CHAPTER 492: CHAPTER 422: ONE MORE STRIKE

"What?!"

Upon hearing those words, even someone as composed as Yu Wenye suddenly changed his expression.

It must be understood that this time, the court assigned him to lead an army of 150,000, but only 50,000 actually followed him out of Daxing City. Among the remaining 100,000, 40,000 were defenders stationed in Fufeng County, and another 60,000 were reinforcements sent by the court to Fufeng after Xue Xiandong advanced and aimed his forces at Daxing City.

Therefore, those 100,000 troops are currently temporarily under the command of General Ma Xu, and they will be handed over to him once he reaches Fufeng.

But now, out of those 100,000 troops, as many as 80,000 have been completely wiped out!

In other words, before he even reaches Fufeng, more than half of his command has already been lost!

The soldier who came to report the news might not know the arrangements of the court, but the loss of 80,000 troops is an almost devastating blow under any circumstances. Kneeling on the ground with reddened eyes, he stuttered, "Just three days ago, Xue Xiandong’s vanguard of 130,000 reached Fufeng, besieged the city and challenged us to battle. General Ma ventured out to engage them but was reckless and overconfident. As a result, the 80,000 troops he led were all killed by Xue Xian. He himself managed to escape back into the city with just over ten light cavalry. Fortunately, the Assistant General dispatched people to support and they shut the city gates tight, thus preventing Fufeng from falling."

"..."

Yu Wenye’s face turned ashen as he bit his lip, rendered speechless.

Standing beside him, Shang Ruyi also felt her heart sink. Even with countless torches still burning around them, it felt as if everything had fallen into darkness before her eyes.

Eighty thousand troops, completely wiped out...

Even if he rushed to Fufeng right now, he would only have just over 50,000 men of his own alongside the remaining forces in Fufeng, over 10,000 troops. How could this diminished force resist against Xue Xiandong’s vanguard of 130,000? Moreover, reinforcements were supposed to arrive in Fufeng in a matter of days.

Doesn’t this spell inevitable defeat?

Even thinking about it, despite the burning heat and gusts of summer wind, Shang Ruyi felt a chill rise within her heart. Upon hearing these words, the soldiers around were thrown into a state of fear.

If the 80,000 have already been annihilated, what use would it be for their mere 50,000 to hurry over?

Wouldn’t it just be marching to their deaths?

Some began murmuring among themselves. In the flickering light of torches, fear and anxiety flashed in everyone’s eyes. Observing this already defeated demeanor before the battle had even begun, Shang Ruyi grew a bit tense, turning to look at Yu Wenye, who remained silent under the focused gaze of all.

This was the moment he needed to say something.

However, just as all eyes were locked on him, Yu Wenye raised his head merely to wave his hand dismissively and said, "Finish eating, gear up quickly, and prepare to set off."

"...?"

Upon seeing his reaction, and with not an extra word from him, the unease and defeated mood within them deepened further.

Could it be that even the Assistant General had lost faith in the battle for Fufeng?

So much so that he couldn’t even be bothered to reassure them?

With these thoughts, it seemed everyone lost their strength and willingness to speak, retreating to brood silently as they chewed on their rations. The road ahead, already dark, became even gloomier and despairing.

That oppressive atmosphere gradually spread among the soldiers.

Before long, they were ready to move.

Yu Wenye mounted his horse, glanced at the despondent faces devoid of any fighting spirit in the darkness, and waved, "Forward!"

Once more, the troops started marching through the night, more listless than they had been even after a whole day of marching without food or water.

Shang Ruyi rode alongside, observing the numb faces around her before turning her gaze towards the weary Yu Wenye. After much hesitation, she couldn’t help but softly ask, "Aren’t you going to say anything?"

"..."

Yu Wenye raised his head to look at her.

In a low voice, Shang Ruyi said, "With Ma Xu’s defeat and the complete annihilation of 80,000 troops, the situation is certainly critical, but you should say something to those below, to boost morale."

"..."

"In the current situation—"

Yu Wenye also glanced around, and said gravely, "Now is not the time to rally morale."

"Hmm?"

"Because once we reach Fufeng, there will likely be another blow—perhaps even a blow greater than this news."

"..."

"If morale is lifted now, with another blow, no matter how resilient a person is, they would be driven to collapse. Better to let morale stay subdued."

Another blow?!

And it’s bigger than the complete annihilation of 80,000 troops?

Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi opened her eyes wide in surprise, "What else? What is it?"

Yu Wenye did not immediately answer her. After a moment’s pause, he turned to look at her, with a glint of cold light flashing in his deep-set eyes, and said, "Since you’ve followed me into the army, I won’t shelter you as at home. There are things you must see with your own eyes and events you need to experience yourself."

"..."

"This is the choice you made yourself."

Upon hearing his almost cold words, Shang Ruyi’s heart gradually sank.

She knew that Yu Wenye was reluctant to let her join the military expedition, but these words were not meant to mock her. On the contrary, this was what she had to endure to enter the army camp and accompany the troops, and it was also the belief he held as the commander. Even when she first followed him into the Taiyuan Military Camp, he had the same attitude, watching her compete in archery with Huang Gongyi. Although she lost, her openness and determination earned his respect.

In the army, he was always the most fair.

Shang Ruyi took a deep breath and said softly, "I understand."

Yu Wenye nodded, saying nothing more, and continued to ride forward with the reins in hand. The surrounding people and horses also remained silent, moving forward in the night.

At this moment, not far behind them, Du Niechong slowly lowered his head, and a profound emotion flashed through his weary eyes.

But the sound of heavy chewing beside him interrupted his thoughts.

Turning his head to look, it was Shantong’er. Ever since being enlisted in the army, his mouth hadn’t stopped. For this expedition, he had brought several times more rations than others, loaded onto his horse’s back like a transport, and even while riding, he was munching on a steamed bun without getting choked, thanks to his carefree nature.

Nie Chong saw him like this and said softly, "Eat a little less."

Shantong’er blinked, with half a bun still in his mouth, "Why? I’m not full yet."

"You’ll throw up."

"Hmm?"

Shantong’er blinked again, more surprised, "Why would I throw up? I never do. Food is so precious."

Looking at this child, who could easily defeat several grown men with a hammer yet remained so innocent, Nie Chong didn’t say much, just shook his head and continued to ride forward.

This way, the troop hurried more than ten miles through the night, finally reaching Fufeng County as the first ray of sunlight pierced the clouds.

Fufeng was originally just a small county town, with only a few thousand defenders, but it was a crucial pass on the road from Longxi to the Central Pass. Therefore, after Xue Xian occupied Longxi, Yu Wenquan immediately dispatched tens of thousands of troops to guard this place and sent reinforcements when Xue Xian attempted to advance eastward.

Unexpectedly, his arrangements were almost ruined by Ma Xu.

After entering Fufeng County, the already low morale grew even more gloomy.

Although Xue Xian had not attacked the city, the grandeur of his military force and the momentum of the one hundred thirty thousand vanguard troops had already frightened the city’s populace into a state of panic. They kept their doors and windows tightly closed and were terrified even by the slightest noise.

Shang Ruyi looked around at these circumstances, unable to suppress her furrowed brows.

Yu Wenye said there would be another attack, could it be these?

But the state of low morale after a defeat wasn’t unexpected, and it didn’t seem like much of a blow.

Just as she was pondering, a commotion suddenly erupted in front, with many soldiers defending the city gathering there. Looking up, it was at the city gate of this county town, where the ground was a mess. Many wounded were lying against the wall groaning, with broken swords and chipped knives strewn about on the ground, completely unattended.

How could this happen?

Yu Wenye frowned slightly and rode forward.

Although the crowd was overwhelming, making it impossible to get through, Yu Wenye’s horse was a superb steed from the Western Regions, large and formidable. Riding atop it was like standing on a small tower, allowing him to see the tightly closed city gate ahead at a glance. There, a General with his shoulder and arm heavily bandaged, clearly severely injured, rushed forward and grabbed another person, pressing him to the ground with a fierce expression, "I’ll kill you today!"

This person was Ma Xu.

And the one being held down was an assistant general in armor, looking about twenty, with a round face and thick ears, appearing rather steady and honest.

He was unable to move under Ma Xu’s grip, only biting his teeth and saying, "General Ma, what are you doing?"

Ma Xu snarled fiercely, "Dai Junliang, you still dare to speak?!"

Dai Junliang?

Upon hearing this name, Shang Ruyi’s brows twitched slightly.

On the way here, she had seized the opportunity to ask the soldier who came to deliver the message, learning that the defender Ma Xu had been overconfident. Seeing Xue Xian advance, he wanted to lead all one hundred thousand troops out of the city to secure the first victory, but Assistant General Dai Junliang had strongly advised against it. Although he couldn’t stop Ma Xu, he left over ten thousand troops to defend the city. After Ma Xu’s defeat, it was he who tightly closed the city gates, resisting Xue Xian’s pursuit.

By all accounts, this man retained some forces within the city.

But why would Ma Xu be fighting with him?

While she was puzzled, Ma Xu began to curse loudly, "We lost this battle because of your cowardice. If you had taken that ten thousand out of the city, I wouldn’t have lost. It’s all because of you!"

"..."

"You want us to lose so badly, you must be a spy sent by Xue Xian!"

"..."

"I’ll kill you today!"

With that, he whipped out the long knife from his waist and swung it down at Dai Junliang’s head!