Chapter 157

Chapter 157

Old Master didn’t return tonight, so Xiao Shouyi and the others all stayed at the military camp. Xiao Zhen closed the latticed gate and sent the maids and servants to rest in the side rooms, leaving only the couple in the spacious main courtyard.

Tong Sui asked him, "Have you eaten?"

Xiao Zhen: "I only managed to wash my face at the camp."

Tong Sui: "Then go take a bath first. I’ll prepare something for you to eat."

Xiao Zhen was indeed hungry and nodded.

Night had already fallen, and Tong Sui could only prepare simple food. Fortunately, the kitchen here had rice, flour, and vegetables. With the hot weather, meat couldn’t be stored for long, so the cook always bought fresh meat early in the morning from the butcher’s stall.

Tong Sui first washed some scallions and chopped them into scallion greens, then scooped a large bowl of flour from the grain cabinet to make a batter. As she was mixing it, footsteps approached the kitchen door. Turning around, she saw Xiao Zhen wearing only a pair of underpants, a towel and a change of underpants draped over his left arm, and a bucket of water in his right hand.

They had been married for more than a year, and they had gone through so much together that Tong Sui wasn’t embarrassed by his muscular chest anymore. However, as Xiao Zhen closed half of the kitchen door and casually hung the new underpants and towel outside, he stood behind the other half of the door and began to undo his belt. Tong Sui turned away and scolded him softly, "Do you have to come here to wash?"

Xiao Zhen watched her skillfully stirring the batter and said, "It’s been a while since I’ve seen you cook."

Tong Sui was taken aback. Since the family moved to Wei County and hired a cook, she hadn’t cooked much. The last time she did was when she made longevity noodles with her cousins, and Xiao Zhen had accompanied General Han to a banquet that night.

She looked at the bowl in her hands and said softly, "What’s so interesting about cooking?"

Xiao Zhen didn’t respond.

Tong Sui heard him drop the towel into the water.

He washed himself, and Tong Sui tried not to look his way. She picked five eggs from the basket and cracked them into the bowl, added the scallion greens and salt, and continued stirring.

Xiao Zhen laughed, "I ruin silk, and you waste eggs. We truly are a match."

Tong Sui: "Eggs and flour that nourish the body aren’t wasted."

Xiao Zhen: "The image of you lying on that red silk will stay with me forever, and that isn’t wasted either."

Tong Sui really wanted to glare at him. "Do you still want to eat?"

Xiao Zhen fell silent again.

Tong Sui rinsed the pan, added firewood to heat it, and evenly spread oil around the bottom. She fried pancakes for him.

In the village, even the Xiao family wouldn’t indulge in such luxuries as white flour and eggs, so this was the first time Tong Sui had done this. She did it purely to save time and ensure he ate something good.

Using a spatula, she flipped out the first thin pancake, tore off a small piece, blew on it to cool it down, and put it in her mouth, turning away from him. "It’s okay."

Xiao Zhen: "Tear me a piece. If it’s not good, don’t bother making more."

Tong Sui: "…"

How could she give it to him when he was naked?

Realizing he was teasing her, Tong Sui huffed, "I’ll keep it for tomorrow morning if you don’t eat it."

With that, she continued frying eight more thin pancakes. It sounded like a lot, but they were all very thin, and Xiao Zhen could easily finish them.

Using the remaining oil in the pan, Tong Sui cooked a bowl of egg drop soup to prevent him from choking on the pancakes.

By the time she finished, Xiao Zhen had also finished washing. He put on his pants and walked past Tong Sui to wash the basket of apricots. They were quite large, so there were only about ten of them.

Tong Sui: "Don’t wash them all. Save some for Grandfather and the others tomorrow."

Xiao Zhen picked six ripe ones to wash.

The moon was full, and the breeze in the courtyard made it cooler. Xiao Zhen moved the table outside, and the couple enjoyed their meal while admiring the moon.

Though he claimed to be admiring the moon, Xiao Zhen’s gaze never left Tong Sui.

Tong Sui knew why. Tonight was another reunion after a brief separation, but it might also be one of the last peaceful evenings they would share. The army had rested for nine days, and if they didn’t depart tomorrow, they would definitely set out the day after.

