He had barely finished speaking when a little girl came over, crying, "Uncle Wang, my father has been gone for ten days already! When will he come back?"

The middle-aged man hugged the little girl and comforted her, saying, "Father will come back after the war is over."

"Uncle, didn't you say last year during the New Year that there would never be another war? Didn't you say that His Majesty would protect us well? I want my father! My mother is dead! I want my father!"

Veins bulged on Zhao Huan's hands.

After a long while, Zhao Huan walked over and said, "I'll go and bring your father back!"

The middle-aged man quickly said, "I can see that you are also a soldier, probably from the Northwest Army. If you still have anyone, hurry up and go to the Western Regions to find Commander Yue. I heard that Commander Yue is still alive. If we can find Commander Yue and he can come back, we might be able to end the war."

"Don't worry, I've come back to quell the war."

The middle-aged man clearly didn't believe it, and just sighed, "Everything's in chaos, the whole of Shaanxi is in chaos, even Prime Minister Sun has sided with the King of Liao."

"Where is the Imperial City Guard?"

"Hehe, some are dead, some have surrendered. Now the whole of Shaanxi is on the side of the Liao King. The conscription is an order from Chang'an. The Liao King plans to send troops from the northwest to attack the capital from both sides. This is no secret."

"Soon, the world will change."

Zhao Huan patted the girl's head: "Child, I am not in a position to tell you to be strong now, because you have already lost your mother and endured great pain in your life. If you can, tell me your father's name. As long as he is still alive, I will bring him back to see you alive!"

"My father's name is Zeng Rong."

"Okay, I've got it." Perhaps it was his guilt, but Zhao Huan's heart softened instantly.

Zhao Huan mounted his horse and disappeared from their sight.

As dusk fell, 50,000 Imperial Guards unfurled their ranks in the wilderness.

Zhao Huan rode his horse back at breakneck speed. He ran back and forth in front of the army formation several times, his heart still pounding with emotion.

"My comrades, you are all brave men who fought alongside me on the western expedition, fighting side by side. You are my brothers-in-arms!" Zhao Huan's voice was loud and resonant. "In these years of fighting in the south and north, so many brothers have died, including your own brothers. What were we fighting for? We fought so that the people of the Great Song Dynasty would have enough to eat and wear, so that your fathers and children could grow up safely, so that the iron cavalry of foreign tribes could never set foot in the Great Song Dynasty again, so that this land would never be plagued by war again. But now, someone wants to make the Great Song Dynasty bleed! Someone wants the lives of our parents and children!"

"As long as I am alive, I will never allow anyone to overthrow the Great Song Dynasty!"

The soldiers shouted in unison, "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Song Dynasty!"

Zhao Huan led 50,000 iron cavalry, speeding towards Chang'an City.