Chapter 237: Hello Chang’an
Chapter 237: Like a Pearl, Like a Tree
Most of the yards inside the Prefect’s Mansion had been cleared to temporarily accommodate the wounded soldiers brought back from the battle. Military physicians and city physicians had almost all gathered there.
Chang Suining busied herself running about to help, and after most of the day, as dusk approached, Chang Kuo came over once the arrangements were in order.
“Alright, take a rest, wash your face.”
Chang Kuo had a basin of warm water brought over. Chang Suining washed away the dried blood on her hands and face, as well as the makeup she had used to conceal her complexion.
The girl efficiently wiped the water from her face. Chang Kuo stood nearby, watching, his mind filled with countless thoughts.
From what he had seen on the battlefield, he felt that this girl possessed an instinctive grasp of everything.
He had encountered martial prodigies and brilliant tacticians, but he had never seen anyone face the bloodshed of a battlefield for the first time and remain composed, even when killing enemies, without the slightest emotional fluctuation.
He had seen new soldiers break down in horror the first time they killed, trembling or vomiting uncontrollably at the sight of blood and corpses.
Some were naturally drawn to killing, showing an unusual excitement in the midst of carnage—but his daughter was clearly not among them.
So how was this possible?
Chang Kuo’s temperament might seem brash like his bearded face suggested, but he was never careless.
There were things beyond ordinary comprehension, long-standing as an insurmountable mountain blocking all imagination.
The change in the girl before him was less of a change than a shedding of disguise, revealing her true self.
Like a pearl, brushed clean of distant, old dust, revealing a faint brilliance.
Like a tree, suddenly sprouting branches in winter, growing rapidly along familiar paths, strange and dazzling.
Thus, at this moment, he could only look at this tree that seemed to have grown overnight, trying to touch the truth hidden beyond that great mountain.
Chang Kuo’s heart churned with conflicting emotions, but his expression remained unreadable.
“Thank you,” Chang Suining said, taking a water bottle handed by a deputy general and drinking.
The deputy general glanced at her curiously. “You’re a personal soldier under General Chang? I’ve never seen you before. You look like a chick, but you fight smartly and fiercely!”
He added, astonished: “And once you wash the grime off, you’re quite a fair, handsome kid.”
A few young soldiers gathered around. Being fair and handsome was secondary; what mattered was that they admired strength, especially in the army.
Hearing them praise her archery and spear skills, Chang Suining tightened the bottle cap and said confidently, “Want to learn? I can teach you.”
Her bold, self-assured tone, similar to how she had spoken while killing enemies, displayed pure youthful confidence to those around her.
The deputy general laughed heartily, and a few young soldiers nodded earnestly.
After a bit of casual talk, Chang Suining carried the water bottle over to Chang Kuo.
She stood properly, hands clasped in a salute: “General.”
Chang Kuo looked at her, emotions swirling, yet kept them all concealed.
“You’ve worked hard,” he said, lifting his hand to lightly pat the girl’s head, eyes reflecting a mix of feelings: “Our Suining, you’ve worked hard.”
Yun Hui, walking over, observed this and thought for a moment.
The general treated the young cavalry like a cherished child. Indeed, he treated his soldiers like sons… The same way he had looked at his own when his father was alive.
A dull ache pierced the young man’s chest, but he didn’t dare indulge in the sentiment. He inhaled the cold winter air and walked toward Chang Kuo.
“Yun Hui thanks General Chang for today’s rescue!”
He was about to kneel but Chang Kuo stopped him in time.
“You have it backward,” Chang Kuo said. “It is I who must thank Second Young Master Yun for holding Hezhou City before I arrived.”
Hearing this, Yun Hui’s eyes immediately welled with tears.
“How is your younger brother?” Chang Suining asked.
On the battlefield, the two brothers had identifiable hemp cloths tied around their heads. She had known from the start that the one hit by an arrow was Yun Gui.
