Taiping Split 359. Ren Qining falls into a trap, the Northern Army turns against them

"Are you Princess Ding?!" A sharp voice sounded behind Concubine Yun.

Everyone was shocked. Although they were all women who were raised in the inner circle, they had all heard of the name of Princess Ding. How many times had their fathers and brothers sighed that if they had a daughter, they should have one like Princess Ding, and if they had a wife, they should have one like Princess Ding. Even their husband, the King of the Northern Territory, Ren Qining, always praised Princess Ding. This made these women who were raised in the inner circle both envious and jealous.

Ye Li was not surprised when her identity was exposed. She just looked up and saw the woman behind Concubine Yun. It turned out that she was also an acquaintance. Ye Li smiled faintly and said, "It turned out to be Miss Murong. Why is Miss Murong here?" This was equivalent to admitting her identity.

"Are you Princess Ding?" Concubine Yun was stunned. She had seen Princess Ding several times before. Although her appearance was not quite the same as the one she saw now, her calm and graceful demeanor made people look up at her. Who else could it be but Princess Ding?

"Princess Ding, why are you here?" After being startled for a moment, Concubine Yun quickly came to her senses and stared at Queen Helan in shock, saying, "It's you...you colluded with the Ding Palace..." Queen Helan said unhappily, "Don't say such harsh words. We in the Northern Territory are just cooperating with the Ding Palace to get back our own things. What's wrong with that? You still claim to be the orthodox of the Central Plains, but you colluded with the Northern Rong people to attack the Central Plains. Don't say such high-sounding words to make yourself look good."

Although Concubine Yun was not familiar with political affairs, she was not an ignorant girl. Naturally, she understood that if Queen Helan cooperated with Prince Ding's Mansion, the fate of her people would be worrying. "Helan, the king treats you well. Why do you want to collude with outsiders to rebel... Don't forget that the previous queen also died at the hands of Prince Ding's Mansion."

Queen Helan sneered disdainfully, "You treat me well? Ren Qining wants to kill all of us in the North as soon as possible so that he can change the name of the country and restore it himself, right? As for my cousin, if Ren Qining hadn't provoked Prince Ding's Mansion, how could my cousin have suffered such a disaster? If I don't ask Ren Qining to settle this account, who else should I ask?"

"You...you are making excuses!" Concubine Yun was so angry that her face turned red, but she had nothing to say.

Queen Helan waved her hand and said, "I will not bully a woman who knows nothing. You go back and stay here. I won't make things difficult for you before Ren Qining comes back. If you don't obey..." With a sneer, Queen Helan's lips curled up with a hint of coldness, "You can also try to see if I dare to kill people."

All the women present were weak and had never seen the world. How could they withstand the intimidation of Queen Helan? They all wanted to retreat. Concubine Yun was not much better. She bit her lip and glared at Queen Helan fiercely, then turned around and left.

"Ye Li, you're going to die!" Beside Concubine Yun, Murong Mingyan roared, and with a flash of cold light in her hand, she rushed towards Ye Li. However, a black shadow passed by, and before Murong Mingyan could touch Ye Li, she was slapped out by someone, and hit the pillar next to her, spurting out a mouthful of blood.

Zhuo Jing stood in front of Ye Li and said in a deep voice, "Princess?" Zhuo Jing did not know Murong Mingyan, but he knew from the hatred in her eyes that this woman had a deep hatred for the princess. He had been following Ye Li for ten years, but he had never seen Ye Li and this woman have an enemy. However, Zhuo Jing understood the identity of this woman after just a little thought, "Is she a remnant of the Murong family? Princess, do you want a subordinate..." For such people, the secret guards have always been used to rooting out the roots.

Ye Li stared at Murong Mingyan, who seemed to want to eat her, and was lost in thought. Murong Mingyan stood up with all her might, and wiped the blood from her lips, "Ye Li, you are not dead yet!"

Ye Li said calmly, "Didn't you know that I'm not dead? Miss Murong, I don't think I've done anything unforgivable to you, right? Why do you hate me so much?" Murong Mingyan's eyes were filled with hatred, "If it weren't for you...if it weren't for you, how could my Murong family be like this? How could my grandfather die? It's all your fault!"

