The World is Shocked 133. Expedition (2)

Of the 800,000 Mohist troops stationed near the capital, only 50,000 troops led by General Zhang Qilan were stationed there. These 50,000 troops were said to be used to defend the capital, so they could not follow Ye Li's army to the border. Ye Li and Nan Hou needed to lead people to a place a few hundred miles away from the capital and meet up with several armies stationed in various places before rushing to the border. This also saved the farewell and oath-taking ceremony before the departure. It just so happened that Ye Li didn't like this kind of false pomp and circumstance, so she was naturally satisfied with this somewhat hasty arrangement.

Most of the people in Prince Ding's Mansion still had to stay in the capital to stick to their respective duties. Only Feng Zhiyao and Zhuo Jing, Yun Ting who had been thrown into the military camp for quite some time, and Xu Qingze who somehow persuaded Mo Jingqi to go to the battlefield with Ye Li were the only ones who went to the battlefield. Because Xu Qingze insisted on going to the border together, Ye Li felt guilty towards Qin Zheng, whom she hadn't seen for quite a while. On the contrary, Qin Zheng, who came to see them off, smiled at Ye Li with understanding, and told them to be careful on the road and come back soon. In addition, Mo Jingqi didn't know what he was thinking, but he pushed Mu Yang in before he left. Mo Jingqi said that Prince Ding's return date was uncertain, and Nan Hou was old, so he sent Mu Yang to Nan Hou as a errand boy. Ye Li and Nan Hou didn't say much about this. Everyone knew why Mo Jingqi sent Mu Yang to accompany him. Although Mu Yang was a young and outstanding man, the others were not pushovers either. No one could predict what would happen on the battlefield. They didn't need to quarrel with the emperor over such a small matter.

The group galloped all the way, but after just over a day, they arrived at Hengshui, a military town 500 miles away from Chujing. Hengshui City was not prosperous and magnificent, but there were nearly 100,000 Mohist troops stationed 20 miles west of the city. Troops stationed in several other places were also rushing in this direction. In the next few days, nearly 300,000 troops would gather here. It was already sunset when they arrived at Hengshui City. Ye Li reined in her horse and turned back to Nan Hou and said, "My Lord, General Sun has already led his men to Hengshui last night. Let's not enter the city and go directly to the Hengshui camp." Nan Hou looked at Ye Li sitting upright on the horse with admiration and said, "Just do as the princess says." Even an ordinary man would not be able to bear the continuous galloping for a day and a night, but Princess Ding was still calm and relaxed, without even a trace of fatigue on her face. This made Nan Hou and Mu Yang, who were traveling with her, both surprised and admired her.

Hengshui Camp is at the foot of a mountain 20 miles west of Hengshui City. In front of it is an endless plain, and behind it is the Hengshui Mountains. It is a natural training ground. When the group was still five or six miles away from Hengshui Camp, the local generals came to greet them together with General Sun Yan who arrived early last night, "I am waiting for you to meet the princess!" Ye Li nodded slightly and asked, "Where is the commander of Hengshui Camp?" A middle-aged man with gray hair and beard, who was already in his forties or fifties but still energetic, stepped out of the crowd and bowed to Ye Li, saying, "I am Lu Jinxian, the commander of Hengshui Camp, and I have the honor to meet the princess."

Ye Li turned over and dismounted, raised his hand and said, "General Lu, there is no need to be polite. This is the Marquis of Nan, the deputy commander of the Western Expedition specially appointed by the emperor, and this is the son of the Marquis of Muyang, the former captain of the army, Mu Yang." Ye Li did not introduce Zhuo Jingyunting and others standing behind him, and the generals knew that they were their own people, so they just went forward to greet the Marquis of Nan and Mu Yang. The Marquis of Nan was also a man who had been on the battlefield, so he was naturally not fussy in front of these generals and greeted them very heartily. As for Mu Yang, although he had the identity of the son of the Marquis of Muyang, his position in the army was only a captain, and any general present had a higher position than him. Naturally, there was not much room for him to speak, and he just followed the Marquis of Nan to greet everyone. Fortunately, although Mu Yang had a smooth life since childhood, he did not develop a proud and arrogant habit. The scene was harmonious and joyful.

After the greetings, Nan Hou asked sternly, "General Lu, is it time for the army to set out?"

Lu Jinxian was also unequivocal and said loudly: "The army has already been prepared for battle. As long as the princess and the marquis give the order, we can set out at any time!"

Feng Zhiyao smiled and said, "General Lu, we are really tired after traveling all the way here. Let's set out early tomorrow morning."

