Yu Ling had only been circulating his cultivation technique to recuperate; he hadn't actually fainted. Annoyed by the buzzing noise in his ears, he reluctantly opened his eyes.
He turned to look at the person who had come in, and what came into view was a young face that still looked somewhat immature.
This soldier... seems to be familiar from the original owner's memories. He was an undercover agent that the original owner planted in Beishang a long, long time ago.
The original plan was to have the other party gather information in the Northern Sorrow Kingdom, but unexpectedly, the other party was conscripted into the army and stayed in the protagonist's camp, intending to use them to secretly pass messages to the original owner in case of an emergency.
However, so far, it hasn't been of much use.
Feng Yi is a man who acts on a whim when it comes to warfare; often, the operation begins before the message is even relayed.
This makes it very difficult for an undercover agent to betray someone!
However, although the original owner didn't have a chance to use this little brother, and he seemed as useless as the system, it doesn't matter, now he can benefit from it.
Yu Ling had another good idea.
"You are... Chen Wu? Where am I? How did you get to the Dongli military camp? Go back to Beishang immediately!"
As she spoke, Yu Ling slowly sat up with Chen Wu's help. After she finished speaking, she involuntarily coughed repeatedly, a sequela of being stabbed. The rapid coughing made her lungs ache.
"General, it's me, Chen Wu! You...you should really think back, this is the territory of Beishang! You...how did you get like this?"
Chen Wudao,
"I came because... I heard them all saying that Dongli was defeated, and that you, General Yi, were captured. I didn't believe it... so I came to see for myself..."
"What?!"
Yu Ling looked around in a panic. Seeing that the style of the camp was indeed unlike that of Dongli, he put his hands to his forehead and remained silent for a long time. After a moment, he finally spoke, his voice hoarse and full of guilt as he murmured,
"...I remember now. Today, on my way to Beishang with three thousand iron cavalry, we were ambushed by a large force, and we were almost completely wiped out..."
I have lost… I have failed my soldiers, I have failed Dongli! I have betrayed the King's trust! How can I, how can I possibly live on in this world?!
Yu Ling's voice was mournful, bringing tears to those who heard it and saddening those who listened.
Seeing the general he admired in such pain and self-reproach, Chen Wu felt a pang of sorrow. He wondered, who in this world could calmly accept witnessing their compatriots rushing towards death one after another?
He also experienced the loss of loved ones; his father, uncles, and brother all died in the war. That feeling of despair and helplessness was terrifying.
If he was already in such a state, then the general who was highly regarded by the king must have been even more unable to accept it. Look, he had done everything he could to protect it, but in the end, he ended up with the country destroyed and his people dead. What a tragic and helpless fate this was.
"General! Please don't blame yourself so much. Bei Shang is too powerful and ambitious, and has successively annexed many small countries, even Nan Yue... This is not your fault!"
Hearing Chen Wu's words of comfort, Yu Ling looked even more guilty and saddened. The tough man's eyes reddened, tears welled up, and his voice choked with sobs:
"No! It was me who caused the people of Dongli to lose their loved ones... It was me who caused the loss of Dongli's land... All of this is my fault! It's all my doing! I am a bastard who deserves to die a thousand deaths!!!"
"General!" Upon seeing this, Chen Wu immediately knelt down, his voice firm and sincere: "Please don't say that... You are a hero who risked your life to protect Dongli..."
Yu Ling glanced at Chen Wu through her tear-blurred eyes, a thought flashing through her mind. Good, it seems he's been fooled. She quickly added more pressure, her voice trembling with tears:
"...You may rise now. Don't worry about this cripple. I don't know how many more days Dongli can hold out, or whether my king will... In short, this general has no face to see His Majesty again, and I have no desire to be a coward here. Let me atone with my death!!!"
By the time Chen Wu noticed Yu Ling's movements, the long sword beside him had already been drawn in the blink of an eye. He was shocked and hurriedly stepped forward to stop her.
The two of them, in a tug-of-war-like manner, moved the long sword back and forth, fighting and snatching it. In the end, the patient was defeated by Chen Wu's relentless efforts. With a chop to the neck, Chen Wu sent Yu Ling lying down again.
Seeing his general lose control of his emotions, Chen Wu had no good solution. He himself was also feeling bad, but he couldn't just stand by and watch someone seek death.
He wanted to take better care of the general, but the patrols in the prisoner-of-war camp were less frequent, not nonexistent. He was afraid that if he stayed too long, he would have difficulty making excuses and would expose his undercover identity, so he dared not linger. He arranged Yu Ling in a comfortable position and then tiptoed away.
Great, another "unyielding to the death" persona added. Now that Chen Wu is here to stop him from dying, he can survive a couple more days under the original owner's personality shell. Yu Ling gave herself a thumbs up.
However, this brat has quite a strong grip; I almost twisted my neck. Just wait until I recover, and I'll see what I do to him... Yu Ling cursed inwardly.
Meanwhile, Yu Ling continued to pretend to sleep and recover from her injuries, but the King of Dongli could no longer sit still. The territories of the various countries in this mission world were not very large to begin with, and the news of General Yi's defeat and capture quickly spread back.
In the capital city of Dongli, sitting at the highest point of the court, is the King of Dongli, who wears a brocade robe with gold and silver trim, a belt adorned with various colorful gemstones around his waist, and a tall, golden hat with his hair styled in a high bun.
After all, the times were outdated, and people's aesthetic sense was somewhat skewed. Although his clothing was strange, King Dongli was very dignified. He was extremely anxious upon hearing that General Yi had been captured, but he was helpless.
Dongli was weak to begin with. If it weren't for General Yi Lanbin's extraordinary skills, which allowed him to barely manage to hold off Feng Yi with these miscellaneous soldiers, they would probably have been defeated long ago.
"Your Majesty, a messenger from the Northern Martyrs has sent a letter." A servant, bowing and bending low, quickly entered the court.
King Dongli nodded and said, "Bring it here."
The attendant quickly presented the letter to the King of Dongli with both hands.
King Dongli unfolded the document and examined it closely, then frowned.
The letter contained only a few words, yet it meticulously detailed all the battle results between the Eastern Li and Northern Shang kingdoms, and concluded by stating that the war between the two countries would inevitably be resolved in the near future.
However, if the King of Dongli is willing to surrender, then Beishang will no longer send troops. Otherwise, under the army, innocent civilians of Dongli may be harmed.
King Dongli handed the letter to his ministers, who read it one by one, and couldn't help but sigh. He knew this was the other side's final ultimatum, but...
He stood up and said coldly to his ministers,
"I, the King, will never surrender, and the people of Dongli will never become lowly slaves under the feet of Beishang!"
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