Chapter 233: Accounts (A Forced 7.5k Two-in-One)

After arriving in Chang'an, or rather from the moment he left Dongjing, Zhao Jiu's mood had been deeply oppressive. Unless one stood in his position, it was hard to imagine the weight of his pressure—the lives of hundreds of thousands, the fate of millions, could all be decided in a single battle, and the outcome of that battle depended largely on his own choices and judgments as the Emperor.

And yet, at the same time, aside from the names Yue Fei, Han Shizhong, Zhang Rong, and Li Yanxian, everything else looked and sounded unreliable.

Even the things Zhao Jiu had personally undertaken, or rather all the efforts of this time traveler over the past three years, now seemed dubious under the coming test.

Would diverting the southern tax revenues directly to the various military commanders really improve the efficiency of army building? Had the supplies that nearly drained the blood and sweat of Henan's common people actually been used for military purposes by these men? With the Imperial Guard Army numbering two hundred thousand, would the senior officers truly fight bravely because of those official directives, and the soldiers because of their pay and the hastily assembled military bulletins? Had the jinshi degree holders sent into the army not spent their days complaining, wasting money and positions?

And this was only the Imperial Guard Army—the army he had worked on for so long and invested so much in, which might account for only half the strength in the decisive battle. As for the other half, the Western Army, Zhao Jiu couldn't even find faults because he didn't know where the problems might lie!

But then, wasn't there the child? Wasn't there a double anchor in this world now?

Wasn't it that whether out of selfishness or righteousness, whether from future expectations or past experiences, a sense of responsibility had finally coalesced, forcing him to face it?

So he had held on until now, and he would continue to hold on in the future.

"Your Majesty's archery is excellent!"

Seeing the Emperor Zhao fire several arrows in a row, almost without missing, Zhang Jun, the Fiscal Commissioner of the Five Circuits of Bashu, praised him sincerely.

However, in the comfortable morning temperature, Zhao Jiu, who had only shot half a quiver of arrows without even breaking a sweat, put away his bow and was unimpressed: "My archery is only practiced on the shooting range and hunting grounds. It looks flashy, but if I were actually on the battlefield facing the Jin, I might not even be able to draw the bow from fear... Let's not talk about that. Deyuan, did you come to see me so early in the morning with some news?"

"A report from Fangzhou has arrived at the Chang'an Provisional Headquarters." Zhang Jun immediately became serious, cupping his hands in reply. "Your Majesty, this time it is Wu Jie's own report..."

Zhao Jiu nodded and went directly to sit under the corridor, his expression unchanged: "Wu Jie is still in Fangzhou? Being able to resist layer by layer is actually not bad. Then, as discussed before, send reinforcements to Tongguan (later Tongchuan) in Yaozhou, which borders Fangzhou, to support him and allow him to retreat if necessary..."

"It's not about the other cities in Fangzhou Prefecture; it's Fangzhou City itself." Zhang Jun, who had followed him under the corridor, waited patiently for the Emperor to finish before explaining.

Zhao Jiu didn't react at first, but after a moment he froze: "Wu Da is still in Fangzhou City?"

"Yes!" Zhang Jun replied earnestly. "Before, he wasn't a Grand Coordinator and didn't know Your Majesty was in Chang'an, so he naturally had to pass everything through Grand Coordinator Hu in Ningzhou. Now it's different, so he reports both to Ningzhou and to the 'Chang'an Provisional Headquarters.'"

Zhao Jiu ignored why it was Zhang Jun reporting instead of Yuwen Xuzhong if the message was sent to the Chang'an Provisional Headquarters. He was still somewhat incredulous: "If he sent the message directly from Fangzhou City, wouldn't it be much faster than from Ningzhou... The message that arrived this morning could only be from the day before yesterday? It should be two days faster than Hu Yin's report last night?"

"Yes!"

"He was still in Fangzhou the day before yesterday?"

"Yes!"

"He held it?"

