Time travel, quick transmigration

"Your Majesty, are you worried because war is about to break out on the border?"

"I know that you haven't slept well all night since you heard from His Majesty about the report from Hedong sent to Chang'an. You're worried about Young Master Xiao."

Aman had also heard of the cruel and barbaric nature of the Turks. This time, the Turkic Khan Jiuyeli openly issued a declaration of war against Xiao Huanling, which must be because he was fearless and confident of victory. It was normal for Shi Yan to be worried about Xiao Huanling, who was far away in Hedong.

However, seeing Shi Yan's furrowed brows, haggard face, and silent worry, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her and thought she could offer some words of comfort.

"Your Majesty, please don't worry too much. You should trust Young Master Xiao. He accepted the declaration of war from the Turkic Khan and did not seek support from His Majesty. He must be very confident in defeating the Turks."

"You didn't eat much for breakfast. These were all specially prepared for you by the Imperial Kitchen. They are all your favorite dishes. Please eat more. Don't wait until the news of Young Master Xiao's great victory over the Turks reaches Chang'an, only to find that you have collapsed."

Shi Yan certainly didn't doubt Xiao Huanling's abilities, but after all, swords and spears have no eyes on the battlefield, and besides, that person named Jiu Yeli was a ruthless, cunning, and scheming individual. How could she not worry about facing such a troublesome person? She worried that if Xiao Huanling were injured, she wouldn't be able to stay by his side to take care of him, and she naturally couldn't feel at ease.

"Ah Man, thank you for your comfort. You don't need to worry about me, I just don't have an appetite."

Aman's comforting words were of no use. She had Cangyu deliver a letter to Xiao Huanling, but five days had passed and she still hadn't received a reply. She had no idea what the situation in Hedong was really like, and she was most afraid that Xiao Huanling was just putting on a brave face and only reporting good news. Aman said that Xiao Huanling hadn't sought support from the court, but Shi Yan knew that even if Xiao Huanling requested reinforcements, the court simply didn't have any troops to send. The court was divided into several factions, and the regional military governors would only watch coldly from the sidelines, each acting in their own way. The situation was far from optimistic; Xiao Huanling could only rely on himself. It was this understanding that made her worried and depressed.

“Aman, remove everything. I can’t just sit here and wait for news. Come with me to Ganlu Hall. His Majesty should be back in Ganlu Hall for lunch after finishing his meeting in Xingqing Hall by now.”

Seeing that Shi Yan had put down her chopsticks, A Man knew that further persuasion would be useless, so she ordered someone to remove all the food from the table.

"Your Majesty, are you trying to get information about the situation in Hedong from His Majesty?"

Shi Yan wiped her lips with a handkerchief and nodded slightly at A Man.

"Let's go. Yuan'er, go and get the snow lotus, lily bulb, white fungus and lotus seed soup that I ordered the imperial kitchen to stew for His Majesty. We'll deliver it to Ganlu Palace later."

After Yuan'er respectfully accepted her leave, she went to the imperial kitchen to serve the snow lotus, lily bulb, white fungus, and lotus seed soup.

"Your Highness, it's cold outside. Please put on your fox fur coat."

Shi Yan did not refuse and let A Man fetch the white fox fur coat that Xiao Huanling had made for her and put it on her.

After arriving in Taiyuan, Haiyue, along with Akara and the others, rented a house not far from Xiao Huanling's residence in Taiyuan.

Haiyue has always adhered to Shi Yan's mission to secretly protect Xiao Huanling's safety, spending most of his day, except for sleeping, monitoring Xiao Huanling's movements.

The last time Xiao Huanling left Taiyuan Prefecture and returned to Chang'an, Hai Yue only found out about it a day after Xiao Huanling returned to Taiyuan Prefecture from Chang'an. He was still upset about his oversight for several days because of this.

He didn't know why Xiao Huanling had secretly returned to Chang'an without anyone noticing, nor did he care. He was just annoyed that he didn't know when Xiao Huanling had left Taiyuan Prefecture. Fortunately, Xiao Huanling was safe and sound, otherwise he wouldn't know how to explain to Shi Yan or have the face to see her again.

