Saving System: Calm Down, My Fleeing Host!

Chapter 273 - 265: Emergency Situation

After spending so much time together, he had come to understand the young girl’s temperament; bold and efficient, she absolutely hated being questioned or delayed.

Even though he wasn’t very astute, he wasn’t the one holding everyone back. As a man, being ignorant and nagging only made him seem useless.

It would also make the young girl resentful. Now that they wanted to join the 132th Regiment, it was crucial not to mess things up.

Sure enough, it didn’t take long for them to realize the girl’s intention.

When the fan blades sped up and began to rotate rapidly, and the wind intensified, Sister Xiao sprinkled some powder into the mansion, and soon there was the sound of bodies thumping to the ground.

This... such a straightforward approach without any soldiers shocked them. Sister Xiao was truly cunning.

As if she had read their minds, Cheng Xiaoxiao replied, "It’s not that easy. Trouble is coming soon; get ready to deal with it."

For those skilled in martial arts, these knockout powders didn’t affect them at all.

Indeed, soon a few figures appeared in the night, sprinting towards them.

Cheng Xiaoxiao handed them several bottles of medicine, "Rub it on yourselves; it can weaken the enemy’s combat ability."

This was a good thing developed by Grandpa Huang during captivity; they were lucky to have it.

"Whether you can successfully join the team will depend on your performance."

The men behind were eager to try. When the captain returned and said that completing this mission would allow them to join the 132th Regiment, each was excited and full of vigor.

"Leave a few people at four points..."

She was about to say the direction at four o’clock but suddenly changed her words, "Surround the courtyard and sprinkle the knockout powder once in the south, west, and north directions."

Fang Zheng immediately gathered six people to release the knockout powder, while the others were ready to strike.

The night wind was biting, and the snow fell mercilessly. In the faint firelight in the distance, their silhouettes could barely be seen.

The men in black were all highly skilled in martial arts. Although their side had the advantage in numbers and cooperation, they were still at a disadvantage. If not for Fang Zheng and Lu Jingtian holding the line, the casualties would likely have been severe.

If they could hold on for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, there should be no problem.

She slipped into the dark shadows, avoiding the battle zone, and climbed over the wall into the mansion. Inside, servants lay scattered on the ground.

Guided by the system, she quickly found the granary.

After violently unlocking it and entering, she saw the warehouse was full. She used the old plan to open a burlap sack inside, which was filled with gleaming white rice. At a glance, there were at least several tons.

Tsk, tsk! These people were truly heartless, keeping so much food while the common people outside were starving.

Her small hand touched a sack, and a row of neatly placed grains instantly disappeared.

She repeated this several times until the warehouse was full but still hadn’t collected all the grain inside.

"Host, our warehouse can’t hold any more."

"Hmm, I know. Leave them some to save their lives. If they find out all the grain is gone, they’ll go mad and be hard to handle."

"How is the situation over there?"

"Luckily, the host had the foresight. Those people were indeed vicious, aiming straight for the vital points. The regular soldiers’ techniques were no match, but with your medicine, they can barely manage."

"How is the team’s withdrawal going?"

"No major issues so far. They’re advancing slowly and orderly; only the talks with the Han Family Master broke down."

This did not surprise Cheng Xiaoxiao; she never expected a family head like him to be swayed by a few words from the Han Family Master.

All they needed was to buy time to prevent them from interfering and ruining her plans.

"How about at the North Gate?"

"The situation isn’t good. The Rebel Army’s armed forces are too weak; there are very few with real swords and spears. Most are wielding axes, kitchen knives, hoes, sticks, and the like."

"How long can they hold?"

"It’s hard to say. Their only geographical advantage is a river about four meters wide in front. They’ve stacked sandbags and furniture planks as barricades. Once the crossing is breached, they’ll be overrun. They’ve held off two waves of arrow attacks by sheer numbers and are barely holding on."

"How many have died so far? Will it affect the mission result?"

She wanted to rush over but knew that if she didn’t deal with those roadblocks, they’d stab them in the back once they passed, which wouldn’t be pleasant.

"That should not be their only base. I see few women, children, and elderly people; likely, they’ve hidden them elsewhere. So we can’t yet calculate their total numbers."

"How will I know if they’ve exceeded the number of casualties?"

Considered the limit of a 10% death rate, Cheng Xiaoxiao felt a headache coming on.

"Just counted; there are 1832 people at the outpost."

"So many?"

More than 1800 to defend means at least five or six thousand elders, women, and children. With her resources, she felt relieved; having just looted so much grain, she wouldn’t have wanted to cry otherwise.

This was a burden foisted upon her, not something she wanted!

So many people mixed together, taken in without any filtration, who knows how many bad apples there are. Truly a huge pitfall.

"Brother Yang, what if they can’t hold Ming Shan?"

He raised his broadsword, quickly cutting an incoming arrow, and wiped his bloodstained face, casting a quick glance to the right.

Suppressing the sorrow and reluctance in his eyes, "There’s nothing we can do. After the third wave of arrows, many won’t remain; send in the third squad."

"But..."

"No buts." Yang Fan turned, sternly looking at the dazed boy.

The 16-year-old’s eyes were filled with reluctance and heartache. As the youngest messenger in the team, he usually ran the fastest, but now his feet seemed heavy, unable to take a step.

The cold snowflakes fluttered down on Yang Fan’s face. He looked up at the dark starry sky and slowly spoke, "Kid, do you want to die standing, or be humiliated kneeling, or watch your family and sisters be violated?"

The boy shook his head vigorously. He didn’t want to, a thousand, ten thousand times didn’t want to, just thinking about it brought tears to his eyes.

"Then go ahead. If you die up front, you won’t see it, and you won’t feel the pain." Yang Fan’s voice was somber, the grief and sorrow in his eyes seemed to overflow, reddening his eyes.

The boy bowed his head, his hands hanging by his sides clenched tightly to his coat.

Silently, he turned and stepped into the snow, leaving a trail of deep footprints.