The northern barbarians' army began to attack the city early in the morning and did not stop until dark. When the barbarians retreated, they left behind thousands of corpses. Zijin, who had fought from early morning till night with no time to eat in the middle, was indescribably exhausted when she finally realised that the northern barbarians had withdrawn.
The men on the platform did not cheer when this happened, for it only showed that they had won another sole night of peace. Tomorrow, they had to fight through another round of bloody battles.
The man surnamed Huang, nicknamed Big Head, who had struck up a conversation with them that morning, came over and praised Zijin and Yu Zhi, "You two are courageous." Zijin slashed every enemy with her sword, and Yu Zhi was no worse. The veteran wily old fox (Xu Daniu) had justly said that these two were very good at martial arts.
Zijin also complimented Big Head Huang, "You guys are also fearless." Although these soldiers' martial arts weren't as good as Yu Zhi's and hers, none of these men held anyone back when they fought, and they were even willing to go all out. It was also thanks to them that the people within Yu City could live peacefully until now.
When Big Head Huang heard Zijin's voice, he froze. "You, you......" This voice obviously belonged to a woman!
Zijin let her hair down and said towards Big Head Huang, "You're right to think I'm a woman." Madam had told her earlier that it would not hurt to let people know she was a woman as long as she was brave enough to kill her enemies.
Big Head Huang smiled instead in response. "You're a woman who does not concede to men[1]." To these soldiers, it was good for a person to be able to kill the enemy, regardless of gender. Besides, Zijin's martial arts skills could outrival a dozen men.
Big Head Huang was of an advanced age and had seen a lot of things. Therefore, he was surprised by the revelation but not that shocked. The other soldiers didn't have the same thought as him. They looked at Zijin as if she were an alien. Could this person be considered a woman? This person was just freakishly eccentric, right? Of course, if there were more eccentric people like her, the better.
This incident soon reached Qin Zhao and General Zhao's ears. Qin Zhao was annoyed as he questioned, "What is this woman's status? How could you just give her permission to go up the city platform?"
Battalion Chief Yang answered, "General, although she is a woman, she has been fearless in killing the enemies. Just today, this woman killed more than sixty barbarians."
General Zhao instructed on the side, "Bring this woman up." He was curious about what kind of woman could kill more than sixty barbarians in one day.
When he finally saw Zijin, General Zhao did not recognise her at first.
Qin Zhao looked at Zijin and then at Battalion Chief Yang with suspicion. "Have you made a mistake? Did she really kill over sixty northern barbarians?"
Zijin did not intend to put Battalion Chief Yang in a difficult position as she said, "General Qin if you're doubting me, you can take a look at my sword." Zijin's sword was made of fine iron. Although her broadsword was heavy, it was not bulky; on the contrary, it was made by skilful craftsmen and had a beautiful appearance.
Qin Zhao prided himself on his status. He naturally would not personally pick up the sword. Qin Zhao glanced at the guard beside him. The guard walked over and took Zijin's sword with both hands as a sign of respect for her.
Zijin added, "This sword I'm holding weighs nearly one hundred and eighty jin[2], so be sure to hold it steady."
The guard didn't suspect that Zijin was bluffing. Moreover, there was no need for her to do it in the presence of so many people. "Can you put the sword on the ground?" The face of the sword was still covered in blood, but Zijin was not hurt anywhere. This was the blood of the barbarians.
When General Zhao heard Zijin speak, he asked, "Aren't you Madam Yun's personal maid?" He had seen Zijin only yesterday, and he would not forget her voice. The main thing was that Zijin had made such a deep impression on him that he couldn't forget her even if he wanted to.
Zijin shook her head. "My Madam has long since released me." This sentence meant that she was no longer a maid of the Yun Residence.
Qin Zhao asked unkindly, "Who told you to go up the city walls?"
Zijin was so bold that she didn't even spare Yun Qing when criticising, let alone Qin Zhao, whom she despised. "Why can't I go up there? Just because I'm a woman? Haven't I killed no fewer barbarians than the other soldiers?" Much more than the others, to be exact.
