“General.” He Xiao’s vice general, Ge Qi, was a young man of about 20 years old. Like the majority of the soldiers, his father was a soldier that had defected towards the royal capital. He had grown up in Yan Bei since young. Presently, he returned to this place, determined and brave, with the hope of restoring the disgraced name of his father. “General, the Xia troops are nearing.”

Chu Qiao remained silent. Ge Qi remarked, “Chidu City won’t be opened. Let’s go.”

Chu Qiao was unfazed. She stared at the city gates of Chidu and replied calmly, “Let’s wait a while more.”

Time passed ever so slowly. The wind roared like a savage beast. The surroundings were silent but appeared noisy. The eagles circled in the sky, spreading their giant, white wings which were seemingly sufficient to cover half the sky.

Ge Qi frowned, seemingly hearing the warhorses of the Xia Army in the distance. He stepped up and said, “General, if we go now, we can still make it.”

“Let’s wait a while more.”

“General, the forces from Xia are too strong. If we clash head-on with them on the plains, we won’t be able to resist them.”

“Let’s wait a while more.”

Chu Qiao was calm. The wind lifted her hat slightly, revealing her beautiful face. Her horse stamped its feet on the ground, making crisp sounds. Time passed so slowly while waiting. The wind blew across the land, scattering the loose blades of grass beneath the snowy ground. Her heart felt warm; she could feel the intense beats of her pulse. One, two, three times…

“General!” a voice suddenly echoed out. A scout, dressed in yellow, sprinted towards her while continuing, “The Xia troops have bypassed Helan Mountains and are advancing towards Chiyuan Crossing at full steam! They have 20,000 light cavalry soldiers at the frontline, followed by large amounts of heavy cavalry soldiers and many infantry battalions. Their numbers are unclear. General, they have killed tens of armies guarding Chiyuan Crossing and discovered our scout. They have picked up their pace and advanced over the first strait!”

Cries of panic echoed amongst the crowd. Was the enemy really that fast? 20,000 light cavalry soldiers, countless heavy cavalry soldiers, close to 100,000 soldiers on foot… The numbers were intimidating. If they were to clash here, the Southwest Emissary’s garrison would definitely be wiped out without a sound.

“General,” Ge Qi frowned and said, “where there is life…”

“General! Take a look!” a section leader suddenly exclaimed, pointing his finger towards the city gates of Chidu. Everyone turned their heads around. A white and red flag flew in the air, above the high city walls. The reinforced city gates of Chidu were slowly let down to the surprise of everyone.

The gates of Chidu City had opened!

“Yes!” the soldiers exclaimed together in joy.

Chu Qiao heaved a sigh of relief. She whipped her horse and galloped forward, saying loudly, “Into the city!”

As the city gates closed, a black line appeared on the horizon. From the Chishui River, which was located far out, a low rumbling sound echoed out, drifting to their ears slowly.

“Who are you? Cough, cough… I am the soldier in charge of protecting Chidu City of Yan Bei. Prince Yan… cough, cough… personally issued a hand-written statement to grant me the rank of a third level official. I am a top scholar from the batch in year 748. My title has been recognized in front of the palace. How could you be so brazen in broad daylight, and so uncultured? Cough, cough, cough…” A man of about 60 to 70 years old droned on loudly, his clothes wrinkled by being forcibly held down by the soldiers. His hat had slanted to one direction, while he had only one boot on. The other boot was dragged along by his other foot. Two soldiers from the Southwest Emissary’s garrison held him down to prevent him from making any rash movements. What was disappointing was that the man had tens of soldiers guarding the city, but they did not move all along. They crept in one corner, wanting to remove the uniforms that they wore. Evidently, they did not intend to participate in any combat.

Chu Qiao felt angry, knowing that a city that held such strategic importance was handed over to these good-for-nothings. However, ironically, she knew that if not for this, she would not have been able to enter Chidu City.

“General, luckily there are no casualties!” He Xiao walked over and knelt on the ground in front of Chu Qiao. There were bloodstains on the man’s navy blue uniform, showing that they had met with some resistance.

Chu Qiao’s throat was slightly blocked. She reached out her hand and helped He Xiao up, saying in a low voice, “Commander He, if Yan Bei averts this disaster, you will be the front-runner for the credit.”

“I…I occupy the 48th seat of the elders’ section in Da Tong Guild. Cough, cough… I form the backbone of Yan Bei. I have over 30 years of experience. Most of the soldiers here are my students. Cough, cough… You’re treating me like this, I will…”

“Shut up!” a cold female voice sounded out. Chu Qiao stepped forward slowly, looking at this old guard of Chidu City coldly. She was young, but the look in her eyes was full of seriousness and hostility.

The old guard’s voice slowly faded away under her stare. He felt that it was disgraceful for this to happen. He gathered his courage and retorted, “The guild will hold you to trial, traitors!”

The sight of 7,000 ferocious looking troops entering the city startled its inhabitants. People from all walks of life stepped out of their doors and stood on the snowy ground, gazing towards them.

Chu Qiao laughed coldly and grabbed the old fellow by the collar. She turned around and walked towards the top of the city walls.

“Ah! What are you doing?” the old guard was almost dragged off his feet, losing his balance and nearly falling on the ground. Loudly, he hollered, “How audacious! How dare you be so rude to me! I occupy the 48th seat of the elder’s section! I have been in the guild for 33 years! The commanders in the army are my students! Cough, cough… I am a top scholar, holding 12 votes in the Da Tong Court. You monopolize the troops for yourself, deceiving your comrades… I will prosecute you on behalf of Da Tong Guild! I will exile you and strip you of your military authority! I will seize all your properties, I will…” The voice suddenly stopped, like a suona horn which had been blocked.

