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In the following days, they were trapped in the cave due to heavy snowfall. During her free time, Gu Jiao practiced archery in the cave.

Tang Yueshan had regretted teaching Gu Jiao after his impromptu archery lesson the previous night. She was, after all, a sworn enemy of the Tang Family, and he shouldn't have taught her anything.

Coincidentally, Gu Chengfeng also knew archery. When he saw Gu Jiao practicing archery in the cave, he went over to give her some pointers.

He had no reservations when it came to teaching Gu Jiao. He used a makeshift target made of a shield and firewood, setting it up against the cave wall for Gu Jiao to shoot at.

Gu Chengfeng's archery skills were not bad. After all, he was a Marquis Estate's young master. Even the weakest Gu Chenglin had been trained in archery since childhood. However, Gu Chengfeng's level was only considered high among ordinary people. When compared to the Tang Family archers, it fell short.

It wasn't Tang Yueshan boasting. Even a random soldier from the Tang Family could outperform Gu Chengfeng in archery.

The worst archers in the Tang Family were required to be able to shoot a target from a hundred paces away with great precision.

Tang Yueshan couldn't stand to watch the way Gu Chengfeng taught Gu Jiao.

"Listen to me, and you'll be right on target!" Gu Chengfeng told Gu Jiao.

Tang Yueshan rolled his eyes in exasperation. Right on target, my foot! Everything you're doing is wrong! Can you really draw a bow like that? And your aim is all over the place!

This was even more unbearable for Tang Yueshan than watching Gu Jiao draw the bow incorrectly.

Thus, Tang Yueshan played the donkey again.

Tang Yueshan became a donkey every day.

He was a donkey until the snow stopped.

Old Marquis's postoperative infection had disappeared. He was older but had maintained good health due to years of martial training, and his physical condition was no less than that of a young man. His wound had healed quite well, and the same could be said for Tang Yueshan.

Gu Jiao removed the stitches from the two wounds on Tang Yueshan's thigh.

The three of them crossed through the woods together and reached a small village on the outskirts of Lingguan City. Gu Jiao bought an ox cart from the villagers, replaced the ox with her two horses, and gave the remaining horse to Tang Yueshan.

Tang Yueshan mounted his horse and said to the two, "Follow this road straight ahead, and you'll reach Yuegu City."

Gu Chengfeng led the horse. He hesitated for a moment before looking at Tang Yueshan and saying, "You… Are you really going to Ye City alone? How about——”

He wanted to say, how about you come with us to Yuegu City first? After settling my grandfather down, we can go to Ye City together.

Gu Chengfeng wasn't particularly interested in helping Tang Yueshan, but he couldn't ignore the fact that the army of the imperial court was trapped in Ye City. He was no longer the naive young man who had come to the border in the beginning. With the border in flames of wars and the nation in turmoil, as a citizen of the State of Zhao, he could no longer stand aside.

Gu Chengfeng didn't voice these thoughts, but Tang Yueshan understood what he wanted to say. Tang Yueshan responded, "If it can be solved with fewer people, I can solve it myself. If it’s impossible with fewer people, adding you two won't make a difference. It's better not to follow and meet your doom."

The combat effectiveness of one person and three people might differ in a fighting arena, but in the face of tens of thousands of troops on the battlefield, there was almost no significant difference.

Gu Chengfeng found his argument reasonable and couldn't argue against it.

Several people went their separate ways.

Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng took Old Marquis back to Yuegu City, while Tang Yueshan rushed to Ye City.

"What do you think he'll do?" Gu Chengfeng asked with some concern.

As a matter of fact, Gu Jiao also wondered what strategy Tang Yueshan had in mind. He didn't seem like the impulsive type, so there had to be a plan in his mind.

Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng returned to Yuegu City.

The situation in Yuegu City had become even more tense than when they left. Most of the shops on the main street were closed, and pedestrians were nowhere to be seen, giving the city an impending sense of doom.

"Is this what it's like when a war is about to start?" Gu Chengfeng said with mixed feelings.

Gu Jiao simply responded with a faint "Mm."

