Chapter 51 Shen Ruojin, where are you?

"You cannot open it!" shouted Yang Wanxiong.

He spoke at a rapid pace, "The enemy outnumbers us; the garrison defending Xizhou City has fewer than 50,000 men. Even with the Shen family army, our total is still under 100,000. Xichang's forces are at least twice the size of ours. There is simply no chance of winning this battle. Opening the city gates right now is no different from inviting the Xichang army inside. You are not allowed to open the gates! No one—"

"Shut your mouth!"

Shen Ruojin grabbed Yang Wanxiong by the hair and violently smashed his head against the top of the city wall, knocking him unconscious in an instant and silencing any further words meant to shake the army's morale.

Shen Ruojin raised her voice and called out, "Soldiers defending the city, look with your own eyes! Those fighting to the death against the Xichang army right outside the gates are our very own comrades! We were born on the same soil, connected by blood, and we are all doing everything we can to protect the borders of Great Qi. If the Shen family army is slaughtered by the Xichang people right on our own doorstep today, those inside Xizhou City will not escape the same fate either. Open the gates and join forces to repel the enemy!"

The soldiers atop the city tower looked out at the slaughterhouse outside. The gates were stained with blood, and the figures continuously falling were their own brothers-in-arms.

Having fought wars for so many years, the soldiers had climbed out of piles of corpses time and time again, all for the day they could return home alive.

In truth, the soldiers inside and outside the city were not enemies; it was only those in power who fought and schemed.

After Yang Wanxiong was silenced, the guards atop the city wall looked at the Shen family army shedding blood in battle outside. Hearing Shen Ruojin invoke the bond of brotherhood, every single one of them was deeply moved. A few individuals who were reluctant to defy the protector's orders were promptly subdued by the surrounding soldiers.

Shen Ruojin shouted with a hoarse voice, "Welcome the heroes of Great Qi back home!"

"Open the city gates!"

"Open—"

The defending soldiers passed the order down the line.

The heavily barred city gates swung open with a thunderous roar.

The glow of fire illuminated the city tower. An exhausted soldier outside who had been frantically pounding on the gates collapsed onto the ground, finally seeing the path home.

"The, the city gates are open!"

"Brothers! The city gates are open!"

The garrison soldiers who had charged out of the city to provide reinforcements helped up the fallen members of the Shen family army, shouting aloud, "The gates are open! Brothers of the Shen family army, we are going home!"

Wei Qingshan glanced back up at the city tower.

Tenth Young Miss... she had actually pulled it off.

"Brothers, we are going home!" General Wei roared. Suddenly surging with sevenfold divine valor, he executed a spinning counter-attack that drove back He Tuo, who had been relentlessly pursuing him.

The morale of the Shen family army, previously plummeting, was instantly revitalized at the sight of the open gates, incoming reinforcements, and the renewed hope of returning home alive. They put their lives on the line to fight the Xichang forces.

"Let's fight to the death!"

"We are going home!"

The soldiers of the Shen family army roared with fury, beating back the Xichang troops, linking up with the reinforcing garrison soldiers, and swiftly withdrawing after repelling a wave of enemies.

"Do not engage in prolonged combat," Shen Ruojin shouted from her high vantage point. "Fall back to the city immediately!"

"All soldiers, obey orders! Withdraw into Xizhou City at once!"

Wei Qingshan rescued two brothers who had been surrounded by Xichang soldiers and escorted them back to safety.

"Archers!"

Standing atop the city tower, Shen Ruojin surveyed the entire battlefield and directed the defending soldiers.

The two previously deadlocked forces rapidly separated, with the Shen family army and garrison troops retreating inside the city.

He Tuo, the vanguard general of Xichang, led his cavalry in pursuit, slashing down with his saber at a member of the Shen family army bringing up the rear.

Shen Ruojin snatched up a long halberd from the side and hurled it fiercely in his direction.

The halberd, weighing several dozen catties and imbued with her internal energy, descended like a clap of thunder. By the time He Tuo realized what was happening, it was too late to dodge, and he could only raise his blade in defense.

The precious saber in He Tuo's hand was shattered by the sheer force of the impact. He rapidly leaped backward in mid-air, only to watch the next moment as his mount was pierced clean through by the halberd and pinned firmly to the ground.

