It normally takes two months to travel from the capital to the northwest, but Song Wan and others rode their horses at full speed all the way and arrived in Jinzhou in just half a month.
Jinzhou was the city where General Wu Qiao, the uncle of King Yi, was stationed with his troops. It was only two hundred miles away from the war-torn northwest.
On the tower, Wu Qiao was reinforcing the city wall with his soldiers. He carried wood and instructed his deputy general, who was moving stones nearby, to lay out his preliminary plan. "Once the wall is reinforced, you will accompany me and lead 20,000 elite troops to the northwest for support!"
The deputy general was worried, "General! Once these 20,000 soldiers leave, there will be less than 10,000 left in Jinzhou City!"
Wu Qiao insisted, "If the northwest defenses were breached, even if 30,000, let alone 10,000, were still there, you and I would definitely be able to protect the 100,000 people of Jinzhou."
The deputy general lowered his head, he was not sure.
"Once the northwest city falls, Jinzhou will be next. Beyond Jinzhou, the Qiang will be able to march all the way into the heart of Dai Viet. By then, how could Daye in the southwest resist mobilizing a single soldier?" This was Wu Qiao's greatest concern. "I've already communicated with General Yun of Zezhou. If the northwest remains undefended, he will do his best to hold back the Qiang and buy time for the imperial court's reinforcements."
The deputy general said he understood and nodded heavily, "I will obey you, General!"
When the Northwest War broke out, it was inevitable that many refugees would head towards Jinzhou. Wu Qiao instructed his deputy general to stop bullying and drove them away, and asked the soldiers to build simple tents in the open space in the city for the people who fled from the northwest to stay.
In just two weeks, Jinzhou had already received over 8,000 civilians from the northwest. The deputy general looked at the crowds of civilians on the field and said to Wu Qiao, "General, we don't have much food to begin with. If this continues, not only will these refugees be forced to flee, but even our soldiers will have to tighten their belts and eat only half their fill."
Wu Qiao frowned and looked at the people in the city. He finally made a decision, "Starting tomorrow, you will be responsible for defending the city. I will lead 20,000 troops to support the northwest!"
The deputy general got anxious when he heard this, "General! Didn't we agree that I would go with you?"
Wu Qiao commanded, "The imperial reinforcements haven't arrived yet. Jinzhou City cannot be without someone in charge. You must stay!"
The deputy general's eyes turned red, "I obey your orders!"
Wu Qiao had already made his plan. "After I leave with my twenty thousand troops, I'll have a supply of military rations. You will be in charge of leading these eight thousand or so civilians from the northwest to take turns reclaiming the wasteland at the foot of Wuxi Mountain."
It is unknown how long this battle will end. Spring will come in two or three months. Wu Qiao is reclaiming the land now, thinking that he can plant as much grain as possible when the time comes.
"I hope the imperial reinforcements can arrive soon." The deputy general looked at the ordinary people helping to repair the city walls below the city with a heavy tone.
"Are I the reinforcement you're referring to?"
The deputy general responded with a loud and clear female voice, accompanied by the sound of horse hooves. The deputy general turned around a little late.
Then I saw a woman in blood-red armor, with her long hair tied up high, holding the whip rope with one hand, and a cloud of dust was raised around her, blocking her face.
Song Wan leaped off her horse, stepped on its back, and leaped onto the city wall. She finally arrived in front of the deputy general and Wu Qiao. She patted her hands, which were stained with pastry crumbs, and said with bright eyes, "Hello! My name is Song Wan!"
The soldiers and civilians who were originally concentrating on building the city wall stopped what they were doing and looked at the woman who suddenly flew past them.
Whispering to each other, they asked, "Who is that?"
Wu Qiao was stunned for a moment, and only realized what was happening when Song Wan said her name did he react. "Song Wan, Song Wan from the Weiyuan Marquisate? The Princess Xiaoyao?"
Song Wan nodded, "That's me!"
Gu Yan, who caught up later, was anxious to see her fly up to the city wall like this. He sighed helplessly at first, and then immediately handed the thousand cavalry he brought to Gu Wu and Song Qi for care. He imitated Song Wan's "instability" and used his lightness skills to fly up to the city wall.
Soldiers and civilians under the city wall: ...
Wu Qiao felt a little calmer when he saw Gu Yanji, who he hadn't seen for a long time. "General Gu, you're finally here."
Gu Yan nodded at him hurriedly, "We will rest in the city for a while today, and then set off in two hours, striving to reach the northwest before sunset tomorrow."
Wu Qiao said he understood and immediately asked his deputy to prepare hot water and food. Seeing that the two men were covered in dust and had no time to clean up, he realized how fast they had traveled.
"How many troops does the court plan to send?" This was Wu Qiao's main concern. "If it's not enough, Jinzhou can contribute 20,000 soldiers. I've also discussed this with General Yun from Zezhou, and they can also contribute 10,000 soldiers."
"No need. General Wu, you stay in Jinzhou and strictly guard the city. The imperial court's follow-up troops total 50,000 and will arrive in a month at most." Gu Yan told him anxiously, "The follow-up troops will be led by Song Qin. In addition to the 50,000 soldiers, they will also provide food and fodder for the 200,000-strong army in the northwest. You will then escort the food and fodder to the northwest with Song Qin."
From Jinzhou to the northwest, there are more than 200 miles in between. Gu Yan was worried that the Qiang people would take a detour and launch a surprise attack from the rear, so the food and fodder for the 200,000 soldiers had to be carefully escorted.
Wu Qiao bowed and said, "I understand!"
After a quick rest of less than two hours, everyone packed up and set off again, with Wu Qiao personally seeing them off.
After Song Wan mounted his horse, he suddenly turned around and said, "When my second brother arrives in Jinzhou with the food and fodder, you can keep some for yourself. Don't let your own soldiers and civilians starve!"
