Border Soldier: My fiancée snatched credit and broke off the engagement, so I promptly became a marq

Han Wanshan did not attack immediately.

He halted his main force on the north bank of the frozen river, arranging 1,500 cavalry into five formations. The remaining soldiers who had fled back were stripped of their armor and forced to kneel before the formation.

Behind the cavalry were three hundred archers, craftsmen, and over two hundred auxiliary soldiers escorting the wagons. Including the remnants of the vanguard, Han Wanshan brought nearly two thousand troops this time.

On the north wall of Blackstone Fortress, many people saw so many cavalrymen dismount at the same time for the first time. The snow was covered with black armor, and the horses' breaths blended into a white mist. The South Korean army began to erect wooden palisades and dig horse ditches, and more than a dozen siege ladders were also unloaded from the rear.

If we feed them well, we can surround all four city gates by tomorrow morning.

The people in the city who had just won two games fell silent again.

Some men, still eating their hot pancakes, were already turning back to look at their wives and children. A border soldier who had just surrendered quietly asked Er Gou if it was still too late to take off his armor and leave.

Er Gou pointed to Han Lie's corpse on the frozen river.

Do you think he'll let you leave?

The soldier stopped asking questions, lowered his head, finished the cake, and went to get a quiver of arrows.

Han Lie is dead.

Of the 600 forwards, only a little over 60 returned.

Han Wanshan neither cursed nor killed.

They were only made to kneel and look towards Blackrock Fortress.

This silence is more frightening than a roar.

He was over fifty years old, dressed in plain black armor, and rode an ordinary black horse. Behind him, however, were twelve Han family Black Mountain Banners, each three times taller than the Black Pot Banner.

"Chen Mu".

Han Wanshan's voice came from across the frozen river.

"Han Wenshan, Han Qianshan, and Han Lie have three lives. I won't ask you how you're going to compensate me."

"Before nightfall, withdraw the men from Blackstone Fortress to Wild Dog Gully."

"Leave the silver, grain, horses, and Batu."

I'll give you a way out.

After hearing this, Er Gou angrily shook the bronze seal of Han Lie on the flag.

"His men are all dead here, and he still says he'll give us a way to survive?"

Chen Mu did not shout at Han Wanshan.

He was looking at the rear of the Han family's formation.

Fifteen hundred riders stopped in the snow, needing fodder, hot water, and provisions. Dust billowed behind them; a long caravan was approaching from the direction of Bailang Pass.

At least eighty vehicles.

The vehicle was covered with thick felt, and the tire tracks were very deep.

It's not an arrow.

It is grain.

There's also grass.

Chen Mu had guarded the wagons at the Chitie Depot and also raided the Han family's grain supply route. He could tell by the depth of the wheels sinking into the ground that the heaviest wagons at the front were loaded with rice, the lower wagons in the middle with wine and meat, and the last few high-sided wagons were piled with hay. More than eighty wagons could feed at least two thousand people for seven days, and enough to sustain more than a thousand horses for three days.

Han Wanshan planned to establish a foothold outside Black Stone Fortress and slowly devour the people inside.

Chen Mu could certainly defend it.

Twenty-seven cartloads of rice had just been seized from the fort, the wells had water, and the city walls had been repaired. But once they retreated behind the walls, Baiquan and Yegougou would be cut off one by one by the Han army. Those who had just surrendered would see no new grain or horses, and could only count the Han family's banners every day.

Chen Mu didn't like letting others decide how many days he had left to live.

Han Wanshan dared to stop and force surrender because he knew the grain carts would arrive by evening.

Chen Mu turned around and gave the order.

"Lu Shuang returned to Blackstone Fortress with his armor and heavy cavalry."

"Light all the torches on the city wall."

"To make him think we are preparing to defend the city."

Lu Shuangyi did not leave immediately.

"Where are you going?"

"Take the grain."

"You're injured like this and you're still leading the team?"

"I divided the silver among myself."

"I'll be the one to go and seize the grain."

Lu Shuangyi stared at his bound right arm.

Chen Mu added a sentence.

"Don't charge into battle."

"You said that before."

"Last time it was a car chase."

"Then you crushed Liang Qi to death with a stone mill."

Chen Mu was speechless for a moment.

Anato laughed beside her.

"Let him go."

"I'm looking at him."

Lu Shuangyi turned to look at her.

"Can you keep an eye on them?"

"If you can't keep an eye on them, tie them up."

Chen Mu said, "You can argue later."

Both of them looked at him at the same time.

Chen Mu mounted his horse first.

