Chapter 1307 – Cutting Down Huang Song, Unifying Dongqing (Part 49)
Even though Nie Xun didn’t want to surrender, their food supplies had been burned, leaving the soldiers with nothing but thin porridge for two days… calling it porridge was a stretch—more like watered-down rice soup with just a few grains of rice… Besides the elite troops, many newly recruited soldiers quietly fled, with half of them disappearing overnight.
Looking at the desolate military camp, Nie Xun felt a whirlwind of emotions.
He was a patient, and in theory, he should be eating better food, but due to the shortage in the camp, even his meals were just watery porridge.
“Have we really reached such desperate straits?”
Nie Xun sighed and drank the last drop of that bowl of porridge, his stomach now just filled with liquid.
Two more days passed, and the number of deserters increased, leading to a sharp decline in local security.
Hungry deserters burst into the homes of common people to kill and loot, resulting in many innocent citizens dying unjustly.
Nie Xun wanted to intervene but felt powerless, as discontent among the common people grew. Feng Jin seized the opportunity and colluded with others to open the city gates.
Meng Hunyun and his men rushed in, while the townsfolk hid at home, too scared to come out.
Nie Xun had already gone hungry for four days, tightening his belt to lessen the pangs of hunger, and the military doctor had run out of medicine.
“Military Adviser, it’s not that I’m afraid of dying; it’s just that there are elders at home and young ones to care for…”
The military doctor was packing to escape, feeling guilty for Nie Xun’s poor health, and in his shame, he revealed his intent to flee.
Nie Xun didn’t blame him; instead, he gave him a jade pendant, which could probably fetch some silver.
“Go ahead.”
The military doctor, feeling sorrowful, bowed deeply to Nie Xun before leaving with his bundle without looking back.
Due to illness and hunger, Nie Xun soon began to fade into unconsciousness, and when he finally awoke, he caught the fragrant aroma of meat porridge.
As he opened his eyes, the surroundings were no longer familiar.
He was momentarily stunned as a woman with a slight limp entered the room. She had her hair styled like a military lady, her skin a healthy wheat color, and she looked a bit rougher than the typical delicate lady. However, she was full of vitality, and a faint herbal scent lingered around her.
“You’re awake? Since you had no food for so long and couldn’t eat meat, we made you some rice porridge with a touch of meat broth for flavor. Eat a bit to fill your belly first.” The woman, dressed in military attire, was clearly a female soldier—definitely under Liu Xi!
Nie Xun looked at the woman and then glanced at the decorations around him, asking lightly, “Have I been captured?”
The woman laughed, “Sir, you are no ordinary man; you can’t be compared to just any captured soldier.”
Nie Xun didn’t understand her meaning.
The woman clarified, “Captives in the camp can be selected by retired female soldiers; I’m sure you wouldn’t want to go there.”
Nie Xun fell silent.
He knew about the rule under Jiang Pengji’s command, which had incurred quite a bit of criticism.
“And you are?” Nie Xun asked, his gaze sparse yet curious.
“I’m the military doctor caring for your illness; previously you had a high fever and almost didn’t wake up.” The woman set down the prepared medicine and stood to fetch something, adding, “My medical skills aren’t on par with renowned doctors, but they’re much better than quacks, so you need not worry—”
Nie Xun lowered his head and drank the bitter herbal medicine she handed him, grimacing at its extreme bitterness.
He held back the urge to gag, swallowing mouthfuls of the porridge with the meat that was the size of his thumb.
With the meat porridge in his belly, he finally felt warmth within.
Nie Xun took his medicine and meals without hesitation, quite unlike a prisoner, while the female soldier didn’t mind updating him on the situation outside.
As Nie Xun expected, Feng Jin took the opportunity to capture Chenzhou in one swift move, claiming the entire region in just five or six days.
Wherever they went, there was no resistance, and the common people even voluntarily guided them.
Feng Jin also dealt with the mess left by the previous administration, reallocating 300,000 stone of military provisions and recruiting the deserters who had fled.
With a balance of looseness and tightness, peace soon returned to the situation in Chenzhou.
By the time Nie Xun met Feng Jin, his health had improved significantly, and on good days, he could walk a few steps on the ground.
Feng Jin smiled, “I apologize for the lack of hospitality these past few days; please forgive me.”
Nie Xun looked at him silently, as if trying to see through him.
“What do you plan to do with me?”
“Sir is the cousin of the Lord; how to arrange for you naturally requires the Lord’s instruction.” Feng Jin replied, “Before that, please rest and recover. The military doctor has treated you; if you don’t take care of yourself, it’ll be hard to recover from any residual illness in the future.”
Feng Jin’s demeanor was exceptionally gentle, showing no signs of their previous confrontation.
Nie Xun’s eyelids drooped slightly as he silently accepted Feng Jin’s suggestion.
“I’ve heard that your wife is at the Yue family in Wanzhou. Is it true that you are Mr. Yuanjing’s son-in-law?”
Feng Jin asked knowingly.
He understood that Nie Xun was different from Cheng Jing and the others; bringing up wives, daughters, and the Yue family would soften Nie Xun’s attitude.
Cheng Jing would rather die for his old master, but Nie Xun would never resort to such means, especially since Huang Song wasn’t a decent person, having mistreated him multiple times.
Nie Xun nodded in acknowledgment, looking at Feng Jin with a hint of yearning in his eyes.
Feng Jin said, “Mr. Yuanjing is the most respected gentleman in Wanzhou; who would dare offend him? Your wife and daughter are with him, so they surely won’t suffer.”
“Get well soon, and when you see them, they won’t worry about you.”
Just then, the military doctor who had been attending to Nie Xun entered with fresh medicine.
She bowed to Feng Jin, who returned the gesture, addressing her as “Dian Lady.”
Nie Xun stared in surprise at the two.
Feng Jin explained, “This is the wife of General Dian.”
Nie Xun nearly fainted.
The wife of General Dian? The legal wife of Dian Yin?
“Dian Lady” smiled, “Here, I’m just a military doctor; there’s no such thing as a Dian Lady.”
Nie Xun was already a well-behaved patient, and now he was even more compliant.
Feng Jin confirmed that Nie Xun had no intentions of resisting before he felt secure enough to leave, checking in occasionally.
He relayed the news of Chenzhou’s victory back to the front lines.
Huang Song was furious, while Jiang Pengji smiled.
“We’ve captured Chenzhou; we can’t lag behind here. We should try to wrap this up before the new year, so everyone can have a good celebration.”
The two armies were set to clash during the autumn harvest.
As the days drew nearer, the atmosphere became increasingly tense.
Huang Song learned that Chenzhou had fallen to Feng Jin and felt a splitting headache.
Since Nie Xun was captured, he couldn’t relay the details of the battle for Chenzhou to Huang Song, leaving Huang Song only with general knowledge.
Looking at the battle report, Huang Song’s expression was incredibly complicated.
If it hadn’t been for Hua Yuan fooling them with the food supplies, Chenzhou wouldn’t have fallen so quickly.
Thinking of that fool Yuan Xin made Huang Song’s teeth grate with annoyance.
What the hell, sabotaging allies!
As he simmered in anger, Huang Song’s mind also drifted to Nie Xun, mixing his feelings into a complex amalgamation.
After a while, he sighed deeply and set aside the battle report.
“Any progress on Huai Juan’s side?”
He needed a victory to boost morale.
Cheng Jing shook his head. “None.”
