Chapter 421 Total Annihilation
Mu Xian had previously estimated that they would set off no later than the day after tomorrow, but the war situation was urgent. That very night, several more battle reports were sent back from the front. Xue Xian's vanguard army had already approached Fufeng. With Yuwen Ye making preparations, they officially set off the next day at noon.
Yuwen Yuan stood at the door with Yuwen Qian, personally seeing them off.
As Yuwen Ye mounted his horse, Yuwen Qian had already walked to his side, looking up at him: "Feng Chen, although I was worried about your expedition, now that you're about to set off, I won't say anything more. I just hope you'll have a successful campaign this time."
Yuwen Ye said, "Thank you, elder brother."
Yuwen Qian added, "Also, take care of yourself."
"..."
Yuwen Ye's eyes flickered, but he still smiled and said, "Yes."
After saying these words, Yuwen Qian glanced at his side again—this trip was a military expedition, so there was no comfortable carriage. Shang Ruyi was wearing a neat and tight-fitting outfit and riding a horse alongside Yuwen Ye. Her hair was tied up high, without any hairpins or jewelry, and she wore no makeup, which only added to her dashing appearance.
A ripple seemed to stir in those bluish-gray eyes, but Yuwen Qian didn't say anything more, only nodded slightly, and Shang Ruyi also nodded in acknowledgment.
Yuwen Qian then stepped aside.
At this moment, Yuwen Yuan, who had been standing on the steps with his hands behind his back, slowly walked down to the side of the horse and looked at Yuwen Ye with a solemn expression.
Although he knew his son's abilities, he was still facing Xue Xian. As a father, he still felt somewhat uneasy and worried, but he didn't show it in his words. He just looked at his second son, who was riding on horseback, wearing armor and looking very brave and valiant, and said: "Xue Xian is brave and resourceful. He is not just a man who can fight tough battles. You must keep this in mind when you go out to war this time."
Yuwen Ye replied solemnly, "Yes!"
Yuwen Yuan nodded, then took a step back and stood back on the steps, saying nothing more.
At that moment, Shang Ruyi felt a weight on her body. Looking down, she saw Tu She'er standing in front of the horse, her eyes red, tugging at her clothes with a reluctant expression, muttering, "Miss..."
Shang Ruyi leaned down and said softly, "Didn't I already explain it to you clearly last night? Why are you still like this?"
"..."
"Today is the day we're setting out to war, so you can't be crying and wailing; it's bad luck."
Upon hearing this, although she felt sad and reluctant, Tu She'er swallowed back her tears. She turned back to look at Wo Xue, who was following behind Shang Ruyi, her face still bearing some scars and looking very haggard. Last night, when Shang Ruyi told her about her arrangements, Tu She'er was so anxious that she almost forgot the rules between master and servant and had a big argument with her. In the end, Shang Ruyi persuaded her by acting like a master. She had no choice but to make Shang Ruyi repeatedly promise that she would not let Wo Xue scheme against her again. She also went to find Mu Xian and asked him to keep an eye on Wo Xue in the army before he reluctantly agreed.
Even so, she glared fiercely at Wo Xue again before whispering, "Miss, you must take good care of yourself and not let her scheme against you again. This servant will also—"
Shang Ruyi glanced at her.
Tushe'er could only swallow back what she was about to say, and Woxue glanced at her at this moment, seemingly knowing what she was wary of, and said nothing more, only silently lowering her head.
Then, the time for departure arrived.
Yuwen Ye glanced around and saw that his soldiers were all lined up neatly. He then raised his hands high and with a flick of his wrist, the entire procession began to move forward. Tushe'er was dragged back to the door by Chang Wan and could only watch the procession leave the Duke's mansion and disappear into the scorching sun with reluctance.
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This journey lasted two days.
Because the battle at the front was urgent, they marched at a rapid pace, taking only two short breaks in between. On the second night, Yuwen Ye decided to march through the night and continue advancing under the cover of darkness.
Shang Ruyi knew that he planned to arrive in Fufeng before dawn.
However, walking for two days had taken a toll on their physical strength. Even though the nights were not as scorching as the daytime sun, the flames still scorched those around them as they held torches high to light their way. Yuwen Ye, in particular, was sweating profusely from the heat, especially since he was wearing heavy armor. Shang Ruyi was worried that he would suffer from heatstroke, so she whispered a few words to Mu Xian. Mu Xian immediately picked up a water bag to hand to Yuwen Ye.
