Chapter 431 : Going To The Battlefield (1)

When the civilians of Yu City got the news, they immediately came forward to help. And it was at this time that Han Ji took charge of distributing the work.

There were many people, but luckily Han Ji didn’t panic and quickly started to allocate the tasks. The elderly, a few half-grown children, and some young women were responsible for cooking. The rest of the young women were tasked to boil water, and the older women would follow Old Woman Yu to look after the wounded. As for the men, they were divided into several groups: some to carry food, some to find lime stones and boulders, and some to bring the wounded down from the city walls…… Since Han Ji had arranged everything properly, everything was in order, avoiding any possible chaotic scenes.

The guard beside General Zhao reported this situation to him, and after finishing his report, the guard said, “General, with their help, they have relieved us from such a great burden.” In this situation, soldiers who had not gone to battle could recuperate, those who came down from the battlefield could get the fastest rest, and those who were wounded were well taken care of. Most importantly, these civilians’ help increased the soldiers’ morale.

General Zhao watched Zijin talking to an old woman below and commented, “Han Shi is truly something.” Each of the people around Han Shi was a unique character. If one looked down on such a person as Han Shi, one would suffer a tremendous loss in the future.

The guard couldn’t help but say, “General Yun is already gone. Instead of falling into despair, Madam Yun managed to organise these people to fight the enemy together with the soldiers. It’s not an easy feat.” At least, this guard had great admiration for Yuxi.

In addition to the chief guard, even General Zhao was moved just by what Han Shi had done so far. General Zhao looked at the head of his guards and asked, “How sure are you that Yun Qing is no longer alive?”

The chief guard was a little stunned and only reacted after a moment by asking, “Does the General mean that General Yun is not yet dead?” But so many days had passed, and General Yun hadn’t returned. Could he still be alive?

General Zhao inquired, “How could Yun Qing be dead when even Huo Changqing did not die? Furthermore, do you think Han Shi’s reaction is normal if Yun Qing has deceased?” Han Shi must have known that Yun Qing was still alive, which was why her reaction was so calm.

The chief guard thought this statement sounded reasonable.

After saying this, General Zhao looked at the people under the city walls and felt slightly more at ease. With the help of these people, they would be able to wait for the reinforcements’ arrival.

In a completely different situation than Mr Zhao1’s, Qin Zhao was secretly irritated. It was good that the old and the disabled could help the soldiers, but the problem was that his wife had left Yu City, and Han Shi had taken advantage of this opportunity to make a name for herself. After this incident, Han Shi’s reputation in Yu City was about to reach a new high. Even though Yun Qing was no longer there, Qin Zhao was still upset. But fortunately, although he was resentful, he did not want to do anything against Yuxi. It wasn’t that Qin Zhao suddenly became a better person, but knowing where his first concern was made him act this way. Nowadays, fighting against the northern barbarians was the top priority, and he would tackle the rest later. With Yun Qing gone, it would be easier for him to take care of Han Shi.

The northern barbarians stopped their attacks once the day got dark, and peace returned to the city walls for the time being. But below the walls, the scenes were still not peaceful. The cooks were still cooking, some cared for the wounded, and the rest were still looking for limestones and boulders. If they couldn’t find any, they demolished uninhabited houses. At this time, there were no illegal or unlawful acts.

When Zijin was free to return to the Yun Residence, she met with Mama Qu as soon as she entered the inner courtyard.

Mama Qu shushed her. “Madam is not awake yet, so keep your voice down.” Yuxi had not been idle that day. She had been busy dispensing medicine, and at noon, she became so tired that she decided to lie down to rest. As a result, she had not woken up yet. Pregnant women tended to get drowsy quickly. Besides, Mama Qu already felt that Yuxi did not have enough time to rest. Thus, even if Yuxi slept longer than usual, Mama Qu wouldn’t allow anyone to disturb her.

Zijin asked by lowering her voice, “How is Madam today? She wasn’t scared, was she?”