Lu Jinxian looked at everyone and said with a smile: "General Feng is right. I was not considerate enough. Princess, Lord Marquis, please go back to the camp and rest for a night. This will also allow the soldiers to recuperate."

In the vast camp, it was already quiet at night. The troops had to go out to fight early the next morning, so most of the soldiers went to bed early, except for the generals who were sitting in the central tent to discuss matters.

In the big tent, Ye Li changed into a light blue dress and sat in the main seat in the middle. Below and to the left and right sat Feng Zhiyao, Lu Jinxian, Sun Yan and other generals in order of rank. As for Nan Hou and Mu Yang, who were deputy marshals, they were invited to rest after the meeting. It was the first time for all the generals to see Ye Li, the hostess of Dingguo Palace. Rather than respecting Ye Li's status as Ding Wangfei, it was more like respecting the Jiaozi jade pendant hanging around her waist. A general stood up and said, "Princess, I wonder when the prince can return?" The princess was only a supervisor of the army, and Nan Hou, as a deputy marshal, was the highest authority in the Mohist Army. Although Nan Hou's position was always neutral, it still made these generals loyal to Ding Wangfu feel a little uneasy. Ye Li shook her head gently and said, "The prince is far away in Beirong. It will take some time for him to get back after receiving the news. But now, the war at the border can't wait for the prince to come back. Or... if the prince is not here, the generals will not fight?"

All the generals were silent, and Ye Li continued, "I understand your loyalty to Prince Ding's Mansion and Prince Ding. But I also hope that all the generals understand one thing, why does the Mohist Army exist?" Her beautiful eyes swept over them, "It is for the peace of the people of Da Chu. Every soldier of the Mohist Army also has parents and children. Protecting Da Chu is protecting the Mohist Army's own relatives."

Everyone was silent for a while, and Lu Jinxian said hesitantly: "Do we really have to listen to Nan Hou's orders?"

Ye Li said: "If the purpose of Nan Hou and the Mohist Army is the same, why can't we obey his command temporarily? It is a reality that the prince cannot come back now. Can we tell the people of Xiling that since Prince Ding is not here, we can fight again in a few days?" Hearing this, everyone's expressions couldn't help but twisted. Feng Zhiyao smiled and said, "Princess, I'm sure everyone is worried that if the Mohist Army obeys Nan Hou's orders, will he gain control of the Mohist Army and that this will be detrimental to us?" Ye Li raised her eyebrows and smiled, "Nan Hou will not gain control of the Mohist Army. I will always follow Nan Hou in action, although this... has some disadvantages, but this is the only way now. Speaking of which, Nan Hou is temporarily acting as the commander-in-chief, and it is impossible for him to personally participate in every battle, so the generals will have to be troubled on the battlefield."

Everyone said in unison: "I will definitely live up to the princess's high expectations."

Ye Li nodded and said, "Thank you, generals. Hey, how much do you know about the situation ahead?"

As soon as these words came out, the people in the tent immediately took the opportunity to get out. Although they had a grudge against the people sent by the emperor, that was also because the emperor had spared no effort to suppress the Mohist Army in recent years. Originally, the Mohist Army was scattered to guard the borders of Da Chu, but because Mo Jingqi was worried, he took advantage of the opportunity when Prince Ding was recuperating in the mansion and the Mohist Army was seriously injured to transfer all the Mohist Army to the inland. Almost all the border guards were the emperor's confidants or generals who didn't get along well with Prince Ding's mansion. And now, Xiling invaded Da Chu, and also invaded the land they had guarded for generations. How could they really not be anxious? Lu Jinxian said in a deep voice: "Xi Ling came well prepared this time. King Zhennan personally led 300,000 troops to invade. According to the news from the front, there are hundreds of thousands of people besieging Xinyang alone. The troops sent by the court found King Zhennan's ambush and suffered most of the casualties. We have discussed it in the past two days. I am afraid that Xinyang City can't be defended."

Everyone looked unhappy. Xinyang was the granary of the northwest. Once Xinyang was lost, not only the city and the pond would be lost, but also the food of the people in the northwest and even the military rations would be threatened.

Ye Li pondered for a moment and asked, "At our marching speed, what is the worst outcome?"

Lu Jinxian said: "The Xiling army crossed Xinyang and captured the entire Qingzhou. Then they entered the palace in Jiangxia Town, Hanzhou."

Ye Li raised her eyebrows, and Lu Jinxian explained: "There are 50,000 of our people stationed near Jiangxia. The chief general, General Yuan Pei, is also a veteran. He should have gone to support Xinyang. Once Xinyang is lost, he should lead his troops to retreat to Jiangxia. We should be able to support Jiangxia in time if we continue along the way." Ye Li nodded. She and Feng Zhiyao had analyzed this before, and the conclusions they reached were similar to those of Lu Jinxian. Ye Li rubbed her eyebrows and asked: "I only talked about the situation of the Xiling Central Army, so what about the South and North?"

