Just as Shangguan Wanning expected, the prefect of the southeastern prefecture did not report the Turkic attack to the court at all.
When Mu Jingrui presented the secret letter to the emperor in the court, the emperor became furious and immediately ordered the governor of the southeastern prefecture to be held accountable.
"Your Majesty, the most urgent task right now is to send troops to the border for reinforcement." Shangguan Yue secretly exchanged glances with Mu Jingrui.
The emperor nodded and asked, "Who do you think is the right person?"
"Of course it's Master Ling."
Shangguan Yue looked at Ling Ruiying who had remained silent, and a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
"Lord Ling has been stationed in Southeast Province for so many years, and he is very familiar with the situation there. When he was stationed there, everything was peaceful, but as soon as he left, the Turks dared to invade. It can be seen that Lord Ling is a well-deserved pillar of the country."
Ling Ruiying took a few steps forward, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I am willing to follow your orders and go to war to annihilate the Turks and enhance our country's prestige."
He didn't even refute, which surprised Mu Jingrui and Shangguan Yue.
The situation at the border was urgent. After a brief pause, the emperor issued an edict to appoint Ling Ruiying as marshal, giving him the seal of commander-in-chief and asking the Ministry of War to assist him in handling matters related to the expedition.
"I always feel that Ling Ruiying's easy agreement to leave the capital city... reveals something a little weird."
Shangguan Yue also agreed with Mu Jingrui's opinion.
"You go with a few trusted people to fight. I want to see what tricks he plays."
Before Mu Jingrui and Shangguan Yue could see clearly, Ling Ruiying revealed the answer himself.
At the morning court three days later, Ling Ruiying was carried to the court by Ling Yuwen, his body covered with wounds.
"Your Majesty, an assassin came to kill my father last night. My father was caught off guard and was ambushed."
Ling Yuwen looked very tired and his mood was unusually low.
"All the assassins who were captured died by severing their meridians. However, we found the Turkish royal tokens on their bodies. Those people... were all from the Turkic region."
Ling Ruiying is so seriously injured that he definitely cannot lead the troops into battle.
This gave the emperor a lot of trouble.
He looked around and finally fixed his eyes on Mu Jingrui.
"It seems that I have no choice but to let you, Lord Mu, put on your armor and lead the troops in person."
"I obey your command."
Mu Jingrui did not refuse. After all, the war at the border was tense and he could not afford to just focus on personal fights.
What's more, Shangguan Wanning was still there, and he was also concerned about his fiancée's safety.
Shangguan Wanning carefully studied the medical book left to her by Lu Xiangzi, but she could not understand many parts.
She thought that after things here were settled, she would go back to Yaowang Valley to visit Lu Xiangzi.
I don’t know how he and Sun Jinyao are doing now.
"Miss, this is bad."
Huo Gang knocked on the door and came in, looking a little anxious.
"Brother Huo, what's the matter?"
"When I went out to the street just now, I heard that the troops led by Lieutenant General Jin were trapped on Jinshatan."
"Golden Beach?"
Shangguan Wanning walked to the table on the other side, spread out the map, and found the location of Golden Sand Beach.
It is the place where the Central Plains and the Turkic land meet. It is remote and desolate.
"It's so open here, how could we be trapped? All we need is for the imperial court to send reinforcements."
"My dear Miss, my expression may not be accurate. To be precise, being trapped does not mean being besieged by the Turks, but... being caught between a rock and a hard place."
Huo Gang scratched his head and organized his words for a long time before explaining, "Lieutenant General Jin led the imperial army to confront the Turkic army. If the Turkic army could not break through his defenses, they could not attack the prefecture. However... the prefecture refused to send reinforcements, and even stopped supplying food and grass."
Shangguan Wanning's expression changed slightly.
Someone wants to harm Jin Ruhong.
Without food and supplies, even the most elite troops cannot hold out.
"If Admiral Jin retreats without fighting, he will be punished by military law when he returns. But if he insists on fighting, it will be no different from committing suicide..."
"How many troops does he have?"
"Over 40,000. 10,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry."
Forty thousand! Forty thousand lives.
Shangguan Wanning's heart couldn't help but tremble.
The prefect Liu Xian gave up so easily.
She clenched her fists and felt indignant, but soon she forced herself to calm down.
"Brother Huo, let's go to Golden Beach and take a look."
Huo Gang was a little hesitant. After all, the situation there was tense and war was about to break out.
However, after spending some time together, he had a better understanding of Shangguan Wanning's personality, so he had to gather four secret guards with high martial arts skills to escort her to Golden Beach.
Jin Ruhong was in a state of panic and showed no joy when he saw Shangguan Wanning.
"Princess, what are you doing here? If anything happens to you, I will die without the face to see you, my Lord."
Shangguan Wanning smiled and said softly, "I asked you to lead the troops to the battle. Now that there are difficulties, of course I have to face them with you."
Jin Ruhong felt a little more grateful in his heart and looked at Shangguan Wanning with a sigh.
"It is enough to have the princess's heart. Princess, this place is dangerous, you should go back quickly."
Shangguan Wanning didn't take it seriously and asked, "Commander Jin, who is leading the troops on the other side?"
Jin Ruhong suddenly slammed his fist on the table, and the water in the cup splashed out.
"Those Turkic people looked down on me so much that they actually sent a woman to deal with me."
"woman?"
"Yes, it's Ge Shuyan, the youngest daughter of the Turkic Khan."
"A princess?" A pale face appeared in Shangguan Wanning's mind. "General Jin, how many daughters does the Turkic Khan have?"
"He has four sons and only one daughter."
"Is it... really such a coincidence?"
Shangguan Wanning smiled faintly and said, "Commander Jin, have a good rest tonight. Leave the rest to me."
"Princess, you..."
"Believe me."
Shangguan Wanning led Huo Gang out of the military tent and patted him on the shoulder. "Brother Huo, I'm going to do something dangerous and I need your help. But... if it involves life and death, you can refuse."
"You are a girl who dares to go, so why should I not dare? Besides, the purpose of my coming here is to protect you. I can go through mountains of swords and seas of fire with just a word from you, young lady."
"Thank you, Brother Huo. If we are lucky enough to survive this time, I will share our wealth and poverty with you in the future."
Huo Gang was amused by the open-mindedness of the little girl in front of him.
"So, where are we going now?"
"Come with me."
Shangguan Wanning jumped on the horse and galloped away with Huo Gang.
When we arrived at our destination, the sky was white and the sun was rising.
Huo Gang looked at the large group of foreign troops in front of him, his eyes widened in surprise, he simply couldn't believe it.
"Miss, you...are you going to rush in with me?"
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