Yes, with such strong winds and heavy snow, the firewood that the lady had piled up just wouldn't go out.
At this moment, someone noticed something was wrong: "Smell it, isn't there some strange smell in the air?"
Someone sniffed hard and said, "Yes, there is."
"It seems to be... potent oil?"
These words were like a clearing of the clouds, finally resolving their doubts.
"Yes! It must be flammable oil. Only by pouring flammable oil on the firewood can it burn for a long time without going out."
As Yuwen Sheng approached Zheng Quchi, her fiery red hair and bright, sparkling pupils, illuminated by the firelight, made her even more captivating than a ball of flame.
"Where did you get the flammable oil?" he asked.
As Zheng Quchi felt the magical power of the flames, the chill on her body was being driven away little by little. She breathed on her hands, which were red from the cold, and said, "Under the rocks west of Wubao, I assembled a team to go and excavate. This is a sample that was sent to me not long ago."
Sample? That's a new term.
"But all you have can only light this one campfire."
"Yes, although it can't light up everyone, seeing such a flame burning brightly in the darkness makes you feel much warmer, doesn't it?" she said with a smile.
Yuwen Sheng stared at the fire, but his mind was preoccupied with the matter of the flammable oil: "Hmm."
After the fire was fully lit, she found an iron pot, put clean snow water in it to boil, and sat by the fire. Once the water boiled, she called the cook to fetch hot water to bring warmth to the soldiers.
"I can't say about other things, but there will be plenty of hot water tonight."
You don't need much; just drink a few sips of hot water when you're unbearably cold, and that'll be enough to relieve the immediate ailment.
Yuwen Sheng didn't say anything about her behavior, which resembled "doting" on the soldiers; he simply indulged her silently.
Although in his view, the border guards had long been trained in hardship and had developed a body of steel in the face of various harsh environments, they would not be brought down by a mere night of cold snow.
When the soldiers received the caring treatment of being warmed up with hot water, they were all somewhat flattered.
"This water was heated by the lady herself with strong oil..."
“We never had a time like this before. When it was hot or cold, we just had to rely on willpower to get through it. Now, after taking a sip, not only does my body feel warm, but my heart feels warm too.”
"Hey, you've got a way with words. Say a few more, anyway, Madam and the others can't hear your flattery."
The others burst into laughter upon hearing this.
"As expected, Madam is different from us men. Not only does she know how to manufacture weapons, but she is also gentle and kind. She is simply a bodhisattva reincarnated. When you go back, be sure to express our gratitude to Madam."
"Yeah yeah."
They gave the cook who came to deliver water many instructions.
The cook laughed and said, "Don't worry, I'll definitely deliver it. Okay, I still have to deliver to other people. I'm off."
The Ye army was backed by the mountain slope, so although they couldn't avoid the falling snow, the strong winds could offset it. However, the Beiyuan army was in a worse situation. It was freezing cold and they couldn't light a fire, so they were shivering from the cold.
Pujia Di refused to withdraw his troops, so Gongshu Jiruo devised a plan to have people crawl inside the "iron horses" to temporarily avoid the wind and snow.
However, the space inside the "iron horse" was limited, only enough to accommodate a few people. This did not solve the problem of a large number of troops being affected by the wind and snow. The remaining people could only rely on their own strength to avoid the wind and snow.
"With such heavy snow tonight, the Northern Abyss Army certainly won't raise an army, right?"
"Who knows? In any case, we must be on high alert and keep a close watch. We absolutely cannot let our guard down."
As expected, their concerns were correct. In the latter half of the night, when people are most likely to doze off, they seemed to hear some noise, and a group of people wearing masks came stealthily in the night.
Unexpectedly, Yuwen Sheng had made arrangements at various key points. The flaws he deliberately left were actually to lure the enemy in. The area was covered with caltrops and spikes, and anyone who tried to cross the border by other paths would be harmed.
Realizing that the other side was prepared, the spy was terrified and turned around to return wounded. But when he turned back, he looked as if he had seen a living Yama, and his face turned pale with fear...
It snowed all night, and everyone endured the ordeal, half-asleep and half-awake, constantly praying for dawn to break and for the snow to stop.
But as expected, things didn't go as planned. Even after daybreak, the snow on the mountain showed no signs of stopping, only turning from heavy snow to light snow.
Zheng Quchi, who was sitting next to a pile of still-warm ashes, suddenly opened his eyes, still somewhat dazed.
"You're so easily startled, were you having a nightmare?"
A concerned and gentle voice came from the side.
Zheng Quchi turned his head and saw Yuwen Sheng gently rubbing his stiff and sore neck and shoulders.
She had been busy boiling water all night and lost consciousness just before dawn. She dozed off for a short while and didn't know when she fell asleep on his shoulder.
"Feeling very uncomfortable?"
"It's not that bad."
Zheng Quchi raised his head and stood up happily: "It's dawn? There really wasn't an enemy attack last night..."
Yuwen Sheng smiled without saying a word, but did not mention what had happened last night. He simply said, "Do whatever you want."
Zheng Quchi also stretched his hands and feet, which were numb and stiff from waking up in the morning. His eyes were bright and he grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth: "Okay, I'll go to the rear camp. Wait for me to come back!"
However, before she could return, the war between the two armies broke out again without warning, and it was a full-scale war without any reservations.
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