At dusk the next day, the last golden rays of the setting sun shone on the pillars of the main hall of Bai Ling City, reflecting rays of golden light. In the main hall, a group of officials stood in great numbers, and the commander-in-chief, Qin Yi, wore a golden dragon robe and sat on the throne. During the Yihe Nation's uprising, Qin Yi raised the banner of "all living beings are equal, and people are benevolent." Now, his health was deteriorating day by day, and his desire to ascend to the throne was growing stronger.
"Commander-In-Chief, an envoy from the empire," an attendant said loudly.
"An envoy from the empire?"
Qin Yi frowned, and said, "Send it in."
"Yes!"
Not long after, a woman walked in. It was Qin Yin's personal female official — — Shangguan Jingyue! Shangguan Jingyue's figure was graceful, and she leisurely walked forward. After giving Qin Yi the etiquette of an empire's lady, she said, "Commander-In-Chief Qin Yi, this is a letter written by Her Majesty the Empress herself. It's a letter to your family."
"Bring it up," Qin Yi said without looking sideways.
The attendant presented Qin Yin's letter to Qin Yi. Qin Yi opened the letter, and lines of beautiful handwriting came into view. Qin Yin's calligraphy was passed down from Qin Jin, and could be said to be the best in the empire. However, Qin Yi hated these lines of beautiful handwriting. Only when he saw these words did he finally calm down a little — — "Uncle, Qin Yin respectfully sends her regards. Now that the Demon Race has made a comeback and swept across Cangnan with an army of 500,000, the Demon Emperor, with QianFeng and Lei Chong as his commanders, is determined to obtain the central plains. The empire and the Yihe Nation are interdependent, and I hope that Uncle can let bygones be bygones, dispatch troops to the Sword Pavilion, and join the army of the empire to annihilate the Demon Race, Qin Yin. "
"Hahahaha …" Qin Yi couldn't help laughing, and his eyes were cold. He looked at Shangguan Jingyue and said, "Your Empress has famous generals like Feng Jixing, Lin Muyu, and Xiang Yu under her command. She can expel the Demon Race with one hand, so why does she need the help of the Yihe Nation?"
Shangguan Jingyue said respectfully, "Commander-In-Chief, the Demon Race is powerful, and cannot be resisted by a nation. Her Majesty said that as long as you are willing to dispatch troops to assist the empire, and the Demon Race retreats, Her Majesty is willing to cede Lingdong Province and Tongtian Province to the Yihe Nation."
"Qin Yin, does this little girl think I'm stupid?"
Qin Yi narrowed his eyes and smiled. "These two provinces are meat in the mouths of the Demon Race. No one can eat them. Rather than giving such insincere conditions, why don't we … change the conditions of the alliance?"
"Oh? What does the Yihe Nation want? "
Qin Yi said, "I can send troops from the Yihe Nation, but their military strength is very limited. Furthermore, they are in dire need of soldiers. How about this … the Yihe Nation sends 200,000 troops, and the empire must give me one billion Jinyin coins, plus the four southern prefectures of Cangnan Province. How about it? If Qin Yin is willing to agree, you can sign the credence. Someone, draft the credence. "
"Yes!"
The so-called credence was a letter of negotiation between nations. Once it was signed, it couldn't be violated. Otherwise, it would be a violation of the credibility of the nation.
Shangguan Jingyue stood there quietly like a fairy.
Not long after, an official came to Shangguan Jingyue with two scrolls of credence and said with a smile, "Madam Envoy, please sign it. As long as you sign it, the Commander-In-Chief will definitely send troops."
Shangguan Jingyue looked up at Qin Yi and said, "The Empire and the Yihe Nation are interdependent. I hope that the Commander-In-Chief will consider the big picture and fulfill his promise. Don't let Her Majesty down."
"Don't worry!"
Thus, Shangguan Jingyue signed it. Qin Yi also waved his brush and kept one of the credence for the national treasury. He gave the other to Shangguan Jingyue and said, "Go back and tell Qin Yin that I will immediately send a letter to Marshal Ji Yao. He will naturally act according to the circumstances."
