I Built a Territory in Ancient Times Chapter 152

Chapter 152

Vice General Yang did not dare to be careless. After all, his troops were outnumbered, and they had been maneuvering through enemy territory for nearly half a year. Both men and horses were exhausted. Now that they had encountered these forces, they needed to be well-prepared.

They were not far from the border, so their main army should be able to detect their presence. Thinking of the orders given by General Xie before they set out, Vice General Yang clenched his fists—this was the opportunity they had been waiting for.

He narrowed his eyes. If their small unit could hold off the enemy, their main forces should have enough time to arrive for support.

Although it was uncertain whether these troops belonged to Hunle Wang, if they did, then once the main army arrived, the outcome would be hard to predict. However, if they could eliminate these five thousand men, it would be well worth the effort.

With a thousand weary soldiers facing five thousand enemy troops, a reckless head-on clash was out of the question.

“Your Highness, that unit has stopped advancing. They don’t seem to have any intention of attacking,” reported one of Tuoba Ren’s personal guards.

Song Lian paused as he lifted his teacup, then looked up at Tuoba Ren and said in a deep voice, “They must have noticed something.”

After all, their disguise had been put together in haste—it was impossible to be completely flawless. If the enemy had already detected something from such a distance, it only proved how formidable their scout, the so-called “Thousand-Mile Eye,” must be. If possible, he would like to get his hands on one of those—just to see what kind of device it was.

Tuoba Ren remained calm. So what if they had noticed? Did they think they could escape? A lone unit deep behind enemy lines—what tricks could they possibly have up their sleeves? Moreover…

His eyes narrowed slightly, a calculating glint flashing through them as he glanced eastward toward the Great Yan’s territory. With a hint of scheming in his gaze, he stood up and coughed twice before saying, “Since our guests have arrived, it would be impolite not to greet them. Prepare my horse. I want to personally meet these men who have stirred up the entire steppe.”

His guard hesitated, worried about his condition. “Your Highness, riding may not be good for your health. Perhaps we should send someone else—”

Before he could finish, Tuoba Ren shot him a sharp look. The guard immediately fell silent, not daring to speak further. He could only follow orders.

Song Lian was still concerned, though he kept his worries to himself. However, Tuoba Ren saw the look in his eyes and, for once, offered an explanation. He waved a hand dismissively and coughed again before saying, “It’s nothing serious. It’s just riding, not a full gallop—nothing too strenuous.”

Song Lian nodded. Since he had said so, there was nothing more to add. He could only remind him, “Then Your Highness must be careful.”

Tuoba Ren had already stepped outside, and Song Lian quickly followed.

As dusk approached, Vice General Yang saw a signal arrow rising into the sky and steadied his heart. No matter what, he needed to be fully prepared. Anyone who had survived this long in the army had been through countless battles. As commander, he absolutely could not afford to lose his composure—especially not over something like this.

He ordered his men to gather all their equipment, while A Bing was already leading a group to set up barricades, chevaux de frise, and other defensive measures. Everyone was in motion. With their numbers so few, they had no choice but to rely on these obstacles to hold off the enemy for as long as possible.

“Report! General Yang, a small group of riders has approached from the other side. They are calling for you to come out and meet them,” a scout reported.

Vice General Yang pondered for a moment. “Who are they? Did they give a name?”

“General, they said… it’s Hunle Wang, Tuoba Ren.”

Vice General Yang’s heart tightened. So it really was him. A faint, knowing smile curled at his lips, and his hand at his side clenched into a fist, trembling slightly—whether from unease or excitement, even he wasn’t sure.

At that moment, A Bing rushed over after receiving the news. “General! Just as we expected—it’s Tuoba Ren! This is excellent!”

Vice General Yang shot him a glare. Did this fool not understand that a true commander should never let their emotions show? Look at General Xie—why couldn’t he learn from him? Vice General Yang was both exasperated and helpless, itching to smack A Bing a couple of times, but this was neither the time nor place for a lecture, so he let it slide.

A Bing, still caught up in his excitement, completely ignored his expression. The moment he heard their opponent was Tuoba Ren, his blood boiled with anticipation. Their last encounter had been in the Western Qi Corridor. Unfortunately, by the time he had led the Red Robe Army to reinforce their forces, the battle was already coming to an end. He hadn’t had his fill before Tuoba Ren managed to escape—it had been utterly frustrating. Now that a second chance had presented itself, he was eager to seize it.

Seeing the eager gleam in A Bing’s eyes, Vice General Yang could only sigh inwardly. This reckless fool had no fear. Tuoba Ren’s name alone had been enough to scare children into silence across the border. Though he had been quiet in recent years, his past achievements were not so easily erased.

Vice General Yang ignored him and ordered, “Fine. Let’s go meet him.” Without hesitation, he strode toward his horse.

Though A Bing hadn’t been called, he eagerly trailed after him.

Both sides brought only a dozen personal guards each. As the wind blew, Tuoba Ren’s thin figure shivered slightly beneath his heavy cloak. He quickly straightened up, but after coughing several times, the exertion brought a faint flush to his pale face.

When his coughing finally subsided, he lazily glanced at Vice General Yang and his men, then said indifferently, “Just you lot? Xie Yixiu didn’t come?”

