Chapter 813: A Grand Gift (Part 1) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
A colossal wave crashed down, the surging waters sweeping away all the earthenware jars and extinguishing the terrifying flames beneath them. The living people inside the jars were swallowed up, managing only a single scream. The only saving grace was that this surge of water was not sustainable.
The little girl choked on her water unexpectedly.
The icy water enveloped her completely, greatly relieving the burning sensation on her skin. Propelled by the current, she traveled a considerable distance before crashing into a camp in the path. Throughout this ordeal, she remained curled up, her hands covering her head, holding her breath.
"Cough cough cough—"
As the water that had soaked her cheeks receded, the moment her nose touched the fresh air, she greedily gasped for air, coughing and patting her chest. She had no time to think about anything else; only one thought occupied her mind—run! Run as fast as you can! Run as far as you can!
But her mental euphoria couldn't overcome the weakness in her limbs. She couldn't even stand up and run away, let alone push herself up with her hands. To make matters worse, the burning sensation on her skin returned, causing her to cry out in pain. Despair and helplessness enveloped her completely, leaving her no room to breathe.
boom--
The shockwave from the explosion swept overhead, carrying sand and gravel. She screamed, covered her head with her hands, and tried to curl up into a ball.
Her luck wasn't good; being small and light, she managed to avoid the sand and gravel, but not the powerful blast of air. She was forced to roll several dozen feet, her knees and elbows covered in fine, dense scrapes. It was terrifying, absolutely terrifying!
She buried her head between her arms.
I kept praying in my heart that the noise would stop soon.
Grandma, may your spirit in heaven protect her and let her live!
However, her prayers did not reach the heavens; the shouts of killing not only did not decrease, but became louder and more frequent.
puff--
A large pool of warm blood splattered onto her body.
She shuddered as if burned.
Then a headless corpse lay beside her, a scar the size of a bowl facing her! The intense visual impact made her throat tighten, and her stomach, already stuffed with mud, churned with acid. She suppressed her nausea and carefully moved her frail body, trying to hide beneath the headless corpse. Above her, the dripping, viscous blood gradually lost its warmth.
It went from warm to icy cold.
The water flow changed from a jet to a steady drip.
Blood streamed down her cheeks, past her lips and jaw, meandering down her neck and collarbone. The sticky sensation was as uncomfortable as when she first picked up maggots from a rotting corpse. But to survive, she had to endure it and suppress it.
You can't move, you can't shout, you can't cry...
Perhaps she could survive here by pretending to be a corpse.
The noise around her terrified her; each second felt like an eternity. All she could do was close her eyes and silently repeat her grandmother's name and the numbers in her mind. She tried to stay conscious, but she was simply too exhausted—physically exhausted and mentally at her limit.
As consciousness faded, the sounds around me also receded into the distance.
She was awakened by a gust of cool wind.
The wind carried away the heat from her body, and goosebumps erupted on her skin.
She opened her eyes, which were glued shut with blood, and judged the time by the dim light. Had she finally escaped?
The thought had barely crossed my mind when I heard footsteps.
Someone is approaching!
She stopped pushing the body away, held her breath, and hoped the man would leave quickly and not notice her. But fate seemed to ignore her prayers; the pair of blood-soaked boots stopped nearby.
At this moment, the girl's heart was filled with despair.
"Oh—another one faking death?" A muffled, mocking voice came from above. The owner of the combat boots had a pleasant voice, but to her, it sounded like the summons of the Black and White Impermanence.
She's finished!
She can't escape now!
She's going to see her grandma!
Overwhelmed with grief, the little girl watched the nightmarish life of the past six months, a life lived like dancing on a knife's edge, rush before her eyes. She had survived countless deaths, only to fall here. She knew all too well how these soldiers cleared the battlefield: any enemy soldier still breathing was finished off, and only those with intact limbs and no injuries were eligible to be taken prisoner. If food was scarce, even the able-bodied were killed!
Is there any war these days that doesn't have a food shortage?
She sobbed softly as she awaited the piercing weapon.
Instead of the expected excruciating pain, the headless corpse that had been covering her was kicked away. Without its weight, her body felt suddenly lighter. She was stunned, and so was the other person, who then crouched down and tilted their head to look at her.
A strikingly beautiful face, with an aggressively alluring quality, suddenly assaulted her senses. The wearer's face was fair and flawless, but the dried bloodstains at the corners of her eyes added a touch of seductive allure. When had she ever seen such a beauty?
The other person asked, "Why is it so small?"
A small, thin bundle.
At first, Shen Tang thought it was an enemy soldier trying to feign death under a corpse. The person's breathing was weak, and Shen Tang was about to end the suffering with a sword when she quickly realized the sound was wrong. Lifting the cover, she found it was actually a child, whose gender was indistinguishable.
Shen Tang withdrew his killing intent and weapons.
The child was dressed in tattered clothes, his sleeves were missing, his arms were covered in mud and abrasions, and the exposed skin was also covered in burns. Seeing this, Shen Tang recalled the fleeting glance she had given him when he passed the "Flood of the Seven Armies" and guessed about 70-80% of the situation.
"Oh, what a pitiful child, but you're safe now." Shen Tang smiled warmly, slipped her hand under the child's armpits, and picked him up. "With me here, you and the others are saved. You were terrified just now, weren't you?"
Shen Tang has some experience in coaxing children.
He pulled out a piece of candy: "Want some?"
The child instinctively opened his mouth and put the candy that was pressed against his lips into his mouth, the sweet taste lingering and spreading on his taste buds. As several people wearing armor, with pieces of flesh hanging from their plates, approached, his relaxed nerves tightened again.
