The moment Zhan Qi’s words fell, Feng Xiyan shot him a warning look. "General Zhan, mind your words."
Realizing he had spoken out of turn, Zhan Qi restrained his anger and bowed. "Great General, this subordinate was wrong. Please forgive me."
Looking at his unwilling expression, Feng Xiyan sighed and motioned for him to sit.
He then looked at the others and explained, "We must obey the imperial decree. Otherwise, not only will our families suffer, but the soldiers and common people might be implicated as well."
Ding Zhenshun frowned at his words and said, "But Great General, if we hand over our food and water, we will be sentencing ourselves to death. This subordinate agrees with General Zhan. We cannot give them our supplies."
"This general knows," Feng Xiyan replied calmly.
Seeing his composed expression, Fan Wanming asked, "Great General, what is in your mind?"
Feng Xiyan gave a faint smile and explained, "News of our victory against the Yuezhi Tribe has already spread to the surrounding counties. This general suspects that the one who leaked it was Kai Mu."
After he said that, Zhan Qi scratched his head and asked, "Kai Mu is a very proud person. Why would he spread the news of his defeats? Doesn’t he want his face anymore?"
Feng Xiyan tapped the long table slowly with his index finger and said thoughtfully, "This general hasn’t found the reason for him to spread the news. Although Kai Mu is not smart, he is not the kind of person who does things without reason. There must be something he wants by doing this."
As soon as he said this, Xue Ruhong asked, "Could the reason behind this be related to the fake secret order?"
Feng Xiyan replied, "There is this possibility, but we don’t have the evidence."
He paused for a moment and then added, "To send a message from here to the imperial capital city would take at least twenty days by 800 li fast horse. For the messenger to send the news to Prime Minister Wen and then return with the secret order will take at least 40 days."
"It’s unlikely the imperial court could have learned about us having food and water so quickly, let alone sent a secret order this fast."
"Besides, even Kai Mu doesn’t know for sure whether we have food or water. How could the imperial court be so certain we can fulfill their demand?"
After his explanation, Tan Pengtai’s eyes lit up with realization. He clenched his fists and asked, "Great General, are you saying... this secret order fake?"
Feng Xiyan nodded. "This general is sure that the secret order wasn’t issued by the young Emperor or Prime Minister Wen."
"Based on Prime Minister Wen’s careful personality, if he knew that we had won and had supplies, he would have sent people to force us to hand over the supplies instead of issuing a secret order."
"Just now, Feng Yi reported that the second young master of the Wen family, Wen Yirui, is currently with the Yuezhi Tribe. He is now treated as an honored guest by Kai Mu and stays in their main camp."
Xue Ruhong pondered on this information for a moment and then said, "Great General, Wen Yirui is rumored to be a useless playboy who only knows how to spend money and chase women. I doubt he is smart enough to forge an imperial decree."
Feng Xiyan nodded in agreement. "He may not be clever, but fools are often bold. If Kai Mu wants to borrow a knife to kill us, Wen Yirui is the perfect blade."
At that, Zhan Qi frowned. "But, Great General, even if we suspect the secret order is fake, we have no evidence. Moreover, the imperial seal is authentic."
"You are right," Feng Xiyan acknowledged. "But since we believe the secret order is fake, why should we comply with their unreasonable demand? We can simply claim we never received it."
"What if Prime Minister Wen sends someone to force us to hand over the supplies?" Tan Pengtai asked.
Feng Xiyan’s eyes flashed with cold murderous intent when he heard Tan Pengtai’s question.
He sneered and replied, "This general is not afraid of them coming, but only worried they won’t send someone to cause trouble."
Xue Ruhong looked at Feng Xiyan thoughtfully before asking, "Great General, what are your plans?"
Feng Xiyan retracted his murderous intent and replied calmly, "For now, our priority is to recruit more soldiers, forge more weapons and armor, and prepare for the coming war. Our enemy isn’t just the Yuezhi Tribe, but also other tribes and empires in this Central Continent."
There had been a severe drought across the Central Continent. It hadn’t rained in over two years. The rising temperatures had cracked the land, and not even a single blade of grass survived.
Apart from the Yu Empire, other kingdoms, empires, and tribes were also doing everything they could to secure food.
If word got out that Xiqiang City had food and water, those powers would surely attack. If the Feng Army remained weak, there would be only one fate awaiting them which is death.
Now, conscription, arms production, and training were all in full swing.
Although the Yuezhi Tribe’s main force had retreated 300 li from Xiqiang City, tens of thousands of the Yuezhi Tribe’s soldiers were still stationed ten kilometers outside the city gates, watching Xiqiang City like hungry wolves.
In this situation, Xiqiang City could be attacked at any time.
No matter what happened, Feng Xiyan and the others had to protect their food supply and defend the city to the death.
The generals looked at one another, realizing their situation was more dire than they had thought.
Clasping their fists, they responded in unison, "This subordinate accepts the order!"
Just as they finished speaking, a soldier called out from outside, "Great General, the victory banquet is ready. The brothers are waiting for you and the generals."
Hearing this, Feng Xiyan looked at the generals and said, "We shouldn’t keep the brothers waiting too long. Let’s go."
The generals nodded and replied, "Yes, Great General."
Following Feng Xiyan, they made their way to an open area in the center of the barracks, where tonight’s victory banquet was being held.