Isolated town in northern border region

The fires at the Northern Barbarian camp burned all night long.

When Xiao Xiong's three thousand Canglang cavalry broke through the enemy formation from the rear, the Northern Barbarian commander knew that the situation was hopeless.

With their supplies and provisions burned, the tribes, already harboring their own secrets, were unwilling to squander their resources on this impregnable fortress.

Before dawn, the Northern Barbarian camp began to stir.

First, small groups of troops secretly broke camp, then entire groups retreated, and finally even the commander-in-chief's central banner began to move north.

"Your Highness! The Northern Barbarians are trying to escape!"

Er Gou lay on the edge of the stack, trembling with excitement.

Xiao Lie stood on the city wall, watching the dark mass of people slowly move north.

He hadn't changed his golden armor yet; blood scabs had formed on the armor plates, making them hard like a shell.

The wound on my left arm had just been dressed, and traces of blood were seeping out.

Shen Chongyuan was seriously injured, and Xiao Xiong, dressed in black armor, replaced him behind Xiao Lie.

The man, in his thirties, had a scar on his face that ran diagonally from his brow bone to his jaw, making him look like a brave and fierce man.

"Young Master."

Xiao Xiong clasped his hands in a fist salute, his voice steady and calm.

"You are injured, and everyone in Cangwu City is wounded..."

"In my humble opinion... it would be more prudent to proceed with caution."

Xiao Lie did not answer immediately.

He turned around, looked at Xiao Xiong, his gaze calm.

"General Xiao, how many men do you have?"

"Three thousand young men, each one a man raised on the grasslands, excelling in horsemanship, swordsmanship, and archery!"

"Three thousand."

Xiao Lie nodded, then looked at the remaining soldiers resting at the city gate.

Even with the addition of the Canglang tribe, they could barely muster four thousand men. Four thousand against one hundred thousand—that does seem like a significant disparity…

Once the pursuit leaves the city and they encounter the plains cavalry, which the Northern Barbarians excel at, a single misstep could lead to disaster!

Xiao Xiong noticed his hesitation and cupped his hands in greeting again.

"Don't worry, young master."

"Of the 100,000-strong Northern Barbarian army, the true main force consisted of only 30,000 troops from the Khan's own army."

"The other tribes are nothing but scattered soldiers."

"Now that our supplies have been burned and the tribes have suffered heavy losses, who would still be willing to risk their lives for the Khan?"

"This humble general asserts that within three days, without the young master even needing to send troops in pursuit, the Northern Barbarian army will surely disintegrate!"

There's a saying in the Central Plains: "A son of a wealthy family would never sit under a dangerous roof." Why must you, young master, take such a risk?

Xiao Lie remained silent for a moment, then made a decision that surprised everyone.

"No."

"We must pursue them! And we must severely cripple the main force of the Northern Barbarians!"

Xiao Xiong was taken aback, his eyes filled with confusion.

Five thousand men, chasing down an army of tens of thousands?

Or is it on the plains, where the Northern Barbarian cavalry excels most?

This guy must be crazy!

Xiao Lie turned to look at Xiao Xiong, his eyes as calm as a deep pool.

"The northern barbarians now occupy five provinces of our Great Chu; we must not allow them to gain a foothold!"

"We can't stop now; strategically, we must move quickly!"

"Not only should we pursue them, but we should also take a huge bite out of them, so that they won't dare to head south for the foreseeable future!"

"Only in this way can there be hope of recovering the northern frontier!"

Xiao Lie's tone was calm, but his decisiveness and ruthlessness were undisguised.

Xiao Xiong blinked, as if he saw a tall and heroic figure in the young man.

As expected of Emperor Wu's eldest son, he is truly extraordinary!

With a sigh of admiration, Xiao Xiong immediately bowed and accepted the order!

"This subordinate obeys!"

"Rest assured, young master! This humble general will immediately lead the Azure Wolf Banner out of the city in pursuit!"