"Not only did he hold it, but he won consecutive battles for three days, shot and wounded a Jin Battalion Commander, forced them to change commanders, and launched a counterattack outside the city the day before yesterday, beheading five hundred and wounding several thousand!" Zhang Jun stepped forward, unable to suppress the excitement in his voice. "Your Majesty, you know Hu Yin—he is always rigid and would be especially resentful of any false reporting by subordinate officers. Wu Jie wouldn't dare to fabricate this."

Zhao Jiu was completely stunned, and even Liu Yan, who was attending him, was also stunned... If he remembered correctly, this was likely the first local battlefield victory where the Song outnumbered the Jin, a true miracle! Even Li Yanxian's recovery of Shanzhou was more of a strategic miracle.

So it was almost unbelievable.

However, that said, under these circumstances, whether it was consecutive victories, wounding a Battalion Commander, or the counterattack with five hundred beheadings—all these details could be false and it wouldn't matter, because the key issue was that the fact Wu Jie was still in Fangzhou City the day before yesterday was very hard to fake! It was almost certainly true!

And those previous details became insignificant in the face of the larger fact that Fangzhou City was still under Wu Jie's control.

By the same logic, five hundred was a very strange number and didn't fit the Western Army's tradition, but the key was another set of numbers.

"Wu Jie reportedly had four to five thousand troops when he retreated into Fangzhou City?" Zhao Jiu said slowly, thinking back over Hu Yin's daily reports from the past few days and the geographical information he had seen on the map.

"Yes." Zhang Jun, standing to the side, had an excellent memory.

"Then what does it mean that Wanyan Loushi, while Fangzhou City was still so stable, directly split his forces and went south to Baihe?" Zhao Jiu continued, lost in thought. "Was he dividing his troops to Baihe to prepare for Han Shizhong's northward reinforcement, making it easier for him to focus on the siege? Or was he abandoning Fangzhou City and heading south directly along Baihe City? If so, how many troops would he leave behind to contain it?"

"Either way," Zhang Jun replied earnestly. "Your Majesty, Loushi has already effectively divided his forces, reducing his strength by at least one Battalion Commander, four to five thousand real barbarians! And within a few days, the news will be confirmed!"

Zhao Jiu nodded slowly. This was what he cared about. Wu Jie was still holding out in Fangzhou City the day before yesterday, yet on the same day, Yelu Ma Wu led his few dozen Khitan commanders down to Baihe downstream. These two ironclad facts, combined with objective geographical conditions, led directly to one conclusion—whether Loushi was taking one route or another, he had effectively split his forces into organized units, reducing the core main force at his side by at least four to five thousand.

This was a very sensitive number.

"Have scout cavalry been sent to Wu Jie?" Zhao Jiu came back to his senses and asked seriously.

"I have already sent them out on my own authority." Zhang Jun said eagerly. "Your Majesty, if Fangzhou holds firm, Loushi divides his forces, and the Jin army from Hedong cannot cross the river for the time being, I believe we might be able to encircle and annihilate them! One battle to decide the fate of the realm!"

Zhao Jiu glanced at this trusted subordinate, who had been away in Bashu for so long that he had missed many things. After a moment's thought, he finally shook his head slightly: "Deyuan, Liu Yanxiu (Liu Ziyu) has his reasons. When it comes to the life and death of the nation, either we have no choice or we have full certainty. We cannot gamble everything on one throw!"

Zhang Jun opened his mouth as if to speak, then fell silent, ultimately saying nothing.

And it must be said, Zhang Jun's thoughts were understandable without anyone explaining them.

Partly it was his nature, partly his eagerness to prove himself... This attitude could be seen as either public-spirited or self-serving, but a little selfishness became insignificant after he had donated his family wealth to the state.

"Pay close attention to the news. We'll discuss the battle later." Zhao Jiu said this, then stood up and began shooting at the target again.

Zhang Jun had no choice but to accept the order and take his leave.

