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墨書 Inktalez
Li Daozong furrowed his brows. While Li Jing and Hou Junji had yet to settle into the military camp, he was already the head of tens of thousands of troops, facing a mountain of military affairs every day. It was no exaggeration to say he was overwhelmed with work. He truly could not keep track of Xu Zhenzhi's whereabouts, and after not seeing him for several days, he suspected that the young man had secretly slipped away, worried about his journey to Chang'an.
However, he never expected that Hou Polu would publicly raise such an issue at this time. He understood Hou Polu's temperament well; the rivalry and competition among the younger generation, whether malicious or benign, were matters he, as the Chief of Military Operations, did not want to interfere with. Allowing the younger ones to compete would benefit their character; after all, young men, especially those in the military, needed that passion and drive.
Yet, the Xu Zhen, knowing Li Mingda's true identity, showed no ill intentions. After handing Li Mingda over to him as a royal relative, she had not even sought an audience once. This indicated that she was not someone who sought fame or fortune; how could she possibly betray them?
But within the military camp, since Hou Polu had already brought it up, if he as Chief of Military Operations did not take action, it would lead to accusations of favoritism. After a moment's contemplation, Li Daozong issued his orders: Central Military Deputy Du Wei and Duan Zan were to jointly oversee the military inspection with a thousand troops and bring back the Xu Zhen for questioning.
Duan Zan was the eldest son of Duke of Bao Duan Zhi Xuan and served as Left Tunwei Grand General. Central Military Deputy Du Wei was a deputy general in charge of the palace army and was considered a leading general. Sending him to capture a mere Captain seemed like overkill; however, Li Daozong understood the importance of maintaining morale in the army. He could not allow Hou Polu's uncertain information to disrupt their ranks.
Duan Zan acted steadily without any complaints. After gathering his troops, he thundered out of Liangzhou Camp.
Not long after Li Daozong returned to his tent, Li Dejiang came in to report that Princess Jinyang had come to see him. Li Daozong quickly rose to greet her.
Li Mingda had been secretly training martial arts with Li Dejiang these past few days. Her body had grown slender like willow branches after rain, displaying a certain gracefulness. Dressed as a young man, she exuded an air of youthful vigor and nobility.
This young girl did not beat around the bush with her uncle but stated directly, "That guy won't betray us."
"How do you know?"
"Although he's a despicable person who forgets loyalty for profit, he understands what should and shouldn't be done."
Hearing Li Mingda defend the Xu Zhen so candidly surprised Li Daozong. Although her words were harsh, they revealed her concern. The old general couldn't help but feel moved and reassured her: "This young man knows how to conduct himself and understands righteousness. I am not worried about him betraying us; sending troops for inspection is merely a strategy to calm the army's morale. You need not worry about it. Moreover, given the situation in Chang'an, it is likely that sending him back to deliver messages will also be delayed. You should feel at ease staying in the camp."
Previously, Li Mingda would have insisted on returning to Chang'an without hesitation. However, after calmly analyzing her circumstances and the situation at court over these past few days—combined with her father's unintentional hints of concern—she understood three or four parts of it now. She nodded in agreement and left with Li Dejiang.
Li Daozong felt slightly stunned as he secretly observed Li Mingda's retreating figure. It seemed this little girl had grown up; her demeanor had become more profound and heavy with an air of royal authority and power.
The military camp settled down temporarily. Shortly after leaving the camp, Duan Zan followed the scouts' information from Hou Polu and divided his troops into three routes toward Kuber Prairie for pursuit. Within half a day, they reached the hillside mentioned by the scouts.
On the sheltered side of the slope lay traces of extinguished campfires; there were few hoofprints and no signs of chaos, confirming that what the scouts reported was true: Princess Jinyang and her group had indeed entered deep into Kuber Prairie, heading toward the heart of the Tu Gu Hun Murong Clan.