As Xiao Xiong turned to turn around after speaking, Xiao Lie grabbed him.

"General, wait!"

"We will definitely pursue them, but there's no need to rush. The northern barbarians are numerous and powerful. If we get too carried away, we might end up making things worse."

"After we've eaten and drunk our fill... we can catch up slowly."

Xiao Lie raised an eyebrow and revealed that fox-like smile once again.

An hour and a half later, it got dark.

Having eaten and drunk his fill and even taken a nap, Xiao Lie disregarded Xiao Xiong's numerous attempts to stop him and led three thousand Canglang cavalry out of the city quietly through the east gate.

Xiao Xiong had no choice but to stand by and protect him.

At this time, the Northern Barbarian camp had already moved back dozens of miles under the cover of night.

"Azure Wolf Riders!"

Xiao Xiong mounted his horse and raised his spear high.

"exist!"

Three thousand people roared in unison, their voices like thunder.

Xiao Lie was overjoyed at the sight of this imposing presence.

Such bravery! No wonder the late emperor painstakingly subdued this iron cavalry!

"Warriors!"

"I know you are brave, but this pursuit must not be reckless!"

"Follow orders in all actions; never be greedy for personal gain or act rashly!"

"Here you go!"

Three thousand Canglang cavalrymen swept across the wilderness outside Cangwu City like a black whirlwind, chasing after the fleeing Northern Barbarians.

The northern barbarian army did not retreat far.

The Khan's central command tent was set up in a hilly area in northern Cangzhou, with the camps of various tribes scattered around it in a chaotic manner, like fallen leaves blown by the wind.

With most of their supplies burned, morale was low, and the tribal leaders were all trying to figure out how to minimize their losses.

Some people wanted to retreat north overnight...

Some people want to wait a little longer...

Some people are already secretly packing their bags...

Inside the command tent, Khan Timur sat on a wolf-skin chair with a gloomy face, facing the scouts who had just returned to camp.

"Has Xiao Lie's pursuers arrived?"

"We've arrived. There are about three thousand riders, carrying the Blue Wolf Banner."

Timur gripped the armrest tightly.

"The Wolf Banner? A traitor to the grasslands!"

"The Eternal Heaven will never forgive them!"

Back then, his father was defeated by this very banner.

That year, Emperor Wu of Great Chu personally led the Canglang Cavalry, shattering the various tribes of the grasslands. Timur's tribe was forced to submit, paying tribute and acknowledging his vassalage year after year.

It wasn't until Emperor Wu's death, when the border defenses of the Great Chu became increasingly lax, that he was able to unify the grasslands once again.

"Three thousand cavalry... dare to pursue my army of one hundred thousand?"

Timur gave a cold laugh.

"Send the order: all units must prepare for battle! If that Prince Ning dares to come, he will not return alive!"

Timur waited all night, and Xiao Lie finally arrived.

But Xiao Lie's attack was as childish as a joke.

As dusk fell, fires suddenly broke out on the north side of the Northern Barbarian camp.

Hundreds of rockets streaked across the night sky, landing between the tents and setting several on fire.

The barbarian soldiers awoke with a start, grabbed their swords, and rushed out, only to see a dark shadow disappear into the night in the distance.

"Chase!"

The centurion roared.

The cavalrymen hurriedly mounted their horses and chased after the enemy for less than two miles, but they didn't see a trace of them. They had no choice but to return, cursing all the while.

I had just lain down when the lights came on to the west.

Hundreds more rockets were launched, and several more tents were set ablaze.

After the barbarian soldiers rushed out, the man was gone again.

Seven times throughout the entire night.

Every now and then, a wave of rockets would fly into the camp from different directions.

The once valiant Wolf Riders seemed to have turned into cowards overnight, only daring to fire a few rockets, burn a few tents, and then turn and run away.

The northern barbarian cavalry were thrown into chaos and didn't get a wink of sleep all night.

By daybreak, everyone had dark circles under their eyes and bloodshot eyes.

