Legend of the Female General

Chapter 175: Qiluo

“The jade-like figure treads the snow and departs gracefully, the flying swan startles the clouds and soars freely.” The black-clad figure tilted his head, looking at him, and said, “I thought everyone in the world knew my name.”

Flying Goose General? He Rufei?

Huyate was shocked to the core and blurted out, “Impossible!”

“Why impossible?” The eyes behind the mask stared at him, the corners of the mouth slightly upturned, as if filled with endless mockery. “What is impossible?”

Huyate was the bravest general of the Wutu Kingdom, yet at this moment, he instinctively took a step back, shouting almost frantically, “Attack! Kill this man, and the king will reward you handsomely!”

Countless arrows and figures charged forward, but the masked man effortlessly dodged every blade and arrow aimed at him. He was like a light swan gliding through the snow, spreading its wings as if it owned the world, with nothing able to confine him. His sword was even more unstoppable, dancing and swirling in the night, seemingly capable of slicing through even the rain.

Huyate had to believe one thing: this truly was Flying Goose General He Rufei. In all the world, no one but He Rufei could wield a sword with such exquisite skill. Huyate had never crossed blades with He Rufei, but he had heard from defeated Western Qiang soldiers that He Rufei’s Qinglang Sword could cut through all obstacles, possible or impossible.

But why would He Rufei appear here? He clearly… couldn’t possibly be here!

Could this be another scheme of the Great Wei people? Had He Rufei deceived them? These cunning, detestable Great Wei people!

“I will kill him!” Huyate growled with hatred, shouting to those around him, “Bring me my bow and arrows!”

He would personally shoot down this still-flying great bird. He wanted to watch this flying swan plummet from the sky, crash to the ground, and finally be trampled into the mud by him.

The bow and arrows were handed to him, and he aimed at the black-clad figure surrounded and fighting amidst the Wutu soldiers. Unable to get a clear shot, he roared, “Fools, all of you, step back a little!”

As soon as the words left his mouth, the arrow in his hand was released, only to see several more arrows shoot out from deep within the bushes, precisely intercepting his arrow in mid-air.

“There are accomplices! Capture them!”

At that moment, another man wearing a demon mask leaped out from the bushes. With a loud laugh, he tossed something resembling a wooden barrel toward the black-clad figure.

The sword-wielding black-clad figure caught the barrel mid-air, just as the Wutu soldiers’ arrows suddenly arrived. The “Flying Goose General” moved with such speed it was hard to follow, using the barrel as a shield before him, as if it were an iron shield.

The arrows struck the barrel he used as a shield, and something like water began to flow out. The moment Huyate saw this, he inwardly cried out in alarm, shouting, “Stop! Everyone, stop!”

But even though the archers immediately ceased firing, the arrows already released could not be recalled. In the blink of an eye, the “Flying Goose General’s” barrel had been riddled with holes like a sieve, and the liquid inside sprayed out, drenching the entire grain and fodder camp. Immediately after, a clear, sharp whistle sounded from his lips. From the bushes and the dark surroundings, dozens, even hundreds, of arrows shot out, each carrying fire. They landed on the grain and fodder piles soaked with grease oil, and with a “boom,” flames soared into the sky.

Once familiar, twice at ease. Having set fire to a place not long ago in Jiyang, He Yan was now exceptionally adept at this task.Huyate was so enraged that he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood, only ordering his men to put out the fires and kill the enemy. But this was not Jiyang, and rivers were not everywhere. The campsite was neither too far nor too close to the river.

He Yan felt somewhat relieved. This grease oil was the last of the grease oil used in Rundu to make fireworks and firearms. Although it rained tonight, the rain was light, but the wind was strong. As long as the wind blew in the right direction, the fire would surely spread, endangering all the tents in the camp.

"Now is the time!" He Yan shouted loudly. "Don't retreat, fight!"

