Shan He Zhen – Chapter 20

“There was nothing unusual until the Crown Prince arrived,” Wei Yun composed himself and began to recall carefully. “I’ve been with the army since I was eleven. Although I rarely went to the front lines, I was familiar with military affairs. After we reached the front, we had a confrontation with the Northern Di, driving them out of the city. Then both sides entered a standoff with little combat. Father was always cautious. He said that since the Northern Di had come from afar to attack, their supplies would be difficult to maintain. We only needed to defend the city without venturing out.”

Chu Yu nodded. She had also learned about the commanding styles of various Great Chu generals in the past, and Wei Zhong’s style was indeed like this. Wei Yun continued, “After only seven days of standoff, the Crown Prince came to the front lines with an imperial edict appointing him as the supervising commander. The Crown Prince said that the national treasury was empty and we needed a quick victory, but Father didn’t agree. They argued over the tent. But because Father stubbornly refused to send out troops, the Crown Prince had no choice, and things remained peaceful.”

“Not long after, Yao Yong came to Baicheng.”

“Why did Yao Yong come to Baicheng?” Chu Yu frowned. Yao Yong was originally the commander of Qingzhou. Baicheng could easily hold out under siege, so why would Yao Yong appear there?

Wei Yun shook his head, “My rank wasn’t high enough to know. However, I was in charge of counting supplies and managing miscellaneous items. I know that at the time, Yao Yong secretly brought 90,000 elite soldiers. His troops didn’t station inside Baicheng but instead hid in the surrounding areas.”

Chu Yu listened, carefully piecing together the clues.

In her previous life, Wei Yun had eventually gone to see the Emperor with Yao Yong’s head, so this matter must have been intricately connected with Yao Yong. Yao Yong had secretly brought troops to Baicheng while Wei Zhong was defending the city, and Wei Zhong knew about it—even Wei Yun knew. This meant that Wei Zhong wasn’t planning to just passively defend at that time; he and Yao Yong must have conspired to arrange something.

Chu Yu raised her hand slightly, signaling Wei Yun to continue.

Wei Yun recalled and pondered, “Later, the Northern Di came to challenge us. That day, we fought at the city gate. The Northern Di army quickly fell into disarray. Father led the troops forward. When I heard about it, I hurried to stop him. The Northern Di were known for their bravery; they couldn’t be defeated so quickly. However, Father kept telling me not to worry and even said that the Second Prince of the Northern Di was there and that we should capture him to celebrate our victory.”

“How did Father know the Second Prince was there?”

Chu Yu quickly asked. Wei Yun pursed his lips, obviously not knowing, but also sensing something amiss from Chu Yu’s question.

The Northern Di hadn’t yet designated an heir, and the Second Prince was a hot candidate for the throne. He wasn’t a military commander, so in the military camp, he should have been hidden like the Crown Prince acting as the supervising commander, unknown to others. How did Wei Zhong get such confidential information?

However, time was pressing, and Chu Yu didn’t have time to think it through. She just said, “Continue.”

“Father sent me to count supplies and took several of my brothers, dividing them into two routes to go out. One route pursued the enemy, and the other covered the rear. By nightfall…”

Wei Yun’s voice choked, and he couldn’t continue for a moment. Chu Yu reached out through the wooden bars and patted his shoulder.

She wasn’t good at comforting people because she had been comforted too many times. She knew how pale and powerless words could be.

Everyone has to walk their path and endure their pain.

She could only convey her concern and comfort through this gesture of patting his shoulder.

Wei Yun looked up with a smile and quickly said, “I’m fine, Sister-in-law, don’t worry. Where was I? Oh, by nightfall, Yao Yong sent someone to notify me that they had been ambushed and asked me to send reinforcements.”

As he spoke, Wei Yun smiled bitterly, “But all the soldiers in the city had gone out, leaving only 5,000 to guard the city. What reinforcements could I send?”

Wei Yun’s voice carried a hint of sarcasm, “It was just… collecting corpses.”

