Chapter 72 — The Medicine Bearer Through the Chaos

Amidst the Ruins

The following days passed in a non-stop work cycle, as Nghinh Phong citadel entered the harshest phase of the siege. Although a third of the northern citadel was lost, the rest still stood firm thanks to resilient defense efforts, but the price to pay was a huge number of casualties that the military medical station had to endure every day.

Tinh Yen now almost takes on the role of coordinating the entire medical work of the whole city, when Ngan Ba Thuyen, due to her old age, has begun to become exhausted after many days of continuous work, and Nhuoc Lan has to spend most of her time in the epidemic quarantine area, which is still not completely under control. She moved between the tents like a tireless shadow, even though inside, every step was heavy with worries about Thanh Phong who was still missing in the mountains and forests of the Northeast.

"Doctor Do, the East area has twenty new cases that need urgent surgery." Ton Ba Nghi reported, his voice had become much more mature than the clumsy young man of the first days of coming to Nghinh Phong. "I have classified them according to priority as you taught, but I still need you to directly handle the most complicated cases."

"I'll be there soon." Tinh Yen replied, brushing away the fatigue that was gnawing at every muscle fiber to continue walking towards the surgery area.

The work continued endlessly — sawing off limbs that were beyond repair, stitching up deep wounds, giving fluids to bodies exhausted from losing so much blood. There were nights when Tinh Yen stood at the operating table until her hands shook from exhaustion, but she still did not allow herself to stop, because every second of delay could mean an irreversible life.

In the midst of those stressful moments, memories of old losses continuously rushed back, creeping into her rare moments of rest. At one point, looking at a young soldier dying on the operating table, she saw the image of Dang Thi Van from years ago, her best friend's face gradually turning pale under the oil lamp light in the old house in Lach Dua. At one point, amid the panic of a high fever breaking out in the quarantine area, she heard Ms. Khue's voice echoing, teaching her how to keep her hands steady when the whole world around her was shaking.

And now, a new pain - the possibility of losing Thanh Phong - smolders under the surface of every action, every decision she makes every day, like an underground stream that never stops flowing no matter how hard she tries to bury it with work.

"You need to rest, even if just for a little bit." Nhuoc Lan said, finding her late one evening, when Tinh Yen had just completed her tenth surgery of the day, her hands were still shaking from exhaustion. "I worry about you no less than I worry about the other patients."

"I can't stop." Tinh Yen replied, her voice hoarse. "If I stop, I'm afraid I won't have enough strength to get up and continue."

Nhuoc Lan was silent for a moment, then sat down next to her, holding her friend's shaking hands. "I understand." She said softly. "But you also taught me that an exhausted physician cannot save anyone. You need to keep yourself strong enough, not only to save others, but also to be able to go find Major General Thanh yourself when the time comes, as you promised yourself."

Those words were like a bitter but necessary medicine, causing Tinh Yen to stop and realize the truth in them. She nodded, letting Nhuoc Lan help her back to the tent to rest, getting a few rare hours of sleep before dawn came again with a new, challenging work day.

In the middle of that afternoon, Tinh Yen took the opportunity to stop by the area that used to be the Ben Lau refugee camp, which has now been moved close to the center area after the fall of the North Gate. Ms. Cuu Tram is still there, noticeably thinner after stressful days, but her hands still keep working, distributing the little remaining porridge to families who have lost everything.

"The lady looks so shabby." Cuu Tram said when she saw Tinh Yen, her voice was sad. "I heard the story of the young major general. Everyone in the refugee camp wished him well. He saved countless of us from the North Dich sword that night."

"Thank you for your concern." Tinh Yen replied, trying to smile even though her heart was still heavy. "How is the food situation here?"

"It's okay, even though the portions have to be divided into smaller portions than before." Cuu Tram sighed. "But I'm more worried about the medicine. These past few days, I've heard the warehouse guards whispering to each other that Master Chu still hasn't opened up more reserves, even though the situation has become so dire. Some people even said that on the night the North Gate fell, he personally saw him move some of his personal belongings to another part of the city, as if he had prepared for the worst in advance."

Tinh Yen paused, those words seemed to reignite the fire of doubt that had never really cooled down in her heart over the past few days. She thanked Mrs. Cuu Tram, promised to pay attention, then continued her work, but her mind now had a new concern, mixed with worries about Thanh Phong - the connection between Chu Dac Hoanh and what was happening behind the scenes of this siege.

She immediately found Ton Ba Nghi and told him what she had just heard. He frowned and nodded in confirmation. "I also vaguely heard something similar from the soldiers on guard." He said. "But no one has dared to say it directly, for fear of getting involved. Perhaps, when the situation is a little less tense, we should find a way to talk more closely with those who witnessed it with their own eyes."

"That's right." Tinh Yen replied, her voice thoughtful. "But right now, we don't have enough time or manpower to pursue it to the end. Let's keep every clue in mind, waiting until a more suitable opportunity arises."

The next morning, when Tinh Yen woke up, she saw Ve Khai Trach standing silently in front of her tent, looking like she had been waiting for a long time. His face was much more haggard than it had been a few days ago, his eyes were sunken due to constant insomnia, but his eyes still maintained the steadfastness of a general who did not allow himself to fall in front of three armies.

"I came to thank you." He said, his voice low. "Over the past few days, I have heard reports of what you have done for the army and the people of the city. You have shouldered a responsibility far greater than what anyone could have expected from a young medic."

"I only did what a physician should do, sir." Tinh Yen replied, bowing her head. "I know you are suffering as much pain as I am, perhaps even worse."

Ve Khai Trach was silent for a long time, his eyes looking distantly towards the mountains in the Northeast, where his son had disappeared without a trace. "I lost my eldest son on the battlefield many years ago." He spoke with a rare choking voice. "I don't want to go through that pain again. But as a soldier, I also understand that sometimes we don't have the right to choose what fate brings, we can only choose how we face it."

Those words made Tinh Yen speechless, realizing more clearly than ever the burden that the man in front of her was carrying on his shoulders - not only the responsibility of a general guarding an entire citadel, but also the silent pain of a father who had once lost a child, and now may be about to lose another.

"Hostage Thanh Phong is still alive." Tinh Yen said, her voice was determined even though her heart was full of doubt. "I have no solid proof, only a belief that I cannot give up."

Ve Khai Trach looked at her, the corners of his lips curled up into a tired but sincere smile. "I hope your belief is correct." he said. "And I promise, as soon as the defense situation is a little more stable, I will create all conditions for you to find the answer yourself, no matter how difficult the road ahead is."

He left immediately after, leaving Tinh Yen standing alone in the gray morning of Nghinh Phong city, carrying a newly strengthened determination - that no matter how long she had to wait, no matter how many hardships she had to overcome, she would never stop searching until she knew the final truth about the fate of the person she loved.

She returned to the military medical station, where a new working day had begun, groans of pain, hurried footsteps, and urgent orders echoed throughout the tent. But this time, when entering the middle of that cycle, Tinh Yen felt that in her heart there was no longer just simple fear, but a smoldering fire of determination, urging her to both save people and prepare for the day when she could herself enter the mountains and forests of the Northeast to find what was lost.