"You are greedy and you have the nerve to turn the tables. If Murong Xiong hadn't relied on his martial arts to manipulate the heroes of the world, would the Murong family be in trouble? It's a pity... the beauty trap of the Murong family was not attractive enough, and they failed to steal the chicken and lost the rice." Zhuo Jing sarcastically said, although he did not go to Xiling with them, but he still knew what happened in Xiling at that time. When satirizing Murong Mingyan, he naturally stabbed at the most painful place.

Murong Mingyan gritted her teeth and her eyes were almost red with anger. She waited fiercely for Zhuo Jing and wished she could tear him to pieces.

Ye Li turned her head and said to Queen Helan, "Queen, please ask everyone else to go back first. I have something to discuss with Miss Murong." Queen Helan nodded and said to Concubine Yun and the others, "You all go back, Ming Zhaorong stay."

Concubine Yun and the others also knew that they could not afford to offend Queen Helan now, so they turned around and left.

Murong Mingyan was left behind, but she was not afraid at all. When she followed Ren Qining back to the northern border, Ren Qining promised to help her get revenge. But over the years, she gradually felt that her hope of revenge was getting slimmer and slimmer. If she had not been canonized when Mo Xiuyao massacred Ren Qining's harem, she would have died. She used everything she and the Murong family had, but only got a mediocre position of Zhaorong. How could Murong Mingyan not hate him?

"What do you want to say? You can kill me or rob me as you wish." Murong Mingyan stared at Ye Li warily and said arrogantly.

Ye Li smiled and said, "Miss Murong, don't be so nervous. I won't do anything to you." It must be said that although Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao are almost equal in fame, their reputations are very different. Although Mo Xiuyao has the reputation of several generations of Dingwang Mansion, he is too murderous. As long as people mention Dingwang, they will think of the battlefield full of murderous aura and countless blood. But for Ye Li, the Princess of Dingwang, many people, even if they have hostile intentions, can easily ignore her danger. Especially when they are face to face, Ye Li's gentle and elegant appearance, like a lady from a noble family, can easily make people relax their vigilance.

Murong Mingyan snorted. Although she did not relax her vigilance, her expression inevitably relaxed. Ye Li smiled and said, "Miss Murong should also understand that the failure of the Murong family was not due to my Dingwang Mansion. It was just a coincidence at that time and I had no choice. Moreover, compared to my Dingwang Mansion, who is more calculating against the Murong family? Miss Murong should know it in her heart."

Murong Mingyan pondered. She knew exactly what happened. If she hadn't insisted on provoking them... maybe she wouldn't have gotten involved in Prince Ding's Mansion. But Murong Mingyan had always been stubborn and believed that it was Mo Xiuyao's appearance that determined the Murong family's defeat. So it was natural for her to hate Prince Ding's Mansion.

"What do you want?" Murong Mingyan stared at Ye Li.

Ye Li smiled and said, "I want the remaining assets of the Murong family."

Murong Mingyan was shocked. "I don't know what you are talking about. Everything in the Murong family is in Ren Qining's hands. Otherwise, where do you think he got so much money to raise troops in the past two years?"

Ye Li shook her head slowly and said, "Miss Murong, don't lie to me. I may not know how deep the Murong family's background is, but it is still a little low. Moreover, considering Ren Qining's character, if the lady doesn't have any trump cards in her hand..." Ye Li didn't finish the rest of the words, but everyone present understood what she meant. Considering Ren Qining's character, if Murong Mingyan was no longer useful, how could she still stay in this palace now? I'm afraid she would have been thrown away somewhere long ago.

Murong Mingyan remained silent for a while before she said, "The Murong family has nothing but money. It's fine to give it to you, but what can I get?" Murong Mingyan knew very well that since Ye Li had called her back, she probably had no intention of letting her go even if she denied it.

"What does Miss Murong want?" Ye Li asked. Ye Li had not thought of Murong Mingyan at first, but now that she had met her, she naturally did not intend to let her go. In recent years, it was not only the Northern Territory that had mobilized troops, but also the Dingwang Mansion. Although the Dingwang Mansion was wealthy, it was still slightly inferior to a huge country. The more money, the better.