And so, this brief meeting between ruler and minister did not change the core strategy here in Chang'an... Of course, that was as it should be. The core strategy of a large-scale battle could not be altered by a minor change on a local battlefield.

The three-layer defense system of Tongzhou as one sector, the Wei River as one line, and Chang'an as one point remained the predetermined and fallback plan for the current campaign.

However, the news that Wu Jie had likely held Fangzhou City still brought great encouragement to Chang'an, especially as various reports gradually came in...

That evening, reports from local officials in Fangzhou and a new daily report from Hu Yin arrived together in Chang'an.

The next day, the first day of the fifth month, in the morning, scout cavalry sent from Chang'an, changing horses along the way at full speed, brought back news of Wu Jie's several days of holding out and counterattacking in Fangzhou. The scouts claimed to have seen with their own eyes a large number of real barbarian heads. In addition, they brought news that the Jin army had abandoned the siege, left their camp at Hekou, and divided their forces to go south.

By this time, many people had already shaken off their previous notions, and even Liu Ziyu remained silent.

By noon, when Wu Jie had specifically sent a messenger with his personally written account of the battle in Fangzhou City... Zhao Jiu no longer doubted Wu Jie's achievements. He had even keenly realized that this general, who had previously been subordinate to Qu Duan and suffered consecutive defeats, might be a great talent like Li Yanxian—someone obscured by his own poor historical knowledge, but who had now emerged like an awl poking through a sack.

And it must be said, Wu Jie's official report naturally contained phrases like "thanks to the imperial majesty," but compared to these empty words, some descriptions that clearly matched the objective laws of the battlefield, some practical and realistic statements, combined with the undeniable fact that he had held Fangzhou City, were what truly made the Emperor realize the man's ability.

Such passages were actually few, only three paragraphs, but they were enough.

The first said: "Select strong bows and powerful crossbows, take turns firing fiercely, shooting without cease, arrows like rain, bolts like an unbroken line of troops..." This explained how he won specifically. Rotating fire and suppressive fire perfectly matched a typical college graduate's understanding of what decides a battle.

The second said: "The divine arm crossbow was the most useful. Not only did it win every battle and could sweep the battlefield, but I also set up craftsmen in the camp to repair them through the night, otherwise we would have run out of bolts..." This described the danger of the battlefield and the limiting conditions for victory, and hinted that Wu Jie's risky counterattack was largely due to his fear of running out of crossbow bolts, and was an act to recover bolts for overnight repairs and seize control of the battlefield.

The third said: "The Jin have four strengths: cavalry, endurance, heavy armor, and bows and arrows. Therefore, use terrain to negate their cavalry, use intense heat and rotating volleys to negate their endurance, and use divine arm crossbows and bed crossbows to counter their heavy armor and bows and arrows..." This explained his overall strategy for the battle from a theoretical source, and implicitly explained why he had previously abandoned Luojiao City and chosen to retreat to Fangzhou City to hold out.

To be fair, Zhao Jiu had never seen anyone produce such an excellent battle summary... Not the rough men Han Shizhong and Zhang Rong, not Li Yanxian, and not even Yue Fei, who had shown nothing similar! Qu Duan might have, since he was Wu Jie's former superior, but his personality was a fatal flaw.

And this Wu Jie was, without a doubt, more outstanding than Qu Duan, a great general of the same caliber as Han, Yue, Li, and Zhang!

On the second day of the fifth month, a special fast rider from the front lines sent by Han Shizhong reported that countless Jin troops were moving south along the North Luo River and entering Baishui City. He had captured Jin scouts and learned clearly that Wanyan Loushi and Wanyan Balisu were personally leading the troops there. There was also talk of Tuhesu being wounded and Salihie being defeated and left behind. More importantly, the Jin army at Baishui City was definitely only around thirty thousand!

At this point, no one doubted the great victory at Fangzhou.

