After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

In the Longcheng military camp, Chen Futu, Zhang Liang, and Liu Bowen held a secret meeting.

Zhang Liang said, "It has now been ascertained that the grasslands have dispatched 200,000 troops, led by the Khan's younger brother, Danmur. Their advance is slow, and it is currently unclear which pass they are attacking."

"That Khan is quite interesting. He wants a marriage alliance, but he's clearly trying to provoke the crown prince." Liu Bowen chuckled as he stared at the map.

Chen Futu said, "I will do as he wishes and gather my troops at Tianyun Pass. I will give him a surprise then."

After saying this, Chen Futu and Zhang Liang secretly left Longcheng, while Liu Bowen remained in Longcheng. With his and Yu Qian's strength, defending the city with 10,000 troops would not be a problem.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

At a secret camp adjacent to Fushui Pass, near Xuanshui, Chen Futu finally received news from the scouts.

"Your Highness, there has been a change at Yanbei Pass. Lou Wenquan has betrayed us, and the pass has now changed hands and been captured by the Hu people."

"Report! Your Highness, Lou Wenquan has led his elite cavalry to Fushui Pass overnight."

Messages were sent back one by one.

Chen Futu and Zhang Liang exchanged a knowing glance; as expected, some of the fierce generals left behind by the Prince of Zhenbei had rebelled.

Chen Futu, along with Qin Liangyu and Zhang Liang, broke camp and entered Fushui Pass.

Luo Qingshan rushed to greet him at Fushui Pass, "Young Master, what brings you here?"

"Lou Wenquan has rebelled and is on his way. If I'm not mistaken, his purpose is to tell you that Yanbei has been taken over by the Hu people, and he wants to trick you into opening Fushui Pass and kill you."

"what?"

Luo Qingshan's expression changed drastically, and he slapped his thigh, exclaiming, "Old Lou is so foolish!"

"He was loyal to Zhang Shouren; they were simply serving their own masters."

Chen Futu waved his hand, ordering Qin Liangyu to lead the White Spear Soldiers to set up an ambush, waiting for Lou Wenquan to arrive.

In the dead of night, a troop of soldiers arrived near the pass under the stars and moon.

Chen Futu and Zhang Liang hid in the darkness of the gate, coldly watching Lou Wenquan, who was in the lead.

Luo Qingshan stood at the pass and shouted loudly, "Who goes below the pass?"

"It's me, it's Lao Lou!" Lou Wenquan shouted urgently.

"Old Lou, why aren't you guarding Yanbei Pass? What are you doing here?"

"Yanbei Pass has been breached by the Hu people. Open the city gates quickly so we can unite and send troops to resist."

"Okay, just wait."

Luo Qingshan pretended not to suspect anything, and when Chen Futu nodded, he immediately ordered the doors to be opened wide.

Lou Wenquan was overjoyed and led his army into the city gate. Suddenly, fires broke out all around. Qin Liangyu rode out first, dressed in golden armor and a red robe, looking majestic. She shouted, "Traitor, do you recognize me, Qin Liangyu?"

"General Qin?"

Lou Wenquan was terrified and wanted to retreat, but once inside the pass, he was not allowed to leave so easily.

Luo Wushuang and Du Hongxue, leading three thousand White Spear Soldiers, arrived from outside the pass and attacked from both sides, trapping Lou Wenquan inside the pass.

Chen Futu, Zhang Liang, and Luo Qingshan arrived at the front of the battle, and archers behind them unleashed a hail of arrows. In an instant, thousands of Lou Wenquan's men fell like wheat.

Qin Liangyu personally rushed over, and Lou Wenquan panicked and ran away, slashing wildly at his personal guards in an attempt to escape. Unfortunately, the roads in front and behind were blocked, and he could not escape. Qin Liangyu caught up with him from behind, pierced his shoulder with a spear, and sent him flying off his horse.

The battle is over; all the rest have surrendered.

Chen Futu descended from the pass and looked down at Lou Wenquan, who was lying paralyzed on the ground. "I have never mistreated you, so why have you rebelled?"

Lou Wenquan gritted his teeth, "You brat, you're too arrogant! You seized General Zhang's power as soon as you arrived in the Northern Frontier. Don't you know that General Zhang and I have a life-or-death bond!"

