Chapter 1438: Little Shi General

The moment he stepped into Hulao Pass, Boss Zheng instinctively drew in a sharp breath.

This was his, and almost also Xiao Yuansui’s subordinates’ first time clearly seeing the situation inside Hulao Pass—starting from the city gate, a flat and broad road under their feet stretched straight into the distance, where another gate had already been completely swallowed by the night; on both sides of the avenue, hundreds of tents were neatly arrayed, every twenty tents forming one camp, with fences separating camp from camp, which not only facilitated management but also prevented an enemy force from cutting straight through the middle and rear without obstruction if they broke in.

And from the middle of the avenue, a branch road extended southward; the terrain there was slightly higher, and a garrison rose straight from the ground, serving as the command center of the entire Hulao Pass.

As soon as he saw that place, Boss Zheng’s breathing grew rapid.

The few young soldiers around him had indeed seen even larger camps in Xiao Yuansui’s hundred-thousand-strong army, but now they were in the enemy’s camp, and seeing the military camp within Hulao Pass so orderly, the night watches so strict, and even in the darkness exuding a killing aura ready to charge, they could not help but grow a little nervous.

Boss Zheng forced himself to calm down, then looked ahead again, and immediately noticed that a certain camp beside that garrison was different from the rest. There were not multiple tents lined up as elsewhere; there was only a single tent standing alone, and not far from it there were some very obvious fenced cages.

Boss Zheng’s heart suddenly began pounding wildly.

If he had not guessed wrong, that should be the place where prisoners and captives were being held!

He took a deep breath, just about to walk in that direction, with the few soldiers at his side following him, but just as they were about to head over, the soldier who had just let them into the pass ran down from the city tower, waved the torch in his hand at them, and now finally seeing their faces clearly, said in some puzzlement, “You lot look unfamiliar.”

The few young soldiers instantly broke out in a cold sweat, but Boss Zheng kept his composure and said, “We just came up.”

“Oh.”

The soldier nodded and did not pay it much mind. After all, this expedition’s forces were complicated, and there were too many people he did not know, so he went on to ask, “Do you have any urgent information to report?”

Hearing this, Boss Zheng and the soldiers behind him felt a tingling run down their backs.

They could wear those scouts’ clothes and fool these ordinary soldiers in front of them, but if they had to go meet Yu Wenye or Shen Tu Tai right away, those men were not so easy to deceive. They hesitated, just about to speak, when the soldier added, “If there’s nothing urgent, then report it tomorrow.”

Boss Zheng’s eyes lit up. “Prince Qin, he—”

The soldier said, “Prince Qin and General Shen Tu are both not here tonight.”

Heaven helps me!

Hearing that Yu Wenye and Shen Tu Tai were actually both absent from Hulao Pass, Boss Zheng’s heart surged with joy, but he still kept his calm; the expression on his face did not change much, and he only let out a low “Oh.” Another gate guard, however, said to the soldier who had questioned them, “Isn’t Assistant Shen still here?”

The soldier said, “Assistant Shen is busy with other matters. If there’s nothing major tonight, he’s not to be disturbed.”

“I see…”

Ecstasy surged in Boss Zheng’s heart, yet his face remained calm as he said, “Other than sending troops to Huilu Storehouse, there’s been no big movement on Xiao Yuansui’s side. Since Prince Qin and General Shen Tu are both away, we’ll report tomorrow.”

The soldier said, “All right then, you may go down.”

With that, he and his companion went back up to the city tower to continue their patrol and inspection, while Boss Zheng, after a silent sigh of relief, turned to look at the soldiers behind him. He saw that each of them wore a tense expression, their foreheads beaded with cold sweat; fortunately the night was too dark for the two soldiers to notice. He said softly, “Be careful, don’t give yourselves away, or none of us will leave here alive.”

The few of them hurriedly nodded.

Boss Zheng gave a light wave of his hand. “Come, follow me.”

The young soldiers quickly followed him forward. Passing one camp after another, they scarcely dared breathe. As they went deeper and deeper, coming so close they were already near the central garrison of Hulao Pass, everyone grew nervous again. One of them leaned close to Boss Zheng’s ear and whispered, “Boss, where are we going?”

Boss Zheng lifted his chin. “Up ahead should be where Little Shi General is being held.”

Once they heard that, they hurriedly looked up, and indeed saw that lone tent in that special camp, and the surrounding cages where prisoners and captives were being held, and they hastily kept close on his heels.

Just as Boss Zheng had guessed, it was indeed Little Shi General Shi Yutao, captured and brought back by Shen Tu Tai two days earlier, who was being held in that special camp.

At this moment, he was sitting on the only couch inside the tent, motionless, appearing very calm, but in fact his hands resting on his knees had been trembling nonstop—the previous two days he had turned this place upside down, and it was only because Shen Tu Tai had guarded him through the night that he had not managed to escape. Tonight, Shen Tu Tai was not in camp, but after two straight days of turmoil he no longer had any strength. Once his pent-up fury was spent, what remained was only fear, and this fear arose from within his own heart, spreading through the entire tent, then closing in on him, making him shrink in on himself.

He had even begun to speculate how Shen Tu Tai and the others would treat him.

If Xiao Yuansui did not care about him, would the people of Hulao Pass simply kill him, chop off his head, and use it to bolster military morale?

When that time came, what would his elder sister Shi Yuxin do?

Would she feel relieved to have thrown off this burden that was him, or—

Just as countless terrifying and pathetic thoughts surged up in his heart like a tide, almost leaving him unable to breathe, suddenly, a strange sound came from outside.

The sound—someone had made a move, but the process was very brief. Right after, he heard the sound of someone falling to the ground.

What happened?

Shi Yutao’s eyes flew wide as he stared at the tent flap; his extreme tension sharpened his senses, and he seemed to hear several uneven yet heavy footsteps come up to the entrance of the tent, then halt, and someone, as if testing, called out softly—

“Little Shi General?”

The moment that voice sounded, Shi Yutao’s eyes flushed red!

You must know, within Hulao Pass, no one would address him as “Little Shi General” anymore. He had long since come to hate that title. Clearly he also bore the surname Shi, clearly he too was a general who led troops, so why was Shi Yuxin the famed “General Shi,” while he could only be “Little Shi General,” as though his whole life he would be crushed beneath his elder sister’s shadow.

Yet at this moment, this “Little Shi General” sounded to him like celestial music.

He scrambled to his feet, but his legs felt as though they were filled with molten lead, so heavy he could not move a step, and could only let out a heavy “Mm.” In the next instant, a large hand whooshed as it lifted the tent flap.

Boss Zheng stood in the doorway with several men, staring at him in a mix of shock and delight, and behind them lay several bodies sprawled higgledy-piggledy—clearly the soldiers who had been guarding him.

“Little Shi General, we’ve been sent to rescue you!”