And without a doubt, Wu Jie, with only five thousand battered remnants, had indeed caused the Jin to suffer several thousand casualties and a division of four to five thousand troops... In other words, the most ideal situation had emerged. At the most critical moment, an unexpected person, with an unexpected five thousand remnants, had traded for ten thousand Jin troops.

The whole of Chang'an suddenly brightened.

That afternoon, at the military council of the Chancellery convened for the new situation, just as the Privy Council had finished marking the new battle situation on a simple clay model and Liu Ziyu was about to give a brief explanation, Liu Xi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Three Western Circuits, formally requested battle from Zhao Jiu, asking to lead the main force directly to engage the enemy at Baishui.

"Your Majesty."

Because it was a grand military council with many participants, it was held in the shade of the trees in the rear courtyard. Liu Xi stood with clasped hands before the large assembled sand table, speaking with impassioned eloquence. "As things stand now, neither side has any clever stratagems left. The war situation west of the Pass is merely a matter of reckoning accounts. Previously, I considered the Jin soldiers fierce, able to match three of ours, so I believed no fewer than one hundred twenty to one hundred thirty thousand troops would be needed to face the enemy. I still hold this view today—we need at least one hundred thousand men to take the initiative and block the enemy beyond the plains. And at present, west of the Pass we already have one hundred thousand Imperial troops!"

It must be said that Liu Xi's argument had some logic to it.

The closer one got to the moment of showdown, the more everything became like a simple arithmetic problem... but simple as it was, it was also extraordinarily deadly.

And Liu Xi's calculation method was as always—still one against three. So after the situation changed, the problem in his hands had become vaguely solvable, because west of the Pass there really were about one hundred thousand Song troops available... forty thousand from the Imperial Camp Central Army, forty thousand from the Western Army's three western circuits plus the Jingzhao troops, and His Majesty Zhao still held a trump card in hand.

Still not enough. No matter where—for instance, from Qu Duan and Wu Lin, who should reply soon—with a little scraping together, they could somehow muster one hundred thousand.

In fact, Liu Xi's move quickly received responses from many military officers. Except for his younger brother Liu Qi, who stayed out to avoid suspicion, all the western generals qualified to "meet with His Excellency Yuwen" here eagerly volunteered for battle.

Later on, even Wang Yuan, the Imperial Camp Commander-in-Chief who had been laboriously making the sand table, could not resist stepping forward to volunteer... This was his chance—a chance to turn this Imperial Camp command from nominal to real—and he was unwilling to give up even a thread of hope.

Seeing such an enthusiastic display, coupled with the military miracle Wu Jie had just achieved, Yuwen Xuzhong and Zhang Jun—who had been rejected by His Majesty once before—both began to hesitate.

As for His Majesty Zhao, as always, he showed no extra expression, merely sitting before the sand table and quietly listening to the generals' words.

"I believe this cannot be done!" Just as these men had finished stating their positions one by one, and Zhao Jiu was about to reply, Liu Ziyu, the Chief Aide of the Privy Council, stepped forward with a dark face and spoke vehemently. "Not only must it be stopped, I beg Your Majesty to also issue punishment—behead Liu Xi and Zhao Zhe, the two ringleaders, to warn those who come after!"

The summer breeze blew in gusts, tree shadows dappled the ground. Liu Xi, Zhao Zhe, and several other Western Army generals stood dumbfounded. Yuwen Xuzhong and Zhang Jun both shrank back.

Before these men could recover their wits and formulate a rebuttal, Liu Ziyu clasped his hands again and spoke startling words:

"Your Majesty, are these men acting for the state? For the Son of Heaven? They have merely seen Wu Jie achieve a remarkable feat, grown jealous, and conceived a contempt for the enemy. They want to gamble the fate of the realm to win themselves some merit! I beg Your Majesty not to fall for their scheme!"