The sounds of battle from all directions echoed amidst the flames. Huyate looked around—the Great Wei soldiers wearing demon masks charging from all sides had already unsettled the Wutuo soldiers, shaking their morale. Now, with the provisions burned, some were busy fetching water to put out the fires. Not only were their formations disrupted, but even their pace of killing the Great Wei soldiers had been thrown into chaos. Huyate was so furious he nearly vomited blood.

All of this was because of He Rufei!

He Rufei... He scanned the surroundings but saw no sign of He Rufei. His heart sank, and he roared angrily, "Capture He Rufei for me! I want to personally chop off his head!"

From inside the tents came the low sobbing of women. Suddenly, the tent flap was lifted, revealing two faces that looked like demons.

The women let out a short gasp of "Ah!" Before they could speak, one of the men covered their mouths. He removed his mask, revealing a fierce, scarred face that did not resemble a Wutuo person. Impatiently, he said, "We are from Great Wei, here to rescue you. Put on your clothes and leave quickly."

The women in the tent were all disheveled, with two already lying on the ground, lifeless. Jiang Jiao sighed inwardly as he looked at them. When they arrived, Huyate had been inside committing unspeakable atrocities against the female captives from Rundu. He Yan couldn't delay the mission of burning the provisions, so he left, but he never forgot about them. Once the provisions were set ablaze, he sent the two of them to check on the women.

At first, they thought He Yan was too soft-hearted, but now, seeing the tragic corpses in the camp, even a bandit like Wang Ba couldn't bear it. He clenched his fists and silently cursed the Wutuo people as worse than beasts.

Several women silently followed Wang Ba and the others out of the tent. The Wutuo soldiers were all focused on the provisions, and no one noticed them. Jiang Jiao asked, "Can Brother He hold out alone for so long?"

Wang Ba sneered, "He's much better at playing the hero than you or me. He went to rescue the other captives."

The tents where the Great Wei captives were held were small and dilapidated, barely able to shield them from wind and rain. Dozens of women huddled together, barely clothed, each with a look of despair. The tent was filled with the stench of blood and decay, making one nauseous. Every time the Wutuo people abused these women, the dead were thrown into the river, while the survivors, often covered in wounds, were tossed back, only to endure days of unbearable suffering until death.

When someone suddenly came to rescue them, the women could hardly believe their eyes.

"Let's go," He Yan said. "I'll take you out."

The woman at the front trembled as she asked, "Brave warrior, what is your name... Are you... the Flying Goose General?"The masked man did not move. After a moment, he removed his mask, revealing the handsome and clear-cut face of a youth. His voice was calm: "No, I am He Yan, the Wu Anlang personally appointed by His Majesty."

...

The rhythm of the Wutuo soldiers was completely disrupted. However, those masked men from Great Wei did not linger in the fight. Seeing that the provisions were nearly burned, they turned and charged toward the city gate. Above the gate, ropes had already been lowered, and countless archers lay in ambush on the battlements. Whenever Wutuo soldiers approached them, they would use the "arrows" borrowed from the Wutuo people a few days earlier to shoot them down.

The Wutuo soldiers found it difficult to advance, while those ghost-like masked men managed to retreat unscathed.

"They took the captives!" someone shouted.

Huyate flew into a rage: "A bunch of useless fools! You can't even keep an eye on women!"

The Wutuo soldiers felt aggrieved as well. Who could have imagined that, at such a critical moment of life and death, someone would still care about those worthless women? They were nothing more than burdensome trophies captured by the enemy. If this had happened in Wutuo, even if they were rescued, they would be killed—women defiled by the enemy had no right to live in this world.

The captured women would rather have died in the enemy camp. How could anyone have thought that someone would go to such lengths to rescue these women?

A trusted aide hesitantly spoke up: "I heard that Flying Goose General He Rufei never harms women. If anyone abducts women from Great Wei, as long as he is present, he will always rescue them..."

