As the middle-aged man stood still, the sound of footsteps rang out. Hundreds of black figures stood in the darkness. They were all armored soldiers, and all of them had a solemn expression on their faces.
It was clear that this was a group of guards.
Furthermore, from their armor, it was clear that they belonged to the Great Xia.
"The Minister of Rites has received an imperial edict to enter the Southern Mountain Range. Open the city gates!" A loud voice rang out in the darkness, interrupting the long call of the horn.
"The Minister of Rites?! Why is the Minister of Rites here? " On the watchtower of the Icy Monkey Settlement, a head popped out and looked down at the troop of close to 100 people. He was a little surprised and a little confused.
"The Emperor's decree is here, open the gates!"
"It really is the Emperor's decree, report this to Xing Hou!"
...
To the soldiers of the Xia Kingdom, even though they had won the battle against the Icy Monkey Settlement, in reality, it was equivalent to them being surrounded and besieged.
The Stable Mountain Pass had been conquered by the Southern Region, and the tens of thousands of soldiers guarding the pass had been captured. Coupled with the fact that the Crown Prince was trapped, the Icy Monkey Settlement was in a helpless state.
At the very least, the Great Xia would not be able to send reinforcements in a short period of time.
As such...
To the remaining 40,000 soldiers, there were only two choices. One was to defend the Icy Monkey Settlement and wait for reinforcements. The other was to become a blade that pierced through the heart of the Southern Mountain Range as planned.
On the surface...
The first option was a good choice. They could preserve their military strength, and the Icy Monkey Settlement had enough rations to last them for a long time.
However, those who were smart would not think so.
What kind of place was the Icy Monkey Settlement?
It was one of the six main settlements of the Southern Region!
To put it bluntly, this was a foreign country. To put it bluntly, this was a place where one could be stabbed at any time while walking on the streets.
The Great Xia used 40,000 soldiers to gain control of the Icy Monkey Settlement. However, that was only control. It was almost impossible for them to truly protect the Icy Monkey Settlement.
After all, it was impossible for the people here to cooperate with the Great Xia army to defend the city. In fact, they might even sabotage and obstruct the Southern Region's advance.
There was another reason...
It's the season and the weather.
Winter was approaching, and the soldiers of Great Xia didn't prepare winter clothes. If this battle continued to drag on, even if they didn't starve to death, they would freeze to death.
Robbery?
This was not a bad idea. However, if they were to do so, Xing Yuanguo would be the first to execute the robber without the need for the Emperor's decree.
Then, there was only the second option.
He became a sharp knife, a knife that pierced the Sagely Mountain City.
Forty thousand soldiers was indeed not a very strong army. However, if they added the Dragon Protection Squad and the Mountain Breaking Army, they would have enough of a chance.
Of course …
This kind of opportunity must be built on the basis of a surprise attack.
In other words, they had to be fast. Before the Sagely Mountain City received news of the Icy Monkey Settlement's defeat, before the Sagely Mountain City had sufficient defenses.
With lightning speed, he attacked the Sagely Mountain City.
They would take down the Royal City of the Southern Region in one fell swoop, and from there, win the final victory of this war.
In fact, this was the Emperor's original plan. The 100,000 soldiers were a ruse. The combat examinations were also a ruse. However, for the Great Xia to send a few hundred thousand soldiers, or even a few million, to invade the Southern Region...
That was something that was unlikely to happen.
Putting aside the costs and losses of this war, the terrain of the Southern Region alone was the biggest variable in this war. It was like throwing tens of thousands of lions into the forest.
Disregarding everything else, just the fact that he was lost was enough.
Not being familiar with the terrain would be a problem. Coupled with the fact that the Southern Region was filled with ferocious beasts, this war was likely to be a long one.
The Southern Region could afford it.
However, the Great Xia could not afford it. No matter how rich the Great Xia was, they could not afford such losses.
Therefore, this war could not possibly be a true war between nations from the very beginning.
If everything went according to plan, the combat examinations would be held at the Icy Monkey Settlement. When that time came, the Crown Prince would lead an army to the Icy Monkey Settlement.
Taking advantage of the fact that everyone was focused on the combat examinations at the Icy Monkey Settlement, he would turn the spear around and strike the Sagely Mountain City!
No reinforcements?
This was a mission without reinforcements!
As a precaution, Emperor Lin Mubai handed over the elite Dragon Protection Squad to Nangong Hao and hid the Mountain Breaking Army amongst the 100,000 soldiers. All of this was in preparation for the final 'assassination'.
However...
As he wished, Fang Zhengzhi led an army of close to fifty thousand and charged towards the Icy Monkey Settlement. Furthermore, he destroyed the wind valley in one fell swoop and disrupted Nangong Hao's plan.
