Deposed Crown Prince: After three years of service on the frontier, the entire court knelt and begge

As they spoke, the people of the Helu tribe began to raise their arms and shout, "Martial! Martial! Martial!"

They then set up camp in the same spot again.

However, this time, only simple tents were set up.

In Ashina's tent, Mosuo Ashina asked, "Father Khan, why did you just relinquish your power?"

Ashina looked at Mos Ashina.

Mos Ashina: "Father Khan, I underestimated the enemy this time... I didn't make sure there was an ambush before I sent out the signal, which led to such a crushing defeat for our people!"

Ashina gritted his teeth: "This has little to do with you! It's about the four powerful families of the four prefectures of the northern desert. If they hadn't sent a letter, swearing that they were withdrawing, we wouldn't have taken the bait so easily!"

Mos Ashina: "Father Khan, didn't you say they were Qianlong's men? Qianlong trusts them... How dare they?"

Ashina's face was ashen: "They must have been deceived too. But have you noticed? This time, we not only suffered a crushing defeat in their surprise attack, but also in their weaponry."

Mos Ashina nodded: "That's right, the bows they have are different from ours. Their bows seem to be easy to draw, and the arrows are incredibly fast! And the wooden box they're carrying can fire a series of extremely powerful arrows in a very fast manner. It's this thing that has injured quite a few of our men."

Ashina nodded: "That's right, this force should be Xiao Dingshan's. Even if Helu wants to launch the main attack, they will inevitably suffer heavy casualties, and with his pig brain, he'll probably be played to death by Xiao Ce."

"Moreover, our intelligence has been wrong these past few times, which has caused the deaths of quite a few of them. If I were to remain in this position, everyone would suspect something was amiss."

Mosuo Ashina said, "So, should we just listen to Helu now? What if he sends us to our deaths?"

Ashina said, "Our legs are our own, and we are always the last to arrive in everything."

Mos Ashina asked, "What if he really manages to utterly defeat the Northern Desert army?"

Ashina sneered, "That's a good thing! But, judging from our dealings with Xiao Ce, do you think it's possible?"

The group shook their heads and said, "That's unlikely... he might be in even worse shape!"

...

Inside Yanbei City, people are repairing the city wall.

The bodies were buried outside the city, and more than a thousand wounded Turks who had not had time to escape were all hung on the city wall.

The bodies of the Turks were piled up together, and their clothes and weapons had been removed.

It was burned down.

After all, leaving these corpses here could easily lead to a plague.

And those Turkic clothes might have some use.

The harvest was considerable; they acquired over four thousand warhorses, and slaughtered the others that were injured on the spot.

We've filled everyone's stomachs.

Han Da ordered his men, "After you've eaten and drunk your fill, you run ahead. I'll lead a thousand elite cavalrymen to use the empty city ruse on them here!"

“General Han, you are the commander-in-chief of the three armies, let me do it. Anyway, I know how to do it…” Sun Qiang said.

Jiang Xing said, "Let me do it. Sun Qiang, you get too easily carried away. I'll stay calm..."

Before they could finish speaking, Han Da said, "Stop arguing, I'll stay here! When the time comes, just follow Jiang Xing's orders and run!"

Seeing that everyone was about to speak, Han Da commanded, "What is a soldier's duty?"

The group answered with unwavering determination: "Obey!"

Han Da laughed and said, "That's right! You all need to remember to keep those Turkic women under control."

Under Han Da's orders, they left behind the best thousand horses and a thousand of the most elite soldiers.

Then the main force left under the cover of night.

...

The next day.

Cai Yong's residence.

They received a letter from the Turks, and upon reading it, they were terrified.

Ashina recounted their losses to them and questioned them about what had happened.

"Gentlemen, what do you think is going on? Didn't the Northern Desert Army retreat across the board? How come they are still here in Yanbei City? It seems they are just covering their tracks and have only withdrawn a portion of their troops."

"The main problem is that the Turks have lost several thousand more men over there. What should we do?"

"The only explanation now is that we were also deceived!"

"Can we trust the Turks? But what's wrong with the Turks? Are they the same invincible Turks we know? They've only fought a few battles with the Northern Desert Army, and each one seems to be more brutal than the last!" Kan Shanyue asked.

Cai Yong said, "Who knows? But we have no choice now... What should we do next?"

Before anyone else could speak, a messenger rushed over.

"Reporting to the Prefect, tens of thousands of soldiers have been discovered in our prefecture, and they are fleeing at breakneck speed..."

"Sure?"

The messenger bowed and said, "Absolutely certain. We need to look closely! There are tens of thousands of people!"

After receiving the message from the messenger.

The heads of the various powerful families exchanged glances.

"You'd better make amends quickly."

After saying that, they each went back to distribute ravens.