Huyate kicked him back, "Nonsense! I told you, how could He Rufei possibly come to Rundu!"

The smell of burning provisions wafted across the plains. From time to time, Wutuo soldiers carried buckets of water to douse the flames, but the wind was strong and the fire fierce—their efforts were in vain. Huyate gazed toward the direction of Rundu's battlements in the distance. Countless archers lay in ambush on high ground, occasionally shooting flaming arrows in their direction as if in warning.

His face darkened, and he nearly gritted his teeth to dust: "Rundu... I will surely trample Rundu flat! I will leave no bones of the old or young in Rundu!"

...

He Yan was the last to ascend the battlements.

She had to protect the women, ensuring they climbed the ropes back first. While lingering near the city gate to fend off the Wutuo soldiers, she finally seized the opportunity to return to the city. Although the archers used arrows to drive back the Wutuo soldiers, she still sustained injuries.

Where there is war, there will be sacrifices. To have kept her life was already a blessing.

The women who had narrowly escaped from the enemy camp sat dazedly on the battlements. Only when the sound of the Wutuo horns faded into the distance did they snap back to reality. Slowly, they covered their faces with their hands and burst into loud, heart-wrenching sobs.

Behind the city gate, Rundu soldiers lay scattered across the ground, having already removed their masks. After a night of sudden assault, everything had been fraught with tension. Only now did it seem they truly understood what had just happened. Some wept, while others laughed, shouting triumphantly: "We burned their provisions! Those Wutuo people were beaten into fools by us, hahaha, we defeated the Wutuo people!"

To say they had defeated them was an exaggeration, of course, but this night raid was indeed a victory—a resounding one at that. The casualties among the Wutuo soldiers were still unknown, but of the five hundred elite soldiers He Yan had led, forty-six had sacrificed their lives, and two hundred seventy-three were wounded. For the people of Rundu, who had been defending the city for over a month, this was already the best possible outcome.

Li Kuang looked incredulously at the elite soldiers lying scattered on the ground and murmured, "They actually did it."When He Yan led these troops out, Li Kuang had actually not believed in their success. He had almost prepared himself for the scenario that He Yan and these few hundred men would not return alive—it was practically a suicide mission. As for burning the Wutuo People's provisions, Li Kuang also considered the possibility extremely slim.

Yet all these things he deemed impossible had now become reality. They had even brought back the captives taken by the Wutuo People outside the city.

A new hope suddenly ignited in Li Kuang's heart. All along, he had not believed that the troops in Rundu could stand against the Wutuo People. He had thought they could only defend the city gates and wait for reinforcements. But now, He Yan had shown him another possibility: what if the Wutuo People could no longer hold out? Without provisions, the Wutuo People would not last long; their advantage was already gone. Now they merely relied on numerical superiority, but numbers... Hadn't that young Wu Anlang, He Yan, already won two battles where he was outnumbered?

Thinking of this, Li Kuang looked excitedly at He Yan. He saw the young man leaning against the city wall, sitting, not yet having removed his mask, gazing at the rescued women who were embracing and weeping. Li Kuang could not see He Yan's expression, but he could see the smile at the corner of his mouth.

He was pleased.

For a moment, the scene before Li Kuang overlapped with one from the past. He still vaguely remembered fighting alongside He Rufei, who was then a deputy general. That person had also been like this, sitting quietly on the ground, watching the soldiers who were either crying or laughing, all the sharpness of the battlefield completely withdrawn, gentle beyond belief.

He really resembles He Rufei, Li Kuang thought silently to himself. More accurately, he resembles the He Rufei of the past, the He Rufei of those years.

"How are you?" Li Kuang walked over.

He Yan looked up at him, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "Fine, just a bit tired."

For an entire night, he and those elite soldiers had not rested. Li Kuang said, "Take a rest."

