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

……

On the city wall, a bearded old soldier handed over a rough earthenware bowl. The rim of the bowl was chipped, and only a shallow amount of strong liquor remained inside.

The man squatting next to him took the wine jar, poured half a bowl into his bowl, and then tilted his head back and took a swig.

The liquor is cheap and burns the throat, but in this kind of weather, you can't stand it without a couple of sips.

The wind blew in from the Gobi Desert, carrying sand that stung my face.

"Old Zhou, do you think those bastards from the Western Qiang are really going to do it this time?"

Old Zhou didn't reply. He held his bowl and squinted as he glanced outside the fortress.

In the distance, rolling hills stretch out, and the dry river valleys resemble gray-white scars, crisscrossing the earth.

He couldn't see anything behind the hill, but he knew how many eyes were hidden there.

"It's been half a month."

Old Zhou finally spoke, his voice hoarse like sandpaper scraping wood.

"The silence for half a month doesn't mean they don't want to fight; it's more likely they've made plans to completely breach Yumen Pass."

The young soldier squatting to his left swallowed hard.

"Then let's..."

"Us?" Old Zhou chuckled and downed the wine in his bowl in one gulp.

"What can we do? Three sides of the city wall have collapsed, blocked by sandbags. Half of the crossbow strings are broken, and no one is repairing them."

"Did you see the military pay allocated last month?"

The young soldier fell silent.

Everyone knew the truth about the military pay. Of the 100,000 men on the roster, fewer than 50,000 could actually stand on the city walls.

As for the rest, some of them didn't even exist—their names were made up by the general guarding the pass, Zhao Yuanlang, and the pay went directly into his own pocket.

Some of them were real people, but they were so hungry they could barely stand, let alone fight.

"That bastard Zhao Yuanlang." A dark-skinned, thin old soldier suddenly cursed from the corner, his voice so low it sounded like it was being squeezed out between his teeth.

"He embezzled public funds and drank the blood of his soldiers. While his brothers risked their lives to guard the pass, he indulged in wine and women in the command tent behind the gate."

"Last time the Western Qiang launched a night attack, the city walls were almost overturned. Where was he then? He was hiding in the cellar!"

"Shh—" Old Zhou turned around abruptly, lowering his voice:

"You fucking want to die? That's the Prime Minister's man. What's the difference between you cursing him and cursing Lu Song?"

The dark-skinned, thin veteran's lips moved twice, but he finally swallowed back what he was about to say.

Lu Song. In the mouths of the border soldiers, this name was more disgusting than the word "enemy army".

He was the one who withheld military pay, the one who installed incompetent generals as garrison commanders, and the one who turned the entire western border defense line into a sieve.

Brothers, it's not that we can't fight.

He was stabbed in the back by his own people, and bleeding, he still had to go up the city wall to block the enemy.

"Never mind," Old Zhou sighed, placing the empty bowl at his feet.

"What's the use of cursing? The Prime Minister is in the capital, and we're stuck in this godforsaken place. Who cares if we live or die?"

A silence spread. Several veterans squatted behind the crenellations of the city wall, and none of them spoke.

The wind swept overhead, carrying sand and dust, and howled as if it were mourning someone.

After a long while, the young soldier cautiously spoke.

"I heard from someone that...that woman is in the Western Qiang region..."

His voice grew softer and softer until it was almost just a whisper.

"The one who married into the Wei family, the Western Qiang princess. It seems she's been holding back the eldest prince, preventing them from launching a full-scale attack."

The veterans exchanged glances.

Old Zhou picked up the empty bowl and twirled it twice in his hand.

"Stop talking."

He paused for a moment, his lips moving slightly.

"She's a woman whose husband died, yet she's willing to come back and protect us. All we can do is hope she can hold on for a few more days."

He glanced at the silent hills in the distance, a strange, indescribable look in his cloudy eyes.

"Every day she holds on, every day we live is another day we live."

……

Inside the central command tent, the atmosphere was as heavy as lead.

Wei Zhao sat in the main seat, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest. The scout had relayed the conversation between the veterans just now, word for word.

He didn't let anyone interrupt him. These words, spoken by the lowest-ranking soldiers, were more truthful than any military report.

Zhao Yuanlang was Lu Song's man.

They were paid without working, exploited by their soldiers, and their commanders were incompetent.

Tuoba Yue dragged things out within the Western Qiang for over a month, effectively turning the eldest prince's all-out offensive into a piecemeal affair.

But there is a limit to this kind of delay.

The silence for half a month can only mean one thing—the eldest prince has cleared away the internal obstacles and is ready to take decisive action.

With an intelligence of 1100, Wei Zhao's brain was working at lightning speed.

