Chapter 458: Our mission is to buy time

"Scissors." Jiang Yunchu reached out, and the young doctor directly placed them in her hand.

After trimming the thread, Jiang Yunchu said again, "Clean this wound, sprinkle No. 3 Medicinal Powder, and bandage it."

"Yes." The old doctor responded immediately, the two assistants each taking charge of different areas.

"Next..."

People in the medical tents came and went; today's casualties were too many, several recovery medical tents were already full, and soon three more medical tents were set up, filling the medical tent area so tightly that there was no place to set foot when leaving.

When there weren't enough beds, they used grass mats.

Conditions were harsh, yet no one spoke.

A feeling of sorrow spread through the city; they were people who could be saved, but some had already left their lives on the battlefield and would never return.

One month passed...

The city gate never opened; the soldiers inside held their ground one by one, while outside the armies of the three kingdoms continually assaulted the city.

"The number of wounded keeps increasing." The old doctor from the medical tent came to the military tent and let out a sigh.

"If it weren't for the Princess Consort and her entourage, the number of dead soldiers would have increased by at least half."

The old doctor used to think the Princess Consort was overly arrogant.

But as time passed and they interacted more, he increasingly felt how formidable the Princess Consort was.

The Princess Consort treats patients without reservation; anyone can serve as her assistant, as long as they can keep up with her pace and obey.

"Medical knowledge knows no borders; don't dismiss Xijiang's methods, don't look down on the Southern Barbarians' crudeness—if it heals patients, any medical practice is good practice."

"I won't hide anything; when I have free time, you may ask about the formula of the medicinal powder, you may ask about the key points of suturing."

"Indeed, I hope even more than anyone that you will learn."

While she was eating, a young doctor carefully asked about the suturing essentials; after she finished explaining, the young doctor earnestly asked, "Princess Consort, aren't you afraid we'll learn?"

She had only just spoken those words.

"If you learn it, it means more soldiers can survive, it means our Da Ning gains limitless possibilities."

"I even hope that each of you can stand alone, that medical knowledge is vast and profound, and there are too many fields we don't know."

"Clinging to trivial matters is inferior to broadening our horizons, researching new things, discovering new possibilities."

That set of theory spread throughout the medical tent that very day; all the doctors engaged in deep self-reflection.

They knew the Princess Consort was sincere, because she had never concealed anything.

It turned out that their former evasiveness wasn't hiding their medical skills, but rather the soldiers' lives.

"The city walls are severely damaged; they might not hold much longer." A soldier reported.

"Should we retreat?"

The vice generals stood in the chief commander's large tent; the situation had already been sustained for over three months, a lone tree cannot support itself—they faced not only Xijiang but also reinforcements from two other nations.

Jiang Fengsheng furrowed his brows, "We cannot retreat."

"General, if the city gate breaks, retreating will be too late."

"Yes, General, three months have passed, the brothers can't hold on any longer."

"General, our Jiang Family Army has never retreated, but the enemy is the armies of the three kingdoms; we have no choice but to retreat, General!"

The vice generals' eyes were all red; the wounded soldiers, one by one, returned to the battlefield.

The soldiers' bodies were being treated, but the city walls lacked the strength to support themselves.

There were fewer than eighty thousand soldiers inside the city, while the outside army numbered one hundred fifty thousand—how could they defend?

"Fight to the death!"

A figure in white robes lifted the outer curtain and stepped into the military tent.

These days, she never left the medical tent, never stepping outside.

"Princess Consort, the situation isn't as easy as you imagine; even if we fight to the death, our eighty thousand soldiers cannot resist those one hundred fifty thousand."

The vice general's eyes were completely bloodshot; he had held on for two days and two nights—now the situation is far from easy.

He fears no death; from the day he entered the barracks, he gave his life to Da Ning.

But if dying could defend this city, he would gladly die.

But he knows that even if he died, this city would eventually fall.

"Let the soldiers prepare water." Jiang Yunchu understood their feelings and the current situation, but...

This situation is what they painstakingly fought for—time!

They need to hold these people off, to buy time for others.

"What do you mean?" Jiang Fengsheng looked at her, somewhat puzzled.

"Prepare water?"

"What for?"

"Everyone thinks Xi Fang is Da Ning's weakness; even you, do you also think so?" Jiang Yunchu did not answer the previous question but instead looked toward the soldiers below.

"In the north there is a Grand General, in the south the Wang Fu Army; only our Xi Fang's Jiang Family Army has become the breach."

Her voice was calm; the southern army has a young general, Ning Chengyan, whose prestige, even after disappearing for three years, still awes the Southern Barbarians.

And in the north there is Jiang Wen Fu; as long as Jiang Wen Fu remains for a day, the north stays safe.

Only Xi Fang.

She came to Xi Fang not only because of General Jiang, but also because this place is a special location, a battlefield that directly faces war.

"But our Jiang Family Army has never been a weakness." Jiang Yunchu's words rang out with force.

She scanned the crowd and said, "You might as well be told: this time we are not leaving the city not because we fear the allied forces of the three kingdoms, nor because the acting general fears death."

"But rather because..."

"Our mission is to buy time."

She wore spotless white clothes, without any stain, her face proud; she was Da Ning's Regent's Consort, the legitimate daughter of the General's Manor.

But she……

She came to Xi Fang, she came to the Jiang family army.

"Northern Rong, Southern Man, they came to support us; our pressure is indeed great, but as one wanes the other waxes, the Wang Fu army and the Northern army—their pressure will lessen, and they will gain the initiative for a counterattack." Jiang Yunchu looked at the several exhausted people, their eyes previously bloodshot, now even redder.

But it was completely different from before, because their eyes were filled with light, filled with hope.

"Yun chu..." Jiang Fengsheng called out softly.

Jiang Yunchu shook her head with a smile, "It's time to tell everyone; the pressure they bear is too great, their stiff backs should also straighten up."

"Not seeking a fierce attack, only to hold fast, Vice Generals, can you do it?" The tone was light, without much fervor.

"We can do it!"

"I will defend Da Ning's western gate even if I have to sacrifice my life!"

"If the walls crumble, I'll throw my body into the breach and kill those Xijiang devils!"