“What about Yao Yong’s troops?” Chu Yu’s voice carried a specific meaning.

Wei Yun calmly said, “He said he was pursuing another route of enemy troops. By the time he returned, Father and my brothers had already fallen into the ambush.”

“He also said that he and the Crown Prince had told Father many times not to rashly pursue the remnant enemy forces, that it was enough for Yao Yong to pursue them. This time, the responsibility lay entirely with Father for not heeding their advice.”

As Wei Yun spoke, he slowly clenched his fists, “I knew something was wrong, so I went to Baidi Valley again. Do you know what I saw in the surrounding mountains? The edges of the mountains around Baidi Valley were covered with hoof prints of troops.”

Chu Yu suddenly looked up, “What do you mean?”

“Sister-in-law, do you know that in the military, when recruiting soldiers and buying horses, they choose from nearby areas? Therefore, the horse breeds of troops from different regions are mostly different. For example, the Wei family’s troops are mostly from the north, so their horses are often from Heling. These horses are tall and run fast but lack endurance. Yao Yong’s horses are supplied from Qingzhou, where the horses are mostly ponies. Their hoof prints are a whole circle smaller compared to Heling horses, and even more different from the Beiguan horses used by the Northern Di.”

“So, you’re saying that the circle of hoof prints around Baidi Valley was left by Yao Yong’s Qingzhou troops.”

Wei Yun nodded, his eyes full of coldness, “I don’t know where this circle of hoof prints came from. I don’t know if he left these prints after pursuing other Northern Di troops and returning to Baidi Valley, or if from the beginning… he was just there. But I know one thing: there must be something fishy about this matter. I won’t accept the Wei family’s guilt unless it’s thoroughly investigated.”

Chu Yu didn’t speak. She was lost in thought when Wan Yue’s voice came from outside, “Young Madam, time’s up. Please come out.”

“How many men did Yao Yong lose in this battle?”

Chu Yu asked one last question. Footsteps could be heard from outside, and Wei Yun quickly said, “By my estimate, not even 10,000, but he reported 30,000.”

Chu Yu nodded and stood up, saying only, “Wait for my news.”

With that, she turned around and said to the jailer before he could come in to drive them out, “Sir, there’s no need to rush. I’m leaving now.”

“Sister-in-law!” Wei Yun called out urgently.

Chu Yu turned back to see the young man gripping the wooden bars tightly, his gaze fixed on her, his clear eyes full of concern.

Chu Yu looked at him silently. Wei Yun seemed to have countless things he wanted to say, but as the woman’s steady gaze fell on him, he couldn’t utter a word.

Finally, he just said, “Sister-in-law, this is a matter for us Wei family men. You… should learn to take care of yourself.”

He said these words with difficulty.

As he spoke, he was afraid himself.

After all, he was only fourteen years old. When faced with this sudden storm, he was also frightened and uneasy. The thought of facing everything alone, the thought of this woman—the only one who had given him stability and calmness throughout this whole incident—abandoning him, made him feel scared.

But he was still a man.

When he met the woman’s autumn-water-like eyes, Wei Yun told himself.

—He was the only backbone left in the Wei family. Being the backbone meant he had to hold up this sky and protect everyone under this roof.

Even though he had a great revenge to take, even though he had grievances to redress, even though he had ambitions for a bright future and was in the prime of his youth, all of this should be something he fought for himself. And the women of his Wei family should be under the roof he held up, untouched by wind and rain, untroubled by worries. They should only need to happily ask which house’s rouge and powder were good, which noble lady’s new makeup was popular in Huajing—just as it was when his father and brothers were around.

His gaze was firmly fixed on Chu Yu, but hearing these words, Chu Yu just curled her lips, her eyes showing a hint of pride.

“These words—wait until you grow up to say them to me.”

As she spoke, she chuckled lightly, “You’re still a child now. Don’t be afraid, sister-in-law has got your back.”