chapter 47

“Hey, why do not you listen to others? You can’t go out!” Nian Duan cried out hurriedly and with exasperation .

Gu Nan was wearing no armor, only a cloth gown with a fur cloak draped over her shoulders . Her figure felt a bit thin and feeble, and her bloodless lips seemed to reinforce this image .

“It’s so cold outside and your injury is still recovering . Is it because you’re toocomfortable?” Nian Duan felt the cold winds blow over, rubbing her shoulders as she followed along .

“You have multiple arrow wounds . If you want it to heal properly, you can’t be moving like this . Hey, are you listening to me? Who do you think is at risk here? If I can’t patch you up, I probably can’t leave this ghastly place alive . Are you even thinking about this? Hey!”

Regardless of what Nian Duan grumbled, Gu Nan didn’t really listen . Shaking her head, she calmly said, “I am just going outside to look for a bit . It won’t be long . ”

“Tsk . ” Nian Duan made a knowing expression . “If you’re going out to look, I might as well freeze accompanying you . ”

“If you feel cold, you can go back . I’m not pulling you along . ” Gu Nan chuckled and continued to walk towards the camp wall .

“You are my patient!” Nian Duan shouted again . “I want to become a saint doctor and I won’t let you be a stain on me . ”

“Achoo!” As she spoke, she sneezed and rubbed her nose . “I will cure you completely!”

“Oh . ” With only a faint affirmation, Gu Nan continued her stride to the wall through the corridors .

“It’s like reasoning with a stubborn donkey . ” Realizing that Gu Nan isn’t returning, she snorted in anger and reluctantly followed .

As the two approached, several soldiers on sentry duty hurriedly walked up and simultaneously gave a light bow .

“Miss Gu . ”

Gu Nan was somewhat taken by surprise by this respectfulness and tried to dismiss the formalities . “There’s no need to act like this . Between you and I, we are just fellow soldiers . ”

“How can it be simplified to such a degree?” The soldier smiled . “Miss is the disciple of General Bai . Furthermore, if Miss Gu was not defending the wall, it’s unknown how many of our brothers would have died . ”

Although Gu Nan could only vaguely remember her actions, the soldiers all witnessed it very clearly . Alone atop the wall, facing waves of climbing Zhao soldiers . Every step was lined with corpses, and her spear dripped with blood and her cloak splattered with it . Any defending soldier would not dare to forget the sight .

Gu Nan was unsure how to respond and only nodded .

From the side, Nian Duan looked at Gu Nan again and thought about something .

Her authority in this army sure is high . It’s can’t be easy for a woman to get so far in the army . As Nian Duan noted to herself, she felt some admiration for this beautiful patient of hers .

Nian Duan was unaware though of how this authority came to be, but if she knew, she probably wouldn’t be thinking like she is now .

In this place of death and murder, honor and authority are only gained by killing .

The nightly wind in the camp was gale-like . Blowing against the ten-meter wooden walls, it whistled like the screech of wailing ghosts .

Gu Nan stood at the precipice of the wall, coughing occasionally, looking out into the night . She saw through the darkness, a large patch of light . It was the Zhao camp, merely a short distance from the Qin camp .

In the mountains was a hastily-built encampment of hundreds of thousands of men, unable to be hidden from the enemy . The Zhao army dared to camp just across the from the Qin army, within the mountain forests .

This, however, was a coordinated strategy . If the camp was made in the mountains, the Qin would never dare set it ablaze because their camps were too close and the forests too dense .

If a fire set upon the Zhao camp, the Qin would stand to lose a lot as well . And in the end, it would only hurt both sides . To the side with the advantage, the Qin would be unwilling to do this .

Those who have nothing are not scared of losing .

Gu Nan focused on the Zhao camp, knowing that this famous battle will result in hundreds of thousands of deaths . In the Zhao army, none will escape .

“Alright, let’s go back . ” Gu Nan turned her head and walked slowly away .

“What that’s it? You only glanced once, hey!”

