You have truly caused me great suffering!

During the busy autumn harvest season, there were not many officials in Taiyuan Prefecture.

Chen Shao, who wanted to see the situation on the battlefield, found that there were not many reports from the Northwest.

This led him to discover that the more important the event, the fewer reports were submitted.

This applies to Wu Jie as well as the commanders of the three main forces.

When people are at war, their energy is limited, so they don't have time to consider other things.

Chen Shao himself had led troops and understood this very well.

Zhong Shidao also made a rare appearance at the Jietang today, and spent some time with Chen Shao reading the Qing Tang battle report.

The old man increasingly enjoys simulating battlefields on the sand table; it's much easier than being on the front lines. Besides, he's been fighting for forty or fifty years, practically a living fossil of the battlefield.

He was proficient in all aspects of allocation, planning, estimation, and scheduling, and almost never made a mistake.

Before leaving, Zhong Shidao looked at the interconnected maps behind Chen Shao.

He had long noticed that Chen Shao seemed to place too much importance on the caravan.

Zhong Shidao had noticed him as early as when he first started forming his caravan. Later, when the Zhong family army captured Yinzhou and gave it to him, Chen Shao allowed his caravan to start from Yinzhou and enter the Central Plains.

This revitalized the newly renovated Yongle City.

After the Eastern Expedition entered the Central Plains, it was even more pioneering that caravans were used to transport supplies.

At that time, Zhong Shidao noticed that Chen Shao's caravan was very different from other caravans.

They even had escort teams with sturdy armor and sharp weapons, making their combat capabilities seem ridiculously high.

The wars he has launched now seem to be for the purpose of expanding his trade routes, because Chen Shao has actually devoted most of his financial resources to the shipyards and navy in the east.

Perhaps seeing the great prosperity achieved by the Song Dynasty through its reliance on commercial taxes, Chen Shao wanted to try it himself.

Seeing that there was nothing to do, Zhong Shidao got up and took his leave.

Before the sun had completely set, Chen Shao had already finished reading the day's reports. After dictating them, he had his staff write down replies for several important figures before stepping out.

Looking back at the eaves of the front hall pavilion, you can still see the sunlight shining on the green tiles, and the orange-yellow glow at dusk is as beautiful as a painting.

However, everything in the courtyard had become dim, even more so than on a cloudy day.

Chen Shao couldn't help but think of his grand ambitions, and he felt that there was probably no one in the world who could understand him.

But what Chen Shao didn't know was that someone had already seen through his purpose and actions. The outstanding people in this world are often stronger than the norm.

After returning home last night, my aunt Chen Yuexian said that today is her birthday, but Chen Shaozong can't remember the date.

The family took the matter very seriously and were determined to celebrate it joyfully for him.

Chen Shao really enjoyed these family-friendly scenes; they always helped him calm down and think things through.

He quickened his pace, and upon returning to the inner courtyard, Chen Shao thought for a moment before heading to the kitchen.

Sure enough, Li Shishi was indeed here.

She was dressed in a light green robe, her hair was simply styled up, and she wore no jewelry; she was dressed like a domestic, virtuous woman.

Her outfits were always ever-changing, but Chen Shao was always amazed by them. Her innate sense of proportion and slenderness gave her a beauty that resembled a work of art.

True beauty lies in the bone structure, not just the skin. Li Shishi was incredibly feminine, possessing the purest and most authentic charm of a classical Han Chinese beauty.

She was able to direct several cooks and prepare a good meal for so many people tonight.

Chen Yuexian originally loved Li Shishi the most, but after Huanhuan gave birth to a son for Chen Shao, she began to value Huanhuan the most.

This aunt is actually very simple; her only concern is her own family.

In the dimly lit corridor, Shishi's fair and delicate face still radiated a beautiful and charming glow.

When Chen Shao and Chen Shao looked into each other's eyes, the air was filled not only with the warmth of everyday life, but also seemed to be overflowing with deep affection.

