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墨書 Inktalez
"Whoosh!"
A sharp whistle sounded, and burning oil was immediately splashed onto the water's surface. The splattering flames landed on the waterproof leather bag behind Chang Yu, and after a brief pause, ignited the food supplies carried by the team. The bag made of animal hide could only resist water, and its fibrous material was not fireproof.
With a whoosh, the entire leather bag floating on the water was instantly engulfed in flames. If it weren't for the broken raft blocking Chang Yu, the firelight would have completely exposed him. If he rashly extinguished the fire, it would leave obvious signs of human activity. Chang Yu could only quietly remove his backpack and submerge himself underwater to avoid burns.
The burning bag contained three days' worth of rations for the entire team!
Chang Yu cursed the archer from Zhao Soldier's lineage in his heart and turned to swim over. He wanted to see if he could pull the burning bag into the water to ensure it was extinguished. Just as he took a deep breath, Li Xin grabbed him.
Li Xin saw that this stubborn person was about to act recklessly and quickly shook his head, signaling him not to move! There were still Zhao Army Sentinels watching from the shore; if they were discovered, it would lead to the annihilation of their team! Noticing that Chang Yu still intended to go over, he whispered angrily, "Are you crazy? Food can be found again! If we lose our lives, our mission will fail!"
A Zhao Soldier adjusting his belt seemed to hear some noise and turned around to ask who was speaking behind him. After realizing there had been no sound moments ago, he felt a surge of fear. He turned back to the group and shouted that someone was in the river.
With this sudden situation, Wang Jian felt a sinking feeling in his heart. He worried that someone might shoot prematurely and quickly raised his hand in a fist to signal everyone to stop. Without orders, even if they were shot at, they were not allowed to retaliate!
The discipline of Zhao Army was strict; randomly raising alarms without confirming enemy targets would result in punishment. The leading Sergeant hurriedly ordered his men to drop their torches and prepare their Crossbows for battle. Even calling for Reinforcements required identifying a target; that was the rule!
The Patrol Team raised their weapons, aiming at the flowing river, but after waiting for a long time, they saw no one in the water. There were many floating objects on the surface, but those had been there long before. After observing quietly for a while longer, the River Surface remained calm. Only a small fire burned, but it seemed close to extinguishing. Time passed slowly; it felt like their fingers were freezing together with their Crossbows without any sign of activity.
As an arrow from a fixed lookout fell into the water behind them, all that remained besides heavy breathing was the sound of rushing water. The Zhao Army Sergeant raised his hand to signal that the alert was lifted and kicked the soldier who falsely reported the Military Situation. "You idiot! If you dare make another fuss like that, I'll skin you alive! In this freezing winter! Go try wading into the water barefoot right now!"
He really didn't dare!
Soldiers hurriedly pulled Sergeant back, persuading him not to hold Scoundrel accountable. As the dark clouds dispersed, they picked up their torches and lit them from one another. After such a commotion, the earlier urge to relieve themselves was completely forgotten. They decided to abandon the idea of going back to the river and mounted their horses, raising their torches as they left.
The Qin Soldier hiding in the water watched as the torches of the Patrol Team disappeared into the night before letting out a long sigh of relief. The group gently removed their ready arrows for inspection and repacked them, then began to inquire if there were any casualties.
Weapons are crucial for Soldiers, as anyone who has been on the battlefield knows. They are a matter of life and death! Ensuring that arrows hit their targets accurately relies heavily on the feathers at the back of the arrows. If these tail feathers, which keep the arrow flying straight, freeze, the fired Arrows will not achieve a hundred percent accuracy.
Wang Jian gently pulled aside a damaged section of the ship's hull, pushing away the wood ignited by the previous fire arrow. Hearing the report from behind, he waved forward to signal a quick passage. At this moment, there was still enough time to reach the shore, as long as the next Patrol Team did not arrive early, ensuring that this crossing operation could be completed.
The original plan for crossing was to proceed in segments, completing it in the gaps formed by three Patrol Teams of the Zhao Army. After the first Patrol Team passed, they would enter the water and wait near the middle of the Dan Shui River for the second Patrol Team to pass before using the gap between the second and third Patrol Teams to complete the latter half of their crossing.
The earlier incident was caused by the second Patrol Team of the Zhao Army, so there was not much change to their original actions. However, due to the prolonged delay of that Patrol Team, time was now running short. If they could not ensure reaching land before the arrival of the third Patrol Team, the entire crossing mission would have to be postponed until after the third and fourth Patrol Teams had passed.
Everyone involved in this operation understood this well and thus quickened their swimming pace. Their bodies were fine since they had been submerged in water for a while. The current issue was keeping their heads above water; having submerged earlier made them feel like ice blocks now.
Sigh! I wonder if my ears are still intact!
Perhaps due to slippery roads caused by snow, the third Patrol Team of the Zhao Army did not arrive on time. Meanwhile, the crossing team was attempting to reach shore. With ice layers on both banks, everyone felt weak from being soaked. Fortunately, frozen debris on top of the ice provided some footholds for climbing. Helping each other out, they stumbled into a patch of grass along the riverbed just as the third Sentinel of the Zhao Army approached slowly.
The Patrol Team noticed footprints in the snow and stopped to check after pulling on their horse reins. After confirming all footprints were accurate, they began inspecting a set coming from the riverbed direction. Upon confirming these were made by someone moving back and forth, they called each other to mount and leave.
Once the third wave of Zhao Army troops moved away, a dozen ice-cold individuals quickly opened waterproof bags to find clothes and shoes. Since there was a woman in their ranks who would be future Sister-in-law, how could they change clothes in front of her!? So everyone found their own garments and hurried off to a nearby bend in the riverbed to change. They left their landing spot for Luzi and Xiao Yu'er.
Luzi tried to draw his Sword, but it seemed frozen! He reached out for clothing handed over by Xiao Yu'er, but did not change; instead, he turned his back to her and shivered slightly as he quietly said, “You... you go ahead... change first! I... I'm not cold!”
Xiao Yu'er had been by Luzi's side for some time now, and everything she saw and heard brought her immense joy. From the generals to the soldiers of the Qin Army, everyone held great respect and admiration for this Young Master Lu. If there were any initial concerns, as time passed, she found none of them to be true.
Wang Jian and Li Xin had indeed not deceived her! Such a man was truly a hero of unparalleled greatness!
Xiao Yu'er took out her clothes and looked at the tall figure standing firm against the cold wind, feeling even more delighted. Her mother once said that a woman's lifelong happiness lies in marrying a man who knows how to cherish her. Even through storms and hardships, they could still rely on each other. That is the meaning of home! If this foundation is lost, whether one is happy or not is something only they can endure. Is having wealth and power synonymous with happiness? Perhaps it is more about living to show others. As for understanding this, one will come to know it with age.
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