For three months, Xu Haifeng never stepped out of the military camp, and he could only feel a sense of security when surrounded by his fellow soldiers. He was not sure what he had done to offend General Gu, but it was clear that it had something to do with Qin Yongs outstanding performance that day. He even guessed an idea that he himself did not dare to believe, but which was closest to the truth: jealousy, General Gu was jealous of having such an excellent warrior under his command.
Although he has now barely stepped into the ranks of generals, compared to the commander-in-chief of the entire Western Front, this deputy general is nothing. He also thought about using blood wine to anesthetize Gu Daoji. However, on the one hand, there was no opportunity, and on the other hand, the aftereffects of the blood wine were clear to him. If Gu Daoji suddenly became his follower or became ignorant, the entire Western Front would be in chaos, and the ones who would benefit in the end would be the Caesarians. Even without the threat of the Caesarians, such a commander would immediately reveal weaknesses, so how could he justify himself at that time? So this idea was thrown to the back of his mind by Xu Haifeng.
He made up his mind to minimize the opportunities to meet Gu Dao Yan from now on, and also be low-key in dealing with others. In short, he couldnt give Gu Dao Yan any more ideas that would be detrimental to himself.
Although Xu Haifeng closed the door and built a car, he didnt know about the shocking news of the emperors personal expedition. The good news in the camp was spread three times a day. Half a month ago, the Emperor finally arrived at the front line, bringing with him the Huanglong Army, one of the five major military groups known for its excellent equipment and strong training. Under the joint efforts of the two major military groups, the defense line of the Kaisa people collapsed, and the Han army defeated town after town, capturing tens of thousands of enemy soldiers and seizing countless grain and money. This situation was not brought under control until half a month ago.
The Kaisa people had already destroyed the Tufan Kingdom before arriving at the Great Han border, and in order to attack the Great Han, they used the Tufan capital, Linan City, as a temporary base in the east. For many years, they accumulated countless supplies and expanded once. When the Kaisa people received news of their defeat on all fronts, they knew that it was impossible to turn the tide of battle, so they issued an order for a full-scale retreat. Most of the Kaisa elite troops gathered at Linan City, where there were already over 100,000 regular Kaisa soldiers. Adding in merchants and fugitives who had come from afar, the number of able-bodied young men capable of fighting exceeded 150,000.
The great victory of the Han army was largely due to the fact that the Huns deliberately avoided battle. Many of the defending troops were actually the Xiongnu people who had been conquered by the Huns in previous years, and they were far inferior to the two legions in terms of equipment, morale, and combat effectiveness. As the Han army marched on, there were more surrenders than resistance.
Linan City was a crucial pass at the intersection of East and West, and the Great Han army inevitably came under this magnificent city.
Here is the translation:
Here, the two great legions encountered unprecedented strong resistance, and only then did they realize that the previous troops they had met were just a motley crew. The true elite of Caesars army was absolutely no worse than them. The Han army continued to reinforce, and by the time the Emperor arrived at the city gate with his generals, the total strength of the Han army had reached a terrifying 250,000 men. However, the Caesarians were well-prepared, they calmly responded to the battle, neither arrogant nor impatient, and with sufficient supplies in the city, after half a month, the Han army suffered heavy casualties as the attacking side, and if this continued, it was feared that even before the Caesarians were defeated, the Han army would be exhausted first. Under pressure, the Emperor had no choice but to order a temporary halt to the attack, and the situation remained in a stalemate for the time being.
Under such circumstances, Xu Haifeng welcomed his first general in three months who came to visit him.
"General Tong, how do you have time to come to this small place and stroll around?" He warmly shook hands with Tong Yi Feng. If someone who didnt know the situation saw them, they would think that their relationship was very good. In fact, their relationship really wasnt bad, at least they could be considered as friends who drink and eat meat together.
Tong Yi let out a sigh and said, "To be honest with you, brother, these past few days our logistics department has been so busy that weve all been running around like headless chickens. Who would still have the leisure time for that?"
Xu Haifeng nodded sympathetically, thinking that with the Han armys over 300,000 troops consuming so much every day, and countless miscellaneous matters such as prisoners of war and occupied territories all belonging to the logistics department, Xu Haifeng knew that his words were not exaggerated in the slightest.
"I came here to take a look at the results of my younger brothers three-month training." Only after the two arrived at the main tent, did Tong Yifeng sit down and drink a mouthful of fragrant tea brought by his personal guards before speaking his intention.
"Oh, the three months have indeed arrived, but how did the Military Department send you here?" Xu Haifeng asked strangely. After all, the Combat Department and the Logistics Department were two completely different things, and there were many generals in the military who could be inspected at any time. How would it be possible for a deputy general from the Logistics Department to come for an inspection?