Zhao Jiu immediately shook his head repeatedly. "Spare me these accusations of hidden motives... What does it matter if they have selfish intentions? If they can win, that's enough! Conversely, if they cannot win, even the purest public spirit is nothing but a heart that harms the state... Yanxiu, let's stick to the facts."

"Then let's stick to the facts. I believe Liu Xi's calculations are wrong!"

The generals had barely caught their breath when Liu Ziyu continued sternly. "Your Majesty, I ask only this: if we send one hundred thousand troops to block Wanyan Loushi at Baihe, and he holds his position and refuses to fight, waiting for reinforcements, what then? Even if the Pujin crossing is blocked by Grand General Han, when it comes to a decisive battle, a life-or-death moment, can the Jin army not abandon logistical concerns and send twenty to thirty thousand elite reinforcements across the Longmen ford? And if we use Commander Liu Xi's one-against-three calculation, where do we find the sixty to seventy thousand troops to deal with those twenty to thirty thousand Jin soldiers? Should Grand General Han abandon Tongzhou and come here? Then if the Jin army forces a crossing at Pujin and sends over eighty to one hundred thousand men, where do we find the corresponding two to three hundred thousand? That is why I say Liu Xi and Zhao Zhe deserve execution! I do not believe that they, who constantly speak of three against one, could have failed to think of this!"

The courtyard fell into dead silence. Zhao Zhe instinctively looked to Zhang Jun for help, but was glared back. Liu Xi directly knelt on one knee, claiming negligence and incompetence.

Seeing this, Zhao Zhe also quickly bowed his head to confess his fault.

Zhao Jiu gestured for the two generals to rise while slowly shaking his head at Liu Ziyu. "Yanxiu (Liu Ziyu's courtesy name) has a point, but Commander Liu and the others could not have harbored malicious intent... Let us discuss this further!"

Liu Ziyu could say no more and could only bow in assent.

And so, because of Liu Ziyu's insistence and His Majesty Zhao's ambiguous attitude, this military council ultimately could not change the grand strategy. The council ended with orders for Wang Yan to advance with his Eight-Character Army to the area of Pucheng, Meiyuan, and Fuping, deploy for battle, resist as opportunity allowed, and serve as flank support for Han Shizhong.

The military council ended inconclusively.

After the council, as everyone went their separate ways, Zhang Jun took the initiative to call out to his close friend Liu Ziyu as soon as he stepped out the door, inviting him to share his carriage.

"Yanxiu, both you and Liu Xi have calculated wrong!"

One in purple, one in red—a pair of distinguished old friends sat facing each other in the stifling mule cart, ignoring the stuffiness. Zhang Jun got straight to the point. "You can't calculate it as three against one! The Western Army is defending their homes and country, supplies are piled up like mountains, His Majesty is personally overseeing the battle, morale is soaring—why should it be three against one? Was Wu Jie at Fangzhou fighting three against one?"

"Was it I who said three against one?"

In private with a friend, Liu Ziyu naturally had no reservations, and he was furious inside, so he sneered coldly. "Liu Xi said three against one himself. And who in Chang'an doesn't know? His Excellency Yuwen acts weakly, you and Hu Yinzhong can say whatever you like without being denied. The three northern circuits are Hu Yinzhong's territory, but the three western circuits are yours. The Liu brothers have always been your private men! So even if Wu Jie is usable, it only means the troops of the three northern Shaanxi circuits are usable. Instead, Liu Xi's own statement confirms that your three western circuits' troops are weak, only able to fight three against one!"

Stung by this retort, Zhang Jun was also furious, but he forced himself to calm down and return to the main point: "Yanxiu, do you truly not know, or are you pretending? Liu Xi has the temperament of a Western Army warlord. At first, seeing the situation was unfavorable, he didn't want to fight, and not knowing His Majesty's martial prowess, he thought he could be deceived. So he deliberately downplayed his own strength!"

"And how weak can it be?"

