Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
After a frosty night, the temperature had dropped drastically. The horses kept snorting restlessly, and every breath came out as a large puff of white steam. On a small hill, Gu Shenwei was mounted on a horse as he surveyed the huge army extending towards the horizon.
According to the report of the scouts, the size of the armies that were mustered to the north of Thousand Horsemen Pass had exceeded their previous expectations.
Dugu Xian had prepared a general outline of the current situation and was now briefing the others. He pointed with his sole remaining arm, saying, “To the east of Thousand Horsemen Pass, a Central-Plains army is stationed at the foot of a hill. We can barely see them from here, but there are around 20,000 of them.”
“There are Central-Plains troops here?” Gu Shenwei was a little surprised by that fact. He thought that all of the Central-Plains armies stationed in the Western Regions had been wiped out.
Dugu Xian nodded and explained, “The Loulan Kingdom’s main force that had been stationed in the Central Plains was eradicated. Somehow, this one slipped through the net. They might have been planning on taking advantage of this opportunity to occupy Thousand Horsemen Pass; however, any plans they had were halted after they ran into Luoluo’s army.”
“Luoluo didn’t attack the camps of the Central Plains army as soon as he saw them?”
“I’m guessing that Luoluo’s strategy is to first defeat us first with his full strength. If he wins this war, then all the other forces who have been maintaining a neutral stance will take his side, and that Central-Plains army will also surrender without fighting.”
Luoluo’s army had set camp about twenty to thirty miles north of the camp of the Central-Plains army, by a nearby river. From a distance, their camps seemed like a vast swamp that had sprouted near the river, which was boundless and countless by comparison.
“The number of Luoluo’s troops has exceeded 200,000,” Dugu Xian continued to say. “Many tribes from the eastern part of the grasslands have joined him. They’re stationed to the northwest of Luoluo’s main camp, and their forces number at least 30,000 to 40,000 strong. They will act as the forces that will harass our left wing.”
Dugu Xian’s arm arced as he pointed to the north. “There’s another group of tribes who have come to watch the battle over there. They haven’t decided which side to support yet. The Naihang Tribe is the one that’s closest to us.”
The Naihang Tribe had reached the the battlefield’s boundaries a day in advance. It was not until the allied forces had arrived that General Zhe Su finally moved their camps forward. They had picked the location of their camps very smartly — they had purposefully evaded the area in front of Luoluo’s army so as to reduce Luoluo’s hostility towards them. At the same time, they were also not camped too away from the allied forces, showing some exclusive closeness to them.
Further to the north, dozens of tribal armies were randomly scattered across a vast stretch of grassland. They all kept a similar distances from the two warring sides of the final showdown.
The Naihang Tribe had come here because Gu Shenwei and Liman had persuaded Zhe Su into doing so, while all the other tribes had come uninvited. “Their intelligence networks are amazing,” Gu Shenwei commented. It had only been several days since he had made the decision to accept the challenge, but so many forces had still come in time to spectate.
“Luoluo sent news about the showdown to all of the tribes a long time ago.”
“But we were the last one to know.”
“Luoluo’s messengers were pretty spot-on with their timing. Also, all of the spectating tribes traveled nonstop to get here. Since yesterday, many tribes have sent their regards to the two princes.”
Gu Shenwei didn’t ask more questions about that subject. This kind of greeting was nearly worthless. No matter how many of these greetings Duodun and Shulitu received, Luoluo would receive just as many, if not more.
This was an open gamble. The winner would win the allegiance of the majority of tribes, and it would thus pave the way for their succession to the throne. The Norlanders venerated the strong, and they had never tried to keep that a secret.
Long Fanyun reminded, “Some people from the Naihang Tribe are coming.”
A dozen knights were rapidly riding towards this highland. Long Fanyun and fifty guards fell into a formation. Tie Linglong raised her guard and whipped out her saber. Han Fen craned her neck, trying to get a better view. Mo Lin was the most composed, but he also moved a little closer to the Dragon King.
These were all of the people around Gu Shenwei.
It was General Zhe Su who had come. He stopped ten steps away, ignoring all the guards, and asked “Are you here to explore the terrain, Dragon King? The battlefield’s right before you. When do you plan on starting the war? Everybody’s been waiting anxiously.”
Gu Shenwei pointed at the army camps of the myriad tribes in the north as he replied, “Some audience members haven’t arrived yet. We might as well wait.”
