Chapter 263

Early summer wind swept over the Hebei plains, lifting dust from the official road, carrying the scent of wild grass and a faint bloody odor from afar.

The "Chen" character dragon banner snapped in the wind, the twenty-thousand-strong elite forbidden troops forming the marching force like a black giant dragon, silent and swift as it advanced northward.

At the central command, Chen Wen did not ride the imperial carriage but mounted a divine black warhorse, marching alongside ordinary soldiers.

He narrowed his eyes, feeling the endurance and perception far beyond ordinary people brought by the thirty-twofold efficiency naturally operating within his body, and also sensing the increasingly clear, icy, oppressive will pulling from afar—like a great vortex whose center was Jinzhou.

A horse bearing a red command flag galloped against the flow of the marching troops from south to north, sparing no effort in speed, until it was halted by the guard at the central command's main banner.

The messenger tumbled from his saddle, face covered in dust and sweat, both hands raised high holding a sealed copper tube, his voice hoarse.

"Your Majesty! Six-hundred-li urgent report from Bian Liang! Sir Zhang Cheng and Sir Wang Pu's joint military memorial!"

The guard received the copper tube, carefully inspected the wax seal for any error, then presented it to Chen Wen.

Chen Wen took it, applied slight pressure with his fingertips, twisted open the copper tube, and removed the thin silk scroll inside.

He unfolded the military report, his eyes scanning it rapidly.

The report's content was detailed and well-organized, clearly the work of Zhang Cheng and Wang Pu.

First, concerning Hebei:

Han Tong and Zhang Yongde, relying again on the improved "Disturbing Crystal Disk," successfully repelled multiple incursions by Liu Yanzuo's rebel forces; rebel morale was low, and in the short term they could not organize a large-scale offensive.

However, Han Tong specifically emphasized that he had observed signs of fresh Iron Crow Army personnel being reinforced in the rebel camp, thus judging that the Hebei front would remain stalemated, difficult to resolve quickly, yet sufficient to pin down the rebel main force.

Second, concerning Southern Tang:

Envoy Zhong Mo had formally presented the state letter, reiterating the intention of reconciliation, and his border troops had indeed withdrawn a hundred li.

Wang Pu and Zhang Cheng, representing the court, had replied to the Southern Tang sovereign Li Jing, granting his request and agreeing on the details of mutual trade; the southern threat was temporarily lifted.

Third, concerning Jinzhou (transmitted from the Secretariat's urgent report):

Li Hong and Shi Dun jointly issued a plea for aid, stating that the Northern Han army employed some strange blue flame that burned the city walls, inflicting heavy casualties on the defenders and exhausting supplies.

At the end of the report was Shi Dun's distinctive, forceful handwriting bleeding through the paper: "Your Majesty! The soldiers and civilians of Jinzhou look forward to your arrival! I, the lowly commander, can still hold out for five days! After five days… only death alongside the city remains!"

Five days.

Chen Wen's grip on the report whitened his knuckles slightly.

The icy words on the silk turned in his mind into the blue infernal fire shooting up from Jinzhou's city walls, the blood-stained faces of the soldiers, and Shi Dun's defiant roar.

He lifted his gaze to the northern horizon, where the clouds seemed tinged with an ominous darkness.

"Your Majesty?"

The Central Commandant Li Wu beside him noticed the change in Chen Wen's expression and asked in a low voice.

Chen Wen did not answer immediately, but passed the report in his hand to him and several other core commanders for circulation.

Soon, a stifling anger and sense of urgency spread among the central command's officers.

"Your Majesty, Jinzhou is in peril! We must increase our speed!" an impatient officer exclaimed.

"Increase speed? How can the provisions and baggage keep up? If our army arrives at Jinzhou exhausted, only to find the city fallen, would we not be walking straight into a trap?" a more steady officer objected.

"Or are we to just watch General Shi and General Li…"

The officers' arguments reached his ears, but Chen Wen seemed not to hear them.

His entire mind was immersed in analyzing the current situation and opposing the icy will coming from the north.

The information in the report matched his earlier judgment exactly.

Liu Yanzuo, afflicted with a scabies-like ailment, has been firmly pinned down in Hebei by Han Tong and Zhang Yongde.

Southern Tang, the grass on the wall, has been temporarily forced back by Bian Liang's might and the small victory in Hebei.

The true eye of the storm lies in Jinzhou.

The Iron Crow Army has deployed new, even more bizarre means; they intend there to finish the job in one battle, break the backbone of Great Chen, and prove that the so-called "new dynasty" still cannot overturn "fate."

What they want is for him to hesitate, split his forces, or enter the battlefield exhausted.

"Order the entire army."

Chen Wen's voice was not loud, yet it instantly silenced all the debate.

All the officers immediately stood at attention, their eyes fixed on him.

"Change the original marching route, take the Gu Kou path, bypass the mountain range's spurs, and advance straight to the southeast of Jinzhou."

"Order the auxiliary troops to detach one-third, carry ten days' dry rations, travel light and simple, and follow the main force at accelerated speed."

"The remaining baggage shall be escorted by the leftover auxiliary troops, following the original planned route."

This order means the main force will sacrifice part of its logistical support to gain the most crucial time.

"Your Majesty, in that case, our army upon reaching Jinzhou may lack the strength for a prolonged siege or war of attrition," an officer reminded.

"We never had the time for a prolonged struggle."

Chen Wen cut him off, his gaze sweeping over the officers, sharp as a blade.

"In this battle, the key lies in speed, in delivering a single blow to shatter the enemy!"

"If the Iron Crow Army wishes to fight a decisive battle at Jinzhou, I will give them one!"

"But not at the time they choose, but at the time I choose!"

He jerked the reins hard, the warhorse reared up, and let out a loud neigh.

"Send word to Shi Dun and Li Hong!"

Chen Wen's voice rang like metal and stone, carrying far across the early summer plains.

"Tell them to hold fast awaiting aid! I, Your Majesty, will reach Jinzhou within five days!"

"Then I will see with my own eyes whether their infernal fire is fiercer, or whether Great Chen's dragon banner can blaze away the gloom of this chaotic age!"

"Long live!"

"Long live!"

The order was swiftly passed down, and the marching army's speed suddenly increased another notch.

The black torrent, bearing an indomitable resolve, surges toward the battlefield woven of blood and fire.

Chen Wen sits steadily on horseback, feeling the Fortune Momentum vortex within his body grow more active due to his decision, colliding with that distant icy will across space.

His gaze is icy and resolute.

The moment of the decisive battle is approaching.