The two stunningly beautiful maids dared not retreat.

"General, there is no need to worry about certain things."

"His Majesty said that it would be best if the General could lead the army back."

Li Yuanhao closed his eyes to rest, but when he heard the maid say this, he immediately widened his eyes and looked at the two of them.

"Who told you to be so talkative?"

Just then, the guards outside the military tents came in.

"General, the Tibetan prince and the Dali prince request an audience."

"What are they doing here at this time? Let them in quickly."

Before Li Yuanhao could finish speaking, the voices of the Tibetan prince and Duan Yanqing came from outside.

"Gentlemen, what brings you here?"

"Come, come, sit down quickly."

"Someone, bring the wine!"

"Get me three whole roasted lambs."

"You two find a dozen or so other maids to dance and entertain us."

Soon, the three of them sat down.

Inside the golden-topped tent, a steaming campfire was burning.

The aroma of roasted whole lamb quickly filled the air.

The three men, holding their wine bowls, slurped their food with gusto.

A dozen or so beautiful women from the Western Xia Dynasty danced a seductive dance to the rhythm of the music.

"Come on, let's eat meat and drink wine to our hearts' content."

“I’m going to starve at Bahubali’s place.”

"What kind of crap do those Kushan people eat? Even dogs wouldn't eat that stuff."

“Indeed, King Bahubali is arrogant and has never taken us seriously.”

“I can no longer tolerate what he said today.” The Tibetan prince took a big gulp of wine. “Gentlemen, I’m here today for no other reason than to tell you that once the battle breaks out, Tibet will only stand by and watch.”

Duan Yanqing nodded: "My Dali country is weak and poor. My Dali has a total of 250,000 troops, and as many as 200,000 of them are going on this expedition."

"When I arrived, the King of Zhennan of Dali told me that our expedition this time used almost all the grain and fodder in the country."

King Bahubali did not promise us a single penny of grain.

"Regardless of whether we win or lose this battle, our Dali treasury will be greatly depleted."

"That's right." Li Yuanhao also sighed deeply. "This time, our Western Xia also suffered heavy losses."

Before the battle even began, our supplies were already running out.

What's even more infuriating is...

King Bahubali just sent someone saying that we must supply them with more than thirty percent of their provisions.

"Where would our Western Xia have so much grain?"

"If I were to supply Bahubali with 30% of his provisions, it would mean that I would have to provide for the basic needs of 600,000 people."

In addition to my original army of 300,000.

I have to take care of the food, water, and sanitation needs of a million-strong army.

"After this battle, the finances of Western Xia will surely collapse."

"What's most infuriating is that King Bahubali didn't promise us the slightest benefit whatsoever."

At this point, everyone burst into curses.

They offered no benefits.

But they dared not do otherwise.

After everyone had drunk several jars of wine, Li Yuanhao waved to the maids, signaling them to leave.

"All guards, stand at least 30 paces away. No one is allowed to approach without my permission," Li Yuanhao ordered loudly.

"Yes..." Soon, the guards at the door stood about 30 paces away, or 50 meters away.

No one is allowed to approach the tent without permission.

The Tibetan prince stood up, holding a roasted lamb leg in one hand and a wine jar in the other.

The Tibetan prince took a big bite of roasted lamb leg: "Everyone, the purpose of my visit this time is to tell you..."

When the fighting begins, Tibet will remain a bystander and will absolutely not send a single soldier to help the Kushans fight.

Duan Yanqing nodded repeatedly: "These words resonate with me. Dali will absolutely not send out a single soldier."

The Kushans are going too far; if they're so capable, they should go and fight them themselves.

Li Yuanhao glanced at the two men and said, "Gentlemen, you've really hit the nail on the head. Since you're being so frank, I, Li Yuanhao, would also like to make a statement here."

When the two sides are locked in a major battle, we'll only put in the effort and not actually contribute.

The three men came together, and the wine jars in their hands gently clinked together.

"It's settled then, let's finish the wine in the jar."

The three of them tilted their heads back and drank the wine in the jar clean.

Soon, the three of them burst into laughter.

Soon, the three of them sat back down in their original seats.

"Gentlemen, there's something I'm not sure if I should say," the Tibetan prince said, glancing at the crowd.

“Our three families are bound together by life and death, and we are of one mind. Please speak frankly, and we will listen attentively.”

The Tibetan prince put down the roasted lamb leg he was holding.

"Everyone, I don't know if you have this opinion."

"After arriving at the Kushan army camp, I found that the soldiers were extremely undisciplined. They didn't seem like soldiers; they were more like a mob."

Upon hearing the Tibetan prince's words, the other two nodded in agreement.

Li Yuanhao: "That's right. To be honest, I heard that the Kushan Empire mobilized 300,000 troops, but they were wiped out within an hour."

Upon hearing this, the Tibetan prince quickly replied, "I also heard this news when I arrived. It seems that this news is reliable."

I have already sent men to scout the area near the capital of Northern Liang.

Duan Yanqing: "You can't hide the truth forever. There's no such thing as a secret that stays hidden forever. Since you two have both heard about it, it means that this matter is most likely true."

"The fact that 300,000 troops were wiped out by a few hundred enemy soldiers in less than an hour is enough to show just how powerful the Kushan Empire is."

"If that's the case, after this battle, I will make King Bahubali pay the price."

Upon hearing that the Kushan army of 300,000 had been wiped out in a single hour, they were shocked.

Whether it was the Tibetan national teacher and prince, the Dali prince Duan Yanqing, or the Western Xia general Li Yuanhao.

They all wanted to see the other continue to make a fool of themselves.

…………

the next day.

The Kushan soldiers dawdled and didn't set off until the afternoon.

These soldiers were undisciplined and lax.

Their march looked more like a stroll through the streets than a military march.

There was only one thing that could pique the interest of the Kushan soldiers along the way.

That is, upon seeing a village or city, they would rush forward without hesitation and loot everything inside.

When the people in the villages and towns heard that the Kushan soldiers were coming, they fled in terror.

These people took everything they could, leaving very little for the Kushan soldiers.

The Kushan soldiers were utterly disheartened when they saw the empty village.