This morning, Xiao Huanling led his troops out of the camp. Hai Yue, who had spent the night in the woods outside the camp, called on Ak Arang to secretly follow the army.

The battlefield was located on a grassland where the border between the Tang Dynasty and the Turkic territory met. It was the dead of winter, and the surrounding area was desolate and barren.

Xiao Huanling led 5,000 Xuan Ce soldiers and 10,000 Heavenly Soldiers against Ashina Jiuyeli's 3,000 Shuo Li soldiers and 20,000 elite Turkic cavalry. To outsiders, they did not seem to have much of an advantage.

Haiyue gazed at the two figures facing off in front of him, exchanging glances and silently clashing, and at the large army behind them, radiating a menacing and menacing aura.

Lying prone on the ground, constantly observing the battlefield situation and keeping an eye on Xiao Huanling's condition, A Rang turned his head to look at the man lying next to him and whispered something in their Kunlun slave language.

Haiyue, keeping his voice down, responded to each of them in Kunlun slave language.

The winter weather was particularly cold. Although they were bundled up in thick clothes, they faced the cold wind for a long time and lay on the ground without moving, causing their limbs to stiffen. But for Haiyue and the others, no matter how difficult it was, they could endure it.

Gazing at Xiao Huanling, clad in armor and wielding a long sword, seated majestically atop his white horse, commanding an army of thousands, fighting for his country and to protect the people on the border, Hai Yue recalled A Rang's earlier question. Perhaps he was simply a cold-hearted person devoid of empathy; he didn't care how many would die, nor which side would emerge victorious. If it weren't for Shi Yan, he wouldn't have cared about Xiao Huanling's life or death, let alone protect him.

"Whether those people live or die is none of our business. Unless Xiao Huanling's life is threatened, there is no need to take action."

Haiyue calmly gave instructions to his four brothers.

Upon hearing this, Arang, Ak, and the other three responded in broken Chinese.

On the battlefield, Xiao Huanling looked at the man riding a black steed, dressed in black iron armor, with deep-set eyes, eagle-like gaze, and an elegant smile on his lips. He seemed to have no trace of the bloodthirsty and murderous intent that had been rumored.

Jiu Yeli's gaze was sharp as he looked into the distance at Xiao Huanling, who was indeed as beautiful, radiant, and mysterious as the legends had described. Seeing that Xiao Huanling was much younger and more unfathomable than he had expected, his desire to conquer and his inherent warlike nature were further aroused.

"So you are Xiao Huanling. Not bad, you are qualified to fight me."

Xiao Huanling neither agreed nor disagreed with Jiu Yeli's words. He only glanced at the scimitar in Jiu Yeli's hand that gleamed with a cold light and a chilling glow.

Seeing Xiao Huanling remain silent, Jiu Yeli felt ignored and her eyes dimmed. She then made a gesture to General Youbanan behind her.

Youbanan understood and drew his long sword, signaling to the soldiers behind him to attack. As a result, 20,000 elite Turkic cavalrymen, who had been waiting for their turn, moved in response and attacked Xiao Huanling's camp with him.

Seeing that the enemy had moved, Xiao Huanling made a gesture behind him. A Jinwu Guard who had followed him for a long time and was appointed as his deputy general immediately responded and led 10,000 Heavenly Soldiers to meet the enemy head-on.

"kill!"

The resounding words fell like thunderclaps from a clear sky, and the Heavenly Army, exuding a chilling aura, charged towards the enemy with a whirlwind.

The two armies clashed immediately.

As leaders, Xiao Huanling and Jiu Yeli stood calmly facing each other amidst thousands of troops, while their respective elite forces were secretly vying for supremacy behind them.

With five thousand Xuan Ce soldiers against three thousand Shuo Li soldiers, the outcome seemed to be decided. However, the Shuo Li army had a long-standing reputation and did not win by sheer numbers.

Xiao Huanling's five thousand Xuan Ce Army was formed by him after he came to Taiyuan Prefecture. They were the incarnations of the five thousand Jinwu Guards he brought from Chang'an, and had never been on the battlefield to fight against the Shuoli Army.

Jiuyeli had never heard of the Xuan Ce Army before, so he was very confident in the strength of his own Shuoli Army.