The soldiers’ morale surged, waving their flags and shouting, "Defend Yu State! Defend Yu State!"
"How many enemies are there?" Ji Xinhe asked coldly, looking at the densely-packed army beneath the city wall.
General Zheng bowed and said, "About fifty thousand."
They had only half the number, which wasn’t too difficult to deal with.
Rouyi people were born warriors, and their soldiers were valiant. Under normal circumstances, even if the enemy had only fifty thousand, General Zheng wouldn’t underestimate them. However, he was well aware of Yu State Army’s strength - every single one of them was an elite. They were not like the mediocre soldiers in Da Qian’s ordinary army. With Ji Xinhe, who was no worse than Marquis Mu Houchu, leading this battle, the likelihood of losing was minimal.
However, General Zheng was particularly worried about...
"Rouyi are cunning. With so few soldiers, they shouldn’t be so hasty to attack us. It’s no different from seeking their own doom. I’m afraid they still have reserved forces behind them." General Zheng couldn’t help but say.
Ji Xinhe coldly replied, "General Zheng, just deal with Rouyi’s fifty-thousand-strong army. Leave their reserved forces to me."
With that, she tightened her grip on her sword and turned to head down from the city wall.
General Zheng was a bit confused by Ji Xinhe’s words, but seeing her confident appearance, he realized that she probably had a plan. So he stopped worrying, and directly ordered, "All troops, prepare for battle!"
As Ji Xinhe came down from the city wall, she coldly commanded, "Send Pei Yong to see me."
"Yes."
It wasn’t long before Pei Yong hurried over and saluted, "Pei Yong reporting to the Princess!"
"You will lead a unit of the elite cavalry to the back of Mingyin Mountain for an ambush. Await my orders and act accordingly. Understood?"
Pei Yong hesitated, "The back of the mountain? But the main battlefield is right beneath the city wall..."
Pei Yong paused, then seemed to understand something, as he widened his eyes, "Your Highness means that there must be an attack from the back of the mountain?"
Ji Xinhe scoffed, "Otherwise, how do you think Rouyi’s fifty-thousand-strong army managed to arrive beneath Yu State City so quietly? What grievances do Rouyi and Yu State have? In the end, it’s just for the sake of paving the way for the court."
What she had to do was to completely cut off the court’s support!
Those wine-soaked rice bags nurtured by the court could be defeated with just fifty thousand troops!
Pei Yong immediately saluted, "I will follow your order!"
"Lieutenant General Lin!" Ji Xinhe continued.
"I’m here."
"You will personally lead a detachment to the territory of Yu State to calm the common people’s emotions. Anyone who stirs up trouble or unrest shall be executed on the spot! We cannot allow the people’s restlessness and anxiety to affect the battlefield." Ji Xinhe said coldly.
She had a reason for taking this precaution. Yu State was Marquis Mu Houchu’s territory, but the court must have planted spies here. Now that the court had made up its mind to deal with Yu State, they would definitely make use of these hidden agents to agitate the people’s emotions. If the territory was thrown into chaos and unrest, the common people could create a big disorder.
"Yes!"
Ji Xinhe finished giving her orders and went back up to the city wall. By this time, the soldiers on the wall had already started fighting with the Rouyi army below.
Wave after wave of archers readied their bows, and arrows flew chaotically.
Seeing Ji Xinhe return, General Zheng hurriedly said, "This place is dangerous, it’s better for Your Highness to go down first."
Although Ji Xinhe was the commander of the army, he knew better than anyone how important the Princess was to the Prince. If even a single hair on the Princess’s head was harmed, even if they managed to defend Yu State, the Prince would probably become so furious that he’d want to kill someone.
Yet, Ji Xinhe suddenly drew her sword and swept horizontally, deflecting two feather arrows flying up from below the city wall. Calmly, she asked, "When will the second wave of attacks begin?"
The first wave of attacks was naturally between archers; the second wave would involve opening the city gate and the infantry charging out to engage the enemy.
General Zheng glanced at the scene, then said, "Soon."
Ji Xinhe gripped her arrow and declared, "I’ll lead the troops out myself."
Upon hearing this, General Zheng’s face went pale with fear, "Your Highness, you mustn’t!"
"I am the commander of this army. If I cannot lead them to charge forward, where will the soldiers find the will to fight?" Ji Xinhe’s tone left no room for objections.
General Zheng was extremely anxious, but he couldn’t defy Ji Xinhe’s orders, as she wasn’t someone who could be easily controlled.
Just as they were talking, a soldier hurried up and saluted, "Your Highness, General Zheng, it’s time to open the city gate and face the enemy!"
"Prepare the cavalry and infantry! Follow me out of the city gate to confront the enemy!" Ji Xinhe shouted, raising her sword.
The soldiers’ morale was greatly boosted as they echoed, "Follow Her Highness into battle! Loyal to Her Highness until death!"
Ji Xinhe quickly descended the city wall and immediately mounted her horse.
The heavy city gate creaked open, revealing a dazzling light as Ji Xinhe whipped her horse and led thousands of troops rushing out of the city gate.
Upon seeing that the person leading the troops was a woman, the commander of the Rouyi Army sneered, "As expected, Da Qian has run out of men, now even a woman can be brought to the battlefield. This delicate and fragile body probably can’t withstand much. What a waste of such a beautiful face. Tsk tsk, why bother coming to the battlefield? If she were in a tent, she would undoubtedly be a rare beauty."
As he spoke, lewd intentions surfaced in his eyes.
The Rouyi Army laughed along, "Why would our commander say such a thing? If our commander takes a fancy to her, just capture the beauty alive and send her to our commander’s tent. At that time, our commander can thoroughly taste this rare beauty!"
General Zheng angrily rebuked, "How dare you! Our Da Qian’s Princess Pingyang is here! Are you rogues even qualified to insult her with your words?"
"Hahaha, are we the ones wanting to humiliate her? It’s clear that she came to be humiliated. Da Qian’s men are all cowards and weaklings, so much so that a woman has to take the battlefield!" The Rouyi Army laughed mockingly, looking at Ji Xinhe with disdain.
Ji Xinhe’s frosty countenance showed no change, as if she hadn’t heard their words, and she sneered, "Da Qian’s men are not cowards. It’s just that the insignificant small Rouyi nation is not worth fearing. Even a weak woman like me can beat you all to a miserable state. If that’s the case, why bother to mobilize the troops?"
Upon hearing Ji Xinhe’s words, the Yu State soldiers burst into laughter and shouted, "Even a woman can win against the small and remote Rouyi nation!"
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