If I made you cannon fodder, how did you manage to achieve your goal of conquering the wolf's l

"promise!"

The young soldiers behind him responded loudly, their signal flags fluttering in the strong wind.

Meanwhile, outside the Iron Gate Fortress to the southwest, a scene of swift and decisive action unfolded.

Guo Shan, clad in heavy armor, stood atop the iron gate tower, his iron sword drawn with a clang, pointing directly at the official road below.

"General's order: Seal the pass during wartime!"

With a loud shout from Guo Shan, the heavy iron city gate slammed shut, and the massive gateposts slammed heavily into their grooves.

On the open ground outside the city gate, dozens of caravans and passing wagons traveling to and from Bailangji had already been guided by the Zhenbei Army soldiers into the pre-set defensive perimeter. Hundreds of sturdy wagons loaded with goods were pushed one after another, interlocked, onto the open ground outside the pass. The wheels were locked tightly with iron chains, and rows of sharpened wooden stakes and leather-covered iron shields were erected on the outside of the wagons, instantly transforming them into a solid circular wagon fortress.

"Fellow merchants and managers, calm down!" Guo Shan shouted from the fortress wall. "The barbarian cavalry are attacking! The Iron Gate Fortress's wagon formation is complete! Anyone who dares to move or disrupt morale will be punished according to military law! Hold the line, and your goods and property will be safe in the four fortresses!"

The caravan members, seeing the Zhenbei Army soldiers armed with crossbows and ready for battle, quickly calmed down from their initial panic. They grabbed their short swords and helped the soldiers block the firing ports of the wagon formation.

Within Duanhebao, the core of the entire army, the mobilization efficiency was astonishingly fast.

Shen Qinghe and Zhao Lihua had a clear division of labor. Zhao Lihua, along with the supply battalion and the land management officer, went from house to house striking the gong, directing thousands of refugees and military households who had just been allocated land to retreat in an orderly manner into the inner fortress and the deep cellars that had already been reinforced in the back mountain.

There were no cries, no stampedes.

Each household carried three days' worth of dry rations and thick cotton quilts, and under the guidance of the old patrol soldiers, quickly entered the cave to take refuge. The oxen, mules, horses, and farm tools that were originally scattered on the wasteland along the river were all driven into the livestock sheds in the inner circle of Duanhebao.

Shen Qinghe was stationed in the central command tent, where dozens of clerks were quickly checking the quantities of various military supplies issued from the warehouse.

"Five thousand high-quality steel crossbow bolts are to be sent to the front-line crossbowmen!"

"Two hundred doses of wound medicine, three hundred packets of hemostatic powder, and twenty jars of strong liquor—all to be allocated to Miss Qin's medical camp!"

"The cellar doors at Duanhebao are sealed, the iron gates are lowered, and the elderly and weak left behind are responsible for moving logs and stones!"

The entire Duanhebao Fortress, like a tightly sealed iron fortress, completed its complete transformation from a production and military settlement to a wartime bulwark in less than half an hour!

……

Inside the council hall of Duanhebao, the sand table was covered with small black and red flags representing the enemy and our side.

Xu Qingshan, Xiao Hongluan, Liu Ruyan, and the battalion commanders who had just returned from their rotations gathered around.

"Centurion, the nearly one thousand cavalry led by Wugu are not just ordinary bandits." Liu Ruyan pointed to the black wolf-head banner on the sand table, her expression solemn. "In addition to the six hundred elite cavalry of the Vulture Tribe headquarters, there are also two detachments from the Azure Wolf Tribe and the Blackwater Tribe. These people have been surviving in the White Calamity for many years, they are skilled in archery and horsemanship, their sabers are heavy, and they are adept at mounted archery and flanking maneuvers."

Old Zhou wiped the frost off his face and sneered, "So what if there are nearly a thousand cavalry? Our Broken River Fortress now has deep moats and high walls, and Bai Zhi has installed heavy ballistae on the city walls. At worst, we can just close the gates and defend to the death! They don't bring siege equipment; they'll be frozen solid for three days and then they'll be out of there!"

"Defend Broken River Fortress to the death?"

Xu Qingshan raised his eyes and shook his head.

