In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

Banso's eyes suddenly sharpened.

"However, Your Highness, let's be clear from the start: if we do not see you remove your armor by midnight, you must lead your troops down the mountain and surrender."

"The elite troops of the Shatuo army will then raze this place to the ground, leaving not a single blade of grass behind!"

"Don't even think about breaking through; those below are all the elite troops of my Shatuo army!"

After uttering those harsh words, Bansuo and his men gradually disappeared down the mountain path.

"Big brother!"

"We can't lower the price!"

"If we surrender, we'll have no chance to turn things around. At worst, we'll just die in battle!" Cheng Chuliang and Yuchi Baoqi were extremely anxious.

Li Yuanchang laughed and said, "Who said I was going to surrender?"

"Then, brother, you..."

"My lords, His Highness's actions were merely a temporary measure to buy time. Even if we don't get reinforcements, our own brothers can get a few more hours of rest, which will give us a better chance of winning the battle," Guo Chao explained.

Upon hearing this, the two suddenly realized what was going on.

They all felt ashamed: "Brother, we misunderstood!"

"It's nothing."

Li Yuanchang shook his head, then his gaze swept over all the wounded guards and soldiers, most of whom were covered in blood-stained bandages.

Having fought to this extent, they have nothing to be ashamed of.

Looking at their resolute yet somewhat bewildered eyes, Li Yuanchang, as the commander, felt a pang of pity.

Like me, they all have wives, children, and elderly parents at home.

But he knew that once midnight arrived, the Shatuo army, realizing they had been deceived, would abandon their attempts to persuade them to surrender and capture them alive, and would launch a full-scale attack, taking only the corpses with them.

Li Yuanchang initially thought he could hold out a little longer, but when he learned that the other side already knew his identity, he knew that the Xueyantuo people could not be driven back.

Moreover, the arrival of this envoy may have brought others with him, which would have increased the number of Shatuo troops.

The enemy wants you, whether you are alive or dead.

After a moment's thought, Li Yuanchang made a difficult decision.

"Brothers, take this time to rest, eat all the food, and each of you pick some berries and wild vegetables to keep on hand."

"After midnight tonight, take advantage of the chaos... and the entire army will break out!"

It was extremely difficult for Li Yuanchang to utter the last four words.

To put it nicely, it's a breakthrough; to put it bluntly...

But he had no choice. He couldn't delay the arrival of reinforcements. Instead, people from the Xueyantuo arrived first. By breaking out in different directions, some people could survive and also take the news out of the area.

"yes!"

"We swear to cover His Highness the Prince of Han's escape with our lives!!" Cheng Chuliang and Yuchi Baoqi shouted, each of them with the resolve to die.

Li Yuanchang was moved, and then glanced at each of his subordinates.

He shook his head and said, "They're not covering my escape, but rather trying to break out separately. Their target is me. If they all stay together, they have no hope of escaping."

"Your Highness!" the brigade commander said.

Li Yuanchang raised a hand to stop them from speaking: "You have followed me and fought until now, you have done your best, there is no need for you to die for me again."

"If we are fortunate enough to break through and escape alive, I promise you all that I will not betray the brotherhood you have shown me. Regardless of whether you live or die, I will repay you handsomely!"

He was speaking to the officers and soldiers other than the Han Prince's personal guards. They were temporarily assigned to Li Yuanchang's command, and some of them were troops lent to him by Gong Yun.

There were about a hundred of these people left. They did not belong to the Prince of Han's mansion, but they had fought the whole way and followed him to the death. At this final moment, he wanted to give them a way out.

If you follow me, you'll definitely be attacked fiercely by the Xueyantuo people.

"Your Highness!" The officers and soldiers choked up, kneeling on one knee, extremely grateful.

Any other commander would have ordered these men to hold the line while they ran, but Li Yuanchang ordered them to break through for themselves, without worrying about him, the Prince of Han.

Such a magnanimous heart is hard to find anywhere else in the world.

"No need to weep. I calculated before I set out on this campaign; the Xueyantuo cannot hold us back!"

"Their losses are even greater!"

"If the other side is confident, they won't try to persuade you to surrender."

"Therefore, we have a great chance of breaking out. Once we get out, promotions and wealth will be within our grasp!" Li Yuanchang shouted, encouraging the entire army with an extremely optimistic and resolute tone.

"yes!!"

The soldiers of Lantian County Cangcao, whose camp was full of wounded soldiers, shouted in unison.

Immediately afterwards, Dingyuan Mountain enjoyed the last calm before the storm!

All officers and soldiers took the time to rest, stop the bleeding, bandage their wounds, and restore their strength as much as possible.

Fortunately, there were many wild fruits on the mountain, which could replenish a lot of sugar; otherwise, the Tang army would have collapsed long ago in such a fierce battle.

Li Yuanchang gathered several trusted confidants, brigade commanders, and squad leaders, and assigned them routes and tasks.

His plan to break through the encirclement involved four directions.

Cheng Chuliang led a team of thirty men, Yuchi Baoqi led a team of thirty men, and Tu Sitong led a team of forty men.

The warhorses are still there and have rested enough to be ready for a long-distance raid.

At midnight, the three teams took advantage of the darkness to infiltrate and break through from different directions. When necessary, the thirty-man team even had to disperse.

By spreading out as much as possible, they can disrupt the enemy's pursuit and increase their chances of breaking through.

"Big brother, what about you?"

"We're the ones who broke through, what are you going to do?" Cheng Chuliang frowned.

Li Yuanchang said, "I still have my personal guards; we'll have our own way to break out when the time comes."

"Big brother, you!"

"No, I want to go with you!"

"Yes, I want one too!"

The two spoke in succession, making it difficult for Tu Sitong and the others to break through on their own, so they all said they would stay.

Li Yuanchang frowned: "Chuliang, Baoqi, don't be silly!"

"This is a critical moment of life and death for all officers and soldiers; how can we act rashly!"

"But brother, if we all run away, what will you do?"

"We brothers have sworn a blood oath, and if we die, we die together. At worst, we'll lose our heads and get a big scar!" Cheng Chuliang shouted in his loud voice.

Li Yuanchang said, "I have my own way to break through."

"If you don't lead your troops to draw the enemy's attention from different directions, how can I break through?"

"You two have high combat skills and can attract a lot of enemy troops to pursue you. Only in that way will my chances of breaking through be much higher!"

Upon hearing this, Cheng Chuliang and Yuchi Baoqi frowned, appearing hesitant and conflicted.

Tu Sitong and the others remained silent. What he said made sense, but everyone could see that His Highness was giving the two of them a greater chance of survival.

"Okay, it's decided then."

"Military orders are absolute and must be obeyed."

"See you in Dingxiang!" Li Yuanchang said calmly, as if he were facing a collapsing mountain without flinching.

"yes!"

"Alright, brother, you must be careful and make sure you break through!"

"Captain Guo, I entrust my elder brother's safety to you. My brother and I will do our best to draw the enemy's attention!"

"Rest assured, both of you," Guo Chao said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

"..."