He led two hundred light cavalrymen to circle back to the lower reaches of the frozen river, using the river channels and low slopes to head east. Anado led one hundred herdsman riders behind them, while Zhou Tie led fifty Black Pot Heavy Cavalrymen to bring up the rear.

Before setting off, Lin Qinghe finally arrived at the riverbank.

She saw the fresh blood seeping onto Chen Mu's shoulder, her face colder than a frozen river. She said nothing, only patting a small packet of hemostatic ash into his arms.

"If it cracks again, I won't be able to lift my right hand again."

"Know."

"You always know."

Lin Qinghe tightened the shoulder pad for him, her knuckles deliberately pressing against the edge of the wound. Chen Mu gasped in pain but didn't flinch. After tying the last knot, she hung a kettle of hot water on the car.

"Come back to change the dressing."

Chen Mu nodded.

Anato watched from the side, and only said after Lin Qinghe had walked away, "She was trying to prick you with a needle just now."

"Not pricking me is already being very polite."

All three hundred-plus horses had their bells wrapped in cloth and walked along the low-lying part of the ditch. When they were about two miles from the grain convoy, Chen Mu ordered everyone to stop and put sacks over the horses' muzzles as well. Zhou Tie led fifty heavy cavalrymen to hide behind a hillside, while Anato went around to the rear of the caravan. Two herdsmen rode the captured Han horses closer first, tricking the four outer sentries into leaving.

The four men didn't even have time to warn anyone until their throats were slit.

Lu Shuang led the main force back to Black Stone Fortress in a grand procession.

As expected, Han Wanshan did not pursue Chen Mu.

He assumed the three hundred-plus men were defeated soldiers retreating, so he ordered the vanguard to slowly advance to three miles outside the city and set up camp again.

The grain carts were still five miles away from the main battle line.

There were three hundred infantry and cavalry protecting the grain.

Upon seeing the Han family's large banner in the distance, the leader lowered his guard. The coachman began cursing the slippery road, and the cavalrymen dismounted to push the cart.

When Chen Mu rushed out from behind the low slope, the first car had just gotten stuck in the snow pit.

"Enemy attack!"

The grain protection team hurriedly formed ranks.

Their bows and crossbows were strapped to their saddles, and they didn't have time to retrieve them. Chen Mu's light cavalry had already rammed into the caravan from both sides.

Don't cut off the coachman.

They specifically targeted the guards.

After the first charge, more than twenty Han family cavalrymen fell to the ground. The remaining men retreated between the grain carts, trying to use the cart planks to block the horses.

The deputy commander protecting the grain finally retrieved a crossbow from the company and ordered the infantry to form seven small formations, each consisting of three grain carts. The crossbow bolts flew low at the horses, and nine fell instantly on Chen Mu's side. The light cavalry, blocked by the cart formation, would be pinned to the wooden planks along with their riders if they charged again.

Chen Mu raised his sword and ordered the vanguard to scatter to both sides.

Han's infantrymen thought he was scared and had just reloaded their crossbows when Anato released dozens of packhorses from behind the caravan. The packhorses had burning hay tied to their tails, and the flames burned their fur. The horses charged into the caravan like madmen.

The driver screamed and ran away.

A wine cart was overturned, and wine jars rolled everywhere. Another hay cart caught fire, and the infantrymen guarding the position were busy putting out the fire, causing the tense formation of seven carts to immediately loosen.

"Zhou Tie!"

Fifty black-clad cavalrymen emerged from behind the earthen slope.

They didn't charge the largest formation, but focused on the narrowest gap. The first rank, men and horses alike, crashed into the carriage shafts, snapping the wooden beams with a crack; the second rank squeezed through the breach, their iron hooves trampling directly over the infantrymen holding crossbows.

The deputy commander protecting the grain tried to regroup, but Anato shot an arrow through his hand holding the flag. The flag fell, and the seven smaller formations fought independently, never receiving the same command again.

Anado led the herdsmen to pounce from behind, hooked the lasso onto the cart shaft, and pulled it out at the same time by more than a dozen horses.

The grain carts were forcibly dragged out of the formation.

A gap is visible in the middle.

Zhou Tie led fifty heavy cavalrymen and charged in.

The heavy cavalry, though few in number, were like fifty iron hammers. The carriage was narrow, and the Han family infantry could not spread out. Those in front were slammed against the carriage floor by their horses' chests, while those behind were blocked by their comrades.

Chen Mu still did not rush to the deepest point.

He sat in a light carriage, shooting the leader with a powerful Northern Barbarian bow.

The first arrow pierced the leader's shield.

The second arrow severed the reins.

The team leader abandoned his horse and hid under the grain cart, and Chen Mu ordered the entire cart to be overturned.