He mentally reviewed the information he already knew, like chess pieces, and then looked at Liu Jingshuang sitting below him.

"Shuang Jing".

Liu Jingshuang raised her head.

"My mother must have planned Fourth Sister-in-law's schemes in Western Qiang in advance, right?"

That's a very direct question.

Liu Jingshuang did not deny it. She nodded, her voice cold and clear.

"The day after the wedding, my mother called us all over separately and made arrangements for each of us."

She paused for a moment.

"My sister-in-law is in charge of the troops, I'm in charge of the battles, Qingyun is in charge of the money, Qingluan is in charge of the formations, and Xiaoyue went back to Xiqiang to be an inside agent. Everyone has their own role, and we are all pawns of our mother."

Wei Zhao's fingers stopped.

The day after the wedding.

At that time, the nine older brothers were still alive. The old matriarch had already laid out her plans.

When did she foresee this great war? Was it earlier, or from the moment Lu Song began to withhold military pay?

Wei Zhao suppressed the thought. Now was not the time for sentimentality.

"But those are just the framework of the game." Liu Jingshuang looked at him, her phoenix eyes filled with a scrutinizing seriousness.

"The one who truly decides the outcome is the player. My mother can strategize, but she's not here."

"The real key to victory or defeat in war lies in how you, the commander-in-chief, act."

Wei Zhao nodded. He leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the map of the Western Regions in front of him.

"Then we now have two choices."

He raised his hand and drew a line on the map.

"First, don't enter the pass. Hide the 230,000 troops on the outskirts and let Yumen Pass continue to be a target."

"When the Western Qiang are launching a full-scale attack, we will strike from the flank and catch them off guard."

The finger stopped at the position of Yumen Pass.

"Second, we'll enter the pass directly. We'll kick that good-for-nothing Zhao Yuanlang out, take over command, and confront the Western Qiang head-on."

There was a moment of silence inside the tent.

Huo Qingluan stood beside the topographical map, her fingers stroking the command flag. She remained silent for a few moments before slowly speaking.

"The first option won't work."

Wei Zhao looked at her.

Huo Qingluan frowned, her voice not loud, but each word was emphasized.

"The soldiers guarding Yumen Pass are human."

Her gaze fell on the fortress marked with a small flag on the map.

"If we hide outside and watch them get beaten, waiting for the Western Qiang to launch a full-scale attack before we take action—we'll lose our edge."

"The news of our arrival to provide support will most likely not be kept secret. Even if the Western Qiang don't know, the Yumen Pass should have already discovered us by now."

Huo Qingluan's voice became slightly more forceful.

"Even if we win in the end, those defending brothers who died in the siege... they are not bait."

"I don't want to use even a single soldier as bait to be sacrificed at will."

The tent fell silent again.

Liu Jingshuang stood to the side and glanced at Huo Qingluan.

This woman, who is usually so quiet, rarely spoke so much. And every word she uttered hit the nail on the head.

"Qingluan is right," Liu Jingshuang said, her tone carrying a rare hint of agreement.

"Yumen Pass is not Yanmen Pass. Yanmen Pass is our own territory. We know what's inside the city and how long we can hold out."

"But the garrison at Yumen Pass is unfamiliar with us, and Zhao Yuanlang is a good-for-nothing who only knows how to make money."

She walked to the topographic map and pointed to the front of the fortress.

"If we hide outside and launch an ambush, the defending troops will not know that reinforcements are coming. Once their morale collapses and the city falls, everything will be over."

As Wei Zhao listened to the two people's conversation, the scales in his mind had completely tipped.

But he needs to confirm one thing.

Huo Qingluan and Liu Jingshuang's attitudes.

These two men, one in charge of the formation and the other in charge of the troops, were the right-hand men of the entire army.

If their judgment aligns with his, there will be no deviation in execution.

It's now confirmed.

"Then let's not dwell on it." Wei Zhao stood up from his chair, his voice steady.

"The entire army will set off early tomorrow morning and directly enter Yumen Pass."

He walked up to the topographic map and emphasized the location of the pass with his finger.

"I'll take over command from that idiot Zhao Yuanlang. The defense of Yumen Pass will be under my control starting tomorrow."

Liu Jingshuang and Huo Qingluan nodded at the same time.

Wei Zhao's gaze lingered on the map for a moment before shifting to the densely packed hills west of the pass.

"If the Western Qiang want to fight, then let them come. I'll beat them to a pulp on the front lines."

He turned around and looked at the three women.

"As long as we have an absolute advantage on the front, Fourth Sister-in-law won't be in danger inside Western Qiang. Right?"

Su Qingyun stopped counting on her abacus. Liu Jingshuang and Huo Qingluan exchanged a glance.

The three people nodded almost simultaneously.

That's right.