Chapter 364 - 358: Outfit Change
Zhao Hanzhang cursed under her breath, calling him a fool—both stupid and venomous—and then asked, "When does he plan to dig it?"
"I don’t know." They were sent to dig an opening, and only then did they realize Qiao Xi intended to breach the embankment. More specific details, however, were beyond what they could know.
Zhao Hanzhang thought of her plan, sneered coldly, and dismissed it. "No matter when he does it, after tomorrow he’ll have no chance."
"Is there anyone there taking orders now?"
Wei You and the others were certain, shaking their heads, "No."
Breaching the embankment was hard labor, requiring digging out a very deep and large gap. If careless, one could be swept away by the water. This kind of hard task was usually done by the Jiehu.
Feeling assured, Zhao Hanzhang nonetheless asked about the location they intended to dig, then turned to find someone to give orders, "At dawn, set out to ensure the embankment is intact. If any Xiongnu are there guarding, as long as they don’t act, ignore them. If they act, stop them at all costs."
"Yes!"
Only then did Zhao Hanzhang dismiss them.
By this time, the sky was almost bright; Zhao Hanzhang sat cross-legged by the fire, resting with her eyes closed.
Fu Tinghan had just gone to count the captured Han people, separating the severely injured and sick. Seeing Zhao Hanzhang seemingly asleep with her eyes closed, he lightened his steps, sat beside her, sighed softly, and closed his eyes to rest.
Zhao Hanzhang was truly asleep, though unaware. Feeling only a brief moment had passed with her eyes closed, when she opened them, daylight was upon her.
When she opened her eyes, Fu Tinghan did the same, nodding slightly to her, "Morning."
Zhao Hanzhang instinctively nodded back, "Morning."
Upon speaking, she remembered where she was and her circumstances.
She raised her hand to rub her forehead, almost thinking she was still at the school.
Unfazed, Fu Tinghan got up, speaking to her, "There are more hostages and prisoners than our soldiers. What’s your plan with them?"
Zhao Hanzhang pondered briefly, "I’ve decided to have two hundred soldiers escort the civilians and some prisoners in the back. The rest of the prisoners will accompany us for the raid."
Fu Tinghan didn’t question how she chose the prisoners, only advised, "Pay attention to the ratio of numbers."
Zhao Hanzhang smiled lightly, "I know, after all, we are negotiating with a tiger."
She had to ensure when the tiger turned to bite her, she could snap its neck.
With just those two sentences, Zhao Hanzhang felt invigorated, getting up to call for Qiu Wu, ordering, "Have the entire army speed up. We leave after eating."
"Yes."
There are noticeable differences between the facial features of the barbarians and the Han people. Zhao Hanzhang went to the prisoner camp to select prisoners, observing their eyes and looking at their palms, choosing one after another.
She did not stop them from recommending each other among fellow townsmen and companions. As long as they had seen each other and thought they fit her criteria, she kept them.
This approach earned a slight bit of trust from the prisoners, not to mention that Zhao Hanzhang, after picking them, directly gave them horses and weapons, leading them to a pile of armor, generously gesturing, "Choose whatever you like!"
Clearly not being used as meat shields, the Jiehu felt slightly relieved and seriously began selecting. As for the remaining ones, they continued bound together, one tied to another, wearing cloth robes and straw shoes or even barefoot.
Zhao Hanzhang told them, "You will be sent to Guan City. Once outside the city, I will let you go."
The prisoners exchanged glances.
Face stern, Zhao Hanzhang said, "If I’d wanted to kill you, I could do it now by burying you, with no need to risk bringing you to Guan City."
"I stand by my principles, and hope everyone keeps their promises. Since you’ve surrendered to me, if you still harm the Yu State’s people, then in future encounters with Jiehu or Xianbei, I won’t allow for surrender."
Left in the prisoner camp deliberately, Cheng Da’s face turned serious, saying solemnly, "Since we have surrendered, we are now the General’s people and naturally won’t act against our word."
Zhao Hanzhang nodded solemnly, giving each of them half a bun to eat, along with some water. Once they finished eating, Zhao Hanzhang ordered two hundred soldiers to escort them away.
They took a different short path, closer but slower due to traveling on foot.
Zhao Hanzhang was much more gentle with the captured civilians. She specifically called Li Lai and Li Zhao, having them select usable young and middle-aged refugees, even women, lending them extra weapons and armor collected.
"Follow Captain Song’s orders. Act only if prisoners misbehave or facing enemy forces."
Both acknowledged.
Zhao Hanzhang nodded, waiting for them to be armed and depart, leaving a mess behind. Only then did she wave her hand, and the soldiers, like wolves, rushed to scavenge the pile of clothes.
Ting He brought two outfits, "Miss, I carefully picked these, they’re all smelly, but these are relatively less smelly."
Zhao Hanzhang got one, and Fu Tinghan had one, too.
Fu Tinghan looked at the clothes handed to him, unmoving for a long time.
Zhao Hanzhang knew he loved cleanliness, feeling it’d already upset him enough to travel with the army, and now wear others’ dirty clothes...
Zhao Hanzhang said, "Forget it. If one person doesn’t wear it, it’ll still be hidden under armor, unnoticed..."
Fu Tinghan had already reached to take it, turning away to change, "No defense is foolproof. We’ve seen it, not covering it up but rather exposing it—that’s courting death."
Zhao Hanzhang swallowed her words, showing sympathy momentarily, then asked Ting He, "Where’s Second Son?"
Ting He replied, somewhat hurt, "Second Son dislikes the outfit I found for him being too small, won’t wear it, insists on picking himself."
Zhao Hanzhang said, "Then wear yours. If a barbarian comes to question you, bow your head low."
Ting He agreed.
Zhao Hanzhang also changed clothes, donned armor, mounted her horse. After soldiers scrambled and dressed, they mounted too, the standard-bearer raising the Xiongnu banner.
Even many of the horses were confiscated Xiongnu steeds.
Satisfied, Zhao Hanzhang nodded without a speech and simply waved her hand, "March!"
Wei You was selected, currently mixed among the soldiers, standing in the front ranks, not far from Zhao Hanzhang.
Zhao Hanzhang had picked over three hundred people, keeping the number of cavalry around two thousand.
Prisoners were dispersed among all units, yet Zhao Hanzhang kept the ones most familiar with each other in a team, preventing them from forming cliques while ensuring they had comrades they trusted behind them, enabling them to fight confidently.
The group sped toward Guan City, oh, and there were several wagons carrying booty seized by the Xiongnu army during this period.
Before noon, Zhao Hanzhang arrived outside Guan City, directly leading the escort of goods to the main camp. Outside the camp, she slowed her horse, falling behind with Fu Tinghan, leaving Qiu Wu and Zhao Erlang at the front, flanked by Wei You and several other Jiehu.