out Jiang Cichen's horse and was waiting.
Luo Wan took the reins from the steward first and asked, "What does that have to do with anything?"
"No plan is foolproof."
"So what?" Luo Wan looked up at him. "Since I've chosen to ally with you, I should share all the risks with you. Jiang Cichen, I ask you to treat me the way you treat your allies."
Jiang Cichen remained silent.
Luo Wan ordered the steward: "Bring out my horse."
The steward looked at Jiang Cichen.
Jiang Cichen's face was calm. He wanted to reach out to grab the reins in Luo Wan's hand, but Luo Wan waved his hand to avoid him.
Jiang Cichen said, "Bring out Miss Luo's horse."
The steward led out Luo Wan's black horse.
*
The mountain wind is clear and the cicadas are chirping.
Chen Nanyuan lay on the high ground beside the rugged mountain path, staring at the path below motionlessly.
"Deputy General Chen." A soldier crouched down beside him and whispered, "The spies report that the Xiliang army's food and fodder will arrive in about an incense stick of time."
Chen Nanyuan asked, "Has Governor Jiang arrived?"
"Calculating the time when the sacrificial ceremony will end, it should be soon."
Chen Nanyuan glanced at the pale sky and said in a deep voice, "Brothers, be alert! As soon as the convoy arrives, follow my orders and take action!"
Luo Wan and Jiang Cichen quietly appeared behind the high ground. As soon as they arrived, they saw Chen Nanyuan's gray figure lying behind a huge rock, making a crisp gesture of wiping his neck.
Seeing this, the soldiers next to him immediately followed the direction of the gesture and saluted respectfully with their fists clasped.
Chen Nanyuan grunted as he climbed up from the ground. Luo Wan looked closely and saw that he had a funny, thick beard on his face.
Luo Wan thought to himself that Chen Nanyuan was truly gifted and dedicated in playing the role of a local.
Soon, a few flickering flames appeared faintly at a bend in the distant mountain road. Then, the dull sounds of rolling wheels and horse hooves could be heard faintly. Weizhou's grain and fodder convoy appeared!
The Rock is ready.
Half of the group hid in the heights, poised to launch their attack once the convoy entered the designated area, then push down the prepared boulder. The other half, like Chen Nanyuan, disguised themselves as bandits and hid in the dense forests and thorns on either side of the mountain path below. Once the boulder had fallen, they would seize the Xiliang army's chaos and steal its food supplies.
When the convoy was completely within the ambush circle, a command was given, and huge rocks from the heights began to roll down. Several screams rang out on the mountain road: "There's an ambush! There's an assassin! Protect the grain carts!"
A deafening roar echoed through the valley, with debris flying and smoke and dust filling the air.
Chen Nanyuan said, "Master, I'm going down!"
Jiang Cichen nodded.
On the mountain road below, the "bandits" could no longer hold back. Taking advantage of the chaos in the Xiliang army's formation, some of them rushed towards the grain carts, pushing them hard to change direction; the other part waved their weapons and fought with the Xiliang army. The sound of shouting and weapons clashing filled the air.
Chen Nanyuan, disguised as a bandit leader, descended from the sky at the perfect moment, landing in the center of the chaos. With a glance, he directed the men who were desperately trying to rob the food and fodder, "What a shame! Leave some for Brother Weizhou! We're not like them, constantly asking for food!"
The sound of metal clashing was endless.
Amidst the chaos, a middle-aged man dressed in the uniform of a grain inspector gnashed his teeth and asked, "Who are you?"
Chen Nanyuan thought for a moment, then imitated the local Weizhou accent and said, "Your father."
The grain inspector angrily said, "Bah! I'm your grandfather!"
Chen Nanyuan said seriously: "I really am your father."
The grain inspector could no longer bear it and rushed towards Chen Nanyuan with a knife!
Chen Nanyuan easily deflected the attack and teased him, "Why are you so angry, sir? Every word I said is true. As the saying goes, 'parents provide food and clothing for you.' Weizhou eats the food of Yangzhou. Aren't we the parents of you, the people of Yangzhou? So what's wrong with me being your father?"
As soon as these words came out, the grain supervisor suddenly realized: "Are you from the Yangzhou Army?!"
The bandit beside him shouted, "Brother, you let something slip!"
Upon hearing this, the grain supervisory officer burst into a rage, "I knew it was you, a bunch of Yangzhou thieves! Why are you pretending to be bandits? Bah! Do you think we're fools? Every time I go to Yangzhou to transport grain, your grain supervisory officer gets a face longer than a horse's, cursing behind my back as if I can't hear you? The fox's tail can finally be hidden. Why are you so anxious to grab the grain back now?"
Chen Nanyuan feigned annoyance, cursed inwardly, and called out to the bandits, "Bad luck! You're so talkative! Alright, alright, that's all I have. I'll save the rest for them! This will save these starving ghosts from running to the king and complaining about my crimes!"
