Something feels off.
Watching Xia Yong turn his head and relax his posture, Li Guorui let out a breath of relief.
He had been exhausted for a while but didn't want to lose face in front of Qingshan Army. Now, seeing Xia Yong loosen his stance, he quickly relaxed his shoulders and rubbed his aching arms.
"It doesn't seem right," he said. "Didn't they say more Jurchen soldiers were coming? Even if they were setting up formations, they should've arrived by now."
They were puzzled here, just as the rear ranks were unsure.
"What a group of cowards! Are they going to fight or not?" Zhao Hanqing was even more impatient, urging her horse to turn in circles. "Sister, I'll go take a look."
Recently, for safety reasons, Miss Jun had stopped letting Zhao Hanqing scout.
Zhao Hanqing hadn't been enthusiastic about this and brought it up whenever she found the chance.
Miss Jun chuckled lightly.
"No need for you to go. There are scouts up ahead," she said.
"But it's been so long. They haven't sent back any information," Zhao Hanqing said. "Could something have happened?"
It shouldn't be possible. These scouts were highly skilled at remaining hidden, conducting reconnaissance, and fleeing if needed. She had repeatedly instructed them: they weren't required to kill enemies—if they encountered a lone Jin thief, they were not to engage.
Their task was purely reconnaissance.
Miss Jun raised her head and looked ahead at the Jurchen soldiers—how many of them there were, what formations they had assembled—yet no signals had been sent back.
What on earth had gone wrong up there?
The pounding of hooves filled the air as three scouts rushed in on horseback.
Xia Yong, Li Guorui, and the others in the forward ranks exchanged shocked glances.
Had they been exposed? Why had they returned personally?
"Miss Jun," the scouts rode into the formation, dismounting quickly and bowing. "The Jurchen soldiers have retreated."
The Jurchen soldiers retreated?
Earlier, they'd witnessed the Jurchen army pulling back.
"No, all the Jurchen soldiers," said one scout, disbelief written across his face. "Even the additional ten thousand troops that recently arrived—they've also withdrawn. We followed them and confirmed; they've retreated from Bazhou."
Ten thousand Jurchen soldiers retreating from Bazhou?
What had happened?
Miss Jun couldn't conceal her astonishment.
.........
What had happened?
Standing in front of the city, gazing at the wide-open gates, Zhu Zan and the others had strange expressions.
The messenger soldier cautiously approached.
"It's peculiar," he said. "We were told there were Jurchen soldiers here."
As his words fell, Zhu Zan spurred his horse into the city.
"Hey, hey!" The soldier cried out in panic. "What if it's an empty fort stratagem…"
"An empty fort, my ass." Zhu Zan hurled back without looking, galloping straight in.
A hundred soldiers immediately followed.
In no time, the city gate was left with only the messenger soldier. He glanced around nervously, deciding safety lay with numbers and quickly mounted his horse to chase after the group.
The streets bore signs of looting and destruction, but the damage wasn't extensive—it seemed the chaos had abruptly stopped.
"Is anyone here?" Zhu Zan suddenly called out loudly. "I am Zhu Zan, heir to the Duke of Chengguo. We are here under orders to escort civilians out of this territory."
His voice echoed sharply through the deathly silence of the streets, sending chills down the spine of the trailing messenger.
Terrifying! Don't draw the Jurchen soldiers here!
But Zhu Zan didn't halt. He galloped along the streets, shouting loudly, and the soldiers following him joined in.
Their voices reverberated through the empty streets, and as they ventured deeper, the tension of the group mounted.
They worried about Jurchen ambushes and dreaded the sight of more civilian carnage.
Suddenly, a door by the street creaked open, revealing several men and women trembling in terror as they peered at Zhu Zan's group.
"D-Don't tell me… you're the Duke of Chengguo's soldiers?" The leading man trembled as he called out.
Survivors!
Zhu Zan raised his hand, wiping the blood staining his face with force.
"That's right," he declared loudly. "Don't you recognize me? This strikingly handsome, outstanding heir to the Duke of Chengguo, Zhu Zan? Surely you know me?"
Duke of Chengguo's heir.
The men and women stared at the man who claimed to be the Duke's heir. Though the bloodstains were hastily wiped away, his face—covered in dried blood and dust—looked far from strikingly handsome.
Looking again at the soldiers around him, clad in battered armor, stained with blood, wielding blood-covered long knives and spears, and their burly, fierce physiques—it was hard to see these people as anything but terrifying.
Yet their fierceness didn't provoke fear. They bore the same familiar faces and features, the well-recognized attire of Zhou soldiers. Seeing this, the men and women burst into tears and rushed out.
Unbelievable. Zhou soldiers had really come.
The men and women fell to the ground, weeping and kowtowing.
"They did not abandon us."
"They did not abandon us."
As these few civilians emerged, more and more people poured out from hiding spots along the street. Looking at the swelling crowd, Zhu Zan and his soldiers finally exhaled in relief.
Thankfully, they were still alive.
"But what happened here?" The messenger asked in surprise. "Did the Jurchen soldiers not enter the city?"
At this question, the civilians' expressions grew even more panicked.
"They did!" A portly man, his face smudged with soot, spoke up tremblingly. "A lot of them—they scared us half to death."
They came?
The messenger jumped in shock.
"Then where are they?" He asked.
The civilians also seemed surprised, staring at Zhu Zan and his men.
"Wasn't it you, Lord Heir, who drove them away?" Someone asked.
