Once Xu Wu received Yuxi's instructions, he sent someone to the Dingbei Army camp to fetch a pair of military uniforms. Two sets were sent over a shichen[1] later.
When Zijin got the uniform, she put it on, and once she had finished, she ran to ask Yuxi, "Madam, do I look like a soldier to you?" She had a peculiar feeling, a mix of excitement and nervousness.
Yuxi laughed softly. "When you don't speak, you look like one, but I'll know you're a woman once you speak." A woman's voice was completely different from that of a man. Thus, when Zijin spoke, she would reveal her true identity.
When Zijin heard this response, she stated, "Then I won't utter a word tomorrow."
Mama Qu hesitated for a moment before pointing out, "Although Miss Zijin is tall, her skin is white, and you can tell she is a woman at a glance."
Hearing this concern, Yuxi said, "Tomorrow, we will put make-up on her and make her darker. Mama Qu doesn't have to worry about people recognising her. She's just going to war and not doing anything else." At this juncture, who would still be concerned about whether the person fighting beside them was a man or a woman so long they could kill the enemy?
Mama Qu hesitated for a moment but still spoke up, "Madam, who will protect Madam when Zijin goes to war?" There were only about twenty people in the mansion today, including the guards in the front yard. The guards were all in the front yard, and Mama Qu was worried that Madam's life would be in danger if someone with bad intentions came into the inner courtyard.
Yuxi replied with a smile, "I have already thought about it and will move Uncle Huo to the inner courtyard tomorrow. In addition, we will ask Master Yang to stay here too. While those guards will still safeguard from the outside." Although Yuxi wanted to sharpen and hone Zijin, she could not neglect her own safety either.
Mama Qu heard what Yuxi was saying, that Yuxi would bring nearly everyone together. This action was much safer than having everyone spread out. However, there was another problem. "Madam, that's not quite following the rules, is it?" There could be bad rumours if word spread out that unrelated men and women were staying together in the same courtyard.
Yuxi answered, "Uncle Huo and Master Yang are my elders. It's fine even if people know about it." At this point, who would pay attention to this kind of thing?
When Mama Qu saw that Yuxi had made up her mind, she said nothing more.
At the beginning of yinshi[2], Zijin and Yu Zhi followed Xu Daniu out of the Yun Residence and headed for the city walls. It was Xu Daniu who volunteered to take the two to the battlefield.
On the way, Xu Daniu told Zijin and Yu Zhi about the many things they needed to pay attention to when killing the enemy. Although what Xu Daniu said was merely small details, sometimes these particulars could decide one's life and death.
Zijin and Yu Zhi listened to this talk very carefully. Later, Xu Daniu was telling them that he could hear the distant sound of the bows and arrows. Because of that, he could save his life by avoiding them. At that moment, Zijin could not help but exclaim in admiration, "Xu Erge[3] is amazing." She did not think that Xu Daniu was boastful. That kind of thing was too real to be mere bragging.
Xu Daniu smiled and said, "This is nothing. The General is the great one. Not only can he shoot an arrow through a willow leaf at a hundred paces[4] with none of the arrows missing its mark, but when he goes into battle, with just his double-edged sword, he can sweep away all obstacles, and no enemy can stop him. Compared to the General, these abilities of mine are just mere tricks."
Once they reached a short distance from the walls, the trio saw many people working busily. Zijin noticed a familiar face. It was Jing Bai's mother, Zeng Shi.
Zeng Shi was kneading the dough when she felt someone was watching her. When she looked up, she saw a dark-faced young man just turned his face away.
When a woman next to her, who was also kneading like Zeng Shi, saw her staring, she asked, "Saozi[5], what are you looking at?"
Zeng Shi shook her head. "Nothing." Strange, that man looked familiar to her, but she couldn't remember where she had seen him.
Zijin was startled. She was being careless just now. If someone recognised her, she then wouldn't be able to go up to the city wall.