"Yes, then this little girl will take her leave."
Shangguan Jingyue slowly left the hall. When she came outside, a few imperial attendants came forward and said, "Madam, has the Prince of Zhennan already agreed to send troops?"
"No."
Shangguan Jingyue smiled faintly and said, "What a good 'acting according to the circumstances' … Let's go, His Highness is still waiting for our news."
"Yes!"
…
"Acting according to the circumstances?"
In the Longdan Army Camp, Qin Yin couldn't help but laugh. "I'm afraid that this uncle of mine won't tell anyone the truth, right? To put it nicely, it's acting according to the circumstances. To put it bluntly … I'm afraid that he doesn't want us to have any chance of winning the battle with the Demon Race. He still wants the empire to give them one billion Jinyin coins. It's simply wishful thinking. "
At the side, Lin Muyu said, "The troops of the Demon Race are increasing in Cang Lin Valley. The battle will definitely start within three days. I wonder how the preparations of the front, middle, left and right armies are going?"
Qin Yin looked up.
The group of generals were solemn. Xiang Yu cupped his fists and said, "Reporting to Your Highness, the front army of one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers is ready for battle. We have dug nearly three miles of pits. As long as the Demon Race comes, we can use the pits to kill twenty thousand Armor Demons. We have also prepared black beech oil and arrow boxes. This time, we are well prepared. Even if the Demon Race army comes, we have a good chance of winning."
Luo Xin had already been appointed as the commander of the Iron Blade Army by Su Muyun. He also cupped his fists and said, "The Iron Blade Army has one hundred thousand elite soldiers guarding the middle army. Your Highness, please rest assured!"
Following that, Su Long also indicated that the preparations were complete.
On the contrary, Zeng Yifan was leisurely drinking his tea with a faint smile on his aged face. He said, "There are thousands of Winged People hovering above the Empire's army. I'm afraid our every move is under their observation. Since we have made so many preparations, QianFeng is not a fool. He will not take the initiative to enter our pit. I think … General Xiang Yu should make preparations in advance to fight in the wilderness. Choose the battlefield and set up the army formation. This way, you still have a chance of winning."
Xiang Yu nodded. "Yes, thank you for your advice, Divine Marquis. I will."
Everyone was silent for a while. Lin Muyu asked, "Has there been any news from Xiao Xi? Where are the troops of the Seven Seas City? How many troops do they have?"
Shangguan Jingyue said, "Princess Xi's letter arrived in the afternoon. The Seven Seas City's troops have all been dispatched. There are more than three hundred thousand of them. However, they refused to go to Cangnan Province. They said that unless they see the letter from the Seven Seas King, Tang Lan, they can only guard the Seven Seas Pass."
"They actually dare to disobey His Highness's orders?"
Su Muyun suddenly stood up and said without anger, "Are the people of the Seven Seas City rebelling?"
Qin Yin smiled. "Grandfather, don't be angry. I believe they don't mean that. It's just that … Tang Lu is in the Seven Seas Pass and has the Tang Sect's iron order. In addition to his special status, I'm afraid that the Seven Seas Army will not listen to his orders."
Lin Muyu said coldly, "Wait until we finish fighting the Demon Race, then we'll take care of them!"
At the side, Xiang Yu's expression was somewhat ugly. After all, he was the son-in-law of the Tang Clan.
Qin Yin asked again, "Is there any news from General Feng?"
"They just arrived at Black Pine Pass not long ago. They are currently arranging the garrison," Su Yun said.
"En, that's good."
… …
The bright moon shone on the icy Qinling Mountains as a cold wind howled past Ink Pine Pass. Although it was already spring, the nights at Ink Pine Pass were unusually cold. The fortress could only hold fifty thousand men at most, and the rest had to be stationed outside the pass. As a result, the Zither Dragon Army, Imperial Army, and Tang Xi's army set up camp to the north of Ink Pine Pass, their banners flying for dozens of li.
