Vol 8 Chapter 38 (2/2)

“Oh right, speaking of our troops, about 300 or so are left.” Liu Qi suddenly recalled something and came up close as she said this to me.

What was to come next in the conversation was predictable so I too, went up close, “How many of our own troops are left?”

“…” Liu Qi sank into silence for a moment and raised her hand and clapped my shoulder as she replied somewhat nervously, “Probably about 50-60.”

“50-60 huh…” I replied, my tone instinctively louder. But this was within expectations so I quickly nodded and accepted it.

Though our numbers have dwindled, compared to before where it was a 1:10 disadvantage, we are now at 1:5 so things aren’t too bad.

“I know that uncle is thinking optimistically again.”

“Eh? Does it show?” I uttered as I touched my face but couldn’t feel any distinct change in my expression.

“No, but your reaction was a lot more bland than I expected.” Liu Qi sighed before she continued, “You must be thinking that our relative disadvantage is a lot less now right?”

Ah… She completely saw through me.

“I know, the situation is still very dire–” I said, but before I could finish my sentence, my nose itched terribly– Achoo! Achoo!!

And I sneezed twice in a row as I s.h.i.+vered.

Ah~

It’s so cold. I warmed myself up by the fire before though. Is this because of a fever?

“Uncle really has a weak const.i.tution huh.”

Wu… My own niece actually said this of me.

“I’m actually not bad, I’m just a little sick this time, that’s all~”

I’m not bragging but I do indeed think that my body is fairly strong. Ever since I came to this era, I’ve never gotten seriously ill. Back when I was escaping to seek refuge with Ben Chu, I did get a fever but quickly recovered soon after. Which is why I can’t believe I actually got a fever just from getting drenched for a bit.

“Ah, speaking of which, do you get sick often?”

I’m not too familiar with how life is like in this era, and all I know is that life expectancy is generally low.

Liu Qi gave a wry smile at my question as she replied, “I don’t usually get sick, and even if I do, I can just continue with my daily activities without any issues.” As she said this, she uncharacteristically patted her chest with pride and gusto, “A few years ago, this body was still rather thin and weak but it’s become a lot more durable and filled out now.”

Seeing her say that she’s filled out while patting that rather flat chest makes me feel sad for her for some reason…

“Is it thanks to Liu Biao’s strict guidance?”

“More or less. But I am thankful for it. At the very least, I am fitter and stronger than that tender Liu Cong.”

Comparing with Liu Cong again huh? Every time she talks about that little sister of hers, she always expresses rather negative and pointed opinions. Looks like there is much history between the 2 of them.

Or perhaps it would be more appropriate to say between the 2 factions.

“Alright, enough about all that.” All of a sudden, she intentionally lowered her voice, “What do we do next?”

As she spoke, I could see her gaze quiver about.

“What do you mean what do we do?”

“Uncle should be able to tell that we are in great peril.”

“Aren’t we always?”

“That’s not what I meant. Look about uncle, and behind.”

I did as she said and looked about but because the road we were on was very narrow, there was nothing but dense forest to the left and right of us.

And thereafter, I looked back–

Wu… In an instant, I felt the gaze of several dozen eyeb.a.l.l.s focused on me, and the gaze was so sharp that I quickly turned back.

“Uncle is being far too obvious. You should have been a little more natural about it.” Liu Qi softly complained but I got a bad shock from what just happened.

“Could it be that they have already decided to act?”

“I don’t know, but I began to feel the atmosphere become heavier since a while ago.” Liu Qi said as her expression became graver, “They didn’t act before during the siege and the naval battle. This is probably their last chance.”

I looked up at the sky and saw that the sun had already retreated behind the forest. In a couple of hours, the sky would become completely dark.

“Could they be planning to do something after we set up camp?”

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