Section 91: Skill x and x Candor

No, it really is true!

Including Red Lightning, the members of the Wuzhou team said nothing. But their eyes expressed everything: "Stop talking. You’re just looking for another excuse to lie to us."

The indifference and suspicion in their eyes made Lin Feirui feel as though her heart had turned to ice.

But it really is true! I can feel that something is wrong. The enemy hasn't been completely defeated; they might still have a move to make! If we act blindly, we might lose!

But... but could she beg them? Could she speak to them in a pleading tone? If she did that, what qualification would she have left to be their leader? No, she would rather kill them all than let them see her weakness.

Perhaps she had gone too far in the past. But she truly wanted to lead them to victory! Stimulated by feelings of grievance, tears—something inconsistent with her nature—welled up in her eyes for the first time in a long while.

To keep them from seeing, she lowered her head before her team members for the first time. She did not want to reveal her weakness in front of them. No, she could not allow herself to show her weak side to them. As a woman in a leadership position, it was even more critical that they not sense any frailty.

But they seemed to have no intention of letting her off. The entire room was silent, and everyone stared at her—like a pack of wolves watching their injured leader.

Yes, this was the true danger.

Upon sensing the possibility of losing her status and power, she quickly shook off the previous sense of grievance. Without a doubt, a total failure would be miserable—but compared to losing control of the team, that was a trivial matter.

She quickly cast aside her frustration and gloom. When she looked up again, her face had returned to a state of calm.

"In that case," she said, struggling to control her smile and trying to infuse it with more confidence—while simultaneously weighing her words carefully—"we won't be splitting the general points this time."

"Huh?" A buzz of murmuring instantly filled the room.

"Hand over your general points to me, now," she continued.

No one jumped up in protest. After the initial surprise, they all watched her, waiting for her to finish.

"We will purchase [Greedy Vulture's Craft] and seize the credit belonging to these Han troops. If we succeed, the gains from our previous battle will increase more than threefold."

"If we use that, we will incur a lot of ill will among the Han army," said Big Soldier, who had remained silent until now. "And it isn't guaranteed to succeed."

"I have a feeling that this time, it will certainly succeed," she smiled. "You have all worked hard these past few days; receiving rewards is only right. But why must we obtain them from a stubborn enemy? There are clearly safer ways."

"And if it fails?" Dart challenged.

"Then we will do as Red Lightning suggested, and he will arrange the plan to deal with the remaining enemies."

***

Watching the satisfied expressions and hearing the voices of agreement from the group, she knew she had passed the test.

This time, it should succeed. Once this hurdle is cleared, we will settle this account properly. She gritted her teeth and silently vowed to herself.

***

While the members of Wuzhou were celebrating and strategizing, the Han army camp outside was also alive with the sound of slaughtering pigs and drinking; it was a scene of jubilation.

Some were boasting of their merits; others were mocking the pathetic state of the Revolutionary Army as they fled, or ridiculing the stories Wang Luo had concocted earlier.

"Studying in the mountains to save the common people! He's nothing but a liar! Hahaha!"

"I reckon he's the monster who descended from the heavens!"

Such jokes about the loser were endless. The officers did not stop them; there was no reason to prevent such mockery of the enemy.

Among them was one we might call Soldier A. He drank particularly heavily and mocked the loudest.

He had reason to do so, for in today's battle, he was one of the few exceptionally active fighters. Before the fire broke out, he had personally claimed three heads, suffered seven wounds, and shielded over a dozen injured brothers as they retreated. Zhang Da had personally commended him and promised him a promotion once the merits were settled.

They caroused until midnight, only emerging in a drunken stupor when a detachment of several thousand Han troops arrived at the camp to greet their superiors.

"Orders!" The arriving Han general dismounted, and the Ferry Army officers and soldiers knelt one by one.

"The Wuzhou group has burned the enemy’s grain supplies and annihilated many captive enemy troops. They shall be heavily rewarded!"

Red Lightning, Dart, and the others stepped forward respectfully, receiving the list of rewards from the Han general, their faces full of joy.

"General Lu's main camp arrives tomorrow. Prepare yourselves!" the Han general then said to Zhang Da and the other Ferry Army officers.

The Ferry commanders looked at each other in confusion. Finally, Zhang Da spoke up, "My lord, what about our rewards?"

"You?" The general shook his head. "Didn't you do nothing at all? What rewards could you possibly have?"

A buzz of noise broke out in the crowd. "We broke the enemy camp; how can you say we did nothing?"

"Quiet!" the general roared. "It's the middle of the night, and you're gathering to drink! It's a mercy we aren't punishing you! You think you deserve credit just for staying here? Merit is earned through fighting!"

"And another thing!" he bellowed at Zhang Da. "Set up the execution platform immediately and count all the prisoners! When General Lu arrives tomorrow, it would be best if they have already been executed!"

"Executed?" Zhang Da was stunned, but he braced himself to ask, "May I ask, my lord, how many are to be executed?"

"Do you even need to ask? Just like the rebels on the road, execute them all!"

A buzz louder than the one when he said they had "no merit" erupted in the crowd.

After a moment, Soldier A stepped out of the crowd, swaying, and bowed to the general. "May I ask, my lord, who do you mean by the rebels on the road?"

"They are all the people from the villages along the way," the general said, frank and honest. "Bold, unruly peasants who followed the thieves and divided up the gentry’s land. I suppose you people wouldn't know, so let me tell you now: General Lu has ordered that everyone who followed the thieves is to be killed, leaving not a single one alive!"

"Then... what about Li Village? It's about thirty miles east of here... I don't know what the situation is like there now..."

"Li Village?" The general stroked his chin. "How coincidental, I happen to know."

"Thank you, my lord, thank you!"

"They were all killed," the general replied with a smile after the soldier finished thanking him. "It seems many people there followed the thieves; they didn't just divide Squire Li's land, they even tried to kill him. Fortunately, he escaped to General Lu. Later, when the main army attacked and took it back, everyone in the village had shared his land. So, we had to kill them all—not even a mouse was left behind."

The drunken Soldier A stared blankly for a long time before suddenly rushing toward the officer like a madman. "Father! Mother! Father! Mother!"

He neared the officer and made a motion to draw his sword, but his wounds had not yet healed, and he was too drunk. Before he could draw his blade, he was kicked to the ground by a guard.

"He's from Li Village," another Ferry soldier murmured nearby.

"Audacious!" the general roared. "So, he is the remnant of the rebels! Tie him up and behead him along with the rest!"

Once tied up, Soldier A did not struggle. He could vaguely sense what he had done wrong, but he was illiterate and didn't know how to express it. At this moment, all his annoyance and regret converged in his heart, finally spilling out as two lines of tears, which then turned into wailing sobs.

"Father! Mother! It was your child who harmed you; it was your child who caused your deaths!"

"Give him a few lashes! That'll teach him to run his mouth!"

The horsewhip came down.

"Great wealth is not passed down! Great positions are not inherited! For the country and for the people..." Perhaps because of the pain, or perhaps out of despair, Soldier A did not submit; instead, he shouted the very words he had been mocking, despising, and treating as a joke all these days.

"Kill him!" The officer, who had been listening to Zhang Da recount the soldier's merits from earlier and had intended to give him a light punishment and let him go, was enraged and roared.

The nearby Han soldiers, seeing that the officer was disgusted by the man’s shouting, drew their blades and struck Soldier A directly across the mouth. Instantly, he could no longer shout, only spew blood. Then, with another strike, they slashed his throat, ending his life.

Some Ferry soldiers wanted to say something, but they were mostly stopped by the officers nearby. For a time, everyone was silent, save for their own weeping.