Chapter 1218

Instead, a look of confusion had appeared on his face.

Meanwhile, Jia Xu, riding on his horse, kept his hands tucked into his sleeves, swaying left and right with the jolting of his mount.

"Gongda..." Cheng Yu hesitated for a moment before looking at Xun You beside him, "The Lord just said that Wenhe..."

"Sigh..."

Xun You smiled bitterly and sighed, saying, "Zhongkang, your nature is upright; this is not your fault."

"Wenhe has followed the Lord for so long, do you still not understand the Lord..."

"It is true that our Lord likes women..."

"But the Lord's indulgence in lust is tempered with moderation."

If one were to speak of liking women...

It is indeed true.

In these three years, the scale of Duan Yu's harem has grown larger and larger.

Dong Yi, Diao Chan, Su He, Zhen Jiang, Zhang Ning, Andiluojia, Liu Xiu, the Bian clan...

These are only the wives and concubines; there is no telling how many others there are who are not included.

Calculating it... there is one every half a year.

Yet, until now, apart from this woman named Yimei, one has never seen Duan Yu neglect official business because of any woman.

Moreover, all these women of Duan Yu, except for the Bian clan, seem to have provided great help to him.

Although Cheng Yu came later, he has heard much about these ladies.

Dong Yi is the daughter of Dong Zhuo; initially, it was precisely through Dong Zhuo's promotion and assistance that Duan Yu first stepped onto the stage of the Great Han.

And Diao Chan, as Duan Yu's earliest virtuous helper in Jinyang, helped him gather many talents.

Gao Shun, Tie Shitou, Wang Hunu, Chen Qing'an, and Liu Bai Tu.

Besides this, Chen Qing'an also formed marriage alliances with Zhang Liao and his brothers, forming the Bingzhou faction.

Then there is Su He.

Su He is the only daughter of the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu; after marrying her, Duan Yu never had to worry about warhorses again.

Today, there are still three thousand Southern Xiongnu volunteers following under his command.

Two days ago, in the battle against the Northern Xiongnu at Tianshan, Huchuquan led the three thousand Southern Xiongnu volunteers and became famous in one battle, rendering great service.

Zhen Jiang... Zhen Jiang is the eldest daughter of the Zhongshan Zhen clan, and she is skilled in commerce.

Nowadays, the trade and commerce of Liangzhou are all under the responsibility of Zhen Jiang, who utilizes the trade channels of Jizhou to earn money for Liangzhou.

Zhang Ning... there is no need to mention Zhang Ning; she is the one Cheng Yu is most familiar with.

If not for the existence of Zhang Ning, the entry of a million Huang Jin refugees into Liangzhou would likely not have been so smooth.

If one were to say that Duan Yu's current subordinates are divided into several groups, there is no doubt that although Zhang Ning is the latest to arrive, the Taiping Dao faction undeniably occupies an important position here.

Andiluojia is the daughter of the King of Loulan, and also the first step in opening the passage to the Western Regions.

Liu Xiu is a Princess of the Great Han; marrying her is equivalent to possessing the status of a Han imperial kinsman.

Among these women, only the Bian clan holds the status of a mere songstress.

Cheng Yu, riding on his horse, was momentarily dazed.

Calculating it this way, although Duan Yu has many wives, it seems every one of them has an indispensable role.

"Wenhe, did I... misunderstand something?" Cheng Yu looked at Jia Xu and asked, "Did you see it long ago?"

"You have been by the Lord's side the longest; when you first met the Lord, he had not yet taken a wife, right?"

Jia Xu shrugged his shoulders helplessly.

"Let me say first, it is not that I did not want to say it, I was afraid that if I spoke, it would ruin the Lord's important affairs..."

Cheng Yu: "..."

Sure enough, he was the only one kept in the dark.

It seems Jia Xu and Xun You had already seen the clues long ago.

Beside them, the young Guo Jia did not speak, but instead held a wine gourd in one hand, his bright eyes watching the three of them, ears pricked to listen to their conversation.