"I'm muddled too. If you didn't know, how could you so calmly use his own spear to attack his shield?" Zhang Jun recovered his clarity and continued earnestly. "Yanxiu, at this point, I won't argue with you about three against one. Even if both you and Liu Xi are right—that the three western circuits' troops are weak and can only fight three against one—the weakest is three against one, but the strong are also three against one? Can't the Imperial Camp troops manage two against one? Can't the troops His Majesty personally brought here manage one against one? One hundred thousand is enough! Besides, Qu Duan and Wu Lin are both reorganizing their troops. They might even bring ten to twenty thousand from Jingyuan and Huanqing, or even relieve Wu Jie! The troop strength is truly sufficient!"

"So what?" Liu Ziyu continued to sneer coldly.

"Then we can fight! And we should fight!" Zhang Jun said urgently. "His Majesty came entrusted with a great responsibility—he must win this battle. The opportunity for battle is right before us—how can we let it slip? As his subjects, we must share His Majesty's burdens and the realm's worries!"

Seeing his old friend speak so candidly, Liu Ziyu calmed down considerably. But he gave a soft sigh and shook his head again. "Deyuan, let's set aside the thinking of a warlord like Liu Xi. I know you have another account in your mind. But do you know how I calculate my account?"

"How do you calculate it?" Zhang Jun also calmed down.

"That day, two hundred thousand Western troops were broken by ten thousand under Wanyan Loushi..." Liu Ziyu began without hesitation.

"If you talk like that, we might as well surrender!" Zhang Jun's expression changed at just half a sentence. His breathing became unsteady, startling the mules outside, causing the driver to quickly pull on the reins and shout. "Why don't you mention the Jingkang Incident? If His Majesty had been in power that day, do you believe there would have been a Jingkang Incident? The Jin would never have crossed the border!"

"That's not what I mean." Liu Ziyu said helplessly. "I'm saying that at the moment of decisive battle, having more troops isn't necessarily a good thing... Because a great battle is different from a small one. In a small battle, if you win, you win; if you lose, you lose. But in a great battle, you must ensure nothing is missed or leaked, and combine the orthodox and the unorthodox. When armies engage, they spread out over ten li, fighting continuously. If one spot leaks, everything leaks. This is the helplessness of using weak troops against strong ones. To defeat the strong with the weak, you must use many to strike few. But when you use many to strike few, the more troops you accumulate, the more flaws you inevitably have. And once the weak troops' flaws are seized by the strong, that's the moment of total collapse..."

Zhang Jun thought for a moment and nodded slightly. "You have your own military calculation, and it has considerable logic. I shouldn't have started discussing military accounts with you in the first place. But I have another kind of calculation. Do you want to hear it?"

Liu Ziyu's heart stirred slightly, and he simply raised his hand in a gesture.

"I don't understand military affairs, but I do know that since the Mingdao Palace, in about three years, His Majesty and all of us have done many things, haven't we?" Zhang Jun's tone was calm, but his eyes were fixed on the other man. "Can't this account be calculated from here?"

Liu Ziyu instantly became solemn, and instantly abandoned any intention of arguing with him, because in that moment he understood the other's meaning and grasped from the marrow the way the other man calculated his accounts.

"In three years, whether in military or civil affairs, from His Majesty on down, we have always been striving to do things, haven't we? We haven't been indulging in pleasure and neglecting our duties, harming the state and the people, have we?" Zhang Jun did not stop because of the other's solemnity. On the contrary, as he continued speaking, his emotions gradually grew more agitated. "Yanxiu, I only ask you—whether it's His Majesty, or us, or the many others, dead or alive, foolish or wise, exiled or retained, civil or military—haven't there been at least some people who have tried to do something? And if the things we have done are broadly correct, then after three years of hard work, three years of forbearance for the sake of the state, why can't the Great Song stand again?! Why must we let these barbarians push us, push His Majesty, push the Imperial Song to this point?! Tell me honestly—shouldn't this battle west of the Pass be ours to win?! Can't the account be calculated this way?!"