The shadows of the young lady and the old guard stood atop the tall city walls. The wind blew at their clothes, showing their military uniforms from Yan Bei. It scattered their black and white colored hairs, respectively, in the air. None of them uttered a word. They stood on the top of the city gates, looking into the distance.

The soldiers and civilians of Chidu City felt perplexed. Some of them gathered their courage and climbed up the city walls, only to be rendered speechless at the sight. More people climbed up slowly, one, two, three, ten, one hundred, one thousand… The people clustered on top of the city walls. Their faces were panicked. An air of despair lingered in the air; the smell of death had never been so near before.

The sun shone brightly in the sky, its rays shining on everyone’s heads. Those indistinguishable shadows were like the Huoyun flowers on Huolei Plains, populating the entire landscape. The wind blew, causing snowflakes to scatter about in the air. Amongst the layer of white fog, the silver-grey army was like a wave of flood water, enveloping the entirety of the snowy plains. They were equipped with long spears and shiny silver swords. There were human heads everywhere, together with healthy and well-built warhorses. Their ensign flew high up in the air. The rear of the army could not be seen. It stretched over five kilometers. There were light and heavy cavalry soldiers, experienced archers, tough shielded soldiers, and countless battalions consisting of backup forces, rear support forces, and carriage forces…

Like a large-scale military drill, almost all of Xia’s forces gathered at this spot. The officials and soldiers of Chidu City, along with the civilians, were stunned. Even the Southwest Emissary’s garrison, who had been prepared for this all along, were stunned. At this instant, they realized how terrifying the enemy who stood in front of them was. The Xia Empire had colonized the mainlands of Hongchuan for over 300 years, maintaining its tyranny over West Meng for this period. It had suppressed the empires of Tang, Song and the eastern seas of Nanqiu for over 300 years. How could their core have been shaken by just a mere rebellion at Zhen Huang? Presently, they had awoken. They flexed their limbs, preparing to exterminate those who had threatened their power!

“After this battle, if you’re still alive,” Chu Qiao turned her head and looked at the old man, saying calmly, “I will be willing to face your prosecution.” With a thud, the old man slumped to the ground. Chu Qiao did not look him in the eye, turning to walk towards the square located in the city. On her way there, the people automatically gave way to her. The wind blew at her hair and cloak, making her look like an eagle. Chu Qiao’s posture was upright, her heroic spirit giving off an intimidating aura. She walked towards the center of the square, scanning the crowd that had gathered below it.

Their expressions were panicked, like rabbits who had experienced some sort of shock. Chu Qiao was all too familiar with the expressions on their faces, having seen them in the Middle East, Africa, and the chaotic borders along the Golden Triangle of Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand. In those war-torn countries, she saw too many people who had lost their homes amidst the conflict. Presently, as she stood there, she did not know what to call herself. Was she a saint that would bring about freedom for the people? Or a destroyer who brought about disasters? She was at the point of no return. The only way out was war!

The enemy was nearing. Their warcries became louder, piercing the people’s eardrums. Chu Qiao looked up, her eyes clear and determined. She managed a bitter smile. She knew that after tomorrow, countless tragedies would have happened on this land. Countless families were about to fall apart, while countless people would never see their families again. However, she had no choice. She looked up slowly, not willing to see those faces full of hope.

Yan Xun, where are you? When will you be back? Even if you’re at the ends of the world, I’d still fight alongside with you!

In the eyes of Xia, it was an effortless task for an army of 200,000 to siege a city that had less than 3,000 soldiers. However, after Zhao Yang’s troops reached Chidu City, he did not order them to siege the city immediately. Seeing that Chidu City had been prepared to defend to the death, he laughed in disdain, rejoicing silently in his heart. Since they were prepared to defend, he had another reason to prolong the battle. It was in his interests to get to Beishuo City a little later, as Zhao Qi’s troops, along with the troops from the Batuha family, could fight head-on with the forces of Yan Bei first.

Hence, Zhao Yang ordered his subordinates to start carrying out fortifications like digging ditches, setting up ropes to trip the horses and placing spikes on the ground to pierce into the horses’ hooves. They put up a show as if they were busy with preparing for the battle.

The officials representing the third prince, Zhao Qi, rushed over to Zhao Yang’s camp a few times to prompt him to attack the enemy immediately and flank the route to Beishuo. However, Zhao Yang always answered them with a strange expression, questioning, “Am I not attacking now?”

“What I mean is that you should attack more aggressively.” Facing the Xia Empire’s fourteenth prince, whose power was on the rise, the official broke out in cold sweat and stammered. “Third Royal Highness’s army has fought head-on with the troops of Yan Bei already. Fourteenth Royal Highness, if your army gets to Beishuo faster, the casualties from the Southwestern Army will be reduced.”

“How would you account for the casualties of the Northwestern Army then?” Zhao Yang raised his eyebrows coldly and declared, “As a commander of an army, my biggest responsibility is to achieve the biggest victory while paying the smallest price. I need to treasure every soldier’s life. Hence, I feel that my army’s strategy is very suitable for the current situation. If I attack recklessly and fall into the enemy’s ambush, the Northwestern Army will experience heavy casualties. This will affect the overall performance and strategy of the Xia Army. Who will assume this responsibility? Is it you, General?”