Chapter 384 The Remnants of the Defeated Army
Seven days later, amid the heartbreaking cries of women everywhere, the Lion Army and the Northern Expedition Army, carrying the remaining 40,000 troops and the remains of countless dead soldiers and militiamen, dragged their heavy feet into Youzhou and headed towards Guangyuan City.
Buyan led the remaining troops to greet them in front of the city gate, just like he had seen Yun Chen off a month ago, standing straight on his horse, waiting to greet everyone.
It's not that he hadn't thought about the tragedy. The last battle report had made him mentally prepared.
But when he saw everyone approaching, he felt numb all over and almost fell off his horse.
Huo Gannian walked at the front of the team. His armor was torn, his beard was unshaven, and his hair was very messy. He looked decadent and tired, a look that Bu Yan had never seen in the more than ten years he had been with him.
Yun Chen walked beside him, his face pale and full of fatigue.
She was swaying on the back of the Cloud-Swallowing Beast. Her clothes looked thicker than those of others because she had many herbal cloths wrapped under her armor.
Behind him, Rong Yi lay sprawled on his horse, no longer able to hold it. One of his trouser legs was rolled up high, revealing a large red burn mark. His foot was in an iron splint, and his ankle was bent outward in an inhuman posture.
Luo Dongdong's left sleeve was empty, and he was holding the horse with his only remaining right hand. There was a fresh scar on his face that ran from his forehead to his chin.
Behind him, Ye Yan was riding on his horse with his head lowered.
His black hair had turned completely white, and he looked like all the life had been drained out of him, like a walking corpse.
If this is the case with the generals, let alone the soldiers.
From afar, the defeated soldiers were in ruins, their armor torn.
The soldiers were covered in blood, and many of them were missing limbs. Some even had their legs completely amputated and could only be carried forward by their comrades.
An overwhelming despair came over me.
In front of the city gate, the people of Guangyuan City who were watching were crying inconsolably.
Bu Yan pursed his lips tightly, straightened his chest, and tried hard not to cry, but every once in a while, he had to raise his hand and wipe his eyes hard so that he could see Yun Chen who was gradually approaching him.
"Brother Buyan, I'll return the knife color to you." Yun Chen handed over the knife color covered with thick blood scabs.
Buyan quickly took off the Nanzhu sword tassel and returned it to her, then asked her how she was feeling, but found that her answers were confusing and irrelevant.
Seeing that he couldn't hide it, Yun Chen smiled embarrassedly and pointed to his ears:
"When I went to assassinate Jiao Zuotai, I fell into that guy's trap. He pierced my ears with both palms, so I can't hear much."
Buyan was stunned for a moment, and finally could no longer hold back his emotions, so he hugged Yun Chen and burst into tears.
…
…
War destroys everything equally; it never creates heroes.
The battle in which the Black Scale Cavalry ambushed the Lion Power Army lasted for three days and three nights.
Yun Chen had just been pulled out of the water by the Cloud-Swallowing Beast when he joined the battle while vomiting water.
The remaining 40,000 soldiers retreated to Youzhou, facing a million-strong enemy army.
No one knew how to fight next, they only knew that the country was on the verge of collapse. These 40,000 soldiers were about to die in battle, but they still couldn't stop the giant ship of the Nan Kingdom from sinking.
With the decisive battle imminent, Huo Gannian presented the final tactical deployment to Nan Lijun, intending to use Nan Lijun as bait to lure the enemy deep into his territory and then disperse and defeat them one by one.
If it succeeds, there is still hope of turning the tide;
If he loses, Nan Lijun might die before everyone else.
Facing such a deployment map that could very well cost him his life, Nan Lijun was silent for a long time, then smiled calmly and said:
"Okay, General Huo. Let us live and die together once more."
Huo Gannian was quite surprised.
He didn't expect Nan Lijun to agree so easily.
Ever since Wang Ting came back from being captured, Nan Lijun seemed like a different person.
She no longer panicked like before and allowed others to lead her by the nose.
She began to act a bit like a calm, resolute and decisive king.
A quarter of an hour later, Huo Gannian began to devote all his energy to pre-war deployment and incorporated the remaining 40,000 troops into the Lion Army.
Yun Chen and other generals were given difficult tasks respectively, but Buyan was the only one who was not assigned anything.
He hurried to find Huo Gannian, but the latter was too busy to spare any time for him to get a word in. He could only turn around and look for Yun Chen again.
At that time, Yun Chen and Ye Yan were digging a grave in the Yun family cemetery.
Ye Yan buried the three coffins containing his wife and children, while Yun Chen hollowed out the two human-skin scarecrows bit by bit and covered them with armor with thunder cloud patterns.
Only then did Bu Yan realize that the two scarecrows made of human skin were actually Huo Leiting and Yun Zhongjun.
When Yun Chen went to assassinate Jiao Zuotai at night, the beast Jiao Zuotai actually placed these two bodies on the couch as disguise.
