Fortunately, no more Xiongnu people broke through, giving a distinct feeling of one man guarding the pass, unassailable.
The Xiongnu trapped inside were isolated and helpless. Although they were fierce and killed many from the Celestial Dynasty, their numbers gradually dwindled. Eventually, they carved out a bloody path to freedom. Several generals rushed to assist Wu Caiwei, and she immediately felt a great deal of relief.
As the faces of the Xiongnu soldiers disappeared from her sight and the gate slowly closed, Wu Caiwei genuinely wished she could collapse and rest. But she knew it wasn't the time. With a final sword strike, she helped them close the gate quickly.
Seeing their retreat blocked, the Xiongnu soldiers trapped inside knew they were doomed. They began to roar and fight back fiercely, and for a time, the soldiers of the Celestial Dynasty were at a loss.
Seeing this, Wu Caiwei quickly drew her sword and joined the fray. As the last Xiongnu soldier fell, so did she. The others rushed forward and, seeing she was merely exhausted, breathed a sigh of relief.
When she awoke again, it was already dark. She walked onto the city wall and looked at the scattered tents outside the city. Liu Er Niu chattered excitedly, telling her that the near breach of the city gate had been the work of spies. He then launched into a tirade, cursing them because some had been lurking in the city for over a decade.
The second prince of the Xiongnu sat in his tent with a grim expression. They had been so close to success. Not only had they failed, but they had also lost so many men and exposed the spies they had planted in the enemy's ranks. It was a huge loss.
As dawn broke, the sound of hooves echoed from the opposite side, making the ground tremble. They knew another full-scale attack was imminent. The soldiers of the Celestial Dynasty felt a sense of unhurried calm.
But when they looked down at the city walls, they were stunned. "What is that?" they all asked in unison.
Soon, the Xiongnu provided their answer. "This is your general. Behind them are prisoners of war. What do you think? Is this a great gift from us? It remains to be seen if you can take them back."
With that, the leader waved his hand, and the Xiongnu immediately pushed the figures forward, into the firing range of the Celestial Dynasty.
Everyone frowned in unison. Would they really force these captured soldiers of the Celestial Dynasty to charge forward? If so, shooting these captured but unbetrothed soldiers would surely dampen the morale of others. But if they didn't fire, they could only watch them advance. This was a truly wicked tactic.
Wu Caiwei imagined that if she were in the governor's position, she would likely eliminate them without hesitation, to be responsible for her soldiers and the people behind them. She would have to sacrifice them.
The governor's thoughts coincided with hers. Although he had only ordered the archers to prepare so far, the constant delivery of wood, oil, and tinder suggested that a major engagement was imminent.
Wu Caiwei stood on the city wall, quietly watching them approach step by step, calculating the distance between them and the city wall. As long as they took two more steps forward, even if the governor didn't order them to fire, she would make them do so. After all, beyond that point, the enemy could easily deploy siege ladders, and even with the constant bombardment of logs, there would be no escape.
She silently counted down. Only one step left. They shouldn't be blamed for being ruthless; after all, the battlefield was cruel, and there were gains and losses.
The generals, pushed forward in the prisoner carts, lowered their heads. As generals, they knew they were doomed today. One of the generals suddenly raised his head. The moment Wu Caiwei met his eyes, her pupils involuntarily widened. She turned to look at the governor, and indeed, his hand was already raised. The moment he lowered it, arrows would rain down upon them.
"No," Wu Caiwei blurted out without thinking, and at the same time, she leaped over the city wall and plummeted down.
The governor, hearing the commotion, turned his head in a daze and saw her falling. He had no idea what had happened and desperately wanted to follow her.
The other generals immediately grabbed his hand. "My lord, you cannot, you cannot..."
The governor struggled with all his might but couldn't break free, feeling a sense of despair. At this moment, he understood what it meant to have one's heart turn to ashes.
Wu Caiwei, below the city wall, did not fall into a pulp. Instead, she landed steadily on the ground. Swiftly and accurately, she drew the sword from her waist and cleaved it forcefully into the prisoner cart, shattering it into pieces. Meeting her eyes, the prisoners immediately showed expressions of joy.
Some of the Xiongnu soldiers had never seen Wu Caiwei before, but they had long heard of an exceptionally skilled female warrior in the Celestial Dynasty's army. As a result, when they saw her, they all drew their swords defensively, and no one dared to approach.
This facilitated Wu Caiwei's actions. She grabbed the people from the prisoner cart and, with a few leaps, reached the side of the wall.
"Quick, capture her! Whoever captures her, I will reward with ten thousand taels of gold," the second prince shouted excitedly as he witnessed the scene. It was the first time he had seen such a formidable woman, but sadly, she was not for his use. If he had known she cared so much about that man, he would never have pushed him onto the battlefield.
Using him as bait to lure the woman into his service was his ultimate goal. Of course, if she refused to surrender, he would destroy her if he couldn't possess her, so as not to pose a threat.
Under a great reward, there are always brave men. Although some were afraid for their lives and dared not advance, there were always those who were fearless, or perhaps they had not witnessed Wu Caiwei's prowess and were relying on luck.
Wu Caiwei gently set the man down, picked up her sword, and slowly stood up. A torrent of arrows from the city wall rained down like a storm upon the charging enemies, but they deliberately avoided her area. Wu Caiwei seemed to sense something and glanced back, seeing the governor looking at her with deep concern.
She nodded slightly and indifferently watched the men charging towards her. At this moment, clad in red, she was like a demon from hell, her blood constantly splashing onto her clothes, making the already red fabric even deeper in color.
She also had to guard against attacks from the sides. Periodically, she struck at those behind her. Slowly, the corpses in front of her piled up into a small mountain, completely enclosing the man within. Wu Caiwei stood atop the mountain of bodies, surveying her territory. Anyone who dared to intrude would surely never return.
The scene was so bloody and shocking that it stunned everyone, making them involuntarily steer clear of her.
The second prince was also astonished by her combat prowess. She alone had caused him to lose so many warriors. Although he felt a pang of fear, he realized at this moment that if he didn't eliminate this woman, his southward advance would be impossible. He quickly ordered the archers to prepare, believing that with so many archers, they would surely hit her.
Seeing this, the governor cried out, "Not good!" and quickly ordered a siege ladder to be thrown down. Wu Caiwei seized the opportunity, grabbed the man, and frantically ran towards the siege ladder.
As the archers shot arrows at them, some men rushed to the bottom of the siege ladder and kicked it forcefully, causing it to fall.