Lu Jinxian said: "The southern route and the northern route each have at least 150,000 troops. They will attack Chiayi Pass in the south and Tianyun Pass in the north respectively. Although the border guards try their best to resist, I am afraid the situation is not optimistic."

"Who leads the southern and northern routes?"

Lu Jinxian shook his head, and Sun Yan said, "My princess, the leader of the southern route is said to be the prince of Zhennan, Lei Tengfeng. He has been taught by Zhennan since he was a child, and he showed his prowess on the battlefield when he was 19 years old and fought against Beirong. He should not be underestimated. The leader of the northern route is Shangguan Yi, an old general from Xiling. He can't be said to have any special achievements, and he is already over 60 years old. But... he is the military teacher of Zhennan King of Xiling." Ye Li nodded, and after thinking for a long time, he raised his head and said, "Thank you all for your hard work today. We have to set off early tomorrow morning. Everyone go back and rest first."

Everyone stood up and said goodbye to Ye Li, then turned around and left. Only Feng Zhiyao, Zhuo Jing, and Xu Qingze were left in the tent. Feng Zhiyao smiled at Ye Li's frown and said, "Xi Ling is coming in force, are you having a headache, Princess?" Ye Li smiled bitterly, "How can I not have a headache?" She was not a genius, to put it bluntly, she simply did not have the energy for such a large-scale war. If it came to special operations in a small group, she was confident that she could dominate the world, but when it came to these deployments of troops and generals, even with Mo Xiuyao's many pointers, she still couldn't help but feel a little guilty at first.

Feng Zhiyao said: "It is certain that Xiling has dispatched at least 600,000 troops this time. With such a large force, and Xiling Zhennan King's reputation as a god of war, let alone you, the princess, even those veterans on the battlefield, how many of them are not worried?" Although Xiling Zhennan King was once defeated by Mo Liufang, the Regent King of Da Chu, Mo Liufang is dead while he is still alive.

"Li'er, you did a great job." Xu Qingze looked at Ye Li and said calmly, his usually cold eyes now filled with a hint of warmth.

Ye Li smiled faintly and said, "Second brother, don't praise me. I look calm on the surface, but I'm in a mess inside."

Xu Qingze said: "Don't be too nervous, just do what you can. If there is anything you want me to do, just ask."

Ye Li nodded, "Thank you, second brother."

At this time, Mo Xiuyao, who was far away in Beirong, felt a chill in his heart. He looked up at the bright moon in the sky and couldn't help but think of the past year. Since the accident, he never thought that his life would be so comfortable and happy. At the beginning, they were like relatives and friends, then they helped each other and then they were deeply in love. I don't know when Ah Li's every smile and frown has been engraved in his heart, and it will be difficult to erase it in this life.

"Your Highness." A secret guard appeared behind him silently.

"What's the news?"

The secret guard said: "The list of the masterminds behind the assassination of the princess has been found out. Also, since the invasion of Xiling, the emperor has summoned the princess to the palace several times, seemingly wanting to seize the military power of the Mohist Army from her. But he has not succeeded."

Mo Xiuyao's eyes were filled with dark currents, and he sneered and said, "He will never be able to distinguish between the important and the urgent. Go tell Ronghua that no matter what, we must set off within tomorrow."

The secret guard hesitated for a moment and said, "I'm afraid Princess Ronghua doesn't have such a profound influence on Yelu Hong."

Mo Xiuyao said calmly: "If Yelu Hong wants to defeat Yelu Ye, he will know what to do. Go and prepare, we will set off tomorrow."

The secret guard nodded and said, "As you command!"

Waving off the guards, Mo Xiuyao looked up at the bright moon in the sky, his eyes gradually becoming gentle, "Ali... Xiuyao always makes you suffer... One day... One day I will bring you all the best things in the world. As for those who want to hurt you... I will never let them go!" Originally, Mo Xiuyao should have set off for Beijing immediately after hearing the news of Xiling's invasion, but the attitude of the King of Beirong was unusually firm. He insisted that Mo Xiuyao stay to attend the prince's wedding, and even had a hint of threat. Mo Xiuyao was not afraid of his threat, but if he really withdrew on the spot, Da Chu would probably have to face attacks from two countries at the same time. The King of Beirong is not ready to annex Da Chu, but he doesn't mind holding back Mo Xiuyao, the young and famous war god, for Xiling for a while. Maybe he can get some benefits from it. So... he deserves to die too!