Chen Futu shook his head and said, "If I didn't know, how could I have stopped you at Fushui Pass?"

"You saw through General Zhang's plan long ago!"

"Is Zhang Shouren that great? He's nothing but a stray dog. He was lucky enough to be chosen by my father back then, which is why he has achieved success. Unfortunately, he's a born ingrate. Instead of repaying kindness, he wants to instigate internal strife in the northern frontier. With his meager intelligence, he dares to compete with me."

"Chen Futu, you are so despicable!" Lou Wenquan sensed something was wrong, and his expression was filled with fear.

Zhang Liang sarcastically said, "The Crown Prince is most adept at winning by surprise. He deliberately stirred up trouble over the Tianyun Pass incident to prevent the Hu people from leaving Tianyun and instead provoke you rebels. Sure enough, Zhang Shouren chose the defense line around Longguan as the breakthrough point. The Crown Prince knew that Luo Qingshan would not rebel, so you would definitely come to seize Fushui Pass. The Crown Prince was waiting here, and you really delivered yourself to his doorstep."

"Hmph, so what? The Hu people have already taken Yanbei, you have no chance!"

Lou Wenquan laughed loudly, his expression appearing manic.

Chen Futu asked curiously, "Why do you think General Qin appeared at Fushui Pass? And why am I here? I might as well tell you. The Longcheng army did not go west. I simply ordered people to create a false impression by setting up many banners and flags to keep Zhang Shouren in check and prevent him from opening Tianyun Pass to let the Hu people in. Now that the vanguard of the Hu people has come from Yanbei to Fushui Pass to take over the defense, Cao Zhen and Li Xiuning will lead the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry and the Women's Army to wipe them out and take over Yanbei again."

"Chen Futu!"

Lou Wenquan finally realized Chen Futu's intentions, and he began to struggle violently and roar angrily.

"This time, I, the young master, will shut the door and beat the dog. That traitor Zhang Shouren should be dealt with."

As Chen Futu spoke, he kicked the crazed Lou Wenquan.

Luo Qingshan couldn't bear it. "Your Highness, considering his past merits, could you spare his life?"

"I'll give Uncle Luo face, so please detain him for now and deal with him after the big battle," Chen Futu readily agreed.

Luo Qingshan immediately knelt on one knee, his expression filled with gratitude.

Next, Fushui Pass cleaned up the battlefield, and the White-Spear Soldiers stationed themselves inside the pass.

At dawn, Chen Futu sent someone to Yanbei to deliver a message that Fushui Pass had been captured.

After the messenger left, Huo Qubing arrived with his cavalry.

Chen Futu said to Zhang Liang, "Leave this to me, and trouble the rest to the strategist."

"Your Highness, rest assured, we will surely defeat Tianyun in this battle."

In the afternoon, scouts reported that the vanguard of the Hu army had marched out of Yanbei towards Fushui Pass to take over its defense. Meanwhile, the main Hu army crossed Tianyun Pass and headed towards Yanbei and Fushui, arriving in a few days.

Chen Futu immediately summoned Huo Qubing and Qin Liangyu, "You two, do you dare to go to the grasslands and fight?"

The two men looked at each other. "This humble general is willing to go!"

"Alright, you two will each lead your troops to the grasslands. The only goal of this battle is to harass the tribes in the rear and cut off their supplies. Kill as many as you can to buy me time. I want to annihilate Zhang Shouren in one battle."

"Here!"

The two generals received the order and ordered the cooking to be done. At dusk, the two cavalry units entered the grassland.

Luo Qingshan watched as Luo Wushuang disappeared into the vast grassland with Qin Liangyu, and couldn't help but worry.

Chen Futu reassured him, "Uncle Luo, there's no need to worry. General Qin is brave and decisive, and invincible. They will return safely."

"Your Highness, the Hu army is about to arrive. What should we do?"

"Send word to Yan Sheng, the garrison commander of Kaiyang Pass, to send 20,000 troops to reinforce the defense of Fushui Pass. Uncle Luo, this battle is no small matter; you must hold them off for me."

"This humble general will defend the city to the death!"

Fushui Pass became busy, and the entire eastern defense line of Longcheng became unpredictable.