A family of loyal martyrs, starting with nine wives to continue the family line.

The first autumn rain of the second year of Xinwu came earlier than usual.

The cold rain slanted down onto the glazed tiles of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, flowing down the eaves and splashing into tiny droplets on the white jade steps in front of the hall.

Inside the hall, the atmosphere was the complete opposite of the cold and gloomy atmosphere outside, carrying a hint of barely suppressed enthusiasm.

Wei Zhao has just announced the addition of a "Teacher Training Department" to the capital's academy, to be taught by himself and the Imperial Preceptor Fang Fuyao, to train the first batch of truly independent instructors for the new martial arts school.

Upon hearing this, all the civil and military officials, especially the veteran ministers led by Li Huai, showed expressions of excitement.

This is the real solution to eliminate the root cause of the problem!

However, just as the Minister of Revenue was about to step forward and lament how much more silver the national treasury would be emptied for this, a series of hurried, almost undignified footsteps suddenly came from outside the hall.

A Jinyiwei spy, dressed in a black outfit and soaking wet, scrambled into the hall. Ignoring the rain dripping onto the gold bricks, he knelt down and raised his hands high above his head.

What he was holding was a long, thin bamboo tube that was completely black and sealed tightly with sealing wax.

"Your Majesty!" The spy's voice was hoarse from running so fast, "The western border, Yangguan Pass, urgent dispatch!"

hum!

The discussions throughout the Hall of Supreme Harmony were instantly cut off by an invisible, swift blade.

All eyes were fixed on the black bamboo tube.

Black sealing wax.

The military situation is extremely urgent!

Wei Zhao's smile vanished instantly. Instead of having the eunuch fetch it, he personally descended the imperial steps and took the cold bamboo tube from the trembling hands of the spy.

He used his thumb to pry open the sealing wax and pulled out the letter inside.

"Announce."

Wei Zhao's voice was not loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

He unfolded the letter and read it aloud, word by word, in front of the entire court.

"Nie Yinniang, a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, reports to Yangguan."

"Three days ago, a caravan came from the west, consisting of seventeen people. Sixteen were dead and one was seriously wounded. The survivor, named Zhou Tong, said: 'West of Yangguan, deep in the Gobi Desert, an army came, flying black wolf flags, unlike any other type of soldier we have ever seen in our dynasty.'"

As the text was read, a suppressed gasp filled the hall.

Wei Zhao did not pause, his voice growing colder.

"The enemy force numbers approximately 30,000, and they are armed with heavy straight-bladed swords. They are tall and strong, far surpassing the people of the Central Plains. Furthermore, their mounts are not horses, but camels."

"When I arrived at the pass, the enemy army was already within a hundred li of Yangguan. Tonight, they may be at the gates of the city."

I've finished reading the letter.

Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there was a deathly silence.

camel?

Thirty thousand camel soldiers?

Where did it come from?

These questions, like a thick, impenetrable fog, shroud everyone's mind.

"His Majesty!"

Li Huai stepped out from the ranks, his face filled with murderous intent:

"The Western Regions have been the bulwark of our Central Plains since ancient times. Now, an unknown enemy has knocked on our gates, which is an invasion of our territory!"

"In my opinion, there's no need for further words; simply fight back!"

Li Huai's voice, loud and clear as a bell, echoed throughout the hall: "General Huo's former troops are all battle-hardened elites, worthy of our service! I implore Your Majesty to immediately issue an edict ordering General Huo to muster his troops, march west out of Yangguan, and deliver a crushing blow! Let's utterly annihilate these arrogant and ignorant bastards beyond the pass!"

Li Huai's words expressed the sentiments of most of the military officers in the hall.

Whether they ride horses or camels, if they attack, we'll fight back.

This is now the most direct and deeply ingrained rule in the new Wu court.

"Prime Minister Li is mistaken!"

However, a civil official immediately stepped forward; it was the Minister of Revenue, who was in charge of money and grain.

He looked distressed, as if every penny in the national treasury was his own son.

"West of Yangguan Pass lies three thousand miles of Gobi Desert, all yellow sand and barren land. Our soldiers have never fought in such a place before. How will we transport supplies? Where will we replenish our water supply? How will we deal with the camel caravans? We know nothing about any of these things, yet we rashly mobilize tens of thousands of troops, which is tantamount to gambling with the lives of our soldiers!"

"bet?"

Li Huai whirled around, glaring at him angrily: "The enemy is already at the city gates, and you're betting with me? Do you expect me to wait until they breach Yangguan Pass and storm Yumen Pass before you'll allocate supplies?"

That's not what I meant!

