Chapter 1344: The Bait is Salty, the Hook is Straight (Part 2) [Taking a break]
Considering that Luo San's peak condition cannot be maintained for too long and his power will naturally weaken, he will definitely become restless before our side. For this reason, our side must act quickly. Therefore, Shen Tang finalized the plan and began making arrangements on the same day.
The night was dark and windy, and the stillness of the night was profound.
A dark figure hurriedly darted through the deep mountains and dense forests.
"Ah—" The shadowy figure stumbled, his foot slipping, and he tripped over something again, tumbling forward twice. The force of the fall caused his knees and elbows to graze and bleed from the rough gravel. Ignoring his bleeding wounds and the suffocating feeling of his chest burning, he scrambled to his feet. As the flickering flames closed in behind him, the shadowy figure was quickly forced into a corner with nowhere to retreat.
"Let's give it our all!"
The dark figure peered over the cliff, gritted its teeth, and jumped off.
Only when the footsteps faded into the distance did the dark figure, his hands scratching blood from the cliff face, laboriously climb up. He dared not linger, glancing up briefly at the moon's position to confirm his direction before continuing his escape. As the morning mist began to fall, this sleepless night and near-death experience led him to be stopped by a scout. Recognizing the scout's attire, the dark figure hastily pulled a blood-stained token from his robes: "Take me to your prefect!"
He had barely finished speaking when he collapsed and fell unconscious on the spot.
When he regained consciousness, he was in an unfamiliar environment.
Looking around, it was clearly a place for imprisoning prisoners. He first confirmed that he was still alive, then groped his entire body for his belongings. Only then did he realize that he had been stripped down to his thin undergarments, and all his other items were gone—had he been taken back?
No, he clearly saw Sugina scouts before he lost consciousness.
"Guards! Guards! Take me to your prefect! I have urgent business, come quickly!" He kept banging on the cage, making noise, and it took a while to attract someone's attention. When he saw the person who came, the breath he had been holding in his throat finally came out.
However, the person he met was not Governor Sugina.
It was Luo San, the Commandant of Shan Yong County.
Luo San had received word early that the scouts had apprehended a suspicious man during their patrol, but it turned out to be someone he knew. When the man saw Luo San, his muscles tensed almost imperceptibly: "What, it's you here?"
His gaze fell on what was behind Luo San.
All those who came with Luo San were unfamiliar faces.
He questioned Luo San: "Where is the prefect?"
Did he die defending the city, or was he killed by Luo San?
Luo San could tell at a glance that he was judging a gentleman by his own petty standards, and didn't want to argue: "Why ask him? He's still alive."
This answer successfully lowered the man's guard.
Luo San asked him, "How did you end up in such a sorry state?"
The man didn't want to answer him, but the situation was beyond his control, and now was not the time to dwell on personal grudges: "We were ambushed on the way to transport grain, and were captured. We only managed to escape last night."
Upon hearing this, Luo San became wary: "Oh?"
His voice trailed off, his expression revealing undisguised suspicion. What a coincidence! Not too early, not too late, but precisely at this crucial moment to escape? Could he have been turned by the enemy? Even if he wasn't turned, his escape might have been a deliberate act by the enemy to lure him into a trap.
How could a man not understand Luo San's unspoken message?
He said, embarrassed and annoyed, "Robert, you don't need to be like this."
Luo San quietly nipped the man's suspicions in the bud.
This man was the brother-in-law of the previous prefect, and had served in the court for many years. He and the current prefect were close relatives, uncle and nephew. Out of pity for his nephew, the man exerted great effort in court negotiations. Despite the domestic famine and the unfavorable war situation in Sugyong County, he still managed to secure a batch of grain for Sugyong County and personally delivered it. In this respect, he was indeed unlikely to have been turned against his cause.
"Could you tell me in detail how you escaped?"
The man retorted, "Let me see him first."
Luo San questioned his motives, and he was also worried that Luo San was deceiving him into killing his nephew. He wanted to see it with his own eyes to be at ease.
"laugh--"
Luo San scoffed and ordered his men to drag the prefect out of the dungeon.
The dungeon was dark, cramped, and damp, but the prefect didn't suffer much. In fact, his early to bed and early to rise had given him some vitality, and his face had become fuller. The reunion of uncle and nephew inevitably involved a tearful embrace, but Luo San watched coldly, and the prefect didn't take the opportunity to complain that Luo San had imprisoned him. The man wiped away his tears and said, "Whether you believe it or not, I truly escaped by my own means, even at the cost of half my trusted men... The stolen grain was all stored fifteen li outside Qiaodan County in the neighboring prefecture."
This place was also the location of the enemy's granary.
Luo San's heart skipped a beat, and he softened his voice, saying, "This could also be a trap set by the enemy to lure us into a snare. Based on my experience dealing with them several times, they are extremely strict in guarding prisoners... It's not that I don't trust you, but this is a trap..."
Too obvious.
There's a 90% chance it's a trap; they're practically luring him in.
The man said, "...Before I fled, there was no unusual activity inside or outside the granary, which means the grain was still there. Regardless of whether there was an ambush or not, the grain was real. Several hours had passed, and the enemy wouldn't have had time to move the grain. You should consider what to do."
Luo San closed his eyes and pondered for a moment.
Those who are in the know understand their own situation. His peak condition can only be maintained for ten days. After that, he will be half exhausted, and after another ten days, he will regress to the eleventh rank of Right Guard. He doesn't have much time left. Food supplies in Sugina County are exhausted, and the army is so desperate that they have to kill their warhorses.
Luo San exhaled a breath of stale air from his chest.
The idea of looting and plundering civilians to replenish military supplies was temporarily abandoned.
In fact, if the food supply problem still couldn't be solved, he could consider transforming from a regular army into a civilian armed force, taking the route of bandits, and following Shen Tang in raids. They could disperse into smaller groups among the people, hide deep in the mountains, and occasionally surface to strike enemy forces.
While this method may prolong life, it violates morality.
The man's arrival gave him another option.
A choice made even when you know it's a trap.
Even if they couldn't steal the grain, burning it would still hurt the enemy. An eye for an eye, after all, the enemy had taken over Suginaga County's granary; they would naturally want to take over the enemy's granary as well. These thoughts swirled in his mind before he finally made his decision.
"Pass down the order to reorganize the troops."
Who cares about mountains of knives or seas of fire? Let's just go for it and see what happens.
Qiaodan County wasn't far from them; it would only take the scholars and warriors a little over two hours to cross the mountains. Of course, a normal forced march couldn't go this far, as it would more than double the time. Around midnight, Luo San's group reached the vicinity of the granary.
Shen Tang knew Luo San was in a hurry, but she didn't know he was in such a hurry.
The grain inspector was released no sooner than he arrived with his troops.
Don't ask how she knew the news so quickly when the scouts hadn't even brought it back. Just look up at the sky, and the giant ring that almost covered the entire granary says it all: "I have a feeling that a dragon warrior is going to emerge from the ring any second."
There's no Dragon Warrior, but Old Deng has one.
|ω`)
Today is my cousin's birthday, and my aunt treated us to a big meal. I drank some alcohol... and it had a strong aftereffect, though I didn't feel it at the time... but I felt dizzy when I got back...
That's only half of today's update; I'll finish it tomorrow.
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