Rebirth: Phoenix Riding the Ninth Heaven

Baili Xi was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke, "I understand your concerns. Our army has indeed suffered heavy losses in this battle. However, if we don't seize this opportunity to completely suppress the Xiongnu, once they recover, they will surely return, and the people along the border will once again suffer."

The Fourth Prince, Li Jing, surveyed the crowd with a resolute gaze and spoke solemnly, "Although we paid a heavy price in this war, it has also made it difficult for the Xiongnu to recover. Now is our chance. If we can decisively defeat them in one fell swoop, peace can be guaranteed on the Daqian frontier for years, even decades. As for food and manpower, the court will fully support us. As soldiers of the Daqian frontier, our mission is to defend our country and we must not retreat because of temporary difficulties."

A brief silence fell within the tent as everyone weighed the pros and cons. After a long pause, an old general stood up, clasped his fists, and said, "The Fourth Prince and the General are absolutely right. Until the Xiongnu threat is eradicated, there will be no peace on the frontier. Though I am advanced in years, I am willing to follow you two and march forth once more to serve my country to the bitter end."

Seeing this, the other generals also stood up and said in unison, "We are willing to obey the orders of the Fourth Prince and the General, even if it means death!" Baili Xi looked at the high morale of the generals and felt a warm feeling in his heart. He stood up, clasped his fists and returned the greeting, saying, "With you all like this, there is no need to worry about the Xiongnu's destruction. But for now, we must first deal with the matter at hand."

Everyone sat down again and continued their discussion. Baili Xi continued, "Cleaning up the battlefield isn't just about clearing away corpses and collecting supplies. More importantly, we need to learn lessons from this war. We need to analyze the Xiongnu's tactics, identifying their strengths and weaknesses so we can respond in the future."

A young general nodded and said, "General, this time the Xiongnu cavalry charge was extremely fierce, and their archery skills were also very impressive. Many of our brothers were killed by their arrows."

Li Jing frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then said, "The Xiongnu are known for their cavalry. Across the desert, they are highly mobile and can move like the wind. We must strengthen the training of our own cavalry while developing tactics to counter their mounted archery. For example, we could form shieldmen and crossbowmen to work together. When the Xiongnu cavalry charges, the shieldmen would defend the front lines against the rain of arrows, while the crossbowmen would fire from behind to blunt their momentum."

Baili Xi nodded in agreement. "The Fourth Prince is absolutely right. Furthermore, we need to strengthen our intelligence gathering efforts. During this war, our understanding of the Xiongnu's movements was not precise enough, which put us at a disadvantage in some battles."

The generals wrote down these key points one after another, and a heated discussion continued in the tent. Everyone was making plans on how to deal with the Xiongnu's renewed invasion.

Meanwhile, outside the tents, soldiers continued to clean up the battlefield. Moonlight shone on the sand, illuminating their busy, exhausted figures. Some soldiers dug large pits, preparing to bury the bodies of fallen comrades and the enemy separately. Their movements were heavy and slow, and each shovelful of sand seemed to be filled with endless sorrow.

"Brother, go with peace of mind. We will avenge you," a soldier said, choking with sobs as he buried his comrade's body. The other soldiers also shed silent tears, their hearts filled with reluctance to part with their comrades and hatred for the Xiongnu.

While burying the bodies, the soldiers discovered some wounded Huns who were still alive. They lay on the ground, groaning in pain. Looking at these former enemies, the soldiers felt a mixture of emotions.

"What should we do? Should we save these Huns?" asked a soldier.

"Save them! They may be enemies, but they are also lives. We at Daqian have always been based on benevolence and righteousness. We cannot stand by and watch them die." Baili Xi decisively ordered this upon learning of this. The soldiers then carried the injured Xiongnu to a makeshift medical station, where they were treated alongside the injured soldiers of Daqian.

On this brutal battlefield, the brilliance of humanity shone through at this moment. Although both sides had fought to the death, the soldiers of Ohmae showed tolerance and kindness in the face of life.

As the battlefield cleanup progressed, more and more problems emerged. While examining the bodies of the enemy, the soldiers discovered strange markings and letters. These markings seemed to be some kind of code, and the contents of the letters were obscure and difficult to understand.

"General, these items seem to hold a hidden meaning, possibly related to the Xiongnu's next plan." A soldier presented the find to Baili Xi. Baili Xi carefully examined the markings and letters, his brow furrowed. "Send these items back to the capital immediately. Have the wise men and spies at court study them and understand their meaning."

That night, the bonfires in the desert were lit. The soldiers persevered in exhaustion. They not only had to clean up the debris of the battlefield, but also had to find a direction for the future of Daqian. Although this war had allowed them to witness endless tragedy, it also made them more determined to protect the country and the people. In this land full of blood and pain, a new

As research into the Xiongnu letters and strange markings deepened, disturbing news arrived from the capital. After days of tireless research, court spies and wise men discovered that the markings pointed to a hidden Xiongnu stronghold, and the cryptic contents of the letters hinted at a larger and more sinister counterattack.