Mama Qu shook her head. “Madam has been dispensing medicine for a long time today and later requested Master Yang to join her. She also said you should take out the finished medicines to the wounded soldiers tomorrow.”

Zijin’s face lit up as she exclaimed, “That’s good! There is an urgent need for medicine now.” Although there was not much medication on Yuxi’s side either, it was better to have something rather than none.

As soon as Mama Qu was about to speak, she heard Yuxi’s voice calling for Zijin from inside. “Madam is awake. Go in and serve her. I’ll go to the kitchen to fetch water.” Everyone else had been assigned outside jobs so they, the ones left in the residence, had to do the others’ work themselves.

Zijin entered the room and helped Yuxi to get up.

As Yuxi dressed, she asked, “What’s going on outside now?” Yuxi had heard all about what Han Ji and Zijin had done from Xu Wu, so there was no need to ask about that anymore.

Zijin replied, “Everyone has ceased fire once the day turned dark.” Then she told Yuxi in detail about the day’s events, and when she finished, she said, “General Zhao said that they didn’t have enough bows and arrows. It will be challenging as soon as they run out of them!” They would suffer a significant loss if there were no more bows and arrows.

Yuxi frowned. There was nothing she could do even if that scenario did happen. “I believe Qin Zhao and General Zhao will think of a way out.” No matter how capable she was, there was no way she could conjure up bows and arrows.

Zijin said, “General Zhao had requested the people to prepare many limestones and boulders. To do so, the people have demolished quite a few deserted houses.” Bricks would have worked as well.

Yuxi thought for a moment before suggesting, “Let’s eat first, and we’ll talk more about this later.” She knew nothing about warfare. So, she couldn’t help much with this.

After dinner, Yuxi went to the front yard to visit Huo Changqing. Huo Changqing was still lying in bed and could not get up. The wounds on his tendons and bones needed a hundred days to heal. It would take years for him to recover as he had injuries all over his body. Fortunately, Huo Changqing could finally speak now. However, he could only speak a few words since he was severely hurt.

When Huo Changqing saw Yuxi, he said this one word, “Good.” This simple praise was for Yuxi instructing Zijin to gather the civilians of Yu City to help the soldiers out. In this way, not only did it help to relieve the army of a great burden, but it also significantly boosted the soldiers’ morale.

Yuxi sat down with the help of Zijin and asked, “Uncle Huo, are you feeling much better today?” Huo Changqing now had to drink the medicine prescribed by the physician and to eat the medicinal food prepared by Yuxi. The effect was good, but it was also a torment for him. However, Huo Changqing had never even frowned.

Huo Changqing nodded and said to Yuxi, “The child……” Huo Changqing meant that Yuxi should not get tired because of his affair, and the child should come first before him.

Yuxi understood the meaning behind Huo Changqing’s words as she put her hand on her stomach and smilingly said, “Don’t worry, Uncle Huo. I will take care of both myself and the child.”

Yuxi did not stay in the front yard for long, and after seeing Huo Changqing, she went back to the backyard.

Zijin was disappointed. “Madam, I thought you would go and ask Uncle Huo for his opinion.” As a result, Yuxi didn’t ask him anything.

Yuxi swept a glance at Zijin. “You think I should ask Uncle Huo for his opinion when he can’t even speak clearly?” What a thought for Zijin to come up with.

Zijin also knew that her thoughts were wrong just now. Consequently, she told Yuxi with her already reddened eyes, “Watching the dead bodies of the soldiers being carried down one by one, I wished I could rush up to the city walls and kill those northern barbarians.” Her heart was filled with grief and hatred when she saw the soldiers’ corpses.

Hearing this statement, Yuxi said after a moment of silence, “If you want to go up to the city walls and kill the enemy, then go ahead.”

Zijin froze for a moment and then became overjoyed. “Madam, you said you would let me go up to the city wall to kill the enemy? Is this true?” She wanted to go up to the city wall to kill the enemy, but the soldiers wouldn’t let her!

Yuxi nodded. “Naturally, it is true, but you can only do it during the daytime. You still have to come back at night.”