According to Hou Polu's report, Princess Jinyang had captured Colonel Murong Xiao from the Murong Clan. This raised suspicions about potential betrayal; otherwise, with such a small force at hand, they wouldn't even be enough to serve as food for Murong Clan's Barbarians.
Duan Zan recalled Li Daozong's instructions before departing and ordered his deputy to relay commands for all three troop divisions to converge here while sending out scouts widely. A thousand cavalry thundered into battle across the prairie!
At this moment, Princess Jinyang had already ventured deep into enemy territory with her team. She hadn't intended to go so far behind enemy lines; however, their small group on such vast grasslands felt like a drop in an ocean—unlikely to encounter enemies or face significant danger—especially with Murong Xiao providing intelligence and guidance while deliberately avoiding Barbarian patrols along the border.
With the precise information given to him by Caesar the night before, his determination to rescue Caesar's people grew stronger, for Caesar was not an Indian but a member of the long-extinct Rouran people!
She and the more than two hundred tribespeople were remnants of the northern Rouran who had migrated here. Among them, aside from the elderly, weak, women, and children, there were still seventy or eighty young and strong men. As long as they were given a horse and a spear, they would become formidable cavalry heroes!
As one of the former empires on horseback, the Rouran warriors were unmatched in their cavalry combat skills. This further boosted Xu Zhen's confidence. In her eyes, the value of these Rouran tribespeople had already surpassed that of Murong Xiao's head!
If she could successfully rescue these Rouran tribespeople, the young men and women could mount their horses and become a force capable of taking on ten foes each. The elderly, weak, women, and children could be placed in the rear to care for the horses, settling them in the military camp would not only avoid burdening them but would also bring great benefits to Tang Camp!
No matter how brave Murong Xiao was, he was ultimately just a living person. After being tortured by Caesar, he became more compliant. Zhou Cang and his group of martial artists all had some ruthless interrogation techniques.
After riding lightly for half a day, they finally arrived at a meadow where the terrain suddenly dipped down into a small basin on the grassland. In the center was a small lake as clear as a blue moon, surrounded by dozens of tents of various sizes. Low fences made of branches were erected around it, forming a small village.
Barbarians in cavalry gear patrolled the area. The sentries on High Slope had already been cleared out by Xu Zhen and her companions; they were just waiting for nightfall to launch their attack!
Of course, Xu Zhen was not confident enough to flatten a small village with just over ten people because according to Murong Xiao's report, nearly two hundred soldiers from the Murong Clan were stationed here—both cavalry and infantry—who were all forces he had painstakingly built up. Excluding any exaggeration from Murong Xiao, these soldiers were far beyond what Xu Zhen's mere dozen blades could handle.
Unable to launch a direct assault, they could only rely on cunning strategies. Xu Zhen truly had little experience in military tactics; such matters were naturally left to the chief strategist Zhang Jiunian.
After discussing among themselves and eating some jerky and wild fruits to fill their stomachs, they had their brothers don Tian Ce Red Armor and put on long cloaks from the Murong Clan before dispersing quietly. Instead of riding horses, they took advantage of the night to swiftly infiltrate the village ahead!
Li Deqian felt disheartened; although he lacked martial prowess, he continuously showcased his life skills and various ingenious ideas along the way, earning respect from others. However, seeing his brothers charge into battle with great swords while he remained behind on High Slope watching over the horses left him feeling somewhat out of place. Yet when he recalled what Xu Zhen had secretly instructed him before leaving, a surge of passion ignited within him.
Murong Xiao was bound hand and foot with Zhou Cang's bindings stuffed in his mouth; the smell of that rag made his eyes water. After seeing Li Deqian stay behind, his once compliant gaze regained its fierce and cunning glint.
Not long after, flames suddenly erupted from a tent on the left side of the small lake below the slope. Instantly chaos ensued in the village as people shouted and horses neighed while everyone rushed to support the south side of the village!