When I picked it up, I realized that his water pouch was empty.
Yuwen Ye was hot-tempered and sweaty from a young age, especially since he was a martial artist. In the summer, his body would be covered in sweat like a flowing river. After a day of training in the army, his clothes would be so wet that you could wring water out of them. Although such a person was strong, he was also prone to heatstroke in the summer, which would be even more troublesome if he was on a march.
So, Mu Xian hesitated whether to advise him to stop and rest, and also to drink some water.
Just then, Yuwen Ye suddenly raised his hand: "Stop!"
Upon hearing his order, the troops, which were marching at full speed, immediately stopped. Yuwen Ye gave the order: "Rest where you are."
After walking all day, everyone was indeed quite tired. Hearing this, they all breathed a sigh of relief, dismounted, and sat down. They took out water and dry rations and ate heartily.
Shang Ruyi also dismounted from her horse.
Although she could barely be considered a skilled rider and archer, the two days of jolting on horseback had left her back in severe pain, and the inner thighs were almost chafed raw. As soon as she landed, her legs gave way, and she nearly fell over.
She quickly gripped the reins, barely managing to keep herself steady.
Turning around again, she saw Yuwen Ye leap down from the tall, jet-black horse, holding the reins in one hand and wiping the sweat from his forehead and neck with a handkerchief in the other. He had seen her almost fall, but did not come over to help her.
Shang Ruyi also raised her head and calmly met his gaze.
Yuwen Ye seemed to smile.
However, before they could say anything, several people gathered around Yuwen Ye. One of them was a thin, richly dressed young man who was clearly not a soldier. He was Yin Changyue, the supervising officer accompanying the expedition. The other was a burly but short middle-aged man in armor, who was Song Yu, the military commander appointed by the court.
Because she had suffered at the hands of the supervising officer Kou Yunliang at Xingluo Granary, Shang Ruyi had no good feelings towards the eunuchs sent by the palace to supervise the troops. However, this Yin Changyue, who had been riding with them for two days, was not as pretentious as Kou Yunliang before. He simply asked calmly, "General, where is this place?"
Yuwen Ye turned to look at him and said, "There should be a river nearby. Let's rest here for a while and give everyone some time to catch their breath and have a good meal."
"river?"
Yin Changyue was taken aback, then turned to look around. The surrounding area was pitch black, and he couldn't tell where the mountains or rivers were. Yuwen Ye didn't have a map either, so how did he know?
Just then, the sound of flowing water came from the wind.
There really is a river.
Yuwen Ye said, "This should be the Xiaolin River, a tributary of the Wei River in the Fufeng section."
"..."
"We'll reach Fufeng in less than twenty miles."
Yin Changyue asked, "But why are we eating at this time?"
On the other side, Song Yu frowned and said, "Yes, since we are only twenty miles from Fufeng, it would only take half a night if we quickened our pace. Why not just wait until we get to Fufeng before having breakfast?"
Yuwen Ye glanced at them.
Although soldiers nearby were holding torches to illuminate the area, his pupils appeared even deeper in the firelight.
He said, "We haven't received any more battle reports along the way."
"Um?"
Yin Changyue and Song Yu were both stunned for a moment, then exchanged a glance.
They asked why the army had halted and dismounted at this time, but instead the Grand General was talking about the battle report.
Shang Ruyi also walked over. She was slightly taken aback when she heard this, but after thinking about it, she understood. She said softly, "The previous battle reports were all very urgent, saying that Xue Xian had approached Fufeng, but there have been no more battle reports since then. It is possible that the battle has already started in Fufeng."
Upon hearing her words, Yin Changyue gasped.
The war had already begun, so there was no time to send out battle reports.
That means the battle will likely be extremely fierce, even brutal!
Yuwen Ye looked at Shang Ruyi and nodded slightly, but said in a calm tone, "I guessed that was the case, so we have been marching at full speed all day, but we have reached everyone's limit by now."
"..."
“If our troops encounter battle, we must immediately engage in combat. But after a day's march without food or water, the soldiers will be too weak to fight. In that case, they will not only be a help but may even become a burden.”
"..."
"Therefore, I told everyone to eat their fill here before leaving, so we can be ready for battle at any time."
Yin Changyue nodded: "I see."
