Chapter 156 It’s Over
Go out of the border from Gubeikou and head north for another 80 miles to reach the border of Bei'an Prefecture, where there is a camp facing the Wuluan River.

The cold wind wrapped in snowflakes slapped the Mobei flag. Because it was a little wet, the long vertical flag just stuck to the flagpole listlessly, occasionally swaying in the wind.

Several riders came galloping from north to south, entered the camp directly, and fell off their horses in front of the main tent.

Shili Qixiang frowned fiercely and glanced around calmly. He found that the morale in the camp seemed to be a little low. There were no people in many camps. Many Mobei people were hiding in their tents and did not come out. Most of the people moving around outside were Han soldiers.

The Queen of Mobei actually had to use the Han people as the main force to stabilize the morale of the army...

After retreating from Yan to the grassland, even though Shuliduo tried to control the news, many people in Mobei finally discovered that this group of Mobei troops who had marched south from the royal court to fight had become "grassland rebels" and "the shame of Mobei" without them knowing when.

The life and death of the former great king, Yelu Abaoji, was unknown, so Yelu Lagu took advantage of the situation to ascend to power. He not only controlled the royal court, but also controlled most of the tribes, pastures, and most importantly, livestock and other properties of the army that marched south to the northern desert.

For a time, the people in the Mobei camp were in turmoil, rumors were spreading, and the Mobei soldiers were all in danger. Shuliduo had no choice but to stay on the bank of the Wuluan River, relying on several mountains as a barrier, and then reused Han generals such as Zhao Siwen, and let the Haner army take on the task of guarding the night.

Even the surrendered soldiers from the Dangxiang and other tribes that Xiao Yan gave to the queen, Shuliduo also made use of them as much as possible, equipping them with leather armor and serving as reserve soldiers to prevent any accidents.

It was past noon, but the sky was still gray, as if the dawn was invisible. Snowflakes were falling everywhere. Han soldiers with bows were standing guard on the wall of the village, and there were also teams of soldiers patrolling in the camp, so it was not easy for people to tell the truth.

But Shili Qixiang knew that the Mobei Army, knowing the truth, would be embarrassed to fight...

She sighed inwardly, asked for instructions, then lowered her head and walked into the main tent.

"News came from the south. As soon as Danzhou launched the movement, all the military states north of Youzhou responded. The 1,000 cavalrymen we stationed at Gubeikou have also followed the order and moved south. According to the established plan, we will sweep westward, occupy Jimen (Juyongguan), and attack Zhuozhou in the south to cooperate with the Yan army in building momentum."

In the main tent, Zhao Siwen was pointing at the map hanging on the wooden frame and talking. He turned around to glance at Shili Qixiang who had entered the tent, but ignored her and continued talking.

"The general sent by Youzhou is named Kang Huaiying. I am not very familiar with him. I only know that he is a general under Zhu Wen and is very knowledgeable about military affairs. However, due to the instigation of various parties, he was surrounded on three sides as soon as he arrived at Hengshan City. He won the initial battle, but the Lulong Army in Yuyang suddenly rebelled. He lost the field battle and retreated to Hengshan City. I don’t know how Youzhou will react..."

Other Han generals joined the discussion in the tent. Most of them were talking about news from the south. Some of the Mobei commanders and military leaders just crossed their arms and said nothing, creating a very strange atmosphere.

In the Mobei camp, the Han generals took the dominant position. How could this sound like if it were made public?

On the left side of the main tent, Shuliduo sat upright on a chair, her beautiful eyes full of majesty. She was clearly sitting there looking at the map, but people had the illusion that she was looking down on them. Even the Mobei generals, who all had their own thoughts, did not have the courage to look her in the eyes, and all of them just lowered their heads slightly.

Most of the time she remained calm and silent, only asking questions at critical moments to demonstrate that she, the Queen of Earth, still had a very clear control over the situation. Unknowingly, she calmed the panic of many people in Mobei.

The two princes were in the royal court, but the queen did not seem to be panicked at all. Obviously, there was a way. Unlike ordinary soldiers, these generals who were almost bound to the Shuli clan in a master-servant relationship could only follow the queen to the end when they had no choice. If they blindly switched to a clan, their own tribe members and tribal property would most likely be annexed by the new master, and they would return to the pre-liberation era.

No matter what the situation is, at least the queen seems to have a solution, and everyone can only comfort themselves in this way...

"queen."

Shili Qixiang squeezed past several guards, bent down and whispered next to Shuliduo.

Zhao Siwen and the others stopped talking and looked over.

"Everyone, please continue." Shuliduo waved his hand calmly, and then asked in a calm voice: "What's the news?"

Shili Qixiang deliberately lowered his voice and tried to remain calm so that others would not notice anything. Then he said, "I found Wang Ting's long-range defense twenty miles to the north..."

Shuliduo was silent for a moment, then waved his hands to indicate that he understood.

Shili Qixiang did not leave immediately, but stood respectfully behind him without saying anything more.

