Ask the mountains and rivers

Chapter 27 Warhorses
In a military camp of five thousand men, there are at most three or five medics. Priority must be given to wounded officers, and medicine is limited. For ordinary soldiers, minor injuries are endured on their own, but serious injuries mean certain death.

For someone like the square-faced soldier, who had lost blood all night after having his arm slashed by a sharp blade, applying medicine and bandaging was mostly for psychological comfort. Nine times out of ten, he wouldn't survive.

The severed arm was bloody and mangled.

Pei Qinghe quickly cleaned the wound. The unconscious, square-faced soldier twitched a few times in pain, struggled to open his eyes, and uttered two words: "It hurts... ah..."

She rolled her eyes and fainted again.

It was both tragic and involuntarily funny, which somewhat diluted the gloom and somberness of the surroundings.

Pei Qinghe found some wound medicine, crushed it into a paste, and applied it to the square-faced soldier's severed arm. Then she wrapped it with clean gauze, layer by layer.

Captain Sun couldn't help but glance at the flustered Doctor Bao.

Miss Pei looks more like a doctor.

Pei Qinghe had served as a rebel leader for over ten years, fighting countless battles and sustaining numerous wounds. She was intimately familiar with the techniques for treating external injuries. Doctors were never enough, so she could barely be considered a part-time military medic.

Doctor Bao was sweating profusely from his work, but when he looked up and saw Pei Qinghe's swift and efficient movements, his eyes lit up: "So, Miss Pei has also studied medicine. That's wonderful! There are still a few minor injuries over here!"

Pei Qinghe nodded.

The wounded soldiers were all under the care of Doctor Bao. Pei Qinghe was mainly responsible for bandaging and treating the wounded women of the Pei family. She could handle simple injuries, but for serious external wounds, Doctor Bao had to take care of them.

At times like this, one can forget about the differences between men and women.

They were busy until dawn.

The two men who went to deliver the message have finally returned.

As expected, they all returned empty-handed.

Lieutenant Sun's face was grim, but he remained silent. He was a low-ranking military officer who had climbed up from the bottom, with no family background or powerful backers. The garrison commander didn't take him seriously at all. The soldiers he sent out were ridiculed and mocked as soon as they entered the camp and were immediately kicked out.

The Crown Prince's guards who went to report to the government received slightly better treatment. Their waist badges carried considerable intimidation, and they easily met with the county magistrate.

"...That Magistrate Song, he spoke very nicely. When asked to send reinforcements, he readily agreed. I waited there for two hours, but the yamen runners from the county office still hadn't arrived."

“I urged them to set off, but Magistrate Song insisted on waiting until everyone was present. If we waited any longer, the bandits would have already killed people and disappeared without a trace.”

The palace guard grew angrier as he spoke: "I saw it coming. This Magistrate Song was deliberately delaying. In a fit of anger, I uttered a few harsh words and rode back first."

The guard snorted coldly.

How dare a mere seventh-rank county magistrate disregard even the Crown Prince's palace!

“This Magistrate Song may not be working for anyone,” Pei Qinghe’s voice rang in his ears. “He simply doesn’t want to get involved in this mess.”

Strictly speaking, Magistrate Song's actions were not particularly reprehensible. Gathering enough manpower before sending reinforcements was the prudent approach. Otherwise, if the rescue failed and the county government's own officials were also lost, it would be a double loss.

The captain suppressed his anger and said in a low voice, "We'll wait here for the officials to arrive. It'll be good for the wounded to rest for a day or two."

Pei Qinghe nodded slightly: "I'm going to take some people out for a trip. Maybe we can find some good things."

These bandits are unusual; besides weapons, they must also have warhorses.

Finding these warhorses isn't difficult. Just grab a few genuine refugees and ask them, and you'll know where they are.

When the captain learned of Pei Qinghe's plan, his lips twitched slightly. With Pei Qinghe's abilities and methods, even a god would be skinned alive.

……

Pei Qinghe borrowed a horse from Commandant Sun.

After this life-or-death battle, Captain Sun was completely convinced. Moreover, the common soldiers had suffered heavy casualties, and he now had only about ten men left under his command, but he had a surplus of warhorses. As soon as Pei Qinghe asked, Captain Sun lent him more than a dozen horses without hesitation.

"Commander Sun certainly trusts me," Pei Qinghe joked, "Aren't you afraid I'll take the opportunity to escape on horseback?"

Captain Sun said nonchalantly, "So many people died tonight. If Sixth Miss leaves and doesn't come back, I'll just add a few more entries to the list of those who died in battle."

Tonight, the Pei family suffered over twenty casualties, along with more than two hundred and ninety members, young and old. How could Sixth Miss Pei abandon them and run away?
With Pei Qinghe's abilities and skills, if she had the will, she would have vanished long ago. There would be no need to wait until today.

Pei Qinghe selected more than ten skilled riders, each on horseback, and they galloped forward.

After running for ten miles, they caught two exhausted refugees lying on the side of the official road.

Without a word of threat, the moment they drew their weapons, the two men knelt down. They kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy, tears streaming down their faces: "Your Majesty, we were captured! Please, Your Majesty, spare us!"

“We were hiding in a mountain valley. There were many horses inside. We’ll take the Queen there.”

These two refugees, having narrowly escaped death, set their sights on warhorses. In those days, horses were extremely valuable. A good horse could fetch a hundred taels of silver.

There are over a hundred fine horses hidden in the mountain valley. If they secretly steal a few, they will make a fortune.

The moment the female leader appeared, all her wishful thinking vanished.

The female chieftain was fierce and ruthless, covered in blood, her eyes blazing with murderous intent. They didn't even have the courage to look her in the eye, cowering and trembling as they told her everything they knew, just to beg for a way to survive.

Pei Qinghe threw the two refugees onto the empty horse and ordered them to lead the way.

An hour later, they found the ravine.

More than a hundred fine horses appeared before our eyes.

These fine horses, though their mouths were covered and their hooves bound, could not conceal their majestic and agile appearance; they were all excellent warhorses!

Pei Qinghe was overjoyed, her eyes shining. She quickly stepped forward and lovingly stroked one fine horse after another. The Pei family women who had come with her were equally excited.

So many good horses!
Sell ​​them all, and you can get ten thousand taels of silver! That's enough grain to feed the Pei family for ten years!
"Not a single one for sale!" Pei Qinghe turned her head, her dark eyes gleaming. "We'll ride to Youzhou! With these fine horses and weapons, we can truly establish ourselves!"

With warhorses and weapons, there is now a true Pei family army.

In her previous life, she painstakingly built up the Pei family army at the age of twenty, with only a few dozen men, a dozen horses, and a few dozen blunt knives as her initial capital.

In this life, someone eagerly sent her warhorses and weapons, which she naturally accepted with a smile.

Mao Hongling and the others nodded in agreement.

Amidst the joyous atmosphere, a trembling sob suddenly rang out: "Qinghe, I want to leave. I beg you, please let me go!"

Pei Qinghe paused, then looked over.

(End of this chapter)