"Alright! Hansheng, your ambush mission requires you to take a detour through this area. You must not reveal your location, so you can only hide during the day and move at night. Moreover, time is of the essence; you must reach this place within seven days! If you are even a step late, you may be discovered by the enemy, which could lead to the failure of this operation!"
As he spoke, Huangfu Song drew an arc with his finger from the northern part of Youbeiping, pointing directly to that mountain valley.
Seeing the direction Huangfu Song was pointing, Huang Zhong and the other three frowned. The starting point of the path Huangfu Song was pointing to was a dense forest. They needed to cross the forest to reach a small path leading to their destination, and the path looked quite rugged and difficult to traverse.
Moreover, according to the map, it is nearly 300 miles away from their ambush site. To get there within seven days at night, they would need to travel non-stop, let alone their cavalry who had no jungle experience.
Most importantly, if the men can persevere, what about the horses? The loss of warhorses on this expedition will certainly be considerable!
"What? Is there a problem?"
Seeing that the four had not replied to him for a long time, Huangfu Song frowned and looked at them.
Upon hearing this, Huang Zhong and the other three exchanged glances and nodded in unison. They had come to this northern expedition with honor and the Emperor's expectations. If they were to back down because of this, it wouldn't matter to them, but where would the Emperor's face be?
Huang Zhong looked at Huangfu Song with a resolute gaze and said loudly, "No problem! Please rest assured, Commander Huangfu, we will definitely arrive there within seven days!"
Huangfu Song nodded and said in a deep voice, "Alright! However, the journey ahead will be arduous. To ensure the fighting strength of the warhorses, I will allocate another four thousand warhorses to you!"
"Thank you very much, Commandant Huangfu!"
"There's no time to lose. You should all go and rest now, and set off as soon as night falls!"
"promise!!"
Subsequently, under Huangfu Song's arrangement, Huang Zhong and others left the main tent. After a hearty meal, the four thousand exhausted soldiers took advantage of this rare rest time to close their eyes, relax, and recover their strength.
Not long after Huang Zhong and the others left, a guard brought Qiuliju, the chieftain of the Southern Wuhuan, to the outside of the central army tent. Accompanying him were Qiuliju's personal guards and his nephew, Tadun.
"Reporting to the Commandant, Lord Qiuliju of the Wuhuan has arrived!"
"Okay! Let him in!"
Before long, Qiuliju followed the guards into the main tent.
Upon seeing Huangfu Song in the main seat, Qiu Liju quickly cupped his hands in greeting and said respectfully, "Greetings, Commandant Huangfu!"
Qiu Liju was the leader of the Wuhuan tribes in Liaoxi, with a population of 30,000. However, they had now submitted to the Han Dynasty and were under the command of Lu Zhi, the Protector of the Wuhuan. Although in terms of status, he should be on par with Huangfu Song.
However, Huangfu Song was clearly much stronger than Qiu Liju in terms of background and military strength, so Qiu Liju immediately lowered his stance.
"Don't be shy, please have a seat!"
"Thank you very much, Commandant Huangfu!"
After they were seated, Qiu Liju looked at Huangfu Song with a puzzled expression, "I wonder why Commandant Huangfu has summoned me in such a hurry?"
Hearing Qiu Liju's question, Huangfu Song said in a deep voice, "Since I was ordered by His Majesty to come and support your tribe, a month has passed, but we have still not been able to completely repel the invading enemy from the northern Wuhuan. Now our tribe's food supplies are running low, and we cannot stay here any longer!"
Qiu Liju was stunned for a moment, then said urgently, "What did you say... the Han army is withdrawing?"
"Sigh... Retreating now can minimize losses. If the stalemate continues, are you sure you can cover the costs?"
Huangfu Song sighed softly, then looked at Qiu Liju with a deep gaze.
Upon hearing Huangfu Song's words, Qiu Liju's expression changed. He knew that the Han army was able to support them this time because they had given the Han army an IOU. Whatever losses the Han army suffered, they would have to replenish.
“I…we…”
Qiu Liju was at a loss for words. They had originally hoped that the Han army could repel the invasion of the Wuhuan in the north, and then they could take the opportunity to go north and plunder again. At that time, they would not only be able to pay for the Han army's military expenses, but also gain a lot for themselves.
However, the Wuhuan in the north have not yet withdrawn, but the Han army is about to withdraw. Not only will they not gain any benefits, but they will also continue to be attacked. Most importantly, they cannot afford the high military expenses of the Han army alone.
"What...what should we do?"
For a moment, Qiuliju sat there blankly. If he could not pay the Han army's military expenses next year, the Han army would definitely not let him go, and the Wuhuan in the north would also take the opportunity to launch an attack. He had already imagined the scene of his troops being destroyed under the attack of the Han army and the Wuhuan in the north.
Seeing Qiu Liju's dazed expression, Huangfu Song smiled and then said, "I do have a method that can completely annihilate the northern Wuhuan within ten days!"
Upon hearing this, Qiu Liju snapped out of his daze, quickly stood up, and bowed deeply to Huangfu Song, saying, "What method is there? Please, Commandant Huangfu, teach me!"
"Come and take a look!"
Then Huangfu Song led Qiu Liju to a new, simplified map. After all, the previous map was the Han army's future reliance for their northern expedition, and it certainly couldn't be shown to outsiders.
Then Huangfu Song pointed to Chengde and said, “I plan to lure the Wuhuan people from the north here. Your two thousand men, Nanlou’s three thousand men, plus my five thousand men, make ten thousand against seven thousand. We can definitely annihilate them in one fell swoop!”
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