inspire-indiana Chapter 232 The flames of war
Chapter 232 The flames of war
Silence returned to the tent.
Zong Yanli sat upright in the tent, looking down at the rising temperature of the charcoal fire. After what seemed like a long moment, she sighed silently, picked up the book on the table again, and read it attentively.
She knew what Wen Nian was thinking, but she absolutely could not be soft-hearted. Things were already a foregone conclusion, so she had to proceed along the path she had envisioned. This was only the first step, and there would be a long way to go in the decades to come.
What she gets from being lenient once is repeated leniency and compromise, which is definitely not what she wants to see.
Heavy snow covered the land with a thick layer of snow overnight. The next day, Zong Yanli woke up to the noise outside the tent. The native southern men had never seen such a snowy scene, and they were all shouting outside.
The snow was still falling, and the wind was blowing so hard that people were shivering.
"Oh, what a taste!" When Zong Yanli wrapped himself in cotton clothes and a fur jacket and walked out of the tent, he saw Monk and others holding the white snow on the top of the tent and stuffing it into their mouths.
“……”Zong Yanli couldn’t help laughing when watching this scene.
"General! General, please try it!" Bai Xiuyun held the handful of snow in front of Zong Yanli like he was presenting a treasure.
"No need." Zong Yanli took a half step back, looked up at the sky and said, "This snow may last for three to five days. Don't just play around. Clear the snow inside and outside the camp. Don't let it accumulate to avoid blocking the road."
"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison.
It should have been hard work to shovel snow, but they did it as if it was for fun, and they all went about shoveling snow with great enthusiasm.
Zong Yanli called Zhan Haoyue, Long Feiguang and others to discuss the next steps to take to prevent snowstorm disasters. Due to the continuous snowfall, it might be difficult for the scouts to go out for patrols, so the patrol situation in the army needed to be changed.
The snow scene was breathtakingly beautiful, the whole world turned white, and after the snow stopped, the rising warm sun seemed to make the white snow sparkle.
Zong Yanli took his men out on patrol and showed them this new world.
"Wow, this ice cone..." Bai Xiuyun and Monk Qi looked like they had never seen the world before, and found everything strange.
"This puddle is frozen solid." Zong Yanli looked around, and walked further and saw that the river was almost frozen. He looked at the mountain in front of him from afar, the peak of which was completely covered with snow. After observing the terrain, there was a hint of worry on his face.
"General, look what that is? A deer?" Just as everyone was curious about how thick the ice was, they saw an animal that looked like a deer but was not a deer appearing on the opposite river bank from afar. It was very conspicuous in the snow.
"That's a roe deer." Zong Yanli took a look and said with a smile, "When being chased, they sometimes stop and look back, but they are not as alert as a deer."
After hearing this, Monk and his companions were eager to take action, but were stopped by Zong Yanli: "Continue patrolling."
After Zong Yanli returned from her patrol, she found an old friend had come to the army. She saw the team waiting in front of the camp from afar, and only after getting closer could she see the person clearly. It was Duzhe of Wuhuan, who was dressed like an ordinary businessman.
"General Du?" Zong Yanli was very surprised to see Du Zhe.
"General Zong Yan." Du Zhe came forward with a laugh and said with a smile, "It took a lot of effort to find General Zong Yan."
Zong Yanli dismounted and walked towards Duzhe. Seeing Duzhe's attire, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and said, "I heard that General Du is now marrying Princess Sai Ya and becoming the new king of Wuhuan. How could he come here when he is not in Wuhuan at this time?"
Duzhe shook his head and smiled: "It is enough for Wuhuan to have Sai Ya."
Zong Yanli raised his hand to signal Duzhe to come into the tent to talk. He led Duzhe into the tent, took off the fox fur coat he was wearing and said, "General Du, you are here. What difficulties did Wuhuan encounter?"
Du Zhe lowered his head slightly and said, "It's not a difficult matter. It's just that there have been a lot of unusual movements in other countries recently. I think General Zong Yan needs to understand it at this time."
"Really?" Zong Yanli looked at Duzhe and said casually while sitting at the table, "I thought that Lu was planning to send troops to besiege Wuhuan, and General Duzhe came to ask for help. So it turns out that he just came to inform us of some news from other countries?"
As soon as Zong Yanli finished speaking, Du Zhe couldn't help but widen his eyes, probably because he didn't expect Zong Yanli to explain the current situation so bluntly.