In contrast, Xiao Lie led his troops back ten miles and set up a temporary camp on a high slope.

The three thousand cavalrymen were unharmed, and some even took a nap on their horses.

Xiao Xiong finally couldn't hold back any longer.

He planted his spear in the ground and walked up to Xiao Lie.

"Young Master, there is something I do not understand."

Xiao Lie was eating dry rations and casually handed him a piece.

"Let's talk while we eat."

"Last night's seven raids resulted in the capture of only a dozen or so people and the burning of fewer than twenty tents..."

"We, the warriors of Canglang, are all brave and skilled in battle. If we were to storm their camp under cover of night, we could kill at least several hundred of them!"

"Young Master, why are you engaging in such... such petty squabbles?"

Xiao Lie took a bite of dry rations, chewed slowly, and said nothing.

Xiao Xiong thought he hadn't understood, so he took another step forward.

"Young Master, it's not that your method is bad. It's just... I feel that war should be fought decisively and cleanly. Either don't fight at all, or if you do, take a big bite out of the enemy!"

"You're being a bit too frivolous."

Xiao Lie finally raised his head and looked at Xiao Xiong. A fox-like smile played on his lips.

"What? General Xiao, do you think I have disgraced the bravery of the Azure Wolf Cavalry?"

Xiao Xiong was taken aback, not expecting him to ask that.

He paused for a moment, then spoke sincerely.

"Uh...yes!"

"Back when I followed the late emperor, the Azure Wolf Cavalry's every move resulted in rivers of blood!"

"Now... it's just a minor skirmish."

Xiao Lie laughed, not out of anger, but genuinely.

"Yes! I am indeed not as brave and valiant as the late emperor."

Xiao Xiong opened his mouth, wanting to say something to make amends, but Xiao Lie raised his hand to stop him.

"But General Xiao, do you know how the late Emperor died?"

Xiao Xiong's expression changed instantly.

Xiao Lie stood up, dusted himself off, and looked at the gray sky to the north.

"The late emperor was brave and always charged ahead in every battle."

"He was not afraid to die, and neither were his soldiers."

"So he won countless times, forcing all the tribes of the grasslands to submit and pay tribute."

"and then?"

Xiao Xiong fell silent.

No one knew what happened after that better than him. In that final battle, the weather suddenly changed, and the entire northern border region turned into a snowy wasteland.

The 150,000-strong army of the Great Chu was running out of food and supplies, and was dragged down!

The late emperor was exhausted and caught a cold, and as a result...

"I am not afraid of death."

Xiao Lie turned around and looked into his eyes.

"I don't want my men to die in vain!"

"The three thousand Azure Wolf Riders are the foundation you built up."

"If I were to use them to charge into a camp of 100,000 men, even if I won, how many would be left?"

"What I desire is not a Pyrrhic victory, but a complete triumph!"

"We must ensure our brothers survive and earn merit!"

Xiao Xiong stood there, watching Xiao Lie's retreating figure, and remained silent for a long time.

He thought of the late emperor, and of the man who was always at the forefront.

The late emperor taught him how to fight and how to fight desperately.

But the boy in front of him was teaching him something else.

How can we enable more people to live?

He clasped his hands in a fist and bowed deeply.

"This humble general is foolish and dull; please forgive me, young master."

"What offense should I forgive?"

Xiao Lie waved his hand.

"If you hadn't led your troops to our aid and burned the Northern Barbarian army's supplies, I probably would have died in Cangwu City!"

"Let's go, it's time to get to work. While the sun is shining, let's take a stroll around the entrance of the Northern Barbarian camp."

"Want to take a stroll?"

"Yes, let's take a stroll. Let them see that we're still here. Let them lose sleep and appetite, and live in constant fear."

Xiao Xiong gave a wry smile.

"Young Master, this is not fighting a war... you're training a hawk."

Xiao Lie smiled.

"That's right! The northern barbarians have invaded our land and slaughtered our people. I will slowly wear them down!"