Legend of the Female General

Chapter 261: Grand Finale (1)

The Qingming Festival was approaching, and it had been raining for days. The rain in the capital washed the ground clean, leaving lush greenery and vibrant life everywhere.

More than a month had passed since the Great Wei soldiers marched out of the capital.

Near Nine Rivers lay an endless expanse of desert.

“Lord He,” a young deputy general entered the tent and addressed the female official sitting on the ground, drawing a map. “Your order to reduce the number of cooking stoves in the camps has been relayed.”

He Yan smiled. “Thank you.”

The deputy general looked at the woman before him, feeling a mix of emotions. The Pacify Yue Army, which had once followed the Flying Goose General, had been reluctant when they learned that their commander was a young woman. It wasn’t that they were overly critical—it was just that after serving under the Great Wei’s Flying Goose General, they couldn’t help but compare other commanders to him. As a woman, He Yan’s courage to step onto the battlefield was admirable. However, she had never led troops into battle alone, and her skills remained untested. Even though she had achieved victories in Rundu and Jiyang, the Right Army Commander had been overseeing operations at the time.

Now, she was on her own.

Warfare was different from simple martial contests. Emperor Zhaokang’s decision might have been influenced by the Right Army Commander, but within the Pacify Yue Army, there was little genuine respect for her.

In the past month, they had only recently arrived near Nine Rivers. Nine Rivers was originally a city in the desert, now occupied by the Wutuo People. Instead of launching an immediate attack, He Yan had set up camp near Nine Rivers. After several days, the soldiers had begun to grumble.

But the deputy general knew the truth was not as it seemed.

He had served in the Pacify Yue Army before. Although he had never interacted closely with the former Flying Goose General, he knew that general was bold and decisive. The woman before him, while not yet displaying the same ferocity, was more rational and composed.

The location of the camp was perfectly chosen—a position that allowed for both offense and defense. Situated at a strategic point, it was easy to adjust or retreat if needed. The deputy general found it strange. He had inquired and learned that this was He Yan’s first time in Nine Rivers, yet she seemed intimately familiar with the terrain and had extensive experience surviving in the desert.

Of course, he had no way of knowing that He Yan was the former “Flying Goose General,” who had first fought the Western Qiang with the Pacify Yue Army in Mo County. Mo County was not far from Nine Rivers, and their terrains were similar.

“My lord,” the deputy general’s gaze fell on the long scroll before He Yan. “Are you drawing a map?”

“The Wutuo People have abundant troops and have been planning this for a long time. Although the Pacify Yue Army trains daily, it has been years since they last saw battle. Moreover, after the heavy losses in the Battle of Huayuan, our forces are outnumbered. I cannot recklessly attack and disregard the lives of these soldiers. Before that, we must know ourselves and our enemy—only then can we fight a hundred battles without defeat.”

Every day, she sent Shitou, Wang Ba, and a few others to scout around the outskirts of Nine Rivers, keeping their distance. Once they had mapped out the nearby terrain, she ventured deeper herself. After several days, she finally completed a detailed map. With this map, the Pacify Yue Army, though outnumbered by the Wutuo People, could maximize its strength.However... He Yan sighed inwardly. She had long known that the Wutuo People, having recuperated for many years, must have abundant military supplies. But it wasn't until she actually arrived at Nine Rivers that she realized the Wutuo forces were even more formidable than she had imagined. If it were only Nine Rivers like this, it might be manageable, but if the other three regions were similarly strong, this war for Great Wei would truly be difficult to fight.

For so many years, Emperor Wenxuan had emphasized civil affairs over military matters, causing Great Wei's military strength to stagnate, while the Wutuo People seized the initiative. It seemed that whether it was Huayuan, Rundu, or even Jiyang before, they were all just decoys. What the Wutuo People had displayed were not their true forces; their aim was to lull us into lowering our guard.

Indeed, if not for this, how could those four cities have fallen so quickly?

