The God of War Who Protects the Nation: Starting with Saving a Mother and Daughter in Distress

Faced with Shan Bing's deliberate provocation, Qin An's eyes suddenly sharpened, like a hawk eyeing its prey.

Realizing the other person's intentions, her actions were like a spark falling on a dry pile of firewood, instantly igniting the anger that Qin An had been suppressing all day.

"Itching for a beating?" Qin An sneered, strode forward, grabbed her wrist, and yanked her up abruptly.

Dan Bing gasped and stumbled into his arms, her nose hitting his hard chest. The pain made her eyes red, but she still stubbornly glared at him.

"Let me go! Qin An, you bastard..."

Her curses were roughly choked back by Qin An. His kisses, with an irresistible force, fell like a storm, devoid of any tenderness, only pure catharsis.

At first, Shan Bing struggled, trying to push him away with her hands and feet, but Qin An's arms were like iron hoops around her waist, making her unable to move.

The candlelight inside the tent flickered violently due to the movements of the two people, casting distorted silhouettes on the tent walls.

Dan Bing's struggles gradually weakened, her breathing became rapid, and tears mixed with humiliation and an unspeakable tremor slid down her cheeks.

She could clearly smell the blood on Qin An's body; it was the scent of the battlefield, carrying the weight of life and death, yet strangely, it gave her a sense of inexplicable security.

After an unknown amount of time, Qin An finally released her.

Dan Bing collapsed into his arms, panting heavily, with clear red marks on her neck.

She turned her face away, not daring to look at him, but her lips trembled slightly, it was hard to tell whether she was crying or holding back tears.

Qin An looked down at her reddened earlobes, and the irritation in his heart gradually subsided, leaving only exhaustion.

He picked her up and placed her on the couch, then sat on the edge of the couch, staring blankly at the flickering candlelight.

Dan Bing curled up in the corner of the bed, wrapped herself tightly in the brocade quilt, and remained silent for a long time before whispering, "This is the only way you know how to bully people..."

Qin An didn't turn around, his voice slightly hoarse: "Behave yourself, don't cause any more trouble. Once this is over, I'll send you to a safe place."

Dan Bing bit her lip and didn't say anything more.

Inside the tent, only the soft crackling of the candlelight and the slightly heavy breathing of the two people remained.

……

Before dawn the next day, the bugle call to assemble sounded again. When Qin An got up, Shan Bing was already awake and sitting by the bed, silently wiping his armor.

Her movements were somewhat clumsy, yet exceptionally earnest; her eyes shone brightly against her dark face.

"We're attacking the south city today. You stay in the tent and don't wander off," Qin An instructed in a deep voice as he put on his armor.

Dan Bing nodded and handed him the cleaned halberd: "Be careful."

Qin An took the halberd, glanced at her, and turned to lift the curtain and go out.

The fighting outside the city was even more intense than yesterday.

Zhang Xu concentrated his main force to launch a fierce attack on the south city. Luo Kai and Cheng Zhiyuan took the lead, leading their soldiers to charge up the city wall time and time again, only to be repelled by the rebels each time.

The corpses on the city wall were piled up almost to the same level as the wall itself, and blood flowed down the cracks in the bricks, forming scarlet streams.

Yuwen Zhi still sat under the canopy, gesturing wildly, but after yesterday's intimidation...

He dared not yell at Zhang Xu anymore, and could only vent his anger on the soldiers around him, complaining that they were too slow in handing him water and that the sun umbrellas were not big enough.

Qin An led his cavalry to guard the flank, his eyes fixed on the battlefield.

He saw that the rebel army in the south city was gradually losing ground and the defenses on the city walls were beginning to crumble, and a thought suddenly struck him.

This is a good opportunity to break through the city.

But at that moment, the rebel army in the west city suddenly rushed out of the city gate and attacked the flank of the government troops.

Qin An's eyes sharpened, and he immediately led his cavalry to meet them: "Form ranks! Block them!"

The deafening sound of hooves filled the air as the cavalry formed an iron torrent, colliding with the rebel army.

Qin An brandished his halberd, and wherever the tip of the halberd passed, rebel soldiers fell from their horses, their blood splattering all over his armor.

The battle lasted for nearly an hour before Qin An drove the rebels back into the city.

He reined in his horse, panting heavily, and looked towards the south of the city, only to find that the government troops' offensive had slowed down.

Luo Kai was ambushed and injured in the leg by a rolling stone, while Cheng Zhiyuan was grazed in the arm by a stray arrow, making it difficult for them to continue their offensive.

"Sound the retreat!" Zhang Xu's voice rang out from the front lines, his voice tinged with undisguised exhaustion.

The government troops retreated again, leaving behind even more corpses than the day before.

Back at the main camp, Zhang Xu locked himself in his command tent and refused to see anyone.

The generals gathered outside the tent, their faces grave.

"This can't go on," Cheng Zhiyuan said in a deep voice, clutching his injured arm. "If we continue attacking for a few more days, we'll lose half our forces."

Luo Kai lay on the stretcher, his face pale, yet he still roared angrily, "That incompetent fool is still pointing fingers in the tent! If he hadn't been pushing us so hard, we wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses!"

Qin An was silent for a moment, then said, "The general is probably thinking of a solution."

Just as Qin An had said, inside the command tent, Zhang Xu was deep in thought, staring at the map.

He pressed his finger heavily on the location of the government army's camp on the map, a resolute glint in his eyes.