Upon hearing this news, Baili Xi and the Fourth Prince, Li Jing, looked grim. Li Jing clenched his fists and angrily declared, "These Xiongnu are indeed ruthless and still plotting a comeback." Baili Xi pondered for a moment and said, "It seems our earlier judgment was correct. We must act quickly and prevent their plot from succeeding."

The two men quickly gathered their generals to discuss countermeasures. The atmosphere in the tent was tense. Upon hearing of the Xiongnu's plot, the generals were filled with indignation, clamoring to immediately dispatch troops to destroy the Xiongnu stronghold. However, Baili Xi raised his hand to signal for calm. "Everyone, do not act rashly. Since the Xiongnu have such a plan, they must have set up heavy defenses around their stronghold. If we attack rashly, we will most likely be ambushed."

A general anxiously asked, "What do you think we should do, General? Are we just going to sit back and watch them prepare for a counterattack?" Baili Xi smiled faintly and said confidently, "Of course not. On the one hand, we must continue to strengthen intelligence gathering, sending elite spies deep into the Xiongnu's heartland to closely monitor their every move. On the other hand, we must feign ignorance and remain silent, making the Xiongnu believe their plan has not yet been exposed. At the same time, we must secretly gather our forces and wait for the perfect moment to strike them a fatal blow."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Thus, a covert military operation quietly began. Like ghosts, the spies infiltrated Xiongnu territory, carefully avoiding Xiongnu patrols and gathering detailed intelligence about the hidden stronghold. Meanwhile, in the Daqian military camp, the soldiers began intensive training in preparation for the coming battle.

Every morning, before daybreak, the rousing blast of trumpets rang out from the barracks. The soldiers awoke quickly from their slumbers and began the day's training. The spearmen brandished their spears in unison, their tips flashing with a cold gleam. The cavalry galloped, their hooves kicking up clouds of yellow dust as they practiced various tactical maneuvers on the training grounds. The crossbowmen practiced their marksmanship intently, striving for every arrow to hit its target with pinpoint accuracy.

The fourth prince Li Jing personally participated in the training of the soldiers. He worked hard with the soldiers and encouraged everyone: "Brothers, the Huns are trying to invade our homes again and hurt our loved ones. We must not let them succeed! Everyone train hard, and when the time comes, we will make sure the Huns have no chance of returning!" After hearing this, the soldiers' morale was boosted and they trained harder.

Meanwhile, in his tent, Baili Xi carefully studied the intelligence his spies had brought back. The map clearly marked the location of the hidden Xiongnu stronghold, and the surrounding terrain, fortifications, and troop deployments gradually became clearer. After several days of reconnaissance, the spies discovered that the Xiongnu stronghold was nestled in a valley, easily defended and difficult to attack, and riddled with traps and hidden sentries. The stronghold also contained a large cache of food, fodder, and weapons, clearly in preparation for a large-scale counterattack.

"This stronghold is crucial. If we can capture it in one fell swoop, the Xiongnu's counterattack plan will be ruined," Baili Xi said to Li Jing, pointing to the map. Li Jing nodded and said, "Indeed, but to capture this stronghold, we must use our wits." The two discussed for a long time and developed a detailed battle plan.

With the continuous improvement of intelligence and the increasing training of soldiers, the morale of the Daqian army reached its peak. Every soldier, filled with hatred for the Xiongnu and determination to defend their country, waited for the moment to march out. Meanwhile, the Xiongnu seemed unaware that their plan had been revealed and continued to intensively prepare for a counterattack within their stronghold.

After everything was ready, Baili Xi and Li Jing decided to attack on a dark and windy night. Before the attack, Baili Xi conducted a pre-war mobilization for all the soldiers.

"Brothers! Our land of Daqian will not be allowed to be invaded by foreign enemies! The Huns have burned, killed, looted, and committed numerous crimes. Now, they are trying to start a war again and make our people suffer. As warriors of Daqian, we will never agree! Tonight, we will embark on a journey to smash the Huns' conspiracy and defend our homeland! Let us use the weapons in our hands to tell the Huns that Daqian cannot be bullied!" Baili Xi's voice echoed in the night sky, as loud as a bell.

The soldiers raised their weapons and shouted in unison: "Defend our homeland! Destroy the Huns!" The sound resounded through the sky, as if to shatter the night sky of the desert.

As night fell, everything was silent. The Daqian army, like a long black dragon, quietly advanced towards the Xiongnu's secret stronghold. They advanced cautiously under the cover of darkness, trying not to make any noise. Along the way, there was only the sound of horses' hooves and footsteps.