Chapter 1050: Southern Yue Prefecture Pacified

The firelight illuminated this unfamiliar place as if it were daytime, and the originally indistinct road now lay almost clearly underfoot.

Chen Wuji looked around, pulling the corner of his mouth into a forced smile, and asked, "Who came up with this idea?"

"Yes, it's me, Deputy General!" Chen Xingyuan stepped forward, his voice lacking confidence.

Chen Wuji gave Chen Xingyuan a hearty pat on the shoulder, saying, "Well done—you two have finally restored a bit of my dignity. You're all murderous demons on the battlefield, yet you insist on pretending to be decent folk—what's the point? You can play the good guys; I'll be the bad one."

"From now on, do it like this—use whatever tricks you have, don't hold back, don't hesitate, don't be afraid of wolves ahead and tigers behind; I can handle it!"

Chen Xingyuan opened his mouth, paused, then said, "The enemy abandoned their warhorses and fled into the mountains; Deputy General and the commander truly have no other recourse—we can only resort to this inferior plan."

"This tactic is brilliant—not an inferior move at all; defeating thousands of enemies without shedding blood is a great achievement!" Chen Wuji praised, then abruptly shifted tone: "But things aren't over yet—those who fled into the mountains are living enemies with legs, not wooden stakes; they can run and jump, and they won't just sit there while the mountain fire burns them to charcoal."

Chen Xingyuan glanced at Wushuang on one side, seeing that he had no intention to speak, and said, "The commander has already ordered the mountain pass sealed."

"Go take command of the situation; I need to talk with Wushuang about something," Chen Wuji said.

"Here!"

Chen Xingyuan accepted the order and left.

"Wushuang!" Chen Wuji called out.

Wushuang stepped forward and said, "My lord!"

"What are you spacing out for, lost in thought?" Chen Wuji asked.

Wushuang lowered his head, silent for a moment, then said, "My lord, Deputy General would like to recommend Chen Xingyuan to take command of the Personal Guard camp, but… I don't think I'm suited for it. I've wanted to say this for a long time, but I never knew how to begin."

"If the Personal Guard camp's duty is solely to protect the lord and not engage in independent combat, Deputy General could barely manage; but once it involves independent operations, Deputy General… lacks the ability, and might endanger the brothers' lives."

Chen Wuji stared at Wushuang for a moment, then said, "Just now, when I came over, I saw you and Chen Xingyuan chatting—were you talking about this?"

"Yes and no," Wushuang shook his head.

"My elder cousin told Deputy General several stories, all exemplifying the idea that great wisdom appears foolish, that profound accumulation leads to sudden breakthrough. He said I've studied many military strategies, read countless military manuals—I'm not incapable of fighting; I just haven't had my 'enlightenment' yet. He wants me to start from the basics, applying what I've learned to actual combat."

Chen Wuji glanced at Lu San ye, then suddenly smiled.

It seemed that when he chatted with Lu San ye about this matter, Wushuang himself also realized the problem.

Moreover, he seemed to be under considerable pressure!

"What do you think about it?" Chen Wuji asked.

Wushuang raised his head and said, "My lord, I can gradually apply what I've read to real warfare, but I don't want to learn by taking the Personal Guard camp into battle; I can't lead thousands into combat, and I dare not risk the lives of so many brothers to test my knowledge."

"I've taken in everything my elder cousin said, and I agree it makes sense; I've memorized countless strategies, so they can't be useless. But… I need to start small and build up, rather than jumping straight into commanding thousands—that's too risky."

"With Deputy General's abilities, commanding a hundred might already be the limit!"

Chen Wuji shook his head. "But the central army currently has no slot for a hundred men—what would you do then?"

"Deputy General could become a Section Leader!"

"Then who would protect my safety?"

Wushuang opened his mouth, but got stuck.

After a long pause, he said, "Then Deputy General will not command troops; I'll just continue as before, serving the lord as a Personal Guard to protect the lord's safety."

After saying that, he gave a slight grin, "Actually, Deputy General would prefer to be a Personal Guard—no need to worry about all those things; just hone one's martial skills and protect the lord's safety."

"Others are ennobled and made generals—aren't you envious?" Chen Wuji asked with a smile.

Wushuang gave a hehe laugh, "I know the lord will never let Deputy General down."

"You bastard!" Chen Wuji glared angrily.

Sure enough, old ginger is still spicy—Lu San ye grasped Wushuang's little thought exactly, not missing a beat.

His "forcing ducks onto the shelves" style of pushing growth gave this guy a frown and a look of deep resentment—but as soon as he mentioned being a Personal Guard, his brows instantly relaxed.

Damn nonsense!

"You only get one chance—think it over and then tell me!" Chen Wuji said in a low voice.

Wushuang grinned, almost without hesitation, and said, "Deputy General doesn't need to think it over; as long as the lord permits Deputy General to return to serve as a Personal Guard, Deputy General will have no regrets."

"Do you feel worthy of the books you memorized as a child? No regrets?"

Wushuang shook his head repeatedly, "No regrets! The lord may lack a Personal Guard like Deputy General, but not a commander like him; what Deputy General has learned would be better saved to teach his son someday—perhaps his son could bring him some honor."

"……"

Those words left Chen Wuji speechless.

This thick‑eyed, big‑eyed fellow may be a bit slow‑witted, but his mind is surprisingly sharp.

"Pick thirty soldiers from the Personal Guard camp; from now on they'll be your core, and get back here to serve as my Personal Guard!" Chen Wuji snapped angrily, "You still want a quota of a hundred? Where am I supposed to get a hundred‑man unit from? With such a big face you can dream up anything—you're just daydreaming!"

Wushuang laughed excitedly, hehe.

The people around silently covered their faces.

Their lord may shout and scold, but his affection is genuine.

They refuse to give a quota of a hundred, but does thirty not count as a unit?

……

The mountain fire burned for three full days before it was halted by the firebreak, then gradually died out.

After the fire died out, Song Bo's contingent of ten thousand Uyghur cavalry vanished completely.

In this battle, Chen Wuji personally led the central army and, at minimal cost, dealt a heavy blow to the Uyghur border forces, capturing thirteen thousand people, over one hundred thousand head of cattle and sheep, and one hundred twenty thousand warhorses.

The Uyghurs played tricks, giving Chen Wuji less than eighty thousand warhorses.

But after the war ended, Chen Wuji scraped together and produced one hundred twenty thousand warhorses—a great bounty.

This was the first time, since Chen Wuji led troops northward, that he had captured such a large number of warhorses.

This battle essentially solved the army's warhorse shortage.

Half a month after the war ended, Chen Wuji led the central army into Yǐnmǎchuān, subduing the Uyghur captives and building a city.

On this land abandoned by the Dayu Court, Chen Wuji not only intends to take it back, but also plans to hold onto it for as long as possible.

Building the city is the first step we must take!

The city's outline was drawn; shortly after construction officially began, Xu Zengyi led the army, escorting nearly a hundred thousand prisoners, arriving at Yǐnmǎchuān.

The war in Nanyue Jun was completely quelled; Chen Wuji left Chen Wu Yin to garrison Yan Zhou, while the rest of the troops were recalled to Yǐnmǎchuān.

Next, he readied himself to throw a powerful punch at the Uyghurs!