The edict that arrived was Li Jingang's urging him to send troops to Yanyun.
The imperial edict was stern, ordering him to "consider the difficulties of the times and launch a swift attack," and to lead his troops out of the Dahang Mountains within ten days to attack Youzhou "to divide the enemy's forces and relieve my worries." Otherwise, "the armies in Hebei will retreat south to the Yellow River, and you should consider the safety of Hedong!"
After seeing off the eunuch who delivered the imperial edict, Zhao Muyun took the yellow silk edict and returned to his study, a helpless bitter smile on his face.
He handed the imperial edict to a group of core generals, including Wu Shangzhi, Tang Yanhai, Guo Luo, Xi Sheng, Liu Yi, Namtso, Liu Pan, and Cao Jun, who had rushed to the scene upon hearing the news.
"Take a look!" Zhao Muyun said with a hint of sarcasm. "Our defeated general Yang Yan hasn't even arrived in Xiangzhou yet, and his first act has already set fire to our Daizhou."
Wu Shangzhi, with a fiery temper, was enraged upon reading the imperial edict and slammed his fist on the table:
"Send troops within ten days? Why doesn't Yang Yan fly to Daizhou himself to see for himself! Our soldiers have just withdrawn from Youzhou, they are exhausted, their armor and weapons are incomplete, and they are still gathering provisions."
"Sending troops now is not to attack Youzhou, but to send them to their deaths! He is clearly using us as a tool to kill us, wanting us to confront Wuzhu's blade head-on and weaken our strength."
Tang Yanhai, a man of composure, frowned and said, "General Wu is absolutely right. Moreover, the imperial edict threatens that if we do not send troops, they will abandon Hebei and retreat to the Yellow River."
"This is tantamount to exposing the entire flank and rear of Hedong to the onslaught of the Northern Di cavalry."
"Yang Yan's plan is extremely vicious! He's forcing us to choose between two dead ends he's laid out for us!"
"Either go into battle and die, or stand alone against the Northern Barbarians!"
Xi Sheng roared in a deep voice, "Let's fight! What are we afraid of! Wuzhu isn't some kind of superhuman! Let's go and have a go at him!"
Guo Luo remained relatively calm and shook his head, saying, "Sending troops now is certainly not a good opportunity. We went through a lot of trouble to take Youzhou before, and it won't be so easy to take it this time."
"Moreover, once we attack the city, Wuzhu will return with his troops and attack us from both inside and outside the city, putting our army in grave danger."
Liu Yi added, "Commander Guo is absolutely right. More importantly, the war in Yinzhou is not yet over, and our forces cannot be concentrated. It would be unwise to divide our forces to attack Youzhou at this time."
Namtso and Huanwu said in broken Da Yin language, "Lord Zhao, our warriors, the horses need to graze and recover their strength. They just finished a battle and have traveled a long distance; they can't do it. If we go to fight now, we won't win."
Generals such as Liu Pan and Cao Jun also spoke, most of them believing that the hasty deployment of troops was extremely risky, almost suicidal, but they also felt indignant and helpless about Yang Yan's open scheme and the threat posed by the Da Feng court.
Zhao Muyun listened quietly to the generals' discussion, her fingers unconsciously tapping the table until everyone finished speaking and the study fell silent.
His gaze swept over each face—whether angry, worried, or resolute—and he slowly said:
"Send troops! Of course we must send troops!"
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