"Retreating to the sacred site of the Heaven-worship ceremony is the most important thing we can do."

The Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu let out a long sigh.

"These people from Great Xia are truly a despicable and shameless bunch. They pretended to make peace through marriage but burned down my city and killed my people."

"If I don't avenge this, I swear I'm not human."

After the Xiongnu Chanyu finished speaking, he let out a long sigh.

The sacred site for worshipping Heaven was the burial place of the ancestors of the Xiongnu throughout history.

There is grain nearby, and cattle and sheep graze on the surrounding mountains.

A mountain spring gurgled as it flowed by from the side.

Even without any supplies, they could stay in this place for up to six months.

Most importantly, the terrain here is treacherous.

This sacred site for worshipping Heaven is located high in the mountains.

There is only one narrow path leading here.

Once this narrow path is completely cut off, then archers can be deployed.

No one can fight their way up.

This place is so strategically important that one man can hold off ten thousand.

Princess Hanxiang looked at the distant royal city, the young girl furious: "Great Chanyu, let me lead the troops down the mountain and wipe them out completely."

The Xiongnu Chanyu shook his head; Jiang Tian and his group were no ordinary people.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible to capture the royal city so easily.

"Grand Preceptor, what should we do now?" The Xiongnu Chanyu grew angrier the more he thought about it.

He had originally hoped to marry a princess while still being an older man.

Now, not only have I not found any tender grass to eat, but my house has also been burned down.

"Hold fast to the sacred site for worshipping Heaven and do not descend the mountain without permission."

When the Xia people fail to conquer the city after a prolonged siege, they will naturally retreat.

The Xiongnu national teacher held a tortoise shell in his hand and put it on fire.

A series of crackling sounds rang out.

A moment later, the Xiongnu national teacher took the tortoise shell out of the fire.

When the Xiongnu national advisor saw the cracks on the tortoise shell, he was immediately taken aback.

"Grand Preceptor, what exactly is going on? What does this divination mean?" the Xiongnu Chanyu asked impatiently.

"The situation is extremely dangerous. If we don't handle this situation well, there is a risk of our country being destroyed."

The Xiongnu Chanyu was terrified and at a loss when he heard this.

"Imperial Preceptor, you're exaggerating too much," Princess Han said bluntly.

“I have seen that the Great Xia Dynasty only has a few thousand people, while we have the natural barrier of the sacred site for worshipping Heaven.”

As long as we hold fast to the sacred site of the Heavenly Sacrifice and do not easily descend the mountain, what can those Great Xia people do to us?

The Xiongnu people all nodded in agreement.

In their view, the sacred site for worshipping Heaven was impregnable.

“We’ve captured quite a few Xia people recently, so send some of those children over, especially those under one year old. We need to offer sacrifices to our ancestors,” the Xiongnu Chanyu said coldly.

...

Inside the imperial palace of the Great Xia Dynasty.

A white carrier pigeon flew in from afar.

Lü Fang extended his hand.

A white carrier pigeon landed on Lü Fang's purple sleeve.

Lu Fang pulled a handful of millet from his sleeve, and the carrier pigeon cooed as it ate the millet.

Lu Fang took the text message tied to the carrier pigeon's leg, opened it, and was shocked.

"Release this pigeon; I must see Her Majesty immediately." Despite his advanced age and frail health, Lü Fang jogged briskly towards Empress Qian Renxue's study.

At this moment, Empress Qian Renxue had a face full of sorrow.

Memorials from all over the country poured in like snowflakes.

None of the memorials contained good news.

"This old servant pays his respects to Your Majesty!" Lü Fang knelt respectfully before Empress Qian Renxue.

“Not a single official in the court can relieve my worries,” Qian Renxue said, pointing to the memorials he had thrown on the ground. “The three rebel armies of Li Zicheng, Zhang Shicheng, and Chen Youliang have actually gotten mixed up together.”

"The total strength of these three rebel armies exceeds 500,000. These three rebel armies are heading towards the Great Wall," Qian Renxue said, her nose suddenly stinging and her eyes welling up with tears.

"What's the point of me being emperor? It's one thing for these rebels to rebel against me, but they're heading straight for the Great Wall. They want to collude with foreign powers and plunge the Great Xia Dynasty into an abyss of no return."

Qian Renxue was, after all, a woman.

Now, the only people in the entire court who can help her are these few eunuchs.

However, these eunuchs have no military power, and even if they were given military power, the court currently has very few troops available.

Even though Lu Fang and his ilk commanded a large army, they had no idea how to lead troops into battle.

"They forced me to abdicate, but the people of Great Xia have been plunged into misery ever since."

"I don't understand. These rebels are just trying to fill their stomachs, and they're just trying to take over my empire. Why would they collude with external forces?"

Lu Fang quickly handed over a handkerchief.

The head eunuch looked at the eunuchs and palace maids inside the room.

"You may all leave. I will take care of things here by myself. Remember, no one is allowed to come within 50 paces of the Imperial Study."

"Yes..." A dozen eunuchs and palace maids walked out of Empress Qian Renxue's study.

They closed the door and left.

"Your Majesty, there is something I have now figured out."

Qian Renxue wiped away her tears.

The empress of the Great Xia Dynasty knew that crying would not solve anything.

"you say."

"Your Majesty, haven't you noticed that as soon as Jiang Tian left Feihu City and escorted the princess straight to the Xiongnu, these rebels headed towards the three cities of Longcheng?"

"You mean these rebels want to completely wipe out Jiang Tian?"

Lü Fang nodded.

"I have just received news that Pang De, the son of Prime Minister Pang Hao, who was in charge of escorting the princess, has been beheaded by Jiang Tian and sent to Pang Hao."

"When Jiang Tian was looking at Pound's head, he said this: 'Your father, as the Grand Secretary, is funding rebels and colluding with foreign powers...'"

Upon hearing this, Qian Renxue's expression changed.

Is this true?

"This old servant is investigating, but Your Majesty, please consider this: the imperial army is finding it increasingly difficult to quell the rebellion recently."

"Wherever the imperial army went, the rebels avoided its sharp edge and attacked its vital points."

"These rebels seem to have known the direction of our imperial army's movements beforehand. Someone must have leaked the information to them."

Upon hearing this, Qian Renxue nodded repeatedly, confirming that it was indeed true.

When the imperial court first attacked the rebels, it was unstoppable and swept through the enemy lines, causing the rebels to flee in disarray and suffer repeated defeats.

However, in the last two years, the imperial court has achieved almost no victories in its attacks on the rebels.

Not only that, but the imperial army of hundreds of thousands was completely wiped out by the rebels.

Most of the imperial army was tied down by the rebels.

This makes sense.

The Grand Secretary is in charge of all political, military, and economic affairs of the country.

The Ministry of Works, the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Personnel, the Ministry of Rites... which of these six ministries doesn't need to go through the hands of the Grand Secretary?

"How could I not have imagined that his pseudonym was such a person?" Qian Renxue gritted her teeth in anger, and the woman almost roared out loud.