Chapter 466: Speed and Passion

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The Hot Air Balloon slowly descended among the trees; Zhong Li ordered the soldiers to grab the ropes.

The Hot Air Balloon carrying Zhao Heng landed first, followed by those of Xiao Shishi and the Second Prince.

The moment they stepped down from the Hot Air Balloons, all three felt a sense of daze.

It was as if what they had just experienced was merely a dream.

Even as an Emperor, he could only look up at the sky.

Traveling through the air—this was the legendary ability of immortals.

Precisely because of this, his heart was still surging, unable to calm down.

Not until a general came before him did he suddenly realize he had not yet escaped danger.

"This subordinate, Zhong Li, pays respects to the Emperor. Please mount your horse, Your Majesty; we must leave here immediately," Zhong Li said.

When he saw the three Hot Air Balloons return successfully, he let out a heavy sigh of relief.

The first step of this adventure had succeeded.

However, they were still in the territory controlled by the Northern Di.

Only upon reaching Qin Pass would they be truly safe.

"Yes, yes, yes." Zhao Heng became nervous again. "General Zhong, you have performed a meritorious service in saving the Emperor this time; I will reward you handsomely."

"Many thanks, Your Majesty." Zhong Li's expression was indifferent.

Ever since following Yan Wang, he only wished to serve under Yan Wang's command.

He had never thought about making a name for himself in the Great Song Dynasty court.

Therefore, he did not care at all about Zhao Heng's reward.

Moreover, from the Prince's Personal Army to the officialdom in the North Four Commanderies, all officials and generals knew that this Emperor had once intended to betray Yan Wang.

Regarding this, they harbored quite a few grievances.

The three mounted their horses, and Zhong Li immediately guarded them in the center, exiting the forest and heading toward Qinzhou.

As they left,

he ordered the Hot Air Balloon Troop to destroy all three Hot Air Balloons and abandon the Baggage Carts, traveling light.

He was not worried that the Northern Di would master the operation of the Hot Air Balloons if they obtained them.

After all, the Northern Di did not understand the differences in altitude and wind direction.

Rather, he did not want to leave anything for the Northern Di.

At the same time, he had Zhao Heng cut off a corner of the Dragon Robe he was wearing and throw it on the ground.

Half an hour after Zhong Li and his party left, the pursuing Northern Di Cavalry arrived.

Although the straight-line distance from this forest to Xian City was only about twenty li.

They had taken many detours to get there.

In the forest, they discovered broken cloth fragments and bamboo baskets.

Of course, there was also the corner of Zhao Heng's robe.

Outside the forest, they also discovered a large number of hoof prints left by the Cavalry.

They ordered someone to report back to Mule Hongzhen, and they also headed toward Qinzhou.

Xian City.

The fighting here had already ceased.

In the Khan Tent, it was deathly quiet at this moment.

Looking at Mule Hongzhen, who seemed as calm as an ancient well, Tiemuta and the three Great Kings felt their heartbeats accelerate.

They understood this Khan; the angrier he was, the calmer he became.

But whoever provoked him at this time would meet the most miserable fate.

After waiting for a while,

a cavalryman who had been pursuing the "fireballs" entered the Khan Tent. "Khan, we discovered broken cloth fragments and bamboo baskets in a forest twenty li away. We also found a large number of horse tracks in front of the forest, heading toward Qin Pass."

Hearing this, Tiemuta and the other Great Kings felt their hearts sink.

Just then, Mule Hongzhen said slowly, "Kill all the scouts responsible for patrolling the East of Qinzhou."

Tiemuta and the others felt a chill upon hearing this, but no one dared to plead for mercy.

After the cavalryman left, Tiemuta said cautiously, "Great Khan, is it possible that this is just a diversion by Yan Wang, and the Emperor of Great Song is actually still in the city?"

The cavalryman, hearing this, took out a small piece of yellow cloth. "Khan, we also found this in the forest."

Mule Hongzhen saw it, stood up, walked quickly to the cavalryman, and took the cloth fragment.

On the fragment, he saw a dragon's tail.

Suddenly gripping the cloth tightly, Mule Hongzhen let out a howl like a wild beast.

Seeing this, Tiemuta and the other generals knelt on one knee one after another.

"Immediately send all Cavalry to pursue! Search every forest and every mountain! You must bring that dog Emperor of Great Song back to me!" Mule Hongzhen roared.

"Yes, Khan." The generals stood up and walked out quickly, fearing they would be the target of his rage.

Only Tiemuta remained. He said, "Great Khan, to appease your anger, this son is willing to lead troops to break through Xian City and slaughter every Great Song soldier inside."

Although Mule Hongzhen was furious, he had not lost his reason. He shook his head slowly. "No, the Great Song army in this Xian City might be our only bargaining chip right now. If we kill them, Wulanba will die."

The southward invasion from the sea had failed, and the plan for the East had failed completely.

Although the Great Song army had been defeated in the West, the most important Emperor of Great Song had been rescued.

This meant his plan to use the Emperor of Great Song to plunge Great Song into internal chaos had also failed.

Therefore, the people of Xian City must stay alive; dead people have no value whatsoever.

Tiemuta nodded.

His current mood was just as terrible as his Great Khan's.

Originally, the entire situation had been excellent.

Never had he expected that in the blink of an eye, they, the Northern Di, would fall completely into a passive position.

……

Xian City.

Taking advantage of the lull in fighting, Yang Feng had his soldiers haul stones to repair the city walls.

He also placed more Caltrops at the breaches.

Waiting from morning until noon, he had originally assumed the Northern Di would continue their assault.

However, from atop the city wall, he saw the besieging army withdraw into their encampments, merely keeping Xian City surrounded.

Seeing this, Yang Feng frowned and pondered for a moment, then suddenly had a flash of realization.

"Yan Wang truly calculates everything; if he had sent troops to rescue us, it would only have led to a bloody battle with an uncertain outcome, but by rescuing the Emperor, Xian City is no longer important to the Northern Di, and can only be used as a minor bargaining chip," Yang Feng laughed.

Last night, Yan Wang's soldiers had descended from the Hot Air Balloon and had a brief exchange with the generals under his command.

He had already learned that Wulanba's southward campaign had failed and that he had been captured.

With the plot against Yanguan failed and the Emperor Zhao Heng having escaped in the west, the Northern Di would find it difficult to threaten Great Song for the time being.

Wuguan and Jian Pass were also not so easily conquered.

On this point, he believed Mule Hongzhen must have certainly taken it into consideration.

Thinking of this, Yang Feng could not help but admire Yan Wang.

After all, Yan Wang had truly reversed the heavens and the earth this time, turning this Northern Expedition from defeat into victory.

Even if it were not a victory, it was at least a draw.

Stroking his beard, Yang Feng looked toward the Northern Di encampments and laughed out loud.

While Yang Feng was in the midst of his joy, Zhong Li and his party were speeding toward Qin Pass.

Coming this time, they each had three horses, all for the sake of being able to travel at the fastest possible speed.

They knew well that the Northern Di would certainly be enraged by shame and send troops to pursue them.

This time, Zhong Li did not choose to hide by day and travel by night, but instead galloped straight toward Qin Pass.

Unlike the journey from Qin Pass to Xian City, where they needed to conceal their tracks to avoid being surrounded.

From Xian City to Qin Pass, the situation was completely different.

Firstly, the Northern Di had no heavy troops in the east of Qinzhou, only scattered scouting parties; even if discovered, they would not have time to notify the main army to block them.

Secondly, once they stopped, if the Northern Di Cavalry arrived and cut off the road to Qin Pass, they would not be able to return.

Therefore, they had to be swift.