Outside the Liangzhou camp, the generals of the Liangzhou army came to see Dong Zhuo off, all of them looking at Dong Zhuo on horseback with flushed faces.
"Zhong Ying's armor... hmm... it's really unique..."
Zhang Qiao had been smiling and about to say something, but when he met Dong Zhuo's fierce gaze, he quickly changed the subject.
"Thank you all for seeing me off, but the military situation is urgent! I must take my leave now!"
Dong Zhuo then cupped his hands in greeting to his generals, and led his troops away from the camp, heading towards Jiuquan.
On the other side, Zhang Huan also sent out Lü Bu and Gao Shun, leading three thousand Bingzhou wolf cavalry and two thousand infantry.
Behind the two teams were long supply trains, gathering from different places in the same direction.
Three hundred miles northwest of Juyan, there used to be a large and bustling tribe, but now it was eerily silent. The tribe was littered with severed limbs and the corpses of men, and most of the tents had been set on fire.
The air around us was filled with the pungent smell of blood and burning.
Before long, a cavalry force of seven thousand Xiongnu men arrived at the tribe. When they saw the miserable state of the tribe, everyone's eyes widened in horror!
"Those hateful Juyan people!! How could they be so ruthless!!"
The leader, the Left Wise King, glared at the tribe, whose walls had been completely ransacked, his veins bulging. The Juyan people's actions were truly outrageous.
In the past, it was common for grassland people to rob and seize women, cattle and sheep. However, they usually did not completely rob or kill everyone. As long as they did not resist, they would not be slaughtered. They would usually take the victims with them to enrich their tribe.
Unless the intention is to completely exterminate the enemy's entire race, it is extremely rare for such a situation of wiping out a part of the enemy's population to occur. In the eyes of the Left Wise King, the Juyan people's actions of looting all the women, cattle, and sheep, and killing all the able-bodied men and children, were preparations to destroy the Xiongnu.
Just as the Left Wise King and his Xiongnu soldiers were filled with resentment, a scout suddenly galloped over.
"Report!! Your Majesty, our intelligence has discovered a Juyan troop about one hundred miles southeast of here, escorting women and livestock that have robbed our tribe towards Juyan!"
The Left Wise King asked urgently, "How many troops do they have? What is their personnel situation?"
The scout replied, "Your Majesty, they number approximately five thousand men. They are thin and their horses are exhausted. From what I observed, their formation is scattered, and most of them are dressed in civilian clothes. They appear to be a group of scattered soldiers!"
"Hmph~, does the mere Juyan Kingdom really think that with the Han Dynasty behind it, I wouldn't dare to destroy it? This time, I will make them pay a bloody price!!"
The Left Wise King snorted coldly, his gaze towards Juyan filled with bloodlust and slaughter.
Then the Left Wise King drew his curved sword from his waist, pointing the tip of the sword toward Juyan.
Then the Left Wise King shouted loudly, "Warriors, follow me to slaughter those lowly Juyan people and avenge our fallen tribesmen and people! Let them taste the consequences of angering us Xiongnu!"
"revenge!!"
The soldiers behind the Left Wise King also roared in anger.
Soon the Xiongnu cavalry left the tribe and rushed towards the Juyan raiding party.
On the other side, Tuomao led the remaining five thousand men, escorting nearly ten thousand Xiongnu women and countless cattle and sheep, slowly making their way towards Juyan City.
Although they suffered approximately 6,000 casualties in this operation, the gains were relatively good. If they brought back these women and livestock, they would receive a considerable reward, enough to help them survive the cold winter.
Therefore, these people continued to chat and laugh along the way, all fantasizing about the happy life they would enjoy upon returning home with their rewards.
After traveling for about half a day, Tuo Mao's group arrived at a tribe that they had previously plundered.
At this point, the tribe was left with only a few dilapidated tents and scattered carcasses on the ground, their remains reduced to skeletons by animals.
"Has this tribe been cleaned up? It's so clean!"
Looking at the few remaining skeletons in the tribe, Tuo Mao was stunned for a moment.
One soldier said, "It must have been carried away by something, right?"
Tuo Mao nodded. "Hmm, perhaps!"
By this time, the sun was already setting in the west, and Tuo Mao felt a pang of hunger in his stomach, so he didn't think much of it!
Then Tuo Mao summoned one of his guards and said in a deep voice, "Tell the brothers to spend the night here and set off again early tomorrow morning!"
"promise!"
Then everyone got busy, slaughtering sheep, starting a fire, and fetching water.
While the people of Juyan were busy, the seven thousand Xiongnu cavalry led by the Left Wise King of the Xiongnu, after half a day of pursuit, had arrived at a high slope seven miles away from them.
"Report! Your Majesty, the Juyan people have already set up camp in that tribe and have started cooking! It seems they are preparing to spend the night there!"
A scout also brought back the latest news about the Juyan people.
"Hmph~, spend the night?? They'll probably be sleeping here forever!"
Looking at the wisps of smoke rising from the distant tribes, the Left Wise King snorted coldly, his eyes flashing with a chilling light.
Then, the Left Wise King looked at one of his personal guards and said in a deep voice, "Let the warriors rest on their horses for a while! When they have their meal, we will charge in one fell swoop!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
After the guards respectfully accepted the order, they began to lead men to convey the Left Wise King's command.
Just as the Xiongnu were taking a break, a figure silently crept into the Juyan tribe from a grassy ditch about two miles ahead of them.
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