The autumn cicadas cried mournfully, a single leaf fell, and the world was bleak.
Within the city of Anding, it was still calm and peaceful.
After the twelve thousand Xiliang troops marched out, only a few hundred men remained, led by Han Sui's son-in-law, Yan Xing.
Of course...
They were merely going through the motions. If Xiahou Dun's army were to attack, Yan Xing would immediately lead the defending troops to retreat. At this moment, Yan Xing was at Sima Yi's invitation, come to drink.
After three rounds of drinks, the conversation naturally flowed freely.
"I heard that the Xiliang Princess, Miss Ma Yunlu, has been unhappy since her return?" Sima Yi asked first...
Yan Xing nodded, "That's right. Miss Ma is truly pitiful. First, her father died, then her brother. Of the group who went to Xudu City, only she returned. Since then, she's been frowning all day, locking herself in her room and not seeing anyone."
"She must be heartbroken," Sima Yi sighed...
"Heh heh." Yan Xing revealed a meaningful smile, but his brow quickly furrowed again. "I'm not worried about that girl, but that Long Xiao Camp is even more terrifying than I imagined!"
"Brother Yan is referring to... the annihilation of General Ma Dai's seven thousand strong legion?" Sima Yi retorted.
Because they were very close...
The news that Ma Dai's vanguard had been completely annihilated had already reached Anding City.
Of course...
This seemed like a routine operation for the Long Xiao Camp in Sima Yi's eyes, but to Yan Xing, it was too fast... They hadn't even held on until the vanguard could offer support.
"Now, my father-in-law and Ma Mengqi, along with all the generals, have surrounded that Long Xiao Camp. At dawn tomorrow, with a unified attack from all three armies, no matter how powerful their Long Xiao Camp is, they won't be able to resist!"
A sinister light gleamed in Yan Xing's eyes.
Who would have thought...
At that moment, the entire room suddenly plunged into darkness. Yan Xing felt a cold wind behind him. With his cautious and keen senses, he immediately realized someone was behind him.
He spun around abruptly... a cold glint already stabbed towards him.
With a clang, a few sparks flew in the darkness, followed by... a dagger pressed against his throat.
"Who is it?" Yan Xing asked urgently...
The one holding the dagger was a slender woman with ghost-like movements. She didn't speak, but Sima Yi slowly lit the candles.
He picked up the oil lamp and walked to Yan Xing.
"Didn't expect this, did you, Young Master Yan!"
"You..." Yan Xing turned pale with shock. What did Sima Yi mean by that? It was obvious... it was something he had plotted. "Sima Zhongda, are you insane? Aren't you afraid of..."
"Afraid of what..." Before Yan Xing could finish his sentence, Sima Yi laughed. "Han Sui and Ma Chao are not in Anding City now, and there are fewer than a hundred soldiers in Anding City. Who do I have to fear?"
"You... you are a spy for Great Wei?" Yan Xing gnashed his teeth in hatred...
"No!" Sima Yi smiled. "I am a disciple of my teacher, I was, I am, and I will always be..."
"You... you..." Yan Xing pointed at Sima Yi. "Tomorrow morning, the Long Xiao Camp... the Long Xiao Camp will be no more. You... don't be deluded!"
"It is you who is deluded!" Sima Yi's gaze was cold. He squatted down and smiled at Yan Xing, saying, "You think you've surrounded the Long Xiao Camp? Wrong... your father-in-law has been completely surrounded by the Long Xiao Camp! It is indeed trapping a tortoise in a jar, but who is the jar and who is the tortoise remains to be seen!"
As he spoke, Sima Yi's eyes widened, his hawk-like gaze and wolf-like stare... startling Yan Xing.
"It's a pity you won't see this scene!"
Speaking of which...
The slender woman in black raised her knife and struck. With one hand, she covered Yan Xing's mouth and slit his throat with the other.
This was the most stifling way to die. Even in death, he couldn't even shout out...
He wanted to shout out in pain, but he couldn't!
Thud...
Thud...
As Yan Xing's body fell to the ground.
Sima Yi pulled down the black-clothed woman's veil, revealing a cold and clear face.
"My lady, you've worked hard..."
"Zhongda... you've had a difficult time these past few days, haven't you!"
This woman in black was none other than Zhang Chunhua.
And everything... had been planned long ago.
It was back on the occasion when Lu Yu met Ma Yunlu. Many soldiers of the Long Xiao Camp knew that Lu Yu had given Ma Yunlu a piece of paper.
On the paper, the words Ma Yunlu saw were "Awaiting the truth"...
In reality, under the deliberate guidance of the Long Xiao Camp, Ma Yunlu had gone to Rangshan... and met the person she was most supposed to meet.
And heard another exceptionally talented young man narrate other plans!
This was a grand strategy...