Murong Mingyan's eyes changed slightly, and after a long pause she suddenly said, "I want to marry Master Qingchen."

Ye Li's eyes turned cold, and she calmly refused, "No."

"Why?" Murong Mingyan asked in surprise. She knew that the Dingwang Mansion had been fighting wars for several years, so money and food became even more important. But she didn't expect Ye Li to refuse without even considering it.

Ye Li said, "My elder brother has already rejected Miss Murong. Even if it is for the sake of Prince Ding's Mansion, I cannot interfere with his marriage." If Murong Mingyan proposed other conditions, Ye Li would not mind lying to her even if it could not be achieved. But when it comes to Xu Qingchen's marriage, she cannot even lie.

Murong Mingyan gritted her teeth and looked at her and said, "Aren't you afraid that I will bury those gold and silver treasures forever? As long as I don't tell anyone, no one in this world will be able to find them. In these years, the King of Xiling Zhennan must have already searched the Murong family thoroughly, right? It's a pity that he got nothing!"

Ye Li shook her head and sighed softly, "I've said before, no matter who it is, I won't interfere with my eldest brother's marriage. If the Murong family's wealth is really not for Ding Wangfu, then we have to give up. Besides, if Ding Wangfu can't get it, then no one else can get it either, right?" The implication is that since Murong Mingyan doesn't intend to tell the whereabouts of the remaining wealth of the Murong family, she doesn't have to live in the world anymore. Don't blame Ye Li for being cruel. If she had killed Murong Mingyan directly, I'm afraid Ren Qining wouldn't have had so much money to frantically expand the army and attack Da Chu. If the resentful Murong Mingyan fell into the hands of others again, it would be a trouble for Ding Wangfu.

"Take him away." Ye Li said to Zhuo Jing.

Zhuo Jing nodded, grabbed Murong Mingyan and turned to leave.

Beside her, Queen Helan held her chin and looked at Ye Li and said, "This Murong Mingyan is so famous that even you want to take advantage of her?" Ye Li smiled helplessly and said, "The King of the Northern Territory is indeed very capable. There are probably not many people in his harem who don't have some background."

"Then why don't you agree to her?" Queen Helan asked in confusion. She was willing to marry Ren Qining for the sake of the Northern Territory, so she naturally couldn't understand why Ye Li would reject Murong Mingyan's request. Especially since the people of the Central Plains still have the rule of having three wives and four concubines, even if you don't like them, you can still marry again. Master Qingchen won't suffer any loss.

Ye Li said calmly, "There are things you should do and things you shouldn't do. My elder brother has worked hard for Ding Wangfu and me. If I still want to plot his marriage for a little money, then am I still a human being?" Queen Helan shook her head as if she understood and said, "Anyway, I don't understand the thoughts of you Central Plains people. I'll leave Murong Mingyan to you. There's no point in keeping her anyway. She doesn't have any family, and probably no one will save her."

"Thank you."

Ren Qining has been very irritable these days. The news from the army sent back for reinforcements is not optimistic at all. And the northern dignitaries and soldiers who stayed in Changqing City also stood by and watched as he expected. The only comfort is that Helan's reply to him said that at least the situation has not reached the worst. Although the leader of the rebels is extraordinary in military tactics, he has a weak foundation. If the northerners are willing to help, it will not be easy for even the Dingwang Mansion to gain an advantage in the northern border. However, in this case, the plan to form an alliance with the Northern Rong to attack the Mohist Army will fail.

Ren Qining did not feel much guilt about this. If a man does not work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth. He could not ignore the danger in his rear for Yeluye's plan. If so, even if it caused certain losses and troubles to the Mohist army, it would still be Yeluye who benefited and he who suffered. He and Yeluye were just an alliance, not really as close as family.

Thinking of this, Ren Qining's eyes flashed with determination. He stood up and ordered: "Leave one group of troops behind to cut off the enemy, and the rest of you will follow me back to Changqing to quell the rebellion."