In the end, Nangong Hao had no choice but to show himself...
Later on, the situation became what it was now.
Such a move seemed to disrupt the overall situation, but from another perspective, it was actually a risky move that created a heaven-sent opportunity.
After all, from the Southern Region's point of view, the Icy Monkey Settlement could not possibly be defeated. As such, if they could take advantage of the night...
40,000 soldiers to strike the Sagely Mountain City!
This battle would be decided!
"No, we won a victory at the Icy Monkey Settlement. Now is the best time to negotiate. The Great Xia and the Southern Region have hundreds of years of good relations. We cannot allow that to be destroyed. The Great Xia is a country of etiquette. How can we not understand this?" The Minister of Rites did not even wait for Xing Yuanguo to give the order to attack.
Of course, in consideration of Xing Yuanguo's pride, the Minister of Rites added, "This is the Emperor's will, Xing Hou cannot ignore it!"
Silence.
In the huge stone house, apart from the flickering firelight, there was only silence, an almost deathly silence. No one had expected the Minister of Rites to appear in the Southern Mountain Range at this time.
Furthermore, he held the Emperor's will in his hands.
"Minister, if the Southern Region really wants to negotiate with us, they would not have taken the Stable Mountain Pass, surrounded the Crown Prince, and even sent troops to kill us. As such..." Xing Qingsui spoke.
"Qingsui, you are still young. You only see the surface. You say that the Southern Region took the Stable Mountain Pass, but did they kill anyone? Not a single one of those 50,000 soldiers was killed. Look at the Southern Region surrounding the Crown Prince. Yes, they surrounded him, but do you really think that the Crown Prince's tens of thousands of soldiers can stop the Southern Region's army? "
The Minister of Rites shook his head, then continued, "I feel that this is a signal from the Southern Region to the Great Xia. They surrounded us but did not kill us. This means that they want to negotiate. As long as we are willing to negotiate, we can resolve this peacefully. In the end, it is all about benefits."
"How does the Minister want to negotiate?" Xing Yuanguo frowned and shook his head at Xing Qingsui.
"What the Southern Mountain Range wants is only freedom. We can first agree to their conditions to maintain the relationship between the two states. Let the Southern Mountain Range and the Great Xia Dynasty work together to keep the Demon Race at the door. Then, we can slowly improve our relationship with the Southern Mountain Range. There are many ways to do this. For example, the marriage agreement recorded in the Law of Dao can be used. We can find a good princess to marry into the Southern Mountain Range. This way, the relationship between the two states will be even more stable!" When the Minister of Rites heard Xing Yuanguo's words, he immediately expressed his opinion. His tone was filled with pride.
"Father, this is a critical moment. If we miss this opportunity, we might not get another chance like this in the future. Once the Southern Mountain Range is prepared, we will definitely lose! "Xing Qingsui's tone was anxious.
"Qingsui, you are the heir to the Stabilisation Constabulary. It is normal for you to have your own thoughts. However, how can you be so sure that the Sagely Mountain City will be unprepared? If you lead the army and fall into a trap, how will you win? "The Minister of Rites interrupted Xing Yuanguo.
"This..." Xing Qingsui's expression changed. Just as the Minister of Rites had said, no one could guarantee that the Sagely Mountain City would be unprepared.
However, how could an army be completely certain in a war?
In a war...
As long as there was a fifty percent chance of success, they would be willing to risk it. After all, war was ever-changing. Only by fighting and seizing would they be able to obtain miraculous results.
"What the Minister said makes sense. However, when it comes to war, we only look at the timing and follow the orders of the general. Even though the Minister has brought the Emperor's decree, I'm afraid that you have wasted a lot of time traveling from the Flame Capital City to the Southern Mountain Range. As such, you should understand the principle of not following orders when you are away from home?" At this moment, a voice spoke up.
This voice came from behind Nangong Hao. However, it did not come from Nangong Hao. It came from a middle-aged man behind him.
He was the First Dragon Envoy of the Dragon Protection Squad!
His name was Yan Qing!
Even though he listened to the Emperor, he had his own pride. After all, he was the disciple of the 13 Constabularies. He had the same foresight as Xing Qingsui.
The expression of the Minister of the Ministry of Rites changed. At the same time, he looked at Yan Qing. Even though he was the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, he wouldn't dare to offend the Dragon Envoy, especially the First Dragon Envoy.
However, it was different this time.
He had brought the Emperor's orders to the Southern Region. He had gone through so much to save the country and its people. He wanted to end this unnecessary war.
Even though the other party was the First Dragon Envoy, he would still dare to offend him.
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
