"Mr. Hou, Governor Pei, I am leading troops to Ming State, and the entirety of the Liangzhou Army relies on both of you, The Great Wall must be closely monitored, and once the barbarian bandits show signs of activity, you can implement scorched earth tactics and retreat to Liangzhou City to hold steadfast without venturing out."
Sitting atop his Fiery Fire Horse like a mountain, Lv Ji instructed the retainers including Mr. Hou who were staying behind.
"Rest assured, General Lv."
Pei Tiannan promised, "The Northern Territory in my charge will absolutely not encounter any problems."
Lv Ji looked at the young master who was riding fast towards him, "What are you doing?"
Sun Buqi, displaying the long spear in his hand, said, "I've achieved Bone Forging Perfection, I can be of help."
Lv Ji refused, "You and your junior sister should just stay put in Liangzhou. We don't need you."
Sun Buqi pressed on, "Big Brother, tell me straight, what's the situation in Ming State like now? Why are you starting to deploy a large army there again, has something happened?"
Lv Ji did not turn back, holding his Heavenly Halberd as he spurred his horse away, "He's betrayed the country."
Dong An had betrayed the country!
This kind of high-level intelligence was something the others simply had no clue about.
Sun Buqi was struck as if by thunder, "Sister, my brother-in-law..."
Sun Li was not far away, only she didn't come up to talk to Lv Ji.
Sun Buqi quickly acquired a map, "If Dong An has betrayed, then the whole of Ming State is—Sister, what do we do?"
"The second senior brother and the others have sent letters saying they've already sent people there."
Sun Li's lips were bitten nearly to bleeding, "Don't tell Sister Lan, understand?"
"You still worry about that when Chen Sansi is finished, done for!"
Sun Buqi said, "Not just him, the entire Ming State is done for! You stay here, I'm going back to see if I can get in touch with Father!"
Sun Li silently rode back to Chen Mansion.
Gu Xinlan, with her pregnant belly, welcomed her at the door, "How did it go?"
Sun Li dismounted, squeezing out a smile without much joy, "We won, our little nephew will certainly be able to return before his birth."
Gu Xinlan took her hand, "Sister, I'll teach you how to make clothes for the baby."
Rong Yanqiu caught up to the second senior brother Cheng Wei ahead, "Have the letters arrived?"
Cheng Wei released his Hai Dongqing, "Our younger martial brother is still alive, but the situation is bleak, with over a hundred thousand troops besieging them, I'm afraid they can't hold out for much longer."
Rong Yanqiu's gaze was cold and sinister, "That Dong An is really something, Old Four has become the demon in his heart. To win against Old Four, he would stoop to such measures. He better hope I don't catch him."
Cheng Wei was distracted, fiddling with an abacus in his hands, "It's all over, all over!"
"What do you mean, all over!"
Rong Yanqiu spoke icily, "Within twenty days, we must break into Ming State!"
"Twenty days won't do, we need at least forty days."
Cheng Wei clicked the beads of the abacus, "Right now the West Qi Kingdom has stationed a large force on the essential route heading south, and with the continuous supply of food and forage from within Ming State, it's impossible to take it down in a short time.
"In this battle, the West Qi Kingdom has all the advantages, not only fighting on our turf, with our civilians dying, but the provisions consumed are also from Ming State's stores. It's simply a business where they only win and don't lose."
"Forty days is too long!"
Rong Yanqiu glared at him, "Old Two, aren't you usually the most cunning? Find a way to break through within thirty days, no matter what!"
"I'm not an immortal, even if you ask Old Four, it would be the same!"
Cheng Wei put away the abacus, "Unless the central part is empty, someone could go to Golden Spring Manor, burn their granaries, and it would take the West Qi Kingdom two months to transport grain from their own territory.
"Once the supplies are cut off, they will naturally have to start retreating, and only then can we seize the opportunity."
"But do you think it's possible? Zhao Wuji is barely able to protect himself, Sha Wenlong and his party are trapped in Yangchun Prefecture, and our younger martial brother is crossing the Hongze River trying to head south, who could go?"
Outside Golden Spring Manor.
The rebel army in charge of escorting the food and forage panicked as they saw the rapidly approaching cloud of dust, struggling to understand where the attackers were coming from, and moreover, they were cavalry!
Before they could make a judgment, the cavalry had already charged in, nearly unstoppable, and the two thousand rebels collapsed in an instant, dropping their supplies and turning to run, while the civilian workers scattered in all directions.
"Burn it all! Burn everything!"
Chen Sansi ordered, "Then head to Golden Spring Manor!"
"Good, quick, do as General Chen says!"
Yu Song was momentarily bewildered at such an easily gained victory.
So were Xie Sishu and Lu Shuhua.
They couldn't understand.
How could Chen Sansi so accurately predict the enemy's movements and position, and then find a gap among countless dead ends to wriggle through.
"There are people ahead!"
Lu Shuhua pointed towards the figures in the forest ahead, "Brothers, go for them!"
"Don't attack, it's me, it's me!"
These people, clearly dressed in Red Eyebrow Army uniforms, were moving towards them, though there weren't many, only about twenty or so, and each one of them was grimy and gaunt, looking as if they would fall over with a gust of wind.
"Brother Chen, it's me!"
Chen Sansi quickly recognized the man, "What are you doing here?"
"Brother Chen doesn't know."
Out of breath, Yan Changqing said, "During the decisive battle, we were scattered here, I led my brothers into the deep forests to live like savages for months... at last, at last we've waited for you! How's the situation now? Why have you come back, have we turned defeat into victory and started a counterattack?"