Shen Tang noticed her movement, let her sit next to him, and turned to ask in a deep voice, "How is the headcount?"
"My lord..." The other party glanced at the little girl, then winked at Chen Tang, "Could we speak in private?"
Shen Tang instructed Yang Ying to look after the child.
"Dawei, what happened?"
Zhao Wei suppressed his anger and said with red eyes, "My lord can tell at a glance... These people are truly inhuman, too ruthless!"
Shen Tang was led to see a place.
Even with a strong heart, Shen Tang felt a little uncomfortable at just one glance, quickly looking away and suppressing the nausea churning in her throat.
While Zhao Wei and his team were handling the aftermath of the battle and preparing to dispose of the enemy soldiers' corpses, they inadvertently unearthed several large pits filled with countless fragments of white bone. The bones at the top still bore traces of cooked flesh, and the maggots and stench made the soldiers who dug the pits vomit. These were all human remains, not a single piece intact; they had all been chopped into pieces.
Soon, they found out why.
In a secluded spot, they found a large amount of cooked meat that hadn't been processed yet, bones piled up haphazardly, and unused organs piled high, attracting swarms of flies. Where the rest had gone, or rather, where it was headed, was obvious to anyone.
During the headcount, in addition to a few captured soldiers, there were also hundreds of civilians.
The child that Shen Tang pulled from under the corpses was also one of the food supplies that had been tricked into coming here. Shen Tang listened to Zhao Wei's report with a seemingly expressionless face, but in reality, his mind was buzzing. If Shen Tang had led his troops to launch the sneak attack any later, there probably wouldn't have been any survivors.
"Damn it, is this what Qin Gongsu calls a grand ceremony?" Shen Tang cursed under her breath at Qin Li, who was far away at Chaoli Pass. Seeing that Zhao Wei was still there, she waved her hand to dismiss him, "Dawei, go and get busy. Send someone to dispose of all the bodies and bury them properly."
Zhao Wei replied, "Yes."
But he only took a small step.
Shen Tang asked her, "Is there anything else?"
"My lord, Uncle Qin is truly a good person." Zhao Wei blinked, not wanting her lord to misunderstand Qin Li.
Shen Tang said, "I didn't say he was a bad person."
She just felt that these literary figures were all very secretive.
Previously, she had sent Yun Ce to Tianhai to rescue people, and that very night Qin Li came to sneak into her boudoir... no, to be precise, it was Cui Xiao who lingered outside her tent. Shen Tang, who had already gone to bed, could only suppress her morning grumpiness and, still wearing her clothes, pulled Cui Xiao inside.
[Shanxiao, what can't be said in broad daylight?]
Fortunately, Cui Xiao had a slight presence buff, otherwise, if a man like him were to linger outside her tent, wouldn't rumors be flying the next day, saying that Shen Youli was taking advantage of her own family and making advances on her subordinates? Does that mean the lord's integrity is no integrity at all?
Cui Xiao was nearly knocked off balance.
He straightened his hair ornament: "It is not that I wish to disturb Your Majesty's peaceful sleep, but someone wishes to see Your Majesty, yet cannot appear in broad daylight."
Shen Tang: [Can't come out during the day? Is it a ghost?]
She has a severe temper when she wakes up, and her speech is particularly sharp.
Cui Xiaodao: [My lord will know once he sees it.]
Then, a second man entered Shen Tang's tent.
She watched blankly as the man removed his disguise, revealing a face that wasn't entirely unfamiliar—ah, if the paparazzi came, wouldn't they be using headlines like "Breaking News! The Prefect of Longwu County Meets with a Scholar Under Wu Zhaode's Command; the Two Have a Long-standing Collusion"?
(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
It's true, the person who came was actually Qin Gongsu!
Suppressing her morning grumpiness, Shen Tang asked, "What brings Gong Su here?"
This guy comes at night, not during the day. Isn't he afraid Wu Zhaode will find out and accuse him of having an affair? He'll be labeled a lover for no reason? Despite his inner turmoil, Shen Tang sensed something was amiss. Previously, it was only Zhao Feng who approached him, representing only Zhao Feng and perhaps his elite troops.
Now Qin Li is stepping forward, representing a group.
The two have completely different meanings.
Qin Li didn't waste any words: [Here's a generous gift for Shen Jun.]
Shen Tang raised an eyebrow: [A grand gift?]
For a split second, she almost blurted out, "Which one of Zhao Feng's family?" but she held back, realizing this was no ordinary gift. Her heart pounded, and she couldn't help but wonder what Wu Xian had done this time to force Qin Li to rebel as well.
She then asked, "And then?"
Qin Li smiled and said, "After you've seen this generous gift, we can discuss other things. We should at least let Lord Shen see my sincerity, shouldn't we?"
Thus, this surprise attack took place.
An elite force of 800 men successfully destroyed Huang Lie's supply depot. Looking at the camp reduced to ashes in the fire, Shen Tang cursed inwardly—how could Huang Lie, that bastard, have such a shameless face, actually using her banner to deceive refugees into providing food?
"You deserve to be struck by lightning!"
|ω`)
Today, I was organizing the main storyline, arranging the ending of this volume, and connecting it with the next volume, "The Founding of the Nation." A relative called and delayed me for more than an hour (it was about some family matters, not directly related to me, but related to my brother; the relative came to talk to me and plead for leniency, which interrupted my train of thought). Sigh, I missed a thousand updates today; I'll make up for it tomorrow depending on the situation.
(End of this chapter)
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