The victory at Shuozhou was due to the weak opposition and the Xiao family’s thorough understanding of the Shi and Qi families, as well as their advantage in morale. Once they left Shuozhou and engaged the imperial troops, even General Han Zongping’s reputation wouldn’t be enough to guarantee success. Each battle would cost countless lives.

Tong Sui would be relatively safe with Old Master, but a young general like Xiao Zhen would certainly lead his troops to the front lines.

"Is it sour?" Xiao Zhen suddenly asked.

Tong Sui realized she was holding an apricot and took a bite. It was both sour and sweet.

"Sweet," Tong Sui said, offering him one.

Xiao Zhen: "I’ll eat the pancakes first."

He didn’t comment on whether they were good or not, but he ate the entire plate, leaving not even a speck of scallion.

—

On the last day of their stay in Shuozhou, General Han Zongping summoned the three generals and their deputies for a meeting.

Tong Sui and Xiao Yan waited at the right-wing army camp.

When Xiao Mu and Xiao Zhen returned, they only shared what they could.

Jinzhou was mountainous, and the army’s southward march would primarily follow the narrow plain between two ranges of mountains. The strategic city of Tai Yuan lay on this route. Capturing Tai Yuan would allow them to continue advancing towards the capital to the south or retreat to the easily defensible Shuozhou to the north.

Tai Yuan had always been a key battleground, and this time, the court had deployed troops to defend it. Currently, there were ten thousand soldiers stationed in Tai Yuan, and another ten thousand in Shizhou, four hundred miles to the east. The two locations were connected by Quan County, which controlled the strategic Niangzi Pass. If Tai Yuan were threatened, Shizhou could send reinforcements, and vice versa.

To counter this, General Han Zongping decided to split his forces into two. He would lead the central, right-wing, and cavalry units, totaling seventeen thousand troops, to attack Tai Yuan directly. Lu Gong would command the seven-thousand-strong left-wing army to bypass and attack Quan County, cutting off the communication line between Tai Yuan and Shizhou.

Tong Sui and the others breathed a sigh of relief. It didn’t matter where they fought, as long as the right-wing army remained intact.

On the evening of May 17th, the army set out.

Between Shuozhou and Tai Yuan lies Xinzhou. The northern counties of Xinzhou had long been occupied by the Shi and Qi families, and were now under the control of Han Zongping.

Since Han Zongping moved from Jizhou to Jinbei, the court, which had previously been too busy to pay attention to Xinzhou, sent reinforcements there. According to reports from scouts, Xinzhou was now guarded by General Xue Linghe with an army of thirty thousand troops. Forty miles east of Xinzhou, Xiang County also had ten thousand garrison troops. These two counties formed the defensive line against Han Zongping's forces advancing on Tai Yuan.

On the afternoon of May 22nd, the army set up camp ten miles north of Xinzhou.

Han Zongping issued an order to Xiao Mu, commanding him to lead seven battalions to attack Xiang County the next morning, while leaving five battalions to follow the main force in attacking Xinzhou City.

The attacking forces on both sides were roughly four times the size of the defending forces.

Several young men who had followed the old general all wanted to continue accompanying him to Xiang County.

Xiao Mu selected Xiao Shouyi, Xiao Yan, Xiao She, Zhang Wengong, Tong Gui, Qi Yun, and Pan Yong.

Xiao Ye, Sun Dian, and the Qiao brothers were a bit anxious.

Xiao Mu said, "What, can't you fight without me leading you?"

The four could only comply with the orders.

Xiao Mu then said to Tong Sui, "Aman will be coming with us."

Tong Sui nodded, glancing at Xiao Zhen. Since the old general hadn't mentioned Xiao Zhen, his cavalry unit would definitely continue to follow Han Zongping.

At dawn the next day, the seven battalions of the right wing army set out to attack Xiang County, with the vanguard leading the way and the supplies and equipment following behind.

This was Tong Sui's first time participating in a city assault. Her mind involuntarily replayed the gruesome scenes she had witnessed on the walls of Wei County when the rebel forces attacked. To the defenders of Wei County, the rebel army was like a pack of man-eating beasts. However, only a few of these beasts managed to climb the walls; most died under the rain of arrows, rolling stones, and boiling oil.

Xiao Mu asked Xiao Yan, "Old Three, did you ever attack a city when you were fighting the two false emperors in the south for the court?"