Blood surged forth, splashing all over him.

In that single instant, all the troops of Great Qi successfully withdrew behind the city walls, making further pursuit impossible.

He Tuo raised his head to look up at the city tower, only to see a young woman whose clothes were stained with blood standing high above. The wind fluttered her messy strands of hair, obscuring her features, yet the palpable aura of murderous intent radiating from her was truly startling.

The city tower was packed with archers, and a continuous rain of arrows fell, preventing the Xichang army from closing in.

His subordinates rushed up from behind, asking anxiously, "General He! Are you alright?"

He Tuo discarded the broken short blade in his hand, keeping his eyes fixed on the city tower, and asked his subordinate, "Who is she?"

The subordinate replied, "Within the borders of Great Qi, as far as I know, there is only one woman possessing such intelligence and valor who would disregard her own life to save the Shen family army: Shen Shi of the Shen family."

"Shen Shi—" He Tuo raised a hand to wipe the blood from his face. Far from feeling any annoyance at almost being impaled by a woman's halberd, he found himself intensely intrigued by this person. "Was she also the one who wounded the Marshal with an arrow today?"

"It was her," the subordinate answered.

As they spoke, the gates of Xizhou City had already slammed heavily shut.

Today's battle had failed to wipe out the Shen family army, and mounting a full-scale siege would be no easy feat that could be accomplished overnight.

Not to mention, they had now encountered an opponent as formidable as Shen Shi.

"This Shen Shi has quite some skill."

He Tuo stepped forward, pulled the halberd that had pierced the horse's body out of the ground, ran his hand over it inch by inch, and looked up to exchange a distant gaze with Shen Ruojin atop the city tower.

He Tuo shouted loudly, "Shen Shi, what kind of hero hides behind city walls and inflicts harm with hidden arrows? If you truly have any backbone, come out of the city and fight me in single combat! Seeing that you're fairly decent-looking, this general will certainly spare your life and take you back to the royal city to be a bed-warming concubine!"

He Tuo was barely over twenty years old, yet he already held the position of vanguard general. With the Xichang Marshal heavily wounded today, the authority to command the troops had fallen into his hands.

He was at the age of youthful vigor and arrogance, prone to aggressive impulses.

The soldiers following him burst into laughter.

When two armies are confronting each other, exchanging verbal abuse before battle is also an art form.

Humiliating the enemy general to induce unbearable anger and a rash charge into battle was a conventional tactic.

Despite her youth, Shen Ruojin showed neither anger nor annoyance upon hearing these words. Looking down from her high position, she replied, "You, on the other hand, were born so ugly that if you fall into my hands, you won't even have the fate of being a bed-warming slave. I will temporarily leave that head of yours attached to your neck for a few more days, and I advise you not to be in such a rush to court death."

He Tuo laughed in exasperation. "Such a big mouth."

Without changing her expression, Shen Ruojin said, "Just wait and see."

"Fine! Then I truly won't leave!" He Tuo proclaimed in a booming voice. "Pass down my military order: pitch camp thirty miles outside Xizhou City! This general wants to see when you will finally come out of the city to claim my head. If you dare not come out, I shall break through the gates of Xizhou City and come in to find you myself!"

Meeting his gaze, Shen Ruojin showed not a shred of fear. "Keep dreaming!"

He Tuo took the long halberd she had thrown down, leaped onto his horse, and ordered the main army to retreat.

The Xichang troops obeyed the order, falling back thirty miles to pitch camp right where they stood.

Outside the city, only a battlefield littered with corpses remained.

Shen Ruojin handed the tightly bound Yang Wanxiong over to the Shen family soldiers who had retreated inside for custody, and instructed the Xizhou garrison guards: "Go and summon all the physicians in the city to treat the wounded soldiers."

"Understood," the crowd acknowledged and dispersed to carry out the orders.

At that moment, a flying rider galloped through the long street and raced toward the city tower.

The heavy snow had stopped at some unknown point.

As the morning light broke through the dawn, that person came carrying the light, searching for her figure against the howling wind, and shouted with a hoarse voice, "Shen Ruojin, where are you?"