Chapter 216: The Camp [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
Even though the soldier was an ordinary person, he could feel that mysterious "killing aura." When he came to his senses, he was shocked to find that his back was covered in cold sweat.
He spoke extremely softly, afraid of being overheard by the enemy in the shadows.
"Sir, would you like to take another route...?"
Both options are actually risky.
There's only one road nearby.
If they turned back and chose another route, they feared encountering the rebels. But continuing on this path, they worried about facing dangers no less than those of the rebels. It was a real dilemma. The soldier was filled with regret, thankful that Qi Shan hadn't blamed him.
Unexpectedly, Qi Shan raised her hand to stop her: "No need, continue."
The soldier's throat tightened, he swallowed hard, and glanced hesitantly and fearfully in the direction from which the arrow had come. That was the closest he had ever come to death. Qi Shan reassured him, saying calmly, "It's alright!"
Qi Shan did not return to the carriage, but sat directly outside the carriage.
Inside the carriage, Shen Tang asked what was going on outside.
Qi Shan replied, "It's nothing."
Shen Tang was not satisfied with this response.
That arrow had come with tremendous force; it certainly didn't seem like a "nothing to worry about." So, she turned her gaze to Gu Chi, her eyes questioning. Gu Chi's scholarly approach was practically the bane of any assassin; all concealment, lurking, and assassination attempts were rendered utterly futile!
And it turned out just as she had guessed.
Gu Chi had indeed discovered that someone was hiding in the woods long ago.
He mouthed silently, "There are a few henchmen in the woods."
Shen Tang was relieved and continued to rest with her eyes closed.
She needed to hurry and recover some of her literary skills so that she wouldn't be unable to help if they encountered any troublesome dangers—of the group, the two soldiers were only slightly better off than ordinary people; Gu Chi looked sickly and needed medicine to stay alive; Qi Shan looked unwell, probably exhausted from trying to escape Xiaocheng; and Commandant Yang was seriously injured and unconscious…
After careful consideration, I realized that I am the only one who is truly reliable.
Gu Chi, forced to hear Shen Lang's innermost thoughts: "..."
What do you mean by "he looks sickly"?
What do you mean by him relying on herbal medicine to stay alive?
Gu Chi secretly curled his lip.
Outside, soldiers were carefully driving the carriage.
The distance of a hundred or so feet felt like he had run several miles. He was on edge, his heart pounding with anxiety. Fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead without his noticing, and his eyes darted around uncontrollably, fearing that another cold arrow might suddenly appear.
result--
Instead of encountering a stray arrow, I encountered several corpses.
The corpses were mostly mutilated, with severed limbs scattered nearby. Their clothes varied in age, but they appeared to be low-ranking soldiers from some faction. After walking a while longer, the soldiers saw several headless corpses; judging by their attire, they were all rebels!
The soldier was so nervous that he could barely hold onto the reins.
He whispered, "Sir, this—"
Despite seeing so many gruesome corpses and the horrific sight of severed limbs and remains scattered everywhere, Qi Shan remained completely unmoved.
He said, "We must have stumbled into some kind of battlefield."
The rebels suddenly changed their strategy of besieging but not attacking, and instead assembled a large army to launch a fierce attack on Xiaocheng, even deploying a deadly force like Gong Xichou. There must be something fishy going on. It seems the crux of the problem lies here—the matter of the Imperial Seal has alarmed Zheng Qiao, and Zheng Qiao has taken action.
However, they underestimated the ruthlessness and decisiveness of the rebels.
They also underestimated the speed of Zheng Qiao's actions.
Those soldiers on the ground should belong to the forces that came to reinforce Xiaocheng, but they misjudged the strength of the rebels—the rebels split into several groups, sending troops to delay the forces that came to reinforce, while directing the remaining forces to attack the city, and at such a rapid pace...
The soldier trembled with nervousness: "Then, what should we do..."
Qi Shan said, "Don't be afraid, keep going forward."
They were civilians who fled from Xiaocheng, not rebels.
What's there to be afraid of?
The soldier was genuinely afraid. He muttered timidly, "I'm just afraid of being caught by those damned devils and having my head chopped off to make up for my military merits..."
This kind of thing is obviously prohibited on the surface.
However, some people do this in private.
To climb the ranks, you need military merit.
But heads are practically on the enemy's necks; they're not so easy to take, and there's even a risk of being killed in retaliation. So some soldiers liked to use innocent civilian heads to fill the numbers. The number of fake heads wasn't large, but even one or two still meant one or two lives!
Qi Shan chuckled and said, "It would be best if they dared to come."
He wouldn't mind hanging a few more human heads on the carriage as a deterrent!
After traveling some more, probably approaching the center of the battlefield, they saw more and more corpses, and in the distance, they could see a young general running towards them. The soldier leading the way, carrying a bow and arrows, ran wildly to block their path.
Upon closer inspection, it became clear that the young general was not a young general at all.
