Luzhou-Mond - Kapitel 108
I turned around, and Shen Haoyu was looking at me with a gentle expression, as if he hadn't been the one with the frosty look on his face just moments before. Seeing that I didn't speak, Shen Haoyu continued, "What, a month? Had enough fun?"
Shen Haoyu's unusual behavior left me frozen in place, unable to move. What could I do? My master had already arrived; where else could I go?
Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 91
Chapter word count: 3504 Update time: 09-08-30 08:50
Shen Haoyu and Shen Zexuan went to the city garrison together, while I returned to Lanshe alone. The others had not yet returned.
Looking at the bamboo firework tube in my hand, can I still go to the Temple of the Old Man Under the Moon at midnight?
While tidying up, there wasn't much stuff, just a thorough sorting and arranging of the things I'd used over the past few days. Just then, Ganlin and Zinuo returned.
"Where did you go? I waited for ages and couldn't see you. Then I saw you, but I couldn't catch up with you." I asked irritably. If it weren't for this, I probably wouldn't have run into Shen Zexuan and Shen Haoyu, and I might have been able to stay here a little longer.
Zinuo glanced at me: "I went to look for you, didn't I?" Seeing me packing my things, she asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"
I said dejectedly, "The young prince and his men have come looking for us and want us to go back tomorrow." Zinuo's expression remained indifferent upon hearing this, while Ganlin showed a slight hint of displeasure. Fortunately, someone else shared my sentiment.
Seeing the bamboo tube in Ganlin's hand, and knowing it was almost midnight, I quickly said, "Let's go to the Temple of the Matchmaker and set off the fireworks." Ganlin and Zinuo, who had just entered the house, accompanied me to the Temple of the Matchmaker.
The appointed time was approaching, and many men and women had already gathered in the small square in front of the temple. A bell rang, and people opened their bamboo tubes and lit the fuses, causing fireworks to burst forth under the starry sky. Fireworks shot continuously into the sky; Gan Lin's was a golden chrysanthemum, while my fuse burned for a long time without igniting, and finally went out. I angrily threw away the bamboo tube. I couldn't believe that even the Temple of the Matchmaker had counterfeit products; this was truly a bad omen.
A moment later, another golden chrysanthemum bloomed in the sky, and I finally cheered: "Ganlin, look! You've found a good match!" Ganlin gave a faint, bitter smile and turned to walk back. As I passed the bamboo tube, I kicked it angrily, and it rolled to the side. A little boy picked it up, looked it over from left to right, and then ran to a man to get incense and lit it again. Immediately, I heard a "bang," and a beam of light shot into the night sky. A chrysanthemum then bloomed, and I was dumbfounded.
I glanced back at the little boy before catching up with Gan Lin and Zinuo. Seeing me catch up, Zinuo said with dissatisfaction, "Where have you been? You almost got lost again."
I grinned and said, "So that bamboo tube wasn't broken after all. A little boy picked it up just now, and it actually works."
Gan Lin asked curiously, "What flower?"
"It's chrysanthemums too." There are only so many patterns, and it's rare to find something different. The people at the Matchmaker Temple really know how to make people happy. If they do this, wouldn't almost everyone be able to find their soulmate?
Gan Lin chuckled: "Go back quickly."
When I returned to Lan House, Youlan and Shanshan were already back. After chatting for a while, I told Youlan that Shen Haoyu and the others had also come to Qingzhou and wanted us to leave the next day, so that it wouldn't be too hasty to tell her when we left the next day.
Youlan's smiling face slowly darkened. I sighed. How could I bear to do that?
The next morning, Youlan and Shanshan both got up early. We didn't have much to take with us. After bothering Youlan for so many days, before leaving, I left her the box of "Si Jiaren" tea that Shen Tingxuan had given me. She loved that tea, and it wasn't available here yet. Besides that, I didn't have anything else worth mentioning.