Li Shishi smoothed her hair and smiled, "How did you end up here?"

Chen Shao told her to put down the plate, took her hand, and sat with her in the long corridor of the kitchen, watching the cooks busy at work.

Li Shishi leaned gently on his shoulder, her gaze shifting, her eyes filled with tenderness. "Young master, you've grown another year older."

Chen Shao didn't speak, but simply put his arm around her shoulder. In this quiet autumn evening, he was already lost in the moment, temporarily forgetting all his grand ambitions.
-

Gather on the right.

Qin Fengjun's main camp.

Yao Gu stood on the stockade wall, listening to his men come and go, reporting on the battle in Qing Tang.

His face was grim. After losing Qingtang, the Dingnan Army would definitely march on Lanzhou.

At that time, you'll be nothing more than a piece of meat in someone else's mouth, surrounded on three sides.

If Chen Shao makes a move, his only option is to flee to Sichuan.

Yao Gu was also very dissatisfied with Liu Guanglie leading troops and stationing them next to them.

But now, he can't care about that anymore; instead, he feels boundless fear of Wu Jie's invasion of Qing Tang.

Only then did he realize why Liu Guanglie had suddenly mobilized troops to the border where they met the Fuyan army.

It seems Chen Shao had been preparing for this day for a long time.

Back then, I was too busy laughing at Old Liu and Little Liu. They were driven to Yongle City by the illegitimate son and became like birds in a cage or fish in a net.

When this illegitimate son led his troops to the border, Yao Gu, like most people, thought that he had deliberately left Fuyan Prefecture so that his personal guards could expel and imprison his father and brother.

After Tong Guan and Wang Hou conquered Qing Tang, although they were driven away again, the power of the Song Dynasty had taken root in Qing Tang.

Specifically, a large number of people from the Western Army secretly colluded with the Tibetans of Qinghai to trade spices, jade, and tea.

They made a fortune.

Historically, even when the Jin army symbolically occupied this area, they were unable to completely eliminate the influence of the Song Dynasty.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, they were still able to buy countless warhorses from this trade route.

They originally intended to sabotage Wu Jie's campaign against Qing Tang.

But at this moment he dared not move, because he felt that Liu Guanglie would take the opportunity to break in.

Yao Gu felt that his Jingyuan Army and Qin Feng Army were enough to deal with the Fuyan Army, but he also knew that...

Liu Guanglie had the Fuyan Army at his disposal, but behind him was the Dingnan Army.

There was nothing behind me except my enemy.

Yao Gu was initially quite confident when he saw Wu Jie attacking Qing Tang. He thought that the Dingnan Army had run into a quagmire and would be stuck there sooner or later.

But soon, Yao Gu realized something was wrong. This time, the Dingnan Army's attack on Qing Tang was completely different from the previous attacks by the Song and Western Xia.

They would conquer a city or tribe and immediately escort all the prisoners away from Qingtang.

Anyone who refused to leave, regardless of age or gender, was killed.

There's no such thing as a flat wheel here; if you don't move, you're doomed.

Even at this point, Yao Gu still felt he had something to watch; the Dingnan Army's relocation of so many barbarians into the interior was bound to cause unrest.

But soon, he was disappointed again.

The barbarians were taken to the fortified village as slaves and immediately became a hot commodity.

"Old Zhong and young Zhong have betrayed their country and surrendered to the enemy, truly betraying the Zhong family's and the Song Dynasty's two-hundred-year-old reputation for loyalty and bravery!"

Yao Gu hates Lao Zhong the most.

Although the Western Army was not exactly a monolithic force, it was still able to advance and retreat together.

Old Zhong was getting old and frail. Yao Gu had originally planned to take over the Western Army's banner and make a name for himself when Old Zhong was no longer able to serve.

Who knew that Lao Zhong would defect directly to Chen Shao, causing the Western Army to collapse instantly.

Of the Western Army that had not yet sided with Chen Shao, only he himself remained. (End of Chapter)