"Alas, lets not mention it, Your Majesty was defeated in Linan this time and is furious. A death order has been issued: if Linan is not taken, all generals are forbidden to return. If I werent from the logistics department, I wouldnt have dared to come find you. As it happens, General Gu knows Im coming back to dispatch some supplies, so he specifically ordered me to come here and take a look around. If your troops can still hold their ground, then let them follow my supply convoy to Linan City."
Xu Haifeng furrowed his brow, and Tong Yifeng said it lightly. Whats the point of saving face if its obvious that youre looking down on your own troops? However, this cant be blamed on him. Whoever knew that Xu Haifengs subordinates were only three thousand slave soldiers, and had only undergone a mere three months of collective training, would probably think that even coming to take a look was a waste of effort. Those who dared to guarantee that these people were completely powerless were probably not few in number.
"Since thats the case, then let General Tong inspect the troops first. If he thinks theyre still passable, well set off."
"Go ahead, Ill wait here for you, let them line up first, will half an hour be enough?"
Xu Haifengs breath caught in his throat. Half an hour, if it takes half an hour to form a line, then this army is better off not going into battle, otherwise theyll only be sending themselves to their deaths, and might even drag down friendly forces. His mouth twitched slightly as he forced out a faint smile, saying "Should be enough, right?" After finishing speaking, he waved his hand at Lin Changkong behind him, ordering "Command the troops to form up."
Lin Changkong bowed his head and made a gesture of respect, but didnt say anything, and directly walked out of the tent.
Tong Yifeng sat in the chair, chatting with Xu Haifeng in a desultory manner, but actually listening to the movements outside. However, since Lin Changkong left, there was no news from him at all. The outside also did not hear any sound of troops gathering. After five minutes, he couldnt help but say with concern: "Younger brother, your subordinate doesnt seem to be very capable, youd better go yourself, or let Qin Yong make an appearance, he should be able to calm down these damned slaves."
Xu Haifeng smiled playfully and said, "Maybe, why dont we invite General Tong to go out with me instead?"
Tong Yifeng secretly shook his head, thinking to himself: "Are you really clueless or just pretending to be? What Im doing is giving you a way out. If we go out together, neither of us can shirk responsibility. Ill have to tell the truth, sorry about that." As he thought this, he pushed open the curtain and looked up, his whole body trembling with fear, his legs going weak, almost unable to stand.
He had just entered the camp and was still empty-handed, but somehow he was surrounded by countless burly men with a fierce aura. Although they were unarmed, their hands were clasped behind their backs, their eyes fixed on the front, and their feet stood in a straight line, forming a neat formation that exuded a stern killing intent. What made peoples hair stand on end was the gaze of these men, whose eyes were filled with a violent and destructive aura, as if they were looking at a corpse. If only one person had this gaze, it wouldnt be surprising, but if ten people did, it would only make Tong Yifeng slightly surprised. However, if hundreds or thousands of people had the same gaze, the pressure would be immense to an unimaginable degree. That Tong Yifeng could still maintain his standing posture in such a situation was already quite remarkable.
"General Xu, is...is this your...your slave army?" Tong Yifeng stuttered, his composure from earlier completely gone as he was intimidated by the mighty military presence before him.
"Its exactly the Fifth Regiment of Little General, and Id like to ask General Tong for more guidance." Xǔ Hǎifēng said with a pleased expression.
"When... when did they come out?"
"Huh? Has General Tong forgotten? Didnt I just order him to line up in front of you a moment ago?" Xǔ Hǎifēng feigned surprise, pointing at Lín Chángkōng. He was secretly pleased with himself - who let you look down on my troops? Now, Ill give you an unexpected surprise and see if you dare do that again.
Looking at the majestic team in front of him, Tong Yifeng couldnt believe his eyes. He had served in the logistics department for many years and had seen all sorts of troops, but this team looked like a battle-hardened iron-blooded lion no matter how he looked at it. However, just three months ago, they were still slaves in a slave camp. The drastic change that had taken place in such a short period of time had completely overturned his understanding, and for a moment, he couldnt say anything.
"General Tong, in your opinion, can this group of kids still put on a good show?" asked Xu Haifeng with an air of confidence.
"If even they cant do it, then Im afraid theres no team in this world that can make it to the top." Tong Yifeng said bitterly, looking at Xu Haifeng who was standing in front of him. At this moment, the rising sun shone gently from behind Xu Haifeng, bathing him in warm and comfortable sunlight, but in Tong Yifengs eyes, he felt that this young commander who always brought miracles was radiating dazzling light all over his body, and it was getting stronger and stronger, as if he were a shining star.