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

On the sixth day, Huo Qingluan sent a squad of three hundred assassins down the east side of the city wall by rope.

Three hundred assassins simultaneously released their ropes and fell into the darkness along the outer wall of the city.

They carried no horses, no torches, and each carried only a short knife and a flint.

He removed all his armor, wearing only a close-fitting short garment and thick cloth wrapped around his feet, so he didn't make a loud noise when he landed.

On the city wall, the lieutenant stared intently into the darkness, sweat beading on his forehead.

"General, is this really all you brought?"

"To kill, one carries a knife; to burn, one carries fire."

Huo Qingluan replied, "Bringing one more item would only be a burden."

Her gaze followed the assassin at the front.

The team bypassed the main gate of Yangguan, followed the sand dunes on the east side and headed south, traveling five miles before sneaking in from behind the Black Flag Army camp.

The objective is clear: the waterwheel.

It was neither provisions, nor tents, nor the central command tent.

The Black Flag Army of 30,000 men was able to travel from the Western Regions to this place not because of food, but because of water.

Whenever the waterwheels run out, they have to leave the camp and go to a more distant place to fetch water.

A round trip would delay the siege.

Huo Qingluan was not afraid of their 30,000 soldiers.

What she feared was that the 30,000 soldiers wouldn't rush to attack, but instead guarded the water source, waiting for the various tribes of the Western Regions to arrive.

As long as those armies with different banners gather near Yangguan, the enemy will change from one force to a group.

At that time, even if 50,000 reinforcements arrived, it might not be enough.

So we have to move tonight.

We must make things difficult for the Black Flag Army.

In the darkness, three hundred assassins had already approached the rear of the camp.

Two assassins lay prone on the sand, staring in the direction the patrol had gone.

As soon as the camel cavalrymen turned the corner of the camp, the men behind them rushed toward the waterwheel.

One.

Two vehicles.

The dagger cut open the oil-soaked leather bag, the flints struck each other, and a few sparks fell into the dry grass.

"boom!"

The first waterwheel caught fire.

The firelight shot into the night, illuminating the panicked faces behind the camp.

"Order the second one!"

"There are three more over there!"

The assassins, no longer hiding, charged at the remaining waterwheels with their knives drawn.

Flames spread along the frame of the waterwheels, and the seven waterwheels quickly turned into seven balls of fire.

Huo Qingluan stood on the city wall and finally saw the flames.

It became.

She had just breathed a sigh of relief when bugles sounded in the Black Flag Army camp.

It wasn't a panicked shout.

The horn sounds only three times, low and short.

Immediately afterwards, large groups of camel cavalry charged out from both sides of the camp.

"So fast?" The lieutenant's expression changed.

Huo Qingluan did not answer.

She had long expected the Black Flag Army to react quickly, but seeing the army assemble in less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn still made her feel troubled.

The enemy camp was too well-organized.

It was clear that the roles of guarding the water, patrolling, and pursuing had been pre-arranged.

The three hundred elite soldiers did not burn an unguarded supply depot, but rather a decoy deliberately left by the enemy.

"Pass on the order."

Huo Qingluan gripped the hilt of her sword tightly: "Retreat to the east side."

The messenger lay prone behind the wall and blew a short whistle.

Outside the city, the assassins, upon hearing the signal, immediately split into several groups and retreated.

But the Black Flag Army could outflank them even faster.

Camel riders from both sides closed in from the rear of the camp, their broadswords falling one after another in the firelight.

The last warriors rushed forward without looking back, only throwing their torches into a waterwheel that wasn't fully heated before being surrounded by black-armored cavalry.

Thirty people did not return.

The remaining men ran while using flint to set fire to the hay and wooden frames piled up along the way.

The firelight blocked the Black Flag Army's vision, but it also cleared a final stretch of road for them.

When the east gate opened, the first assassin rushed into the pass, his body covered in sand and blood.

"close the door!"

Huo Qingluan shouted.

The heavy wooden door closed, and the people behind returned one after another.

One hundred and eighty-seven people.

Huo Qingluan stood by the door, counting them one by one.

187.

She did not speak.

The lieutenant stood to the side, his lips moved several times, but he ultimately lowered his head.