"Sir, while rushing to complete the maps, please also take care of your health," the deputy general thought for a moment and finally reminded her. "These past few days, you have slept very little..."

"It's fine, I know my limits," He Yan replied without looking up.

Seeing her like this, the deputy general could say no more and bowed before withdrawing.

After he left, someone called from outside, "Sir He."

He Yan: "Come in."

Entering were Jiang Jiao and Shitou.

Like the other soldiers outside, they addressed He Yan as "Sir He" since she had not yet been officially appointed as a general. But privately, they still preferred to call her "Brother He."

Both of them were meticulous and steady in their work. In the current Pacify Yue Army, the elite troops from before had been squandered by He Rufei, leaving few capable individuals. For important matters, He Yan entrusted them to Shitou and the others.

She looked up at the two approaching and asked, "Have you detected any movements from the Wutuo People?"

Jiang Jiao replied, "At night, a squad of Wutuo People left the city to scout, but they did not approach our camp. They only surveyed the vicinity before leaving. As per Brother He's instructions, we did not pursue them. However, there has been no further movement these past two days." He asked, "Brother He, should we continue waiting?"

"Wait," He Yan said firmly. "We will not take the initiative to attack the city. Let them come after us."

"Lure the enemy?" Jiang Jiao was taken aback. "But if they truly launch an offensive against us, wouldn't we be at a disadvantage? After all, the Wutuo forces currently outnumber ours."

"Don't worry," He Yan smiled. "The Wutuo People are cunning and suspicious. They would never deploy all their troops out of the city. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to camp here safely for so many days. Sending scouts at night to survey the situation is merely their attempt to gauge our strength."

He Yan stood up and walked to the wooden tray in the tent. The tray was filled with sand piled into small mounds, with grains of rice marking positions nearby. She picked up a branch beside it and pointed for the two to see: "Moreover, the location of our camp is such that retreating would pass through a narrow gorge. The Wutuo People fear we might have set ambushes along the retreat route, so of course they dare not act rashly."

"I have fought the Wutuo People in Jiyang and Rundu before. If Maka and Huyate's men reported back to the Wutu Kingdom, the Wutuo commander at Nine Rivers should have heard my name. But he cannot be certain whether I am truly leading the troops. He looks down on me, yet because of what happened in Rundu and Jiyang, he dares not underestimate me. What do you think he will do?"

"What will he do?" Jiang Jiao asked, puzzled."He will find a way to prove I'm incompetent, and once he has evidence, he'll look down on me with reason and justification." He Yan smiled. "Though I don't quite understand why Wutuo generals are always like this, since they want to see a woman who is all reputation but can't actually lead troops, I'll just show them what they want to see."

"So," Shitou, who had been silent, suddenly brightened, "those army stoves..."

"We've been camped here for several days without taking any action. The Wutuo people will suspect we have a trick up our sleeves, which is why they sent troops out at night to scout. If I were a Wutuo, seeing the number of army stoves decrease day by day, I would certainly think that because the other side is led by a woman, the soldiers beneath her are dissatisfied and, fearing the mighty Wutuo army of Nine Rivers, many have deserted. This would breed overconfidence."

"Once they let their guard down and advance deep into our territory, we can set up an ambush."

Jiang Jiao was first excited, then seemed to think of something and hesitantly spoke up, "But Brother He, didn't you say the Wutuo people are cunning and suspicious, and would never send all their troops out of the city..."

"Exactly," He Yan looked at him. "So the troops they send out will likely only be a portion. What we need to annihilate is just that portion. If they truly dared to launch a full-scale attack, we would actually be at a disadvantage."

"Haven't you thought about wiping them out completely?" Shitou asked, somewhat puzzled.

He Yan patted his shoulder. "You haven't been on a real battlefield, so you don't know that real wars aren't won overnight. The Wutuo people far surpass us in terms of military strength. We shouldn't attack their strengths with our weaknesses. I never intended to confront them head-on. Luring them in and annihilating a portion of their forces is enough to damage their morale. After that, we can take our time and plan further."