After listening to the military meeting for another half a minute, the queen calmly summoned Yi Mobei Qushuai and Zhao Siwen to jointly preside over the next military meeting and report to her later. Then she stood up and walked out of the main tent.

It was very desolate outside the tent. The flying snow all over the sky and the weapons held by the patrolling soldiers in the shadows of the snow all caught Shuliduo's calm eyes, without causing any ripples.

Shuliduo climbed up the tower and looked around for a long while before saying calmly, "How many people are there?"

Shili Qixiang knew what she was asking, and immediately responded: "I led people to inquire about the situation in Bei'an Prefecture, but just after walking twenty miles, I ran into more than ten cavalrymen from afar. I took a detour to observe and ran into dozens of cavalrymen. I estimated the scale, it should be a complete team of cavalrymen..."

The watchtower fell into silence almost immediately.

Both of them are first-class nobles in Mobei, and Shulido is the queen. How could she not know what a team of distant guards represents?
The so-called Yuanlanzi, whose full name is "Yuantan Lanzi Ma", is a military system created by Yelu Abaoji. Whenever the King of Mobei went on an expedition, he would divide the troops into three parts: the imperial guard, the vanguard and the Yuantan Lanzi Ma, each with a general in charge. Among them, dozens to tens of thousands of brave men were selected to form a Yuantan troop, which went deep into the enemy area to find out the enemy's strengths and weaknesses, so as to ensure the smooth progress of the army.

These Yuanlanzi of the royal court were all the most sturdy and brave knights among all the tribes. They rode two horses and moved as fast as the wind. They were the elite among the elite of the light cavalry. No matter whether it was Bohai or the previous Uighurs, as long as they had a scale of no more than a thousand cavalry, they would be easily wiped out if they encountered the Yuanlanzi. They had almost no rivals on the grassland.

Generally speaking, the imperial guards have left and right vanguards in front, and the vanguards are more than 20 miles ahead, so there must be more than ten long-range guards. This is a basic squad. Ten squads make a complete cavalry unit. Ten squads are combined into a line, and ten lines are a side, with a separate commander. The scale of the long-range guards that appeared in Bei'an Prefecture this time is even close to a hundred cavalry, which shows that the vanguard behind them is at least 5,000, not to mention the main force behind the vanguard.

Yelu Lage, this is a full-scale attack...

Shuliduo was able to calculate how far Yelu Lage was from here.

According to this, there is a distant barrier twenty miles away, and behind the distant barrier twenty miles away is the vanguard army, and dozens of miles behind the vanguard army, there must be the royal army, and it is very likely that there are even several fronts. An army of tens of thousands of people is less than a hundred miles away from this. Even if the road is blocked by heavy snow, it can still be overwhelming.

"Queen..." Serika couldn't help but call out in a low voice.

Shuliduo pondered for a while and said, "Let Yaoyan and Dahefeng go. There is no need to make too much noise, so as not to let the news spread to the camp."

"Yes." Shili Qixiang hesitated for a moment, but did not leave immediately. Instead, he suggested, "I think we might as well retreat to Gubeikou? The Han people's Great Wall is a natural barrier. Even if the royal court attacks with all its might, it may not be able to do anything to Gubeikou... Why does the queen have to be so involved..."

Shulido covered her beautiful eyes and did not answer.

If she didn't return to the grassland, how could she attract Yelu La Ge's army to the south? And how could she wash away the stigma that Yelu La Ge had given her?

The crime of killing tens of thousands of Mobei men might not be a big deal if it fell on an ordinary khan or a patriarch of a small tribe, but she was the queen of Mobei, famous for her ability to make Mobei rise. The reason why she was able to hold power comparable to Abaoji in recent years was largely because of her abilities and actions, which could truly make Mobei develop better, and therefore she was able to gain the support of many nobles.

If she didn't even dare to go back to the grassland, it would give Yelu Lage a handle, saying that she was hiding in Gubeikou because she felt guilty and didn't dare to go back, and she was no longer worthy of being the queen of Mobei. If it really came to that, after losing her reputation, I'm afraid even the Mobei army under her command would abandon her and go to the royal court.

Without the support of the true Mobei nobles, even if she regained power with Xiao Yan's strength, her foundation would only be shaky and would not last long. I'm afraid Yelu Lage saw this clearly, so he kept accusing her of crimes on the grassland to reduce her reputation as the queen.

"..."

After a long silence, Shuliduo finally spoke: "I am not a pedantic person. I will retreat to Gubeikou at the right time. If he had not left the Great Wall from the beginning, Yelu Lage would not have been stupid enough to touch Gubeikou."

"The Queen has foresight."

"Is there any news from Xiao Yan?"

"Except for the letter about cooperating with the Yan army to stir up trouble so that he could have the pretext to send troops to Mobei, there is no other news..."

Shili Qixiang looked at Shuliduo's expressionless face, gritted his teeth, and couldn't help but said boldly: "Forgive me for being frank, but why should the queen pin her hopes on this Han man? We still have a large army, and we have taken Xiao Yan's baggage. We can definitely go to Bohai to find the king. By then, as long as we spend a few years, we may be able to make a comeback..."

