Chapter 43: A Long Howl (III)

Killing someone merely requires lowering their head to the ground—in an instant, He Dan, who had acted as a lackey for the villains, ended up with his head and body separated.
Li Kuo walked slowly toward the trembling girl curled up in fear, trying to keep his expression as gentle as possible.
“What’s your name?”
“Gui… Gui Chun.”
The girl shrank back slightly, cautiously observing the man before her.
“You’re from Mi County. How did you end up like this?”
Li Kuo cleared his throat a few times, stopping short of going into details.
“They’re beasts, demons!”
Hearing this, Gui Chun became emotionally agitated. She tightened the torn cloth covering her chest and said through gritted teeth, “Since these bandits invaded the county town, they’ve been burning, killing, and looting along the main streets. Everyone hates them deeply. But since they have swords, the locals can only feel anger without speaking up. They’ve had to lock their doors tightly, hoping the rebels won’t come here.”
Gui Chun sobbed a few times. “Perhaps these rebels just conquered the city recently, and their excitement has yet to fade. So far, they’ve only destroyed the taverns and tea shops in the front part of the city. Since last night, once they grew tired of that, they started going door to door in the back part of the city, searching for people… Those beasts demanded that each household hand over a woman. If they refused, the whole family would have their ribs broken and be humiliated to death in the streets.”
At that moment, as if recalling some tragic scenes, Gui Chun instinctively closed her eyes and began to sob softly.
“Damn those filthy bastards!”
Pu Da Chui swung his hammer in the air and cursed. “What kind of man are you if you only know how to bully women and children? If you’ve got guts, come at me! Damn it, don’t let me catch them!”
Gui Chun paused for a moment before continuing, “My house is in the middle part of the back city. The rebels won’t find it anytime soon, but I still can’t sleep out of fear. My parents died when I was young, and I was raised entirely by my elder brother. I had a deep affection for him. Not wanting to see me humiliated, he decided to escape from the house with me in the darkness. After planning everything, we waited for nightfall. Finally, at midnight, my brother and I climbed over the courtyard wall and left the house. We ran along the alleys as fast as we could. Just as we were about to turn the corner, my brother tripped over a stone and cried out in pain. Afraid of attracting the rebels, I covered his mouth. Only after he calmed down a bit did I check his wound. Who would have thought his leg was broken, with a long piece of bare bone exposed?”

Gui Chun sobbed continuously, “Under these circumstances, it’s definitely impossible to leave the city overnight. I carried my elder brother to Dr. Sun’s clinic on the street to seek treatment. When we knocked on the door, Dr. Sun hesitated for a moment before letting us in. He took a look at my brother’s injured leg with a oil lamp and shook his head. I begged him to cure my brother, but he only said he would do his best.”
After a pause, Gui Chun continued, “He arranged for us to stay temporarily. I thought there was nothing else we could do, so I didn’t overthink it, only hoping my brother’s injury would heal soon so we could escape this damned city as soon as possible!”
“Hmph, your brother is such a weak, useless scholar who can’t even take care of himself—he broke his leg while trying to run away. If it were up to me, Pu Da Chui, you should run away by yourself and leave him behind!”
Pu Da Chui shrugged and sneered, “Having such a good-for-nothing scholar around is just a drag.”
“Da Chui!”
Li Kuo glared at Pu Da Chui, signaling him to stop talking nonsense.
“Miss Gui Chun, please go on.”
“I thought Dr. Sun was a doctor who practiced medicine to help people, with a kind heart like a Bodhisattva. But who would have thought that when I went to use the bathroom, I overheard him and his wife discussing in the front room how to report our attempt to escape the city to the rebels in exchange for rewards!”
Gui Chun said through gritted teeth, filled with resentment.
“Damn it! How shameless is this Dr. Sun? Is he even a man after doing such a thing?”
Pu Da Chui couldn’t hold back any longer and cursed out loud.
“I told my brother about it and wanted to escape with him. He sighed deeply and told me to run away alone and not worry about him. Of course, I refused. It wasn’t until dawn that he shooed me out of the house.”
Gui Chun sobbed softly, “I only thought about escaping alive to seek revenge on that heartless Dr. Sun someday. But by then it was already daylight, and there were many people on the road. I could only walk slowly. By noon, I didn’t even dare to eat at a stall; I just carefully made my way toward the city walls. But who would have thought that I would find my brother’s head on top of the city wall!”
Gui Chun couldn’t speak anymore and buried her face in her arms, sobbing softly.
“Damn those wretched dogs!”
Xian Yu Cheng couldn’t hold back and cursed loudly, “An Lushan claimed to be raising an army to punish corrupt officials and remove them from power, but in the end, all he did was cause harm to the people.”
“I thought something was strange when we entered the city—such a large county was eerily quiet. It turns out the neighbors were all hiding at home, too scared to come out!”
Li Sheng shook his head with a bitter smile, sighing deeply.

“There are many Hu soldiers on the city walls, and checkpoints have been set up. I dare not show my face; I can only wait until nightfall. Occasionally, I encounter some wandering Hu soldiers. Later on…”

Gui Chun spoke with growing distress, eventually crying uncontrollably.

“What a tragedy!”

Li Kuo clenched his fists and slowly closed his eyes.

“Please, General, take me in! I can cook, I can mend clothes—I can do anything. I’m not afraid of hard work. Please, take me in!”

Gui Chun was in tears, kneeling on the ground and clinging tightly to Li Kuo’s legs, begging earnestly.

“Well… fine. I agree. But first, get yourself dressed properly!”

After hesitating for a moment, Li Kuo agreed to her request. Such a weak woman had almost no ability to protect herself in these chaotic times. If he left her here, another tragedy like today might occur. He could save her once—could he save her every time?

“Thank you, General! I will never forget your kindness!”

Overjoyed at Li Kuo’s approval, Gui Chun bowed repeatedly.

“Get up now!”

In this world, how many more could he save? Since An Lushan’s rebellion, Li Kuo had never felt as helpless as he did now.

“Heh, Commander, if you ask me, there shouldn’t be many Hu soldiers in this Mi County. Why not take the chance to deal with these scum and avenge the people?”

Pu Dachui gritted his teeth. They didn’t even hit them in the face—such behavior from the rebels was utterly intolerable.

These mere barbarian invaders really think the Tang Dynasty has no one to defend it?

Li Kuo slowly opened his eyes and said coldly, “Heaven’s misdeeds may be forgiven, but one’s own misdeeds deserve death! Since they have oppressed the women, children, and the elderly of the Tang Dynasty, I will avenge this with blood! All generals, follow my order—leave not a single Hu soldier in the city!”