He Yan nodded, stood up, then remembered something and said to Li Kuang, "As for these rescued women, I must trouble Lord Li to have someone inquire whether they still have family in the city. If they do, please have their families come to take them home. If they have no family, please also arrange proper care for them."

Li Kuang frowned slightly but said nothing.

He Yan seemed to perceive what he was thinking and said calmly, "No matter what Lord Li may think, they are all people of Great Wei and citizens of Rundu. As the city's commander, you cannot stand idly by. The duty of those on the battlefield is simply to protect the people within every inch of the land, regardless of wealth or status, and regardless of what they have suffered."

She stared fixedly at Li Kuang, seemingly insisting on an answer. Li Kuang paused, then said, "I understand."

He Yan nodded to him. "Thank you."

She then descended the city tower alone.

...

He Yan was staying in the residence arranged by Zhao Shiming. Now that she was Wu Anlang, she could use the privilege of the title to have a room to herself.

She asked a servant in the residence for a basin of hot water and entered her room. The servant quickly brought the hot water. He Yan locked the door, removed her mask, and pulled off her clothes.Her back, shoulders, and arms were all wounded—some from glancing blade cuts, others from arrows. Last night, she had both taken the lead in defense and burned the Wutuo People’s provisions. With hundreds of arrows flying, it was impossible to emerge unscathed. Given the circumstances, this was already the best outcome.

She soaked a cloth in hot water and gently wiped her wounds. The deepest cuts were on her back and shoulders, while the injury on her waist had mostly healed—thanks to Lin Shuanghe’s scar-removing and flesh-regenerating ointment.

When she came to Rundu this time, she had brought the remaining ointment with her. She had just used up the last of it on her shoulder and waist wounds, and the container was now completely empty.

After changing into clean clothes, she looked at herself in the mirror. The young man in the reflection was pale-faced. The mask and black clothing had their advantages—soldiers couldn’t see the bloodstains or wounds, nor could they clearly make out her face. She remained ever spirited, ever forward, ever the one to boost morale and steady the army’s heart.

He Yan gazed at her arm, where the sleeve was rolled halfway up, revealing a blade wound. However, the medicinal powder she had brought with her was already used up, and she was about to wrap it directly with a white cloth when someone knocked on the door. It was a woman’s voice: "Little He Lady."

He Yan replied, "Come in."

The one who entered was a young and beautiful woman, her face beaming with a smile. A small dimple on her left cheek added a touch of liveliness to her charm. She walked over and handed He Yan a round bottle, saying with a smile, "I saw you asking the servants for hot water when you came in earlier, so I guessed you might be injured. This is some leftover golden wound medicine that my lord usually uses. I brought it for you." Her gaze fell on the blade scar on He Yan’s arm, and she exclaimed, "Oh! Little He Lady, you really are injured?"

He Yan smiled faintly. "It’s just a minor wound. It’s nothing."

"That won’t do," the woman said, stepping forward with familiarity, though she seemed to remember the difference in their status and didn’t dare get too close. Standing to the side, she advised, "If minor wounds aren’t treated, they can turn into serious ones. My lord is like that—sometimes he gets injured on the battlefield and ignores it, but later it becomes an old wound, and it’s hard to heal properly."

He Yan looked at the woman’s youthful and lovely face, feeling a wave of nostalgia. She recognized her—this woman was Li Kuang’s most beloved concubine, named Qiluo. Back when He Yan and Li Kuang were dealing with the Western Qiang here, Qiluo had already become quite familiar with her. This woman was exceptionally clever and charming, skilled at winning Li Kuang’s favor. At the time, He Yan had thought to herself that if she were a man, she too would likely dote wholeheartedly on such a woman.

Back then, Qiluo was only sixteen, very young, with a round face. Three or four years had passed, and she had matured a bit, her childishness fading away. Her round face had become more oval-shaped, but the dimple on her left cheek and her sweet smile remained unchanged.

"Little He Lady, why are you looking at me like that?" Qiluo touched her own face, her eyes sparkling as she said brightly, "I’m pretty, and my lord dotes on me the most."