General Zhao glanced at Qin Zhao and pointed out, "General Qin, the main thing for us now is to defend Yu City. We can deal with the rest of the issues after the battle." General Zhao's meaning was clear. It didn't matter whether Zijin was a man or a woman. What mattered was that she was good at martial arts and could kill the enemy.
Zijin's eyes sparkled when she heard these words as she asked, "Then, can I continue to go up to the city walls tomorrow to kill the enemy?" Although it was nerve-wracking, there was an indescribable feeling of joy and recklessness in Zijin's heart when she killed the enemy.
General Zhao nodded. "Yes."
Qin Zhao had a disapproving look on his face. Despite him being the garrison general of Yu City, General Zhao was still his elder and had a great deal of prestige in the army. Therefore, he could not refute General Zhao's words in front of this many people.
Having achieved her goal, Zijin was unwilling to stay there any longer and said, "I have to go back, or my Madam will be anxious."
When Zijin had left, Qin Zhao said disapprovingly, "General Zhao, how can you allow her to go up the city walls again tomorrow?"
General Zhao replied unpleasantly, "This girl is so skilled. Why would you not want her to go there?" General Zhao was close to saying if you don't use such a powerful weapon, you are definitely out of your mind.
Qin Zhao argued, "But since ancient times, there has been no precedent of a woman going into battle."
General Zhao's face completely darkened as he questioned, "Do you mean that you would rather let the northern barbarians break through the city than let women go into battle?" How could General Zhao not know Qin Zhao's little thoughts? Qin Zhao was feeling uncomfortable just because Zijin was from the Yun Residence. But now, at this critical juncture, he was disregarding the overall situation and still concerned about his personal grudges, which genuinely disgusted General Zhao.
A noob translator, きつね, translated this noob translation. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.site. If you read this in another location other than site stated, it has been taken without the translator's permission. Please don't support this kind of act.
Qin Zhao's face changed slightly, but he could not turn against General Zhao at this time, especially since he was a Commander-in-chief, he couldn't have a disagreement with one of his generals.
Once Zijin arrived at Yun Residence, she washed up and changed her clothes before entering the backyard. When she saw Yuxi, it was clear that she had only not seen her for a day, but it felt like a lifetime had passed. "Madam......" Zijin did not even know what else to say to her.
Yuxi nodded. "It's good that you're back. Have you had your dinner yet? I've asked Mama Bai to save some food for you." After saying that, she asked Mama Bai to serve the food.
Mama Bai was also exhausted these few days. She had to prepare food for more than twenty people by herself among which there were also a pregnant woman and a seriously ill patient who needed extra care. It was good that Mama Bai had two little maids to help her. Otherwise, all by herself, she would have been dead tired.
Zijin called out again in a low voice, "Madam......" Remembering the continuous fighting on the city platform, now that she was back at Yun House, looking at Madam's smile, it felt like a lifetime ago.
Yuxi approached Zijin, gently patted her and said, "There's no rush. We'll slowly talk about it after you've had your fill." She knew that Zijin must have a lot to say to her.
When the food was served, Zijin realised how hungry she was. That was right. She hadn't eaten anything since this morning and had been so focused during the battle that when it was time to get off the platform, Zijin only thought about hurrying back. She didn't even remember that she hadn't eaten for most of the day.
Yuxi was kind enough to prepare a light dinner for Zijin and Yu Zhi, with white rice, four dishes and a soup. There was no meat on the table; it was all vegetarian.
Looking at the four dishes and one soup, which were all vegetarian, Zijin asked, "Madam, why is there no meat?" She was craving meat and did not want to only eat green vegetables and tofu.
Yu Zhi said, "These dishes are quite good." After a day of killing people, he didn't want to eat meat at all right now. He was even worried that he would not be able to eat when he saw it.