"To win a war, you must have patience and composure to see it through to the end." He Yan smiled faintly. "This is only the beginning."

Jiang Jiao and Shitou looked at the woman in armor before them. Back in Liangzhou Guard, they already knew she was exceptionally skilled and brilliant in strategy. But now, standing here, leading troops, calmly laying out her plans, they were slowly coming to truly understand her capabilities.

"Brother He," Jiang Jiao joked, "you've only fought one more battle than us in Jiyang, yet you seem so experienced."

"That's different." The woman's lips curved slightly. "I was born to wage war."

Outside, the wind picked up, scattering yellow sand across the desert. The banners fluttered, making the desolation even more pronounced.

Shitou murmured, "Ji County isn't far from here. I wonder how General Yan is doing over there?"

"Ji County..." He Yan's gaze grew heavy.

It was said the plague there had already spread.

...

Outside the city walls, in the fields by the river, piles upon piles of corpses lay stacked.

A group of soldiers were digging pits—deep holes that, upon a glance, were filled with bodies wrapped in white cloth, already emitting the foul stench of decay. At first glance, it looked like a living hell.

There were makeshift sheds hastily built with straw, with coarse cloth spread on the ground. Dozens of people lay there, barely alive, their bodies showing signs of festering wounds. A young man was nearby, brewing medicine, stirring herbs in a giant vat with a large iron ladle.He was not particularly robust, and stirring the medicinal herbs in this enormous vat was already quite strenuous. Before long, sweat beaded on his forehead, yet from start to finish, he showed no intention of slacking off. His pristine white robe had long been stained with mud and blood, a far cry from its usual elegance. The hands that had always held a folding fan now spent their days either grasping silver needles for treatment or holding life-saving medicine bowls.

The plague in Ji County was more severe than anticipated.

After the Wutuo People occupied Ji County, they carried out large-scale massacres of civilians and abducted women in the city. Countless corpses were carelessly dumped by the riverbank. With spring in full swing, a plague soon broke out. The Wutuo People then drove all the surviving Great Wei citizens out of the city, leaving them to fend for themselves. When Lin Shuanghe and Yan He arrived in Ji County, the fields outside the city were littered with piles of corpses as high as mountains.

Lin Shuanghe considered himself a physician accustomed to life and death, yet upon first arriving here, he could not help but be shocked by the sheer devastation.

Yan He’s troops were needed to deal with the Wutuo People, and there were few military doctors in the area. As Lin Qingtan’s grandson, everyone advised Lin Shuanghe not to personally attend to these patients, fearing he might contract the plague… However, Lin Shuanghe did not heed these well-meaning suggestions. If he were afraid of death, he would never have chosen to come here in the first place.

The deceased civilians could not be buried on the spot and had to be cremated. Their remains were then interred in deep pits—the best possible solution under the circumstances. Even so, the cries and lamentations of surviving family members could be heard every day.

He ladled the brewed medicinal soup into chipped bowls, setting them out one by one to cool. Only when they were slightly cooler did he pick them up and carry them into the makeshift shelters to feed the patients.

He had once been a rather fastidious young master, with a touch of vanity. Even when treating female patients in Shuojing City, he would smile more brightly at those who were charming or elegantly dressed. But now, despite the foul odors and grimy, disfigured appearances of the patients here, he showed not a hint of disdain.

The patient Lin Shuanghe helped sit up was a woman, likely still young, though rather plain in appearance and even somewhat plump. Lin Shuanghe scooped a spoonful of medicinal soup and brought it to her lips. She drank it carefully, her cheeks flushing slightly as she gazed at the gentle and handsome young man before her, as if even her illness had lessened somewhat.

"Doctor Lin, I can manage on my own," she whispered.

"That won’t do," Lin Shuanghe said seriously. "How could I let a lovely lady drink medicine by herself? I am, after all, a gentleman who cherishes beauty."