Several thousand kilograms of grain bags were pressed down.

Only one scream rang out.

Two soldiers crawled out from under the vehicle.

Chen Mu's light chariot brushed past, its left wheel running over a man's calf. The old soldier driving the chariot yanked the reins, bringing the wheel to a stop. The man couldn't pull his leg out and could only watch helplessly as his companion was impaled by a short spear.

"Don't kill!"

"Two more supply wagons are still waiting at White Wolf Pass; they won't arrive for another three days!"

Chen Mu bent down to ask about the route and number of vehicles before having someone pull him out from under the wheels.

Sometimes, a living person is more valuable than a dead one.

The grain protection team lost its leader and began to flee towards Han Wanshan's main camp.

Chen Mu did not send anyone to chase after him.

"Remove the horse!"

"Drive any vehicles that can move towards Blackstone Fortress!"

"Those who can't leave, load up the grain sacks!"

Of the eighty-six grain carts, forty-seven were intact.

Twenty-one vehicles had damaged wheels, but the grain sacks could still be moved.

The remaining eighteen vehicles were stuck in the snow ditch.

Besides white rice and roasted wheat, the cart also contained over 2,000 catties of dried meat, 300 jars of horse wine, six carts of arrow shafts, and ten carts of hay.

If Er Gou were here, he would be crying right there, clutching the grain sack.

Chen Mu had someone tear the dried meat apart first.

"Two yuan per person."

"Eat while you move."

The herdsmen riders and the soldiers of Black Stone Fortress, with meat in their mouths and grain on their shoulders, moved twice as fast.

Anato dragged an obese businessman out of the last car.

"This man said the grain didn't belong to the Han family."

"They were forcibly requisitioned from sixteen military garrisons by Bailang Pass."

The merchant knelt down and begged for mercy.

"I'm just transporting grain for the Han family!"

"There are elderly people and young children at home!"

Chen Mu asked, "Whose car is it?"

"mine."

"It won't be like that anymore."

"The horse is mine too!"

"No, not anymore."

The merchant was about to cry when Zhou Tie chopped off his money pouch at his waist.

The money fell to the ground.

The drivers next to them all lowered their heads and chuckled.

Over the years, the merchants have been pressuring and overcharging the Han family for their vehicles, often killing drivers in the process. The fact that they've been spared is already a mercy.

Han Wanshan soon discovered that the grain convoy was on fire.

He dispatched five hundred cavalry to the rescue.

When a black line appeared in the snow in the distance, Chen Mu's men had already driven away forty-seven grain carts. The remaining grain sacks were all tied to the horses' backs, and the wine jars that could not be carried were smashed open.

When the horse wine is poured into the snow, its aroma wafts for miles.

The last eighteen wrecked vehicles were not burned.

Chen Mu had people stick black pots and rags all over the car.

When Han's reinforcements arrived, they only managed to salvage an empty car and the smell of alcohol.

Han Wanshan stood at the front, and his expression changed for the first time.

His 1,500 riders hadn't had dinner yet.

He only had half a bag of fodder left.

Dozens of wisps of smoke rose from the direction of Blackstone Fortress.

When forty-seven grain carts entered the north gate, the entire fortress was crowded onto the street.

The child chased after the wheels of the cart. The woman from the military household reached out and touched the grain sack, confirming that it was indeed rice inside. Tears streamed down her face. The Han family soldiers, who had just surrendered the night before, stood outside the crowd, initially hesitant to approach. However, Su Wan had the first sack of roasted wheat brought to them.

"Those who guarded the North Gate today will each receive a bowl of rice."

"If your family members are at the Bailangguan military garrison, give them your names, and we'll bring them back on the next trip."

The border soldiers were stunned for a long time, then suddenly they all knelt down.

Su Wan frowned.

"Don't kneel, go unload the grain."

They immediately scrambled to their feet and scrambled to carry the sacks. Some carried two sacks on one shoulder, their backs bent under the weight, but they refused to put them down. This grain had originally been taken from the mouths of their parents, wives, and children, but after going around in circles, they finally managed to get a bowl of it into their own stomachs.

On the city wall, large cauldrons were set up one after another.

Old Chai poured the freshly stolen white rice into the pot, then threw in two large pieces of dried meat. The aroma wafted towards the Han family's military camp.

The Han family cavalry could smell it.

You can also see the guards on the city wall eating from bowls full of food.

When Chen Mu returned to the North Gate, Er Gou served him the first bowl.

"Sergeant, what's Han Wanshan having for dinner tonight?"

Chen Mu took a sip of the hot porridge.

"Eating the wind."