A Bing couldn’t hold back a sneer. “Why would our general need to bother with such trivial matters?” Noting Tuoba Ren’s apparent disappointment, he smirked and added, “But there’s no need for Your Highness to sigh. Our general and you are bound to face each other eventually. If you ask me, Your Highness should focus on recovering first. Otherwise, when the time comes, don’t go claiming our general bullied a sick man.”

Tuoba Ren wasn’t angered by A Bing’s blunt words. His body was too frail now to endure any internal turmoil. If he allowed mere words to provoke him, he would have been in poor health long ago.

Tuoba Ren smiled indifferently. “Don’t be so sure of yourself. Indeed, I have long looked forward to facing General Xie in battle. It was a great regret that we never truly crossed swords in the past. As for who will emerge victorious in the future, that remains to be seen.”

Vice General Yang sneered. “Oh? It seems Your Highness won’t have to wait too long for that battle.” He paused before shifting the conversation back to the present. “But surely, Your Highness didn’t block our path today just for a casual chat?”

Tuoba Ren pulled his cloak tighter around himself. “Guests who come from afar should be properly received. Since you have arrived in our Suixi Grasslands, why not stay a while longer? If word got out that you left in such a hurry, wouldn’t that imply our Suixi Kingdom lacks hospitality?”

A Bing burst into loud laughter. “So, Your Highness actually wants us to stay a bit longer? I’m afraid the longer we remain, the greater your losses will be!”

Wherever they passed on the grasslands, not a single cow, sheep, or horse was left behind. They were like a plague upon the land. Now, hearing Tuoba Ren’s sanctimonious words, wasn’t he practically slapping himself in the face?

Some among his men were incensed by this and wanted to speak up, but Tuoba Ren stopped them.

Only Song Lian spoke coldly, his words carrying a double meaning. “Since you’re here, you may as well stay.”

Everyone turned to look at him, momentarily stunned. Vice General Yang studied him from head to toe and quickly realized who he was.

“So, you’re the traitor Song Lian? Just a pathetic dog wagging its tail for its master—do you even deserve to speak?”

Song Lian’s expression remained unchanged as he replied with a sharp and merciless tone, “You can boast for now, but you won’t have another chance to speak in the future.”

The implication was clear—dead men don’t talk.

Vice General Yang let out a cold snort. “That remains to be seen. We men of the Great Yan will fight to the death.”

Tuoba Ren pressed his lips together. “If you surrender and lay down your weapons, I may consider sparing your lives.”

His true intent was to gather intelligence on their military supplies, particularly their Thousand-Mile Eye and explosive weapons. If he could persuade them to hand over these resources, it would save him a great deal of effort. That was the only reason he made such an offer. However, his opponents had no interest in entertaining the idea.

A Bing spat on the ground in disgust. A true man would rather die in battle than surrender. These words were nothing but nonsense.

As expected, Vice General Yang acted as if he hadn’t even heard Tuoba Ren’s offer. His voice was firm and unyielding. “Then there’s nothing more to say—we’ll fight to the bitter end.”

At this point, all possibilities for negotiation had been exhausted.

So, there would be war.

By now, night had fallen. Both sides returned to their camps, knowing that at daybreak, a fierce battle would commence.

The sky was dark, with few stars visible—a sleepless night awaited them.

Vice General Yang led his men in constructing layer upon layer of fortifications. Their only option now was to stall for time, await reinforcements, and coordinate with the larger army’s battle plan.

With just a thousand men, they had no chance of engaging the enemy head-on. Instead, they had to act as a thorn in the enemy’s side, diverting attention so the main army could prepare. To succeed, they had to rely on the terrain for defense. Otherwise, with the enemy’s five thousand troops, a single charge could scatter their small force.

Fortunately, Wang Ye had equipped each soldier with an engineering shovel. This tool was not only useful for setting up camp, digging trenches, and fortifying defenses but could also serve as a weapon in combat. Its versatility was unparalleled—it could do anything one could imagine.

Once dismissed as insignificant, the Crafting Workshop now held an unparalleled status in the military. The tools they produced were nothing short of extraordinary, significantly improving the army’s capabilities.

Thanks to their General Xie’s close relationship with Wang Ye, the Red Robe Army had been able to benefit from these advancements. In contrast, look at Great General Wei, who frequently visited Wang Ye and the Crafting Workshop—yet the equipment he obtained couldn’t compare to theirs.

As Wang Ye had put it, these supplies must first go to those who truly needed them—ensuring everything was used to its fullest potential.

Thus, before they set out on this mission, Wang Ye had equipped them with nearly all the best military gear available. If not for the need to travel light, they would have brought even more.

As for these engineering shovels, Wang Ye had emptied the entire inventory for them. The manufacturing process was complex and required exceptional precision. It had taken a long time to produce enough for just over a thousand soldiers.

The grasslands at night were eerily quiet. Occasionally, the chirping of insects could be heard, along with the sound of birds flapping their wings in alarm.

“Coo… coo…” Somewhere in the distance, the call of a bird echoed faintly.

Vice General Yang straightened up and listened carefully before returning to his work, his expression unreadable.

Everyone continued their tasks in silence. Their hearts were steady, unshaken by fear. A general meets death in a hundred battles; a warrior returns home only after ten years.

War had always been brutal. Life and death were determined by fate, and fortune was in the hands of the heavens. Once a soldier donned armor and took up his mission, thoughts of life and death no longer mattered.

If they were to fight, then they would fight.

To shed one’s blood on the battlefield—that was a warrior’s true destiny.

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