Chapter 85 A Secret Letter From Qingsu (1/2)

”My Lord.” Someone stood outside the tent requesting a presence. Yun Shang was startled as she was lying on the bed. Fortunately, she just only recently dozed off and hadn't taken off her clothes. So, she jumped out of bed and stretched to where her shoes had been placed. But before she could get them, she heard Prince Jing speak, ”You are tired from the long journey. You must rest now. As there are men in every corner of the camp, it is not convenient for you to stay in other tents. Spend the night here. I have ordered that no one will come and disturb you.”

It seemed that Prince Jing could read her mind even with a screen between them. Yun Shang was at a loss at his thoughtfulness and flushed. She uttered a gentle ”yes, ” but still went out after putting on her shoes.

Prince Jing could not help curl his lips at the sight of the drowsy Yun Shang. He smiled as he spoke, ”Soon it will be time for supper. Our food is limited. So, please make the best of it.”

Yun Shang returned his smile and said, ”Uncle, please don't worry for me. As this is the border area and it is far from the inland, such little hardship is within my expectation.”

Then she recalled the question that had come to her mind earlier, and continued, ”Uncle, I have noticed that our camp is flanked by two mountains. This would be to our disadvantage if the Yelang army launches a surprise attack against us. We could even suffer tremendous losses if they do something as simple as throw stones and rocks at us from the mountain.”

Yun Shang spoke as if she knew a lot about military tactics. This, of course, had come to Prince Jing's attention. He walked nearer to the table and pointed at the map. He said to Yun Shang, ”Come and have a look.”

Yun Shang walked nearer and studied the map carefully. The map were circled with many drawings, which confused Yun Shang. To give Yun Shang a clue, Prince Jing pointed at one of the circles on the map and said, ”This is where we are, and this is Yelang's camp.”

Yun Shang bent forward to get a closer look of the densely dotted markings and curves. Prince Jing watched her in silence. At last, he heard Yun Shang speak, ”I know.”

”Oh? What do you know?” Prince Jing asked, raising his eyebrows slightly.

Yun Shang pointed at a vast flatland far from the circles and said, ”This is the country of Yelang, which is typically flat. I think Yelang soldiers must be comfortable while fighting in flat areas, and there is a greater chance for them to win in flatlands. However, they would have a disadvantage if the war takes place in mountainous areas. There are only two mountains around us. Yelang soldiers would never think of launching an attack from on top of the mountain. But we can.”

Prince Jing felt delighted that Yun Shang could get to this point without his help. He said with a nod, ”I have sent soldiers to study the land. The two mountains are shrouded in heavy fog. No one can see beyond five steps once in the thick forest. I don't think Qingsu would take such a risk.”

Yun Shang understood the situation after hearing Prince Jing's explanation. In terms of military strategy, she was, of course, no match for the Prince who was an experienced general after having fought in many battles. However, she knew what had happened in her previous life. That was her only advantage. Qingsu was by no means a weak opponent in the previous life. Even the Prince had suffered defeats while fighting him. Yun Shang lowered her head as she tried to figure out how could she warn the Prince about this in a way that would not arouse his suspicion.

”How I wish to know what Qingsu behaved during a battle.” Yun Shang murmured, as if speaking to herself.

Prince Jing's eyes swept across Yun Shang swiftly. ”He is a rushed man. Aggressive. But that is not all. He is also treacherous and good at trickery.”

Yun Shang tried to recall something useful about this battle from her previous life. She had barely finished her wedding before the battle started. Mo Jingran began to reveal his nature as a playboy shortly after the death of Hua Jing's husband. He was involved in romantic affairs wherever he went, and even committed adultery with Hua Jing. She was so upset with Mo Jingran's unfaithfulness that Yun Shang had shut herself in her room. Her focus had been on finding methods to regain Mo Jingran's love. So, Yun Shang had paid no attention to anything else, including Prince Jing's battle expedition.

However, amidst the blur in her mind, she vaguely remembered something from the time she had gone to visit the Empress. Hua Jing had been crying at the Empress's Palace and airing her grievances to the Empress. She said she was a poor woman and should not have had to marry a general who was destined to die on the battlefield. She also mentioned Prince Jing, who had been trapped by Qingsu on a mountain after the Yelang Prince had set fire to the mountain. Prince Jing had managed a narrow escape from the fire but had been badly hurt.

The mountain... Yun Shang took a closer look at the map, and was quite sure that there were no other mountains within a hundred li* radius.

(*TN: li, also known as the Chinese mile, is a traditional Chinese unit of distance. One li is usually about a third as long as the English mile.)