Dream of the Red Chamber: From a Border Ruffian to a Capital Tyrant

"General, look! The Xiongnu are back!"

Just as Jia Lang picked up the water bag to moisten his throat, a young scout crouched down and quickly crawled to Jia Lang's side to report in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang immediately put down the water bag and gazed into the distance in the direction the soldier was pointing.

A group of defeated Xiongnu soldiers were walking back dejectedly, a stark contrast to their arrogant and swaggering demeanor when they set out.

Now that they have returned, in addition to being covered in black soil and dried black bloodstains, many of them have even lost their weapons. Some are even supporting each other, having lost their armor and weapons, looking utterly disheveled.

"General, it seems General Jia Ren and his men have held their ground!"

"Damn, that's tough!"

What Jia Lang could see, Li Tiedan could also see clearly. He immediately became excited and lowered his voice to say to Jia Lang.

"Um."

Upon hearing this, Jia Lang's tense face finally broke into a genuine smile, and he nodded emphatically.

"General, you are experienced and your command is decisive. It was expected that you would be able to defend Yanmen Pass."

"General, what do we do now?"

Looking at the Huns who were fleeing back to their camp like stray dogs, Li Tiedan's eyes were filled with a chilling killing intent as he rubbed his hands together and asked.

Jia Lang did not answer immediately, but turned his head to look at the most luxurious military tent above the huge banner in the distance, a deep glint of thought flashing in his eyes.

Then, he slammed his fist into the ground beneath him.

"wait!"

"Keep waiting!"

"The Xiongnu's provisions will only last a few days at most."

"I refuse to believe that barbarian always had so many people around him."

"Pass down the order: rest in place tonight and remain on high alert."

"By the way, are the soldiers' rations sufficient?"

Jia Lang withdrew his gaze, looked at Li Tiedan, and asked softly.

"Don't worry, General. This time, the brothers have brought three days' worth of dry rations."

Li Tiedan patted his chest and responded respectfully.

"That's good."

"Go and relay the order."

"Remember, never alert the enemy."

Jia Lang nodded, then gave Li Tiedan a stern instruction in an unquestionable tone.

"yes!"

Li Tiedan felt the heavy responsibility on his shoulders, solemnly clasped his hands in acceptance of the order, and then turned and disappeared into the darkness.

........

Deep within the Xiongnu army camp, inside Touman Chanyu's magnificent yet chilling animal-skin tent.

At this moment, the air inside the tent seemed to freeze, so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

Just as Jia Lang had predicted, the Xiongnu's provisions were running low, their granaries were almost empty, and they could only barely last for three days.

If they still can't break through that tough nut within three days, this Xiongnu army will have no choice but to retreat in disgrace, and may even face collapse.

"Great Chanyu,"

A leader of a Xiongnu tribe, his voice trembling and revealing barely concealed anxiety, cautiously addressed Touman.

"The warriors' rations are running low; if we can't capture Yanmen Pass soon..."

Upon hearing this, Touman Chanyu's lips curled into a cold smile, a smile that concealed a chilling majesty and scheming.

Why are you all so alarmed?

"Within two days at most, the Lan family will arrive with countless cattle, sheep, and dried provisions."

"Furthermore, the Left Wise King and the Helian Luo tribe have already sent elite troops to ascertain the strength of the troops at Yanmen Pass in the past two days. The Qian people's garrison is already at its last gasp."

"When the time comes, all the warriors of our tribe will come out in full force, and Yanmen Pass will surely fall. The women and provisions within the pass will all be ours!"

Upon hearing this, the leaders of the various units in the military tent exchanged glances, their mouths forced into a bitter smile that was more painful than crying.

The Left Wise King was the half-brother of Touman Chanyu. His troops were brave and powerful, second only to Chanyu's own forces.

However, the warriors who were forcibly conscripted by Touman and served as the vanguard in the siege over the past two days were 60% of the soldiers under the command of the Left Wise King.

After two days of bloody fighting, the Left Wise King's forces suffered considerable losses.

All of this was clearly a vicious scheme by Touman Chanyu to use someone else to kill and weaken his collateral branches.