"As you command." As soon as Ren Qining gave this order, many generals breathed a sigh of relief. If the king insisted on not retreating, the mortals would let others occupy their hometown, and that would be a loss. A few generals from the northern border also had a glimmer of joy in their eyes, but they were sitting at the back and were not noticed. Even if they noticed, they probably just thought that they didn't want to fight. This time on the battlefield, the Beijin soldiers, who were strong and brave in the past, had some negative intentions of slacking off, but even so, they were much stronger than the Central Plains soldiers who had just joined the army and had not fought a few battles. Even if Ren Qining was angry for a while, he couldn't leave them and had to endure it.

While preparing to return to the capital, Ren Qining wrote another letter to Queen Helan, in which he listed several benefits for the nobles in the northern border. Queen Helan was also straightforward and quickly wrote back to him to agree to his request. Anyway, Princess Ding also said that it doesn't cost money to cheat people!

On the top of Zijing Pass, Leng Huai and Leng Haoyu stood side by side, watching the Northern Border Army gradually withdraw. Leng Haoyu smiled and said, "It seems that the princess' plan was successful."

A smile appeared on Leng Huai's haggard and upright face, and he nodded, saying, "Yes, we should prepare to go and meet Princess Ding. People say that the princess is as talented, intelligent, and brave as men. I didn't believe it at first, but now it seems... she is more than just as capable as men." I'm afraid there are not many men in the world who are more capable than Princess Ding.

Leng Haoyu nodded and smiled, "That's right, the princess is always unexpected, yet also makes people feel that it is reasonable. Father, we should also prepare to leave the pass. In the past, Ren Qining came to attack Zijing Pass, but this time we have to leave the pass to chase him."

"Yes, it's time to avenge Qingyu." Although the younger son is more outstanding than the older son, Leng Qingyu is the beloved son whom he has loved and favored for decades. He sacrificed his life for the country without bringing shame to the Leng family. Being able to avenge his beloved son personally also made Leng Huai feel relieved.

Leng Haoyu nodded and said, "Father is right. Father can definitely avenge my elder brother himself." Although the two of them were at odds when Leng Qingyu was alive, Leng Haoyu would not be jealous of his brother who died in battle. It would be a good thing for father to avenge his elder brother himself and put his worries to rest. It was for this reason that he personally asked the prince and princess to let Leng Huaizhen guard Zijing Pass, just for today.

In the "rebel" camp outside Changqing City, He Su sat leisurely in the main seat of the marshal's tent and watched the generals below talking non-stop. In the end, they were just scared by the news that Ren Qining had returned to the court. They only had about 300,000 people under their command, which was less than the enemy's troops. Although they had won several battles under He Su's command, once Ren Qining's million-strong army returned to the court, they would be crushed by human wave tactics without any military tactics.

When they had almost finished arguing, He Su knocked on the table and smiled faintly: "Everyone, is it useful for you to argue about this now? We have fought so many battles, do you think the court will let us go if we stop now? If we give it a try, we can still have a chance to win glory, wealth and a bright future. If we surrender like this, we will be punished by having our entire family executed."

The generals below looked at He Su and said with bitter faces: "Brother He, tell me honestly whether there are reinforcements from the Ding Palace. The brothers have followed you and risked their lives, you can't let them down."

"That's right, that's right..." Everyone nodded repeatedly.

He Su smiled and said, "Of course there are reinforcements, but...it will take some time for them to arrive. But don't worry, although the reinforcements haven't arrived yet, strong reinforcements have already arrived at Prince Ding's Mansion."

Everyone was startled and suspicious. They looked at each other before someone asked, "Could it be Master Qingchen? I heard that Master Qingchen is the wisest man in the world and can defeat thousands of troops by himself?"

"It should be Prince Ding. Prince Ding fought bravely on the battlefield at the age of fourteen without ever being defeated. If it was Prince Ding, why would he be afraid of the imperial court's million-strong army?"

He Su smiled and looked at the door of the big tent. The curtain at the door was pulled open from the outside. A woman with black hair and elegant appearance walked in from the outside. There were also several men in black following behind her. They were obviously guards. Seeing the Qilin pattern on the clothes of the black guards, everyone was startled, "Qilin!?"