Yuwen Ye said, "Supervisor and Chief Steward, you should both go and have something to eat and rest."
The two of them said nothing more and went downstairs to eat.
Shang Ruyi then walked to his side again, and by the firelight, she saw that he was covered in sweat, and his handkerchief was completely soaked with sweat. She took the handkerchief from his hand and took another one from her bosom and handed it to him.
Yuwen Ye glanced at her and gave a faint smile.
At this moment, Wo Xue also came over, took the sweat-soaked handkerchief from Shang Ruyi's hand, and said softly, "This servant will take it to the river to wash it."
Shang Ruyi nodded and then turned and left.
Yuwen Ye glanced at her back, then turned to look at Shang Ruyi, his eyes flickering as if asking something, but he didn't say anything. Shang Ruyi understood what he meant and said softly, "I've been keeping an eye on her the whole way. Don't worry, she hasn't done anything unusual."
Yuwen Ye then nodded.
The handkerchief had already wiped away a lot of sweat from his face and head. He took Shang Ruyi's handkerchief, wiped his forehead with it, and then put it away.
Shang Ruyi said softly, "Have some water. Where's your water pouch?"
Yuwen Ye glanced back and saw that the water bag on the horse's back was gone. Just as he was about to ask, he saw Mu Xian rushing over from the side, holding his water bag in his hand, and said, "General, I just went to the river to fetch some water."
Yuwen Ye took it and drank a sip.
After being thirsty for half a day, this sip of water was like a life-saving elixir, instantly making him feel much more energetic. When he looked up at the night sky ahead, his gaze became even more serious.
Just now, Shang Ruyi guessed that Fufeng had already started the war, which was why no battle reports had come in. This was indeed his previous guess.
But this may be the best-case scenario.
What he was really worried about was—
Just then, Nie Chong, who was standing to the side adjusting the reins, suddenly looked up at the night sky ahead: "Someone's coming!"
Upon hearing this, everyone tensed up.
Yuwen Ye frowned, tightened the lid on the water pouch he had only taken a sip from, handed it to Mu Xian, and then looked up intently ahead. Mu Xian then said, "There is only one rider coming; it shouldn't be the enemy."
The crowd looked at him with some surprise.
Although the troops retrieved from Wanggang Village accompanied him, the rest of the army consisted of government personnel who were unaware of his abilities. They thought he was just spouting nonsense, and some even whispered, "Where did this single rider come from?"
"Exactly, all we can hear is the sound of the wind."
"Who is this guy? Why is he yelling nonsense?"
Hearing these people's contemptuous words, Shan Tong'er was unconvinced and immediately said, "Brother Nie's ears are really sharp. He said someone is here, so someone is here!"
The crowd initially held Nie Chong in contempt, but upon seeing that there was such a child in the group, closely following the Grand General, they became even more dissatisfied.
They whispered among themselves, "What's wrong with our military expedition this time? Bringing women along is one thing, but bringing children too?"
"If women and children can fight, what are we men needed for?"
"If you ask me, there's no way we can win this battle."
"Yes, that's Xue Xian..."
The cacophony of voices grew increasingly somber in the darkness of the night. Shang Ruyi frowned as she listened, but when she looked at Yuwen Ye, he seemed unperturbed, as if he hadn't even heard a word they were saying.
They just stared fixedly ahead.
Just as everyone was making a fuss, the sound of horses' hooves actually came from ahead.
This silenced everyone else.
Although Nie Chong said there was only one rider, they still had to be careful on the march. Mu Xian immediately led a rider forward, holding a torch high. Soon they saw a rider charging towards them. When he saw the rider, he was startled. He pulled on the reins, and his horse neighed, instantly disrupting the night.
Mu Xian immediately said, "The Grand General who assists the State is here! Who comes here?"
Upon hearing this, the man was so excited that he almost fell off his horse. He quickly pulled on the reins, dismounted, and rushed over, shouting, "General!"
In the firelight, the man's yellowish-brown soft armor came into view, revealing him to be a soldier from Fufeng!
Yuwen Ye walked forward calmly, looked at the soldier covered in dust and with a wounded face, and asked in a deep voice, "What happened?"
The soldier knelt on the ground, his eyes red, and said in a deep voice, "General, Ma Xu, the garrison commander of Fufeng, underestimated the enemy and his army was defeated. Eighty thousand men were wiped out!"
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