Over an hour later, more than twenty water carts were finally filled.

Several soldiers retrieving water sighed in relief, saying, "This time it loaded quickly."

"Exactly, usually it takes half a day to load a dozen carts, but this time these more than twenty carts, bigger than usual, are filled in no time."

"Isn’t it great to finish quickly?"

The crowd chatted happily, feeling increasingly at ease, and they all mounted their horses and carts, preparing to head back.

Ma Xu mounted his horse, glancing once more at the opposite bank. The west bank of Little Forest River, like this side, was a vast stretch of lush greenery. When the wind passed, the branches and leaves swayed, resembling countless human figures moving. However, all this time passed without a single Longxi Soldier charging out.

So this time, his hope to encounter Xue Xian’s troops for a battle was dashed.

He let out a long sigh.

Beside him, Song Yu said, "I know you want to engage Xue Xian’s men, but today our mission is to retrieve water from outside the city. It’s a good thing everything went smoothly, don’t think about anything else. Once we take the supplies back, we’ll have our merit. Then, if we need to battle again, we’ll have something to leverage."

Ma Xu glanced at him and said unhappily, "You’re right."

After both of them mounted their horses, the troops quickly lined up in order. With the more than twenty water carts in the middle, the line was stretched out long. Ma Xu thought for a moment and said to Song Yu, "I’ll lead the way, you follow from behind. If anything goes wrong, signal immediately."

With that, he spurred his horse forward.

Watching his back, Song Yu knew all too well Ma Xu’s eagerness for battle; even now that the task was complete, he was still preoccupied. If they had indeed encountered the Longxi Army today, he would have been at the forefront, so he said no more, just smirked and shook his head, then called for the others to follow.

With that, the large group quickly escorted the heavy water cart convoy along their return route.

Though the carts were filled with water, they were somewhat lighter than usual, allowing them to move quickly. However, the sun was setting even faster. Though the sunlight was no longer scorching, the ground baked by the day still radiated heat. Standing on it felt like being roasted from above and below, making the heavy journey even more unbearable.

In this manner, amidst endless complaints, they walked for almost half an hour.

Finally, as the sun was about to set, they saw the towering Fufeng City Tower in the distance, surrounded by the evening glow.

Meanwhile, those standing atop the city wall peered into the distance, but facing the dazzling sunset, they couldn’t see further, so they had to wait patiently.

Yet the almost scorching heat from the nearly setting sun made everyone sweat profusely, especially the archers—shortly after Song Yu and Ma Xu left the city, Dai Junliang had gathered the archers in the army onto the city tower, standing behind the parapets, ready to respond immediately if the Longxi Army from the other riverbank crossed over and started a fight with the water collectors.

At this moment, these archers stood with arrow tubes on their backs, bows in hand, facing the sunset, sweat streaming down their rugged cheeks and pooling into small puddles at their feet.

Yet not a single one retreated.

Standing aside, like a bystander, Shang Ruyi wasn’t faring much better, her cheeks sunburnt red, and sweat continuously dripping.

"Young Madam,"

Just as the golden sunlight made it hard for Shang Ruyi to keep her eyes open, she heard Yin Changyue’s voice from behind. Turning around, she saw Yin Changyue walking over with Dai Junliang. Yin Changyue gave her a simple salute and said, "What brings you here, Young Madam?"

"I came to take a look."

With that, she glanced at the surrounding archers.

Yin Changyue thought she was scared and smiled, "It’s because Lord Dai is worried, fearing Xue Xian’s troops attacking the city, so all the archers were called up to the city tower, making such a big display."

Beside them, Dai Junliang said gravely, "The military order left by the Great General before he fell ill is indeed the most advantageous to our army right now. But with the water shortage in the city, opening the gates to fetch water is unavoidable. Xue Xian’s main force has already reached the west bank, and the daily consumption of food and fodder will double. He can’t wait like before and will surely seize this opportunity to attack the city."

"..."

"We must stay vigilant."

Shang Ruyi nodded gently.

The two shared a glance but tacitly didn’t speak further. Shang Ruyi leaned on the parapet to look down below the city tower, then said, "Let’s hope everything goes smoothly today."

Shantong’er, who had been standing beside her, blinked and said, "Don’t worry, Sister Ruyi. If Xue Xian’s men come, I’ll smash them back to the west bank with one blow each!" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Hearing this, those nearby couldn’t help but laugh.

Just then, someone from the other side called Dai Junliang, who bid a brief apology and turned away. Shang Ruyi watched him walk to the other side of the city tower, where a few people were holding copper gongs, seemingly discussing something with him. With a few words, he directed them, and they retreated with a hint of hesitation.

Shang Ruyi silently watched this scene, and as she blinked, a drop of sweat rolled down her long eyelashes.

Feeling slightly dizzy, she quickly stood up straight. Coming out in a hurry, she had forgotten to bring a handkerchief, and at this moment, there wasn’t even anything to wipe her sweat. Sweat continued to drip down her cheeks, forcing her to carefully wipe it with the back of her hand.

Just then, a handkerchief was handed in front of her.

"...!"

Shang Ruyi’s heart trembled slightly. She didn’t immediately take the snow-white handkerchief embroidered with a delicate ground blooming golden lotus in the corner. Instead, she looked slowly at the person holding the handkerchief along the fair and strong hand.

Yu Wenqian.

After accompanying her to the city tower, he stood not far behind, speaking seldom and never leaving. But Shang Ruyi always felt—since last night, she had felt that this man’s gaze was persistently on her.

As if, observing something, or scrutinizing something.

Now, meeting his smiling eyes again, which contained deep meaning, Shang Ruyi gently shook her head, using her sleeve to wipe the sweat from her chin, silently rejecting his "goodwill."

Yu Wenqian smiled subtly, softly saying, "Sister-in-law, it seems, never truly trusts me."

"..."

Shang Ruyi was silent for a moment: "Elder brother hasn’t done anything to make me suspicious."

Yu Wenqian said, "What I meant was, you don’t believe what I said."

"..."

"I said, I will help you."

Shang Ruyi’s brow furrowed slightly, but Yu Wenqian said no more and instead, still smiling, extended the handkerchief forward a bit more.

At that moment, a soldier beside them shouted, "They’re back!"