He was a middle-aged man of unusual stature, not particularly tall or burly, with slightly pointed features and a monkey-like face. He wasn't handsome, but his eyes were sharp, and he still exuded the killing intent that lingered from the battlefield. He said, "Halt!"
The sound was slightly shrill.
The soldier quickly pulled hard on the reins: "Whoa—"
The middle-aged man shouted sternly, "Who are you?"
Qi Shan stood up, dusted off the thin layer of dust on his sleeves, calmly got out of the carriage, and bowed: "I am a commoner who fled from Xiaocheng."
The middle-aged man clearly didn't quite believe it.
He rode his horse forward a few steps, looking down at Qi Shan from his elevated position.
His gaze swept over the literary monogram at his waist, and his expression softened somewhat—in this era, literary scholars and martial artists held high status and could enjoy the benefits that came with this identity when they went out—however, the middle-aged man still did not let his guard down.
He then asked, "Who's in the car?"
A martial artist with exceptionally sharp senses can detect the number of living people in the carriage and their condition through their heart rate, breathing rate, and other information. If Qi Shan deliberately conceals this, he could turn on her and kill her in the next second.
During combat, it is strictly forbidden for unidentified people to approach.
Qi Shan: "One is my master, one is the accountant hired by my master, one is the family's martial arts instructor, and the other is a guard."
The middle-aged man said again, "Let them come out."
"We encountered danger on our escape, and now..."
Before she could finish speaking, Shen Tang lifted the carriage curtain, bent down, and jumped out of the car.
Gu Chi also came down to watch the excitement.
Lieutenant Yang was severely injured and unconscious. Most of the cloths wrapped around his body were soaked in blood, rendering him unable to move, let alone get down. The middle-aged man sensed that he was the weakest among them and didn't force him. However, upon noticing that both Shen Tang and Gu Chi had the Wenxin brocade monogram on their waists, his pupils changed slightly, and his expression became subtle.
Literary figures are not like cabbages sold on the street.
I encountered three of them at once...
He thought for a moment, then dismounted and returned the greeting with clasped hands.
His eyes darted between Shen Tang and Gu Chi.
He asked Qi Shan, "Which one of you is your master?"
Shen Tang said, "It's me."
The middle-aged man was slightly surprised upon hearing this.
He seemed surprised that this skinny little brat was in charge, but he didn't underestimate Shen Tang because of his age. For someone so young to have two literary masters accompanying him, it meant either his own talent was extraordinary, or his family background was remarkable!
Then look at Shen Tang's appearance and demeanor...
Despite his simple attire, his clear-headedness, composed demeanor, and relaxed, open-minded air suggested he was not someone raised in an ordinary family. The middle-aged man mentally scrutinized Shen Tang, making a very good first impression.
Gu Chi, who was forced to listen to a barrage of flattery: "..."
Is the person this person is referring to the same person he knows?
Middle-aged man: "Hello, young man."
Shen Tang responded amiably, "Greetings, General."
"Did you really escape from Xiaocheng?"
Shen Tang replied, "Yes."
The middle-aged man then asked, "How's the battle going over there?"
Shen Tang's expression visibly darkened. The middle-aged man's heart skipped a beat when he saw this, and he hurriedly asked again. Shen Tang took a deep breath, suppressing the thoughts surging in her heart, and said in a low voice, "When we fled, Xiaocheng had already been captured by the rebel army of the Prince of Zhi."
The middle-aged man exclaimed in surprise, "How could this be?"
Shen Tang looked at the other person with a puzzled expression: "What do you mean by that, General?"
The middle-aged man did some calculations for Shen Tang.
It turned out that the rebels had deployed most of their forces to ambush the various reinforcements, leaving them with insufficient troops to capture Xiaocheng, and even if they could, it would take three to five days. Could the Xiaocheng garrison, with its fortified city, not withstand a rebel force of twelve or thirteen thousand?
Attacking a city is not the same as defending it.
The attacking side is already at a disadvantage, and to capture a fortified city, it needs at least twice the number of troops.
Just as Shen Tang was about to speak, Qi Shan spoke up.
"Because he was defeated by one person in a duel, losing three matches in a row..."
The battle is crucial to morale.
Morale is crucial to the outcome of a war.
In a duel between two generals, it's entirely different for one side to win three consecutive matches versus for one side to have a single general win three consecutive matches. This is why, even after Shen Xiaolangjun depleted nearly half of the rebel army's morale, the rebels were still able to conjure five giant catapults from that morale when they launched their final assault!
This situation also means that the high-end combat forces of both sides are completely one-sided; otherwise, the rebels would have had to fight for two or three days to capture Xiaocheng. The middle-aged man, upon hearing this, opened his mouth slightly in surprise and remained silent for a long while.
Without warning, he suddenly flew into a rage.
He uttered a string of strange syllables.
It must be a local dialect...