“He hasn’t regained consciousness and is still in danger. The physician said… this stage will be difficult,” Yun Hui replied, looking at her. “But he was wounded in a critical spot. That he made it back alive is fortunate. Thanks to the young soldier’s medicine.”
“No need to thank me,” Chang Suining said. “Your family has a legacy of loyalty and heroism. Your brother will survive safely.”
Yun Hui nodded. “Thank you.”
Then he asked, “I still don’t know the young soldier’s name.”
He wanted to thank the person not only for the life-saving medicine but also for the arrow that had initially saved him—the arrow that turned the tide of the battle.
Chang Suining was about to answer when Chang Kuo laughed and replied for her: “Chang Suining.”
His daughter was so impressive, of course people should know her name.
Chang Suining looked at Chang Kuo in surprise, then smiled and nodded: “Yes, my name is Chang Suining.”
Yun Hui was surprised. “The young soldier is also a Chang?”
“Of course,” the ‘boy’ turned to look at Chang Kuo, pride in his expression. “This is my father.”
Yun Hui was astonished. So it wasn’t just that he treated soldiers as children—it was father and daughter… That explains it!
He looked at Chang Suining. “…So it really is General Chang’s daughter. Truly, like father, like child!”
Seeing his earnest respect, Chang Suining reflected for a moment, realizing her reputation hadn’t quite reached Hezhou.
Chang Kuo smiled: “Seems Suining still needs to work harder!”
Yun Hui hurriedly said: “The young general is already remarkable!”
Chang Suining, without knowing the full story, corrected one point seriously: “No need to call me that; I’m not a general yet.”
Yun Hui looked at her, humble yet confident. So, not now—but perhaps in the future?
Then he asked, “How is the Prefect’s wife? Has she awakened?”
“My mother has just regained consciousness. She is fine, but weakened from days of tension and worry over Yun Gui, which caused her to faint. She is not yet able to move. That is why I came first to thank General Chang on her behalf.”
Chang Suining relaxed. The survival of the respected Yun family was the greatest comfort to others and to the people of Hezhou.
Chang Kuo looked at Yun Hui, noting the bandages on his hands: “How are your wounds? Are you in danger?”
“Minor, just surface injuries,” Yun Hui replied.
“Good,” Chang Kuo nodded. “Then let’s discuss the main matters.”
Yun Hui straightened, leading the way to a study room in the mansion where they could hold discussions.
Also summoned were a few trusted subordinates of Chang Kuo and Peng Canjun.
…
With the study room doors closed, Yun Hui’s expression turned shocked: “…So, General Chang only brought a little over ten thousand men?”
He instinctively looked at Chang Suining beside Chang Kuo.
So the arrogant, overconfident demeanor on the battlefield was a bluff—to make the enemy believe they really had a hundred thousand troops backing them?
Realizing this, Yun Hui felt a wave of relief and fear.
No wonder General Chang hadn’t pursued further.
Peng Canjun broke into cold sweat. “When will the rest of the reinforcements arrive?”
“They won’t,” Chang Kuo said calmly.
Peng Canjun and Yun Hui were stunned.
“What do you mean?”
“I first took the cavalry and part of the vanguard,” Chang Kuo explained. “After I left, Li Yi changed the plan. I had sent someone to Shouzhou to check, and just received word: Li Yi claimed he believed it would be better to have the main army capture Yangzhou first. Once Yangzhou is reclaimed, he would come to Hezhou to attack the Xu army together with me.”
Peng Canjun and Yun Hui were dumbfounded.
Was this feasible?
The strategy was difficult to understand. On first glance, it sounded like a diversion and pincer attack—but the brilliance lay in its sheer audacity.
The room fell into an eerie silence.
Peng Canjun frowned, thinking that previously he had merely doubted Li Yi’s command ability. Now, he even began to question his sanity.
Yangzhou was Xu Zhengye’s stronghold—could it really be reclaimed at will? Even if it could, how long would Hezhou hold? If Hezhou fell, the entire Huainan Circuit would fall to Xu Zhengye. Who would then carry out the pincer attack? Against whom?