Several black-clad guards ignored the shock of the crowd and scattered to different corners of the big tent. Only two of them followed the woman in green. In the surprised eyes of the crowd, the woman in green walked to the main seat in the marshal's tent that He Su had given up and sat down. She smiled faintly at the crowd and said, "Everyone, thank you for your hard work."

Seeing He Su's respectful look towards the woman in green, some smart people couldn't help but feel moved. The more impulsive people couldn't help but ask, "Who are you? How dare you sit here?"

The woman in green smiled and said, "I am Ye Li."

Princess Ding?! Everyone was shocked.

"I have seen the princess." He Su bowed respectfully. With someone taking the lead, others followed suit. Everyone in the tent bowed and said in unison, "I have seen the princess." At least, it was said that Prince Ding had deep feelings for the princess. With the princess here, the Prince Ding's mansion would not watch them being strangled by the court, right?

Ye Li nodded and said, "No need to be polite, everyone. Please take a seat." Then everyone stood up and sat down in turn.

After everyone was seated, Ye Li said, "Thank you all for your willingness to help Prince Ding's Mansion to recapture this place. The prince was unable to come in time because of the war with the Northern Rong, but my words are as valid as the prince's promise. Everyone present will be rewarded after everything is settled. Prince Ding's Mansion will never treat meritorious officials unfairly."

A middle-aged general who looked a bit honest stood up and said: "Princess, I don't mind if you reward me. I was originally a general of the Great Chu, and was forced to help the tyrant to attack the capital of Chu. This matter..." Most of the people present were generals who surrendered from the Great Chu, and they were not welcomed in the Northern Territory and were not valued by Ren Qining. They were originally generals of the Great Chu who surrendered to the Northern Territory, and now they betrayed the Northern Territory and returned to the Dingwang Mansion. They always have some worries in their hearts. The fact that this middle-aged general could ask such a question shows that he is not as honest as he looks.

Ye Li said in a deep voice: "Wherever the Northern Border Army went, it did not harm ordinary people. I can promise you here that as long as you sincerely surrender to Prince Ding's Mansion, I will forgive the past. If you have made contributions, you will still be rewarded. But...if anyone has second thoughts, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Thank you, Princess." Everyone stood up and said. The surrendered generals were most worried about being punished later. Now that Princess Ding had promised in person, they naturally let it go. For a moment, the atmosphere in the big tent became much warmer.

He Su bowed and said, "My lord, Ren Qining has led a million-strong army to attack Changqing. Do you think we need to enter Changqing City and defend the city to wait for the reinforcements from Zijing Pass?"

Ye Li shook his head and smiled, "No need, why bother to obey orders. Lead the troops out of the camp immediately to challenge the enemy. It is best to win three more battles before Ren Qining's army arrives and drive the enemy out of thirty miles."

Although He Su didn't understand why Ye Li did this, he knew that the princess had her own ideas and would never do anything without a purpose. He stood up and said, "I obey your command."

After receiving the reply from Queen Helan, Ren Qining rode back to Changqing City at full speed. When he arrived near Changqing, he received a report from the front. His army was outnumbered and lost three battles and was driven dozens of miles away. Only the 50,000 northern troops stationed in the capital could barely resist the enemy and avoid more serious losses.

Ren Qining also knew what kind of soldiers he had, so he had to use more than 200,000 northern troops as the vanguard to attack the rebels together with the tens of thousands of northern troops stationed in Changqing, and he had to recapture Changqing Royal City. Unexpectedly, this was exactly what Ye Li and Queen Helan had planned. After the nearly 300,000 troops turned around, not only did they fail to kill the rebels without a single piece of armor left, but after these northern troops saw a flag signal that the Central Plains soldiers did not understand at all, they counterattacked and killed him in pieces.

In a flash, what else did Ren Qining not understand? He was so angry that his eyes were about to burst, and his blood gushed out. Ren Qining, who was originally sitting on the horse, tilted his body and fell off the horse. If it weren't for the guards beside him who grabbed him back, he would have been trampled to death by the rebels if not killed by the enemy.

