No title, no marriage? Do you think I'm some kind of lapdog?

Days passed by, and Su Chuang managed to transform Wangbeitai, this run-down place, into a place that resembled the grand mansion of the Duke of the capital.

During the day, he would squat on a mound wrapped in a mink coat, looking at the scenery, always holding a handful of sunflower seeds in his hand, cracking them open with a deafening "crack, crack."

He'd be ordering this person around to repair the wall one minute, and yelling at that person to dig a ditch the next, acting like a nouveau riche overseer.

"Sister Xu, look at that cloud, doesn't it look like a gold ingot?"

Su Chuang squinted and gestured wildly.

Xu Mengran, who was sharpening her sword nearby, looked up and glanced at him upon hearing this.

"Where did the clouds come from in this hazy, overcast sky?" she retorted irritably. "Like your head, my foot!"

"Hehe, even my head would be fine, it's valuable."

Su Chuang leaned closer and his hand wandered to her waist.

"Sister Xu's waist... is more valuable than a gold ingot."

"roll."

Xu Mengran slapped his hand away, but a blush rose on her face.

The Mo Dao Guards training below kept their eyes down, pretending they hadn't seen anything.

Only a few newly recruited bandits secretly grinned, but Yue Fei glared at them and they immediately straightened up.

Yes, the hundred or so remnants of Black Wind Stronghold were "invited" back by Yue Fei three days ago.

The process went more smoothly than I had imagined.

Yue Fei, leading three hundred Mo Dao Guards, stood at the entrance of Ghost Sorrow Valley. Without even drawing his sword, he uttered only one sentence:

"Surrender and you'll have food to eat; don't surrender and you'll be buried."

The hundred or so bandits were starving, their stomachs practically touching their backs, as they stared at the gleaming blades in the hands of the Mo Dao Guards.

Looking at the chipped and broken knife in his hand, he wisely threw the weapon away.

These people are now being trained to the point of near death by Yue Fei.

"Legs! Straighten!"

"Formation! What's with the chaos?!"

Yue Fei's voice was like thunder, shaking the earthen walls of the beacon tower so much that they crumbled and fell.

Su Chuang squatted on the mound, watching the commotion and occasionally offering his comments:

"Pengju, be gentle, don't ruin him. He's someone I paid for... no, I mean, I hired."

Yue Fei turned around and clasped his hands in a fist salute: "My lord, rest assured, this humble general has the knowledge."

Count?

Su Chuang watched the bandits below running in circles, foaming at the mouth, and muttered to himself:

Grandpa Yue really trained his troops to the point of exhaustion.

However, the effect is remarkable.

In just three days, that motley crew of about a hundred people was actually able to line up in a queue.

Although it's still crooked and distorted, at least you can make out a formation.

"My lord."

Jia Xu had somehow wandered to the foot of the mound, his gray cloth shirt clinging to his body in the wind, looking as thin as a bamboo pole.

"We have news."

Su Chuang's eyes lit up, and he patted his bottom and stood up: "Speak."

"Something big has happened with the Xiongnu."

Jia Xu lowered his voice, making sure only the two of them could hear him.

"After Wanyan Zongbi died, his branch of the family was leaderless and its territory was divided up by the other princes."

Su Chuang raised an eyebrow: "And then?"

"And then..." Jia Xu paused.

"The second prince, Wanyan Honglie, suddenly gained power, integrated three tribes, and now commands 50,000 iron cavalry. He is forcing the old Chanyu to abdicate."

Su Chuang clicked his tongue: "Dogs fighting, good thing."

"There's one more thing."

Jia Xu raised his eyes, a dark and ambiguous light flashing in them.

"The Imperial Guards sent word from the north that...they've seen Princess Ruxue."

The sunflower seeds in Su Chuang's hand scattered all over the ground with a "crash".

"Who?" He thought he had misheard.

"Lin Ruxue, Princess Ruxue."

Jia Xu repeated it.

"Someone saw her near the Xiongnu royal court, accompanied by several guards with the appearance of the Great Qian, and she was moving around in secrecy."

Su Chuang's mind went blank for a moment.

Lin Ruxue? Going to the Xiongnu?

Why would a princess like her go to that desolate place?

Still at this critical juncture...

"Is the news confirmed?"

Su Chuang's voice was a little dry.

"Eighty percent," Jia Xu said.

"The messenger was one of our moles planted in the Xiongnu royal court. We followed her for three days and confirmed it was her."

Su Chuang fell silent.

He recalled what Lin Ruxue had said to him in the palace before he left:

"Brother Chuang, I will help you."

Help? Help like this?

Running to the Xiongnu royal court, is that helping or sending them to their deaths?

"My lord, this matter is suspicious."

