The Fallen Medicine Woman: The Daily Life of Chun Nuan-Chapter 397 - 222_2

"He’s a good general."

"My grandfather once served under Old General Xia, saying General Xia governed his troops with strict discipline and fought with courage, earning the soldiers’ admiration. The current General Xia is the grandson of the oldest general, having grown up in the military camp..."

We pieced together the information quickly: General Xia Guangcheng is a trustworthy person.

So...

You look at me, I look at you.

"Brothers, rather than waiting to die, why not take a chance." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

"You mean..."

No need for much explanation; everyone understands this meaning.

"But, what if..."

"Stone, I consider you my brother. Can I trust you?"

"Brother Zhuzi, you’ve always been my brother."

"Alright, here’s the plan: I’ll take on this task. If successful, surviving is naturally a good thing. If I fail, I ask you to look after my family, is that okay?"

"Brother Zhuzi, we’re brothers—fighting tigers requires brothers, going to war requires fathers and sons. If we act, we act together; if we die, we die together."

"Brother, no need. There’s no need for so many people to be dragged into this; one of us is enough."

"Brother Zhuzi, our brothers have never been divided into ranks. Since this concerns survival, perhaps it could even earn us merit, let’s do it together, sharing fortune and hardship."

"Right, let’s do it together."

A few brothers clenched their fists and decided to take a chance.

"Then let’s discuss how to do it, surviving is the best choice."

"How about this..."

Three humble men make one wise man; everyone gathered together and, with discussion, finally settled on an idea.

"Little Fish, you know a few words; write a note and slip it outside the city gate."

"What if they don’t see it?"

"Don’t worry; since they’ve cast the bait, they’re surely waiting for the fish to bite. They’ll definitely see it."

"Alright, I’ll write."

Little Fish wrote down the time and our plan, slipping it through the door seam when on duty checking the city gate.

"How is it?"

Outside the city gate, Xia Guangcheng asked.

"General, our people found this outside the city gate."

A small piece of paper, with time and names written on it.

"These people, remember them well. Reward them greatly when the time comes," Xia Guangcheng said, "Give orders, always be prepared."

Guarding the city in the middle of the night, the men were exhausted and hungry, dozing off.

"There’s a fire, there’s a fire."

Suddenly a sharp scream, someone saw raging flames erupting in their resting camp, suddenly waking everyone, who rushed to extinguish the fire.

"Stone, Brother Zhuzi, it’s our turn."

"Mm, let’s go."

Instead of firefighting, they headed towards the city gate.

With joint effort, the city gate, closed for seven days, was pushed open.

Under the moonlight, seeing thick smoke rising in the city, Xia Guangcheng issued the order: Enter the city!

Some vice generals didn’t understand the reason, wondering how to enter with the city gate tightly shut?

As a result, upon reaching the city gate, it was already open.

"General Xia... General Xia..."

Is this a rebellion? Stone and Brother Zhuzi were still quite uneasy.

"Vice General Hu, take these young lads to rest; offer them something good to eat."

Really?

"You’re people who have achieved great merit, rest assured, the general has long ordered to reward you greatly, and will also take good care of your families."

"What about the people in the city..."

"The general has ordered, upon entering the city, do not disturb the civilians, no inappropriate acts, soldiers who surrender are not to be killed, only stubborn ones. Grain will be distributed tomorrow morning, each household may purchase five pounds of grain at a fair price based on household registration..."

So, have they really secured a way for the people’s survival?

Is the grain real?

"You folks must be starving, come with me and have something to eat."

Starving, so dizzy, seeing stars, ears ringing.

Seeing the food, they couldn’t believe their eyes.

Not only was there rice, but also meat!

"This is specially prepared for you by the general, eat to your heart’s content; there’ll be more rewards later."

"Really, won’t this be executioner’s food?"

"What are you thinking? The general isn’t a blood-thirsty maniac; if everyone who does good is killed, who would ever surrender?"

Indeed.

Then...

"Eat, even if we die, we should be well-fed on the way, not a hungry ghost!"

The brothers then let loose and ate heartily.

Meanwhile, General Xia quickly took down Changzhou without much effort.

"Reporting to General, the army transporting grain has arrived at the city gate."

"Deliver the order, all city residents are to purchase grain at a fair price at the city gate by presenting household registration—five pounds per household per day, no price raise or reselling allowed; violators will have their purchase rights revoked."

"Yes."