"The beautiful woman walks gracefully on the snow, and the flying phoenix flies freely in the clouds." The man in black tilted his head and looked at him, saying, "I thought everyone in the world knew my name."
Feihong General? He Rufei?
Hu Yat was horrified and blurted out: "Impossible!"
"Why is it impossible?" The eyes under the mask stared at him, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, as if containing endless mockery, "What's impossible?"
Huyat was the bravest general of Utuo, but at this moment, he could not help but retreat subconsciously, shouting angrily: "Come on! Kill this man, and the king will reward you handsomely!"
Countless arrows and figures rushed forward, but the masked man easily dodged every blade and arrow thrown at him. He was like a light bird flying through the snow, with his wings spread out in the world, and nothing could trap him. And his sword was invincible, flying around in the night, seeming to cut through the rain.
Hu Yat had to believe one thing, that this was indeed the Feihong general He Rufei, and no one else in the world had such exquisite swordsmanship except He Rufei. Hu Yat had never fought with He Rufei, but he had heard from the defeated Western Qiang people that He Rufei's Qinglang sword could cut through all possible and impossible obstacles.
But why is He Rufei here? He obviously... can't be like this!
Could this be another conspiracy by the Wei people? Did He Rufei deceive them? These cunning and evil Wei people!
"I'm going to kill him!" Huyate said in hatred, and shouted to the people around him, "Bring me my bow and arrows!"
He wanted to shoot this big bird that was still able to fly himself. He wanted to watch it fall from the sky, hit the ground, and finally be stepped on into the mud.
The bow and arrow were handed to him, and he aimed at the black-clad man who was surrounded and fought by the Utopian soldiers. He couldn't aim at the target no matter what he did, and shouted, "Idiots, all of you move back a little!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the arrow in his hand was fired, but he saw several arrows shot out from the depths of the bushes, "whoosh whoosh whoosh", just blocking his arrow in the middle.
"There are accomplices! Catch them!"
At this moment, a man wearing a devil mask jumped out from the bushes, laughed loudly, and threw something like a wooden barrel in the direction of the man in black.
The man in black with the sword only grabbed the barrel in mid-air, while the arrows of the Uto soldiers suddenly arrived. "General Feihong" moved so fast that it was difficult to see clearly, and he only blocked the barrel in front of his eyes like an iron shield.
The arrow hit the wooden barrel in his hand that he used as a shield, and something like water flowed out. When Hu Yat saw it, he shouted in his heart, "Stop! Stop!"
But even if the archer stopped immediately, the arrows shot out could not be returned. In the blink of an eye, the wooden barrel in the hands of "General Feihong" had been shot into a sieve, and water burst out from it, covering the entire grain camp. Then, she heard a whistle from her mouth, the sound was clear, and dozens of arrows were shot out from the bushes and from all directions in the darkness. The arrows were on fire and fell on the grain pile sprinkled with ointment. With a "boom", the fire rose to the sky.
Once is new, twice is familiar. He Yan had done arson once before in Jiyang not long ago. He Yan was already very good at it now.
Huyate was so angry that he almost vomited blood. He only ordered everyone to put out the fire and kill people. But this is not Jiyang, and rivers are not everywhere. The camp is not far from the river, but it is definitely not close either.
He Yan felt relieved. These oils were the last oils used to make fireworks in Rundu. Although it was raining tonight, the rain was not heavy, but the wind was strong. As long as they followed the wind, there would be no worries about the fire. In the end, all the tents would be in danger.
"Now!" He Yan shouted, "Don't retreat, fight!"
The sound of fighting and the light of fire rang out from all directions. Hu Yat looked around. The Wei people wearing devil masks rushing out from all directions had already made the Wutuo soldiers panic and their morale unstable. Now the food and grass were burned, and some people were busy fetching water to put out the fire. Not to mention the formation of the soldiers, even the pace of killing the Wei people had been disrupted. Hu Yat was almost vomiting blood in anger.
All this is because of He Rufei!
He Rufei... He looked around, but didn't see He Rufei. He was shocked and said angrily, "Catch He Rufei for me. I want to chop off his head myself!"
Inside the tent, a woman's low sobbing could be heard. Suddenly, the curtains were opened, and two devil-like faces appeared in the tent.
The women uttered a short "ah" and before they could say anything, one of them covered their mouths. The man took off his mask, revealing a ferocious face with a scar, but he was not a Utuo. He said impatiently: "We are from the Wei Dynasty, we are here to save you, put on your clothes and leave quickly."
