He would rather die for his lord than be implicated in the Jade Dragon.
On the seventh day, the weather turned bitterly cold, and there were frozen corpses on the road. The entire camp suffered minor casualties.
On the eighth day, sandstorms buried people and caused heavy losses to the troops. The entire camp suffered minor casualties.
On the tenth day, the Southern Continent attacked, and the Left Army Captain was killed in battle. The rest of the troops were in good condition.
On the fifteenth day, due to lack of water and food, only thirteen men survived in the right wing. The remaining troops suffered increasing casualties.
...
The twentieth day...
Lin Zhengye sat cross-legged on the sand outside the tent, glanced up at the still howling Katyu, and then continued writing with his pen:
On the twentieth day, the entire right wing was killed in battle, the armored army suffered half casualties, and less than 50% of the entire battalion survived.
Inside the main tent, Tang Qi, dressed in a silver battle robe, sat in the highest position, looking exhausted, while the tent flapped in the wind.
On the 20th, Tiger did not bring reinforcements. As for Shenghui Army…
How many people are left?
Tang Qi frowned and spoke in a deep voice.
Lin Jiacuo, sitting opposite him, seemed somewhat conflicted and hesitated before speaking: "...less than 50%."
The tent was eerily quiet. Tang Qi paused, then nodded, stood up, and picked up the Silver Moon Spear that was leaning against the side.
"...It's time to end this."
The young man sitting in the large tent stood up, walked to the side, picked up the battle flag, and the fiery red flag pierced through the enemy's attacks time and time again in the flying yellow sand. Although it was tattered, it was still immortal.
The character "Tang" in the center of the flag was stained with blood, yet it appeared all the more glorious.
"Zhengye, Lin Zhengye, come in!"
The guards outside the tent scurried inside as soon as they heard the sound.
"Brother Qi, what are your orders?"
Tang Qi seemed a little tired. He turned to look at Lin Jiacuo and said in a low voice, "Tell Zheng Ye to take good care of the Shuo Dynasty's military flag."
Lin Jiacuo frowned as he looked at the blood-stained "Tang" flag in Tang Qi's hand.
When the army is on the front lines, in addition to the founding war flag, the banner of the commander-in-chief is also displayed. If the commander-in-chief dies, the banner is lowered.
"Zhong Le?"
Lin Jiacuo seemed to have guessed Tang Qi's thoughts.
Tang Qi slowly walked outside the tent, his eyes fixed intently on the raging yellow sand outside, beneath which his soldiers lay.
“Zhong Le, we…why don’t we wait a few more days? Perhaps the reinforcements will arrive in a few more days.”
Lin Jiacuo clenched his hands and looked at Tang Qi, who remained silent. It took him a long time to come up with a reason that even he found awkward and difficult to say.
"In more than half a month, even if you were to climb, you should have reached the top long ago."
Tang Qi raised his hand and caught a handful of yellow sand. The sand was loose and flowed away from his hand in a fine, rustling sound. He said, "They have suffered. This is indeed not a good place to bury people. After I die, I will make sure my body is stained with Katyu sand by my blood."
Tang Qi remained arrogant until his death.
Katya doesn't flower, but I'll be the first one.
"Brother Qi!"
Lin Zhengye hurriedly knelt down, his hand firmly gripping the Shuo Dynasty military flag that Tang Qi had given him.
Tang Qi laughed out loud at his joke, and while helping him up, she said with a smile, "Why are you kneeling now? You'll have plenty to kneel for during Qingming Festival."
He then turned to look at Lin Gyatso, a smile playing on his lips, and said, "Are you afraid of death?"
Lin Jiacuo rolled his eyes at him: "Zhong Le, you really talk a lot of nonsense."
Neither of them said it aloud, but they both knew the truth.
Tang Qi then said to Lin Zhengye, "I admit I've wronged your Lin family, but your brother has been by my side for a long time. If I die without him by my side, those old foxes won't believe it."
"Brother Qi, why does it have to be you who dies? I will protect you with my life!"
Lin Zhengye gripped the battle flag tightly in his hand, his eyes burning with determination.
Tang Qi paused. Why did it have to be him who died? Because only if he died would the rest of them have a chance to live.