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As Gu Nan was recovering, the battles between the Qin and the Zhao raged onto the fifth day .

“Kill!” The deafening shouts and the clatter of melee could be heard from several miles away .

The clear water of the Dan River was diluted a pale red with blood . Dead bodies and broken swords laid everywhere across the terrain . The land was tinted a reddish brown from the savage fighting .

Fighting an army larger than themselves, the Zhao army existed on the border of collapse . Regardless, the temporary line of defense always blocked the enemy . But like withered wood facing a gale, the defenses were barely held by the utmost of resistance .

This makeshift camp was unequivocally simple . Just as a Qin soldier finally hacked through the wooden palisade with a sword, a Zhao soldier gave a loud shout and charged forward, tackling the Qin attacker back outside the walls . The Zhao soldier died in the blink of an eye under the surrounding Qin army .

Underneath a set of cracked armor, Zhao Kuo cut down another Qin soldier . He shouted with a hoarse voice . “Everyone! Hold!”

His attention returned to the Qin soldiers that encircled him . Gulping down his saliva, he mustered more strength to feebly say, “Defend for a few more days . ”

He was unsure whether he was reassuring his soldiers or himself .

Raising his sword, he slaughtered a path through the crowd of enemies .

Zhao Kuo has already forgotten how many attacks the Qin army has sent again him . His entire body was bathed in blood, and even his hair was clotted with dried blood .

For four hundred thousand men to fend off six hundred thousand men in unfavorable circumstances, it’s enough to guess how miserable their lives have been .

They won’t win, but Zhao Kuo’s purpose was never to win .

If he can weaken the Qin army enough to prevent a northern invasion, he has achieved his victory .

“Kill them all!” It’s unknown who shouted, but the sounds of combat intensified and countless more people were cut down .

Bai Qi was standing on the high ground within the Qin camp, overlooking the nearby Zhao camp below .

“They still want to fight?”

“Yes . ” An adjunct said, “For now, there is no intention of surrendering . It seems that Zhao Kuo, that youngster, still has something in mind . ”

“A doomed prey still wants to injure the hunter…”

Bai Qi muttered and turned back to leave .

Zhao Kuo is indeed a good young talent . It’s proving much harder to deal with him than some aged commander like Lian Po .

Overlooking this battle is not only the countries of Qin and Zhao, but other “tigers and wolves” who remain lurking about . If the Qin army wished to invade Zhao, it would become very difficult .

The Qin attack paused temporarily .

In the makeshift Zhao camp, there was a faint light of fire . A few columns of smoke rise from the campfires, but there is hardly any food being cooked .

The past few days, the Zhao rations were split into three parts, but it was still not enough .

“General, there’s almost no food left . ” Zhao Kuo’s bodyguard and advisor took a sip of the murky soup and cautiously said after looking around .

As Zhao Kuo sipped the “soup,” his hand paused in response . “How much longer can it last?”

“Even if we stretch it out, there’s only maybe a day and a half . ” The bodyguard whispered .

If the soldiers knew that food was this close to running out, it could easily lead to panic and rebellion . Therefore, special discretion was needed .

“What about the commanders? Has there been any talk in the camp recently? About the reinforcements . ” Zhao Kuo said with a low voice .

“Yes . ” The bodyguard gulped and started to speak . “In the beginning, there were suspicions that reinforcements weren’t coming . There were some desertions and small-scale rebellions, but those have been quickly suppressed . ”

Zhao Kuo swallowed a piece of the dried cake .

Although his eyes were exhausted, they remained firm . “Keep defending . ”

The bodyguard nodded and left .

Zhao Kuo continued to sit, motionless . In his hand was the other half of the dried cake, but he let it dangle in his hands .

His lie of reinforcements won’t stand much longer, and army morale is falling much faster than he predicted .

Unsurprisingly, it was time to continue with the next stage of the plan .

Zhao Kuo mused himself over this . His chapped lips rubbing together as he stared at the ground .