Youlan reluctantly saw us off at the door. I repeatedly promised to visit her again if I had the chance, and only then did she manage a forced smile. Unable to bear watching any longer, I couldn't help but laugh and say, "Good sister, let me play you another song." I handed the flute to Zinuo, who played "Red Beauty," and I began to sing: "Swords boil wine, tasteless; for whom do I drink this cup? You bid me farewell, you bid me farewell. The scent of rouge, I can love but cannot give; how long is the sky, how far is the earth? You are a hero, destined to be tearless and without regret; how dangerous this smile is, it's poison that pierces the gut; how beautiful these tears are, only you know; with you in my heart, living is laughable. I don't want fame in this life, I only ask for a smile from my beloved; if this journey can be reincarnated, I am willing to be a cow or a horse in the next life, to follow you to the ends of the earth..."
"Okay, no matter where I go, I'll remember Youlan," she said, glancing at Shanshan who was pouting beside her, and quickly added, "And Shanshan too." Shanshan then slowly smiled.
Youlan pursed her lips and gave me a gentle push: "If you're going, hurry up and go. The sun will get stronger later, and you'll complain about the heat on the way." With that, she turned and went inside, no longer looking at me. I gave a helpless bitter smile and finally left Lanshe with Ganlin and Zinuo, heading towards the city magistrate's mansion. This parting with Youlan was the last time I would ever see her again. This parting was forever, leaving me only to silently miss this pure and kind-hearted woman in my lonely days.
During our stay in Lanshe, we paid little attention to the war situation outside, even deliberately avoiding it. Only now do we learn that our army has captured two more cities, Dingzhou and Fengzhou. Dingzhou, Fengzhou, and Shizhou were originally positioned in a pincer movement. Most of the Xuan Ying army was stationed in Fengzhou, but because the route from Shizhou to Dingzhou was treacherous, Xuan Ying believed that our army would attack Fengzhou first before targeting Dingzhou, so Dingzhou's defenses were weaker than Fengzhou's. Who knew that Shen Zexuan would risk such danger, leading 50,000 troops to raid Dingzhou by night and across mountains, catching the garrison off guard. Upon hearing the news, the Xuan Ying army in Fengzhou sent reinforcements overnight. Just as the main force left, the Iron Army left behind in Shizhou suddenly arrived, dividing and annihilating the enemy forces in both locations, recapturing Dingzhou and Fengzhou in one fell swoop. The enemy forces retreated again, retreating to Huizhou.
I've never seen Shen Zexuan fight on the battlefield. The only time I was with him was during the attack on Yunzhou City, but even then he was just watching from the sidelines; he wasn't needed to charge into battle. Thinking about how he led troops to attack Dingzhou City, with his striking good looks, I wonder if he should wear a mask like Lanling Wang.
When I learned that Shen Zexuan had been wounded in that battle, taking two arrow wounds, I became somewhat worried. It had only been seven or eight days since the capture of Dingzhou, and with the hot weather, the arrow wounds must not have healed yet, but he still came to Qingzhou. I secretly inquired and learned that neither Shen Haoyu nor Shen Zexuan had official business in Qingzhou, which made me even more conflicted.
In this war, the Youjing Dynasty was caught off guard at the beginning and lost many opportunities. However, more than three months have passed since the start of the counterattack. The Iron Army has sufficient food and supplies, and the imperial court is providing supplies in a steady stream. Compared with the resource-scarce Xuan Ying Kingdom, it has a great advantage.
However, of the cities that were recaptured, only the garrison of Shizhou was reintegrated into the Iron Army. The garrisons in the other cities either died in battle or continued to fight against their own people with the Xuan Ying army. In this respect, Youjing Dynasty suffered a loss.
The main army is stationed in Fengzhou, and 30,000 troops have also been deployed in Dingzhou. The imperial reinforcements will arrive in August, since the city that was originally defended will need to be re-stationed with troops.
In Fengzhou City, our new residence was indeed by the water, with an artificial lake in the garden. Although it couldn't compare to the nameless lake in Qingzhou, it was still quite nice. My room was arranged in an attic by the lake; I stayed upstairs, and Ganlin and Zinuo stayed downstairs. The luggage we had left in Shizhou had been neatly packed and placed on the table. Who did all this?