"Why?!" Ren Qining asked sharply when he saw Queen Helan, who was in bright clothes and in high spirits, appearing in front of the army. He couldn't believe that he was fooled by a woman he never took seriously.

Queen Helan spurred her horse and whipped the whip, her pretty face full of disdain, "Why? Of course it's for the lives of my northerners, and also to avenge my cousin and uncle. Ren Qining, who do you think you are? You want to get away with it after taking advantage of my northerners? Since you appeared in the North, countless northerners have died in vain on the battlefield. Now there are only less than 300,000 people left. Do you want to kill them all so that my northerners can be exterminated?"

There are more than 700,000 soldiers from the North, and the population of the North is not large. These 700,000 soldiers account for 90% of the young men in the entire North. But now more than half of them are dead. If Ren Qining really wastes these 300,000 soldiers, what good will it do to the North even if the world is unified? Only annihilation awaits the North. Even now, it will take decades to restore the population and military strength of the past.

"Helan!" Ren Qining gritted his teeth.

Queen Helan chuckled, waved the whip in her hand and pointed at Ren Qining, saying with a smile: "I am going to take my northern man home. If you want to hate someone, then hate the princess. These are all her ideas. Sound the horn, and withdraw the troops!"

The ancient sound of the Northern Territory's beast horns echoed throughout the battlefield, and the Northern Territory army gradually withdrew from the battlefield to the northeast. From a distance, Helan looked at Ren Qining with a smug look, and there was a hint of provocation in his expression, "Do you dare to chase?"

Ren Qining gritted his teeth, but more blood flowed from the corners of his tightly closed lips. He could only watch Queen Helan leave with a big laugh.

"Withdraw the troops and return to camp!"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Puff!" A mouthful of blood spurted out again, and Ren Qining finally fell to the ground, falling into a dark sleep.

Ren Qining was taken back to the camp by the others, and it took him more than half an hour to wake up. The generals waiting in the tent stepped forward to check on him, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty, how are you?"

"Helan, you bastard! I swear to tear you into pieces!" Ren Qining said hatefully.

All the generals looked at each other in bewilderment. Just now, the soldiers of the northern border tribes had launched an attack with one mind in the chaos. Many people didn't even have time to figure out what was going on. Ren Qining gritted his teeth and said, "That bastard Helan has been colluding with Prince Ding's Mansion for a long time. He is just waiting for me to return to the court so that he can gather all the northern border soldiers."

"This... Your Majesty, if the Northern Border troops really become our enemies, what should we do?" The Ding Palace's eager eyes on us are already an immense pressure, and if the Northern Border troops turn against us, no one knows the strength of the Northern Border people better than them. If they had not been driving the Northern Border troops as the vanguard for the past two years, how could they, who had just managed to gather a million-strong army, have forced Da Chu to such a point.

Ren Qining sat up. He had been weighed down by many things these days. He spat out a mouthful of blood on the battlefield before, and his mind became much clearer. He sneered and said, "Helan dared to play tricks with me secretly, so she must not be a fool. If she puts the less than 300,000 soldiers into the war between our army and Prince Ding's Mansion, she will not be able to take back any of the hundreds of thousands of troops in the north. In a few days, she will leave by herself." When mentioning Helan, Ren Qining could not help but hate him. He established the country with the help of Helan's cousin, his ex-wife, but he did not expect to fall into the hands of his ex-wife's cousin, his current wife.

"Send someone to investigate carefully, who is the person in charge of Prince Ding's Mansion this time? Those who can resort to such means and cooperate with the Northern Territory are definitely not just any small soldiers and generals." Ren Qining ordered, "The original spies can no longer be used, I'm afraid they have been controlled by someone. You go and arrange new personnel."

"Yes." The subordinate bowed and accepted the order, then turned and left.

"Your Majesty, who do you think will be coming this time?" the confidant beside the bed asked cautiously.