The Southern Continent army had besieged them for nearly a month, sending out only a few advance troops each time to raid them, while the Shuo Dynasty's army was stationed outside Kaqiu. After a month, reinforcements should have arrived by now.
But the rescue never arrived, leaving them in their current state. The only possibility is that those people are waiting, waiting for news of Tang Qi's death in battle.
Similarly, the group was telling him that only by personally going to his death could his subordinates have a chance to receive reinforcements; otherwise, they would only be buried alive and their souls trapped on the border.
"To exchange one man for the wolf's strategy." That's what Gui Luo meant.
"Because only if I die can you live. The Shuo Dynasty army will only rush to our aid upon hearing the news of my death."
Lin Zhengye was stunned, seemingly not understanding the connection between them. Tang Qi continued, "Your brother and I will lead a detachment as the vanguard, while you will remain in the camp as a reserve, waiting for the main force to arrive after my death."
"etc!"
Lin Zhengye hurriedly grabbed Tang Qi's sleeve. He didn't understand the situation Tang Qi was referring to, but he continued, "Brother Qi, are you really going to die?"
Tang Qi nodded, but the boy in front of him gripped his hand even tighter, his dark eyes suddenly brightening: "I don't think it's necessary to die."
Tang Qi was stunned for a moment, then heard him continue, "As long as my brother is by my side, and with your banner and appearance, it doesn't matter who dies."
His brows furrowed as he stared at the boy before him and asked, "What do you mean?"
Lin Zhengye rummaged in his pocket for a while before finally pulling something out to show Tang Qi: "This is a mask I made. Isn't it exactly the same as yours, Brother Qi? As long as I wear this, no one will be able to tell the difference."
"Are you crazy?"
Tang Qi abruptly shook off Lin Zhengye's hand that was gripping his sleeve, staring in astonishment at the human skin mask in Lin Zhengye's hand that looked almost exactly like him.
His scalp tingled, and he felt a shiver run through his body as if his own skin had been peeled off.
What is this thing?
"Human skin masks," Lin Gyatso continued, "made by my parents."
Tang Qi still looked like she'd seen a ghost, pouting as she stared at Lin Jiacuo: "Why haven't I heard you mention this before? If we had this before, would we have needed to be caught by Cheng Wang so many times?"
Lin Jiacuo also laughed; in this situation, this was actually the only thing Tang Qi could think of.
"This thing is not suitable to appear. That's why my parents didn't plan to pass it down. Zheng Ye was an accident; he has an exceptional talent for this."
"So, Brother Qi, as long as I bring this noodle—"
"Don't even think about it!" Tang Qi was practically pointing her finger at him and yelling, "It's unnecessary and not worth it. The Lin family only has you and your brother. I can't protect your brother from getting out of Kachu, so you have to live. Otherwise, I'll be letting your parents down."
He patted Lin Zhengye on the head one last time, like a reliable older brother: "This is your first time joining the army, right? Don't go back to the barracks this time. I thought that the officialdom was dark, but at least the battlefield would be different. But I didn't expect that those people are all birds of a feather."
Tang Qi suddenly laughed again: "I used to think that my father's death on the battlefield was the fate of a military general. I was sad, but I didn't regret it for him. But now that I think about it, wasn't he just as helpless as I was, dying in the court struggles he had never been involved in? He must have found it ridiculous. We were destined to be abandoned pawns from the very beginning. I can die, I can be a stepping stone for them to climb up, but you can't. You have to live, live, do you understand? Only by living is there any possibility."
Lin Zhengye knelt down again and said solemnly, "General, I joined the army because of you. I want to become a hero like you, majestic and awe-inspiring, riding through the streets cheered by many people. I told my brother before that after I joined the army, I would definitely make Shuo have another young general." He suddenly laughed and said, "Actually, I was just bragging. I don't have that much talent to be a general. If someone has to sacrifice in this war, then let me do it."
Lin Zhengye's expression was stubborn yet full of glory: "Brother Qi, I am very weak, and I don't even know what happened yet. But I know that if someone can really save that dark country that uses human blood as a ladder, that person will not be me. But you are different, Brother Qi. You can become that person."
“So,” he laughed again, like a child who had just eaten candy, “let me borrow your power and be a great general for once.”
Tang Qi froze completely, and after a long pause, he blurted out, "What nonsense are you talking about! Who gave you permission to belittle yourself?"
