The army was prepared to depart at four in the morning. This was the coolest part of the day, and it wasn't just Huo Qiyuan and his men who were moving; Su Muqing and her group were also setting off back to Yaojing City.
From Si'an Prefecture to Chehe City, traveling by horse would take about five to six days of riding. If they traveled day and night, it would only take half that time.
After parting ways with Su Muqing and her party, Huo Qiyuan led twenty thousand soldiers, boarding the large trucks provided by Su Muqing, and headed towards Chehe City in a mighty procession.
Su Muqing stood on the city wall, watching the long line of military green trucks for a long time. Huo Qiyuan sat in a modified off-road vehicle, with the eight members of the Leng team in the back seats.
Except for Leng Kui, who was dispatched for disaster relief, and Leng Feng, who had already been sent back, they were reunited after several years, embarking on a journey back to their homeland. This time, they would fight side by side, to reclaim everything they had lost.
Chehe City
Su Ling'er was injured by Wang Bingchang upon her return and had to lie in bed for two days before her body recovered some strength. Her vigilance had become very high. For the first two days, she remained quiet and did nothing.
On the third day, when she could finally get up a little, she would secretly drink some spiritual spring water when using the latrine or late at night. Leng Feng had not lied to her; this water was indeed divine.
Her abdomen, which had been burning with pain, quickly turned warm after drinking the spiritual spring water. A while later, the pain in her body had largely dissipated.
Su Ling'er touched her abdomen, wondering if the toxins in her body had been cleared. Wang Bingchang, that devil! She had helped him with his affairs and admired him for so long, only to be treated this way by him.
One day, she would make this man pay the price!
Su Ling'er carefully put away the porcelain bottle. Although she felt much better, she still feigned weakness, leaning against the wall as she slowly returned to her room and lay down to rest.
In the darkness, a pair of eyes suddenly opened, having been fixated on Su Ling'er's back since her return.
On the evening of June 18th, Wang Bingchang, after a busy day, was about to go to bed for a good night's sleep. Suddenly! Hurried footsteps sounded outside his military tent.
As soon as Wang Bingchang opened his eyes, someone outside the door rushed in to report, "Lord Wang, a force has appeared thirty li outside the military camp and is advancing rapidly towards our army."
"From what direction are they coming?"
"Si'an Prefecture!"
"What were you people eating? The enemy is already thirty li away, and you're only reporting this now! A bunch of useless fools…" Wang Bingchang was furious and kicked the scout far away.
"I am wronged! We have been monitoring the route. They were all traveling in a strange type of vehicle, and they appeared so suddenly and approached so quickly. As soon as we discovered them, we rushed back to report…"
"Useless! Useless!" Wang Bingchang angrily put on his outer robe and rushed towards the city like a gust of wind.
Su Ling'er, who had only just fallen asleep, vaguely heard a commotion. She got up and cautiously pressed her ear to the door. Slowly, the noise grew louder, and the other people in the room also woke up.
In Huo Qixiao's room, he sat at his desk with a grim expression, rubbing his aching and tense temples. He roared at Wang Bingchang, who was bowing his head, "What good are you for? You only found out that Huo Qiyuan was bringing his men to our doorstep now. The next time he sneaks into my mansion and kills me, you'll probably still be asleep!"
Huo Qixiao's nerves had been on edge lately. Even the slightest matter could send him into a rage, let alone such a sudden and serious enemy situation.
Someone had finally infiltrated Si'an Prefecture, and they had promised to send good news. However, just a few days later, no good news arrived, and their inside operatives fled back.
It was clearly his own incompetence, yet that woman had said that the secret medicine from the Western Regions wouldn't work on Huo Qiyuan.
What did that mean? Was she saying that Huo Qixiao was inferior to Huo Qiyuan? After all, he had been affected by the secret medicine before and had been taken advantage of by Wang Bingchang. Every time he thought about it, he felt a surge of anger…
The more Huo Qixiao thought about it, the angrier he became. He clenched his fists as he looked at Wang Bingchang. Finally, he could only sweep the items off his desk with a roar to vent his dissatisfaction, scattering brushes, ink, and paper, splashing ink everywhere.
Emperor Rui was already urging him, and coupled with the recent unbearable hot weather, Huo Qixiao's tightly strung nerves had been unable to relax. He had spent days discussing defenses, and today, after finally getting a little sleep, just a little, trouble had arrived.
He hadn't even begun to dream, and Huo Qiyuan's army had already silently stationed themselves thirty li outside the city! He, the commander, was the last to know!
What did thirty li outside the city mean? Given Huo Qiyuan's marching speed, they would likely be attacking the city walls before their soldiers had even assembled.
The two men stared at each other, and the room fell silent!
After a long while, Huo Qixiao slowly calmed down. Now was not the time for anger. He put on his clothes and, with Wang Bingchang, galloped to the camp outside the inner city gate.
The people in the camp were fully armed and on high alert. Huo Qixiao sat in the main commander's tent, and after hearing the scout who reported the situation clearly, he ordered the scout to be dragged out and executed.
Pity that the scout couldn't even plead his case before his head was separated from his body the next second, dying with his eyes wide open.
"Report! The enemy stopped ten li outside the city." Before the blood of the previous scout had even finished dripping onto the ground outside the tent, another scout hurried back.
In such a short time, they had traveled ten li. It seemed they were all traveling by that vehicle.
Huo Qixiao had ridden in that vehicle once several years ago and knew how fast it was. However, that vehicle could only fit a dozen people at most. For tens of thousands of people to travel simultaneously, how many vehicles would that require?
In that case, they could attack at any moment! Huo Qixiao stared sharply at the person kneeling below. "Are you sure they have truly stopped?"
"Yes! When your subordinate returned, they had already begun setting up camp."
"Investigate again!"
Chehe City had two layers of city gates, approximately two kilometers apart. Huo Qixiao's army was stationed in the open space between the inner and outer city gates.
About an hour later, the scout returned with another report, stating that the enemy had definitely settled down and had no further action.
Hearing this, Huo Qixiao breathed a sigh of relief. He dismissed the scout, telling him to keep a close eye on the enemy's movements and report immediately if there was any sign of activity.
As long as they weren't attacking immediately, they still had time to redeploy. Huo Qixiao, Wang Bingchang, and over a dozen deputy generals all remained in the tent to discuss their strategy.
Around five in the morning, while Huo Qixiao and his subordinates were still discussing countermeasures, the scout reported again, saying that the enemy had started moving and was rapidly approaching Chehe City.
"Assemble the troops and prepare for battle!"
On the towering city walls, Huo Qixiao and Wang Bingchang, clad in heavy armor, stood on the ramparts. They gazed at the approaching, vast expanse of green in the distance.