He Yan couldn’t help but laugh. Qiluo had loved boasting like this back then, and she still loved it now. This single sentence made He Yan feel as though she had returned to those days.

"What are you laughing at?" Qiluo asked. "Do you think I’m ugly?"

"No, no," He Yan waved her hand. "I was just reminded of some past memories."Back then, because Qiluo was born too lovely and clever, He Yan couldn't help but treat her like a younger sister from her own family. Although she had a biological younger sister, He Xinying, due to the complicated relationships within the He family, He Xinying was not close to her. At that time, seeing Qiluo's beauty and her gentle, clever nature, He Yan only felt it was a pity for Qiluo. A girl like her, if she were to marry, should find a young man of similar age and appearance. As for Li Kuang, it wasn't that He Yan looked down on this colleague, but Li Kuang's age was such that he could be Qiluo's father. He was stern and rough, not considerate, and she didn't know what Qiluo saw in him.

At that time, Qiluo rested her chin on her hand and giggled, saying to He Yan, "My family members are all servants, Deputy General He. Talented and handsome young men, how could they marry a servant as a wife? If I were to marry another servant, the children born would still be servants in the future. Besides, being a servant means living at the mercy of others. If you accidentally offend the master, you could lose your life. What's so good about that?"

"It's much better to follow the master. I have enough to eat and wear, and I only need to please the master alone, so I no longer have to fear being bullied by others. What you mentioned are all illusions. I just treat this as a job—being the master's concubine is much easier than the jobs you mentioned. Moreover, the master is straightforward and dislikes complications. Following him, I don't have to scheme or plot. It's very good."

"Deputy General He, you and the master are both people who protect the people of Great Wei. You are heroes. Being the master's concubine means I am a hero's woman. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. My life is much better now than before. I have no other wishes in this life. I just hope that ten years from now, I will still be the master's most beloved concubine. I hope that ten years from now, I won't have aged and lost my looks, and no other vixens will come to steal the master's affection and pity. If it can be like this, I will be very grateful to the Goddess of Mercy."

At that time, He Yan felt that this girl was quite perceptive. To each their own, and everyone has their own thoughts. As long as Qiluo felt happy and content with her life, that was enough.

Now, it's unclear about ten years, but after three years, it seems she is still Li Kuang's most beloved concubine, and he even brought her to Rundu.

She lowered her head and smiled, sprinkling the medicinal powder Qiluo brought onto the wound on her arm. Qiluo watched curiously and couldn't help but say, "Little He Lady, you don't look very old either. Why are you just like my master, not making a sound when applying medicine? Do you warriors who fight battles not feel pain?"

"It's not that we don't feel pain," He Yan said. "I think when your master applies medicine, it must hurt a lot. He just doesn't want to cry out in front of a lady."

Qiluo laughed. "Little He Lady, you speak so interestingly."

After applying the powder, He Yan returned the bottle to Qiluo and said, "Miss Qiluo, thank you for the wound medicine."

Qiluo took the bottle but didn't leave immediately. She just looked at He Yan and said, "Little He Lady, it's just a bit of wound medicine. No need to thank me. I should be the one saying thank you."

"For what?"

"For coming up with a brilliant plan last night to burn the Wutuo People's provisions, giving us a breath of relief. And for saving those women."She lowered her head and smiled helplessly. "I know about the women who were captured by the Wutuo People. If it weren't for you last night, they would never have made it back to Rundu alive. No one would have cared about their lives—even if the master himself had led the troops, he wouldn’t have bothered with their fate. But you’re different." She looked at He Yan, her eyes sparkling. "You brought them back, every single one of them. I used to wonder how someone so young could be granted an official title by His Majesty. I thought maybe you had just gotten lucky on the battlefield before."

"Now I don't think that anymore. You're different from them. You're a good person, a true hero."

(End of Chapter)