"Yeah, they suddenly left earlier," the crowd quickly replied.
Suddenly?
Zhu Zan turned to his companions.
It seems the retreat horn was the reason.
What had happened? Why did they retreat abruptly?
"Doesn't matter; let's move quickly," the messenger said. "Perhaps the Jin thief army is regrouping—word is there are tens of thousands of them."
The surrounding civilians changed color, their anxious cries ringing out.
"Lord Heir, save us!"
"Duke of Chengguo, save us, please!"
They cried out, kneeling in despair on the streets.
"Of course, we're here to save you," Zhu Zan declared loudly, gesturing for the civilians to stand. "I'll hold the rear and fend off the Jin thief army. You need to move south quickly now."
The civilians hurriedly rose, taking their elders and children as they rushed out of the city.
Watching the flood of people heading south, the messenger walked over to Zhu Zan once more.
"Lord Heir, we should also move quickly—together with them," he said.
Zhu Zan stared toward the north.
"We need to check on other places," he said. "The more civilians we rescue, the better."
"We've already got plenty," the messenger said. "The Jurchen soldiers have already entered the territory."
But his words fell on deaf ears. Zhu Zan had already exited the city gate and was riding north toward the next destination, with hundreds of soldiers closely following him.
............….
"Sister!"
Zhao Hanqing galloped in from the distance.
"I found out what happened!"
Standing near the encampment, Xia Yong, Li Guorui, and Yang Jing all gathered around.
They had been camping here for two days, with the Jurchen soldiers still absent. The scouts ahead had repeatedly confirmed that the Jurchen army had indeed retreated from Bazhou and were now heading toward Yizhou.
Yizhou was Jurchen territory.
Were they retreating back to their borders?
"What happened with the Jurchen soldiers?" Miss Jun asked.
Zhao Hanqing grinned mischievously.
"Sister, you were right," she said. "Something has happened to the Jurchen army."
...............…
"Madam!"
Liang Chengdong exclaimed excitedly after hearing the sentry's report.
"It's the Duke!"
Madam Yu raised her hand, motioning for him to calm down, her gaze fixed on the Qingshan Army's sentry before her.
"Are you saying the Duke of Chengguo launched a surprise attack on the Jurchen army's left wing—the wing led by the Jin Country's Seventh Prince?" she asked.
The sentry affirmed.
"The Seventh Prince is currently surrounded by the Duke's forces. Therefore, Tuoba Wu issued an order for all Jurchen soldiers to pull back and reinforce him," he said, scratching his head before adding, "Miss Jun mentioned that while the Seventh Prince might not necessarily be captured, Tuoba Wu can't afford to take that risk. Thus, all the invading Jurchen soldiers have retreated."
Madam Yu smiled faintly.
"Indeed, the Jin Country emperor's father died at the hands of the Duke. Tuoba Wu has been wracked with guilt for over a decade; he can't handle going through another ten years of regret," she said.
Liang Chengdong's expression turned conflicted.
"The Duke has broken the siege for us. With the enemy army retreating, only scattered troops remain; they'll be easier to deal with," he said. "But…"
"This is good news," Madam Yu interrupted, her tone calm. "We now have more time to escort the civilians south."
But this wasn't entirely good news.
"Madam," Liang Chengdong took a step forward, his face filled with concern. "The Duke only has thirty thousand soldiers. He... he's trapped in the northern lands now."
Deep in enemy territory, striking against the Jurchen prince, surrounded by thousands more enemy reinforcements.
Critically, the Duke had no reinforcements himself.
It was almost…
Madam Yu stood tall with her back to him, unmoving.
"So, focus on escorting the civilians south," she said firmly. "Do not fail the Duke's sacrifice."
Liang Chengdong stared at Madam Yu's back, then glanced northward, his expression heavy with sorrow.
"Understood," he replied hoarsely, bowing deeply.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Zhu Zan also received the news.
"Ah, so that's what happened." He laughed aloud, clutching the message in his hand. "My father is amazing! Truly extraordinary—what a move to frighten those Jin thieves out of their wits."
He laughed heartily, but his hands trembled as they held the letter, veins popping.
None of the soldiers beside him laughed, especially the dozens of woodcutters, their faces filled with anxiety.
"Lord Heir, we must head to Yizhou!" They urged. "The Duke is in grave danger!"
Zhu Zan looked around at the near-thousand civilians—straggly, wearing tattered clothes, their faces pale with fear.
Though the Jurchen army had retreated, Bazhou was still riddled with scattered, marauding troops wreaking havoc.
"This is precisely why my father did this—it wasn't so I'd go rescue him," he said with a smile, stuffing the letter into his chest. "Let's go, continue heading south."
At his command, the surrounding refugees scrambled to their feet. Though still nervous, hope now glimmered in their eyes.
With these soldiers escorting them, survival seemed possible.
"Lord Heir," several woodcutters and soldiers muttered, their voices trembling.
Zhu Zan gripped the long blade in his hand tightly, the outline of his body upright and unwavering as he led the column of refugees forward without looking back.
*****************************************************
Thank you Xiu Yu Zang Hua, Xiu Yu Zang Hua, MAX Shi Tou, ?Zuihou Yiqiang?, ?Zuihou Yiqiang?, Ice from the South, and Jing Sanshao for your rewards with He's Bi. Thanks, thanks to each of you.
Thank you all for your support. Still thick-skinned during double rewards period, asking for votes.