Chapter 494: Chapter 494: Unwilling to Accept Defeat
So although the destruction caused by the earthquake was immense, the casualties in the state city were not as high as imagined.
After settling the people and burying the deceased, the soldiers now took their positions to continue their mission of guarding Lingyun State City.
Lord Governor then led the surviving populace to rebuild with current resources, aiming merely to construct a simple shelter.
Fortunately, though the earthquake caused significant destruction, it was mainly to the buildings and not as terrifying as outside the city.
The earthquake tore the ground into two, the fissure resembling a giant chasm, but this chasm allowed them to immediately focus on rescuing the people post-disaster.
Now the order in Lingyun State City is somewhat restored, with the government and city guards performing their duties, all for the sake of Lingyun State.
General Zhao and others still held the first line of defense, with the damaged city walls promptly repaired.
Although there was no immediate sign of the Northern Army, they dared not be complacent, for these people were relentless in achieving their goals, yet they were granted a moment to breathe.
Despite the continuous battles, even with ample prior preparation, the consumption of stones, rolling wood, and oil was substantial, making this an opportune moment to replenish supplies.
It is uncertain how long the chasm before the city gate extends.
It won’t be long before they find out; by calculation, it should be soon.
"General..."
As he was thinking, a sound came from behind, and General Zhao turned around.
"The scouts have returned."
As he spoke, General Zhao already saw, "What’s the situation?"
He asked impatiently, as the information was crucial for future planning, how could he not be anxious!
"Reporting to the General, we walked for five or six days yet couldn’t leave the fissure’s range; eastwards, it extended beyond Lingyun’s boundary to Linzhou, westwards to the Daze Mountains, splitting the connected Daze Mountains into two."
"Even the Daze Mountain was split in two," General Zhao gasped.
The earthquake was terrifying indeed!
Luckily, there were still several dozen feet between the city gate and the fissure; otherwise, they, too, would be endangered.
Even so, the thick walls suffered significant impact, but they were fortunate nonetheless.
"General, this is indeed beneficial for us; it won’t be easy for the Northern Army to cross the chasm," Deputy General Wang said, finally easing his tense expression.
This was the only good news they had heard for days.
It afforded them significant breathing time.
"Even so, we cannot relax, as the Northern invaders are cunning and brutal who knows what they might do next, order must be given to closely monitor their movements, leaving nothing unchecked."
"Understood," the deputy general affirmed.
Staring at the winding, unfathomable fissure before the city gate, General Zhao squinted his eyes.
This fissure, though it blocked the Northern invaders, also obstructed their own path.
Five miles away at the Northern Army’s main camp, the atmosphere was equally tense.
The earthquake had passed for several days, but its repercussions were far from over.
When Teng Da and Reitel returned to the desolate village encampment with less than half of their troops, they were greeted by chaos.
The refurbished desolate village was now a scene of devastation, filled with people’s cries, horse neighs, and livestock screeches, with Northern warriors sitting moaning by the roadside, all dust-covered and terrified, an image that darkened the two commanders’ faces even more.
The loss was devastating.
After a few days of rest, the commanders were still unwilling to give in.
Combining both forces amounts to tens of thousands of troops, now left with less than half; the frustration lies in that most were not killed in battle but taken by an earthquake at the city gate, nearly ten thousand warriors, while at camp, too, injuries and fatalities were severe, a significant loss indeed, yet they hadn’t even touched the gates of Lingyun State City, simply unbearable, and as they calmed down, they couldn’t resign themselves to this outcome.
So they decided to dispatch their troops once more, unwilling to accept the loss of so many warriors without capturing Lingyun City.
On the seventh day after the earthquake, Teng Da and Reitel led twenty thousand troops again to the city gate, only to be halted by the unfathomable chasm several feet wide.
On their way, Teng Da and Reitel had prepared, attempting to place their prepared ladders across the chasm.
But would the ancient Yan army on the walls let them succeed? Arrows rained down upon the Northern invaders, and massive stones from catapults targeted the ladders attempting to span the chasm.
Continuous breakages, damage, and falling into the chasm turned Teng Da and Reitel’s faces red with rage, yet powerless, the distance allowed the ancient Yan soldiers an advantageous position, even though they had archers, the effect was poor.
After a deadlock of an hour, with all brought ladders destroyed and nearly a thousand men lost, while the enemy’s losses were negligible, they were enraged into a temporary retreat to find another way.
"I refuse to believe there’s no other way, someone..."
A furious roar issued from the tent, following which someone hastily entered, and shortly after, two groups sped off in different directions.
In Shanggu Town, Hu Hu brought good news to the county magistrate, and soon after, the surviving people of Shanggu Town moved to the Daze Mountain, beginning the reconstruction of their homes over several days.
This scene was visible everywhere in Shanggu Town where the survivors must continue to live.
In Hua Village, after days of repairing, it largely returned to its original state, with most people moving back into their homes, leaving only minor tasks that were not urgent.
The Hua family had also tidied things up, thanks to Lu Song sending over a dozen people for help; within a day, they had the main house roof cleaned up, sparing Hua Chengtian and his sons the effort, even the backyard was neatly arranged, this certainly won much favor.
Hua Jin’s attitude towards Luo Song also improved significantly, at least no longer deliberately avoiding him.
The old lady Hua originally liked Luo Song, and after seeing him help the family so greatly, she found him even more agreeable, frequently inviting him to meals at home and preparing many delicious dishes, causing Hua’s old man and Hua Chengtian to grumble internally but said nothing as they couldn’t bite the hand that helped.
With fewer people in their family, Luo Song’s people indeed helped quite a lot, enabling them to move back home swiftly, this act was commendably done by Luo Song.
Thus, with him appearing at Hua’s house so often, both men chose to ignore it.
Once each household was mostly repaired, Hua Chengtian led the village’s elders and youth to further repair the walls, reinforcing and elevating them.
While the earthquake hadn’t severely damaged the walls, there were still several cracks, though enduring the quake was quite encouraging for everyone.
For the village’s safety, it was essential to repair diligently.
Safety was paramount; it did not matter whether it was in accordance with regulations, as long as it was higher and more stable.
Similarly, to prevent any emergencies, they decided to erect a few watchtowers during the repairs, to constantly observe the surroundings and not be caught unaware if the enemy were to reach their doorstep.