Zong Yanli leaned back slightly, looked at Du Zhe with a half-smile and said, "General Du has come in person, why do you need to do those meaningless cover-ups and disguises? The Northern Kingdom is asking for help from the Lu Kingdom. Does General Du think that the Wuhuan are in danger?"
"Are you here today to reach a cooperation with me?" Zong Yanli was not a person who liked to talk nonsense. She raised her chin slightly and looked at Du Zhe and said, "I will not charge into battle for Wuhuan. As far as the current situation is concerned, you and I cannot be on the same front."
"This is of no benefit to me." Zong Yanli said bluntly.
Du Zhe was choked by Zong Yanli's words and had to put away his originally prepared polite remarks. He took a deep breath and said, "General Zong Yan, since you already know that the Northern Kingdom has asked the Lu Kingdom for help, you should know that once the two countries form an alliance again, it will not be a good thing for you and me, right?"
Du Zhe nodded and said, "Yes, Wuhuan's current combat power is indeed very weak, but I have fought with various countries for many years and I know their marching strategies very well. In any case, it is better than General Zong Yan going deep into the north alone to explore."
"So, General Zong Yan still thinks there is no benefit in forming an alliance with Wuhuan?" Du Zhe paused and said, "We can further provide the general with reserve military supplies."
"You know, I never fight an unprepared battle, otherwise I wouldn't have entered the North so early without fighting anyone." Zong Yanli seemed unmoved. Even at this moment, Du Zhe, who had originally intended to put himself in a dominant position, fell into a passive position after the second sentence after entering the tent.
Zong Yanli was not satisfied either. She said slowly, "If we form an alliance with Wuhuan at this time, it will only bring disaster upon ourselves. Or...it will bring more disasters to Wuhuan."
Du Zhe was stunned for a moment, and looked at Zong Yanli in confusion: "General Zong Yan, what do you mean by that?"
Zong Yanli felt that it was not a wise decision for Princess Sai Ya to send Du Zhe. She looked at Du Zhe with a puzzled look, took a deep breath and said, "If I form an alliance with Wuhuan at this time, then the Northern Kingdom and Lu will immediately form an alliance. I am afraid that the Northern Kingdom will also temporarily reconcile with Qi and adopt a unified foreign policy."
"By then, we will not be facing just one country, but a coalition of three countries."
"General Du, do you think that we can resist Wuhuan alone with our troops?"
"The current situation is that Lu has not yet made it clear that it wants to form an alliance with the Northern Kingdom, but if the news of our alliance is released, then their alliance will be a foregone conclusion."
As Zong Yanli finished speaking, Duzhe's expression became completely gloomy. He clenched his fists and said unwillingly, "Is there no other way? Wuhuan was just recaptured..."
Zong Yanli looked at Du Zhe soothingly and said, "General Du, why are you so anxious? I haven't finished what I want to say."
She put her hands down and stood up. She walked to the map hanging behind her, stared at the incomplete map in front of her, smiled slightly and said, "Although we are not suitable to form an alliance openly, it does not mean that we cannot form an alliance in private."
"I will not let Wuhuan change its master again, but..."
"I need the entire northern territory. General Du, are you willing to contribute all the maps of Wuhuan?" Zong Yanli turned his back to Du Zhe, slowly turned around, looked at Du Zhe and smiled.
"..." Duzhe's face was full of shock. Although he was not a good negotiator, he understood what it meant to hand over all the maps of Wuhuan.
"Of course, if General Du is capable, I hope that I can also provide me with a copy of the approximate maps of other countries." Zong Yanli's smile was very enthusiastic. Du Zhe was a little angry and laughed. If he handed over the map completely, wouldn't it be equivalent to handing over the entire Wuhuan to Zong Yanli?
Du Zhe said after thinking for a long time: "I need to think about it."
Zong Yanli nodded calmly: "General Du has a whole winter month to think about it. Please give my regards to Princess Saiya for me."
Du Zhe left in a hurry. Zong Yanli was not worried about Wuhuan's choice at all. No matter what choice Wuhuan made, it would not affect Zong Yanli. If he could get the map, it would save a lot of time, but Zong Yanli did not absolutely need the map.
Of course, it would be better if there was a map. After all, with the changes of time, even if she had her past memories, it would be impossible for her to keep them all the time. Zong Yanli would never rely on reliving her life as a shortcut.
She has always taken every step down to earth.
