Ling Lang led the Zhenbei Army to clean up the battlefield.
Bai Ying continued to lead the North City Army in doing their own thing, distributing porridge and grain and digging canals.
The victory at Beifeng City brought joy not only to the soldiers, but also to the people of the entire northern region and even the entire Eastern Chu.
Knowing that Xuanyuan Zhan and his men had won the battle, the people were finally more at ease staying in the North. With this experience, they were even more convinced that as long as the Prince was in the North, they could all survive!
The story of how Bai Ying and his Northern City Army devised a plan to annihilate the 100,000-strong Sky Dome Army has been passed down by word of mouth among the people.
So much so that when the people see Bai Ying and his men now, they no longer regard them as bandits at all. They call them "General" and "Master" repeatedly, which makes Bai Ying and Zhang Debiao and the others very happy and they work even harder.
Seeing that Xuan Yuanzhan was still standing on the city wall, Mu Lingchen followed him upstairs and said, "The battle is over, what's there to see now?"
Xuanyuan Zhan looked at the mountains of corpses, his heart filled with helplessness and heartache.
Although the main casualties were from the Northern Rong soldiers, very few were from the Eastern Chu.
But these are all human lives. One second they are still alive and well, and the next they are cold corpses at the mercy of others.
Mu Lingchen followed Xuan Yuanzhan's gaze and understood what he was lamenting: "War is so cruel. I hope there will be no more wars in the future, and that the people can live and work in peace!"
Xuan Yuanzhan's lips twitched, but he couldn't move them.
He also hoped there would be no more wars, but it seemed even he himself couldn't do it!
"Are you going back to Kyoto tomorrow?" Mu Lingchen asked Xuan Yuanzhan.
"Ning'er is about to give birth, I must rush back!" Xuan Yuanzhan said with a slightly somber look.
Counting the days, Ning'er will give birth in half a month. If we rush back to the capital from here, we should be able to make it in time for Ning'er to give birth.
It has to be said that this battle was only able to end so quickly thanks to Bai Ying's idea; otherwise, he would have missed Ning'er's delivery.
Mu Lingchen nodded: "I think you must be in a hurry to get back too. I'll go back with you. Anyway, things here are almost done."
Although there is fighting in Beifeng City, the river channels in Bei'an and Baichuan are still being dug, and it is estimated that they will be completed in the next two days.
Once the two waterways are connected, the people of the north will be able to solve their water problem temporarily.
With many people digging waterways now, the north-south waterway is expected to be completed soon. Once the south-to-north water diversion project is finished, the drought in the north will be completely resolved.
The grain that Xie Dongfang had sent earlier was enough to feed the people of the North for a while, and the North had been relatively stable, so it didn't matter whether they were there or not.
Moreover, the Emperor is now seriously ill and unable to govern. No matter how perfectly they handle the disaster relief and bandit suppression in the North, they probably won't receive any reward. Instead, Xuan Yuan Yu and Xuan Yuan Zhi are taking advantage of the Emperor's illness to seize power and even dare to accuse Xuan Yuan Zhan of treason. They've also imprisoned Aunt Bai and Cousin Ning'er in the Imperial Prison. If they don't return soon, the capital might be in chaos!
Kyoto is much more important than the northern regions right now.
Xuanyuan Zhan glanced at Mu Lingchen but didn't say anything.
Indeed, the Northern Rong suffered a defeat, losing 70% of their soldiers. They should be temporarily unable to wage war again. Even if they dare to come again, Ling Lang's Zhenbei Army can handle them.
With the north now at peace, they could leave with peace of mind.
Xuanyuan Zhan thought for a moment and looked at Mu Lingchen: "Come with me to interrogate Tuoba Xiong later."
Mu Lingchen raised an eyebrow: "Has he not revealed who's behind this yet?"
Xuan Yuanzhan's eyes were filled with a cold, sharp light: "He will talk!"
Whether it's Xuan Yuanzhi or Xuan Yuanyu, since they dared to collude with the enemy, they should be prepared for the consequences!
Ling Lang directed his soldiers to burn and bury all the corpses piled up at the city gate.
After doing all this, he saw that Xuanyuan Zhan and Mu Lingchen were still on the city wall, so he quickly came up to report: "Your Highness, I have burned all the bodies of the Northern Rong people, and I have also noted down the names of our soldiers and buried them together."
All soldiers who died defending the northern frontier were martyrs, and their families received pensions. They were also buried outside Beifeng City, as if they would continue to defend the northern frontier for Dongchu.
Xuanyuan Zhan nodded, glanced at Ling Lang, and said, "If there's nothing else, you can come with me to interrogate Tuoba Xiong."
Ling Lang was taken aback for a moment, then quickly replied, "Yes."
The Zhenbei Army suffered very few casualties this time, and he was indeed fine.
Xuanyuan Zhan led the two of them to the prison in Beifeng City.
The prison in Beifeng City is quite lively right now, filled with the chieftains and generals of various Northern Rong tribes.
Upon seeing Xuanyuan Zhan approach, the Chanyu and his generals all spoke up.
"Prince of Eastern Chu, just name your conditions!"
"Just tell us what it will take to let us return to Beirong!"
"We like things to be straightforward. Just tell us how much gold and silver, how many cattle and horses you want!"
"The victor is king, the loser is villain. We accept our defeat. Just name your terms!"
Xuanyuan Zhan ignored them and took Ling Lang and Mu Lingchen directly to Tuoba Xiong's prison.
Tuoba Xiong had been huddled in a corner of the cell like a dead chicken, and he had just been cursed as a piece of dog shit by the Chanyu and his general.
After all, it was he who persuaded these tribes to attack Beifeng with him. As a result, not only did they fail to capture Beifeng, but they also lost most of their soldiers. Even their commanders and the Chanyu were imprisoned in Beifeng.
However, he himself had lost all 100,000 troops of the Sky Dome tribe, and he was so heartbroken that he had no energy left to argue with them. Let them curse if they want.
If it were him, he might have been tempted to kill!
Seeing Xuanyuan Zhan and the others approach, Tuoba Xiong finally raised his eyelids.
A jailer opened the cell door for Xuan Yuanzhan and the others, and Xuan Yuanzhan led Mu Lingchen and Ling Lang into the cell.
Xuanyuan Zhan sat down on the only wooden stool in the cell: "I just want to know who's behind you?"
Tuoba Xiong didn't move, leaning against the stone wall with a lazy smile: "Who do you think can become my behind-the-scenes man?"
Xuan Yuanzhan narrowed his eyes: "Xuan Yuanzhi or Xuan Yuanyu?"
Aside from these two, he couldn't think of anyone else who would stop him from returning to Beijing.
Seeing that he guessed so accurately, Tuoba Xiong laughed: "You are clever! It was a letter written to me by the second prince of Eastern Chu, Xuanyuan Zhi. He said that the northern lands are currently suffering from a severe drought, lacking water and food, making it the best time to attack. In his letter, he said that he wanted to cooperate with me. If I attack Beifeng now, he will give me these five cities in the north in the future!"
Upon hearing Tuoba Xiong's words, both Mu Lingchen and Ling Lang frowned.
It turned out to be the Second Prince, Xuanyuan Zhi.
He betrayed his country and colluded with the enemy in order to fight among himself, and even wanted to give five cities in the north to the Northern Rong. How could he be worthy of being a prince?
Xuanyuan Zhan, however, didn't react so strongly, since he had already guessed most of it: "The letter!"
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