The Young Swordsman of Dalu

On the northeastern border, the Western Regions army, led by Helian Hui, has been stationed in Pingcheng for more than a month, showing no signs of launching another attack.

Although Yin Shuo led small groups of men to launch several surprise attacks on Helian Hui, Helian Hui remained firmly stationed in Pingcheng, refusing to budge.

After General Wei Qiao led the vanguard of the Great Lu Kingdom to the outskirts of Pingcheng, Yin Shuo met with General Wei Qiao.

Upon seeing General Wei Qiao, Yin Shuo knelt for a long time and said, "I am a sinner of the Great Lu Kingdom. According to military law, I deserve to die. I beg the general to allow me, Yin Shuo, to die on the battlefield, so that I can have the face to meet my brothers who died in the ground!"

"General Yin! Please rise! The country is in dire need of manpower right now. We can discuss your matter after the war. Let's first discuss how to deal with the Western Regions army stationed in Pingcheng." General Wei Qiao helped Yin Shuo up from the ground.

Yin Shuo informed Wei Qiao of Helian Hui's inaction. After thinking it over, Wei Qiao said, "Perhaps they are waiting for instructions from the Western Regions. They will soon have an even bigger operation."

“General Wei is right. So, General, we must launch our first attack on them before their next move, which might disrupt their rhythm,” Yin Shuo said.

"General Yin! You have been stationed on this northeastern border for many years and know everything about this place very well. Tell me how we should fight our first battle well," General Wei Qiao said.

“Thank you for General Wei’s trust. General, please look here,” Yin Shuo said, pointing to a high point on the map. “Lanpi Mountain is the highest point in Pingcheng. I think the Western Regions army is not stupid. They have also discovered that this place is a good place for a sneak attack and have already occupied it. However, behind Lanpi Mountain are cliffs and precipices. They would never have thought that we would risk a sneak attack on them from behind.”

"Are you sure the Western Regions army has stationed troops at Lanpi Mountain?" General Wei Qiao asked.

“The day before yesterday, Miss Shangguan and I went to Lanpi Mountain. Although the Western Region army was well hidden, we still found some clues,” Yin Shuo said.

"Is Miss Shangguan the daughter of General Shangguan Chenxing?" General Wei Qiao asked.

“Exactly!” Yin Shuo said.

"What have you discovered?" General Wei Qiao asked.

“We smelled the aroma of food. No one lives on Lanpi Mountain, so where would such a strong aroma of food come from? And it’s all the gamey smell of beef and mutton,” Yin Shuo said.

"It seems they had already predicted that we would have no choice but to take that path!" General Wei Qiao said.

“We won’t take the path in the valley; we’ll climb up the cliff and catch him off guard,” Yin Shuo said.

“Alright! Let’s do it this way! General Yin, you will be in full command of this attack!” General Wei Qiao said.

"No! General Wei!" Yin Shuo was flattered.

"Don't worry! If it fails, I will take full responsibility for the consequences!" General Wei Qiao said.

"Thank you for your trust, General!" Yin Shuo was so excited that tears were about to flow.

"For the sake of the Great Lu Kingdom! Let's work together!" General Wei Qiao said.

"For the Great Lu Kingdom!" Yin Shuo and his soldiers shouted.

General Wei Qiao stayed behind at the military camp, while Yin Shuo led 5,000 men to the back of Lanpi Mountain under the cover of night.

Shangguan Xingyun arrived at Yin Shuo's side at this moment, and Yin Shuo was overjoyed: "Miss Shangguan, you've come!"

“General Yin, this is an old hunter from the foot of Lanpi Mountain. He knows the terrain here quite well, so I brought him here.” Shangguan Xingyun pulled the old hunter in front of Yin Shuo.

"That's wonderful! Miss Shangguan, you've done a great service!" Yin Shuo said happily.

"We are all doing this for the Great Lu Kingdom!" Shangguan Xingyun said.

The old hunter told Yin Shuo that there was a little-known path in the back mountains that no one had walked on for many years. The hunter himself had walked it once when he was a child with his father, but it was buried by a landslide and no one had walked on it since. So people who came after him did not know about this path.

The old hunter found the path by memory. The path had been buried for many years and was no longer the same as it used to be, but it was much safer than the cliffs.

The old hunter said awkwardly, "It's no longer a road!"

"Grandpa! This is already very good! Thank you!" Yin Shuo comforted him.

The old hunter volunteered to lead everyone up, and Yin Shuo agreed to his request, telling him to hide to the side when the two armies started fighting.

Yin Shuo led five thousand men up the Lanpi Heights from the back of the mountain. It was the middle of the night, and the Western Region soldiers were all fast asleep, covered with sheepskin vests.

Looking at the Western Region soldiers lying on the ground, Yin Shuo thought of how arrogant the Western Region army had been when they first broke through Pingcheng. They had killed innocent civilians, bullied countless women, and murdered children; they were simply worse than beasts.

Yin Shuo's anger flared up, and he shouted, "Brothers, kill them!"

The soldiers of the Great Lu Kingdom shouted, "Kill!" The soldiers from the Western Regions went to meet the King of Hell in their sleep.

In the Battle of Lanpi Mountain, the Western Regions army suffered heavy losses; not a single soldier stationed on the Lanpi Mountain highlands escaped alive. This battle also disrupted the Western Regions' plans, and when news reached the Western Regions royal court, the Khan was so enraged he nearly vomited blood.

After the Battle of Lanpi Mountain, the morale of the Lu Kingdom's army soared, and everyone from soldiers to generals was eager to drive the Western Regions army out of Pingcheng.

At this time, General Chai Gu also led 200,000 troops of the Great Lu Kingdom to the outskirts of Pingcheng.

Wei Qiao led his troops to welcome Chai Gu, who was overjoyed to see Wei Qiao and Yin Shuo.

"Old Wei! Yin Shuo! You've worked hard! I heard about your great victory at Lanpi Mountain while I was on the march. Well done!" Chai Gu said.

"Marshal Chai! You've finally arrived! There's hope for our Great Lu Kingdom!" Wei Qiao exclaimed.

“Teacher! I have disgraced you!” Yin Shuo knelt on one knee in front of Chai Gu.

“Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war! I think you did very well!” Chai Gu said, helping Yin Shuo up.

"Old Wei! Yin Shuo! Tell me about the situation here first!" Chai Gu said.

"Let's go inside and talk!" Wei Qiao led everyone into the military tent.

In front of the sand table, Wei Qiao, Yin Shuo, and other generals analyzed the current war situation for Chai Gu. Chai Gu listened carefully to everyone's analysis, and finally, he said, "Everyone has analyzed the current situation very thoroughly. Does anyone know anything about Helian Ming?"

Everyone looked at each other, some shaking their heads, others saying they didn't know. Chai Gu said, "We must know ourselves and our enemy to win every battle! Helian Ming is the leader of the Helian tribe in the Western Regions. His Helian family has always been trusted by the royal court in the Western Regions. His younger brother, Helian Hui, is the captain of Nabulu Khan's guard. This time, Nabulu Khan has given Helian Ming the position of vanguard officer in the Western Regions, which fully demonstrates that Helian Ming is no ordinary person. We are about to face him head-on. I hope you will not be careless! Please act with caution."

"Yes!" the soldiers roared.