Although the current situation has been temporarily stabilized, the real crisis has just begun.
"Chase the barbarian army?" Xia He shook his head and rejected the idea.
The reason why they were able to stop the barbarian army in the canyon and achieve impressive results.
It is simply because the canyon is easy to defend and difficult to attack.
If they pursued them rashly, a single charge from the barbarian cavalry would be enough to kill or wound most of them when they reached the plain.
The barbarians saw this clearly and passed them without hesitation and headed straight for Youzhou.
"So, the key point at the moment is actually Youzhou!"
Zhao Tiangang and his men wanted to escape, and the main force of the imperial court was destroyed. He couldn’t do anything about these, but Youzhou City must not be lost!
Youzhou is the gateway to the north, and once it falls into the hands of the barbarian army.
The entire north will no longer have any barriers, and the barbarian army can march straight into the heart of the Central Plains.
It's like a rusty nail stuck in the abdominal flesh, which will gradually spread and affect the overall situation.
"Damn traitor!"
"But how could this happen if it wasn't for the dog emperor's connivance?"
It is almost foreseeable that if the Su family had been here to rectify the Youzhou officialdom, the situation would never have reached this point today.
Now the two great families are defending the city with their lives, and they are secretly supported by the barbarians.
The city walls are covered with extremely lethal defensive equipment.
"I'm afraid this hasn't been going on for just one or two days... I'm afraid he has been rebelling for a long time."
Zhao Tiangang led an army of 30,000 but failed to capture Youzhou for several days.
It cannot be entirely blamed on his incompetence, as Youzhou City was truly impregnable and difficult to breach.
Although Xia He won the battle and his morale was boosted, he would never let his brothers die in vain.
Attacking Youzhou by force will only result in more casualties, so we must find another way.
"Ming San!"
"Take a few people with you and go find out the current situation in Youzhou City. Remember, be careful and don't alert the enemy."
Ming San took the order and left, while Xia He turned around to discuss countermeasures with Senior Sister Zhu, Liu Rushuang and others.
"Besides Mingzhou, are there any reinforcements nearby that can be dispatched?"
Looking at the map, Xia He asked with a frown.
Senior Sister Zhu shook her head and said solemnly:
"Yunzhou is too far away from Youzhou. Even if we send people back for help, it will take at least ten days or half a month."
"And the barbarians will come back in less than seven days. We won't have enough time."
"As for the several nearby military towns, they are not large, with at most a thousand men, and we cannot use these troops without your Majesty's order."
Xia He felt even heavier in his heart when he heard this.
"Is there any other way? Think about it carefully."
"On the way from Yunzhou to Youzhou, there is a small mountain path. Although it is dangerous, if you are a person with excellent Qinggong, you can save several days of travel."
"After crossing the small road, we can reach Taiyuan Prefecture, which borders Yunzhou. Then we can send fast horses to travel along the post road overnight, and the news will reach Master in less than two days."
A glimmer of hope flashed in Xia He's eyes, but he soon frowned:
"Even so, it would take at least six or seven days for the news to reach Master. Add in the time it takes to mobilize troops, and it would still be too late."
Zhu Yi shook her head.
"It's better than just sitting there and waiting for death."
"Senior sister, then you have to go."
"Junior brother, then you..."
Xia He immediately said:
"The barbarians are making a desperate bet this time, with the intention of fighting to support the enemy. They don't have much food with them, so as long as we seize Youzhou and defend it, we can wear them out!"
Everyone was shocked to hear that Xia He was planning to attack Youzhou.
According to common sense, Youzhou City is impregnable and it is impossible to capture it in a short period of time.
What's more, they are short of troops and have limited food and grass, so the safest option at the moment should be to retreat.
However, Xia He shook his head:
"Even if we turn around and run now, the barbarian cavalry will definitely chase us."
"There are too many variables along the way. No one knows if there will be more barbarian ambushes."
"What's more, if we go back like this, the main force of the imperial court will be destroyed, and our reserve battalion will be withdrawn. If the dog... His Majesty finds out, won't he eat us alive? At that time, someone will definitely say that we are deserters!"
The most important thing is that Xia He doesn't want to escape like this! It's too frustrating!
Are we going to be like Zhao Tiangang and the others, like a dog that has lost its home?
Therefore, it is better to think of a way to see if there is a chance to capture Youzhou.
By then, it won’t be too late to decide whether to stay or go!
After hearing Xia He's words, everyone fell silent.
Although they still had doubts in their hearts, they also understood that what Xia He said made sense.
"Then I'll do as you say..."
…
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
After Senior Sister Zhu left, Xia He did not act rashly, but continued to camp where he was, waiting for the opportunity.
At the same time, Ming San rushed back from Mingzhou with several scouts and captured several people.
When Xia He learned about it, he rushed over immediately.
Inside the tent, several ragged and skinny civilians knelt on the ground, trembling all over and kowtowing for mercy.
Ming San shook his head helplessly, "I've already told you, I don't intend to kill you."
"What's going on?"
Seeing Xia He coming over, Ming San quickly came over to explain:
"Brother He, we originally planned to get closer to Youzhou City to find out the situation, but there were too many soldiers patrolling on the city wall, so we didn't dare to get close at all."
"Later, we went around to the forest behind Youzhou City and found a group of soldiers burying bodies in a large pit."
"Those corpses look like the people who were poisoned in Youzhou City. They are all blue and purple and look horrible."
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com