And the key to this strategy was Sima Zhongda, who was in the enemy's camp!
Indeed...
Sima Yi, situated within the Xiliang faction, had no one reliable by his side.
He couldn't receive information from the outside, nor could he transmit information out...
But...
What if Ma Yunlu acted as this "bridge"?
As the Xiliang princess, she didn't need to act personally. She had a hundred ways to meticulously tell Sima Yi the truth, the situation, and Lu Yu's plans, and she could also relay Sima Yi's replies to Lu Yu...
From the very beginning... this was a trap, a plan to resolve the hidden dangers in Xiliang...
By coordinating from within and without, a plan to bring lasting stability to the western region.
"Does Ma Chao know the truth yet?" Zhang Chunhua asked softly.
"Not yet!" Sima Yi replied softly. "However, tonight, Ma Yunlu will tell him everything. The trap has been set, it's time to let him see the entire truth of the matter!"
As he spoke, Sima Yi doused the room with oil, then... set it ablaze before calmly leaving with Zhang Chunhua.
As they ran, they didn't forget to shout.
— "Enemy attack, enemy attack..."
— "Advisor Yan has been assassinated!"
Chaos...
Instantly, the entire Anding City was in a panic!
And this...
Was exactly what Sima Yi wanted to see.
...
...
In Guanzhong, not far from Anding City...
A secluded farmstead.
Yang Xiu stood anxiously at the door, his brow furrowed... He was waiting... waiting for someone's arrival, but... it had been a whole day, and this person still hadn't arrived!
This made Yang Xiu's thoughts chaotic...
"Still not here? Still not here?"
This night... felt extremely long.
In the pitch darkness, occasional groans of pain could be heard from inside the house.
Evidently...
Even with Xiahou Juan's "unbelievable" healing techniques, which had brought Ma Teng back from the brink of death, Ma Teng still groaned in pain at night, and showed no signs of waking.
For this reason...
Xiahou Juan took care of Ma Teng meticulously, like a maidservant...
Admittedly...
She was kind-hearted by nature, and moreover, she had heard from Yang Xiu how much this middle-aged man meant to her husband.
He couldn't be in trouble...
He absolutely couldn't be in trouble!
The outside of the window was still pitch black. Unknowingly, Xiahou Juan fell asleep, but hazily... she heard a voice.
— "Is... is there any congee?"
"..."
Xiahou Juan was silent for a moment...
She subconsciously thought Yang Xiu had asked, but... when she opened her eyes, she was shocked to find that it was Ma Teng speaking... this uncle who had been unconscious for a long time!
"You... you..."
"Hungry... hungry..." Ma Teng's voice, though still weak, was already clearly audible.
This time...
Xiahou Juan's spirits soared. "Dezu, Dezu..." She hurriedly summoned Yang Xiu, and the maidservant beside her also woke up and quickly fetched a fire starter to light the candle.
As the candlelight illuminated Ma Teng's face, his complexion was sallow...
However, his eyes were wide and bright, with no heavy breathing or signs of pain; he was very calm... very calm, like a still, ancient well.
"Wei Wei Ma..." Da Feng Novel Network
Yang Xiu also perked up and quickly spoke.
"You... you recognize me?" Ma Teng replied weakly.
Yang Xiu was overjoyed. Ma Teng's voice continued, "I... I think I had a dream. In the dream, my best brother sent people to kill me, just to... frame someone else, then incite conflict between Guandong and Guanxi. Then... I was wandering at the gates of hell, and suddenly... a huge leather bag wrapped me up. The bag was very smelly and fishy... but in the end... it made me regain my spirit, and under this disgusting smell, I desperately escaped from the gates of hell!"
"Wei Wei Ma... you... you're well!" Yang Xiu exclaimed in joy.
Xiahou Juan also bit her lip, almost shedding tears.
Nothing made the kind-hearted Xiahou Juan happier or more excited than Ma Teng's recovery.
Ma Teng's eyes fell on Xiahou Juan: "I remember, in my daze... it was... you, girl, who saved me, you who put me into that huge leather bag!
The leather bag that Ma Teng mentioned was naturally the ox from which his organs were removed...
Although this method of treatment was mentioned in the "Compendium of Materia Medica,"
However, because it required sacrificing an ox, the cost was enormous... Xiahou Juan had spared no effort to save Ma Teng!
"It's good that uncle is well... I... I am the wife of the Marquis of Nanshou, it is... it is my duty to help uncle..." Xiahou Juan's speech became hesitant, seemingly a little happy, but more so embarrassed.
However, it was evident...
Ma Teng had been unconscious, but intermittently conscious, remembering some things... including who had saved him, he was very clear.
Who would have thought...
At this moment.
"Dad..."
Two voices, one male and one female, spoke almost in unison from the doorway.