...

Several hours later, at the Turkic camp.

Ashina received a message from the heads of powerful clans.

Mos Ashina and his entourage of princes asked, "Father Khan, what were they saying again?"

Ashina narrowed his eyes slightly: "They said the entire Northern Desert Army has retreated this time, and they were deceived before. This time it's absolutely certain, they've already run away!"

"Father Khan, can their words be trusted?" Mos Ashina asked.

Ashina said, "Of course they are trustworthy. These people are Mr. Qianlong's men, there won't be any problems! We've all been deceived, let alone them."

Mos Ashina asked, "Father Khan, shall we go straight there this time and avenge our previous humiliation?"

Ashina shook his head and said, "Of course not. Helu is the commander-in-chief now, and we should give him the information as soon as we receive it."

Mos Ashina looked puzzled: "Isn't this just giving them all the credit for nothing?"

Ashina revealed a sly smile.

"You don't understand. They won't believe it now. Whether I give it to them or not is my attitude, and whether he listens or not is his business."

Ashina then stood up: "You don't need to follow, just let Fan Gang follow."

Ashina then went directly to Helu's camp.

He Lu and his men are currently actively preparing weapons to breach the city.

He Lu looked at Ashina approaching with a provocative expression: "Ashina, why aren't you training your troops properly? What are you doing here?"

Ashina stepped forward and said, "Helu, I've received news that Yanbei City has truly withdrawn all its troops. Let's send our troops out immediately. We're sure to reap the rewards!"

He Lu sized up Ashina and said with a sneer, "Ashina, how accurate can your lousy information be? Listening to you always leads to defeat! Besides, don't try to pull this on me. Given our relationship, would you really tell me anything useful? Don't think I'm stupid!"

"Helu, I don't have time to trick you. This news is absolutely true. If you miss it, you'll miss a crucial opportunity!" Ashina said sternly.

He Lu snorted coldly: "Don't even think about pinning my name on you! Here's the deal: I'll go and call everyone over. If everyone agrees, I have no objections!"

Ashina did not stop it.

He Lu soon brought over the leaders of several tribes.

This was exactly what Ashina wanted.

He recounted the letters from the heads of the four major clans and showed them to everyone.

"This time, I can guarantee that even if there was an ambush, I will take primary responsibility."

He Lu said, "Hmph, you talk a good game. You always say you're responsible, but when have you ever really been responsible? Were the information you received before also given to you by them?"

Ashina nodded.

He Lu sneered, "Ashina, you don't seem like a fool. You've been fooled twice, how can you be fooled a third time..."

Ashide said, "Indeed, Ashina, I don't know who is behind the four great clans that makes you trust them so much. However, these two defeats have severely dampened the morale of our Turkic soldiers! We cannot afford to lose again; next time we must strike with renewed vigor. Therefore, we cannot afford any more mistakes!"

The tribal chiefs on the side nodded in approval.

Ashina then stopped speaking.

He Lu then turned to his son, Richai, and asked, "Richai, are the people I sent to keep an eye on Yanbei City here?"

Richa Helu nodded: "Reporting to Father Khan, they come back to report every hour. The previous news was that they are repairing the city walls, hanging up our Turkic wounded, and burying all the slaves."

He Lu listened and asked Ashina, "If they were going to retreat, why would they go and repair the city walls that we breached?"

Ashina couldn't answer immediately.

Richa Helu asked the guard beside him.

"Reporting to Father Khan, the person who arrived the most recently should have returned as well."

He Lu waved his hand and said, "Go and call him over, let them go and have a talk."

Richa Helu nodded and cupped his hands in obeisance: "Yes, Father Khan!"

A short while later, a scout came over.

"Is there any movement in Yanbei City? Have they retreated?" asked Richa Helu.

The scout bowed and said, "Your Highness, the city gate of Yanbei has been opened, which was originally impregnable. They have also sent several soldiers to clean the area in front of the gate."

"And our Turks hanging on the city walls were shouting that they had retreated! From a distance, the city seemed very desolate, and there were no soldiers in sight!"

Ashina's heart pounded as he listened to the scout's explanation.

He Lu snorted coldly: "Ashina, did you understand? It's obvious they're pretending no one's around again, and then they want us to go in and attack them! Do you still dare to guarantee anything now?"

Ashina's eyes didn't follow.

With a smug expression, Helu said to the scout, "Alright, you can leave now! I understand, do those Xiao Kingdom scumbags think I'm Ashina?"

Ashina's face darkened as he listened to Helu's provocation, but he was unsure of the situation on the other side.

Seeing this, Helu waved his hand and said, "Alright, since that's how it is. Everyone, withdraw. Especially Ashina, don't waste everyone's time on these trivial matters in the future! I'll attack the city when I'm ready!"