Chapter 458 After the Cold Light, came Shang Ruyi!
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi hurriedly turned around.
Yuwen Qian, standing behind her, only paused for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his face as he silently put away the handkerchief.
However, no one on the city wall noticed them; everyone's eyes were eagerly fixed on the front.
Sure enough, in the scorching and dazzling light of the setting sun that almost ignited the entire earth, they finally saw a procession appear in the distance, slowly walking towards the city gate. The more than twenty huge waterwheels in the procession were clearly visible, and the leader was none other than Ma Xu.
The surrounding soldiers all breathed a sigh of relief, and some even cheered when they saw the heavy, slow-moving waterwheel.
"They're back!"
The water shortage in the city can finally be alleviated a little!
While everyone around her was overjoyed, Shang Ruyi was surprisingly calm amidst the jubilant atmosphere and blazing sunlight. She watched the slowly moving group without making a sound, her gaze sliding from Ma Xu at the head of the group to the very back, where Song Yu was walking.
It's Song Yu...
Just as everyone was cheering and excited, Yin Changyue and Dai Junliang were also overjoyed. Dai Junliang hurriedly sent an order down from the city wall: "Prepare, open the city gate!"
Upon hearing this, the soldiers below the city gate immediately removed the heavy, thick bolts from the gate.
With a creak, the massive city gate slowly opened.
Just as the troop approached the city gate and was about to enter, a loud horn rang out from the lush, dense forest on the riverbank!
The long and resonant sound of the horn stunned everyone present.
This is--
The next moment, the silent forest suddenly began to tremble, as if a hurricane had suddenly swept through, causing the leaves to shake violently and dust to rise. For a moment, it even blocked out the dazzling golden sunlight in front of them. The team transporting the water carts was also stunned and unable to react for a moment, until they saw a tall and familiar figure take the lead and rush out of the forest!
It's Xue Xian!
Clad in armor and wielding a crescent-shaped blade, he charged forward like a tiger unleashed from its cage. Before anyone in the group could even react, he had already cut down two of them with a single stroke.
"Xue Xian! It's Xue Xian!"
A shrill, terrified scream had barely escaped the ranks when it was immediately swallowed by a rumbling roar. Everyone's eyes widened as they saw more men following Xue Xian as they charged out of the dense forest, throwing the escorting water cart into complete chaos!
In an instant, panicked shouts rose from all sides, startling the entire Fufeng.
At this moment, Ma Xu, who was leading the group at the front, turned around and was even more shocked. Ever since leaving the city gate, he had been hoping to encounter Xue Xian's men so that he could kill the enemy and earn merit. Therefore, he had been keeping an eye on Hexi, wary of anyone rushing over from there. But he never expected that Xue Xian's men had stayed on their side all along, hiding in the dense forest.
Upon closer inspection, he discovered that all the horses ridden by Xue Xian's men had their muzzles covered and their hooves wrapped in cloth. No wonder they hadn't heard any unusual sounds from the dense forest for so long, and even the faint tremors they had dismissed as the sound of wind blowing through the trees.
These people, they actually managed to hold out for so long!
But at least we met!
Upon thinking this, Ma Xu felt a surge of excitement and immediately brandished his sword, spurring his horse forward to charge.
As if he had anticipated that Ma Xu would charge forward, Xue Xian cleaved a charging soldier in two spurts of blood into the air, staining the soldier's eyes red. With a roar, Xue Xian, fueled by the bloodshed, charged towards Ma Xu, brandishing his crescent blade.
Upon seeing him, Ma Xu's body suddenly stiffened.
These days, he only thought about making a name for himself and washing away the humiliation of the past, and completely forgot how the humiliation of that day came about. But at this moment, when he met Xue Xian's bloodshot eyes, his memory seemed to come back all at once.
That day, they faced off in the same way. Xue Xian's blade nearly slashed him off his horse.
Just like right now—
In an instant, the terrifying memory seemed to grip his heart like an invisible black hand. Ma Xu suddenly felt his body stiffen, and he couldn't lift the knife he was waving. Meanwhile, Xue Xian was already wielding his blood-stained crescent blade and slashing at him!
Fortunately, the two lieutenants next to him saw this and quickly raised their swords, managing to block Xue Xian's attack.