Looking at the clean and neat wound on the scarecrow's throat, Bu Yan couldn't imagine how painful Yun Chen must have felt when she found out that she had not stabbed Jiao Zuotai, but the remains of her own father.
Fortunately, fatherly love is still there in heaven. When Yun Chen escaped, he fought desperately to grab the remains of his two fathers, and therefore he did not sink when he fell into the glacier while unconscious.
Instead, they were "carried" by their two fathers all the way and floated back to the Lion Army camp along the river.
Looking at Yun Chen busy, Buyan was unable to speak, but Ye Yan on the side saw it clearly, walked over and patted Buyan on the shoulder.
"You will stay by the princess's side to protect her. Guarding the crown prince and fighting the enemy are both serving the country."
Ye Yan's voice was weak, his eyelids were red and swollen, and his eyelids were dark blue, as if he had not eaten or slept for many days.
Bu Yan supported Ye Yan uncomfortably, "Brother Ye, let me help you dig the soil. You go get some sleep! I think you can hardly stand!"
Ye Yan shook his head, "No, I can't sleep. As soon as I close my eyes..."
He couldn't say any more, but he didn't understand.
As soon as I closed my eyes, the image of my wife and two children being hanged came into my mind.
Bu Yan couldn't help but started to cry again, but Ye Yan comforted him:
"It's okay. The decisive battle is coming soon. I'll be able to go down there and keep those three company soon. My only regret is that I'm sorry to Achen... It was me who shot through Jiao Zuotai's ear, so I should get revenge... It was also me who fell into the trap..."
Ye Yan said in a low voice, looking at Yun Chen guiltily.
He knew that Yun Chen valued his brothers like family members, and he never thought about "should or shouldn't" at all. He would pay Yun Chen back in his next life for what he owed him.
Thinking of this, Ye Yan felt much relieved. He smoothed his pale hair and swung the shovel again, covering the three coffins with soil one shovel at a time.
Bu Yan wiped his tears and stood in the middle with empty hands. He looked at Yun Chen to the left and Ye Yan to the right. Finally, he noticed that there was a coffin on the ground that had not been buried. He quickly picked up the shovel and started digging the grave.
He gestured and asked loudly, "Achen, who is this? Why... is he buried in your family cemetery as well?"
Yun Chen continued swinging his shovel and replied:
"It's Dankou."
Bu Yan was surprised. "I remember her. She was a girl from Hongfang Alley. You said before that when the Black Scale Cavalry captured Yancheng, she was captured and made a military prostitute, and later killed. Why is it only now..."
Yun Chen slowly stopped what he was doing.
She recalled the last time she saw Dankou more than ten days ago. At that time, she was resting the cavalry in a village.
An ox cart passed by the cavalry.
"Cloud Guard."
The girl on the ox cart shouted like this.
I haven't heard this name for a long time. This is a story about the guards in the past that only old acquaintances know about.
Yun Chen looked over in surprise and found that it was Dan Kou.
She rushed over to confirm again and again, and only then did she learn that when Dan Kou's arms were cut off in the Black Scale Cavalry Camp, Jiao Zuotai unexpectedly did not take Dan Kou's life, but let her stay in the military brothel camp for another year.
A year later, during a battle in which the rebel army attacked the Black Scale Cavalry camp, Dan Kou took advantage of the chaos to escape and wandered around to avoid the war. After the Black Scale Cavalry broke through the southeastern defense line, he hid near Youzhou.
Seeing Dan Kou again, Yun Chen was pleasantly surprised, but also felt extremely guilty. However, Dan Kou smiled and said:
"Jiao Zuotai tricked us. Even if I were given a hundred chances, I would still make the same choice. Guard Yun, I never regret anything. You don't have to blame yourself."
After saying that, Dan Kou signaled the ox cart to continue moving forward, leaving Yun Chen standing there with his heart pounding and unable to calm down.
"Miss Dankou, aren't you fleeing the war? Why are you heading east? The eastern part has been completely occupied by the enemy. Go north to the Yun family in Guangyuan City, Youzhou, to find Zhang Jiuzhi. Tell me my name, and I will support you from now on!"
Dankou's eyebrows curved, and she gently lifted the hem of her coarse cloth skirt, revealing a part of her ankle covered with red spots, and said with a smile:
"No, Guard Cloud, you go kill the Black Scale Cavalry, I'll go too! Let's see who kills more, hahahaha——"
After Yun Chen finished speaking, the surroundings became quiet.
Without saying anything, Ye Yan just looked at the three new graves quietly.
They all knew that in troubled times, it was difficult for a man with martial arts skills to survive, so a girl with broken arms and no relatives would have to endure a lot if she wanted to survive.
Moreover, after the Black Scale Cavalry discovered that Dan Kou had contracted syphilis and had infected many soldiers, they were afraid that this poor girl would not have a good ending.
The scene inside the coffin must be horrific.
Bu Yan was still guessing, but heard Yun Chen say:
"The day Dankou left on the oxcart, the sunset was so beautiful. It shone on her body, as if she were wearing a colorful fairy dress. She was really beautiful."
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