Hearing this response, Zijin nodded as she promised, “Don’t worry, Madam. I will come back at night.” After she said that, she got worried again. “Madam, they don’t allow women to go up to the city walls.” They, naturally, referred to a group of men such as Qin Zhao and General Zhao.

Yuxi told Zijin, “Tomorrow, you will dress up as a man and ask the guards at the residence to take you up to the city walls. As long as you can kill the northern barbarians, no one will ever say that women are not allowed to go up there to kill the enemy.” The men did not allow women to go up to the city tower because they considered women weak at heart and thought they would only become a burden. As long as those soldiers saw that Zijin could kill the enemy bravely, they would not say anything about not allowing women to go up to the city walls anymore.

Zijin nodded briefly, then said, “It’s best if I can get a set of military uniforms. At that time, it will be easier to blend in.”

Yuxi supported her suggestion. “That’s a good idea. Let’s ask Xu Wu to get one for you.” Getting an ordinary soldier’s uniform was relatively easy for Xu Wu.

Zijin answered happily, “Okay.”

Yuxi advised Zijin, “I let you go up to the city walls because I want you to do your part. However, you must take care of your safety. If you get injured, you cannot go up there again.” These words also served as a reminder to Zijin.

Zijin knew that this was too much to ask of Yuxi, but to be able to go to battle, she still nodded in agreement, “Don’t worry, Madam. I won’t let myself get hurt.”

Yuxi acknowledged her promise and said, “You tell Master Yang and Yu Zhi about this, so they’ll know what you’re going to do.” Yuxi believed that Master Yang and Yu Zhi would not stop Zijin.

A quarter of an hour later, Master Yang went to find Yuxi. “Why did you agree to let Zijin go to war? Don’t give me any falsehoods. I want to hear the truth.” He naturally knew that Zijin’s martial arts were impressive, but swords had no eyes, and going to war would mean placing herself in danger.

Yuxi replied, “Although going into battle would be dangerous, it will happen on the city walls. Zijin is very good at martial arts, and with Yu Zhi around, her life will not be in danger.” In fact, without having to say anything, Yuxi knew that Yu Zhi would not argue with Zijin and would accompany her to the battlefield instead.

Master Yang’s expression was not kind as he implored, “I’m asking why you agreed to let Zijin go to battle?” He knew that going to the battlefield was Zijin’s wish, but as long as Yuxi opposed it, Zijin would obey Yuxi.

Yuxi was silent for a moment and asked rhetorically, “Why shouldn’t Zijin be allowed to go to war? Although Zijin is a woman, she is not inferior to any man. And as I said earlier, Zijin’s life is not at risk even if she goes to battle.”

Master Yang was patient enough to say, “I want to hear the truth.”

Yuxi said, “What I have just said is the truth.” What Yuxi had just said was indeed the truth. She just wasn’t entirely truthful. Yuxi felt that this time was also an opportunity to sharpen Zijin. Zijin was good at martial arts and very loyal, but there was just one issue, she was a little soft-hearted. Zijin was not an ordinary woman. Thus, having a soft heart was her fatal weakness. This weakness would not only jeopardise Zijin’s safety in the future, but it would also endanger her, Yun Qing, and even her child.

Seeing this, Master Yang knew he could not hear the complete truth from Yuxi’s mouth. “Then I will go with Zijin tomorrow.” Master Yang was sick of the life of fighting and killing. If not, he would not have gone into seclusion and lived a life that tended to be that of a hermit.

Yuxi shook her head. “That won’t do. If you are there, Zijin will never be able to grow.” Although Zijin’s martial arts skills were high, her mind was still immature, and this was something she lacked.

Seeing that Master Yang kept staring at her, Yuxi said, “Zijin has grown up with me since I was a child, and I treat her like my sister. I will never harm her.”

Master Yang looked deeply at Yuxi, then nodded. “Since you say so, then I won’t go.” It was about time for Yu Zhi and Zijin to grow up.