"Greetings, General." Pei Liang, Zhan Haoyue and others came over after hearing the news. Seeing that Du Zhe had already left, they were a little curious and asked Zong Yanli Wuhuan why he came here.
"Sit down and talk." Zong Yanli briefly informed the others of the situation of Wuhuan, raised his eyes and said, "From the attitude of Wuhuan, it can be seen that the war between Qi and the Northern Kingdom has a great impact on Wuhuan. Lu probably has the intention to besiege Wuhuan."
"Everything is as we expected." Pei Liang nodded immediately.
"We will set out after the winter month and send troops to the northern country."
After everyone left, Pei Liang stayed behind. He glanced at Zong Yanli and asked, "General, do you think Wuhuan will present their maps?"
Zong Yanli poured himself a cup of tea and blew away the hot tea foam: "Wuhuan no longer has any choice."
Pei Liang raised his eyebrows and said nothing more. He bowed and left.
Throughout the winter month, Zong Yanli was busy at all. He took his soldiers to train in the snow and train with weights in the wind and snow. Even if their limbs were almost completely frozen, they were still required to swing their swords over and over again.
Zong Yanli never had a day of rest. During every training session, she always stood with all the soldiers, braving the wind and snow without any intention of retreating.
Under Zong Yanli's training, the soldiers learned to walk in the wind and snow. Sufficient warm winter clothes avoided the risk of freezing to death, and the stored military rations did not freeze and rot. They were not adapted to the icy and snowy climate from the beginning.
Now they can quickly form military formations and wield swords to fight off the enemy.
This year's New Year's Day was spent in the wind and snow. The silly roe deer running by the glacier could not escape Monk's hands and was successfully served on the table. The aroma of the sizzling meat on the campfire was mouth-watering. I almost lost my sense of taste after eating smoked and grilled meat every day.
These firewoods were cut down by soldiers in batches. Now they almost felt like they had become northerners. Zhu Jin and his men actually took Shi Gan Dang to catch birds.
Zong Yanli looked at the soup that was served in front of him and couldn't help laughing.
"This may be the last peaceful New Year's Day we have." Zong Yanli sat on the main seat, looked sideways at Long Feiguang, Kuang Xingquan and other soldiers sitting on his left and right, took a deep breath and said, "Respect the past, respect the future."
"The day of the Northern Expedition is just around the corner. This general wants the entire world to belong to Daqian!"
"All to Daqian——!"
Everyone raised their glasses and drank the wine in their glasses.
When Zong Yanli was 30 years old, she led her lions across the glaciers, climbed over the snow-capped mountains, and planted the flag of Daqian in the northern territory.
In the north, outside Tianmen Pass, the soldiers guarding the pass were so frightened by the sudden appearance of the Daqian army flag that their hearts almost stopped. In the white snow scene, Zong Yanli's troops appeared so clearly. Xin Jiazheng saw the flying flag clearly, his eyes were a little dull: "It's not Qi or Wuhuan, it's..."
"Zongyan?"
"General, those are Daqian's troops!"
"The southern army, when did Zong Yanli's Lion soldiers enter the north?"
Xin Jiazheng's expression suddenly changed. Without any hesitation, he turned around and shouted angrily, "Quick! Light the signal fire!"
When the beacon fire and smoke rose, Zong Yanli suddenly drew out the long sword from his waist, pointed the blade directly at Tianmen Pass and said: "My men, follow me and kill——!"
"kill--!!!"
The charge horn sounded. Zong Yanli was so well prepared. The soldiers had long been hungry and thirsty. Now, even though they were wearing thick cotton clothes and carrying armor and shields, they did not feel the slightest discomfort and rushed towards Tianmen Pass fiercely.
Xin Jia was trying to resist in panic, but he could only watch more and more enemy troops climbing over the city wall.
The soldiers of Daqian were extremely brave. The moment they saw the gate being broken, Xin Jiazheng had no intention of staying any longer. He simply abandoned the pass and gave up Tianmen Pass with the remaining defenders.
"Tianmen Pass was breached!" When Yi Tiangan, who was fighting against Qi, heard the news, his expression suddenly changed: "Who is it? Didn't Lu attack Wuhuan instead of Wuhuan? "
"No, it's not Lu." The young general with blood on his face took out a military flag from his arms and said, "General, please look!"
Yi Tiangan strode forward and snatched the military flag. He shook it open and suddenly saw the familiar words "Zong Yan" on the flag. His eyes widened instantly, and even his lips trembled a little, and his breathing suddenly stopped.