Following these voices, what appeared in Ma Teng's sight were his son and daughter—Ma Chao and Ma Yunlu!
"You guys..." Ma Teng's voice was still as faint as a wisp of thread...
Ma Chao and Ma Yunlu had rushed to his side, kneeling beside Ma Teng.
"Dad... Dad, you're alright, you're alright?" Ma Chao looked at Ma Teng in disbelief, at this father... whom he thought had already... had been killed.
Ma Yunlu murmured, "I told big brother... I said Dad is alright, and big brother didn't believe me... and now, Dad... Dad is right here!"
Ma Yunlu's words... seemed to remind Ma Teng.
He slightly closed his eyes, as if lost in thought. When his eyes opened again, he said, "I think I remember something. My best brother... he... he betrayed me!"
"That's right, my best brother... he... he betrayed me for power... me!"
...
...
Dawn was breaking.
Lu Yu did not sleep this night, nor did Cao Chong... In fact, not even the soldiers of the entire Long Xiao Camp slept.
Everyone stared at the sky with open eyes, as if... the agitation in their hearts made them incredibly anticipate the battle with the army of over a hundred thousand the next day.
Not tens of thousands...
But over a hundred thousand...
Even with the pride of the Long Xiao Camp, it was difficult not to feel their hearts flutter under such pressure.
There was still an hour until Chenshi, and the soldiers had already prepared their meals.
There was still half an hour until Chenshi, and the soldiers were already in formation, sharpening their blades...
They heard that the enemy army would launch a general offensive at Chenshi...
So...
The ones who would meet the enemy were three thousand Long Xiao riders, not a single one missing!
Lu Yu and Cao Chong walked out of the central army tent together...
Outside the tent, the three thousand Long Xiao Camp soldiers were ready, waiting for Lu Yu's command, whether to meet the enemy or to launch a surprise attack!
"Wenlie, leave three hundred men! This is the list!" Lu Yu scanned the faces of all the soldiers, then looked at Cao Xiu.
"Three hundred men?" Cao Xiu seemed a little confused...
But he still selected these three hundred men according to Lu Yu's instructions and ordered them not to accompany the army.
However... these armored soldiers looked at Lu Yu with great surprise.
"My Lord, why are we not allowed to go to battle?" They blinked, full of grievance.
Lu Yu glanced at Cao Chong and decided to let him explain, considering it a way to bestow "benevolence" and "reputation" upon him in the military camp.
Cao Chong stood on a stone step. "Among the three hundred men left behind, all of them have been married for less than three months. This battle is dangerous. How can the Marquis of Nanshou allow newlyweds to become widows? Everyone on the list must stay!"
Cao Chong pointed again to the list in Cao Xiu's hand...
The Long Xiao Camp had been fighting north and south...
Before, they had rarely returned to Xudu, so naturally... they had gotten married. These three hundred people had just gotten married with the help of their families.
However...
These three hundred men frowned as they listened to Cao Chong's words, their faces immediately becoming solemn... as if Duke Cao Chong was being unreasonable, and by extension, Commander Lu was also being unreasonable.
"The rest, form ranks, prepare to meet the enemy!" Lu Yu looked at the other Long Xiao Camp armored soldiers and shouted loudly.
Swish, swish, swish...
Thousands of soldiers mounted their horses... but just as they were preparing to set off, those three hundred riders hurried back.
Lu Yu saw this and looked slightly displeased.
"What? Has the Long Xiao Camp also learned to disobey orders?"
At that moment, these thousands of soldiers all took out pieces of cloth from their hands.
— "Commander Lu, we have already written our divorce letters!"
— "If we survive, we will withdraw these letters. If we die on the battlefield, we will not delay them!"
This...
Hearing these words, Lu Yu felt a pang in his heart.
Perhaps he had expected these Long Xiao Camp armored soldiers to disobey him, but... he hadn't expected them to write "divorce letters." This was "unwavering resolve!"
Cao Chong was also stunned...
As a graduate of the Imperial Academy, this was the first time he had experienced such deep affection on the battlefield. This affection... in a certain sense, surpassed "blood is thicker than water!"
"Commander Lu..." Cao Xiu looked back at Lu Yu...
As if asking for his opinion.
Lu Yu's eyes flickered, and after a moment of contemplation, he said, "Enter the formation!"
This time, the three hundred Long Xiao riders felt as if they had received a general amnesty... They quickly mounted their horses and took their original positions.
— "Whoosh..."
A long sigh of breath...
Lu Yu watched the gradually rising dust clouds in the distance...
He knew that the great battle determining the fate of Xiliang was about to begin.
He also knew that although... this was a trap, the battlefield was perilous, and for the success of one general, countless soldiers must perish... no army could guarantee its safe retreat!
— "Brothers, stay alive!"
— "On the day of victory, I will hold a celebration for you!"
...
...