Hidden Shadow – CH 243

Chapter Two-Hundred-Forty-Three: Calamity

Given the current situation, Ling Ziyue still strove to destroy the enemy’s blue-fire crossbows, hoping to escape this unfair battle.

The Liao army was already stronger than the Song army. If the blue-fire crossbows could not be destroyed, Ling Ziyue would truly sigh, “Heaven has doomed the Song!”

“Disassembling the weapons is no problem, but the problem is…” Lou Xiaowu shifted her bottom shyly. “My martial arts are not very good, and there’s something even more important…”

Ling Ziyue listened attentively.

“I am not getting enough to eat.” Lou Xiaowu’s voice was barely audible, her face flushed from the roots of her ears to her cheeks.

Mo Sigui glared; this sounded like he was the one inflicting pain!

Ling Ziyue smiled. As long as Lou Xiaowu had real skills, nothing else mattered. “I will have the cook prepare a whole roasted lamb right away. Last month, I intercepted two Liao nomadic herds and got quite a few lambs; they are very tender.”

Lou Xiaowu swallowed, nodding with a greedy look despite her reserved demeanor.

Ling Ziyue arranged accommodations for the two men and then went to his own tent. He needed to take good care of the mysterious expert; no one else could have infiltrated the Liao army undetected, and the disarming of the blue-fire crossbows still depended on his abilities.

Ling Ziyue’s impression of Chu Dingjiang could be summed up in a word—mysterious. He was clad in a black robe, and his voice suggested he was young, at most in his prime, but speaking with him felt like talking to a highly respected elder.

Back in his tent, Ling Ziyue saw An Jiu still standing inside the door, bow in hand, and asked in a low voice, “How is that Shadow’s injury?”

Chu Dingjiang said he was fine but had not yet come out. Knowing An Jiu’s way of thinking, she would not suspect Chu Dingjiang was lying to comfort her; she would only think, “He needs time to recover.”

“That’s good.” Ling Ziyue did not mention asking for help for the time being and turned to instruct his subordinates to prepare a large meal.

This emergency retreat by the Liao Kingdom relied entirely on the deterrent effect of Chu Dingjiang and An Jiu’s arrow. Although Ling Ziyue breathed a sigh of relief, he felt no joy at the victory.

He temporarily moved to another tent, carefully considering the words of the mysterious figure.

Perhaps it was because he cared too much that the Emperor was now wary of him. But even if time could turn back, he could not guarantee that he could keep the Emperor from becoming suspicious. The figure was right about one thing: since he was acting with the country and its people in mind, he should not be too concerned about his personal reputation. Sometimes, he did not need to care so much about the court’s or the Emperor’s thoughts. Under the court’s oppression, he had been so submissive and humiliated, yet the court had not shown him much respect or trust! As long as he could defend the border, he had to be domineering when necessary and cunning when required, not blindly loyal. How many more years could Ling Ziyue defend the Song Dynasty?

So be it. His conscience would judge his merits and demerits. He only hoped that his conscience was clear before Heaven and Earth. Ling Ziyue tossed and turned until midnight, then got up, threw on his clothes, and wrote a memorial. The gist of it was: The border troops were running out of supplies. They had to count every grain of rice at each meal, and the soldiers were starving and could not take it anymore. If supplies were not provided soon, they might as well all resign and return to their fields! Anyone who wanted to guard the border could come. He quit!

After writing it, the pent-up anger he had been holding in suddenly dissipated. He read it over and over again, then gritted his teeth. He summoned a messenger and ordered it to be sent to Bianjing by express courier.

In reality, Ling Ziyue was not exaggerating; he was now meticulously calculating every meal, fearing there would not be enough to last until the imperial supplies arrived. The imperial court was slow, but he could not wait until he was literally counting every grain of rice before trying to urge them on!

After sending the memorial, Ling Ziyue thought of his trusted generals who had died tragically and of the numerous battles, large and small, he had fought on the border over the years. He could not sleep anymore, so he threw on his clothes and went out for some fresh air.

He stood outside the tent for a while. As he was about to return, he saw a figure standing like a statue, bow in hand, at the entrance of the main tent. He paused, then walked over.

“Please rest, young lady. I will send someone to relieve you.” Ling Ziyue wondered, “Is there no one else among the guards? Why is she the only one on guard?”

An Jiu pursed her lips tightly and shook her head. She planned to keep watch for another hour. If Chu Dingjiang still had not made a move, she would go and call Mo Sigui to check.

“Just come to me if anything happens.” Countless generals around Ling Ziyue had died in battle. Even the hardest-hearted man would be moved. Being able to do something for his comrades was a luxury for him.