The queen did not even turn around, but just put one hand behind her back and tapped the wooden railing with the other hand, then asked indifferently: "Yelü Lage, how many years will you give me?"

Shili Qixiang's voice suddenly stopped, and then she knelt on one knee with a pale face: "I am not speculating about the queen, I just don't believe that Xiao Yan! Now half a month has passed, and there has been no movement in the south except for the Yan army. I am afraid that I will be fooled by this guy."

Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Shuliduo was not angry, but laughed instead.

"Ah--

"Shili Qixiang, I know you are loyal, but you cannot look at him the same way you look at a grassland man. You underestimate the vision of this hero."

Shili Qixiang didn't understand what was going on, but could only nod her head and say yes.

Shuliduo waved her hand and said, "Go down and pass the order. Just tell Yaoyan and Dahefeng that as long as the troops from the royal court do not exceed a thousand, he must stay firmly in Bei'an Prefecture. After the matter is accomplished, this queen will allow Yaoyan's tribe to break away from the Yelu clan and set up an independent camp again."

"Follow the order."

Shili Qixiang stood up and was about to leave, but when she was walking down the watchtower, she was asked again by Shuliduo.

"I remember that tomorrow is the Chinese New Year's Eve?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Tell Zhao Siwen to arrange for the various camps to celebrate the festival."

"Are we going too?"

"The Han Chinese New Year is indeed more interesting. All the wealth in the queen's account will be taken out and distributed to the various camps, just to enjoy the good fortune of the New Year."

Shili Qixiang was horrified, but had to obey the order and retreat immediately.

Shulido stood alone on the watchtower, her beautiful eyes scanning the snow mist and falling snowflakes, and she couldn't help but tighten her cloak.

Flying snow accompanied by golden swords, this frontier scenery that has always been loved by poets in the Central Plains, rarely makes the queen of land who has been in power in the royal court for nearly ten years feel a little sad.

She has many relatives, including her mother's relatives, her husband, and her son, but no one understands her, and no one is by her side during these bleak times.

By the way, after this New Year’s Eve, according to the Han people, she will be thirty years old this year.

She really didn't want to wait another ten years.

------

"In the second year of Kaiping, at the end of the year, when all the Yanyun troops had returned to Daliang, the remaining rebels in Yan land started to cause chaos.

At that time, the remnants of the Liu family in Yan area raised troops and marched out in all directions. Bandits from all over the country responded and fought with the royal army in the suburbs of Danzhou. However, the Lulong army turned against the royal army and dealt a heavy blow to the royal army from behind. Kang Huaiying, the governor of Shanzhou, was unable to control the troops and retreated to Hengshan City in defeat.

At that time, the remnants of Yan cut wood to make weapons and used their bodies as shields, occupied the food supply route of the king's army, attacked the four wild forts, and all the money and goods rewarded by Bianliang fell into the hands of the rebels. The surrendered troops in Hebei were very resentful and their morale was low. They were unable to fight and were trapped in Youzhou, so that Hengshan City became an isolated city.

The remnants of the Yan land took advantage of the situation and rose up, taking with them more than 100,000 refugees. They occupied Danzhou, Jizhou, Pingzhou, and Guizhou, and captured all the military states in the northern part of Yanyun. The Mobei army in the south took a detour to harass, and Youzhou lost all its food supply. It was like a trapped beast. The rebellious army surrounded them from all sides, and all the forts in the four fields followed them. The Liu family in Yan revived in just half a month. The land of Hebei was just recovered by General Xiao Yan, and it changed hands in an instant..."

———"History of Liang. Hebei Geography"

……

Countless urgent reports fell into Youzhou like snowflakes in just a few days, but by now, all of them have disappeared.

Why? When the chaos first started, some states and towns that surrendered to Daliang would naturally call for help from Youzhou. But in just half a month, Kang Huaiying was defeated and defended Hengshan City. Dingba and Yichang Army of Youzhou could not be mobilized. With only more than a thousand Bianliang imperial guards, they dared not go out of the city to fight in the field, fearing that they would be surrounded and killed by tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of Yan troops. Therefore, there were no reinforcements in the states and towns. Some of them might resist once or twice, but there was no news immediately.

But more states and towns were originally the governors of Hebei Province. They did not even receive much reward this time, so they naturally surrendered immediately and joined in this massive plan to recover Yan.

To this day, there is hardly a single person to be seen in the refugee camp under Youzhou City. Occasionally there are some shadows in the snow, but they are bandits and cavalrymen who appear from nowhere. The defenders on the city walls cannot tell which force these people in different clothes belong to, so they just treat them as the Yan army.

So soon, the news that the Yan army's vanguard troops had arrived at the city fell on Li Zhen's desk.

"It's over..."

Mr. Li, who had not yet survived the New Year's Eve of the second year of Kaiping, was holding a blood-stained letter for help sent from Hengshan City in his hand. His face, which had been calm all these days, finally turned pale.

He had just forced Xiao Yan away and had been in charge of Hebei for only half a month.

This vast land of Yanyun is about to change hands.

(End of this chapter)