Although the people of Yuegu City had prepared as much as they could for the upcoming battles, it couldn't change the fact that it would eventually become a living hell. It was destined to be the most tragic city among all the border cities.

The State of Chen's army would massacre the entire city.

Neither men, women, nor children, not even livestock, would be spared.

The horse-drawn cart arrived at the Prefect's Mansion.

It was still Advisor Hu who came out to greet them.

Not having seen him for a few days, Advisor Hu looked even more haggard than before. He rushed out, supporting his official hat, and said in an excited and astonished tone, "Oh, the two Lords have finally returned! That night, when the two Lords left without a word, it really frightened this humble one. This humble one thought something had happened to the two Lords…"

Gu Chengfeng impatiently furrowed his brows and said, "All right, stop talking. Let's go inside quickly."

The wind outside was strong, and they had been exposed to the cold for the entire journey, almost freezing them to death!

"Yes, yes!" Advisor Hu quickly agreed and led the way. In passing, he noticed a person lying on the cart that they had brought.

When Old Marquis first arrived in the border region, he had stayed at the Prefect's Mansion with Tang Yueshan. Advisor Hu had received the two of them, hence Advisor Hu quickly recognized Old Marquis and couldn't help but be surprised, "Old Marquis Gu! Did you... Did you two go to Ye City to rescue people?"

Everyone thought that Old Marquis was being held in Ye City.

Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng had stayed for one night and then disappeared. Advisor Hu and the Prefect had previously suspected their identities and speculated that they might not be dispatched by the imperial court but rather impostors who had come to the Prefect's Mansion to gather information.

Seeing them bring Old Marquis back now refuted their earlier suspicions.

Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng didn't reveal that they had rescued Old Marquis in Lingguan City.

However, from Advisor Hu's reaction, it seemed that this Prefect's Mansion hadn’t colluded with the State of Chen's army or the remnants of the previous dynasty, at least for now.

The current Prefect's Mansion appeared to be safe.

"Let's go inside." Gu Chengfeng said firmly to Advisor Hu.

"Oh, yes, yes! We're going inside! The courtyard from your last visit is still reserved for the two Lords!" Advisor Hu said, sweating as he led them into the Prefect's Mansion.

Of course, it was impossible to keep the courtyard for the two of them. Advisor Hu quickly signaled to the servants, who were quick-witted and promptly rushed ahead of the two individuals to drive the people out of the courtyard.

"It's been a few days since anyone stayed here, and there's dust in the rooms. This humble one will have someone clean it up. Please go to the study first." Advisor Hu said with a smile.

Gu Jiao and Gu Chengfeng actually saw through it but didn't say anything. They first brought out a stretcher and had the servants carry Old Marquis into the study.

The rooms were soon tidied up, with the innermost room still belonging to Gu Jiao, while Gu Chengfeng and Old Marquis were in the adjacent room, which was the one Gu Chengfeng had initially stayed in.

The Prefect of Yuegu City was at the mansion this time and personally came to meet the two of them. He also indirectly tried to ascertain their identities, but the two of them didn't utter a word.

The Prefect couldn't quite grasp the two people's backgrounds, but seeing that they had rescued Old Marquis from the perilous Ye City, he understood that they were not ordinary people and refrained from offending them for the time being.

The Prefect, surnamed Cheng, was 39 years old. Perhaps due to the hardships of the border region, his appearance seemed older than his actual age.

Prefect Cheng cupped his hands to the two seated people and said, "Forgive my straightforwardness, but Yuegu City is about to go to war. Do you know when the imperial reinforcements will arrive?"

Gu Chengfeng responded calmly, "The imperial army is already on its way, and when the time comes, they will naturally arrive. How many garrison troops does Yuegu City have right now?"

"Five thousand." Prefect Cheng replied, somewhat embarrassed.

"Only five thousand?" Gu Chengfeng exclaimed, "Why so few?"

Prefect Cheng sighed in helplessness and explained, "Yuegu City is just a small city, and there was no army stationed here originally. Even among these five thousand, nearly half of them are temporary conscripts."

Temporary conscripts were often little more than cannon fodder on the battlefield.

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