At this moment, Xu Zhen and Caesar took advantage of the confusion created by Zhang Jiunian and others to stealthily approach the eastern side of the village. During daylight hours it had seemed far away; now as they neared the large enclosure holding their imprisoned tribespeople, their hearts were stirred intensely.
Within a low fence spanning over ten meters lay nearly two hundred ragged prisoners resembling pigs or dogs. The ground inside was muddy; groups of tribespeople huddled together to fend off the cold night air of the grassland. Aside from suppressed coughs, not a single person cried out—demonstrating their iron will!
Even those brats displayed fierce looks akin to lions, causing chills to run down the spines of the Barbarians outside who occasionally drew their curved blades to intimidate.
Xu Zhen was taken aback; looking at these people reminded her of Spartan warriors she had once seen—a fierce nation that discarded weak infants solely to retain only their strongest warriors!
Seeing his kin suffer brought sorrow to Caesar's heart. Ignoring Xu Zhen's earlier agreement, he dashed forward seventeen steps in the darkness with dual blades crossed in an X formation. With one swift motion, he struck down a Barbarian outside the fence; blood gushed forth like a fountain!
"What an untrainable wild barbarian woman!" Xu Zhen exclaimed with her hand pressed against her forehead in exasperation. Nevertheless, she did not remain idle; she launched several flying daggers simultaneously—three or four knives shot out at once—causing those Barbarians without even leather armor to fall immediately!
Outside the fence, thirty to forty Barbarians were still roasting meat by the campfire, distracted by the raging fire on the South Side. They hesitated about whether to abandon their miserable slaves to rush for rescue; after all, although these slaves were fierce, they were unarmed and accompanied by the elderly and weak, posing no real threat.
However, Xu Zhen and Caesar struck like lightning. The Rouran Slaves within the fence seemed to be in a constant state of readiness for battle. Upon seeing the Barbarians fall, the crowd of slaves erupted. Regardless of age or gender, they surged forward together, crashing through the fence with a loud clatter. Among them, the strong and brave seized weapons from the Barbarians and, in the blink of an eye, dispatched more than thirty Barbarians outside the fence, crushing their heads like watermelons underfoot.
On ordinary days, if a riot broke out, other Barbarians would surely rush to rescue them immediately. However, at this moment, with the South Side under sudden attack by fire and chaos echoing through the air as if an army was trampling through, there was no one left to come to their aid.
Caesar restrained his people; everyone remained silent, like wild leopards hunting in the night forest. Even Xu Zhen felt a bit intimidated by the gaze of these Rouran Warriors.
Without needing Caesar's command, seventy to eighty young men and women stepped forward from the tribe and formed a line. Though not very orderly, they exuded an air of murderous intent. According to Murong Xiao's intelligence, Xu Zhen and Caesar led these seventy to eighty individuals to the Main Tent at the center of the village, where weapons such as knives and bows were stored. Meanwhile, others stealthily crept toward the pasture behind the village and soon took control of all the horses belonging to the Murong Clan's camp!
With weapons in hand, the Rouran Warriors felt invigorated. Their hatred for Murong Clan and Barbarians had ignited their bloodlust. Tattered clothing could not conceal their gaunt frames; once mounted and armed with knives, they charged forth like famished tigers unleashed upon the village!
Xu Zhen initially intended to display her might and intimidate these Rouran Warriors while also testing her skills with a knife learned from Zhou Cang. However, after several charges, she found herself unable to claim even half a Barbarian head!
On High Slope, Murong Xiao lay in wait for an opportunity to escape. He gazed at the village surrounding the low-lying lake and listened to familiar Turkic wails of sorrow, feeling as if his heart had turned to ashes.
(Note: Rouran was one of the ancient tribes active in northern and southern China from the late 4th century to mid-6th century AD after the Xiongnu and Xianbei. They were a warrior nation capable of reaching Europe but were ultimately destroyed during the Southern and Northern Dynasties period after experiencing various rises and falls; remnants of Tang Dynasty had already integrated into other ethnic groups.)
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