Ren Qining said coldly: "There are not many people in Dingwang Mansion who can do this. Xu Hongyu and Xu Hongyan usually don't leave the northwest, and Mo Xiuyao is now fighting with Beirong. This time, it must be Xu Qingchen or Ye Li!" After thinking for a while, Ren Qining said decisively: "It must be Ye Li! When she was in Licheng, she also had a lot of contact with that jerk Helan." Ren Qining was now heartbroken. He didn't even guard against that jerk Helan at all, and brought her to Licheng. He also let her reach an agreement with Dingwang Mansion under his nose. It's a pity that it's too late to regret now.

"Your Majesty, Queen Helan..."

"Kill! No matter what the cost, we must not let that bastard return to the North alive!" Ren Qining had a ferocious look on his face, and his voice was so cold that everyone in the tent couldn't help but shiver.

Everyone left the meeting, and the big tent regained its peace. Ren Qining leaned against the bed with a tired look, closing his eyes to rest. He didn't know what he was thinking about, but his facial muscles twitched from time to time, his expression was twisted and murderous, "Mo Xiuyao, Ye Li! How dare you plot against me like this? I will make you live a life worse than death!"

There were thunder and lightning in Ren Qining's tent, but in the other side, there was a constant stream of singing and laughter in the tent of Prince Ding's mansion. Although the leaders of the northern tribes and the former ministers were fighting to the death, the ordinary soldiers did not have such deep hatred. When Ren Qining entered the pass, for the sake of his future rule, he did not let his soldiers kill innocent people like the northern barbarians. Naturally, he did not have any deep hatred with ordinary people. In the past two years, the soldiers of the Central Plains have watched the northern soldiers rush to the front in every battle and admired their extraordinary bravery. Now these northern soldiers have rebelled against Ren Qining like them, and everyone is on the same side. Naturally, there is nothing to say.

In the entire camp, except for the soldiers who were on routine patrols, everyone, whether from the Central Plains or the Northern Territory, sat together to drink and eat meat, singing and dancing, which was even more lively than a victory in a battle. The people of the Northern Territory had no intention of participating in the war in the Central Plains and had long been eager to return home. Tonight was also a farewell banquet held by Ye Li and Prince Ding's Mansion for the people of the Northern Territory tribes.

In the open-air camp, Ye Li led the Ding Palace people and the Central Plains generals who had just recovered the Northern Territory, and sat side by side with Queen Helan's father, the current leader of the Northern Territory, and drank wine together. The people of the Northern Territory saw that although this seemingly weak Ding Palace was not very good at drinking, she was indeed very clean and neat in her actions, unlike those people under Ren Qining who were smiling but hiding knives and full of tricks. They also heard that it was the credit of Princess Ding that so many of their Northern Territory men could be safely withdrawn from the battlefield. They couldn't help but have a very good impression of this Central Plains Princess.

The only women present were Queen Helan and Ye Li. Queen Helan did not sit down but went to Ye Li's side to join in the fun. Now, seeing that the people from the North were about to return home, Queen Helan's pretty face also showed some playfulness and ease. She was more relaxed than before, and really looked like a carefree girl of sixteen or seventeen years old. Instead of a Queen of the North who had to pretend to be arrogant while shouldering the fate of the entire tribe.

"Princess Ding, thank you so much for enabling us to evacuate the border safely and return to our homeland this time. Come... Helan will toast you a glass." Queen Helan raised a wine bowl and smiled at Ye Li.

Ye Li smiled and picked up the wine glass, saying, "I don't drink much, so I'll just drink this glass. Let me drink it first as a sign of respect." She raised her head and drank the wine in the glass. The most ordinary strong liquor, once it entered her stomach, she felt a burning sensation, and Ye Li's jade-like beautiful face was also stained with a hint of red.

Queen Helan shrugged and drank the whole bottle herself. She said with a smile, "You are a very straightforward person, which suits the taste of us northerners. But your alcohol tolerance is too low."

"Queen Helan..." Ye Li smiled helplessly. Her alcohol tolerance was pretty good among women. But compared to a Northern woman like Queen Helan who had been drinking strong liquor since she was a child, she was indeed not good enough.

