As early as the night before the military support performance on the third day, eight hundred soldiers had secretly taken a detour and left Fort Dorgnitz.
When Philby, standing atop the castle, saw the infantrymen running and leaping back to the castle gates, he felt as if he had returned from hell to heaven, and tears welled up in his eyes. He had fewer than fifty men with him at the time, all of whom had been sent to the castle to maintain appearances. If the enemy had attacked then, Philby wouldn't have even had a chance to escape.
However, even though the soldiers completed their rehearsal so smoothly, Philby was not at ease, because he only had less than five hundred men under his command, and he had to hold out for about five days...
Five days later, if the enemy camp remained calm, Philby dared not imagine how to face their attack wave.
At least for these five days, he still had hope and expectation, and he and his soldiers could still resolutely complete their mission.
Philby shook his head, trying to stop thinking about these things. All he could do now was pray that Yun Zhe would have a smooth journey.
At the Lunlang family's camp, countless ladders and towers were being constructed at breakneck speed. The one in charge of overseeing the construction was Lunlang's eldest son, Adam. This deserter, having finally found himself with no other option, chose to flee home. After enduring the anger and ridicule of his parents and siblings, he finally managed to survive that period.
However, the resentment he harbored towards the Donic family and the bitterness he felt for his deceased brother, Gossa, remained unresolved. Therefore, he was able to take action against the Donic family without even having to be on the front lines himself. Adam was extremely satisfied, and thus approached the task his father had entrusted to him with exceptional enthusiasm.
Enthusiasm alone doesn't seem to solve the speed problem. Fortunately, since setting up camp, he has been demanding that his craftsmen start working, which makes Adam very confident in fulfilling his father's orders.
"No matter what, I must make a good impression on my father this time. I want those people to know that the humiliation last time was not my fault, but theirs!" Adam thought to himself as he walked to an open area outside the camp to inspect the progress of the work.
"Sir!" A soldier who looked like an overseer jogged over when he saw Adam approaching.
"Sir, twenty siege ladders have been completed, and ten more are needed to finish. One battering ram has also been completed, and another is under construction. All that's left is to build the tower. If we need to meet the deadline tomorrow, time may be a bit tight."
Adam narrowed his eyes. "Don't say things like that. You just need to know that you have to finish on time. If you don't finish on time, you know what the punishment will be."
"My lord, my lord, could you please grant me half a day more? Just half a day would be enough. Please just tell the Earl, just a word. I will definitely finish the work before noon tomorrow, I promise!" The man was somewhat anxious, and his speech became somewhat stammering.
Adam glanced at the person in front of him with some disgust. He thought to himself, "My father said it would be finished in two days, so it looks like it could be done in a day and a half. If I get these lazybones to work overtime tonight, it can be finished in a day. That way, I can at least gain some favor with my father."
“Mahat, this is wartime, and every second counts. I can say I can wait half a day, I can plead for mercy, but if my father asks me how to make up for the lost opportunity, and whether the other side will wait for us for half a day, tell me, how am I supposed to answer?” Adam spoke slowly and deliberately, his face showing no emotion, but the imposing tone of his voice made Mahat nervous.
"Then, sir, what else can we do..." Mahat turned to look at the soldiers and craftsmen who were still working. They had only eaten one meal today and had not rested for even a minute.
“Work a little harder tonight, and then I’ll plead for you. If we still can’t finish by tomorrow, at least I’ll have a reason to put in a good word for you with Father. What do you say, Mahat?”
Mahat frowned. Working at night, especially tasks like sweeping the grounds or building a fence, was bound to be much less efficient. But Adam's words clearly held some truth. It was just a matter of whether his craftsmen and soldiers would accept this assessment.
Mahat sighed, expressed his gratitude to Adam, and then went back and ordered everyone to rest after dinner and continue working into the night!
Amidst the grumbling, Adam left satisfied. He didn't care how Mahat arranged the time, nor did he care about the soldiers' complaints. He believed that Mahat would not dare to disobey his orders and would complete the mission on time, because it involved his life and the lives of his men.
With this satisfied feeling, Adam strolled back to his tent, his mind filled with thoughts of his father's pleased expression as he finished the task a day ahead of schedule.
"What does one failure matter? Watch closely, I'll only demonstrate once what a comeback looks like!" Thinking of these inspiring words, Adam clenched his fists in the tent and kept punching at a non-existent opponent.
Inside the Phoenix Mercenary Group's main tent, Gregory Lunlang, the third son of the Lunlang family, was drinking with the group's captain, Salazar. The table was laden with beef and mutton, while seven or eight earthenware jars filled with wine lay scattered haphazardly beneath it.
"Salazar, my father will definitely attack the day after tomorrow. Don't you have any ideas?"
"Hahaha, don't even think about it. Don't even think about trying to provoke me with such clumsy tactics. Let me tell you, I'm not envious at all, and I have no desire to gain any merit." Salazar finished speaking and then drank another cup in one gulp.
"Salazar, you are no hero. You, you have really, really disappointed me."
Upon hearing Gregory's words, Salazar couldn't help but sneer. "Gregory, you know best why I'm here, and you understand better than your father what I'm doing here." After saying this, Salazar stopped drinking and simply stared coldly at Gregory, his previous drunken state vanishing instantly.
Surprisingly, after hearing Salazar's words, Gregory was not angry at all; instead, he burst into laughter.
Gregory laughed as he poured himself another glass of wine. "Salazar, I'm relieved to hear you say that. What I was most worried about was that you would get carried away by the prospect of military merit and rush forward."
Salazar's expression softened considerably upon hearing this. He smiled and picked up his glass. "By the way, don't worry about your brother. Tomorrow night, you'll hear the good news you've been waiting for."
A strange smile appeared on Gregory's face as he drunkenly asked, "Couldn't it be tonight?"
Salazar's lips curled into a strange smile. "If you want, it's not impossible tonight... hahahaha."
"Ha ha ha ha".
The tent was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
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