The women in the tent were all disheveled, and two of them had already fallen to the ground, already dead. Jiang Jiao watched and sighed in his heart. When they came, Hu Yat was making trouble inside, doing some beastly things to the female captives of Rundu. He Yan couldn't delay the burning of grain and grass, so he left, but he didn't let it go. Once the grain and grass were burned, let the two of them come over to take a look.
Originally, he thought He Yan was too soft-hearted, but now, looking at the miserable corpses in the camp, even a bandit like Wang Ba couldn't bear it. He couldn't help but clench his fists and secretly cursed Wu Tuo as worse than a beast.
Several women followed Wang Ba and the other two out of the tent quietly. The Wutuo soldiers were all gathered at the grain and grass area, and no one noticed them. Jiang Jiao asked, "Brother He, can you hold on for that long?"
Wang Ba sneered: "He is much more capable of being a hero than you and I. He went to rescue other prisoners."
The tents where the Wei captives were held were small and broken, and could barely provide shelter from the wind and rain. Dozens of women were crammed together, half-dressed, and all looked miserable. The tents were filled with the smell of blood and decay, which made people sick. Every time the Wutuo people raped these women, the dead were thrown into the river, and the living were mostly thrown back with wounds, and after a few days they would repeat the same life worse than death until they died.
When they suddenly saw someone coming to rescue them, the women refused to believe their eyes.
"Let's go," He Yan said, "I'll rescue you."
The woman in the lead asked tremblingly, "Zhuangshi, what's your name... Are you... Are you General Feihong?"
The masked man did not move, but after a moment, he took off the mask, revealing a handsome and handsome face of a young man, and said in a calm voice: "No, my name is He Yan, and I was personally appointed Wu'an Lang by His Majesty."
…
The tone of the Wutuo soldiers was completely disrupted. The masked Wei people were not interested in fighting. Seeing that the food and grass were about to burn out, they turned around and rushed towards the city gate. Ropes had long been lowered above the city gate, and countless archers were lying in ambush on the city tower. Once the Wutuo soldiers approached them, they would use the "arrows" borrowed from the Wutuo people a few days ago to shoot them.
The Utos had difficulty advancing, but those devil-like masked men were able to retreat unscathed.
"They've taken the prisoners!" someone shouted.
Huyate was furious: "What a bunch of rubbish! You can't even take care of a woman!"
The soldiers of Wutuo also felt wronged. Who could have thought that at a critical moment of life and death, someone would still pay attention to those worthless women? They were just spoils of war for the enemy and would only hinder their progress. If it were Wutuo, they would kill them even if they were rescued - women who had been defiled by the enemy had no right to live in the world.
The captured women wished they could die in the enemy camp. How could they have imagined that someone would try every possible means to rescue these women?
The confidant spoke hesitantly: "I heard that General He Rufei of Feihong never harms women. If someone kidnaps a woman from Wei, he will rescue her as long as he is there..."
Hu Yat kicked back, "Bullshit! I told you, there is no way He Rufei would come to Rundu!"
The smell of burning grain and grass came from the fields. From time to time, Uto soldiers came with buckets of water, but the wind was strong and the fire was big, so it was in vain. Huyate looked in the direction of the Rundu City Tower in the distance. Countless archers were lying in ambush on high places, and from time to time, arrows with torches were shot towards this side, as if as a warning.
His face was gloomy, and he almost bit his teeth off: "Rundu... I will destroy Rundu! There will be no corpse left in Rundu, young or old!"
…
He Yan was the last one to go up to the city building.
In order to protect the women, she had to pull the rope back first. She dealt with the Uto soldiers on the city wall, and finally had the opportunity to return to the city. Even though the archers used arrows to drive back the Uto people, she was still injured.
There will be sacrifices in war. It is good enough to keep a life.
The women who had managed to escape from the enemy camp sat on the tower in a daze until they could no longer hear the horns of the Utos in the distance. Then they came to their senses, covered their faces with their hands, and burst into tears.
The Rundu soldiers who were scattered all over the ground behind the city gate had already taken off their masks. After a night of raids, everything was extremely tense. Only now did they seem to understand what really happened. Some were crying, while others were laughing, shouting, "We burned their food and straw! We beat those Utuo people into fools. Hahahaha, we beat the Utuo people!"
To say that they won was an exaggeration, but they did win this night raid, and it was a complete victory. The number of casualties among the Wutuo people was unknown for the time being, but of the 500 elite soldiers brought by He Yan, 46 were sacrificed and 273 were injured. This was the best possible situation for the people of Rundu, who had defended for more than a month.
Li Kuang looked at the fallen elite soldiers in disbelief and muttered, "They actually did it."
When He Yan led these people, Li Kuang didn't agree with it in his heart. He was almost prepared that He Yan and these hundreds of people would not survive, just going to die. As for burning the food and straw of the Wutuo people, Li Kuang also thought that the possibility was very small.