“Young lady, your arrow was a stunning feat, turning the tide of battle. I, Ling Ziyue, am filled with admiration.” Even now, recalling that arrow, Ling Ziyue still remembered the shockwave that made his blood boil, as if his internal organs were about to shatter. “I thank you again, young lady, and all the Shadow Warriors.”

Both the crossbow bolt and the arrow fired by An Jiu far exceeded Ling Ziyue’s expectations. He considered himself a well-traveled and knowledgeable man, yet the warriors of both nations repeatedly shattered his perceptions. It was as if divine soldiers had descended from the heavens; Ling Ziyue clearly felt his own insignificance and weakness.

This was also one of the reasons he had the courage to coerce the court. He was not very strong to begin with; if he were to be timid and hesitant, how could his meager strength withstand a powerful enemy and protect the Song Dynasty?

An Jiu could not guess Ling Ziyue’s thoughts, but she could clearly sense his emotions.

After a moment of silence, just as Ling Ziyue sighed and prepared to turn back, An Jiu said, “I rarely admire anyone in my life, but General, I admire you.”

Ling Ziyue stopped and turned around. “I do not deserve your admiration.”

An Jiu met his gaze, noticing that the general’s aura had weakened somewhat since their first meeting. Displeased, she coldly said, “In terms of martial arts, General, you are only at the eighth or ninth level. There are plenty of those in the Konghe Army. But we are all ghosts who cannot see the light of day. General, you are the blazing sun. If you cannot illuminate the Song Dynasty, you should disappear as soon as possible and not give people false hope.”

These words were very blunt. Ling Ziyue understood the underlying meaning but disagreed with her view. “Only with hope and anticipation can there be a future. I will do my utmost to bring a ray of dawn to the people of the Song Dynasty, even if it is false.”

There would always be people drawn to this ray of dawn and would relentlessly strive forward. If more and more such people gathered, it was not impossible to turn hope into reality.

“It’s like being in the desert, about to starve to death, when someone tells you there’s food ten li ahead. You will fight with all your might to get it.” Speaking to An Jiu, Ling Ziyue cast aside his momentary self-doubt, realizing how silly his earlier thought was. He laughed, “Maybe after ten li, there’s another ten li. As long as we keep the thought of food ahead, we can go further. Maybe we will really find a chance to survive along the way.”

An Jiu fell into thought. Ling Ziyue’s explanation was simple and easy to understand; she agreed. She was just wondering why she had not thought of it herself.

“This year, the Liao army breached two border cities of the Song Dynasty, abducting over 70,000 Song people, more than half of whom were women and children. And grain, gold, and silver…” Ling Ziyue sighed, wanting to say more, but ultimately remained silent.

The Liao Kingdom was divided into the Northern and Southern Courts, with the Southern Court primarily governing the Han Chinese. The Liao Kingdom’s climate was harsh, and its domestic food production could not sustain a large population. Every year, many people perished during the long winter. The one or two cities on this border were simply not worth diverting manpower to fight the Song army. The Liao Kingdom had always been eyeing the prosperous lands south of the Yellow River.

Ling Ziyue heard footsteps and turned to see Mo Sigui, dressed in a long robe, leisurely approaching, seemingly satisfied with his meal. Two plump, half-grown tigers followed him, one of which excitedly swished its fat tail and lunged at An Jiu.

The tiger tugged at her trouser leg, rolling around. She bent down and scooped it up with one hand.

The tiger immediately stopped its struggle, lying comfortably in her arms, its eyes half-closed, even letting out a large yawn.

“General Ling,” Mo Sigui bowed.

Ling Ziyue returned the bow and said, “I have other matters to attend to. If you two need anything, please send someone to let me know.”

“Of course, of course,” Mo Sigui replied without hesitation.

After Ling Ziyue left, Mo Sigui rushed excitedly to An Jiu’s side, peering into the tent. “I heard Chu Dingjiang is injured? How is he? When will he die?”

An Jiu slowly turned her head, her dark eyes calmly fixed on him. “He will die a moment before you.”

“That’s ruthless!” Mo Sigui exclaimed, but he was quite pleased. “The extra moment I live is thanks to my good character.”

An Jiu coldly sneered, “Evil lives a thousand years; good people do not live long. When it comes to character, you have to find someone who lives longer. You are slapping yourself in the face like that and trying to glorify yourself; I will not admire you, I will just think you are brain-dead.”

After saying that, An Jiu, thinking that Mo Sigui might need to save Chu Dingjiang later, paused and sincerely offered him a suggestion, “If you want to change the situation, you still have to let Chu Dingjiang outlive you.”