Lin Zhengye remained silent, staring intently at Tang Qi. The tent fell silent again. Tang Qi looked into Lin Zhengye's eyes for a long time before saying, "I don't need anyone to die for me. If I can't even bear my own life, then I'm too cowardly. Zhengye, you must remember that your dream does not depend on others. Your dream is your own, and you must walk your own path."
Lin Zhengye looked at him, his eyes sparkling with a bright smile: "General, you are my dream."
If you can't be a general who deploys troops on the battlefield, then be a soldier who fights to the death.
"Brother Qi, I want to fight for you, and also for Da Shuo."
Lin Jiacuo stared at Lin Zhengye kneeling on the ground for a long time, his heart aching and numb. After a long while, he chuckled and looked at Tang Qi: "Say yes to him."
Tang Qi's gaze shifted from questioning to shock, and finally to anger: "Lin Jiacuo! Have you gone mad too?"
“Zhong Le, you are smarter than me. You should know that what Zheng Ye said is true. In this deadlock, you are the only one among us who can be the exception. You are closer to the truth than all of us,” Lin Jiacuo looked at Tang Qi, as if he was smiling, but his voice suddenly choked up: “I am not afraid of death, but actually… I don’t want to die at all.”
“It’s not just me, all the brothers who came here want to live, but there’s no way. I’m not reconciled, Zhong Le, I’m not reconciled to die without knowing why I died. If Lang Ce is destined to be wronged, you are the only one who can uncover the truth.”
Tang Qi's mind went blank, as if it had exploded. He felt that Lin Jiacuo had truly gone completely insane. He took a few quick steps and stood in front of Lin Jiacuo: "Do you know what you're saying? That's your brother, your own brother!"
“He wants to be a great general, I can’t stop him.”
Lin Gyatso laughed.
"You! You're simply—"
Lin Gyatso was still smiling. They had known each other since childhood. From school onwards, he had followed Tang Qi, and later, when they joined the army, Tang Qi became a general, and he became his deputy. Sometimes, Lin Gyatso felt that there was nothing wrong with living like this, but he never expected that this "life" would be so short.
Lin Zhengye, who was behind Tang Qi, suddenly struck him on the neck, and Tang Qi's vision went black and he quickly lost consciousness.
Lin Zhengye's hand was still suspended in mid-air. He paused for a moment, then raised it and smiled at Lin Jiacuo: "Brother, this hand of mine is quite something. The Junior Supervisor of the Criminal Law Department and the General of the Southern Camp of the Wolf Strategy Army have both been defeated by it."
They helped Tang Qi to a straw bed set up nearby. Lin Jiacuo looked at Tang Qi, who had closed his eyes, and slowly said, "Actually, it is the living who suffer more. Zhong Le, I'm sorry."
"I'll be shameless this once," he repeated softly and reluctantly several times, "Live well, Zhong Le, live well."
...
"How about it, bro? Does it look like me?"
"It's similar, almost nine-tenths similar. Your brother Qi doesn't shake as badly as you do. What's wrong, are you scared?"
"Um."
Even if Lin Zhengye is only sixteen years old, no matter how determined he is, he is still physiologically afraid of death.
Do you regret it?
"regret."
Of course he regretted it. He wasn't an adult yet, and he had so many things he hadn't done. If he had known it would turn out like this, he should have eaten the crispy chicken he had been craving for so long before he came. If he had known, he shouldn't have slacked off while working. The weeds in his north garden hadn't been cleared yet, and his parents would have to work hard for a long time without him.
Of course, his biggest regret is that if he had known it was his last journey, he would not have sneaked out that night and would have said goodbye to his parents properly.
"Are we still going?"
"go."
He answered quickly and firmly.
Lin Jiacuo glanced at Lin Zhengye beside him. The boy's face was still a little immature, but his eyes were firm and determined. He laughed and said, "Well done, brat. I've been trying to become a general for so many years. You've got a good deal this time. Come on, General, I'll clear the way for you."
The young man, clad in sharp armor, wielding a silver spear, riding a white-maned warhorse, his robes adorned with fiery phoenixes, once again had his fiery red battle flag blazing across the land of the Great Shuo border, while the howling yellow sands buried the footprints of the Shuo army once more.
There is no return date for this journey.
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