He reached out and pulled up the red flag representing Duanhe Fort on the sand table, then placed it steadily on a narrow strip of land eight miles northwest of Duanhe Fort.

"Back then in Luoergou, we were a hundred or so remnants of the army, and we could only rely on a narrow natural barrier to ambush five hundred enemy soldiers." Xu Qingshan's eyes were deep as he lightly traced the edge of the sand table with his fingers. "But now, we have five hundred soldiers, three hundred sets of fine iron armor, four strong fortresses that form a defensive triangle, and a complete four-fortress defense system."

Xu Qingshan pointed to the treacherous area called "Eagle Beak Gully" and said in a deep voice:

"If we simply keep our troops inside Duanhe Fort and passively take the beating, the enemy cavalry can trample on our newly cultivated 3,000 mu of military farmland at will, and may even divide their forces to block the Iron Gate trade route. At that time, our grand plan for the spring will be completely ruined."

"This battle cannot be fought at the foot of the Broken River City Gate."

Xu Qingshan's gaze fell on Xiao Hongluan and Zhou Laoqi:

"We will turn Eagle's Beak Gully into the burial ground for these nearly a thousand barbarian cavalry!"

Xiao Hongluan looked at the terrain on the sand table, a glint of light flashing in her phoenix eyes: "Eagle Beak Gully's terrain slopes from west to east. To the left is the precipitous cliff extending from Qingya Fortress, and to the right is the wagon array barrier extending from Iron Gate Pass. The bottom of the gully faces the flood discharge culvert that our Broken River Fortress just repaired. This is indeed an excellent place for a decisive battle, but the problem is—why would Wugu abandon the flat Broken River Plain and insist on venturing into Eagle Beak Gully?"

"That depends on how we lure him in."

Xu Qingshan's lips curled into a cold smile as he turned to look at Aman and Zhao Lihua beside him.

"Steward Zhao, are the twenty supply wagons ready?"

Zhao Lihua stepped forward and answered crisply, "Everything was done according to the centurion's orders! All twenty carts were loaded with dry wheat straw and weeds, covered with thick tarpaulins for moisture protection. They looked heavy, as if a large quantity of fine grain had just been salvaged from the main granary of Duanhe!"

"Very good." Xu Qingshan looked at Aman. "Aman, you take twenty mountain scouts and escort these twenty grain carts, deliberately moving them conspicuously along the route from Luoyanpo to Duanhebao. Smear a little mud on the axles to create deep ruts. If you encounter barbarian cavalry scouts, don't fight them head-on. Fire two volleys of soft arrows, then abandon the two carts full of weeds and flee in panic towards Yingzuigou!"

A chilling killing intent flashed in Aman's dark, wolf-like eyes. He clasped his hands and said in a deep voice, "Understood! I will make them think that the granaries of Duanhe Fort are too late to be stored and are being urgently transferred to Tiemen Fort."

"The Wugu army has marched south in full force, their primary objective being to reclaim the silver and grain." Xu Qingshan's eyes shone brightly. "As long as he believes that the main force of Duanhe Fort has not yet had time to return to defend it, and that a large amount of military rations are exposed in the open fields, this greedy steppe wolf will absolutely not be able to restrain himself!"

Once the military order was given, the entire northern wall defense line quickly began operating according to the predetermined tactics.

……

In the afternoon, the wind and snow intensified.

On the vast snowfield south of Luoyanpo, twenty large trucks bearing the flags of the Zhenbei Army were "frantically" moving forward.

The wheels carved deep ruts in the thick snow, and the driver looked anxious, frequently looking back.

Just then, a shrill, bone whistle suddenly rang out from above the snow-covered hill ahead!

"Whoosh—whoosh—!"

Dozens of barbarian cavalrymen, clad in heavy wolf-skin coats and wielding scimitars, surged forth from both sides of the snowy slope like ghosts emerging from the snow mist. The barbarian soldiers on horseback howled, nocked arrows, and sent whistling bone arrows piercing the air, embedding them in the wooden planks of the cart.

Aman led twenty scouts in a fierce "resistance," shooting down three of the barbarian cavalrymen who were charging ahead. Then, amidst a flurry of shouts, he deliberately cut the reins of two large carts, protecting the remaining convoy as they "scrambled" to escape towards Eagle Beak Gully.