Seeing this situation, Yuxi said, "Zijin, you can eat in the kitchen. There are still some meat dishes left there." She was also worried that the two wouldn't dare to eat meat after killing too many people. She didn't expect Zijin to be not in the least affected and Yu Zhi would be the one with a shadow.
Zijin carried her bowl to the kitchen, where there were leftovers of bacon and chicken soup with red dates. This chicken soup was not only eaten by Yuxi but also by Huo Changqing. However, they did not have a big appetite, so they had only had a small portion. Zijin served herself a bowl of chicken soup which tasted delicious. It was clear that although she had killed so many people and seen so much blood, she was not affected by it.
Chicken soup with lotus seeds, red dates and shiitake mushrooms
After Zijin had her fill, she told Yuxi about the day's events. "Madam, I have killed sixty-eight barbarians today, and I will kill more tomorrow."
After hearing this, Yuxi said, "Zijin, you are a woman. You will not be given any official position even if you kill more enemies and make more military achievements."
Zijin didn't care about that and said, "I didn't kill the northern barbarians to become an officer." She was doing it to protect her own master's safety.
Yuxi nodded gently. "I am just giving you a heads-up." These were particular times, so Zijin was allowed to go to battle and kill the enemy. But Qin Zhao, General Zhao and the others would never put Zijin's name in their battle achievements report in the future. Otherwise, the Imperial Court Ministers would spray dog blood on Yu City's generals' heads[3].
After talking to Zijin for a while, Yuxi let her go to rest. "You have to go to the city walls again tomorrow, so rest early today."
Zijin was indeed tired and sleepy, so she didn't refuse and quickly went to rest. Yu Zhi also did the same. Since almost everyone had moved to the inner courtyard, Yu Zhi slept in his assigned wing.
Xu Wu came in afterwards and reported to Yuxi, "Madam, we have more than 4,000 men dead or injured today." With the 10,000 people brought back by Xia Hong and Kang Donglin, the total number of soldiers in Yu City was just over 50,000. But since the start of the war, it had only been four days, and they had lost more than 10,000 men. The number of casualties was rising every day.[T/C]
Hearing this, Yuxi said, "There are still more than 40,000 men, enough for us to wait for the reinforcements' arrival. There is no need to say anything else." Yuxi knew that Xu Wu wanted her to move to a safe place. It was just that once the enemies broke into the city, there wouldn't be a place that could be considered safe.
Seeing this reaction, Xu Wu persuaded, "Madam, I naturally hope that Yu City can hold on. But no matter what, we must plan for the worst. Madam, I just hope that we prepare early. Otherwise, it will be too late when that time does come."
Yuxi asked, "How do you want me to prepare?"
Xu Wu said, "Madam, a secret passage has been dug in the winery. I already had someone put enough food inside to last a month. In times of real distress, I hope Madam can hide there." He was afraid Yuxi would be stubborn and unwilling to go. That would be troublesome, so he wanted to talk things through with her in advance.
Yuxi nodded. "When that day comes, I will hide in the secret passage." After saying that, Yuxi rubbed her bulging belly. She hoped that day would not come.
In the middle of the night, Yun Qing took Yu Cong, Yuan Ying and a dozen men to infiltrate the northern captive army. Yun Qing had been scouting the area for several days. Their goal was not to assassinate Agu but to burn the enemies' provisions.[T/C]
With an army of over 100,000 men, just one day's rations amount was already huge, let alone nearly half a month's worth. Hence, it was easy to find the rations location.
Since Yu Cong and Yuan Ying could speak the northern barbarians' language, they narrowly avoided several interrogations and successfully approached where the enemies kept the rations.
Footnotes Full List
- Chinese idiom: to compare favourably with men in terms of ability, bravery etc.
- a traditional unit of weight, each containing 10 liang (市两) or 16 old liang (旧市两) and equivalent to 0.5 kilogram or 1.102 pounds
- Chinese idiom: cursed
- Oh, so this is how they have 10k more soldiers.
- @virtualscreamer, one of your guesses is right.
Tags:
The Rebirth of Han Yuxi