Queen Helan glared at her unhappily, "I am not even a queen. Who wants to be a queen? I want to be the greatest female leader in the North!" Although the North is a barbarian land, it does not pay much attention to the difference between men and women, and does not favor boys over girls. From ancient times to the present, every tribe has had several female leaders, who are no worse than men. Queen Helan's father, the current leader of the North, has only one daughter, Helan. This time, she has made such a great contribution to the tribe, so she is naturally the next leader.

Ye Li smiled and said, "Okay, I'm wrong. Princess Helan?"

He Lan pouted and glared at Ye Li for a long while before nodding with satisfaction and said, "That's good enough." After that, she turned around and took He Su, Qin Feng and others who were sitting below Ye Li to drink. It was obvious that she was also a little drunk.

Not far from Ye Li, Helan's father also heard what his daughter said. He raised his wine bowl to Ye Li helplessly and said with a smile: "Helan has been spoiled by me, please forgive me, Princess."

"It's OK. Princess Helan is smart and intelligent. The tribe leader is so lucky." Although Ye Li had only met the temporary tribe leader of the Northern Border a few times, he must not be an ordinary barbarian with a rough temperament to be able to raise a daughter like Helan. Ren Qining's biggest mistake was probably that he underestimated these northern barbarians. The people of the Northern Border could help him establish a country, and naturally they could also defeat him.

The clan leader was also very fond of Yu Helan, his daughter, and was naturally very happy to hear Ye Li praising her. He laughed loudly and drank several bowls of wine in succession.

All the men in the army were very excited. Seeing the Northern Territory chief being so generous, the people present started to cheer and the atmosphere in the barracks became more lively.

"Princess Ding, I have heard for a long time that the Mohist Army is brave and skilled in fighting. We would like to have a competition with the brothers of the Mohist Army. Please allow us, Princess Ding." A young man among the Northern Border generals stood up and said loudly.

Hearing this, the eyes of the others also brightened. The Mohist army has been known for its bravery and good fighting skills for two hundred years and has rarely been defeated. Maybe the Mohist army is not the most brave army in the world, but it is definitely the army that has experienced the longest time and is still brave. Many famous warriors in history were brave and extraordinary in the early days, but after the period of prosperity, many of them gradually became second-rate because of the indulgence of the superiors or other reasons. However, it is unheard of that the Mohist army has been like this for more than two hundred years, and it has been suppressed by the kings of the Great Chu and still swept the world.

The men in the northern border are warlike and aggressive, and with the generals of the Mohist Army on their side, they naturally did not want to miss the opportunity to have a fight.

Ye Li was a little embarrassed. Among all the people in Prince Ding's Mansion present, only Qin Feng and He Su had led troops. But it would be unfair for either of them to fight against these northerners. They were either born as dark guards or black cloud riders, and they had all undergone Kirin's devilish training. In terms of individual strength, they could definitely kill any northern general present in seconds.

When Princess Helan heard about the fight, her eyes lit up immediately. She ran to Ye Li and said with a smile, "Princess Ding, please agree to them. I also want to see how powerful the generals of your Ding Palace are."

Ye Li looked at her with a helpless smile. Princess Helan didn't care. She pulled off the whip from her waist and pointed at He Su and said, "You are a general of the Mohist Army, right? This princess is here to learn from your skills!"

He Su was startled. The people in Prince Ding's Mansion had a rather strange habit. Because of Ye Li, they never looked down on women, but they also felt that there was no other woman in the world who could be compared with Ye Li. If he fought with this Princess Helan, no matter whether he won or lost, he would be laughed to death by those unscrupulous people when he returned.

"Princess Helan, this..."

Princess Helan raised her chin and said, "What? I am challenging you openly. How can you look down on me?"

He Su glanced at Ye Li, who was sitting at the top, and saw that she was calmly thinking with her brows lowered, as if she didn't see his eyes asking for help. He couldn't help but smile bitterly, it seemed that the princess had no intention of helping him out.

Zhuo Jinglin, Han Qinfeng and others beside him also looked at her with begging for mercy. This princess from the northern border is not easy to mess with. If she wins, she will be bullying women, and if she loses, she will be inferior to women.

"In that case, please come in, Princess." He Su stood up and bowed.