Chapter 58, Winter, February
Even though it wasn't a day for Yi Sha to teach martial arts, she still went to arrest people despite having heavy dark circles under her eyes.
After returning home from martial arts practice last night, Yi Sha, now with some free time, decided to read a story that Xiao Shang had given her.
The story, though not long, seems to be about love, but it is not just about love.
No one in the story did anything wrong; everyone did their best, yet they were still helpless, watching things gradually spiral out of control.
In the end, the once passionate love faded away amidst the mundane affairs of life, and when they met again, they were nothing more than unfamiliar acquaintances.
It is both letting go and accepting the past.
"Shang girl...where are you? Come out quickly so this old woman can have a good look at you...this old woman has something to say to you..."
"Shang girl? Little Shang, come out quickly..."
Finally, perseverance paid off, and in the kitchen, Yi Sha found Shang Yuji helping to knead the dough.
Shang Yuji felt that the old man Yi who called her out was acting strangely, but she couldn't figure out what was wrong for a moment. She washed her hands and left the kitchen.
Yi Sha pulled out a book, his eyes gleaming with a strange light: "Little Shang, how did you come up with such a wonderful story?"
The senior was too enthusiastic, and Shang Yuji wiped away imaginary sweat: "I heard the plot from Hai Tian, and roughly guessed that the senior likes love stories that have gone through many trials, so I tried to write what I thought was a story of unresolved grievances..."
All things move forward tangled in the chaotic threads of fate; despite all efforts, one can only helplessly watch fate march towards its end.
Yi Sha encouraged, "Great! Could you write a few more? This old woman wants to show off these great articles to her friends!"
At that time, it won't just be the old woman who suffers a heart attack from the abuse!
Friends are meant to be tricked; no one can escape her grasp!
Unable to refuse Shang Yuji's kind invitation, he later took the time to write several more heart-wrenching and unforgettable stories of tragic love.
Unbeknownst to many, thanks to Senior Yi's promotion, Shang Yuji gained a dozen or so skilled readers who were eager to throw tantrums and act tough in front of her.
Commercial writers are so heartless, writing such a heart-wrenching story that it breaks their hearts!
Yet it is so captivating that one can't bear to give it up.
.
In the second month of winter, the Xianbei invaded from the south, and Yangcheng fought against them.
The urgent message was sent to the capital, which greatly angered the emperor.
The eldest princess volunteered to lead the expedition, and the emperor granted her request.
Five days later, the army set off.
There were no fewer than a thousand people seeing him off.
.
Yangcheng, military tent.
Although the Xianbei launched a surprise attack at night, Yangcheng was well prepared. As soon as the patrolmen discovered something unusual, they immediately beat drums and gongs and lit fireworks to wake up the sleeping soldiers.
The reaction was so swift that the Xianbei had no time to react before being caught red-handed.
It took a considerable number of cavalry to barely escape from the encirclement set up by Da'an.
They were immediately turned away, which made the nobleman who had confidently claimed that he would take Yangcheng in a few days lose face, and the commander was scolded so badly that he couldn't lift his head.
Forced by the power of the nobleman, the servants stepped forward to serve him in fear, only to be criticized by the enraged nobleman.
A moment later, a thin body, covered in blood, was carried out, barely breathing.
Soon, the makeshift felt tents fell silent.
The military tents in Da'an presented a completely different scene.
The Xianbei's first attack failed, and they even launched a fierce counterattack. Lin Quan laughed heartily and patted Lakar hard. He had been fighting on the front lines all night, and his clothes, still stained with blood, hadn't been changed.
"Good, good, good! We finally caught them off guard!"
Lakar remained unmoved, seemingly oblivious to the pain in his wounds, and allowed the military doctor to treat him: "You said that as long as I perform well enough, you would use my achievements to ask the princess for medicine. Does that still stand?"
Lin Quan's voice was hoarse, but he helplessly tapped the uninjured part of his forehead: "Don't worry, I, Lin Quan, always keep my word."
The fierce and fearless wolf cubs are proud of themselves. Even when beaten black and blue, they will only swallow the bitter blood in their throats alone.
"Also, you were too reckless tonight. While it was brave of you to single-handedly take the enemy's head, you also put yourself in a vulnerable position. Next time you go into battle, make sure you don't stray from the group, so that the soldiers can coordinate with you..."
Having spent time together, Lin Quan had long since discerned that Rakar was someone who responded better to gentle persuasion than force; if he communicated with him properly, he would listen. However, he rarely received such kind treatment and was unsure how to respond.
