Thinking back to the young nobleman Xie Lin of Rui’an King Residence, Zhou Gu and he were incompatible, and the fundamental reason was not their family background, but Xie Lin’s indifference towards the practice of martial arts and the study of military strategies. In Zhou Gu’s view, this made him useless and wholly divergent from his interests.
Qin Ruo nodded, and then laughed. "What the princess said is correct. Since I was a child, I have loved reading books. I read everything, including military books."
"That’s the truth. Let’s go. I will take you with me." Su Rong, who had already emerged from the carriage, mounted her horse.
Since Qin Ruo could read military books, he was not completely inept physically. Although he was not a master of martial arts and only knew some common skills, he was skilled in horse riding and archery. The least to say, he was not a delicate scholar. If he were a delicate scholar, he wouldn’t have been able to hold out so long in the stone quarry.
Ning Ze ran out of the carriage from behind, grabbing Su Rong’s horse’s leg, "Princess, why aren’t you bringing me?"
Su Rong had actually forgotten about him as he had not been around for the past few days, but she immediately responded seriously, "You need to stay in the army, there are many military affairs that need your attention. You should assist Jiang Zhu and Zhang Mao."
"What about me?" Shen Yi poked her head out of the horse carriage from behind.
Su Rong frowned, "Sister, pregnant women need to be prudent. How can you ride a horse? I’m still waiting for my nephew to grow up and share my worries."
Shen Yi was already showing signs of pregnancy, and she rubbed her belly and sighed, accepting this reason.
Ning Ze spoke in a whisper, "Actually, the army can survive without me. Jiang Zhu and Zhang Mao are enough."
"Zhang Mao has not fully recovered yet." Su Rong reminded him, very seriously, and said solemnly, "They need you even more."
Ning Ze sighed, "Alright then!"
He also knew that Zhang Mao’s injury was almost healed. He couldn’t jump or perform strenuous activities, but he could stand. Su Rong simply didn’t want to bring him along, because he didn’t understand military strategies as well as Qin Ruo and couldn’t discuss them with her.
She felt burdened with too many people around and only needed one person by her side, someone who could discuss with her before she made decisions, either nodding in agreement or shaking their head and providing a contrary argument; that was enough for her.
These were things he was not good at.
He could only watch helplessly as Su Rong and Qin Ruo led fifty thousand cavalry away. He sighed repeatedly, "I should also learn military strategy and read military books."
Jiang Zhu laughed at him, patting his shoulder, "Brother, why do you want to learn the skills of everyone you see? You can’t be a jack-of-all-trades, man. Can you let others live?"
Ning Ze had great potential, a realization that Jiang Zhu just had. His potential reached a level where whatever he saw others doing well, he would learn. Jiang Zhu didn’t understand where he got this vigor from and felt that in the future, he could potentially serve in all of the six ministries and become a versatile asset.
That would indeed be commendable!
Ning Ze turned his head to look at Jiang Zhu, ignoring his teasing, "I’m going to learn it."
Jiang Zhu: "..."
Very well! It seems he also needs to work hard! Otherwise, in the future, if he doesn’t fare well in comparison, where would his dignity be? How could he be valued by the princess?
Zhang Mao, who had the most experience with Ning Ze’s potential, also thought that he should be the one who put in the effort along with him. His younger brother was already capable, having flipped the Nangong family upside down with Zhou Gu’s help, experiences that would help him grow. And Zhang Mao, he also could not fall behind too much, otherwise, it would be shameful.
Shen Yi looked at the three of them and sighed. Even Su Rong’s unintentional actions had evolved into a way of motivating her subordinates. She had only brought along Qin Ruo, indirectly motivating these three men.
Su Rong led 50,000 cavalry, marching day and night. In just thirteen days, they were near the battlefield.
By now, Ye Guixue who led an army of 100,000 had lost more than half, and they had been forced into a mountain valley pass with no way out.
The surviving soldiers had all suffered varying degrees of injury.
During a brief respite, Ye Xiang looked at Ye Guixue who was sitting against a tree trunk not far away, his clothes stained with blood and his face gloomy, he couldn’t help feeling helpless. He wondered if they had made a wrong decision.
Who would have thought that the 50,000 soldiers dispatched by the Dawei Crown Prince Yuan Zhao would prove so superior, they could match an army of 100,000 men.
The 100,000 soldiers under Ye Guixue were ones that he had won over, and after winning them over, they left for Daliang. Without sufficient time for training and integration, they were at a disadvantage.
Ye Xiang walked over to Ye Guixue and called to him, "Guixue."
Ye Guixue looked up at Ye Xiang. Although Ye Xiang had no wounds or blood on him, his eyes were bloodshot and tired, showing signs of premature aging. He felt ashamed and said, "Father, I might have made a mistake."
He was too arrogant and too confident. He thought that with an army of 100,000, he could protect his family while preserving his strength, rather than having to fight the Nangong family in the capital, where they would be completely routed. But unexpectedly, of the 150,000 soldiers dispatched by Nangong Yin, 50,000 were Dawei soldiers, and they were formidable.
"It’s not your fault. I agreed to it." Ye Xiang said, "I didn’t expect Han Yin’s 50,000 Dawei soldiers to be such proficient fighters."
They had been pursued and attacked for a thousand miles, retreating at every step. Now they were only able to retain half of their soldiers; Ye Xiang thought that this was already quite good.
Ye Guixue said, "I’m afraid we won’t be able to get out of here. Let your eldest brother escort you and mother to safety."
"We’re not leaving." Ye Xiang said decidedly. "If we die, we die together."
Ye Guixue was helpless, "Father!"
"Since I am the father, this time, you have to listen to me. It can’t be up to you." Ye Xiang, with a stern face, said, "Rest up. The next battle might be the last."
They had no way out. They had retreated to this mountain valley, and behind them was the gorge of the mountain stream. Once they crossed it, it was the Chikou River. Without boats, they couldn’t cross the river. Even if they didn’t lose all the soldiers, they could hardly escape. Even if they escaped, there probably was no way to survive.
He had already received the news that the Nangong family had fully mobilized to search for and kill the secret agents of the Prince of Daliang who were hiding within the Nangong family in the capital. The Liu’an Prince, wary of the Nangong family, decided to change his strategy. He sent people to eliminate the forces he planted in various places, and the Ye Xiang Residence naturally had to resist. Now the outside secret agents were caught in a lively fight, unable to spare the manpower to come and rescue them, and it would be a death mission even if they did.
Now the whole of Nanchu was in turmoil.
"Father, then let my eldest brother go. He still has a daughter, Qiuying, who is in the Eastern Palace of Daliang. She cannot go on without a father." Ye Guixue looked at Ye Xiang, unyielding, and then turned to Ye Guiyan to persuade him to leave.
Ye Guiyan was on the side, he shook his head upon hearing this, "Second brother, I am not leaving. Even if Qiuying loses her father, she still has the princess. You said that the princess is kind-hearted and will take care of her. I have no worries."
Ye Guixue frowned, "Eldest brother, the role of a father is irreplaceable."
Ye Guiyan waved his hand to stop him, "Second brother, you don’t have to say anything else. I have made up my mind."
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