The Minister of Revenue was sweating profusely with anxiety: "My idea is that we should proceed cautiously, first sending scouts to ascertain the situation before making a decision! What if... what if this is a trap?"

The imperial court was instantly divided into two factions.

The pro-war faction believed that troops must be dispatched immediately to keep the war outside the country's borders.

The peace faction—or the cautious faction—believed that the enemy situation was unclear and that the nation's resources should not be wasted, advocating a defensive strategy followed by exploration.

Just as the two factions were arguing fiercely, a figure in pure white slowly walked out from the end of the line of civil officials.

Fang Fuyao.

Her appearance immediately quieted down the noise in the court.

"His Majesty."

Fang Fuyao walked to the emperor's side, her face still expressionless: "Nie Yinniang mentioned two key points in her letter."

All eyes were on her.

"Firstly, the enemy has come from afar, so their supply lines must be long. This is their Achilles' heel."

Secondly, they were riding camels.

Fang Fuyao's voice was clear and cold, yet it carried a sharp insight that cut to the heart: "Camels are better adapted to the desert than warhorses, but that also means that they are more dependent on water than any army."

"so."

She raised her eyes and looked at Wei Zhao on the dragon throne: "In my opinion, the key to this battle lies not in the open field battle, but in the word 'delay'."

"Hold fast to Yangguan Pass, implement a scorched-earth policy, and keep them pinned down beneath the city walls. At the same time, send out elite small units to outflank them from the rear, destroy their supply lines, and more importantly, their water sources. An army of 30,000 men will collapse on its own within three days if it is cut off from water in the desert."

These words were clear, logical, and well-reasoned, causing the two factions of ministers who had just been arguing heatedly to fall into deep thought.

This is indeed the safest and most ingenious method.

In an instant, everyone's attention was once again focused on Wei Zhao.

To fight, or to stall?

Wei Zhao leaned back on the dragon throne, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrests, producing a very rhythmic soft sound.

He listened to everyone's speeches, but his mind was on something else.

The new policies had just been implemented, the school had just been established, and the trade in the North had only just begun to get on track.

At this point, he needed a victory in a foreign war to deter all internal and external enemies who were still observing and harboring ulterior motives.

But this victory cannot be a Pyrrhic one, much less a defeat.

It must be a clean, decisive, and overwhelming victory.

He wanted to use this battle to tell the whole world that Xinwu's sword could not only quell internal rebellions, but also expand its territory abroad!

His gaze slowly swept over the officials below the steps, and finally landed on the head of the military officers, the one who had remained silent from beginning to end.

Huo Qingluan.

Today she was wearing a set of silver-white soft armor, her long hair was tied up high, and her posture was as straight as a spear.

"Qingluan," Wei Zhao said.

Huo Qingluan took a step forward, and the armor plates collided, making a crisp sound.

"Your subject is here."

Wei Zhao looked at her and asked a question that surprised everyone.

Have you ever fought in the desert?

The entire court was silent.

Huo Qingluan raised her head and met Wei Zhao's gaze. Her eyes were calm yet sharp, without the slightest hesitation.

"Your Majesty, we did not win."

Two words: crisp and clean.

A hint of joy flashed across the Minister of Revenue's face. He was about to speak in agreement when Huo Qingluan's next words silenced him completely.

"but."

Her voice carried the unique, deep-rooted arrogance of the Wei family: "Back when I was outside Yanmen Pass, with three thousand soldiers deployed in the Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation to face fifty thousand iron cavalry from the Northern Rong, I never fought a decisive battle on a plain."

She didn't say the result, but everyone knows the result.

She won that battle.

Wei Zhao smiled.

That's exactly what he wanted to hear.

He slowly stood up, his gaze sweeping over the assembled officials with their varied expressions, before finally settling on Liu Jingshuang's cold and resolute face.

"Then let's have a fight."

Wei Zhao's voice wasn't loud, but it was like a thunderclap, exploding in everyone's ears.

"Issue my decree!"

"Huo Qingluan is hereby appointed as the commander-in-chief of the western expedition, leading an army of 50,000. He is to muster the troops immediately and depart within seven days to reinforce Yangguan!"

"Shang Wanqing is hereby appointed to oversee the manufacture of these crossbows for the army. They shall be immediately placed in the armory, and three hundred newly manufactured divine crossbows and fifty triple-bow ballistae shall be allocated to accompany the army on its expedition!"

Wei Zhao's gaze was sharp as a knife, and his voice carried an undeniable, iron-blooded intent.

"I want to show those things that crawl out of the sand whether my newly developed crossbows can pierce their camel hides!"