It was as if the previous suffering had made him covered in needles to protect himself, but unexpectedly someone approached him with good intentions. Unfortunately, he had never learned how to respond to kindness, and even if he put away the needles, they still pricked him badly.
Lakar lowered his head and listened quietly to Lin Quan's ramblings.
"Even if you don't value your own life, after we finally managed to save your older sister, you don't want her to wake up alone and helpless without you, do you?"
Slowly, Rakar responded softly, "Mmm..."
The winter wind in the north is like a knife, making the banners flutter. The crescent moon in the sky is dazzling, and the moonlight is like a ribbon, draped over those who are still awake.
After General Lin finished speaking with Rakar, he was summoned by his adjutant to handle military affairs. He had just finished a fierce battle and had a lot of military matters to attend to.
Night had fallen, but the soldiers, still fired up after the surprise attack, were talking quietly, their voices rising in hushed tones.
After bandaging his wound, Rakar wanted to go out of the military tent to look at the moon, but he saw the sword that General Lin had left behind in his haste.
Since he was just about to go out, I decided to deliver everything at once.
Rakar, carrying his longsword, walked toward the general's tent.
The moonlight accompanied us all the way, illuminating our steps forward.
As we approached the general's tent, we saw a corner of the tent flap lifted, revealing flickering candlelight. It was General Lin handling military affairs and had not yet rested.
As Rakar approached with his sword, he stopped in his tracks upon hearing them mention his name, a testament to his keen hearing and eyesight since childhood.
The military doctor said, "General, although we are currently using century-old ginseng to prolong the life of Sister Lakar, this is not a long-term solution. In the end, we still need to detoxify her."
Lin Quan: "If we can continue, we will do our best to preserve it and see if we can delay until His Highness personally arrives in Yangcheng."
The adjutant hesitated for a moment and asked, "General, are you really going to ask His Highness for that treasure that is considered a second life?"
“It’s rare for Rakar to open up to us, how can we betray his trust? He’s willing to speak up, even if it means losing my title as a general.”
"General!" the adjutant exclaimed, "Absolutely not! You are the pillar of Yangcheng. Without you..."
"It's about the title of general, not my life, so there's no need to worry."
"If you were to return to being a commoner, wouldn't all these decades of your life have been wasted?"
Lin Quan didn't want to discuss this matter with them anymore, so he stopped them, saying, "Let's stop here. By the way, remember, don't mention this matter in front of Rakar."
"……yes."
The wind in the north was too strong, wetting the eyes of the boy outside the door and blurring the bright moon in his eyes.
He carried his sword and moved away from the general's tent.
"What's that noise?" The adjutant heard footsteps and turned to look outside the tent.
The military doctor guessed, "Which soldier must have been passing by? They won a great battle tonight, and many are too excited to sleep."
The next day, Lin Quan looked at the sword placed in front of his tent and remembered that he had left it behind when he was looking at Lakar the night before. He put the sword away, put his hands behind his back, and went back into the tent.
It must have been Rakar who sent it back.
He's just a teenager, after all.
Lin Quan had not told his adjutant that he knew the world was extremely dangerous, and that all he was doing now was trying to create a relatively sunny space for these children.
Unfortunately, he didn't know how much longer his spine could hold on.
After their initial defeat, the Xianbei launched small-scale harassment campaigns, with their cavalry frequently attacking from the left and right. By the time Da'an had formed ranks to meet them, the Xianbei cavalry, like dogs that had caught the scent of their natural enemy, vanished into the vast snowfield.
It's so slippery, and it's so frustrating to be unable to catch it.
If the soldiers were dispersed and stationed at the pass to protect Yangcheng, the Yangcheng army, which was outnumbered, would simply be toyed with by the Xianbei against the agile cavalry.
However, Yangcheng is not without ways to deal with it.
The tea-horse trade brought in fine horses, and Lin Quan, following the princess's secret orders, secretly trained a cavalry unit.
Hidden deep within the military camp, avoiding the eyes of spies from all sides, even the adjutant was unaware of it.
Facing the Xianbei, who were born on horseback, they had a weakness that they could not avoid: short training time, uneven quality of cavalry, and some cavalrymen had never even touched a horse before.
However, the Yangcheng army had two secret weapons—stirrups and horseshoes provided by the master craftsman of the Princess's residence.
It reduced the time it took for cavalrymen to learn horsemanship from scratch to mastery.
One protects the horse's hooves, reduces wear and tear on the horse, and extends the service life of the warhorse.
