Jiang Qinyu slept very restlessly that night, having several bizarre dreams in which she felt like a drifting duckweed, with nowhere to go and a constant emptiness in her heart.
The scene shifted many times, and the last image Jiang Qinyu saw before waking up was Lu Yanzheng smiling at her, his body covered in blood.
"Madam, the General has not returned all night. Miss Yu is asking if you would like to send him some food." Uncle Chen's voice came from outside.
Jiang Qinyu shook her head, clearing away the chaotic emotions from her dream, before raising her voice to reply, "Uncle Chen, please ask Miss Yu to go back. I'll go deliver the meal to the General in a little while."
It's ridiculous that Yu Hanyan is so concerned about other people's husbands. Anyone who didn't know better would think she's very well-mannered, even asking the legal wife first before delivering food.
In fact, without Jiang Qinyu by her side, Yu Hanyan couldn't even get close to the city wall, let alone deliver the food to Lu Yanzheng.
The army does provide food, but during battles, they issue dry rations.
Uncle Zhao prepared some hot food, intending to send it to Lu Yanzheng. However, Yu Hanyan found out and wanted to deliver it in Uncle Zhao's place. How could Uncle Zhao agree to that? But he couldn't refuse either, so he brought her to Uncle Chen. This led to the scene where Uncle Chen came to ask Jiang Qinyu.
"Miss Yu, did you hear that? Please go back." Uncle Chen said to Yu Hanyan indifferently, holding a food box in his hand.
Yu Hanyan bit her lower lip, her voice trembling slightly, "Uncle Chen, why did you also..."
She went to the kitchen to get the food box, and Uncle Zhao said that if anyone should be sent, it should be the madam. Can't she share the burden with the madam?
“Miss Yu is worried about the General, but isn’t Madam worried too? There’s a battle going on ahead, and not just anyone can go there. Miss Yu would be better off going back.” Uncle Chen was almost losing his patience.
Yu Hanyan stood there for a while, her hands, hidden in her sleeves, clenched into fists. She lowered her head and whispered, "Then Hanyan will go back."
By the time Jiang Qinyu finished dressing and came out, Yu Hanyan had already left.
“Madam, why don’t you take it to the General first? It’s not far by carriage, and you can have breakfast when you get back,” Uncle Chen suggested.
It was still early, and he felt sorry for the general, so he had no choice but to swallow his pride and make his wife suffer first.
Jiang Qinyu didn't mind, but when she thought of the last scene in her dream, she took the food box from Uncle Chen's hand and said, "Then I'll trouble Uncle Chen to watch over Shufan and Pan'er to eat their breakfast."
After saying that, Jiang Qinyu went to the gate.
Xiao Wu was already sitting in the carriage waiting. When he saw that it was Jiang Qinyu who arrived, this dim-witted guy actually craned his neck to look back and asked, "Hey, where's Miss Yu?"
Jiang Qinyu said with a forced smile, "It's not appropriate for a young lady like her to go there alone, so I sent her back."
"Oh! Now that you mention it, Madam, I just remembered that the General did say that women are not allowed to enter or leave military areas at will." Xiao Wu slapped his forehead, annoyed.
Jiang Qinyu ignored him and got into the car.
The carriage soon arrived near the city wall. Jiang Qinyu saw that many houses in the area were still smoking, which must have meant that the enemy had fired rockets into the city.
The soldiers sat on the ground and leaned against the wall, listlessly eating their dry rations, and occasionally stamping their feet and rubbing their hands because it was so cold.
Jiang Qinyu felt terrible. These were the same people who had protected the entire city while she was still asleep last night.
Yet they who give so much still go hungry and cold. Where is justice in this world?
Upon seeing Jiang Qinyu and Xiao Wu approaching, those who recognized Xiao Wu immediately cleared a path for them and led them to Lu Yanzheng.
Lu Yanzheng was still standing on the city wall, but there were two charcoal braziers at his feet, and the soldiers guarding the city took turns coming over to warm themselves by the fire.
"Why are you here?" Lu Yanzheng stood up immediately when he saw Jiang Qinyu. Seeing that she was not dressed in many clothes, he hurriedly tried to take off his cloak, but Jiang Qinyu stopped him.
"I'm not cold, you can wear it." Jiang Qinyu handed him the food box after saying that, and at the same time, to prove that she was really not cold, she took his hand. "See, I didn't lie to you, you should eat quickly."
She was wearing a down-filled inner layer, which made her look thin, but she was actually much warmer than the others.
Lu Yanzheng felt the warmth of her hand and was relieved. He took her hand and led her to an open space. They leaned against the city wall, and he ate his meal while looking out at the city.
"Was the situation very serious last night?" Jiang Qinyu asked, looking at the mess around her.
Lu Yanzheng swallowed the food in his mouth before replying, "Fortunately, the sudden drop in temperature disrupted their offensive, giving us some breathing room."
Last night, when the Dayuan and Xiqiang armies attacked, the temperature kept dropping, and by the end, their soldiers could barely hold their weapons. They had to call a retreat halfway through the attack.
However, the border troops also faced the same predicament. They were also cold and almost couldn't hold their weapons. It was only because they were the defenders that they had a natural advantage and were able to stop the first wave of attacks.
This time, the combined offensive of the Dayuan and Western Qiang armies was even fiercer than the last. Lu Yanzheng could hardly believe that if it weren't for the sudden drop in temperature, they would have been able to hold out last night.
The only saving grace was that his contingency plan came in handy, thwarting the enemy's attempt to exploit their weaknesses, and what followed was a truly hard-fought battle.
Although Lu Yanzheng's explanation was simple and glossed over in a single sentence, Jiang Qinyu wasn't stupid; she knew the truth wasn't so easy to grasp.
"You guard the city gates, and I promise I will lead people to plant the sweet potatoes properly. At the latest, it will take no more than five months, and at the earliest, three months, to supply the people of the city and the army," Jiang Qinyu said earnestly.
Lu Yanzheng looked at her, "Sweet potatoes can mature in three months?"
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