Pushing open the window facing the water, a gentle breeze wafted in, carrying a faint mist that invigorated me. After putting my things away, I heard footsteps coming from the stairs. Thinking it was Zinuo, I was about to speak when I saw Shen Haoyu standing in the doorway.
"Do you like it?" Shen Haoyu asked.
I carefully examined the room. It seemed to have been a woman's room before, although many things had been removed, it was still clear. "It's alright." The room wasn't overly feminine, which was acceptable. I'm used to simple furnishings; if I were to actually stay in a woman's boudoir, I would feel quite uncomfortable.
"I'm sorry." Shen Haoyu's voice sounded softly again. I was stunned: "What?"
Shen Haoyu glared at me unhappily: "Does your shoulder still hurt?"
It was only then that I realized, "It doesn't hurt anymore." Shen Haoyu didn't say anything more and hurriedly turned around and went downstairs.
Looking at the carefully arranged room and hearing his apology, all the unpleasantness and dissatisfaction from before slowly and unconsciously disappeared without a trace.
The enemy forces, having temporarily retreated to Huizhou, launched a fierce attack on Fengzhou in the past few days. They seemed to have learned of the impending arrival of reinforcements from the imperial court and attempted to recapture some cities before the reinforcements arrived. However, General Chen and Prince Min of Xuan Ying were both legendary figures on the battlefield, and our army's veteran General Du Zhai and a group of young generals were no pushovers either. Among them, Cui Lang was particularly outstanding, possessing exceptional martial arts skills and being adept at military strategy and tactics, repeatedly entrusted with important tasks by General Du. Therefore, with the two armies evenly matched, neither side could gain any significant advantage, and the battle once again reached a stalemate.
Just as everyone was busy discussing how to defeat the enemy, news came from the west that Dingzhou had fallen. The enemy, imitating our previous strategy, marched overnight to launch a surprise attack on Dingzhou. Unlike our army, they did not divert troops to attack Fengzhou. Their 100,000-strong army captured Dingzhou in one fell swoop and then settled there peacefully. Dingzhou, which Shen Zexuan had painstakingly recaptured, fell into enemy hands once again.
The generals and strategists discussed the matter overnight. Dingzhou City was not large and its military status was not very high, so neither army had previously stationed heavy troops there. They wondered what Xuan Ying's intentions were in this move. Was it to deliberately mislead their army, or was there something truly important in Dingzhou City?
However, our army dared not rashly think about taking back Dingzhou. In contrast, the defense of Huizhou was weak at this time, so our attention was naturally focused on Huizhou. Moreover, once Huizhou was captured, the enemy troops left in Dingzhou would become isolated and it would be difficult to make contact with their rear.
Everyone was busy discussing strategies for attacking Huizhou, temporarily putting Dingzhou aside. I didn't know much about these matters, as they were military secrets, but I still felt uneasy. I always believed that Chen Dan, who had dominated the Northwest for so many years, would never use such a risky deception.
Before Huizhou could be captured, joyous news arrived from the capital: Mu Hanyan gave birth to the emperor's eldest grandson on July 16th, and Emperor Youjing bestowed upon him the name Zhengyu. At the same time, Emperor Youjing issued an edict for universal celebration, and the Iron Army in the far northwest also benefited, with each soldier receiving an extra tael of silver.
Upon hearing this news, I was very happy for Shen Tingxuan. My former brother Ting is now a father, and with the eldest prince demoted, he is the next most likely to inherit the throne. With the birth of the eldest grandson, it seems that he is the closest to the throne.
Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 92 of the main text.
Chapter word count: 3678 Update time: 09-08-30 08:51
The arrival of the eldest grandson was a joyous occasion, but it didn't bring much benefit to the war. Although the defenses of Huizhou were weak, they still couldn't capture it despite several attacks. Part of the reason was probably that they didn't launch a full-scale attack, fearing that the defenses of Fengzhou would be weak and allow the enemy forces in Dingzhou to take advantage of the situation. Everyone had to think of another solution.