Judging from the tone of voice, it was mostly swearing.
Shen Tang was right; the middle-aged man was indeed swearing, and the words he used were quite offensive. Qi Shan was initially worried that these words would offend Shen Tang's ears, but when she looked down, she saw that the young man looked confused and clearly didn't understand, so she was relieved.
He explained, "It's not that General Xiaocheng is incompetent..."
The middle-aged man retorted angrily, "How can it not be?"
Qi Shan said, "A person who fights as a general must have at least the middle thirteenth rank of martial prowess, and must have broken through the shackles during the fight..."
Xiaocheng is an unfortunate place that has been repeatedly ravaged.
What kind of background or heritage could it possibly have?
Those at the thirteenth rank or higher are truly indiscriminate slaughter!
Qi Shan saw the middle-aged man's expression change slightly and said, "The commander of the Xiaocheng garrison, that Captain Yang, even dared to challenge a general of a higher rank, but he still couldn't defeat him. That man's name is 'Gong Xichou,' and he's incredibly talented despite his young age..."
The middle-aged man replied with a humph.
He seemed to disdain the praise expressed in Qi Shan's words.
"Alright, you guys will have to make the trip with me first."
Shen Tang asked, "Why?"
They were just passing by.
The middle-aged man said, "Naturally, it's for the sake of caution. Our army is currently setting up camp nearby, and we recently repelled the invading lackeys of the Pig King. Who knows if the people coming here at this time are spies sent by the enemy? Please cooperate, young man."
His attitude was very firm.
Other soldiers who were clearing the battlefield gradually gathered around.
This makes it clear that they have no choice but to go, whether they want to or not.
Shen Tang secretly asked Qi Shan for her opinion with her eyes.
Qi Shan nodded.
"In that case, please send someone to guide us, General."
The middle-aged man pulled on the reins and turned the horse around.
He said, "Come with me."
joke--
How could ordinary soldiers possibly keep an eye on three literary scholars?
Only he could handle it personally.
Shen Tang told Qi Shan to return to the carriage while he stayed outside, but Qi Shan refused. However, given the presence of the middle-aged man, Shen Tang, as the "master," couldn't openly disobey. In the end, Shen Tang summoned his long-unused motorcycle and jumped onto the mule's back.
She cupped her hands in greeting to the middle-aged man, saying, "General, please."
The middle-aged man glanced at the motorcycle.
He asked, "This isn't a horse, is it?"
As is widely known, the literati of Wenxin did not ride horses.
No matter how exquisite and beautiful Shen Tang's motorcycle is, it is still a mule. At most, it is taller, stronger, more muscular, and has more slender limbs than an ordinary mule. It also has pretty ornaments hanging around its neck, and even the reins are made of thick, woven red rope.
Red rope, copper bell, white mule.
Shen Tang patted the somewhat enthusiastic motorcycle.
He laughed and said, "A motorcycle is a mule."
Although they were mules, their running speed and explosive power were in no way inferior to those of well-bred warhorses. Furthermore, mules possessed astonishing stamina, even surpassing warhorses in endurance. The middle-aged man muttered under his breath, giving Chen Tang a strange look.
Literary figures are rather fastidious.
People like Qishan would rather walk than ride a mule.
Shen Tang's carefree demeanor made him doubt his previous judgment—could he not be a scion of a prestigious family, but a rising star with astonishing talent?
Following the middle-aged man, Shen Tang and his group vaguely saw wisps of smoke rising in the distance. As they drew closer, they could make out the outline of a makeshift camp. The camp was not small, and the soldiers patrolled in an orderly fashion, the clanging of their armor sending a shiver down their spines.
She asked, "This camp... something seems a bit strange..."
The middle-aged man asked, "What's strange?"
Setting up camp is an art.
He was very satisfied with his results.
Shen Tang's words clearly touched a nerve with him.
She pointed to the strange spot.
"...Why is there such a clear distinction between the two places?"
They're completely different art styles.
The middle-aged man looked over and understood.
He said, "Because it is the camp of two forces."
Shen Tang: "Two sides?"
"They were all ordered to come out and punish the wicked and rebellious traitors. When they met, they went together so that they could help each other."
In fact, there were more than just these two forces heading towards Xiaocheng. Several other groups had been ambushed and blocked by the rebels along the way and had not yet joined forces. As for the groups that were furthest away and the slowest, even if they dawdled, they would arrive in three to five days.
Where are all these talented people now?
Shen Tang looked up and saw several large flags fluttering in the wind at the entrance of the camp, with the character "谷" (valley) embroidered on them.
The camp was laid out in an orderly manner, subtly incorporating the principles of battle formations.
Clearly, they were not a disorganized ragtag army.
Before they even entered, another general in full armor rode up to them on horseback and called out, "Ninth Brother, how was the haul?"
|ω)
Sigh, I'll try my best to give each chapter a title...
But it's really hard.
(End of this chapter)
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