Xu Daniu couldn't just take the men up to the city tower, and first went to seek out the head of the battalion[6] surnamed Yang. After Battalion Chief Yang[7] asked Xu Daniu a few questions, he allowed the three of them to go up.
As they went up to the city tower, Zijin lowered her voice and asked, "How come it was so easy to get up here?" She had thought that they would have to go through a harsh interrogation!
Xu Daniu laughed. "I know Battalion Chief Yang. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been that easy."
They were checked three times on their way up to the city tower. Yu Zhi remembered the incident of catching spies and asked, "The inspections were so strict. Are they worried that a spy will come up here?"
Xu Daniu found the question intriguing. "No. Once you go up to the city tower, your life will be in danger at any time. Which spy would risk their lives to kill the northern barbarians?" And if you went up there and didn't kill any of the enemies besieging the city, the soldiers next to you would be the first to strike you down with their swords. How could the spies expect to come up here and leave alive?
Once Zijin arrived at the top of the city tower, her eyes fell on the rows of soldiers sleeping against the wall. These resting soldiers were still armed. She didn't know why, but her eyes went sour when she saw this scene.
Xu Daniu said, "They are exhausted after fighting all day yesterday. Let's walk lightly and not disturb them."
Zijin nodded gently.
Xu Daniu and Zijin's group was placed close to the city platform. Glancing at the city wall with no end, Yu Zhi could not help but lower his voice to ask, "Xu Erge[3], how long is this city wall in total?" This was the first time he had ever climbed the city tower, and he felt very delicate.
Xu Daniu answered softly, "This part is about 20 miles long!" After that, he explained to Yu Zhi, "The city defence is now completely established, with a five miles tunnel, a ten miles pier, a thirty miles fortress and a hundred miles city wall. It is well equipped for both attack and defence. As long as our morale does not fall, we will be able to defend Yu City."
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.
Zijin's gaze fell on the dark red coloured bricks.
The relaxed look on Xu Daniu's face was gone when he saw Zijin's expression, and he said sorrowfully, "The reason these bricks are dark red is that they are stained with the soldiers' blood." He had quite a few brothers who had lost their lives while defending the city.
Both Zijin and Yu Zhi had serious expressions.
Xu Daniu took out an oiled paper from his bosom and handed it to the two people, saying, "This is the dried meat I brought with me, so you should consume it quickly. When it's dawn, those barbarians will start attacking the city again." After saying that, he took out another oil paper with a piece of dried meat inside, and while chewing on it slowly, he said, "Even if you are not hungry, you have to eat. Once the barbarians attack, there will be no time for you to do so."
Zijin and Yu Zhi had already eaten before they went out and were not hungry. But after hearing Xu Daniu's words, both of them also ate the dried meat.
After eating, Xu Daniu said, "You guys should squat down for a nap to recuperate your spirits." They were up so early, so they must have been low on energy. It was a good time for them to recuperate while there was still time.
Yu Zhi looked at the sleeping soldiers and asked with some concern, "What if the enemy attacks while we rest?"
Xu Daniu looked at the nearby city platform and answered, "There are soldiers watching the enemies' movements inside the watchtower. If the enemies come, they will give everyone an early warning."
Hearing this answer, Yu Zhi glanced at Zijin. When he saw Zijin nod, he followed Xu Daniu's suggestions by squatting down. And Zijin leaned right next to Yu Zhi.
Zijin didn't take a nap but looked up at the grey sky. Before, she had been excited to know she could kill the enemy in battle. But now, her heart was heavy.
As she was contemplating, there was a sudden sound of footsteps. Then someone called loudly, "Everyone, get up and have breakfast."
As soon as the voice sounded, the city platform, which had been silent just a moment ago, came to life. In a short time, several soldiers came up carrying large wicker baskets and barrels. The baskets were filled with mantou[8] and baozi[9], while the wooden barrels contained white rice congee. In these days of war, having mantou[8] and baozi[9] together with rice congee was already more than enough. Even if they were to die, they would have to perish with a full belly.
