Vol 3 Chapter 10 (1/2)
Volume 3 Chapter 10: Don’t tell me this is the strike on Yuan Shu (2)
The sky was starting to brighten up, and the subordinate generals who were on alert were debriefed and returned to their tents thereafter. As for the rest of us, n.o.body had the mood to sleep with a battle upon us and were afraid of oversleeping. And so we gathered about a bonfire as we awaited the coming of dawn.
And so, we sat there for about 4 hours.
“My lord, won’t you all catch some sleep?” Zhang Liao, who had returned ahead of us back to camp, had woken up early and was worried when she saw how tired we looked.
“It’s a little late to be thinking about that.” I said and then looked at the small, nodding body that was leaning against me and said, “Yi De, if you’re tired, go and sleep for a bit in the tent.”
Yi De was truly exhausted but she still shook her head with an ‘Un~~’. Her small hands that were clinging on to my sleeve tightened their grip our of fear that she would be forcefully put to bed.
Eh ah~~~ You’re digging into my fles.h.!.+
It really hurt, but when I saw Yi De’s peaceful sleeping face, I couldn’t bear to pry her away and could only smile helplessly.
But thanks to Yi De’s pinches, my tiredness has been mostly driven away.
“What’s the time now?” I asked as I looked at the eastern sky where the sun had begun rising from.
I don’t know if it’s from antic.i.p.ation or nervousness, but I’ve been asking this question quite a lot since we came back to camp. I keep getting the feeling that it doesn’t feel real if I don’t ask.
“It’s going to be 08:00 soon.” Feng Xian said as she looked at her water clock by her feet.
So we have another half hour before we launch our strike?
“Zhang Liao, wake everyone up. We’ll get moving once we have packed up.”
“Un.” Zhang Liao grunted in reply and got up before quickly pa.s.sing through the entire encampment… You could have just spread the word using the lower ranked officers.
My easiness surged forth once more as I saw the soldiers slowly coming out of their tents.
The cool autumn breeze in the morning suddenly felt cold to the bone. My hands felt ice-cold, and my heart seemed to feel like it was engulfed by fire and ice. I tried breathing in and out to calm myself down but I ended up coughing instead.
… I wonder how it’s like on Sun Ce’s side? Are they ready?
Maa, they’re definitely better than the me who is utterly clueless and lost.
“My lord, you must take care of yourself.” “We just heard of what happened from Lord Zhang Liao, you came back just a few hours ago right.” “Staying up all night just before battle and getting this tired isn’t good.”
“Ah, morning. You 3 have woken up huh.” The Xu state 3 were wearing their usual clothing and seemed a bit withdrawn from the chilly morning. From their faces, they didn’t seem like they have fully woken up yet and only nodded at my greeting after a moment.
“But it is indeed difficult without sleep.” Yun Chang leaned her head back and covered her mouth as she gave a big yawn which brought tears to her eyes. “I’ll go and wash my face to freshen up.”
“Ah, I’ll go too.” Feng Xian, who also had her eyes half-closed, said so as she got up and carefully placed the furball on her legs onto the stool. “Ah~~~ I really envy you Red Hare~~~”
“””We’ll go as well.””” The Xu state 3 raised their hands and followed after Feng Xian.
Red Hare had not woken up yet, and was curled up in a ball such that you couldn’t even tell where its head was.
On various levels, the most fortunate of us all is probably Red Hare. A carefree life without worries, and it doesn’t even have to think about returning to its original time.
“Yi De, you should wake up now.” I shook my shoulders gently to wake up Yi De. “We’re leaving soon, so you should go and wash your face.”
“Un~~~ … Yes~~~” It took a while before Yi De understood what I said as she sat up and loosened her grip on my sleeve but didn’t look like she was going to stand up just yet.
Hu~~~ Blood is finally flowing in my arm. If I pulled back my sleeve now, I would probably see a big bruise. But I’m not going to do that, I’m not brave enough.
“Big brother!!”
Un?
Yun Chang who had just left to wash her face was now walking over quickly. She probably isn’t done was.h.i.+ng her face yet seeing as there are still beads of water on her face and hair. Her smooth white face seemed even more luscious after being soaked with water and the water droplets made her dark red hair dazzling in the morning light, making her look even more stunningly beautiful than she usually was.
“What’s the matter? Why are you so anxious?”
Yun Chang walked up to where I was and folded her arms at her chest with a solemn expression on her. She stared at me with a sharp glance and then looked at the forest. “I’m not sure if it’s my nerves or something else, but I sense a commotion coming from the other side of the forest.”
“Commotion?” I asked as I turned to look at the forest. “… I don’t feel anything?”
Could something have happened with Sun Ce? But they’re over a mile off from here, how could sounds from there travel here?
“No, there is indeed something.” Feng Xian said as she wiped her face with a cloth and walked over. “I smell the familiar scent of blood and the air currents feel chaotic.”
“Un? … Why don’t I feel anything?”
Maa, because you’re Yi De.
But is this what they call a sixth sense? As expected of extraordinary individuals. An ordinary person like myself cannot hope to perceive what they have sensed.
“Since both of you say so, then it can’t be wrong.” I said as I walked over to the outskirts of the forest and looked inside. I still saw nothing, and turned around as I gave up and said. “There’s still some time before our joint strike, let’s send some scouts to have a look–”
—- Move away!!!!
Ah? I think I heard something. Was it a horse?
“Big brother, danger!” Yi De’s tender voice rang out from my right, and before I could react, she had dived at me and we landed to the side.
Ouch!!
— *Neigh*~~~~
Before I could complain about the pain, a horse’s neigh could be heard as a horse with a yellow mane jumped out of the forest and landed right where I was standing before.
— Xu!
After a girl gave a command, the horse stopped neighing.
“…”
I was rendered speechless by this sudden scene and I soon realised that if it weren’t for Yi De’s quick thinking, I would have been trampled into minced meat by now.
“Big brother, big brother, are you injured anywhere?” Yi De, who was lying on top of me asked concernedly.
At this time, her face was just a minute distance away from mine, and her small lips and b.r.e.a.s.t.s seemed exceptionally charming from up close and I didn’t know where to look.
What surprised me more was how light she felt despite her whole body being on top of me. It was even more surprising given the sheer amount of food she usually eats.
“Un, I’m alright.” I smiled as I stroked Yi De’s head. “Thank you, Yi De.”
Yi De gave a silly ‘hehehe’ as I stroked her head.
Ah… My back got some damage, it will probably hurt for several days.
“Who are you!” Hearing Yun Chang’s roar, I got up and saw that Yun Chang and Feng Xian were armed and ready, and there were some soldiers which had formed a surround.
Because I was outside of the surround, I could not see the rider.
“Ah, may I ask if this is the encampment of the Cao army?” An unfamiliar voice that belonged to a girl came from the surround, and seemed like it belonged to the rider.