The patients in the shelter laughed kindly at his words.

Doctor Lin was not only good-looking but also had a pleasant temperament. Unlike the stern and fierce general who always wore a scowl, he was always smiling. He even joked with everyone, chatting about all sorts of things from near and far. Even though none of them were certain they would see tomorrow’s dawn, even in such tense and sorrowful times, his attitude never changed. With him around, the atmosphere lightened considerably, as if nothing were amiss, as if waking up one day would restore Ji County to its former self and all problems would be effortlessly resolved.

After feeding medicine to all the patients in the shelter, Lin Shuanghe urged them to rest well before gathering all the bowls and leaving.He rinsed the bowl he had just used for medicine with boiling water before finally stopping, rubbing his shoulders. At last, he had a chance to examine himself. However, upon seeing the stains scattered all over his clothes, he stared blankly for a moment and simply gave up.

The truth was, all the white robes he had brought had been cut into bandages for the wounded patients. Now, this was his last piece of clothing, with no other white garments left to change into.

Lin Shuanghe walked toward the other side.

The troops Yan He had brought had clashed with the Wutuo People several times, with victories and defeats on both sides. The terrain outside Ji County was complex, and with the Wutuo People inside the city, it was easy to defend but difficult to attack, causing the battle to reach a stalemate. Fortunately, Yan He himself seemed unaffected by this, looking quite spirited, and morale remained high. Moreover, the plague was now somewhat under control, and panic had not continued to spread. Although the battle was not easy to win anytime soon, things were gradually moving in a positive direction.

The surprise attack last night resulted in a minor victory for Great Wei. Many new injuries were added, and some soldiers had also died in battle. The fallen soldiers were buried on the spot, while Lin Shuanghe instructed the other military doctors to treat the wounded soldiers first, taking on the most dangerous plague patients himself.

At that moment, by the river in front of the tent, some lightly wounded soldiers were sitting and talking, while Yan He sat on the ground without any regard for appearances, gulping down water.

Lin Shuanghe dragged his weary steps over and spread his hands in front of Yan He.

Yan He looked at him in confusion and swatted his hand away. "What do you want?"

"General Yan," Lin Shuanghe licked his lips, "I’ve been busy treating patients until now, and you didn’t even leave me a bowl of wild vegetable soup. I’m starving to death. At least give me something to eat."

Yan He shot him a disdainful glance, pulled a dry biscuit from his pocket, and tossed it into his hands. "Eat, eat. It won’t choke you to death."

If it were any other day, Lin Shuanghe would have surely argued back, but today he truly had no energy left and was starving. So, he plopped down beside Yan He and took a big bite.

The dry biscuit was coarse and scratchy to swallow, and its taste was far from delicious. Lin Shuanghe indeed choked on it. Yan He gave him a look of disdain and handed him his water flask. "Were you a starving ghost in your past life?"

Lin Shuanghe quickly took the flask and gulped down a large mouthful, swallowing the dry biscuit before replying, "Brother, I haven’t eaten all day today. Even prisoners get more than this. Not only do you show no sympathy, but you also scold me. Are you even human?"

Yan He looked at the disheveled man before him and instinctively wanted to make a sarcastic remark. But when he saw the stains covering his clothes, he swallowed the mockery on the tip of his tongue.

Forget it. To be honest, Lin Shuanghe’s actions during this trip had truly surprised him. Yan He had originally thought that although Lin Shuanghe had been to Liangzhou Guard before, Liangzhou Guard wasn’t at war, and he had at least stayed in the guard station, shielded from the hardships of the world. Once they arrived in Ji County, this pampered young master would surely cry and complain. Unexpectedly, from the beginning until now, Lin Shuanghe hadn’t uttered a single complaint.

Though he wasn’t at the front lines, fighting and bleeding alongside those Wutuo People, caring for the wounded soldiers and comforting the civilians terrified by the plague was no easy task.

And it was dangerous.