After saying this, he no longer paid any attention to the furious grain inspector, and ordered his men to escort the robbed grain carts and quickly hide in the dense forest on the other side of the mountain road.
The sky gradually brightened, and the fish belly white background was stained with a spreading orange-red.
Luo Wan stood on a high place and saw that the group of "bandits" were driving the two looted food carts towards Yangzhou City. That was the opposite route to Yinan City. They passed by there and finally took a detour back to Yinan City.
Everything was carried out strictly according to the plan. Chen Nanyuan pretended to be a bandit from the Yangzhou army, robbed some food from the Weizhou army, and returned to Yangzhou, creating the impression that Yangzhou was dissatisfied with Weizhou's food being provided for them, thus deepening the conflict between the two cities.
After a brief rest, the Weizhou army hurriedly evacuated this troubled area.
The valley returned to silence. A soldier nearby asked, "Commander-in-Chief, shall we give the signal now?"
Jiang Cichen: "Let it go."
"yes."
The soldier moved swiftly, a slender flare slipped out of his sleeve, the fuse was lit, and with a "whoosh" it shot straight into the sky, exploding a brief spark in the dim sky.
When Xie Yan in Weizhou City saw this signal, he knew it was time to speak.
The soldiers beside the Jiagu Road followed Chen Nanyuan to rob the food and take a detour, while the soldiers on the higher part of the Jiagu Road followed Jiang Cichen and Luo Wan back to the barracks.
After walking for more than an hour, both the riders and the horses were exhausted.
"Commander-in-chief, there is a stream ahead!" a soldier who saw it came to report.
Jiang Ci Chen pulled the reins, and sure enough, a crystal clear stream meandered through the forest, the gurgling sound of the water clear and pleasant.
"Pass the order, rest here for one stick of incense. People and horses should drink, hurry up." Jiang Cichen gave the order, his voice was not loud but it was clearly heard throughout the team.
The soldiers dismounted one after another.
For a moment, the rustling sound of armor being removed could be heard by the stream, and the tense nerves were finally able to relax a little in this moment of tranquility and coolness.
Luo Wan dismounted and did not drink water immediately. Instead, he scooped up a handful of cool stream water and splashed it on his face. The cool touch instantly dispelled the remaining sleepiness.
Jiang Cichen took off the water bag from his waist, walked over to Luo Wan, and handed it to her: "Would you like some drink?"
Luo Wan raised her head, her wet hair stuck to her temples, and water droplets rolled down her smooth jaw and slender neck, sinking into her collar.
She took the water bag and said without hesitation: "Thank you."
After drinking the water, Luo Wan handed the water bag back and asked, "Is the detour going smoothly for Chen Nanyuan?"
Jiang Cichen raised his head and took a few sips, then said, "The route has been carefully considered. He is acting cautiously. The signal has been sent, and Qin Yue will also respond. We will go around the mountains and forests as planned, so there will be no accidents."
Luo Wan nodded.
Jiang Cichen's gaze fell on Luo Wan's wrist, where there was a scratch that wasn't too deep, but was quite glaring because of her fair skin. It looked like it had been scratched by a thorny bush in the woods.
"Hands." He said simply.
Luo Wan followed his gaze and discovered the wound. She moved her wrist nonchalantly and said, "It's nothing serious, just a superficial wound."
Jiang Cichen took out a small medicine bottle he carried with him, which contained emergency wound healing powder.
Luo Wan looked at the celadon bottle: "This medicine bottle looks familiar."
The medicine bottles in Tingyu Tower are all specially made, and the bottle in his hand is extremely similar to those in Tingyu Tower.
Jiang Cichen raised his eyes, curled his lips into a smile, and his emotions were indistinguishable: "Really?"
He didn't explain, but simply held out his hand, palm up, and waited quietly. Luo Wan looked at him for a moment, then said nothing more and held out his injured wrist.
His movements were steady and skillful. He carefully wiped away the stains around the wound, sprinkled it with light yellow medicine powder, and finally wrapped it with a small piece of clean muslin to secure it.
"Alright." Jiang Cichen tied the bandage and said, "Let's go back to the camp and have the military doctor take care of it."
Luo Wan withdrew her hand and looked at the simple and neat knot on her wrist.
Jiang Cichen turned and walked to a place not far away. He reached out and patted the smooth neck of the horse. The reins of the two horses were loosened and they followed him obediently.
Back at the stream, the two horses immediately lowered their heads happily, buried their mouths and noses in the cool stream water, and took big gulps of drink, with water droplets rolling down their shiny manes.
The water surface reflected the two horses drinking water and the young man's tall figure.
Luo Wan watched this scene quietly.
She noticed from the beginning that his mount was different from usual.
Jiang Cichen's reflection on the water lowered his eyes to look at her and whispered, "Luo Wan, I'm not prejudiced against women."
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