"Someone, go and invite General Qin, General Cheng, and General Luo over."

A moment later, the three entered the command tent. Zhang Xu looked up at them and said in a deep voice, "I've thought of a way to get rid of Yuwen Zhi."

All three were taken aback, then their eyes lit up with anticipation.

Zhang Xu pointed to the map: "Tonight, we'll put on a show to make Xu Mao think he has an opportunity and lead his army to attack our camp."

Cheng Zhiyuan immediately understood: "The general intends to... leave Yuwen Zhi in the midst of the chaos..."

He made a throat-cutting gesture.

After things developed to this point, everyone was filled with resentment.

If Zhang Xu really makes up his mind, they would be happy to see it happen.

Just then, Qin An stepped forward and said, "People can't die here; the consequences would be endless. But if they're just injured..."

"Not bad." Zhang Xu nodded.

He then revealed all his thoughts.

"Xu Mao is a suspicious man. If we act as if we are completely unprepared, he may not come."

"But if we deliberately expose a flaw, making him think that we can find a handle on us, or even capture Yuwen Zhi again, he will definitely be tempted."

Luo Kai exclaimed excitedly, "Great idea! As long as that good-for-nothing gets hurt, we can legitimately send him back to the capital to recuperate!"

Qin An frowned: "This plan is dangerous. If the rebels really launch a full-scale attack on the camp, our army will likely suffer significant losses."

"I know," Zhang Xu sighed, "but this is the only way to get rid of him. It's better for us to lose some troops than for him to ruin everything."

He looked at Qin An: "General Qin, the key tonight is you. If the rebels come, they will definitely be eyeing Yuwen Zhi's camp. What you need to do is to 'rescue' him from the chaos of battle, to injure him a little, but not to kill him."

Qin An nodded: "This subordinate obeys the order."

"General Cheng, you take your men and set up an ambush outside the camp. Once the rebels enter the camp, cut off their retreat, launch a feigned attack, and make them feel that they have gained an advantage, so they will retreat on their own."

"yes!"

"General Luo, your injuries have not yet healed, so please take charge of the central army, stabilize morale, and do not let the soldiers see any flaws."

Although Luo Kai was unwilling, he could only reply, "Yes."

With the plan settled, everyone dispersed to prepare.

As dusk fell, the government troops deliberately relaxed their guard, with half the number of patrolling soldiers as usual. Some soldiers responsible for guarding the supplies even dozed off outside their tents.

These actions were observed by the rebel scouts on the city wall, who quickly reported them to Li Mi and Xu Mao.

Inside the Xinyang City Lord's Mansion, Xu Mao looked at the scout's report, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, his eyes flashing with a thoughtful light.

"My lord, the government troops have suffered heavy losses today, and their camp must be in chaos. Now is the perfect opportunity to raid their camp," a general said excitedly.

Li Mi looked at Xu Mao: "What do you think, sir?"

Xu Mao pondered for a moment and said, "Zhang Xu is no ordinary man. It's rather unusual that he suddenly relaxed his guard after such a humiliating defeat today."

"But our men can see clearly that their soldiers are slacking off; they haven't even guarded the supply depot properly," another general said. "Maybe they really can't hold on any longer, and their morale is low."

Xu Mao shook his head: "Not necessarily, but..." He changed the subject, "There might really be some problems within their ranks."

He had this idea in mind when he suggested exchanging Yuwen Zhi back.

Rather than dealing with the troublesome Zhang Xu, it's better to confront the incompetent Yuwen Zhi.

The fact that the government troops were so eager to attack the city during this period shows that their original plan had succeeded.

Now that this situation has arisen again, it has actually made him a little tempted.

Li Mi's eyes lit up: "Old Xu, you mean...?"

"We can give it a try," Xu Mao said. "Send three thousand elite soldiers, led by Wang Dang, to launch a night raid on the camp."

"Our target is Yuwen Zhi's camp. If we succeed, we'll capture him. If it's a trap, we'll retreat immediately. With that incompetent Yuwen Zhi around, they won't dare to pursue us too closely."

"Good!" Li Mi immediately ordered, "Wang Dang, muster your troops immediately and launch a surprise attack on the government army's camp at midnight tonight!"

"Yes!" Wang Dang accepted the order and left.

As night deepened, the government army camp was completely silent, with only a few tents still lit by faint lights.

Yuwen Zhi's tent was located in the middle of the main camp, and was only guarded by a dozen or so personal guards, which seemed to indicate that the defenses were lax.

At midnight, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from outside the city. Wang Dang led three thousand rebel soldiers and sneaked into the government army camp like ghosts.

They bypassed the patrolling soldiers and headed straight for Yuwen Zhi's camp.

"Attack!" Wang Dang shouted, and the rebel soldiers immediately charged at the guards.

The guards seemed completely unprepared and were instantly cut down, with most of them falling to the ground.

Wang Dang led his men into the tent, only to find it empty except for a lone lamp flickering in the wind.

"Oh no! We've fallen into their trap!" Wang Dang's expression changed drastically, and he turned to retreat.

Just then, torches suddenly lit up all around the camp, and shouts of battle filled the air.

Cheng Zhiyuan led his ambush troops out from the shadows and cut off the rebels' retreat.

"Traitors, don't run! Leave your lives behind!"

Wang Dang was both shocked and furious, realizing he had fallen into a trap. He had no choice but to steel himself and order, "Charge out!"

The rebels and government troops clashed instantly, swords flashing and firelight crackling, screams echoing throughout the battlefield.