Dapeng's Time Travel Life

Chapter 11 The Gears of Fate

War drums thundered, yellow sand swirled, and Zhang Peng charged ahead, his spear gleaming like a dragon emerging from the sea, felling enemy soldiers wherever he went. Inspired by him, the soldiers' morale soared, each fighting like ten, their battle cries deafening. Xia Lijuan stood before the tent, her hands clenched so tightly her nails almost dug into her palms, her eyes fixed on Zhang Peng's figure, her heart pounding in her chest.

Seeing the Qing army's overwhelming momentum, the enemy troops began to flinch and gradually showed signs of defeat. Zhang Peng spotted the enemy commander, suddenly exerted his strength, and spurred his horse straight at him. The commander, seeing this, brandished his broadsword to defend, and the two exchanged blows, their blades flashing. Zhang Peng, enduring the excruciating pain from his wound, used all his skills, seized an opening, and thrust his spear into the commander's shoulder. The commander screamed in agony and fell from his horse, throwing the enemy troops into chaos.

The Qing army seized the opportunity to launch a surprise attack and won a great victory. Zhang Peng returned to his tent exhausted. Xia Lijuan rushed to greet him, her eyes red-rimmed: "Your Highness, you're finally back. Are you hurt?" Zhang Peng forced a smile: "Don't worry, I'm fine, just a little tired."

After this battle, the Qing army's morale soared, while the enemy remained entrenched, resulting in a stalemate. Zhang Peng knew that a prolonged stalemate would be detrimental to the Qing army, so he discussed strategies to defeat the enemy with his generals. Although Xia Lijuan was not knowledgeable in military strategy, she listened quietly and occasionally offered some novel ideas, which actually provided the others with considerable inspiration.

Days passed, and Zhang Peng's injuries gradually healed. One night, the moonlight, like water, spilled onto the open ground outside the camp. Zhang Peng and Xia Lijuan sat side by side outside the tent, gazing at the bright moon, speechless for a moment. After a long while, Zhang Peng broke the silence: "Lijuan, after this war is over, we'll go back to the capital and never be apart again." Xia Lijuan leaned on his shoulder and softly replied, "Okay, I look forward to that day."

However, the gears of fate quietly began to turn. One morning, Zhang Peng received an urgent secret order from the imperial court. The letter was sternly worded, reprimanding him for his poor performance in battle and for missing crucial opportunities. He was given ten days to defeat the enemy, or face military punishment. After reading the order, Zhang Peng frowned, his mind filled with doubt. The war was under his control; why was the court suddenly imposing such pressure?

Seeing his solemn expression, Xia Lijuan asked with concern, "Your Highness, what's wrong?" Zhang Peng handed her the secret order. After reading it, Xia Lijuan couldn't help but frown. "There must be something fishy about this. Could it be that someone in the court is deliberately framing us?" Zhang Peng pondered for a moment and nodded. "Very likely. It seems we need to speed up our efforts to defeat the enemy."

In order to find a way to defeat the enemy as soon as possible, Zhang Peng and Xia Lijuan went deep into the vicinity of the enemy camp to conduct reconnaissance. They disguised themselves as local people and inquired about information in the surrounding villages. One day, they stayed overnight at a farmhouse and learned in casual conversation that there was a grain and fodder storage area behind the enemy lines, which was relatively weakly defended.

Zhang Peng's heart stirred, and he exchanged a glance with Xia Lijuan; both of them had an idea. Back at camp, Zhang Peng immediately summoned his generals to devise a plan to launch a surprise attack on the enemy's supply lines. After careful consideration, they decided to act late at night three days later.

On the night of the operation, under the hazy moonlight, Zhang Peng led his elite troops on a clandestine departure. Xia Lijuan insisted on going with him, and Zhang Peng, unable to dissuade her, had no choice but to agree. They followed the rugged mountain path, avoiding enemy patrols, and quietly approached the grain and fodder storage area.

Just as they were about to reach their destination, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from ahead. Zhang Peng had a bad feeling and whispered the order: "Take cover!" The group quickly hid in the roadside bushes. It turned out to be a large enemy patrol; if they were discovered, the plan would be ruined.

As the patrol drew closer, Xia Lijuan held her breath, her hand unconsciously gripping the dagger at her waist. Just as the patrol was about to pass their hiding place, a soldier beside Xia Lijuan suddenly coughed, giving away their position. The enemy patrol immediately became alert and surrounded them, torches in hand.