The bugle call blared, stirring the melancholy and loneliness of dusk. Qin Zhixing rose at the sound, fumbling for the sword belt at his waist. It was a general's instinct.
Seeing this, the other soldiers drew their weapons.
"That's not the bugle call of the Dos!" he quickly realized. "No need to draw your sword. It must be the King of Shu arriving!"
When he walked out of the barracks, the guests had already dismounted, including Lin Mo, Xu Chu, and a group of soldiers.
"Greetings, Your Highness!" Qin Zhixing immediately knelt on one knee to pay his respects.
Lin Mo roared, "Hey, Lao Qin, you've gotten so thin! And you look so pale! Plus, you've grown a beard!"
"This little bit of beard? Compared to Bai Qi, it's nothing, Your Highness!" Qin Zhixing replied.
His sideburns stood up, covering his entire chin, thick like a hedge, and his head was covered with a clump of messy black hair—flattened by the helmet he had just taken off.
Amidst the hairy face, a nose that was purple from the cold and a pair of bright, piercing eyes emerged.
"What, did the Dossians steal your razor?" Lin Mo joked.
"I swore an oath with General Bai Qi that we would never shave our beards until the cancerous tumor of Dos is eradicated!" Qin Zhixing said.
"Oh! Count me in! Oh, and Xu Chu too!" Lin Mo laughed, his tone very casual. "Speaking of which, in the dead of winter, a few extra hairs can keep you warm."
“That makes sense. I, Old Xu, will stop shaving!” Xu Chu said.
"Let's get down to business. Where is Bai Qi?" Lin Mo asked.
“On the mountain!” Qin Zhixing said, “General Bai has been going up the mountain from time to time these past few days without saying why, so I don’t know what he’s doing!”
"They couldn't possibly be going rabbit hunting for fun, could they?" Lin Mo thought to himself. "Let's not worry about that for now."
"Old Qin, settle the men I brought with you," Lin Mo said. "After Bai Qi returns, hold a meeting. This time, we have... many enemies!"
~~~
Night fell, and Bai Qi returned.
Inside a stone house in the new city, a brazier was lit, and the burning coals made the room steamy with heat.
"Your Highness, the stables, blacksmith shop, and barracks have all been completed." Bai Qi reported the progress word by word. "The city wall will take about thirteen more days to complete, and the city gate will be completed in five days."
The moat has been dug, but it hasn't been filled with water yet...
"Bai Qi, when you say 'complete,' do you mean complete it entirely according to Mr. Yao's design, or...?" Lin Mo asked, because what he saw when he entered the city was not quite the same as what Yao Guangxiao had designed.
"Your Highness, it was a temporary modification made according to my instructions."
"Temporary modifications?" Lin Mo frowned, but didn't ask any further questions.
The army of Doss arrived earlier than expected, and if Yao Guangxiao's design was followed, it would definitely not be completed in time.
Therefore, based on his own experience, Bai Qi simplified the city walls, and many stone designs were replaced with wood.
This would greatly shorten the construction period, allowing the project to be completed before the arrival of the Doss.
Although it was a temporary design, the city before us is still very sturdy.
First, Bai Qi transformed it in a unique way.
After breaching the lowest level of the city wall.
The city above is divided into five levels, each with its own walls and entrances, but these entrances are not in a straight line.
The main gate of the city wall is located in the east of the semicircle of the city, the next gate is built in the southeast of the city, and the third is in the northeast of the city. All the entrances are built according to this pattern.
Therefore, the road into the fortress was laid out in a winding path around the hills.
Whenever this road passes the location of the vertical main gate, it goes through an arched tunnel.
Simply put, the city walls, arranged in a ring and rising upwards, made the city as impregnable as a fortress.
This renovation had the advantage of stronger defense, but it greatly reduced the area of buildings within the city, to the point that even Lin Mo, the King of Shu, did not have his own private room.
The soldiers' barracks were tiny, with four people crammed into a room of just a few square meters.
Special times call for special measures.
Therefore, Lin Mo tacitly approved of Bai Qi's actions.
"Bai Qi, continue!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" Bai Qi spoke again. "Currently, the Dos Allied Forces claim to number 800,000 and are coming on strong. Our forces number around 30,000. Even though we occupy a natural stronghold, our disadvantage is still very obvious."
The system exchanged over 12,000 people from Lin Mo, brought around 8,000 with Guo Wenlong, transferred over 10,000 from Xichuan City, and then added those evacuated from Shuyong Pass to Tianyue Mountain. That's a total of 30,000!
"Eight hundred thousand? There's bound to be some exaggeration, isn't there?" Qin Zhixing questioned.
“There are indeed some. But the Dos people are different from the Daxia people; their boasts are not exaggerated!” Bai Qi said. “They claim to have 800,000 people, but conservatively speaking, there are at least 400,000.”
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions immediately turned serious.
Thirty thousand against four hundred thousand, the difference is obvious... no, it should be thirty thousand against five hundred thousand!
Because there is still...
"What about Li Liang's Chiyan Army? Any new information?" Lin Mo asked again.
"Your Highness, our scouts report that they have joined forces with the Dos allied forces!" Qin Zhixing said. "However, there are reports that they don't seem to be getting along very well!"
"That's only temporary. The Doss will soon gain the upper hand!" Bai Qi said. "Your Highness, the Doss will appear in Tianyue City in five days at most!"
"Tianyue Mountain? Tianyue City?" Lin Mo asked curiously, "Who came up with these names so casually?"
"It is your subordinate!" Bai Qi replied.
"It doesn't sound good, let's change it!" Lin Mo said.
"Then... Your Highness, would you like to choose one?"
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