Zhe Su glanced over his shoulder briefly, looking beyond his camps to further ones. Most of the tribes who had come to spectate hadn’t brought many cavalrymen — ranging from dozens to 2,000 or 3,000 at the most. The Naihang Tribe was the only one that had led an army of around 100,000 soldiers here, which made it the most powerful force apart from the two sides that were about to fight in the imminent war.
“Ha-ha, as long as you understand, that’s fine. I have already sent someone to talk to Luoluo. He’s a pushover — he has already agreed to let the Naihang Tribe select the King Rizhu ourselves.”
“So you’ve gotten what you want, General.”
“I have to thank you, Dragon King. If it weren’t for that time that you persuaded me, the Naihang Tribe would have missed this good opportunity.”
“We have our own respective needs, so you don’t have to be so polite, General.” Back them. Gu Shenwei had only been trying to encourage Shulitu to fight, and he had achieved his ends as well.
“Ha-ha, you’re a straightforward man, Dragon King. To be honest, I hope that you win. After all, the young king is old King Rizhu’s maternal grandson and he’s also related to the Naihang Tribe. I’d have a clearer conscience if we supported him. So please do your best, Dragon King. Even if you and Luoluo draw, I’ll still join the fight.”
Before the Dragon King could respond, Zhe Su had already turned his horse around and left with his guards.
“He nagged on for so long. What exactly was he trying to say?” Tie Linglong put her saber away, as she asked in confusion.
Gu Shenwei watched Zhe Su’s receding figure, “First, he said that doesn’t believe we can win this war. Luoluo’s army must’ve given him a very deep impression. Second, if by any chance we do win, Shulitu will be the only one that he supports and I have to get rid of Duodun and the Second Consort.”
Because of Duo Ercha’s recklessness, it was now impossible for the Naihang Tribe to ally with Duodun.
“Ha,” Tie Linglong let out a snicker as she said. Unlike common guards and killers, he dared to speak before the Dragon King. “This guy really knows how to bluff.”
The Naihang Tribe was a strong force to be reckoned with, so they naturally dared to talk big, and this had already become an ingrained habit and tradition of theirs. But Gu Shenwei had a premonition that this situation wouldn’t last for long. The old Khan had wanted to eliminate the tribal forces of the Queen’s family, and his wish would eventually come true.
“We’ve been observing for long enough. We should return,” Dugu Xian said fairly worriedly. They were far away from their own camps. Although they could see the enemies from here, the enemies could also easily see them in return.
Gu Shenwei led the way back as they rode down the hill. First he rode southwards, planning to acquaint himself with the battlefield environment before he would turn to check on the camps in the west.
Tie Linglong was the first one to notice the unusual movements ahead. “Some other people are headed toward us.”
This time, the pursuers were coming from the east, where Luoluo’s camps were located.
Long Fanyun immediately whipped out his saber as he said, “Please leave first, Dragon King and General Dugu. I’ll cover you.”
With the Flame Foal, Gu Shenwei dashed forward a distance to see what was going on and then returned after watching for a while. “It’s not us that they’re after.”
As expected, dozens of Norland cavalrymen were pursuing seven or eight knights. During the time when Gu Shenwei and the others had been discerning their identities, two knights had already been shot down from their horses.
“It might be a trap. You should retreat first, Dragon King,” Long Fanyun had also grown to have a suspicious mind.
With his familiarity with other countries’ armies, Dugu Xian said, “It seems that they’re from the Central Plains.”
Gu Shenwei made a snap decision. “Help them.”
Uncertain as he was, Long Fanyun still followed his orders and organized the guards into a formation, preparing to fight.
The guards he had brought with him this time were all savages. They hadn’t been in the forest for a very long time, but they still couldn’t speak much of the Central Plains’ language. They liked riding, yet they never excelled in it. But if they stood still, their archery was excellent — even greatly exceeding the skill of the normal Norland soldiers.
Long Fanyun loudly declared, “We’re the young king’s soldiers!”
The fleeing Central Plainsmen seemed to recognize the call, and reacted by rushing straight towards them.
Long Fanyun gave an order and all the guards released their arrows, which were aimed at the pursuers behind the fleeing Central Plainsmen. A dozen Norland soldiers were instantly downed. Astounded, the rest of the pursuers turned their horses back and fled right away.
The Central Plainsmen had suffered heavy casualties, with only one surviving horse among their group. On the horse, there were two people, both of whom Gu Shenwei recognized.
Fan Yongda of Kongtong Sect was rejoiced as he exclaimed, “It’s really you, Dragon King!”