Unfortunately, high-quality iron was scarce, and the number of stirrups and horseshoes that could be made was limited. However, these were all precious items, and Yangcheng still had the ability to fight against the Xianbei cavalry.
As for the Xianbei's annoying provocations: they would hit you once and run away, it was a hassle to catch them, but if you didn't catch them, they would find another opportunity to cause trouble. They were slippery and unpredictable.
Following General Lin's instructions, the soldiers of Yangcheng first pretended to be angry and chased after them, then they gave them a perfunctory chase, and later they were too lazy to care, turning a blind eye to the Xianbei's rampant plunder.
The villagers who were looting the land had moved away beforehand, and those left behind in the village being chased by the Xianbei were actually soldiers in disguise.
Fortunately, the Xianbei cavalry were so focused on looting that they didn't notice the "people" fleeing so quickly.
Having tasted success multiple times, the nobles gradually lowered their guard, thinking that Lin Quan was nothing special. With a wave of their hands, they intended to launch a full-scale attack, take Yangcheng in one fell swoop, and then plunder it completely.
The strategist, who had always been at odds with the nobles, quickly tried to dissuade them.
"Absolutely not! It's not the right time yet. I hope you will think it over carefully, sir!"
Having been repeatedly thwarted by the strategist, the nobles had long harbored resentment.
Even though this was the strategist sent by the Khan, he never expected that this person would repeatedly put him in a difficult position!
Constantly negating his decisions is tantamount to saying he lacks leadership skills, isn't it?
"Strategist, why can't we fight this time?"
"Could it be that Lin Quan is once again scheming and plotting against us, and now that we are defeating him one after another, he is setting a trap for us?"
"When did our sons of the grasslands become so aggrieved, like stray dogs, only knowing how to howl, and running away as soon as anyone gets close!"
“Master Yi’en, Lin Quan is a master at waiting for the right opportunity. He’ll strike as soon as we let our guard down…”
“Strategist,” Ian interrupted him, sitting high up and looking down at him, “the sons of the grasslands are looking forward to a fierce and exhilarating battle.”
"Look at the warriors in the tent."
Upon hearing this, the strategist raised his head and surveyed the tent.
The burly warriors, riding tall horses, filled the ground, their eyes filled with a ferocious rage that seemed to want to devour their blood and flesh. One of them raised his arm and shouted, "Fight!"
"Fight!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
In an instant, the fighting spirit of the other warriors in the tent was aroused, and they responded loudly, their shouts shaking the heavens and earth and reaching outside the tent.
It's over...it's really over...
The strategist cowered. He had fought Lin Quan before and knew how terrifying he was. When it came to war, Lin Quan was undoubtedly an invincible general.
No one knows where he will place his piece next, but every move is crucial. Sometimes, careless neglect can lead to a fatal blow.
Don't fight with Lin Quan; this is a lesson the strategist has learned.
He could be poisoned; he could be murdered; he could even be bribed to frame and kill him...
But it is absolutely forbidden to meet Lin Quan on the battlefield.
So when he heard that the Khan was going to attack Yangcheng, he was extremely unwilling, but as a person of little influence, he was eventually assigned to the front line.
Now, what lies before them is that the Yangcheng army has repeatedly retreated, then ignored them, and casually dismissed them, seemingly because they are tired of fighting a battle that is neither too heavy nor too light, and are avoiding the important ones.
But in the strategist's view, this was more like meat hanging in front of a hungry dog, offering a little sustenance to arouse the dog's greater desires.
Finally, they captured all the restless canine beasts in one fell swoop.
Isn't Lin Quan worried that someone will guess his intentions?
...Yes, he wasn't worried about it.
Look at the men in the tent, who call themselves warriors, full of brute strength. A few words are enough to get their blood boiling, and they're ready to mount their horses and fight the enemy at any moment.
Even if he guessed it, so what? The cavalry would only be annoyed by his repeated evasiveness, and the nobles would only dislike his constant refutations.
Just as he is familiar with forests and springs, and has been dealing with the grasslands for more than a decade, how could he not be familiar with the grasslands?
It's not that there's no way...
If they had stopped there and left with their loot, they would have still won.
The strategist forced himself to sit up and pleaded with the man at the head of the table: "Lord Yi'en, the spoils we have obtained are plentiful; the Khan will surely be pleased..."
Ian waved his hand downwards, frowned and said in a low voice, "Someone, the strategist is tired, take him away to rest."
"Master Ian—"
The strategist was led away, and Ian raised his hand: "Tonight, warriors, let us raise our glasses together to welcome tomorrow's great victory!"
"A resounding victory!"
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