Great Wilderness Demon Lord

"Exactly," the advisor replied. "And they will strive for a swift victory. The longer it drags on, the more advantageous it will be for our defense preparations. Commander Xiao's move, though seemingly risky, has actually delayed the first wave of attacks that might directly assault the fortress this winter, stopping them at the edge of the desolate wilderness three hundred miles away. However..."

He glanced at Han Zhong and said, "Shuofeng Plain has few soldiers and generals, and Ice City is newly established. I'm afraid it won't last long. Once the Langrong attack with all their might, the city will be breached in no time."

Han Chong turned around, his face expressionless: "You mean, I should send troops to rescue them immediately?"

The advisor shook his head: "If reinforcements move, the Wolf Rong may retreat temporarily or besiege the city to intercept the reinforcements, greatly increasing the variables. Moreover, if the main army marches north, the defenses will be weakened. If this is a Wolf Rong ploy to lure us away from our mountain stronghold, the risk is too great."

He paused, then said in a low voice, "Does the deputy commander mean to use Shuofeng Plain as bait to lure the main force of the Wolf Rong to besiege the fortified city, and then wait for them to be exhausted after a prolonged siege before looking for an opportunity to attack?"

Han Zhong remained silent for a moment, neither confirming nor denying: "Xiao Yunlan said in his letter that he needed supplies and time to reinforce the city's defenses. He didn't ask me for help either."

He walked back to his desk, tapping the briefing lightly with his fingers. "This man is quite bold and knows when to advance and retreat. He understands his position and what he can get from me."

"If we can hold Shuofeng Plain, it will be like a thorn in the throat of the Black Claw Tribe; if we can't hold it, it will at least break a few of their teeth, buying us time to close our defenses."

He looked up at his advisors: "Whether this is 'bait' or not is not important to him. What is important is that this is his opportunity. If he seizes it, he can truly establish himself in the North."

The staff understood and said no more.

Han Chong took the command arrow: "Order the Third Light Cavalry Battalion to move north starting tomorrow, under the pretext of strengthening patrols along the trade routes. All bandits and brigands along the way must be wiped out."

When encountering a barbarian cavalry squad, you may drive them away or annihilate them, but you must act quickly, leave clear traces, and not reveal your true intentions.

Remember, patrols must stop a hundred miles outside of Shuofeng Plain and must not approach the battlefield.

"Yes, ma'am."

The advisor acknowledged the order and withdrew. Han Chong looked at the map again, his gaze deep. The placement of Xiao Yunlan's chess piece had indeed stirred up a turbulent pool.

The next step is to see how much Black Claw will invest in this, and when and how he will make the decisive move.

At the same time, in the backyard of the Northern Merchant Guild.

Liu Heyang had just seen off Ah Qi, who had come to deliver a message. The young man's message was concise: expedite the preparations and get the shipment moving as soon as possible.

"Sir, the first batch of supplies is almost ready and is being loaded onto the trucks," the accountant reported. "However, we are still short of winter clothing. We have sent people to nearby fortified villages to buy old clothes at a higher price and refurbish and mend them. We are working day and night and will have enough within five days."

"Hurry up," Liu Heyang said, uttering only two words. He walked to the window and looked at the gloomy northern sky. Deputy Commander Han had already spread the word that, due to the approaching year-end, additional cavalry patrols were being deployed to ensure smooth trade routes.

The guild's caravan will set off mixed in with several ordinary caravans heading north, led by the most experienced captain, with twice the number of guards as usual.

"Have you arranged everything for the journey?" he asked.

"It's all arranged. We have familiar guides and rest stops along the key sections of the route. In case... in case we encounter any troublemakers, the guards will know what to do," the accountant said in a low voice. "But as the person in charge, this trip is riskier than usual. If we're targeted by the barbarian army..."

"So we need to be fast and discreet," Liu Heyang interrupted him. "Vice Commander Han's men will clear some obstacles from the shadows, but they can't cover everything. Tell the convoy not to get entangled in any trouble; protecting the cargo is the top priority."

The accountant nodded in agreement, hesitated for a moment, and then asked, "Sir, we've invested so much; what if things go wrong on the Shuofeng Plains...?"

Liu Heyang did not answer immediately. He recalled the young man's calm yet resolute gaze, and his determination when he went north alone.

"There's no 'what if'," he said slowly. "The path has been chosen, so we can only continue down it. If he can't hold it, and the Wolf Rong approach Zhenhuang Pass, it won't just be a loss for the Xiao family. For the next few years, the Northern Territory will probably have no stable trade routes."

He waved for the accountant to leave. Standing alone by the window, his heart was not as calm as it appeared.

The north wind had become the center of a vortex, and Xiao Yunlan was in the middle of it. He and the Xiao Family Chamber of Commerce had also staked their bets.

I just hope that this first step will be taken steadily.

-----------------

From the north wind plain, look towards the northern fort.

The brief period of calm lasted only three days.

On the morning of the fourth day, dust rose again on the north bank. This time, it was no longer a few scattered cavalrymen, but more than three hundred jackal warriors, driven by more than twenty wolf-like cavalrymen, who stepped across the ice and slowly advanced.

Interspersed among the group were seven or eight simple rafts made of thickly bundled logs, clearly intended for use to approach the ice wall or as makeshift climbing stepping stones.

Xiao Yunlan stood atop the wall, watching the approaching enemy ranks with a calm expression. The enemy's formation was much more organized than last time, and although their advance was slow, the pressure was immense.

"Archers, prepare." His voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for the defenders on the wall to hear him clearly. "On my command. Catapults, do not move."

The enemy entered within a hundred paces and began to draw their bows and launch arrows.

The sound of bone arrows piercing the air became much more frequent. Although most of them still landed in front of the wall or futilely embedded in the ice wall, a few had already crossed the wall and landed in the camp.

The defenders crouched low, using the wall for cover.

Eighty paces. A series of urgent whistles rang out from the jackal ranks, and the front rank of jackals suddenly accelerated their charge, while the rear ranks continued to fire arrows to suppress them.

"Archers, fire freely and suppress the back row!" Xiao Yunlan ordered.

The bowstrings on the wall hummed, and arrows rained down, clashing with the incoming bone arrows in mid-air. The rain of arrows from the jackal's rear ranks immediately thinned out considerably.

The charging jackals were within sixty paces, pushing their rough rafts as they tried to get closer to the base of the ice wall.

Just then, the leading rafts, along with the jackals below, suddenly sank into the ice—the ice surface was a weak point affected by the previous explosion and was not strong enough to support the weight.

Screams and the sound of falling into the water rang out, momentarily halting the charge.

"Release the arrows!" Xiao Yunlan seized the opportunity.

A denser rain of arrows poured down from the top of the wall, aimed directly at the front-line jackals who were caught in the chaos.

Meanwhile, several pots of boiling snow water were forcefully poured down. Although not as deadly as boiling water, being soaked through a fur coat in the bitter cold was still an unbearable torment.

The jackals' charge was interrupted. They were in disarray thirty to fifty paces from the wall, unable to advance and get close to the ice wall, yet exposed to arrows if they retreated.

The wolf-like cavalry behind them tried to advance and suppress the ice, but the condition of the ice was unclear, so they dared not venture further.

After a stalemate of about fifteen minutes, a long wolf howl echoed from the north bank. The jackals, as if granted a pardon, began to retreat in alternating cover.

The wolf-like cavalry covered the rear, firing a volley of precise arrows to suppress the top of the wall and cover the jackals' escape.