A man in his thirties with a frosty face looked at the trio, who were still sitting and asked, "Why don't you have breakfast?"
Xu Daniu replied, "We have eaten. You can continue eating!" His stomach was already full!
The man didn't know Xu Daniu, but to be on top of this city tower together, they still had camaraderie even without getting acquainted. The man looked at Zijin and asked, "Don't these two children look too young?" Zijin and Yu Zhi, who were only 17 or 18 years old, did look younger than their age.
Xu Daniu nodded. "They are both only eighteen now! Despite their youthful appearance, they have excellent martial arts." These two's martial arts were so good that even he could not beat them.
The man smiled. "My surname is Huang. I'll come and try out their skills after I finish eating." After saying that, the man ran past them.
After a little more than a quarter had passed, the already satiated man surnamed Huang came over again. He was just about to speak with Xu Daniu when a loud shout came to his ears. "The barbarians are here."
At these words, the soldiers who had just been lazing around began running back to their original positions and clutching their weapons.
Zijin also gripped her broadsword and looked towards the distance. In a short while, they could see an overwhelming mass of people. Soon, the incoming group approached closer to the city walls. At the head of the group was a bunch of men carrying a long wooden ladder, and there was no need to ask what the ladder was for.
Zijin had killed people before, but she had never seen so many people, and she tightened her grip on her sword. On the other hand, Yu Zhi was so nervous that his forehead started sweating.
Xu Daniu was in no mood to comfort the two people, as anyone who had just first got into battle would surely be nervous and could even get horrified and panic-stricken after killing someone. Xu Daniu reminded them, "Remember what I just said. Don't let those people climb up the city tower, let alone allowing them to come close to you." The northern barbarians were good at fighting and relied entirely on this exceptional advantage of theirs. Otherwise, the northern army would have suffered continuously with this amount of large troops.
Zijin said coldly, "Don't worry. If one comes, I'll kill one. If a pair comes, I'll kill the pair." Only by killing these people would the people of Yu City be safe, and Madam would be at peace.
Xu Daniu glanced at Zijin, who was not even half panicked about going to war for the first time but had an intense battle spirit instead. Thinking about his first experience in battle, he felt that Zijin should have been born to be a warrior.
After the northern barbarians attacked the city, Xu Daniu did not feel that Zijin was a warrior anymore but an eccentric. He had just said that the General attacked using his double-edged sword, and Zijin struck her enemies with her single-edged sword[10]. The problem was that while Yun Qing killed his enemies with his sword, Zijin only swatted her enemy, causing the man to drop down the long ladder. Not only did the man tumble, but the fall also caused the ladder to break since it couldn't withstand the impact. Of course, the damage was only a small one, but it was still horrifying enough.[T/C]
PS (Author): o(╯□╰)o I originally wanted to write Zijin's overbearing side, but as a result, it becomes skewed like this.
Footnotes Full List
- 2 hours
- er=second, ge=older brother, short form for Gege, can also be used for a close male person who is older than the speaker
- Chinese idiom: shoot with great precision
- lit. elder brother's wife; sister-in-law. Saozi is also a general term used to address a young married woman.
- FYI, the word used here is qian hu (千户), which means thousand (千) households (户). The term 'households (户)' refers to a military family member. All of the soldiers inside the battalion have an older generation who once served in the military, and their future sons/grandsons/male descendants will continue their path in the military.
- this person has the same surname as Master Yang, which means poplar (杨 yáng), but they are unrelated in any way. 😅
- steamed buns
- steamed stuffed buns
Double-edged sword vs Single-edged sword
Image Credit | lyuesword (Single-edged Sword VS Double-edged Sword, Sep 2nd, 2020)- Yeah, that's horrifying. Just imagine falling about 35ft (the tallest wall of the Great Wall of China, which is situated in Gansu). If the man didn't die, he would at least break his bones. Ewww. Just imagine if he suffered a stampede while lying down on the ground. Ewww.
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi