NOVEL NEXT Chapter 1106: Concealment
The Commander from Tianfeng Kingdom glanced behind Bai Jinzhi and Shen Qingzhu, then said, "Zhou's heavy troops are besieging the city. It seems they won't withdraw unless satisfied, so there's no need to worry about us playing tricks! Our envoy is also under Pingdu City, backed by our Tianfeng Kingdom's Elephant Army, giving us some confidence and ensuring fairness on both sides, don't you think, Lord of Gaoyi?"
Bai Jinzhi pretended to ponder, and after a while, said, "You... just wait here and don't move! I'll stay put as well! I'll send someone back to ask my eldest lady and Minister Liu. This will take some time going back and forth! If you move, I'll take it as you having regrets!"
"Alright, but... the foreign envoy must send someone to inform my king!" the General of Tianfeng Kingdom said.
"Alright! Go ahead!" Bai Jinzhi generously waved his hand.
Soon, the soldiers of Tianfeng Kingdom ascended the city tower of Pingdu City to report to Sal Khan about the results their General discussed with the Lord of Gaoyi from Zhou.
Supporting himself against the city wall with both hands, Sal Khan chuckled softly, straightened up, and fingered the jade cicada in his hand.
"If we are negotiating... it means Zhou's original intention was to negotiate, but deploying such a great show of force means the necessary cost won't be small!" said the Great Shaman's disciple.
"Give Zhou whatever they want! Except for our Elephant Army... It is essential to maintain good relations with Zhou! After all, the land we give is not our Tianfeng Kingdom's!" Sal Khan said, turning to walk away from the city wall, no longer bothering with the siege by Zhou.
The Great Shaman's disciple followed Sal Khan, "But if Yan hears of this and dares to siege for benefits, do we give or not..."
"If they want land and cities of Xiliang, just tell them... As long as they can take it themselves, our Tianfeng Kingdom won't interfere. Our Tianfeng Kingdom only wants to lease fertile land suitable for cultivation from Zhou and Yan!" Sal Khan added, "However, just in case, let's first withdraw some troops from the north gate to Quanya City north of the Danshui River! In case Zhou really starts a war, and Yan gets involved too, it won't be in our favor! Instruct the troops to prepare and withdraw a batch of the Elephant Army first!"
"Yes!" responded the Great Shaman's disciple, adding, "I feel uneasy, how about... the majesty leaves first!"
Sal Khan shook his head, clutching the jade cicada: "I'm in no rush; I must stay here at Pingdu City to show Zhou our Tianfeng Kingdom's sincerity. Let the Elephant Army carrying supplies go first!"
Sal Khan thought for a moment, squinting, "Let one-third go, first crossing the river to prepare at Quanya City with minimal noise, so Zhou won't notice, just as a precaution! By the way... have the scouts monitoring Yan Kingdom reported any movements?"
The Great Shaman's disciple shook his head.
"Although there is no movement from the Yan Army at the moment, your majesty should leave first!" the Great Shaman's disciple urged with concern, "I can stay behind!"
Sal Khan waved his hand: "Since the Yan Army hasn't moved, I bet Zhou won't dare to start a war; they just want benefits! If they want land... let Li Tianfu stamp the approval! Anyway... there isn't much fertile land in Xiliang; giving it to Zhou and Yan Kingdom's fertile land is the most important."
Li Tianfu, upon receiving the news of Zhou's siege, was initially overjoyed; later, seeing the General of Tianfeng Kingdom assembling a division of the Elephant Army to withdraw from the north gate of Pingdu City.
Li Tianfu anxiously sought out Sal Khan. However, Sal Khan, avoiding Li Tianfu, instead worried about this lunatic causing trouble, had him put under house arrest.
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Bai Qingyu and Xie Yuchang had just led their men to ambush at the southern entrance of Hanwen Mountain. Before they were fully prepared, the sentries spotted torches approaching from afar and immediately reported it. Bai Qingyu ordered the Zhou soldiers to lay down their preparations and conceal themselves.
Before long, scouts from Tianfeng Kingdom carrying torches entered the Hanwen Mountain gorge from the southern entrance. Bai Qingyu and Xie Yuchang ordered the soldiers to hold their position...
The few scouts from Tianfeng Kingdom traversed Hanwen Mountain gorge and swiftly returned.
Experienced in warfare, Bai Qingyu knew that these scouts were probing the route... indicating that Tianfeng Kingdom's Elephant Army was on its way!
But, this timing was clearly not yet the time for Bai Jinzhi to storm the city; could it be that Tianfeng Kingdom planned to withdraw early?
If Tianfeng Kingdom indeed withdrew its troops, whether to attack or not became a major dilemma.
Bai Qingyu ordered to hold position temporarily, first observing the size of the Elephant Army before making a decision, and also dispatched Xiao Ruohai to inform Shen Kunyang...
If Tianfeng Kingdom's main force retreated, once Tianfeng Kingdom's Elephant Army entered the gorge, they would immediately seal both exits, ensuring not a single Elephant from Tianfeng Kingdom would escape intact from the gorge.
If this was a small-scale retreat or even a probing retreat... to avoid impacting the larger plan, they could only allow them to pass first.
Meanwhile, Bai Qingyu sent people to deliver the message to Pingyang City and into Bai Jinzhi's hands, also sending people to Yan, informing them of the scouts sent by Tianfeng Kingdom, urging Yan Kingdom to send troops without delay until the next morning.
However, the soldiers sent by Bai Qingyu to Mengcheng to relay the information to Yan Kingdom had not yet reached when they encountered Murong Yan and Xie Xun leading the Yan army.
Before dispatching the Yan army, Murong Yan had already placed an ambush on the fastest route from Mengcheng to Pingdu City, wiping out all scouts from Tianfeng Kingdom attempting to relay the news.
Upon receiving reports from Bai Qingyu's subordinates of Tianfeng Kingdom's movements, Murong Yan immediately sent word to Bai Jinzhi and Bai Qingyu to block the northern and western gates of Pingdu City within half an hour.
Xie Xun and Murong Yan split their troops: Murong Yan led thirty thousand soldiers through the snow toward the northern gate of Pingdu City, while Xie Xun led fifty thousand straight to the western gate.
The speed of the Yan Kingdom army's arrival caught Tianfeng Kingdom off guard, just as Tianfeng Kingdom's soldiers and one-third of the Elephant Army were prepared to withdraw but hadn't yet left, Sal Khan received news that Yan's army was nearing the western gate.
Tianfeng Kingdom's sentries monitoring Yan Kingdom hadn't reported in advance, undoubtedly they were already dead.
The Great Shaman's disciple was increasingly uneasy: "Our sentries might have been preemptively dealt with; Yan is prepared!"
He turned to look at Sal Khan, whose face was cold and expressionless before the fire basin: "Perhaps Yan and Zhou knew of our Elephant Army's power, thus united to deal with our Elephant Army! Majesty... now that Zhou hasn't started the siege, let's break through the south gate across the Danshui River to join General Aksai!"
"Would Zhou and Yan dare?" Sal Khan gritted his teeth, eyes filled with disdain, "The Elephant Army led by Aksai is the main force of our Tianfeng Kingdom. For them to focus so much effort on dealing with this little unit of the Elephant Army, don't they fear Aksai's retaliation, aren't they afraid of perishing together with our Tianfeng Kingdom?"