Yu Jin Chang An (With Jin's Chang'An)

Chapter 11

The soldiers of Changfeng Camp worked all night to reorganize, and they fought a tough battle against the elite vanguard of the Western Region Army, barely holding onto the Lu City.

Li Shuang didn't personally join the battlefield. Instead, she spent the whole night in the military camp, busy with troop deployments, understanding the situation, discussing strategies with other generals, and dispatching messengers to report the military situation back to the capital with urgency.

From the moment she learned of the military situation, Li Shuang became extremely busy.

Inside the military camp, physicians attended to the continuous stream of wounded soldiers, each guard took turns standing by Li Shuang's side, even the horses seemed more restless than usual, and the matter of the mysterious black-armored man who had posed as Dantuzi* and his connection with Jin'an suddenly became trivial. In the chaos of war, nobody paid attention to what a child was doing, no matter how special he might have been under normal circumstances.

(* 登徒子 (dēng tú zǐ) - refer to people who were greedy for women. Dengtuzi was a senior official of the Chu State. The code comes from the Warring States Period of Chu. Song Yu's "Ode to the Lustful Deng Tuzi".)

At dawn, after a night of battle, the frontline soldiers temporarily repelled the vanguard of the Western Region Army, and the Western Region Army retreated ten miles outside of Lu City. Li Shuang rode into Lu City, intending to discuss with the city's defenders the relocation of Changfeng Camp inside the city for easier defense.

When the city defender Li Zhangyi, who was filled with fatuous confidence, hurried from his residence to meet Li Shuang in the hall, he was already panting and sweating profusely.

Without much exchange of pleasantries, Li Shuang spoke directly, "City Defender Li, there was a chaotic battle outside the city last night, I believe you're aware. The Western Army has pressed into our territory, and the military situation is urgent. In order to facilitate future cooperation in repelling external threats, I request that you welcome the soldiers of Changfeng Camp into the city at three-quarters past the hour of the rooster."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhangyi's eyes, as large as green beans, shifted. He had been appointed as the city defender by the Prime Minister, but the Prime Minister and the Grand Marshal were often at odds in the court, with opposing interests. Li Shuang had been sent to guard Changfeng Camp in the borderlands, but Changfeng Camp was not stationed within Lu City, representing a subtle contest between the Grand Marshal and the Prime Minister outside the court.

Even though the current situation was dire due to the enemy's invasion, the power struggle between the Grand Marshal and the Prime Minister was still ongoing. If Changfeng Camp were to enter Lu City, it would not be advantageous for either his position as city defender or the Prime Minister's authority.

Naturally, he couldn't agree.

So, he squinted and smiled, his face full of flattery as he replied to Li Shuang, "General, the Western Region Army is formidable, and their brutality knows no bounds. This year, our dynasty's southern lands have had a bountiful harvest, and Lu City is well-stocked with grain. We'll have no problem getting through this winter. Why not give them some grain and send them away?"

Li Shuang's expression turned cold, as if there were icy knives stabbing at the city defender. "Do you want to use the grain of our Great Jin to feed these wolves?"

Feeling the weight of Li Shuang's gaze, the city defender shuddered slightly and took a step back. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he thought to himself that this 'Jade-faced Yama' was indeed not just a name tossed around in the court. Her aura was truly intimidating.