Yan He snorted but said nothing in response.Lin Shuanghe took a few more bites of the dry pancake and drank some water. With something in his stomach, he felt less miserable and perked up again. He looked at Yan He and said, "Yan Nanguang, I've suffered quite a bit here. When we return to Shuojing, you must report my contributions truthfully to His Majesty. At the very least, I should be rewarded with an official position. I’ve never endured such hardship in my life. What kind of pancake is this? In the past, I wouldn’t even feed it to my dog."

Once revived, the man began to ramble. Yan He sneered, "No one forced you to eat it. Besides, I haven’t seen you suffer much. Even in times like these, you still find the mood to joke and flirt with women. Lin Shuanghe, your habit of chasing after flowers and grass wherever you go is truly incurable."

"Don’t act so righteous," Lin Shuanghe retorted. "You have a wife and child, while I’m still alone. How am I supposed to know which girl is my destined one? Naturally, I have to try them all. You’ve already tied yourself to one tree early on, yet you’re jealous of others picking flowers and sniffing grass. Are you insane?"

Just as Yan He was about to argue, a passing soldier nearby exclaimed in surprise, "General Yan, you have a child?"

Yan He glared at Lin Shuanghe, who coughed lightly. The news of Xia Chengxiu’s pregnancy had not yet been widely announced, but now that it had been overheard, there was no reason to deny it. Yan He replied, "Not yet born. It’s still in my wife’s womb."

The soldier, who appeared to be in his thirties with a dark, honest face, sat down and scratched his head. "That’s wonderful. When you return after this battle, you’ll be able to see your child. Just like me back in the day."

"You?" Yan He asked, "You have children?"

"Nonsense," Lin Shuanghe couldn’t help but interject. "Do you think you’re the only one in the world who can become a father?"

The soldier grinned and said, "Yes, I have two. The older one is three, and the younger one just turned a month old. I had planned to spend more time with my wife when I returned this time, but then the Wutuo People came... I promised my wife that after the war, when I get my pay, I’ll have a silver necklace made for my little son. And my eldest daughter—when I left, she cried so hard it broke my heart..."

Yan He was never an approachable person. Born into nobility and proud by nature, he always carried an air of arrogance even when interacting with his subordinates. But today, because he and the soldier shared the identity of "father," he spoke more than usual.

He asked, "Is your daughter very close to you? You’re stationed at the camp most of the time and don’t go home often, right? How can she still be affectionate toward you?"

Lin Shuanghe was puzzled. "Are you seeking advice from someone with experience for the troubles you might face in the future?"

Yan He snapped, "Shut up." Then he turned eagerly to the soldier. "Tell me quickly."

"Well... I don’t really know," the soldier said, a bit confused. "I do go home rarely, but every time I return, I remember to bring her favorite malt candy and buy her pretty fabric so my wife can make her new clothes. General Yan, don’t worry. They say daughters are always close to their fathers. If the general’s wife gives birth to a daughter, the young miss will surely be very fond of you."

Yan He was overjoyed by his words, but then his expression turned serious. "What if it’s a son?""Isn't that even better?" the man said. "Then the general can keep the young master by his side. Father and son fighting together, no need to be separated."

Yan He suddenly understood and looked at the man before him. "I didn't expect you, as a father, to have some cleverness in you."

Lin Shuanghe stood to the side, speechless at what he was hearing.

The man, praised by his superior, chuckled sheepishly for a while before suddenly falling silent again. After a moment, he sighed. "My little daughter clung to my leg when I left. I know she was afraid I'd die on the battlefield. If," he gazed into the distant sky, "I can return alive, I'll definitely buy her the sugar cakes she loves most."

Yan He was stunned for a moment before also turning his gaze toward the far horizon.

The sky was dyed crimson by the sunset, the lingering sun like blood, while the plains lay gentle and silent.

"Don't worry," he said, "she will surely taste the sweet cakes you bought."

(End of Chapter)