However, even with their combined strength, they were still nearly knocked off their horses by Xue Xian's blade. Gritting their teeth, they struggled to block Xue Xian's sword and shouted, "General, run!"
Ma Xu's heart skipped a beat.
Just then, a sharp, piercing gong sound came from the city tower behind them.
They're being asked to back out!
"Quickly, get into the city!"
"Forget about the waterwheel, get back quickly!"
"Prepare to close the city gates!"
At this point, Ma Xu couldn't care less about anything else. He could only shout loudly after the signal to retreat, "Quickly, get into the city! Forget about the waterwheels!"
After saying that, he abandoned the people behind him and spurred his horse toward the city gate!
Once he ran, the people around him didn't care about anything else. They all abandoned the heavy waterwheel and scattered towards the city gate, running away as if their lives depended on it!
Amidst the chaos, Shang Ruyi remained atop the city wall, watching the carnage below, the rising dust gradually tinged with blood, yet her gaze remained unexpectedly cold.
At that moment, a calmer voice rang out beside them—
"I didn't expect Xue Xian to be waiting here."
Without turning around, he knew it was Yuwen Qian.
Shang Ruyi said in a deep voice, "Before the expedition, Father said that Xue Xian was brave and resourceful. He was not a general who only knew how to fight tough battles. He should have foreseen that the city would mobilize a large army to fetch water. He was just waiting for this opportunity to take advantage of it and attack the city."
Yuwen Qian said calmly, "How could he have predicted that the city would definitely need to fetch water?"
"Because of Fengchen's illness."
Speaking of this, Shang Ruyi's voice became even hoarse as she said, "After the last attack, he should have already realized that Feng Chen's body was in trouble. These past few days of defending the city have certainly confirmed that."
"..."
"Perhaps, that's why he built that mound of Jingguan (a type of mound of corpses)."
Yuwen Qian said, "So, he was the first to know that Feng Chen would fall ill?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi was silent for a moment, then turned to look at him, her eyes flickering, and said, "He is definitely not the earliest one."
Yuwen Qian pursed his lips slightly: "Oh?"
"..."
"Who was the first to know?"
Just then, a somewhat flustered voice interrupted their conversation. It was Yin Changyue. He pushed through the crowd on the city wall, who were in a panic because they had unexpectedly heard the sound of the retreat, and walked over to ask loudly, "Who, who ordered the retreat?!"
Everyone around stared wide-eyed, momentarily speechless.
Dai Junliang stepped forward: "It's me."
"you?"
Yin Changyue was shocked. He had clearly agreed with Dai Junliang to let Song Yu and Ma Xu go out of the city to fetch water. At this time, fetching water should naturally be the priority. Why did he order the troops to stop at this time?
Yin Changyue was, after all, just a military supervisor and didn't understand military affairs, but even he was starting to panic: "The water hasn't even entered the city yet, why are we sounding the retreat? Shouldn't we—"
Dai Junliang didn't speak, but turned his head and glanced to the side.
Yin Changyue's heart skipped a beat. Following his gaze, he saw Shang Ruyi slowly turn around and calmly say to him, "Lord Yin, water is indeed important, but now, Xue Xian has already reached the city walls. If we still worry about water and let them break into the city, we will die right now."
"..."
"At this point, it's quite clear what's more important, isn't it?"
Yin Changyue looked at her, and was momentarily stunned.
Not only did these two people suddenly change their attitude, but even more strangely, he discovered that the general's wife, who had never interfered in military affairs, suddenly appeared on the city wall at this moment and walked in front of everyone, as if she had been waiting for this moment, and even more so for the sound of the retreat!
What does she seem to be about to do?
Yin Changyue was momentarily stunned, and then subconsciously looked at the Duke's heir standing behind the general's wife, who maintained a calm and indifferent smile. He saw that the way the heir looked at Shang Ruyi seemed to be waiting for something as well.
What exactly is it?
Just as Yin Changyue was in a panic and couldn't react at all, a chorus of shouts of battle below resounded throughout the city tower. Yin Changyue turned his head to look down again and saw that Ma Xu had already led his men back into the city, but Song Yu and the others were at the very back of the group and were the farthest from the city gate at this moment. It looked like they were going to miss the time when the city gate closed!