But these impossible things in his eyes have now become a reality. They even brought back the captives that the Uto people had captured outside the city.
Li Kuang suddenly felt a new hope. He had never thought that the troops of Rundu could fight against the Wutuo people. He thought that he could only defend the city gate and wait for reinforcements. But now He Yan made him see another possibility. What if the Wutuo people can't hold on? Without food and grass, the Wutuo people can't hold on for long. Their advantage no longer exists. Now they are just relying on the advantage of numbers, and numbers... Didn't the young Wu'anlang He Yan win two battles with fewer people?
Thinking of this, Li Kuang looked at He Yan excitedly, and saw that the young man was sitting against the wall. He had not yet taken off his mask and was looking at the rescued women who were hugging each other and crying. Li Kuang could not see He Yan's expression, but he could see the smile on the corner of his mouth.
He was very relieved.
In an instant, the scene in front of Li Kuang overlapped with the past scene. He still vaguely remembered the battle with He Rufei, who was still the deputy general. That man was also like this, sitting quietly on the ground, watching the soldiers who were crying or laughing, and the sharpness on the battlefield was restrained as much as possible, and it was incredibly gentle.
He really looks like He Rufei, Li Kuang thought silently in his heart. To be more precise, he looks like He Rufei in the past, the He Rufei of that year.
"How are you?" Li Kuang walked over.
He Yan raised his head and looked at him, his lips curled up, "It's okay, just a little tired."
He and his elite soldiers had not rested all night, so Li Kuang said, "Let's take a break."
He Yan nodded, stood up, and thought of something else. He said to Li Kuang, "For these women who were rescued, please ask someone to find out if they have any family members in the city. If they do, please ask their family members to take them home. If they don't have any family members, please take good care of them."
Li Kuang frowned slightly and said nothing.
He Yan seemed to have seen what he was thinking, and said calmly: "No matter what Lord Li thinks, they are all people of Wei and citizens of Rundu. Since you are the general of the city, you can't just sit back and watch. The duty of those on the battlefield is to protect the people in every inch of the country, regardless of their wealth or status, and regardless of what they have experienced."
She stared at Li Kuang steadily, as if insisting that he give her an answer. Li Kuang paused and said, "I know."
He Yan nodded to him: "Thank you."
She went down the tower by herself.
…
He Yan lived in the house arranged by Zhao Shiming. Now that she was Wu Anlang, she could use the privileges of Wu Anlang to live in a room by herself.
She asked the servant in the house for a basin of hot water and went in. The servant quickly prepared the hot water and brought it in. He Yan locked the door, took off the mask, and pulled down his clothes.
She was wounded on her back, shoulders, and arms, some by knife scratches and some by arrows. Last night she was at the forefront and burned the food of the Utos. There were hundreds of arrows, so it was impossible for her to escape unscathed. Now she was doing well.
She soaked the handkerchief in hot water and rubbed the wounds little by little. The wounds on her back and shoulders were the deepest, while the wound on her waist was not much worse - thanks to Lin Shuanghe's scar removal and skin regeneration cream.
This time when she came to Rundu, she brought the remaining scar-removing and skin-regenerating cream with her. She had just used up all the cream on the wounds on her shoulders and waist, and there was no more left in the box.
After changing into clean clothes, she looked at herself in the mirror. The young man in the mirror had a pale face. The biggest advantage of the mask and black clothes was that the soldiers could not see the blood and wounds, nor could they see her face clearly. She was always energetic, always moving forward, and always the one to boost morale and stabilize the military's mind.
He Yan looked at her arm. Her sleeves were rolled up halfway, revealing a knife wound on her arm. However, the medicine powder she brought with her had been used up. She was about to wrap it up with white cloth when someone knocked on the door. It was a woman's voice: "Master Xiao He."
He Yan said, "Please come in."
The person who came in was a young and beautiful girl, with a smile on her face and a small dimple on her left cheek, which made her look more charming and lively. She walked over and handed He Yan a round bottle, and said with a smile: "When Master Xiao He came in just now, he asked the servants for hot water. I guess Master Xiao He was injured. This is the golden sore medicine that the master usually uses. I brought it here." Her eyes fell on the scar on He Yan's arm, and she exclaimed, "Ah", "Master Xiao He, are you really injured?"
He Yan smiled and said, "It's just a minor injury, nothing serious."
"That won't do." The girl walked forward in a familiar manner, wanting to get closer, but seemed to sense the special status of the man, so she didn't dare to get too close. She stood aside and comforted him, "If you don't treat a minor injury, it will turn into a major one. My old man was like that. Sometimes he got injured on the battlefield, but he didn't bother to take care of it. Later, it became an old injury, and it was hard to heal."