This is not a defeat.

With seven water carts burned, the Black Flag Army will have to fetch water from a much more distant source.

With the rear of the camp destroyed, patrol routes had to be rearranged.

It takes them longer to travel back and forth once they leave their original water source.

But even with thirty lives, they were truly gone.

Huo Qingluan looked at the returning assassins. Some of them had lost their hands, some had knives in their shoulders, and some had even lost their swords, only able to walk in by holding onto the city wall.

She knew very well that this was a fair deal.

Thirty people exchanged for seven water carts, which saved the Black Flag Army three days of water-fetching difficulties, and gave Yangguan a few more days to prepare.

Putting it in the military tent is a profit.

But she doesn't like to do this kind of calculation.

Because the thirty people in the ledger were still breathing and talking just now.

Thirty lives.

Shang Wanqing stood behind her, staring at the distant firelight: "They'll need at least three days' worth of water."

Huo Qingluan remained silent for a moment.

"It's manageable."

She handed the list of suicide soldiers to the deputy general.

"But I don't like doing this kind of calculation."

The next day at dawn, the Black Flag Army did not launch an attack.

Only the charred frames of the seven waterwheels behind the camp remained.

The black-armored soldiers dragged the wreckage aside, and more camels came from the northwest.

Each camel carried a water bag on its back, and was surrounded by squads of swordsmen and shieldmen.

They began to split up.

One group headed west, and the other north; they were few in number, but all rode tall white camels.

Half of the cavalry that were originally guarding the perimeter of the camp were also transferred away.

Shang Wanqing held the binoculars and looked for a long time.

"More people are coming to fetch water."

Huo Qingluan stood behind the crenellations of the city wall, watching the departing procession.

"It's not that more people are fetching water; it's that they have to go to farther places to fetch water."

"How long will the round trip take?"

"What used to take half an hour now takes at least two hours."

Shang Wanqing put down her binoculars: "Then they can't attack the city today."

"If we can't take it today, we might not be able to tomorrow."

Huo Qingluan looked towards the central army of the Black Flag Army.

The 30,000-strong army won't collapse immediately if it loses seven waterwheels.

But their rhythm had been disrupted, and the camels, soldiers, and water-fetching teams all had to be redeployed.

This is enough.

What she wanted was never to burn the water for 30,000 people overnight, but to turn every little thing into trouble.

Make them fetch water slowly, make them march slowly, and make them think carefully about whether they have enough water before each time they approach Yangguan Pass.

If we can hold out until reinforcements arrive, Yangguan will have the opportunity to launch a counterattack.

"General, there are men outside the city!"

A garrison soldier came running quickly.

Huo Qingluan turned around: "The Black Flag Army?"

"No, they are scouts sent out from the Northwest."

Soon, several scouts were brought up to the city wall.

They only went to two teams, but when they came back, only four people remained.

The lead scout's face was covered in sand, and his arm was wrapped in cloth, which was soaked with blood.

Huo Qingluan looked at him.

"explain."

The scout swallowed hard: "There are people setting up camp over at the ancient city ruins again."

"How many?"

"The tents you see can hold more than 5,000 people."

There were also many newly dug hearth pits, scattered around, as if several teams had temporarily come together.

Huo Qingluan pressed her fingers on the city wall.

"What about the banner?"

"I saw three kinds."

The scout hurriedly replied, "They're different from the Black Flag Army. There's a red flag, a yellow flag, and a blue flag. I couldn't make out the patterns on the flags, but they're setting up camp to the east."

Shang Wanqing's expression changed.

"Towards Yangguan?"

"Very likely."

The scout nodded: "The Black Flag Army also sent men there last night, two teams of camel cavalry, as if they were there to provide support."

Huo Qingluan looked towards the northwest.

The message she had been waiting for finally arrived.

News of the Golden Crown Man's death has reached the Western Regions.

The false news that the "Landscape Map" was in the capital also reached the ears of those tribes.

Now, the army in the ancient city has begun to move.

"Those people are heading this way," Huo Qingluan said.

She spread out the defense map, her finger landing on the northwest corner.

"The fastest will arrive in three days."