OFTLHFRO C135

Chapter 135: On Ambush and Counter-Ambush

“Good morning!”

Hua Yaoyue walked cheerfully toward the kitchen with a smile. “What delicious food are you making in here? Smells so good.”

However, before he could get close, Xiao Chen and Zhu Qing blocked him together.

“…Is this really necessary? I just want to take a look. I’m not going to steal your cooking techniques.”

Zhu Qing’s face was expressionless.

Xiao Chen, on the other hand, wore a polite smile. “When our Master Luo cooks, outsiders are not permitted to watch.”

Hua Yaoyue looked completely innocent. “I’m an outsider too?”

His answer was met with Xiao Chen’s courteous smile.

“Ah…”

Hua Yaoyue left helplessly, muttering leisurely as he went: “Just remember to call me when it’s time to eat.”

Xiao Chen said: “Of course.”

When the small wontons were ready, Xiao Chen and Zhu Qing carried them to the table.

Seeing Luo Mingchen and Huo Yan approach, Hua Yaoyue smirked and said: “Junior brother, I thought your spouse had made something extravagant. Turns out it’s just small wontons. Why won’t you even let people into the kitchen for that?”

Huo Yan shot back with a single line: “If you don’t like it, you’re free to leave.”

Hua Yaoyue: “…”

So he was basically forcing him to stay, huh?

But truthfully, he really had nowhere else to go.

Either he would be captured and killed by orthodox cultivators, or seized by powerful men and enslaved. Compared to those options, if he stayed here and behaved, life under Huo Yan was much better.

So Hua Yaoyue laughed it off and dropped the matter. “I’m starving, let’s eat!”

The sun shone brightly, but melting snow was colder than falling snow.

Luo Mingchen went to a corner of the courtyard to check the seedlings he had planted. They were all still alive and growing well, though the chili plants looked a bit wilted. The cabbages, wheat, and rice seedlings were still full of life.

Actually, Luo Mingchen could have raised them larger before transplanting them outside.

But he wanted to see if such small seedlings could survive in this kind of weather.

If they could, then all he needed was to keep this batch alive, save the seeds from the mature plants, raise them in his space until they grew strong, and eventually they would likely become the cold-resistant, high-yield mutant strains he wanted.

Ever since they discovered a campfire outside the city suspected to have been left by enemy scouts, Huo Yan had deliberately spread a rumor that Han City’s food stores would only last seven days.

They imitated the behavior from the last food shortage, digging up edible tree roots and even clumps of earth.

Secretly, they set traps at the weaker points in their night defenses. Even at night, the city guards kept sharp watch, waiting for the enemy to fall into their nets.

Hu Zhongyi and the others felt that since they had the city walls, there was no need to be overly tense—they only needed to guard the gates properly.

But Huo Yan took it seriously. He even arranged night patrols in detail, sometimes checking them in the middle of the night.

More than ten days passed like this, and Luo Mingchen had nearly forgotten all about it, spending his days observing his seedlings. They had already grown quite a bit, more or less as he expected. Their cold resistance was still somewhat lacking, and he had no idea how much yield they would produce once mature.

That night, while Luo Mingchen was asleep, a sudden knock came at the door.

Huo Yan patted his back once, then drifted back to sleep.

After a while, Luo Mingchen felt someone kissing him. He opened his eyes to see Huo Yan, and instinctively wrapped his arms around him, returning the kiss.

“Mingchen, the men of Beiyue have stationed themselves fifty li outside Han City. I have to go.”

Luo Mingchen sobered quickly. “Now?”

“Mm.”

“I’m going too.”

Luo Mingchen sat up immediately.

“Alright.”

Huo Yan knew Luo Mingchen’s temperament. If he didn’t tell him about something this important, Mingchen would surely be angry.

And perhaps in the future, Luo Mingchen wouldn’t tell him anything either.

The two dressed at the fastest possible speed and went out.

Thanks to their earlier drills, patrols were already set. At the first blow of the horn, in less than fifteen minutes, they were ready for battle.

Most of the men stayed in the city awaiting orders. A smaller group went outside, camouflaged by the night in the forest, waiting for the Beiyue forces to walk straight into their trap.

Perhaps Beiyue wanted to catch them off guard, since Han City’s people were hungry, cold, and it was deep into the second half of the night. Just before dawn, a mass of troops surged forward, pressing toward Han City.

Lying on the hillside with Huo Yan, Luo Mingchen whispered: “They’re really well dressed.”

The cotton clothes worn by Han City’s soldiers had been issued two years ago, and they weren’t nearly as warm as people claimed.

This was the darkest time before dawn. Huo Yan couldn’t make out the enemy uniforms, so he simply said: “Take them back.”

“Sure, I’m good at this.”

After all, in the apocalypse, what Luo Mingchen had done most was snatch equipment.

Mainly, when others tried to rob him, they ended up being the ones robbed instead.

Once half the enemy column had passed below, Huo Yan sent up a signal. A red light burst in the night sky.

Realizing something was wrong, the Beiyue commander immediately ordered a retreat.

But then, massive stones rolled down the slope. Horses screamed, chaos erupted.

Moments later, a large group of soldiers from Han City rushed out: “Kill—!”

From behind, an elite unit charged into the enemy ranks like sharp blades.

Luo Mingchen’s eyesight was sharp. With Huo Yan clearing the way for him, he went straight for the enemy commander.

The Beiyue general, wielding a bronze blade, still tried to resist, but a water tentacle lashed across his face, flinging him from his horse. In an instant he was tied up tightly, his weapon seized.

Luo Mingchen picked up the bronze blade and weighed it in his hand. “Pretty heavy.”

Seeing such a bizarre opponent for the first time, the Beiyue general roared in shock and anger: “Who are you?!”

Naturally, Luo Mingchen had no good will for someone who disturbed his sweet sleep. He replied casually: “Your grandpa.”

Beiyue General: “…”

When word spread that their general had been captured, the Beiyue soldiers gradually gave up resistance.

Hu Zhongyi arrived later. Seeing the large group of prisoners being led back in ropes, he exclaimed: “That’s it? Already over?”

At dawn, Hu Zhongyi had heard that Beiyue forces were attacking. He thought it would be a brutal battle. But by the time he arrived with reinforcements, the enemy was already retreating.

Then Luo Mingchen suddenly realized a problem: “Should we keep these men to open farmland, or send them back?”

There were at least ten thousand prisoners here. The warhorses would definitely not be returned, nor the food and supplies stored in their camp, nor their warm clothing.

But as for the men themselves…

If they stayed, feeding them would be a huge burden.

Without counting the food in his spatial store, Han City’s provisions would not last long.

As for killing them…

Luo Mingchen couldn’t bring himself to kill a group of surrendering captives.

But if Huo Yan and Hu Zhongyi thought it was the right thing to do, he wouldn’t argue—after all, he wasn’t one of the locals.

Huo Yan said: “Have Beiyue ransom them back.”

Luo Mingchen was puzzled. “Will they agree?”

Hu Zhongyi smacked the Beiyue general on the head, earning a furious glare. But he didn’t mind, saying: “With this fellow in our hands, Beiyue will definitely agree.”

Hearing this, Luo Mingchen thought it made sense.

Beiyue could afford to abandon ten thousand soldiers, but if their general died, they’d have to find someone to replace him.

Cultivating a talent like that required huge amounts of manpower and resources. And if word spread that Beiyue’s general had been left to die when he could have been saved, it would chill the hearts of all their soldiers. Both by reason and sentiment, they would have to rescue him.