He Yan looked at her young and beautiful face, and was touched. She knew this girl. She was Li Kuang's favorite concubine, named Qi Luo. When she and Li Kuang were dealing with the Western Qiang people, Qi Luo was very familiar with her. It was because this girl was particularly smart and pleasing, and she knew how to please Li Kuang. At that time, He Yan thought in her heart that if she were a man, she would probably dote on such a girl wholeheartedly.
Qiluo was only sixteen years old at the time, very young, with a round face. Three or four years later, she grew up a little, her childishness disappeared, and her round face became an oval face, but the dimple on her left cheek and her sweet smile remained unchanged.
"Master Xiaohe, why are you looking at me?" Qiluo touched her face, rolled her eyes, and said crisply, "I am good-looking, and I am the most favored by my master."
He Yan couldn't help but laugh out loud. Qi Luo loved to brag about this back then, and she still loves to brag about it now. Just this sentence made her feel like she was back in the past.
"What are you laughing at?" Qiluo asked, "Am I really ugly?"
"No, no," He Yan waved his hands, "I just remembered some past events."
Qiluo was so cute and smart back then that He Yan couldn't help but treat her as his own sister. Although she had a biological sister named He Xinying, due to the complicated relationship of the He family, He Xinying and Qiluo were not close. At that time, Qiluo was not worthy of seeing Qiluo's beauty and her clever and well-behaved character. If such a girl wanted to get married, she should find a young man of similar age. As for Li Kuang, it was not that He Yan looked down on this colleague, but Li Kuang was old enough to be Qiluo's father, but he was serious and rough, not considerate, and it was unknown what Qiluo saw in him.
At that time, Qi Luo held her cheek and laughed, and said to He Yan: "Everyone in my family is a servant. Deputy General He, how could a talented and handsome young man marry a servant? If you marry another servant, you will still be a servant after giving birth to a child. And being a servant means you have to rely on others for your life. If you accidentally offend your master, you will lose your life. What's the good of that?"
"It's better to follow the master. I'll have enough food and warm clothes. I only need to please the master, and I won't be afraid of being bullied by others. What you said is all empty talk. I just regard this as a job. Being the master's concubine is easier than doing the jobs you mentioned. Besides, the master is a straightforward person and doesn't like to beat around the bush. I don't have to scheme with him if I follow him. It's good."
"Deputy General He, you and the old master are both heroes who protect the people of Wei. As the old master's concubine, I am a hero's woman. I think there is nothing wrong with this. I am living a much better life now than before. I don't have any wishes in this life. I just hope that in ten years, I can still be the old master's favorite concubine. I hope that in ten years, I will not be old and ugly, and no other vixen will come to compete with me for the old master's favor and sympathy. If so, I will be very grateful to the goddess Guanyin."
He Yan thought at that time that this girl was quite insightful. She thought that everyone got what they wanted. Everyone had their own ideas. As long as Qiluo was happy in her life, that was enough.
Now it seems that ten years have passed, but after three years, it seems that she is still Li Kuang's favorite concubine, and she is always with him in Rundu.
She smiled and sprinkled the powder Qiluo brought on the wound on her arm. Qiluo looked at her curiously and couldn't help asking, "Master Xiaohe, you look young, but how come you are like my old man, and you didn't say a word when applying the medicine? Don't you warriors who fight in the war feel pain?"
"It's not that it doesn't hurt," He Yan said, "I think it must have been very painful when your master applied the medicine, but I was embarrassed to shout it out in front of the girl."
Qiluo laughed: "Master Xiaohe, what you say is really interesting."
He Yan finished applying the powder and returned the bottle to Qiluo, saying, "Miss Qiluo, thank you for the medicine."
Qiluo took the bottle but did not leave immediately. She just looked at He Yan and said, "Master Xiao He, it's just some medicine. You don't need to thank me. I should be the one to thank you."
"Thank you for what?"
"Thank you for coming up with the idea last night to burn the Uto people's food and straw, which helped us vent our anger. Thank you also for saving those women."
She lowered her head and smiled helplessly, "I know those women who were abducted by the Wutuo people. If it weren't for you last night, they would never have been able to return to Rundu alive. No one would care about their lives. Even if the old man led the troops himself, he wouldn't care about their lives, but you are different." She looked at He Yan, her eyes sparkling, "You brought them back, without missing a single one. I originally thought, how could there be an official who was so young to be appointed by His Majesty? You must have gotten some advantage on the battlefield before."
"Now I don't think so. You are different from them. You are a good person and a real hero."