Jia Xu said in a low voice, "Princess Ruxue has a special status. If she is really with the Xiongnu, I'm afraid..."

He didn't say what he was afraid of.

But Su Chuang understood.

I'm afraid there's going to be trouble at the imperial court.

"Continue the investigation."

Su Chuang took a deep breath, and his carefree smile returned to his face.

"I want to see him alive, or... at least his body."

Jia Xu bowed and said, "Yes, sir."

He turned to leave, but Su Chuang called him back:

"Wenhe, is there any movement from Zhang Liao's side?"

"have."

Jia Xu turned around, a very faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"Ye Qingyue has been summoning him frequently these past few days, but every time Zhang Liao comes out of the general's mansion, he doesn't look too good."

Su Chuang chuckled: "Did you two have a fight?"

"It's not too noisy."

Jia Xu said.

"But according to our informants at Yumen Pass, Zhang Liao's trusted men have recently started complaining about their pay being cut and their rations being of inferior quality."

"Oh?"

Su Chuang narrowed his eyes. "Ye Qingyue even betrays her own people?"

"She's not a trap, she's..."

Jia Xu carefully considered his words, "It's because I feel that Zhang Liao's troops are disobedient and need to be disciplined."

Su Chuang understood.

Ye Qingyue's temperament was such that she couldn't tolerate any disloyalty from her subordinates.

Although Zhang Liao was a fierce general, he was too straightforward and did not know how to flatter, so naturally he was not liked by her.

"Then let's..."

Su Chuang rubbed his fingers together. "Shouldn't we send General Zhang some 'warmth'?"

Jia Xu laughed:

"I have made the arrangements. In three days, a batch of 'unidentified' grain will be 'coincidentally' intercepted by Zhang Liao's patrol."

Su Chuang grinned: "How much?"

"Five hundred bushels of fine rice, one hundred sheep, and... three thousand taels of silver."

Jia Xu paused for a moment, then said, "The box containing the silver is engraved with the seal of the Ministry of War."

ruthless.

Really ruthless.

When this batch of goods was delivered to Zhang Liao, he was caught in a dilemma: whether to accept them or not.

Accepting it would be tantamount to embezzling military funds;

If he doesn't accept the offer, the soldiers below will go hungry, and who will fight for him?

Moreover, the Ministry of War's seal... this was clearly telling him:

You were betrayed by your own people.

"Wenhe, oh Wenhe."

Su Chuang patted him on the shoulder, "Your heart is colder than the winter in the northern frontier."

Jia Xu bowed and said, "It is my duty to share the burdens of my lord."

As the two were talking, a loud shout suddenly came from the training ground below.

"Who gave you permission to move?!"

Yue Fei, holding his Liquan spear, pointed at a timid-looking man in the ranks.

He was recruited by Black Wind Village and was nicknamed "Skinny Monkey".

The skinny monkey was so scared his legs went weak:

"General Yue, my shoelaces are untied..."

"Are your shoelaces loose?"

Yue Fei's eyes turned cold. "On the battlefield, will the enemy wait for you to tie your shoelaces?"

"No, it won't happen..."

"Then why are you still moving?!"

Yue Fei struck him on the backside with the spear shaft, "Run twenty laps around the track! If you don't finish, you're not eating dinner!"

Skinny Monkey, with a long face, took off running.

Su Chuang watched from the earthen mound, thoroughly amused.

"Pengju's temperament is just like mine."

Xu Mengran rolled her eyes at him:

"Whatever you want? Besides being a smooth talker, what else can you do?"

"I know a lot more."

Su Chuang leaned closer, grinning, "Especially at night..."

"Shut up." Xu Mengran blushed and turned to leave.

Just as Su Chuang was about to give chase, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from afar.

A fast horse galloped from the east, the rider covered in blood. He rushed to the foot of the beacon tower, tumbled from his saddle, and cried out:

"My Lord! Something's happened!"

Su Chuang's expression changed, and he quickly stepped down from the mound:

"Take your time, what's wrong?"

The knight was a member of the Flying Tiger Army sent by Yue Fei to scout ahead. He was panting heavily and pointed eastward.

"Wolf Valley...a large contingent of Xiongnu cavalry has arrived from Wolf Valley!"

"Judging by the banners, they're Wanyan Honglie's men! At least three thousand cavalry!"

Three thousand cavalry?!

Su Chuang's heart tightened.

Why would Wanyan Honglie's men suddenly go to Wild Wolf Valley?

It's less than fifty li from Wangbeitai...

"besides……"

The knight swallowed hard, his voice trembling.

"Brothers, in the distance, you can see... a chariot in the Xiongnu ranks, flying the banner of the Great Qian!"

The flag of the Great Qian Dynasty?

Su Chuang's mind went blank.

Lin Ruxue...

Could it really be true?!