The Tyrant of the Great Qian Dynasty: Not only will I refuse to arrange a marriage alliance, but I w

The chaos in the Northern Barbarian camp lasted for an entire night.

It wasn't until the next morning, when it was broad daylight, that the fires throughout the camp were finally extinguished.

But the entire camp was in a mess, a scene of devastation.

Burnt-through tents, shattered weapons, and charred corpses were scattered all over the ground, and the air was filled with the acrid smell of burnt flesh.

Huyan Ba ​​did not sleep all night.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his once robust body appeared somewhat hunched.

He surveyed the scene of defeat before him, his soldiers hanging their heads in dejection, their spirits broken, and a sense of powerlessness gripped his heart.

lost.

The defeat was so complete and so inexplicable.

He didn't even really touch the enemy's city walls.

A commander of ten thousand stumbled and rushed toward him. This man, known for his bravery on the grasslands, suddenly knelt down with a thud, hugged Huyan Ba's legs, and burst into tears.

"Great Chanyu! Let's retreat! Let's retreat!"

"That's not a war humans can fight! That's the gods helping the Great Qian people! That's divine punishment!"

"If this fight continues, all the warriors of our grasslands will be wiped out!"

His words, choked with sobs, represented the sentiments of the vast majority of soldiers.

Fear has overcome their courage.

Hu Yanba's chest heaved violently.

He raised his foot and kicked the commander to the ground.

He drew his golden-sheathed scimitar from his waist, placed the blade against the commander's neck, and shouted sharply:

"Anyone who dares to suggest retreating will be killed without mercy!"

His voice was hoarse with anger, but his imposing manner remained undiminished.

"When have the warriors of my grasslands ever been so terrified by a little bit of sorcery!"

"Isn't it just a fire-breathing iron pipe? Isn't it just an iron ball that falls from the sky?"

"As long as we can get close to them, we can chop them into mincemeat!"

He used his authority as the Great Chanyu to forcefully suppress the panic spreading through the army.

But he knew in his heart that this was just a temporary measure.

If a solution cannot be found, if the soldiers cannot be given hope of victory, the collapse of this army is imminent.

Just then, a scout responsible for perimeter security rode in on horseback.

His expression seemed somewhat strange.

"Report—!"

"Great Chanyu, outside the camp... a deserter from the Great Qian has come to the camp."

"He claimed to be Zhang Hu, the garrison commander of the South Gate, and said he had a top-secret report to you!"

"Zhang Hu?"

Hu Yanba was taken aback.

He remembered the name.

Isn't this the same general who was threatened by Zhao Qin with his mother's life and was supposed to open the south gate for them last night?

According to the plan, shouldn't he have been killed by the angry Daqian people or dealt with by Su Zhe during last night's melee?

Why would someone come here alone to surrender?

Huyan Ba ​​became alert. He stared at the scout and asked in a deep voice, "Is he alone?"

The scout replied, "Yes, he's alone. He also... he brought a 'gift,' saying that you'll understand once you see it."

"Bring him up!"

Huyan Ba ​​waved his hand, ordering his personal guards to drag the commander away.

Zhang Hu was quickly brought to the front of the main tent.

His armor was tattered, and his face and body were covered in blood and dirt. One of his arms was haphazardly draped in a strip of cloth across his chest, as if he had been seriously injured.

Upon seeing Huyan Ba, he knelt down and held something wrapped in cloth high above his head.

"The guilty general Zhang Hu pays his respects to the Great Chanyu!"

His voice was full of regret and resentment.

"I have failed the Great Chanyu's high expectations, failed to open the city gates, and instead fell into that scoundrel Su Zhe's treacherous trap. I deserve to die!"

"But the guilty general, having risked his life to escape the city, brought this to the Great Chanyu!"

Huyan Ba ​​didn't speak, but scrutinized him with a critical look.

A guard stepped forward, took the package, and carefully untied it.

Inside the package was a meticulously detailed map of the capital's defenses, drawn on sheepskin!

The map clearly marks the number of guards at each city gate, their troop deployment, and even several hidden passages and weak points in the city walls.

Next to the defense map, there was a token made of brass and engraved with a tiger image!

Tiger tally!

Huyan Ba's personal guards presented the defense map and the tiger tally.

He checked it carefully and confirmed that it was correct.

That tiger tally was the token used to mobilize the Imperial Guard, one of the three major military camps in the capital!

Seeing this, Zhang Hu continued to cry and plead:

"That Su Zhe is incredibly cunning. He saw through our plan long ago and turned the tables on us, setting up an ambush at the South Gate."

"He murdered the entire family of the criminal! Only I managed to escape thanks to the desperate protection of my confidants."

"I took this tiger tally from the body of an Imperial Guard commander who was killed by the chaotic army during the battle."

"With this tiger tally, we can command some of the Imperial Guards who are unaware of the truth! Within the city, there are still comrades like us who are loyal to the Great Chanyu. We await the arrival of the Heavenly King's army, and then we can coordinate from within and without to achieve our great goal!"

Hu Yanba looked at the heavy tiger tally and then at the incredibly detailed defense map.

His breathing became somewhat rapid.

He had originally been prepared to give up, and was even considering how to withdraw his troops gracefully.

But the appearance of this "gift" rekindled a spark of hope in his heart, which had grown cold.

The initial shock and fear were swallowed up by an insatiable greed.

He believed that this was the last chance the Eternal Heaven had given him after its punishment!

Su Zhe, you never imagined that your generals would come to me with your defense maps and tiger tally!

"Good! Good! Good!"

Hu Yanba said "good" three times in a row. He personally stepped forward and helped Zhang Hu, who was kneeling on the ground, up.

He patted Zhang Hu on the shoulder heavily and laughed loudly:

"General Zhang, rest assured! I, the Chanyu, will certainly avenge you!"

"Guards! Bring some wine! To calm General Zhang's nerves!"

"From this moment forward, you are the vanguard general under my command, Huyan Ba!"

In a corner where no one was watching, Zhang Hu lowered his head, a complex and unfathomable light flashing in his eyes.

He took the wine cup handed to him by his personal guard, faced Huyan Ba, and drank it all in one gulp.

Huyan Ba ​​then summoned all the generals of the rank of commander of ten thousand or above and brought them into the main tent.

He pointed to the defense map spread out on the table and began to plan an unprecedented, reckless all-out offensive!

He didn't notice.

On that defense map, there was a place that was specially marked with cinnabar.

Next to that location, there was a line of smaller text.

"Digging tunnels is a poor choice, but the soil at the foundation of the western city wall is loose, so we can give it a try."