At this point, Song Yu's eyes also turned red with anxiety.
He whipped his horse with all his might, chanting Amitabha Buddha in his heart, hoping to get him into the city before the gates closed!
Just then, a command rang out from the city wall—
"Release the arrows!"
Suddenly, a hail of arrows rained down from above, striking the area below the city wall. In an instant, several soldiers from Longxi following closely behind Song Yu were struck by arrows and tumbled off their horses.
It also gave him a moment of hope.
However, the turning point came quickly.
Upon seeing this, Xue Xian remained calm and immediately waved his hand to the men behind him. Soon, the men who were still lying in ambush in the dense forest rushed out. It was a group of archers. As they rode their horses at full gallop, they drew their bows and fired a volley of arrows at the people on the city wall.
"careful!"
As several streaks of cold light flashed past, Yuwen Qian reached out and pulled Shang Ruyi back to his side.
The archer standing in front of them shot an arrow and fell to the ground!
Shang Ruyi staggered and almost fell into his arms, but managed to steady herself just before she fell. She looked up at him, but in the cold light of the flying arrow, she met his still calm and unwavering eyes.
He seems to know everything.
It seems as if it is still under scrutiny.
This feeling made Shang Ruyi very uncomfortable, but she still silently and gently wiped his hand off her arm, whispering, "Thank you, brother."
Yuwen Qian looked down at her: "Now, you should do what you're supposed to do."
"..."
Shang Ruyi glanced at him but remained silent.
At this moment, Shan Tong'er, who had been by her side, lost her temper. She hurriedly picked up the copper hammer that she had put aside and was about to rush down from the city wall, saying, "Sister Ruyi, I'll go and avenge you!"
He had barely taken a step when Shang Ruyi grabbed his arm.
She said, "It's not time for you to make your move yet."
"...?"
Shan Tong'er stared at her with wide eyes in surprise.
But then Shang Ruyi turned her head away in a deep voice. Just then, someone came forward and immediately tried to drag the archer who had been shot away. Shang Ruyi was not in a hurry. She took the bow and arrow from his hand, weighed it in her hand, and then skillfully drew the bow and nocked it.
At this moment, Song Yu was less than an arrow's throw from the city gate. Countless arrows flew over his head, some hitting his back to help him escape, and others shooting from behind him towards the city walls, causing screams and cries of agony. But he couldn't care less about anything else. He swung his whip like a spinning wheel. His ambition to volunteer for battle before leaving the city had completely collapsed the moment he faced Xue Xian. He only wished that his horse could grow wings so that it could carry him away from this nightmare.
However, the Longxi army behind them was in hot pursuit!
He could even hear the sound of horses' hooves behind him, and the knives the men were wielding were already touching his saddle and back.
Hurry, hurry, hurry!
He kept chanting, hoping that archers on the city wall would shoot down the people behind him.
Immediately, as if fulfilling his wish, a piercing whistle rang out from ahead, and a flash of cold light ripped through the sky, flying towards his back. Several screams followed, and those who were chasing him fell from their horses.
Song Yu was overjoyed.
But just then, a cold light suddenly flashed past, stinging his eyes like lightning, and Song Yu subconsciously closed his eyes.
The next moment, he felt his horse startle and stop with a long neigh!
What happened?!
Song Yu opened his eyes wide in horror, only to see an arrow land in front of him, nearly hitting his horse's hoof. Startled, the horse stopped immediately and let out a long, terrified neigh.
Could it be that the people on the city wall shot the wrong target?
Song Yu dared not be negligent. Although the pursuers behind him were blocked, more people took the opportunity to rush up again. He hurriedly turned his horse around, dodged the arrow on the ground, and ran forward again. But after running two steps, he heard a whoosh and another arrow was stuck in the ground in front of him, stopping his horse!
"...!"
Song Yu's heart sank, and he subconsciously raised his head to look at the city tower.
On the city tower, the archers were still hiding behind the battlements. Once they had nocked their arrows, they immediately emerged and fired at the Longxi army below. Countless glints of cold light flashed before their eyes.
At that very moment, Song Yuqing clearly saw a glint of cold light pointed at him!
Behind that cold glint was Shang Ruyi!
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