Snow continued to fall on Black Pine Pass. When it landed on one's skin, it was indescribably cold.
Feng Jixing gently rubbed his palms to warm himself up. Su Yu, who was beside him, used a coarse crystal telescope to look into the distance. She saw the lights in the direction of Fiery Moon City, and Long Qianlin's barracks stretched as far as the eye could see. They were too close to Black Pine Pass, so much so that they could reach Black Pine Pass in just four hours.
"We only have a few hundred thousand troops."
Su'Er pouted and said, "Long Qianlin and Ding Xi have nearly five hundred thousand soldiers in total. If the two of them want to attack Ink Pine Pass, can we really stop them?"
Feng Jixing's King's Battle Flame surged around his palms to warm himself. He smiled and said, "Long Qianlin and Ding Xi should also understand that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be interdependent. Once the Demon Race attacks, the Yihe Country will not be able to stay out of it. They will not attack first. Even if they do, Black Pine Pass is so strong that they will not be able to take it in a short time."
"En."
Su Yu looked into the distance. "We can only do this. I hope the battle with Xiao Yin will go smoothly."
"Don't worry. With Yu helping her, even if they cannot win, they will not lose miserably."
At this time, Tang Xi, who was clad in crimson armor, walked up to the top of the fortress and said with a smile, "Commander Feng, Commander Su, the rations and armaments have all been prepared. It's enough for us to stay here for more than two months."
"Good. Commander Tang Xi, thank you for your hard work."
"It's nothing. It's my duty. Duke Lan … Oh no, His Highness the Seven Seas King is already resting. You two should also rest early, right?"
"Okay."
Feng Jixing took another deep look at the vague shadows of Fiery Moon City in the night. His brows gradually furrowed. Deep in his heart, he believed that Ding Xi and Long Qianlin wouldn't advance, but … he had a premonition that Ding Xi and Long Qianlin would definitely not let go of such a great opportunity to retake the three passes of Qinling Mountains!
…
"Tuk, tuk, tuk …"
A group of light cavalry galloped straight into Fiery Moon City under the moonlight. The general at the front wore three gold stars on his collar. It was Ding Xi, one of the seven marshals of the Yihe Country.
"Marshal Ding Xi has arrived!" The guard shouted.
On top of the city wall, a man leaped down. To him, the fifteen meter tall city wall seemed like child's play. His feet stepped on a vortex of battle qi as he floated down to the ground, completely unharmed. It was Long Qianlin, who was inspecting the military situation outside the city. He stepped forward and smiled, "Marshal Ding Xi, why have you come so late at night?"
Ding Xi's expression was ashen. "Marshal Long, this general has brought a personal letter from the commander-in-chief. It's for the two of us."
"Oh? What news does the commander-in-chief have? "
"He ordered me to attack Ink Pine Pass on the first of February. I must retake the three passes within fifteen days and then send troops north to conquer the entire Earth Star Province within ten days."
"What?!" Long Qianlin was astonished. "Did I hear wrongly? We're going to declare war on the empire when the demonic army is invading? "
Ding Xi slapped the letter into his hand. "The commander-in-chief's letter is here. Do as you see fit! The first of February is tomorrow, and we don't have much time. If we decide to go to war tomorrow, we must assemble the rations and armaments by tonight. "
Long Qianlin frowned. "We just received a report that Ink Pine Pass is garrisoned with close to one hundred and eighty thousand men under Feng Jixing's command. I'm afraid … it won't be easy to take the three passes from Feng Jixing's hands, will it?"
Ding Xi smiled with a hint of mockery.
"Marshal Ding, what do you mean by this? What are you smiling about … "Long Qianlin's heart was pounding.
Ding Xi drank a mouthful of wine from his waterskin and glanced at him. "Who are you, Long Qianlin? Is there anyone in the Yihe Country who knows how to use troops better than you? No matter how powerful Feng Jixing is, he can only guard one pass because he can't split himself. As for the other two … you don't need me to remind you, do you? "
Long Qianlin laughed. "Marshal Ding lives up to his reputation!"
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