Pressed into a corner, Liu Ziyu could not refute and did not want to. Instead, he suddenly asked an irrelevant question: "Deyuan, do you like archery?"

Zhang Jun forced down his emotions. "I don't know how at all."

"But I do, and His Majesty does too." Liu Ziyu said seriously, as if to himself. "Archery is not just for cultivating one's spirit or practicing martial arts. The Sage listed it as one of the Six Arts for a reason... First, to cultivate self-discipline in solitude; second, to control release and restraint; third, to seek choices and trade-offs... As the Chief Aide of the Privy Council in charge of the Directorate of Military Maps, advising His Majesty on military affairs, I spend all day thinking about the war situation across the entire realm from Qingtang to the Eastern Sea. The stakes are so high that I often feel I cannot bear it. After coming to Chang'an, I've become even more anxious. At such times, I go to the city garrison to practice archery, thinking through countermeasures as I shoot. These days, I spend more and more time there. Sometimes I shoot until my arm aches and I still don't want to stop."

"Yanxiu has worked hard." Zhang Jun clearly thought of something. "But His Majesty has worked hard too. And since you know His Majesty has worked hard..."

"That's not what I mean." Liu Ziyu shook his head. "I mean that His Majesty has certainly worked hard, but I suspect that when he shoots arrows, he also has his own account in his mind—an account unique to the Son of Heaven, an account we cannot fathom!"

Zhang Jun was suddenly stunned.

"Both you and I think that warlord Liu Xi's account is a mess. You also think my account has shortcomings. But it may well be that your account—that if one does one's utmost, then Heaven's mandate will follow—also has shortcomings in His Majesty's eyes..." Liu Ziyu said earnestly. "So Deyuan, let each of us attend to our own duties, keep our own accounts, observe the situation, and hold our own opinions. His Majesty will make the decision!"

Zhang Jun was silent for a moment, then nodded heavily.

But the moment he nodded, the entire mule cart lurched violently, causing both men to stumble inside.

"What happened?" Zhang Jun was momentarily furious.

At the same time, Liu Ziyu instinctively grasped the sword at his side... The war was critical; Zhang Jun was effectively the overall logistics chief for the entire western region, and Liu Ziyu himself was the chief military advisor. They had to guard against assassination.

But immediately, a retainer outside the cart reported: "Your Excellency the Transport Commissioner, Your Excellency the Military Advisor, nothing serious. It's just that too many new troops have entered the city, the road crossings are endless, and the mule was going too fast, causing a momentary loss of order..."

This was a common occurrence. In fact, the two had heard the constant sound of armor, chariots, and horses earlier but hadn't paid attention. Now that the cart had stopped, Zhang and Liu decided to step out of the stifling mule cart together and take a breath.

However, the moment they got out of the cart, they were both stunned, because before them stretched an endless column of troops, complete with banners and armor... This was understandable—when outside troops entered Chang'an, they naturally dressed in full regalia to display their military might and combat effectiveness. Choosing the early evening when the heat had subsided was also for this reason... So the problem was not just that they had banners and armor, but that the numbers were also very large!

Not only were the numbers large, but the rate of armored troops seemed too high. About half were cavalry wearing iron masks, and the other half were long-axe infantry also wearing iron masks. Moreover, whether cavalry or infantry, they maintained a certain order in their march. On one side of the street were all cavalry, on the other all long-axe infantry, with supply wagons in the middle—clearly extraordinary.

"Which army is this?" Zhang Jun, in his purple robe, was dumbfounded. "Where did they come from?"

"This is not any army. This is an account." Liu Ziyu, in his red robe, folded his hands and watched a young general ride past him under a large banner bearing the character "Zhang," flaunting his might without sparing a glance at the purple-robed and red-robed high officials watching from the roadside. Seeing a large banner bearing the character "Tian" raised on the opposite side of the street, he spoke the truth. "This is the account of Zhang Boying and Yue Pengju!"