Thinking of this, when everyone looked at Touman Chanyu's seemingly kind gaze again, they couldn't help but feel a chill down their spines, and their eyes showed a deep sense of fear and estrangement.

"Hehe, what do you all mean by this?"

Touman Chanyu took in everyone's angry but dared not speak out, and sneered inwardly, but pretended to be puzzled and asked.

"We will be able to capture Yanmen Pass in the next few days, and from then on, we will be able to rule the Central Plains. Aren't you all happy about this?"

Upon hearing this, everyone simply lowered their heads and slowly shook their heads, a deathly silence falling over them; no one dared to respond.

The example of the Left Wise King was right before their eyes, leaving them with lingering fear.

After all, no one is as wealthy and powerful as the Left Wise King, who can withstand such losses. If it were a small or medium-sized tribe like theirs, they would probably lose everything in this battle and be wiped out from the grasslands forever.

Just then, the tent flap was suddenly flung open, and the Left Wise King, along with two other tribal leaders, strode in with dark faces.

The three men's armor was still stained with blood that hadn't dried, and their faces were filled with exhaustion and suppressed anger. Clearly, this campaign had taken a heavy toll on them.

"Left Wise King, you've returned."

Upon seeing this, Touman Chanyu instantly put on a fake, enthusiastic smile and stood up to greet him.

"Great Chanyu!"

The Left Wise King's voice was hoarse, filled with barely concealed rage and grief.

"In this battle, our troops have suffered another several thousand casualties!"

"These are the elite troops of our unit!"

The smile on Touman Chanyu's face flashed by, and then he casually picked up a cup of the tribe's strongest goat milk wine and handed it to the Left Wise King.

"Your Excellency Zuo Xian has worked hard. Here, drink this cup of wine first to moisten your throat and calm your temper."

The Left Wise King didn't even glance at him, gave a cold snort, and turned his head away.

The leader of the Helianluo tribe, however, could no longer contain himself and roared:

"Great Chanyu!"

"At your invitation, we have mobilized almost our entire tribe, bringing all the able-bodied warriors we have enlisted!"

"We've suffered heavy losses, yet you speak of it so lightly. Do you think the lives of us grassland warriors are so worthless?"

"The warriors simply returned to the embrace of the Eternal Heaven a little earlier; this is their glory."

Touman Chanyu proudly returned to his throne, picked up the golden cup and slowly rubbed it in his hand, his eyes wandering as he absentmindedly replied.

"Besides, their sacrifice was not in vain."

"Those two-legged sheep in the city are probably already at their wits' end, with very few left, aren't they?"

"Great Chanyu!"

Another burly man with a full beard, who had participated in the siege that day, could no longer contain his anger and roared in a booming voice.

"It's not your own troops that suffered the loss, so of course you don't care!"

"But when we attack the city tomorrow, I will absolutely not send my people to fill those pits again!"

"If we're going to send anyone, we should send the Great Chanyu's elite troops to face them head-on!"

"Otherwise, even if we capture Yanmen Pass, we will never agree to the previous plan for partitioning the territory!"

Upon hearing this, Touman Chanyu narrowed his eyes, and two cold beams shot out from the gaps as he scanned the entire area, his voice suddenly dropping to an icy level.

"And you? Do you think so too?"

The leaders of the various Xiongnu tribes, who were swept by that piercing gaze, all lowered their heads in fear, not daring to meet his eyes, but none of them spoke up to echo the Left Wise King and the others.

"Hehe, see?"

Upon seeing this, Touman Chanyu let out another contemptuous sneer.

"They all have no objections, but you are the only ones who do?"

"snort!"

"A bunch of cowardly fools!"

"Great Chanyu, I will not send a single soldier tomorrow!"

"The blood of the tribe's warriors has been shed enough; anyone who wants to go and die can go!"

After saying this, the Left Wise King flicked his sleeves and turned to leave with the other two tribal leaders, leaving Touman Chanyu with a gloomy expression.

"Okay, okay."

After the three left, Touman Chanyu instantly put away his cold smile and put on a kind and compassionate face.