Behind him, Tu Pianpian was standing on the horse’s back, with one hand resting on her Martial Nephew’s shoulder and the other holding a crutch. It was her who had parried the arrows shooting at them from behind. “Why are you so surprised? I already told you this. Where’s my brother, Dragon King?”
Dog Butcher and the others had been assigned to the Jade City. Gu Shenwei ordered his group to return without answering Tu Pianpian’s question.
The camps of the allied forces were also located near a river and a mountain, which took up a vast area.
Gu Shenwei led the two Kongtong Sect members directly into his tent and then said, “Tell me. Why were you doing there?”
Tu Pianpian snorted derision and replied with her previous question. “Where’s my younger brother?”
Uncomfortable with her tone, Fan Yongda tried to persuade her by saying, “Aunt Master, the Dragon King just saved our lives — ”
“Did we need him to do that? Even without the Dragon King, I could still have held all the pursuers back. And if not, I would have dismounted from the horse and killed them all.”
Fan Yongda showed a bitter smile to the Dragon King. He clearly knew that if they had continued riding, while they themselves might have enough strength to do escape, that the horse would definitely have become exhausted at some point. And with regards to Tu Pianpian’s backup plan of dismounting from their horse to fight, the Norlanders would never have approached them, only shooting at them from far away. In other words, if it weren’t for the Dragon King, they would have definitely been killed by now.
Gu Shenwei was in no hurry. Taking a cup of tea from Tie Linglong, he took a sip and blandly stated, “Then it seems that you have nothing urgent to tell me.” And then he turned around and started reading the map on his desk.
The heralds went in and out of his continuously, and it was after quite a while that the Dragon King’s tent fell quiet once more. During all this time, the two from Kongtong Sect had been constantly ignored. Tu Pianpian’s face grew redder and redder. Fan Yongda had meant to speak several times, but had been stopped everytime by her.
Eventually, she yielded, and stabbed the ground with her crutch in frustration. “You won. I can’t defeat you. And I don’t care about whether Dog Butcher’s alive or not — ”
Gu Shenwei raised his hand and signaled for her to shut up. After a while, he turned around, and said, “Now talk.”
Tu Pianpian flushed with anger, “What are you doing? Putting on useless airs?”
Gu Shenwei nodded as he replied, “Yes, because I’m the Dragon King.”
Fan Yongda couldn’t help take a step forward and kneeling down on his knees when he heard that. “Dragon King, we’re here to ask you for help.”
Tu Pianpian was stunned by the Dragon King’s remarks. Upon seeing her Martial Nephew kneel on the ground, she didn’t tried to stop him either. Rather, she just stood silently to the side.
Gu Shenwei signaled Fan Yongda to stand up to talk.
“100,000 Central-Plains troops are trapped. Please send your army to save them, Dragon King. We can easily defeat Luoluo if we join hands.”
“100,000?”
Fan Yongda flushed as he replied, “Nominally the limit is 100,000. However, it varies between 70,000 to 80,000… 60… 60,000…”
“Less than 20,000! Stop the bragging!” Tu Pianpian reprimanded angrily. She wasn’t willing to lower her head before the Dragon King, but she also didn’t want to lie.
Fan Yongda’s face became even redder. “Yes. 18,000 men. Please send reinforcements as soon as possible, Dragon King.”
Gu Shenwei gave two taps on the surface of the desk, “My troops here are also Norlanders, yet you want me to save an army from the Central Plains?”
Tu Pianpian hurriedly interrupted to ask, “Dragon King, won’t you even save your own woman?”
“My own woman?”
“The one in Jade City. Her name’s Luo Ningcha or something I believe. Isn’t she your woman?”
Gu Shenwei’s face darkened, “She’s the Unique King’s daughter-in-law. It was her husband who led the team and killed all the members of the Gu family.”
Tu Pianpian was confused and lost — this was completely different from what Luo Ningcha had told her with absolute assurance.
Fan Yongda took a step forward, but in the end, he backed off under the aggressive gaze of Tie Linglong and Han Fen. In a low whisper, he said, “To be honest, Dragon King, there’s a heavyweight in the Central-plains army. If you offer enough help, he can make sure that the Central Plains support you with all their strength — they may be even willing to cede the whole Western Regions to you.”
Gu Shenwei stayed silent, waiting for Fan Yongda to continue.
Fan Yongda had thought that the Dragon King would have the guards leave, but after a while, seeing that the Dragon King had no intentions of doing so, he had no choice but to repeat in an even lower voice, “The incumbent emperor’s uncle…”
Gu Shenwei turned to Tu Pianpian, and said, “There, Dog Butcher’s fine. He’s in Jade City.”