Wu Qiao was stunned. She had actually noticed this in just two hours.
"Gu Yanji and I have asked Jiang Zhen to transport 50,000 kilograms of potatoes to the northwest. You should keep two-thirds of this amount. We have taken in so many refugees, and we need to eat." Song Wan saw the people who fled from the northwest. For some reason, she felt a sense of familiarity when she saw their faces. It might be the memory of her original body at work.
Song Wan thought that she had lived in the northwest for five years, and these people must have different feelings towards her.
The food in the city was indeed in short supply. Wu Qiao had already sent people to the nearest Zezhou to buy food, but Zezhou could only allocate a part of it. He subconsciously looked at Gu Yan anxiously.
Gu Yanji nodded slightly, "Just as the princess wishes, you will keep a month's worth of food and fodder for yourselves, 30,000 soldiers."
After saying this, Gu Yan quickly turned around and rode away, followed by a thousand cavalrymen, raising another cloud of dust.
Wu Qiao stood at the city gate, still accompanied only by his deputy general.
The deputy general asked, "General, do you think General Gu, with only a thousand men, can resolve the crisis in the northwest?"
Wu Qiao sighed, "Do you think those 1,000 cavalrymen are just 1,000?"
The deputy general was puzzled, so he asked again, "What do you mean, General?"
Wu Qiao retracted his gaze and looked at him, "If I'm not mistaken, those one thousand cavalrymen can each defeat a hundred!"
The deputy general was shocked, "Could it be that they are General Gu's private soldiers?"
Wu Qiao shook his head. "They are the result of more than half a year of training by Princess Xiaoyao's disciples."
The deputy general didn't know what to say. He stumbled and said, "Half, half a year?"
He must have heard it wrong!
Wu Qiao nodded, "With only half a year, I can defeat you, a deputy general who has practiced martial arts for ten years."
The deputy general couldn't believe it, "Who is this Princess Xiaoyao? How can she be so powerful?"
Wu Qiao recalled, "I heard that Princess Xiaoyao inherited the divine power of the Song family's ancestors. Perhaps it was because of this."
The next afternoon, fighting continued outside the northwest border!
The soldier hurriedly ran to the tower to report the news, "General! Another village nearby has been robbed by Qiang soldiers! We're a step too late!"
The one currently in charge of the northwest was Zhao Zhi, one of the generals under the former Weiyuan Marquis Song Yan. Upon hearing the news reported by the soldier, he frowned deeply, having not slept for days and nights. "What about the people in the village?"
The soldier buried his head even deeper. "Only the old, weak, and sick are left. The brothers are carrying them back to the city one after another."
As in the previous villages, all the young women were abducted, the young men were shot on the spot, and the remaining elderly, weak and sick were left to fend for themselves.
As soon as the brothers entered the village, the first thing they saw was the river water that had been dyed red, and the blood on the ground was still hot.
"It's so abominable!" Zhao Zhi punched the city wall!
"General, when will the reinforcements arrive? Our brothers are getting fewer and fewer!" The soldier choked.
The Qiang people were despicable and shameless. They poisoned people and threatened the lives of people outside the city. Nearly half of the dozens of villages outside the city were massacred by the Qiang people. The remaining half were moved into the city before the Qiang people arrived.
Zhao Zhi's fist was bleeding, and veins on the back of his hand were bulging. "Reinforcements will definitely arrive!"
Song Wan came along and found that many villages were empty, and there was a strong smell of blood. She reined in her horse and said, "Could this be the village that was massacred?"
Gu Yan looked anxiously at the land soaked in blood and frowned deeply. It seemed that there were only a few soldiers in the Northwest Army who could stand up and fight, otherwise the Qiang people would not have so unscrupulously crossed mountains and rivers to rob the villagers.
Song Wan looked at the corpses piled on the ground and became more and more angry. These were obviously ordinary people. How could the Qiang people be so cruel!
She waved the whip and said to Gu Yan anxiously, "I'll go first!"
After saying this, without giving the other party a chance to react, the man flew out like a shadow, and the horse was left there, not knowing why.
Gu Yan was so anxious that she only had time to shout, "A Wan!"
Song Wan used his utmost mental strength and finally caught up with the Qiang soldiers who had not yet had time to retreat back to the mountains. At this moment, the distance between them was less than a hundred meters.
There were as many as three to four thousand Qiang soldiers, not only themselves, but also women abducted from various villages.
Song Wan stared at them closely.
"Hahaha, I'm going to go first this time! If I hadn't helped you chop off that woman's husband and son, you would have gone to see the King of Hell long ago!"
"Go away! You wish! Unless you trade that pregnant woman with me!"
"Tsk tsk tsk! Zale, your taste is getting stronger and stronger, hahahaha!"
A few Qiang soldiers at the end of the team cursed that there were not enough women this time, and at the same time they laughed obscenely, their hands wandering back and forth on the bound women.
The women were obviously frightened. They had been crying for an unknown amount of time, their faces covered with tears. They did not dare to resist the Qiang soldiers' actions at all, because the last woman who resisted and struggled did not even leave the village.
Song Wan pulled a handful of dry leaves from the tree, and her mental power flowed out from her fingertips. The leaves immediately turned into blades that could kill people with one blow, and shot towards the dishonest Qiang soldiers.
The wrists, ankles, and lower body parts of several people were cut off by the extremely sharp leaves at the same time.
The wound was particularly smooth, and the lower body suddenly suffered a broken pain. Several people were terrified and were about to reach out to touch it, but they found that their hand was gone and the severed palm was lying on the ground.
When the women saw the broken limbs on the ground, they could no longer hold back and screamed and ran away.
A series of movements at the rear of the team finally attracted the attention of other Qiang soldiers.
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