With the rise of my family, I can summon the Daoist Soldiers' Nest.

In the following days, the Northern Xiongnu army launched a series of fierce attacks.

However, under Lin Ye's overall command, the Lin family army stood firm on the city wall like a rock, and did not retreat even a step no matter how the enemy attacked.

Despite the fact that the powerful first-rate shaman warrior repeatedly led the Frost Wolf Guard and other experts to storm the city walls in an attempt to break through the defenses.

However, the other family warriors stationed near the city walls witnessed Lin Ye's astonishing martial arts skills and the Lin family army's formidable combat power.

Their cooperation with the Lin family has become increasingly seamless, and they have repeatedly taken the initiative to send their second-rate martial artists to provide targeted support.

Despite the combined efforts of multiple parties to suppress him, even though that top-tier martial artist managed to launch a powerful attack each time with the help of the Frost Wolf Guards and his accompanying experts.

However, they were unable to break through the Lin family army's defenses and were repeatedly forced to retreat.

In the final, most intense clash, Lin Ye seized a fleeting opportunity and killed a Frost Wolf Guard in one fell swoop.

This severely injured the top-tier martial artist, deterring him from his previous reckless and violent behavior.

As night deepened, the torches atop Lulong City formed a sea of ​​stars, illuminating the city walls as bright as day.

The dim firelight illuminated the mountains of Northern Xiongnu corpses piled up below the city walls, demonstrating the ferocity of the battle that day and the heavy losses suffered by the Northern Xiongnu army.

Lin Ye and his men continued to guard the city walls as usual, with soldiers taking turns to maintain a high level of vigilance at all times.

Meanwhile, not far away in the Northern Xiongnu camp, inside the most luxurious tent...

Although the singers in the center were still energetically twisting their waists and dancing the Hu Xuan dance, the atmosphere inside the tent was so cold that it was suffocating, and there was no sound of music at all.

"Bang!"

A burly, rugged-looking officer slammed his wine glass down heavily on the low table, spilling the wine all over the floor.

"Grand Commandant, this tactic cannot continue! We've already lost too many of our men. Today, during the siege, the lads below were terrified and dared not charge forward!"

Seeing that someone had taken the lead in breaking the ice, the other leaders also chimed in.

They all complained about the heavy casualties and the fact that after several days of continuous attacks, they hadn't even managed to capture a section of the city wall, and there was no hope of breaking through the city.

After all, this invasion of the south had only captured a few insignificant small towns, and the grain and supplies obtained were meager.

If too many elite troops are lost at the gates of Lulong, this army will have no way to explain itself when it returns.

Sitting at the head of the table, the Left Grand Commandant silently watched the noisy crowd below, his brow furrowed with a headache. But he was helpless; the morale of the army was so low that forcibly issuing orders would only backfire.

"Grand Commandant, in my opinion, it would be better to disperse the troops."

At this moment, a burly Northern Xiongnu nobleman sitting next to the Left Grand Commandant suggested, "Let's leave some cavalry to keep an eye on Lulong City, and the rest of our troops can be sent out to plunder the surrounding small towns."

The soldiers have worked hard on this trip; they should bring back some rewards.

He paused, then lowered his voice and said, "If the Northern Han court dares not send troops to rescue us, we can plunder everywhere and return with a full load."

If they dare to send troops out of the city to reinforce, then Lulong City will surely be poorly defended, and we might be able to launch a counterattack. At that time, Lulong City might not be so difficult to capture.

As the Left Grand Commandant listened to these words, he glanced around the tent and saw that the eyes of the chieftains were already gleaming with greed. He knew that only spoils of war could reignite the ferocity of these wolf cubs.

Moreover, before his departure, King Tushe of the East had privately instructed him that during this trip south, he must capture as many artisans and civilians from the Northern Han as possible and bring them back.

Thinking of this, the Left Grand Commandant finally nodded slowly, tacitly approving the strategy of splitting up troops to plunder.

The next morning, Lin Ye and the others stood on the city wall and looked out, only to see a strange scene unfolding near the camp of the Northern Xiongnu army.

Large numbers of Northern Xiongnu cavalry turned their horses around and surged off in other directions like a tidal wave.

They left behind less than half of their troops, retreated a distance, re-established their camp, and adopted a posture of long-term stalemate but also passively avoiding battle.

In response to this sudden turn of events, General Zhenwei Nangong Wan acted decisively, immediately summoning the lords and their representatives to his command tent for a meeting.

"The Northern Xiongnu have divided their forces." Nangong Wan got straight to the point, tracing his finger across the sand table. "To ensure that no city is lost, I have decided that each commander's army will immediately divide its forces to assist in the defense of the cities, while the imperial army will remain to guard Lulong City."

"Whoosh—"

These words immediately sparked a flurry of discussion among the people in the tent.

The lords and their representatives looked at each other, their expressions not very pleasant.

In the past, the Northern Xiongnu had also played the trick of dividing their forces and conducting guerrilla warfare, while the Northern Han had always remained inactive.

The reason is simple: firstly, Lulong City is a strategically important location and must not be lost.

Secondly, those harassed were mostly small towns and counties with weak defenses. With the strength of the Northern Xiongnu after their forces were divided, they could indeed conquer some small counties, but it was absolutely impossible for them to take down the prefectural cities with heavy troops.

Since those places are not our own territory, it's okay to lose them; there's no need to take risks for the sake of the imperial court's territory.

After all, Beiyuan County is located on the front line, including fortresses like Lulong City, and other small cities are also under the jurisdiction of the imperial army.

Since there were no hereditary lords, people naturally did not want to leave this relatively safe and fortified city to garrison those small towns with low walls.

Although the crowd complained bitterly, no one dared to be the first to disobey orders.

This is a military camp. Nangong Wan represents not only the Nangong family, but also the Northern Han court. Those who disobey orders will face obvious consequences.

"If there are no objections, proceed with this plan and immediately proceed to your respective cities to garrison." Nangong Wan's gaze swept over the crowd, her tone turning cold, carrying a hint of murderous intent.

"Former General Cheng Enjiang abandoned the city for his own selfish reasons, resulting in the fall of more than ten cities in Beiyuan County and the massacre of the people. Your Majesty was furious, and you have all witnessed his fate."

He paused, then said, word by word, "Now that Beiyuan County is guarded by my Nangong family, I do not wish for a similar incident to happen again. I hope you all remember this and will make sure to defend your respective cities well."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ye and the other lords, despite their deep resentment, could only suppress their dissatisfaction and accept the order.

Just as everyone turned to leave the tent, Nangong Wan suddenly spoke again: "Wait. Everyone must be careful on this journey."

According to intelligence reports, the second prince of the Northern Xiongnu, who proposed the strategy of dividing the troops, has personally led an elite force away from the main camp.

It is said that this man's soldiers are all battle-hardened veterans, with numerous martial artists among them. There are even rumors that he may have bodyguards at the level of Acquired Martial Artists.

"The Second Prince of the Northern Xiongnu..."

The moment Lin Ye heard the name, his pupils contracted sharply, and his heart felt as if it were being gripped by an invisible hand.

The capture of Xiang County a few years ago was led by this very man!

The original owner's father, grandfather, grandmother, and countless other clansmen perished in that war.

The deep-seated hatred surged into my heart like a tidal wave.