Seeing their hesitation, Chang Kuo clarified: “Don’t worry, he’s not mad. He only wanted me to die here in Hezhou with you all.”
Yun Hui was stunned.
A deputy at Chang Kuo’s side scoffed: “Attacking Yangzhou? If he dared, I’d cut his head off and throw it in the dung pit! In my view, the attack is a ruse; he’s trying to collude with Xu Zhengye.”
Chang Suining: “…” Rough words, but fair.
Indeed, this was a concern. Hezhou needed to be secured, and Li Yi dealt with.
Peng Canjun’s face turned gray. He had thought Chang Kuo came with a hundred thousand troops to drive back Xu Zhengye, but now…
Yun Hui tensed again. “Xu Zhengye will soon find out the truth and attack Hezhou again…”
“Then we’ll defend,” Chang Suining said for the first time. “They may have a hundred thousand, but we can gather twenty thousand—”
Yun Hui looked at her. “Twenty thousand versus a hundred thousand… the odds are still too low…”
“I said twenty thousand elite troops,” Chang Suining continued. “Besides, we have many men similar to them. Hezhou has a population of 150,000. Subtract the elderly, women, and children, there should be fifty thousand men capable of fighting. Even if we send another ten thousand, forty thousand remain. Xu Zhengye’s forces were conscripted along the way. Now it’s for self-preservation—why shouldn’t Hezhou’s young men take up arms?”
Yun Hui’s eyes brightened, glancing outside the study.
Outside the Prefect’s Mansion, many citizens still lingered, unwilling to leave.
…
After discussion, a temporary conscription order was issued throughout Hezhou overnight.
Within a day, over ten thousand men were recruited—an exceptional feat. Even Chang Kuo’s deputy remarked: “Hezhou is truly blessed with loyal men.”
After recruiting, training was necessary. Time was tight, so they had to teach the basics of self-defense and combat. Chang Suining drafted a training protocol suitable for the current situation, which Chang Kuo approved and handed to Yun Hui.
Other citizens busied themselves accordingly: literate people helped with temporary administrative work, drafting documents and communicating orders; the elderly and women wove armor; the granaries and armories were opened, and households contributed tools and metal for weapons.
There was chaos and debate. While ordinary women couldn’t craft indestructible armor, every stitch fostered unity. This would make the city’s morale unbreakable.
Iron in the foundries boiled day and night, inspiring more hearts to fervor.
The conscription was not forced, yet the numbers kept growing.
On the third night, Hezhou remained brightly lit.
Chang Suining, temporarily appointed supervisor by Chang Kuo, had been busy overseeing the city defenses all day.
Everyone took shifts, even through the night.
Sitting atop the city wall to rest, Chang Suining tried to clear her mind amidst the constant noise, reflecting on whether anything was amiss.
The cold night wind blew as she gazed at the dark sky, faintly hearing craftsmen hammering below.
She let her thoughts drift for a moment and looked northward, realizing that while she repaired the city defenses in Hezhou, Cui Jing was doing the same in the northern frontier.
Did Cui Jing work as diligently, rushing through the night?
She considered briefly: the north was freezing, and at night it was deadly cold. Even if he wanted to compete, he would first have to negotiate with the half-human-high icicles hanging from the eaves.
Yes, he must have already gone to bed.
Feeling tired, she lay back, arms behind her head, still thinking about the city.
Suddenly, she sneezed loudly.
…
Two thousand miles north, Cui Jing had indeed not worked through the night, but he had not yet slept.
He was handling affairs, occasionally glancing south through frost-covered window panes.
Thus came the sneeze of Chang Suining.
…
By the time Chang Suining returned to the Prefect’s Mansion, it was already late at night.
Upon returning to the temporary accommodations arranged by Yun Hui and Chang Kuo, she saw someone waiting outside the yard.
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