Chapter 1441: Expedition

Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Wu Zhao's noble face.

She praised Gao Yang, saying, "Minister Gao is truly my capable official. He who knows me best is Minister Gao!"

"With our hearts and minds in sync, why worry about not accomplishing great things?"

"I truly have been thinking exactly that!"

"To launch an expedition against the Xiongnu and expand our gains—looking across the entire court, the only one I feel confident in is Minister Gao!"

Wu Zhao looked earnest, her face full of expectation.

She naturally knew of Gao Yang's importance, but the Xiongnu were also a thorny problem.

If the Xiongnu were not crippled, Da Qian would find it difficult to become the hegemon of the world and would forever be held in check by them!

Furthermore, Gao Tianlong was no ordinary person, yet even he had failed to gain any advantage in his expedition against the Xiongnu despite having superior equipment, until Gao Yang personally broke the deadlock.

In that case, who else in all of Da Qian could lead an expedition against the Xiongnu?

After much deliberation, Wu Zhao still set her sights on Gao Yang.

In all of Da Qian, the only person she, Wu Zhao, could place such high hopes in and be willing to entrust with elite troops was Gao Yang!

Gao Yang's mouth twitched, and a series of black lines appeared on his forehead.

He had felt a sense of foreboding when he woke up today; so this was what was waiting for him?

But at this moment, even when facing Wu Zhao, and even though these words came from Wu Zhao herself—

He could not let Wu Zhao continue to butter him up, or else his life would be over!

"Your Majesty, this must absolutely not happen!"

"If Your Majesty wishes for me to lead another expedition to the grasslands, you might as well kill me with a sword."

Wu Zhao frowned tightly and instinctively asked, "Why?"

Gao Yang spread his hands and said in a very cowardly manner, "No other reason, it's just too dangerous."

Wu Zhao: "..."

"Just because of this reason?"

Wu Zhao was incredulous. If she were to ask any other general in Da Qian, an expedition would be for the sake of dying for her and for Da Qian; even if they refused, they would find some other excuse.

Looking across the entire civil and military court, Gao Yang was truly the only one who would use "too dangerous" as a reason!

Gao Yang was also incredulous and couldn't help but ask in return, "Your Majesty, is this reason not enough?"

"I broke the stalemate between Da Qian and the Xiongnu. I even captured the Xiongnu Chanyu's grandfather, uncle, and great-grandmother and dragged them into Changancheng. The enmity is too deep!"

"I fear the Xiongnu Chanyu dreams of eating my flesh and drinking my blood, and wants to grind my bones to dust!"

"When Commandant Wang replaced me, he even spouted wild words, claiming I had trifled with the Xiongnu Prince's great-grandmother."

"If I were to fall into the hands of the Xiongnu, I dare not even imagine the outcome."

"Moreover, there is only one way to fight the Xiongnu, and that is the blitzkrieg I previously mentioned to Your Majesty. One word—fast!"

"But the essence of a blitzkrieg is maneuvering and flanking, which is undeniably dangerous."

"Once the news leaks and the Xiongnu Chanyu mobilizes a large army to surround and intercept, I would truly be dead."

Gao Yang spoke like a machine gun, as if someone had stepped on his foot.

Wu Zhao was stunned.

He didn't explicitly say he was afraid of death in every sentence, but every sentence was about being afraid of death!

"Then why, during the Battle of the Xuanshui River Loop, was Minister Gao willing to lead his personal guards to launch a blitzkrieg against the Xiongnu?"

"If I were to use troops against the Xiongnu this time to expand our gains, Minister Gao would have more than just a mere eight hundred personal guards under his command!"

Gao Yang remained unmoved, staring into Wu Zhao's phoenix eyes as he spoke.