The wind howled, and the sun hung low in the sky.
Several long spears were thrust into the sand, their tips impaled on severed heads, blood mingling with the fading sunlight to create a ghastly sight.
Jiming Fort stood alone in the midst of the yellow sands, weathered and worn, like a silent sentinel.
The remaining thirty or so soldiers slumped against the walls, unwilling to move. The bodies of fallen comrades were piled nearby, and the walls bore the stains of the fierce battle that had previously taken place.
Most of the soldiers wore sorrowful expressions, their eyes filled with despair—a heavy atmosphere enveloped everyone.
Two more days had passed, and not only did the Qiang soldiers not attack, but they also withdrew half of their forces. The reason was simple: the eastern and western forts had been breached, and for the foreseeable future, Jiming Fort would have no reinforcements. Nearly a hundred cavalry were enough to trap the defenders inside!
The Qiang soldiers were not idle either; they frequently sent out scouts to provoke and insult the defenders, trying to force the Qian soldiers to act. Helpless, Wang Shuang could only keep the fort gates tightly shut and hold his ground.
Everyone understood that the Qiang aimed to starve them out.
What was even more disheartening was that there was little food left in Jiming Fort. After being besieged for five days, the rations were nearly exhausted. Now, each soldier was left with only half a flatbread and a bowl of water per day. Even a peasant woman wouldn't survive on such scanty rations, let alone soldiers who needed to fight.
Luo Yu leaned against a pile of sandbags, pondering how to address the current crisis. In his opinion, boosting the morale of the soldiers was the first step.
If the soldiers had lost their spirit, how could they talk about holding the fort to the end?
"Gurgle, gurgle~"
He heard Meng Hu's stomach growling beside him, and the robust man awkwardly smiled, "Brother Yu, I'm hungry again! If only there was something to eat."
Luo Yu felt helpless; he couldn't conjure up food out of thin air. Instead, he redirected the conversation:
"Tiger, why did you join the army? I remember you volunteered."
"Damn it! Don't get me started on that!"
Meng Hu replied indignantly:
"When they were enlisting, they tricked me, saying the food at the front was excellent, and there would be meat every day. Without a second thought, I packed my bags and came here—then ended up starving for three days at Jiming Fort! I got scammed bad!"
"Hahaha!"
The nearby new recruits laughed out loud at this. Everyone knew Meng Hu had a big appetite, but to be fooled by such a simple excuse was rather naive. Young Wu chimed in teasingly:
"Brother Tiger, if we really had meat every day, everyone would be scrambling to join the army! How could we have a chance?"
Meng Hu felt a bit embarrassed and scratched his head: "Brother Yu, then why did you join the army?"
Luo Yu's gaze flickered as he recalled his conversation with Madam Chang. He murmured softly:
"Why not wield the Wu hook and ride through the smoke of war to secure the realm?"
"What about sealed bags of wine and meat?"
His words were so quiet that Meng Hu could only catch part of it, looking confusedly at the bags behind him:
"They're sealed! Where would the wine and meat come from?"
"Hahaha!"
Luo Yu felt a dark cloud form over his head as laughter erupted around him.
Though Luo Yu had been decisive these past two days, appearing fierce in the eyes of others, he was still quite nice to the new recruits, and as they grew familiar with each other, the tension began to ease.
"Why are you all laughing when an enemy is at the gates?"
A cold voice suddenly rang out. Zhang Gui, flanked by a few of his cronies, stood in front of the group, looking threatening.
"May I ask what's the matter, Captain Zhang?"
Zhang Gui had made things difficult for Luo Yu repeatedly over the past few days, fully aware that he suspected Luo Yu had killed Wu Mazi and was deliberately looking for trouble.
"Of course, there's a matter."
Zhang Gui smirked mockingly, pointing at young Wu among the crowd:
"The Qiang soldiers are attacking, and this man is too afraid to fight. He acted like a coward, almost allowing the wall to be breached. Such a crime cannot go unpunished! Seize him!"
A few fierce soldiers rushed forward, pulling young Wu out of the crowd before he had a chance to resist.
