Two days later.

It was afternoon.

On the Zhongnanguan city tower, the soldiers on duty in the watchtower are focused on their posts.

They stood ramrod straight, their eyes fixed intently ahead, their expressions solemn.

Although years of training have made guard duty routine for them, these past few days have been different from usual.

In the past, when standing guard, one could occasionally take a quiet break to stretch one's body, which was perfectly acceptable.

However, in the past few days, superiors have required everyone to be on high alert and remain fully focused on their posts.

The reason is quite simple: hundreds of miles outside Zhongnan Pass, on Baili Plain, the current third-rank General of Chariots and Cavalry, Xiong Qian, is leading a large army to fight against the rebel army from Beiliang.

This was a massive and far-reaching battle.

It can be said that from high-ranking officials to ordinary people, almost everyone was paying attention to this war.

With the rebels defeated, the "rebellion" that had been raging for months finally came to an end.

But if General Xiong Qian is defeated, then...

In fact, only a very few people have thought about this outcome, and even if they have, they naturally cannot or dare not say it.

"Ouch, my neck is so sore."

Inside the watchtower, a young soldier cracked his neck and whispered something.

His companion glanced sideways; he looked mature, around thirty or forty years old, and said in a low voice, "Standing guard is much better than going to the battlefield. Right now... they're probably still fighting in Baili Plain."

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was looking, the young soldier raised his hand to rub his neck and chuckled softly:

"General Xiong Qian commands a large army, and his heavily armored cavalry is both formidable and imposing. Those iron armors and long spears...tsk tsk, I wonder when I'll be able to wear them."

"It's been two or three days already. I think the battle should have ended long ago, and they should be cleaning up the battlefield now."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged soldier remained expressionless and said in a low voice:

“In plains warfare, no matter how weak the rebels are, they won’t be suppressed in a short time. Moreover, this rebel army is not like the previous rebels.”

"This battle will not be easy to fight." As he said this, he pursed his lips, as if he had something left unsaid.

The young soldier argued, "What's the difference? This is the main force of our great campaign! In addition to General Xiong being in charge, General Zhenguo also personally provided assistance."

"Baili Plain is our home ground again. Our cavalry have been training here for a long time. Fighting is as easy for them as eating and drinking. Shouldn't we just sweep them all away?"

These words made the middle-aged soldier frown, and his tone became more serious:

"Playing on home turf, you think fighting is as easy as eating and drinking? What kind of bullshit is that!"

"You'll see if it's that simple once you've been on the battlefield! I'm afraid you'll wet your pants in fear!"

The young soldier, however, looked up and said indignantly:

"Tch, that's because they're not giving me a chance. If I could be a heavy cavalryman, I'd know for sure whether it's easy or not."

"The general has no vision and has delayed my opportunity to earn military merit."

"A good man should go to the battlefield, make meritorious achievements, and in the future gain a title and a good reputation for his wife and children. Wouldn't that be wonderful!"

"Actually, brother-in-law, I want to join the General of the State's command."

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged soldier could no longer contain himself and muttered a curse under his breath:

"fool!"

The young soldier's expression changed, and he snorted, "You may not care, but I'm still young."

The middle-aged soldier's curses followed immediately: "Fool! Stop daydreaming and spouting unrealistic nonsense, stand guard!"

The young soldier's face finally flushed red, and he even turned his head away to argue:

"What's the point of just standing guard all day long? I want to make a great contribution!"

"My martial arts skills are quite good. I can easily kill two or three enemies on the battlefield, if not three or five!"

The middle-aged soldier was furious and couldn't help but want to kick him, but considering that he was on guard duty, he held back.

But I've already decided that once I'm laid off, I'll definitely give this silly brother-in-law a good talking-to.

Seeing that he remained silent, the young man continued to ramble on and on:

"When I am stronger, I too will don heavy armor, sit atop an iron-clad warhorse, and ride alongside thousands of troops..."

Just then, the middle-aged soldier's eyes widened suddenly, and his expression changed drastically!

In the distance, smoke signals rise!

More than ten riders carried a large flag, galloping wildly while waving it!

For a moment, everyone on the city wall held their breath.

As the distance closed, the middle-aged soldier shouted:

"Oh no!"

"A sign of utter defeat!"

Upon hearing this, the young soldier was stunned for a moment, and then his whole body trembled violently.

The messengers sent by Xiong Qian were pale-faced and had all removed their armor.

In order to transmit military intelligence quickly, they have tried to reduce their load as much as possible in the past two days, running on the road almost day and night. Everyone is exhausted at this moment.

Upon seeing Zhongnanguan, they were almost in tears.

Without the slightest delay, as soon as they entered the pass, the commander of the Zhongnan Pass garrison, a general named "Jin Huan," immediately came to question them.

"General! The rebels are coming on strong, we...we are no match for them!"

"A messenger said in a trembling voice."

Jin Huan, a tall and robust man, was a general under Jin Jianguo. Upon hearing this, he widened his eyes in disbelief.

"What?! We're no match for them!"

"How could we be no match for them?!" he shouted immediately.

The messenger's eardrums vibrated from the shout, and his face turned as white as paper: "The rebels are numerous and their numbers are difficult to estimate. They are in no way inferior to our army!"

"In addition, the rebels have an infantry sword squad." At this point, the messenger trembled violently, recalling the scenes he had witnessed on the battlefield.

With a single slash, men and horses fell, and the heavily armored cavalry were slaughtered as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

Some enemy generals were even capable of cleaving men and horses in two with a single strike; such combat prowess far exceeded what ordinary people could imagine.

Furthermore, there was an enemy general named "Lu Bu," who charged into the midst of thousands of troops as if they were nothing.

With such troops and such fierce generals, how could anyone possibly defeat them?

Seeing him trembling and stammering, Jin Huan immediately shouted:

"What's wrong? Could it be that your heavy cavalry can't even defeat infantry?"

The messenger hurriedly replied, "That's right, General! Those infantrymen are carrying broadswords. I've never used such a sword before. It's incredibly long and narrow, with blades on both sides, and it's absolutely sharp!"

"Besides being sharp, they're also heavy! But those infantrymen wielded them with unparalleled skill. Our heavy cavalry were being chased and hacked away in front of them!"

"We don't even have time to run!"

Jin Huan stared wide-eyed, her face filled with shock, finding it hard to believe what the person in front of her was saying.

"Are you kidding me? Heavy cavalry can't beat infantry?"

"How could they command like that! Heavy cavalry is an unparalleled weapon of mass destruction on the plains; a direct charge can kill people. How could they still lose?"

The messenger nodded, then said慌张地, "I understand the logic, General! But we can't win!"

Upon hearing this, Jin Huan flew into a rage and slapped him hard across the face.