Xiao Yan smiled, "Not just once, I've lost count."

Xiao Mu: "Did you ever serve as a vanguard?"

Xiao Yan: "Yes, I did."

Xiao Mu: "Tell everyone how you survived."

Xiao Yan: "Just charge forward with all your might. The more you fear, the more likely you are to get hit. You can't stop; if you do, you'll become a target for the enemy. The defenders are just ordinary soldiers, their archery skills are average. The vanguard wears armor, and if you pay attention, you can avoid vital areas. The faster you charge, the fewer arrows you'll dodge."

"When climbing the ladders, you need to watch out for both arrows and people falling from above. If someone falls, move to the side. If that's not possible, turn to the back of the ladder. We used to climb ladders every day as children, so this is a basic skill. If all else fails, jump down, especially when the defenders pour oil. You must jump; some people survive even when they fall from the wall, so it's less dangerous when you're closer to the ground."

"In short, don't be afraid or panic. As a vanguard in a city assault, if you survive, you earn substantial military merit. The first one to reach the wall gets a large sum of money. For a small city like Xiang County, the reward is a hundred taels. For a place like Xinzhou, it's a hundred and fifty taels. For a major city like Tai Yuan, the harder the battle, the higher the reward, possibly several hundred or even thousands of taels."

Xiao Yan has a loud voice, and he amplified it even more while sharing his battlefield experience.

The militia of the seven battalions felt a surge of enthusiasm from Third Master Xiao.

In the afternoon, nearly forty thousand infantry arrived five miles outside Xiang County.

Xiang County has only two city gates, one to the north and one to the south.

It was the hottest part of the day, and Xiao Mu ordered the troops to set up camp and rest, sending only a few dozen men to taunt the defenders outside the city walls.

The defenders on the walls remained unmoved, not even firing a single arrow.

The small group returned empty-handed.

When the heat of the day subsided and the sun began to set, Xiao Mu ordered Xiao Shouyi and Jiang Tiankuo to take two battalions and some siege equipment to the north gate to encircle but not attack, thus diverting part of the defending forces. He then commanded the main force to form an array south of Xiang County, with Xiao Yan and Qi Yun leading the vanguard in the first wave of the assault.

Han Zongping had transported twenty thousand sets of armor from Jizhou, and the battle of Shuozhou had yielded another forty thousand sets. Although half had to be left for the surrendered troops of Shuozhou, there was still enough to ensure that every soldier in the right wing army's vanguard had armor to wear.

Shield bearers protected the archers at the front, and as the two sides' archers engaged, Xiao Yan roared and led the charge.

If the three commanders of the Xiao family weren't afraid of death, why should the common soldiers be?

The militia, participating in their first city assault, surged toward the city gates like a tide.

Some fell along the way, some hesitated, but more remembered Third Master Xiao's words and bravely charged forward.

Tong Sui, clad in armor, stayed by the old general's side on horseback. When she saw the first wave of her own soldiers cut down by the rain of arrows, she couldn't bear it and said to the old general, "General, please allow me to join the assault."

Xiao Mu didn't speak, but his eyes conveyed his meaning: Foolish child, it's too dangerous.

Tong Sui looked at him pleadingly.

She couldn't lead the charge like Xiao Yan, but she could use her arrows to kill the defenders on the walls.

If one defender could hold off five or even ten attackers, then by killing one defender, she could protect at least five of her own soldiers.

Each archer was accompanied by shield bearers, so she wasn't acting rashly.

Xiao Mu took a deep breath and called over four shield bearers to escort Tong Sui to join the archers below the city walls.

The four shield bearers tried to keep pace with the second lady, but to their surprise, she ran quite fast despite carrying two heavy quivers.

Guided by Tong Sui, the five reached the front of the archer formation on the left side of the city gate, about a hundred paces away.

When the defenders' archers reloaded, it was the moment for Tong Sui and others to fire their arrows. Because the opportunity was fleeting, the archers had no time to aim and could only shoot in the general direction.

But Tong Sui could aim.

A defending soldier crouched behind the crenellation, drew his bow, and stepped out to shoot. Suddenly, an arrow flew straight at him, striking him in the face.

He fell backward in disbelief, still holding his bow and arrow.