"However, Zhongde, do not take it to heart; the Lord will certainly not be angry at your desperate remonstrance today."

"An upright official can awaken the ruler; the Lord will surely value you even more," Jia Xu said, sniffing.

Cheng Yu: "..."

It sounded like that might be the case.

"I cannot say much now, I can only say... the Lord must have discovered that there is something wrong with that woman," Jia Xu said, looking with his shrewd eyes at Duan Yu, who was walking ahead of them all.

"Ah?"

Cheng Yu was startled.

If that were the case, he was not wrong either.

He had just said that the woman was a femme fatale.

It was just that he hadn't specified how she was a disaster.

"Watch, I believe the answer will be revealed immediately," Jia Xu said.

Cheng Yu nodded, "The Lord is truly... I did not expect that even I was deceived."

Xun You smiled and shook his head upon hearing Cheng Yu's words; it seemed it wasn't just Cheng Yu who had been deceived.

If he hadn't carefully analyzed the situation from beginning to end, he likely would have been deceived as well.

From the Tianshan mountain range, Duan Yu led everyone out of Lijue Pass, and then arrived on the vast plain outside Lijue Pass.

At this time, the sky was pitch black, but this did not affect the vision of the Black Tiger.

Under Duan Yu's leadership, the group did not even light torches, moving continuously in one direction.

I do not know how much time had passed.

Yimei, sitting in Duan Yu's embrace, woke up from her drowsiness.

When she opened her eyes, the sky was already slightly brightening.

A hint of fish-belly white rising from the distant horizon in the northeast gradually drove away the night, which was like a black curtain.

Yimei, having opened her eyes, rubbed her sleepy eyes and turned her head to look at Duan Yu behind her.

"General, where is this..." Yimei asked softly.

Before Duan Yu could answer, a great general riding on a horse arrived before Duan Yu, holding a large saber.

"Lord."

The one who came was none other than Hua Xiong, commander of the eight hundred Flying Bear Cavalry.

Hua Xiong arrived before Duan Yu, cupped his hands, and bowed.

"How is the preparation?" Duan Yu asked.

Hua Xiong nodded repeatedly and said, "Everything is prepared according to the Lord's instructions."

Upon hearing Hua Xiong's words, Duan Yu nodded with a smile, "You have worked hard these past few days; after we return, I will hold a victory banquet for you."

"This subordinate dares not; this is all what I should do," Hua Xiong replied hastily.

Behind them, Jia Xu, Xun You, and Cheng Yu were all bewildered.

Although they had guessed that the woman Duan Yu was holding had problems and knew that Duan Yu must be laying a trap, until the mystery was revealed, no one could guess what Duan Yu was actually doing.

Meanwhile, Yimei, who was being held in Duan Yu's arms, had a slight change in expression.

In her heart, there seemed to be an ominous premonition.

But the surroundings were entirely desert; looking as far as the eye could see, it was endless, and she could not see any clues at all.

Harboring a nervous heart, Yimei feigned calmness.

In the early morning, accompanied by the rising sun from the north of Tianshan, the dull sound of a gathering horn echoed in the Wusun camp.

Subsequently, tens of thousands of Wusun cavalry began to gather in a swarm on the flat desert.

And not long after the Wusun army began to gather, two or three thousand cavalry of the Liangzhou Army began to challenge them again.

Zhang Xiu, gripping his Hundred Birds Facing the Phoenix spear, spat fiercely onto the sand beside him.

"I've played with you for so many days, today it should be my turn!"

"If I don't kill a hundred people today, I'll write my name, Zhang Xiu, backward!"

Zhang Xiu's gaze looked toward the Wusun cavalry charging from afar, then he raised the Hundred Birds Facing the Phoenix spear in his hand and ordered loudly: "Scatter upon contact, a thousand men continue to flee in all directions, the rest continue to retreat toward the direction of Lijue Pass."

"Anyone who violates this order shall be beheaded!" ===== CHAPTER 1220 =====