Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress-Chapter 1579 - 1574: Attacked from Both Sides

"Rest well first. We’re going to fight, but there’s no rush to send out the troops immediately," Bai Qingyan finished speaking, and Wei Zhong left the courtyard with the servants carrying the sedan chair. "Go back and rest for a while."

After last night’s battle, Bai Qingjue and the soldiers traveled day and night to get here, and going into combat now, tired and weary, might not end in victory.

It’s better to let the soldiers eat and drink well and rest for half a day. When night falls, we can suddenly launch an attack on the Xiping army. Right now, the Zhou soldiers are filled with anger and boiling with blood for revenge, naturally brimming with fighting spirit.

Bai Qingjue rushed over as fast as he could upon hearing his eldest sister was attacked. Seeing her arm and leg injured, along with some superficial wounds, he sighed in relief, though his heart was still burning with anger.

"I’ve already sent people to keep an eye on Xiping County. Any news will be sent back immediately. Let the soldiers eat their fill and get some sleep. After sunset tomorrow, we will march on Xiping County!" Bai Qingyan said to Bai Qingjue.

Bai Qingyan didn’t just send people to monitor Xiping County; on the way back with the troops, she picked several key locations to station people. If spies from Xiping County come to explore Shequ City and cannot be captured alive, they are to be killed without mercy.

"Yes!" Bai Qingjue responded, then asked, "Eldest Sister, should we call the 50,000 garrison from Pingyang over?"

"I’ve already sent someone. Within three days... the Pingyang army must arrive." Bai Qingyan said in a low voice to Bai Qingjue, "Besides, although there aren’t many troops in Guangling, I’ve also transferred them here. Guangling is not far from Shequ, and should arrive by tomorrow noon at the latest, ready to set out after some minor adjustments."

·

Early the next day, the sky was just beginning to brighten, with strong light piercing through the thick clouds on the eastern horizon, as if a layer of pale light was plating the heavy clouds.

The soldiers were still resting. Inside Shequ City, it was so quiet that even dog barks could not be heard...

Only the slight sound of armor rubbing could be heard as the city guard switched shifts on the city wall.

Bai Qingyan had just gotten up when he heard Liu Pinggao report from outside that a spy had been captured.

Liu Pinggao stood inside the room, separated from Bai Qingyan by several thick curtains and a painted screen, and not even a sliver of light from inside was showing through, so Liu Pinggao could only hear the sound of water as Bai Qingyan washed up.

The dim lamp outside the curtain illuminated half of Liu Pinggao’s solemn face. His voice was icy, filled with bone-chilling hatred, "I used some methods, and one of the two spies endured severe torture, only crying and begging for mercy, claiming to know nothing. The other initially said... the Crown Prince of Xiping knows that His Majesty is skilled at swift and decisive battles, fearing that His Majesty would rally troops and immediately attack Xiping County after returning to Shequ, so he sent them to explore!"

"Later, under severe interrogation, he revealed more, saying that the Crown Prince of Xiping has ordered the Xiping army to strictly guard Xiping City and has sent someone to invite other vassal kings from the Yan Kingdom. If the Zhou attacks Xiping County for revenge, they plan to attack the Zhou forces from within and without with other vassal kings! If the Zhou holds off on retaliation temporarily, they intend to seize the moment when the Zhou has yet to react, and along with the other vassal kings, launch a strong assault on Shequ to kill His Majesty."

She took the hot towel Wei Zhong handed her and wiped her face before rinsing her mouth with fine salt, then asked, "Have the people we’ve sent to monitor Xiping County sent any news back?"

"Not yet," replied Liu Pinggao.

"Send someone to check, to see if our people were discovered by the Crown Prince of Xiping or if there’s nothing unusual, so they’re just keeping watch!" Bai Qingyan calculated the time, "Have them return in three hours, whether they’ve encountered our people monitoring Xiping County or not!"

"Yes!" Liu Pinggao responded and quickly left the main room, running out of the courtyard to give the order.

Liu Pinggao had not gone far from the courtyard when he ran into Xiao Ruojiang, who had returned with Bai Qingjue the previous night.

Seeing Xiao Ruojiang covered in a layer of cold air, with water vapor on his hair and lashes, Liu Pinggao was quite surprised. "Where have you been?"

"I went to Xiping County last night!" Xiao Ruojiang’s face was frozen red, and his speech was a bit sluggish. Upon hearing Liu Pinggao say that Bai Qingyan had just ordered to send someone to Xiping County, he added, "There’s no need to send anyone. I just returned and will go see the Eldest Young Lady now."

Liu Pinggao watched Xiao Ruojiang, clad in a form-fitting outfit, hurry away and couldn’t help but marvel. These brothers, Xiao Ruohai and Xiao Ruojiang, beside His Majesty, are truly extraordinary. They even visited Xiping County independently, anticipating the need beforehand.

Liu Pinggao was well aware of the abilities of Bai Qingyan’s two sworn brothers and couldn’t help but think of Xiao Ruohai. If Xiao Ruohai and Shen Qingzhu beside His Majesty were here in this war to annihilate Yan, it would have been ideal.

Having heard that Xiao Ruojiang was requesting an audience at the door, Bai Qingyan instructed Wei Zhong, "My sworn brother has just returned, and he might be hungry. Send someone to invite Ah Jue over and prepare breakfast. Let’s have some together."

Xiao Ruojiang entered from outside the felt curtains, and after Wei Zhong sent someone to prepare food, he moved a blazing bronze furnace closer to where Xiao Ruojiang was and personally took the cloak carrying the chill from Xiao Ruojiang.

Xiao Ruojiang took out the map of Xiping City he had drawn from his chest and handed it to Wei Zhong to pass to her, avoiding letting the cold from his body affect Bai Qingyan. "Last night, Xiping City was under full alert, so I couldn’t sneak into the city. This map is not very detailed, just a rough indication of the city’s size and the height of the city walls."

"Xiping City was built quite early, so its walls aren’t very high." Wei Zhong delivered hot tea to Xiao Ruojiang, who nodded in thanks, then continued talking to Bai Qingyan, who was examining the map. "If the Huying or Shuoyang army were here, scaling the city walls would be easy. But relying solely on the Anping army... though not impossible, it would take more time, which could allow other vassal kings to arrive!"

As soon as Xiao Ruojiang finished speaking, Bai Qingjue arrived. Xiao Ruojiang hurriedly stood to salute Bai Qingjue, who gestured for him to sit, and then he saluted Bai Qingyan before sitting beside her.

"Eldest Young Lady..." Xiao Ruojiang knelt back down, looking at Bai Qingyan, "Our troop numbers are limited. If we spend too much time here at Xiping City, we risk being attacked from all sides if other vassal kings arrive." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Upon hearing this, Bai Qingyan took the candle from the table, enduring the pain in her leg, and walked to the large map hanging on the wall. Bai Qingjue and Xiao Ruojiang also quickly got up to follow her.

Bai Qingyan pointed on the map to Jiujiang’s location: "The vassal king closest to Xiping and with the most troops is... the King of Jiujiang!"

Her finger traced from Jiujiang to Xiping City: "It takes two days to get from Jiujiang to Xiping City! From our Zhou’s Guangling to Xiping City takes one day, and deploying troops from Pingyang City to aid Xiping City takes three days! Last night at sunset, the fourth prince issued orders to the city to send reinforcements, and by midnight they had arrived at Shequ! By noon, when the forces from Guangling arrive, we will have 40,000 troops at our disposal in Zhou!"