Who put the yellow robe on me?

As they approached, a cool mountain breeze blew in, bringing a breath of fresh air and alleviating the scorching desert heat. Birds circled in the sky, chirping as if welcoming their arrival.

"Brothers, hold on a little longer, we will find the silver mine soon!" Helian Xin encouraged.

The soldiers cheered up and quickened their pace.

After reaching the foot of the mountain, Helian Xin ordered a short rest. The soldiers found a place to sit down, took out their water bags, and drank from them, finally moistening their cracked lips.

"General, this mountain looks a bit desolate. Is there really a silver mine there?" A young soldier couldn't help but ask in a low voice.

Helian Xin glanced at him, with a hint of impatience in his tone: "Master Ji said there is, then there must be. Just keep digging, and the silver will naturally appear."

He recalled what Lord Ji had said to him: "Hami Shaming Mountain has rich silver resources. As long as we can mine them, the military expenditure problem in the Western Regions can be solved."

Thinking of this, Helian Xin's heart was filled with anticipation and ambition.

He seemed to have seen himself being highly valued by the king, being granted a title of nobility and appointed as prime minister, and being showered with honors.

"All troops, listen up and start digging. There will be a generous reward if you find silver!" Helian Xin ordered loudly.

The soldiers stood up, picked up their tools, and began digging at the foot of the mountain. Their shovels dug into the hard rock, making a "crackling" sound, stone chips flying, and sweat soon soaked their clothes.

Time ticked by, the sun gradually climbing to the center of the sky, its blazing rays once again blanketing the earth. The air was thick with the smell of dust, the soldiers' breathing became rapid, and their strength gradually drained away.

"General, we have been digging for a long time and found nothing." A soldier with a dusty face raised his head and wiped the sweat off his forehead, his tone full of obvious fatigue and dissatisfaction.

Helian Xin frowned and said sternly, "Stop talking nonsense and dig quickly! If Master Ji says there is, then there must be!"

The soldiers continued to dig with their heads down helplessly, complaining in their hearts.

"This damn place has no birds in it, how can there be a silver mine?" another soldier muttered.

"Shh, be careful not to be heard by the general." The companion next to him reminded.

Just when everyone was feeling discouraged, suddenly, a shout of surprise broke the gloomy atmosphere.

"Silver! Silver! There is silver here!" A young soldier jumped up excitedly, holding a stone high in his hand.

Helian Xin's eyes lit up when he heard the sound, and he hurried over on his horse. His heart was beating violently, as if he could already see wealth and honor beckoning to him.

"Where? Where? Get out of the way!" he said anxiously.

The surrounding soldiers also gathered around, their faces full of curiosity and anticipation.

The young soldier carefully handed the stone in his hand to Helian Xin.

It was an irregular stone, its surface covered with black rock, but one side faintly revealed a silvery-white glow.

Helian Xin took the stone and examined it carefully, his eyes gleaming with greed: "Is this...is this a silver mine?"

The young soldier nodded excitedly and said, "General, I have lived nearby with my father since I was young and have gone up the mountain to mine many times.

This is silver ore! The blackened parts are from being exposed to the elements for a long time. Just take it back to a silver shop for processing, and you can create silver ingots!

Another soldier quickly added, "General, Xiao Zhang is right. This piece of stone can probably be made into one or two taels of silver!"

Helian Xin's face was filled with irrepressible joy, his mouth widening to reveal a row of white teeth. "Hahaha, you guys did a great job! Keep digging! As long as we find more silver mines, I'll definitely commend you to the king when we get back, and reward you handsomely!"

The soldiers were encouraged and became more excited, and their movements became much faster.

At this moment, there was a loud noise in the sky, and then a gorgeous firework bloomed in the sky, the bright colors were particularly conspicuous in the blue sky.

"Wow, it's fireworks!" exclaimed a soldier.

Helian Xinyue looked up at the sky, grinning from ear to ear. "Hahaha, who has the foresight to set off fireworks in broad daylight to celebrate? We can celebrate properly after we've dug up all the silver!"

He was so proud that he seemed to have taken all the wealth of Hami Shaming Mountain into his pocket.

It was as if he had already seen himself asking for credit and reward from the king, and receiving countless praises and rewards.

He turned around and shouted to the soldiers: "Brothers, work harder! The silver is right in front of us, and it's time for us to get rich!"

The soldiers were also infected by his emotions and quickened their movements.

However, at this moment of jubilation, a soldier said with a pale face and a trembling voice: "General... General, this is not a firework, it looks like... looks like a signal flare from Daliang!"

Helian Xin's smile froze on his face, and his heart tightened: "What did you say?"

Before he finished speaking, a deafening cry of killing was heard in the distance.

"Kill!"

A group of armored soldiers rushed up from the foot of the mountain, all of them were energetic and well-trained.

Their armor gleamed coldly in the sunlight, and the spears in their hands were like sharp blades, pointing straight to the sky.

The leader was a tall man with sharp eyes. He was Zhou Liangwei, a general from Daliang.

Helian Xin's heart sank to the bottom of the valley, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his back. He never expected that the Daliang army would appear here!

"Quick! All troops on alert! Prepare to fight!" He gave the order hurriedly, with a hint of panic in his voice.

The soldiers were thrown into chaos. They only had digging tools in their hands and had not yet had time to replace them with weapons. Faced with the aggressive Daliang army, many people began to panic.

"General, we don't have enough weapons!"

"What should we do? They are so many!"

Helian Xin gritted his teeth and forced himself to calm down: "Don't panic! We still have the advantage! Use the terrain to resist them!"

But his voice seemed unable to suppress the fear in the soldiers' hearts.

Zhou Liangwei stood at the foot of the mountain, looking coldly at Helian Xin on the mountain, with a sneer on his lips.

He raised the sword in his hand, and his sharp eyes pierced Helian Xin's heart.

"You rats from the Western Regions, you dare to secretly mine the silver ore in Daliang? You are really courting death!" He shouted loudly, his voice like thunder, shocking everyone.

Helian Xinxin was shocked: "How do you know there is a silver mine here?"

Before he could come to his senses, the Daliang soldiers had already begun charging up the mountain.

"Quick! Stop them!" Helian Xin shouted.

The soldiers barely managed to organize a defensive line, using their shovels and spades to resist the enemy's attacks, but the swords of the Daliang soldiers were like a violent storm, instantly breaking through their defenses.

Suddenly, the sound of metal clashing was heard in the mountains, the cold light of swords flickered in the sunlight, blood dyed the yellow sand red, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of blood.

Helian Xin watched his soldiers fall one by one, his heart filled with fear and despair. His palms were covered in cold sweat, and the hand holding the hilt of the sword was shaking slightly.

"Damn it! We were ambushed!" he said gritting his teeth.

At this moment, a deputy general rushed to his side, his face pale: "General, we can't hold on any longer! Retreat!"

Helian Xin's heart was in a fierce struggle. He was unwilling to fail, but the situation before him was irreversible.

"Retreat! Retreat quickly!" he finally gave the order.

The soldiers turned around and fled like frightened birds.

Seeing this, Zhou Liangwei sneered, "Want to run? Not that easy! Chase!"