A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

"All the ministers are loyal to His Majesty, so naturally they would not hide anything."

"However, according to my estimation, the reason why the rebellious Xia came to me is because I have offended Your Majesty. They may not have gone to other ministers."

Yuwen Shu quickly explained.

Yang Guang remained noncommittal. He was a suspicious man, and his spies were everywhere in the military camp. He knew very well who had met with people they shouldn't have.

Yang Xuangan was the second to enter. He glanced at Yuwen Shu standing to the side with surprise, then quickly reported to Yang Guang that someone was entertaining him, and handed the person over to Yang Guang as well.

Yang Guang nodded, his icy expression softening slightly, and sat there to continue waiting.

Yang Xuangan immediately understood, realizing that everything was under Yang Guang's control, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that he had chosen to come.

Soon, Lai Huer, Zhang Xumi, and others also came to report to Yang Guang. Seeing that all the people found by Ni Xia had arrived, Yang Guang snorted coldly.

"A mere traitor dares to challenge the heroes of our land? What audacity!"

"Generals, you may return now. I know of your loyalty."

After sending the group away, Yang Guang looked at the military camp opposite him with a cold and indifferent gaze.

The next day, when Xia Kang learned that none of the people he had sent had returned, he curled his lip, his eyes filled with undisguised envy.

In order to win over these officials of the Divine Continent Empire, he even went to great lengths, risking the dissatisfaction of his subordinates, by promising them numerous dukedoms and marquises.

Unfortunately, no one was moved.

This is the spirit of the people of the Divine Continent Empire, something that these feudal states rarely possess.

That pride, which comes from the heart and from the very core, is something Xia Kang himself also desires.

The reason he was determined to become emperor was to prove that even though he was not born in China, he was no weaker than the emperors of China.

People tend to pursue what they lack most.

"Then let's fight them. Let's see if they're still so tough once they're prisoners."

After suffering heavy losses in the last attack, Yang Guang calmed down and prepared to launch a counterattack when Yang Su arrived with reinforcements.

We will then wipe out the enemy forces in one fell swoop and wash away their shame.

The balance of power shifted again, this time with the Xia Dynasty's army attacking the Sui Dynasty's Wulei City, using siege weapons modified from the defensive equipment used by the Sui Dynasty to protect Wulei City.

Because Wulei City lacked a large number of defensive siege weapons, the Xia army gained a lot of siege weapons out of thin air, which resulted in the casualty ratio between the two sides not being so exaggerated, and the Xia army's losses were not significant.

After Yang Guang delegated power, the defense was entirely commanded by his generals. With the abilities of these generals, the Xia state was simply unable to break through without a decisive military advantage.

This continued until Yang Su arrived with reinforcements.

"withdraw!"

After Xia Kang's scouts learned about the troops led by Yang Su, they chose to retreat without hesitation.

He's not stupid; he wouldn't risk a direct confrontation with the Sui Dynasty's millions of troops.

There are clearly easier ways.

With such a large army at his disposal, he didn't believe Yang Guang could hold back and continue to endure.

Having been suppressed and beaten by him for so long, Yang Guang's anger must have accumulated to an immense degree.

Once reinforcements arrive, Yang Guang will surely order his generals to lead a large army to attack him.

However, the generals appointed by him to lead an army of 400 million must be extraordinary, and perhaps they could persuade Yang Guang.

But as soon as he leaves, given Yang Guang's personality, he absolutely cannot tolerate it.

Therefore, he directly led his troops to retreat in order to force Yang Guang to fall out with his generals and personally lead his exhausted troops to pursue him.

He had laid an ambush on the road long ago, digging traps so that he could give Yang Guang a good beating if Yang Guang led his troops to pursue him.

Perhaps they could defeat the Sui army in one fell swoop, pursue them, take over the entire Western Regions, and cut off the bridgehead for the Sui Dynasty's westward expansion.

Xia Kang truly deserves to be called a rare king of the Xia Kingdom; his strategic vision and foresight are unmatched.

Everything went as he expected. Under the persuasion of the old prince Yang Su, Yang Guang agreed to let the 400 million Sui soldiers rest and adapt to the climate of the Western Regions before launching a counterattack against the Xia army.

Then, when he learned that the Xia army was preparing to retreat with the money they had looted, Yang Guang's pride once again clouded his judgment. If he allowed the Xia army to withdraw from the Western Regions, he would never have another chance to wash away the shame he had in history.

Therefore, he firmly rejected Yang Su's request and ordered Yang Su to follow the army he personally led in pursuit of the Xia army.

Faced with the tough Yang Guang, Yang Su, the subject, had no choice but to personally mobilize troops and leave a large number of soldiers to garrison Wulei City, thus securing a way out.

At the same time, we should try to select soldiers who are in good condition to ensure the fighting strength of the army.

Unfortunately, all of this takes time, and Yang Guang simply couldn't wait.

They randomly and hastily selected 300 million people and then began the pursuit.

After leaving Wulei City and heading west, the road is mostly Gobi Desert, with sandstorms everywhere and very little water.

Even the only available water source was destroyed by the Xia army.

After a continuous march of over a hundred miles, the army simply could not hold out.

Even Yang Guang knew that people cannot live without water. Without water, his army would be nothing but a bunch of weaklings, with no fighting power whatsoever.

Gritting his teeth, Yang Guang had no choice but to order a retreat.

During the retreat, Xia troops kept emerging from the surrounding Gobi Desert to harass them, taking advantage of their small numbers to harass them and then run away.

Under such harassment, the Sui army, which was already in poor condition due to lack of water, became even more exhausted.

"Your Majesty, this cannot continue."

"When our army is at its most exhausted, the Xia army will definitely launch a major offensive. At that time, given our army's condition, we will likely be routed!"

Yang Su found Yang Guang, his face extremely grim.

He was referring to a rout, not a major defeat, much less a loss.

In other words, probably not many of these 300 million troops will actually make it back to Wulei City.

"Master Yang, what should we do?"

Yang Guang's face was equally grim. The death of 300 million soldiers might only cause him some heartache, but it would make his already somewhat tarnished reputation even worse.

Emperor Yang Guang felt utterly humiliated after his 500 million-strong army was defeated by a million-strong army of a vassal king, suffering a crushing defeat and fleeing in disarray.

There are probably very few emperors in Chinese history who can compare with him.

His fame will be etched in history!

Damn Xia Kingdom!

Traitor!

Yang Guang vowed that he would destroy the Xia Dynasty in his lifetime!

"Your Majesty, we must make a drastic decision!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Yang Su's eyes. Having commanded troops for many years, he knew the principle that one should not be a merciful commander.

Rather than having three million troops fall and the emperor's life hanging in the balance, it would be better to make a decisive sacrifice, abandon most of the army, and take a portion of the elite troops back to Wulei City.

With the city walls of Wulei, it would be impossible for the Xia army to breach them.

Moreover, as long as Yang Guang did not give orders indiscriminately, he and his many generals were confident that they could easily defeat the Xia army.