The barbarian scouts behind did not pursue them further.

Several barbarian soldiers rode up to the abandoned grain cart and used their scimitars to slash open the thick tarpaulin.

When the barbarian scout saw the bulging burlap sacks inside, with even a few golden grains of wheat peeking out, he was overjoyed and let out a wild howl.

Half an incense stick later, the news was quickly relayed back to the central army brigade.

At the edge of the snowfield, Wugu, draped in a jet-black bearskin cloak, sat astride a tall, strong, pure black warhorse. Beside him, the two tribal leaders of the Canglang and Heishui tribes also wore fierce expressions.

"Great Chief! The scouts ahead have found out!" A cavalry scout galloped up, kneeling on one knee in the snow to report loudly, "The Han people at Duanhe Fort are indeed in chaos! Xu Qingshan just returned from Yunzhou, and his new recruits can't even put on their armor properly! Knowing that a large army is approaching, they're frantically moving grain from the granaries to Tiemen Fort to the west! The roads are littered with abandoned grain carts and wheel tracks!"

Wugu stretched out his rough, large hand and stroked the heavy saber inlaid with rubies at his waist, a cruel and greedy light gleaming deep in his eyes.

"On Grizzly Bear Ridge, Xu Qingshan slaughtered my people, seized my armor, and plundered my gold and silver!" A bloodthirsty sneer crept across Wu Gu's lips. "Does he think he can rule this northern wall just because he has the backing of those spineless cowards in Yunzhou? Issue my order—the entire army must advance at full speed, follow the cart tracks, and chop those Han dogs transporting grain to pieces! Reclaim the grain, and then raze Duanhe Fortress to the ground, slaughtering every Han person!"

"Kill! Kill all the Han people!"

Nearly a thousand barbarian cavalrymen roared in unison, raising their swords high, the gleaming blades forming a chilling forest of blades in the wind and snow.

Iron hooves shattered the frozen earth, and the snow spray was whipped up several meters high by the frenzied cavalry.

Nearly a thousand cavalrymen lined up in a charging line several miles wide, like a black torrent that could destroy the heavens and the earth, following the trail left by Aman, and plunged headlong into the depths of the vast wilderness without any regard for the consequences!

……

The world was shrouded in a dark and oppressive leaden gray, and the cold wind howled like the wailing of ghosts.

On the open snowfield in front of Eagle Beak Gully.

One hundred and sixty soldiers of the Heavy Spear Battalion, clad in black-plated armor, formed three neat and imposing square formations, as solid as an iron wall.

Behind them were a team of one hundred crossbowmen wielding double-barreled crossbows; on the high ground on either side, sixty scouts and archers carrying fine steel short swords were hidden.

Nearly half of the recruits in the team were new recruits who had just received their license plates yesterday.

Although they wore indestructible heavy iron armor and held twelve-foot-long white waxwood spears made of fine steel, many of the new recruits still found their breathing becoming uncontrollably rapid as the earth began to tremble violently and the thunderous sound of hooves surged down from the horizon.

"Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!"

The snow on the ground throbbed violently, as if the entire earth was groaning in pain under the trampling of barbarian cavalry.

Amidst the wind and snow, the silhouettes of nearly a thousand barbarian riders finally pierced the dim sky and appeared at the edge of everyone's sight!

It's everywhere!

The wolf-head banner fluttered wildly in the gale, and the barbarian soldiers howled like wolves. Their sharp scimitars reflected a chilling, blood-red gleam in the setting sun and snow. They were a ruthless barbarian tribe that lived year-round in the deep mountains, forests, and deserts. The overwhelming killing intent emanating from them struck the new recruits' hearts like a heavy hammer from hundreds of paces away.

In the ranks, several young recruits' arms trembled slightly uncontrollably, their palms were covered in slippery cold sweat, and their fingers gripped the heavy spear shafts tightly, their knuckles turning pale.

Facing such a large cavalry charge for the first time, the suffocating feeling of being completely crushed by the torrent of heaven and earth almost froze one's blood.

At the forefront of the formation, Xiao Hongluan, dressed in a dark red battle robe, stood tall amidst the swirling snow.

She slowly drew the gleaming longsword from her waist, her gaze calmly fixed on the surging black tide rushing towards her.

A great war is about to break out!