Young Wu panicked instantly, rendered helpless, looking like a chick being dragged away.
"Captain Zhang, what are you doing?"
Luo Yu sprang to his feet. "It's natural for a new recruit to be scared on their first battlefield; why act like this?"
"By your reasoning, does that justify cowardice?"
Zhang Gui's cold voice cut through the air:
"Let me be clear: with the enemy before us, I will not allow anyone to be cowardly in the fort! Today I will execute this cowardly deserter as an example to the others!"
The corners of Zhang Gui's mouth curled up smugly, and Luo Yu understood—this was Zhang Gui's chance to retaliate against him!
Hearing about the impending execution, young Wu's face turned ashen with fright, and he began to tremble:
"Captain Zhang, please spare me! I promise I won't hesitate to fight them if they attack again! Please, just let me go!"
"Oh, so now you're regretting it? Why didn't you think of that sooner? Drag him to the gate and execute him on the spot!"
"No, no! Don't kill me!"
Young Wu, pale with fear, turned to Luo Yu:
"Brother Yu, help me! Save me!"
"Let him go!"
Luo Yu pushed through the crowd and pulled young Wu behind him:
"Captain Zhang, military regulations state that a new recruit's fear in battle can warrant punishment of no more than five strokes with a military baton! There has never been a rule saying he deserves to die!"
"Impudent! Are you trying to rebel?"
Zhang Gui's eyes widened in fury: "You're just a squad leader; how dare you dictate how to punish soldiers!"
Meng Hu and the other new recruits gathered tightly behind Luo Yu, anger flashing in their eyes. It was clear to everyone that Zhang Gui was deliberately making things difficult for young Wu and trying to slap Luo Yu in the face in the process.
The argument between the two escalated, and all the soldiers in the fort turned their curious and shocked gazes toward them.
It was the first time they had seen a squad leader openly argue with the vice leader. However, Luo Yu had recently gained notoriety in the fort, having racked up five Qiang heads as merit through his deeds in the previous battles. He was at the top of the military merit roll.
"Enough! What's all this noise about?"
Wang Shuang finally arrived: "In the face of a great enemy, how can you create such chaos?"
"Company Leader, you're here!"
Zhang Gui was the first to speak up, ready to report. "This new recruit, young Wu, showed cowardice in the face of battle. I was about to impose strict punishment as a warning, but Luo Yu is obstructing me. Isn't that disrespectful to military protocol?"
"Military protocol? Military protocol doesn't say you should execute someone on the spot!"
Luo Yu stood firm in front of young Wu, arguing his case: "It's completely normal for new recruits to be afraid. We all went through this; if you want to strike him with five strokes of the baton, I have no objections! But to kill him? I absolutely disagree!"
The two men went back and forth, and Wang Shuang frowned, waving his hand:
"Alright, enough of this! Ahem, Deputy Zhang, I believe Luo Yu is right. New recruits need a little time to grow."
Having anticipated Wang Shuang's siding with Luo Yu, Zhang Gui pressed on, brandishing his prepared arguments:
"Company Leader, if we overlook young Wu's fear under normal circumstances, that's one thing, but right now, we face a dire enemy, and any misstep could lead to the destruction of the fort. If one man's cowardice leads to the collapse of our defenses, and the Qiang breach the walls, all our brothers will fall victim to the Qiang's brutality. Can he bear this responsibility? Or can you, Company Leader?"
Wang Shuang's expression grew darker by the moment. This Zhang Gui had the audacity to undermine him in front of all the soldiers. Suppressing his anger, he finally said, "We are in desperate need of people right now. Killing our own comrades indiscriminately is neither just nor reasonable. I believe we should give him a chance."
"Company Leader, I maintain that only by killing him can we instill a fighting spirit in all the soldiers! Otherwise, if Jiming Fort falls, none of us will survive!"
Zhang Gui bowed slightly and shouted:
"I implore the Company Leader to impose strict punishment on the new recruit, young Wu!"
Zhang Gui's cronies echoed his demand:
"We request the Company Leader to impose strict punishment on the new recruit, young Wu!"
A heavy silence fell over the fort, drenched in a sense of impending doom.