Chapter 63: The Nine-headed Dragon Retreats to Huayin (Part 2)

  Shi Jin saw the expectant glint in Shi Jin's eyes, cleared his throat and said: "I think you guys broke through this time, but it solved a lot of my doubts. Let's talk about this eight-way siege first, actually what I and Brother Chen Da saw before were just the tricks played by that Meng bastard to cover our eyes, which made us underestimate their military strength. Just looking at the momentum of their pursuing troops, there are not as many as we previously calculated."

  Shi Qian and Chen Da exchanged a glance, and Chen Da also sighed, taking over the conversation to add: "Moreover, our initial judgment was also incorrect. That old thief didn't use the Eight Sides Surrounding City method, but rather the Eight Sides Ambush. Shi Qian, you don't know that before my brother and I led the troops to charge into the Northwest Great Camp, we had planned to borrow the hands of those government soldiers to help us flatten this bandit camp that blocks our path. But unexpectedly, as soon as we charged open the camp gate, we were met with a strange array laid out by the government army ahead of time. Fortunately, my brother was in front, using their own tactics against them and turning the tables, or else we would have truly fallen into their trap and gone to our deaths."

  At this moment, Shi Jin also remembered the strange formation in the northwest camp, but at that time he didn't have time to think about it. Under the influence of his master Wang Jin, speed was everything on the battlefield, so he took advantage of the horse's swift momentum and achieved a goal he had never thought of before. Although they barely escaped with their lives, now sitting down and thinking carefully, this formation may be small, but its lethality is quite vicious, and it's hard not to feel a little fear. At this moment, Shi Jin was still intimidated by the swift killing momentum of the archers, but he didn't know that it was actually the mistake of the general guarding the camp that saved their lives.

  At this moment, Shi Jin didn't know what Shi Jin was thinking, and continued to say: "I didn't expect them to play such a trick, no wonder they sent such an inadequate force to attack the city. It turned out that it was just a decoy to lure us out. You don't know, as the saying goes, 'the monk can run but not the temple', our isolated city is here, and we are not really going to break through. If we do break through, what about this Huayin County that has been obtained with great difficulty? Brother, you say it's true, so from anyone's idea, it also implies a retreat mentality. They grasped our thinking and inferred our 'shoot the horse first, capture the king' strategy, and set up an ambush in the big village in advance."

  Shi Jin nodded in agreement, he never thought that Shi Yan's cleverness was not only in being mischievous, but also in strategy. He took over the conversation and said: "Brother, your analysis is thorough. I chased after the government soldiers and rushed into the big camp, at that time I was a bit puzzled, why such an important place could be easily breached. I thought it was because of the similarity in uniforms, and secretly felt proud of myself for a moment. But unexpectedly, when I killed my way to the back mountain, I fell into the ambush on the mountain. However, I reckon that they probably thought of this step from the very beginning, otherwise they wouldn't have set up a big camp at the west mountain instead of the mountain pass."

  Chen Da nodded in agreement, saying hastily: "This commander didn't expect to be such a formidable opponent! When I was sweeping away the attacking troops at the foot of the city wall, I had an unusual feeling. This eight-sided attack is actually a good tactic, which would make us busy and unable to take care of everything. But as I killed my way around the city wall, the troops behind me became weaker, and by the time I reached the East Gate, there were only over a thousand attacking troops left, which didn't look like an attacking force at all. The more I walked, the more ominous I felt, so I hurried back to join Big Brother. When I arrived, the big camp had caught fire, and Big Brother was trapped in the encirclement of the government troops."

  "This guy has already set up this chess piece, so his play is definitely not over yet. Who knows, there might be some tricks tonight. We need to prepare well." Shi Jin furrowed his brow, feeling the taste of being played for the first time. This feeling was not only unpleasant, but also very suffocating! But for now, except for taking it one step at a time and countering each move, he really couldn't think of any other way.

  "What a big catch!" A voice with urgent gasps for breath sounded at the door.

  Shi Jin and the others turned their heads to look, and in a flurry, they saw that it was indeed Li Bai Cao who had rushed in. He put down his purple medicine box on the corner of the table with the map spread out, and then came over to examine Shi Jin's shoulder injury. Everyone stopped talking at this moment, silently watching as Li Bai Cao opened up Shi Jin's collar and pulled down his entire shirt. Li Bai Cao looked at the wound, shaking his head uncontrollably, and in a fit of rage, he stuttered: "You... I... you... Ah! I won't bother with you anymore!" Li Bai Cao glared at the bloodstain on Shi Jin's shoulder that had just begun to congeal, and with a sweep of his sleeve, he turned to leave.

  Shi Qian took a look and hurriedly stepped forward, wanting to stop Li Bai Cao, but didn't dare to confront him directly, perhaps because he had been suppressed by him before and was left with a psychological shadow. He simply held onto Li Bai Cao's arms with both hands and said with a smile: "Good doctor, good doctor, didn't your master ever tell you that saving lives and treating injuries is a heavenly duty? What's the point of throwing such a big tantrum, hehe, huh?"

  "What nonsense is this! Just... Ah, at a critical moment like this, I shouldn't be saying such things, but keeping it in my heart makes me anxious. What I want to say must still be said." Li Baicao put down the medicine box he had picked up and turned his face to look at Shi Jin: "Master of the house, I've treated you many times before, haven't I? And didn't I do my best each time? Even yesterday, I used the last bottle of secret medicine left by my master before he passed away. It was something I had been saving for my son when he was injured by Huang Tianba. Last night, I used half a jar to treat your wounds. What did I do all this for?" Li Baicao became somewhat agitated as he spoke and looked around at the people in the city tower with a pained expression: "Wasn't it just so you could recover quickly? If you recover, my heart will be at ease, and everyone's hearts will be at ease too. That way, we'll have some hope of winning this battle. I only ask that you rest for one day, wait one more night until the new flesh has grown and solidified... but I couldn't stop you!"

  Li Baicao looked at Shi Jin, his eyes slightly misty, and pointed to his own chest with a stiff finger: "But I couldn't stop you... This city is surrounded! What's the use of being anxious for the time being? Is there any use? Now I've healed your injury once, but if you don't take care of it yourself, can I still help you recover from it?"

  "Bai Cao, I understand your concerns, this siege on the city is also making Big Brother anxious." Chen Da looked at Lei Bai Cao and saw how emotional she was, so he thought of a way to console her.

  "I knew he was in a hurry, so I felt that this conversation wasn't going well either, but if I didn't say anything, it wouldn't be satisfying..."

  Shi Jin listened, smiled foolishly, and then smoothed over the atmosphere, saying: "Hehe... Bai Cao is right, just relying on Lang Zhong's good medicine won't work, I also need to come to my senses and take good care of myself, hehehe"

  Li Bai Cao felt that he had gotten a bit too excited earlier and it wasn't good to continue, so he stopped and opened the medicine box. As he bandaged Shi Jin's wounds, he asked about the current situation. Chen Da explained from the beginning of the siege to the battle at dusk, roughly making things clear. By the time he finished speaking, Li Bai Cao had a preliminary understanding, and he also re-applied medicine and bandages to Shi Jin's wound.

  Li Baicao put away the things, closed the medicine box, stood in place, sighed and then said abruptly: "This Huayin County... is impossible to defend!"