"You again?"
Tu Luotu's entry into the tent caused Nan Jiyun, Lü Changhe, and the others to pause.
Wasn't this the same barbarian envoy who had previously delivered a challenge to Yan Prefecture?
Tu Luotu, now devoid of his former arrogance, exuded a newfound composure. After a few courteous exchanges with Lü Yi, he presented the challenge.
Liang Xiao sat beside Yue Qingtian, appearing unassuming next to the towering figure. Tu Luotu merely glanced over him, paying him little mind.
"Hmm?" After reading the challenge, Lü Yi frowned and said coldly, "It seems not all you barbarians are illiterate. You've even read 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'."
The generals were perplexed.
What did 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' have to do with something as crucial as military strategy?
"It is natural for surrounding nations to study the culture of the Central Plains," Tu Luotu responded, neither subservient nor arrogant. "Is that so strange?"
Lü Yi then elaborated, "Your Right Worthy King wishes to emulate 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms' by engaging in a duel of generals before the main engagement. Thirty-six generals from each side, one-on-one, in front of the armies. This certainly presents a difficulty for this commander."
Everyone was taken aback, and Liang Xiao couldn't help but furrow his brow.
In ancient warfare, duels between generals were exceptionally rare, unlike the depiction in historical dramas where they frequently occurred, followed by a victorious army's pursuit.
Great generals, as linchpins of an army, were primarily responsible for leading troops and commanding battles; they would not engage in duels lightly.
The outcome of a duel could, at best, slightly affect morale; it could not decisively determine the victor of an entire campaign. Even when duels did occur, typically, close guards or retainers would be sent to issue challenges.
'Records of the Three Kingdoms,' as a historical text, explicitly recorded the duel between Lü Bu and Guo Si, where Lü Bu famously stabbed Guo Si from his horse. However, this did not alter the outcome; Guo Si was rescued by his subordinates, and the Xiliang army eventually breached Chang'an.
Liang Xiao pondered for a moment and understood.
The barbarians excelled at mounted combat. While not every barbarian cavalryman was tall and stout, a portion of their elite troops and generals, having grown up with better living conditions, possessed superior physical capabilities. Coupled with long-term martial training, they were confident in their dueling prowess.
Having lost 170,000 men and immeasurable supplies in Yan Prefecture, the barbarian morale was low. The Right Worthy King desperately needed any means to boost their spirits.
They wouldn't dare propose a large-scale army duel, as the Great Qian possessed its White Robe Army, and the barbarians lacked comparable elite forces.
However, selecting dozens of fierce warriors for duels was certainly feasible, thus placing the pressure squarely on the Great Qian.
Tu Luotu continued, "At that time, apart from the thirty-six generals, all others must remain at least two arrow-lengths away, ensuring neither side's archers engage in surprise attacks. The thirty-six generals will fight in sequence, and once a general withdraws, they cannot re-enter the fray! Surely your Great Qian cannot claim to be unable to produce thirty-six valiant warriors?"
Lü Yi shook his head, "You misunderstand this commander's meaning. It is because our Great Qian is blessed with a multitude of formidable generals, each eager to prove their mettle, that I am unsure whom to select in fairness."
Tu Luotu was left speechless.
As Lü Yi finished speaking, the eyes of the assembled generals lit up.
Lü Yi surveyed his generals and his gaze settled on Liang Xiao. Seeing Liang Xiao nod in affirmation, he declared, "Return and inform your Right Worthy King. The Great Qian accepts!"
After Tu Luotu departed, Lü Yi addressed his officers, "Although the battlefield is fraught with peril, and the barbarians seek to boost their morale through this means, our army can use this opportunity to further demoralize them. They will understand that in both grand engagements and individual valor, the Great Qian surpasses the barbarians!"
"This humble subordinate volunteers to be one of the thirty-six generals!"
Many generals rose to volunteer.
Lü Yi chuckled, "I have observed the martial skills of you all over time and have a good understanding. Your achievements lie in leading your troops. This matter of dueling before the armies will be merely an appetizer."
The generals understood.
"Who will be the vanguard?" Lü Yi asked.
All the generals stepped forward. Lü Yi waved them back and specified, "I am asking Nan Jiyun, Nie Yuan, and Yue Qingtian."
Hearing this, the other generals immediately became still.
These three were widely acknowledged as the most skilled fighters in the Yan Prefecture army, as soldiers often sparred with each other.
Before these three rose to prominence, Lü Changhe and Zhuo Ying were considered the strongest in the Northern Frontier. Even they admitted inferiority to these three, leaving no room for dissent from others.
"This humble subordinate volunteers to be the vanguard!" the three declared in unison.
Yue Qingtian became agitated. "You two always claimed to be frail and weak! Since I am the strongest, I should go first!"
Nan Jiyun and Nie Yuan's expressions shifted, and they quickly promised, "We guarantee we won't pretend to be weak anymore!"
Liang Xiao chimed in, "Let General Nan showcase the Left Worthy King's Swift Sands steed."
Nan Jiyun grinned, "Since the Vice Marshal has said so, do you two have any objections?"
Nie Yuan and Yue Qingtian could only nod. Finally, Lü Yi selected thirty-six individuals from among the generals and guards. Liang Xiao was positioned at the very end to provide support.
After the generals had returned to prepare, Lü Yi and Liang Xiao retained Nan Jiyun, Lü Changhe, and Zhuo Ying, the three generals who knew the truth about General Tian.
"Just in case, if you need to fight, you should have a resounding title," Lü Yi told Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao contemplated for a moment and then nodded, "Grand Master of Imperial Decrees of Great Qian, Minister of Works, Department of Land, Zhang Yang."
"That sounds rather familiar," Lü Changhe and the other two were taken aback.
"Then it is settled. It will also show the barbarians that our Great Qian scholars are proficient in both literary and martial arts…" Lü Yi looked at Liang Xiao's serious expression and couldn't bring himself to scold him for his shamelessness.
Considering the possibility of his identity being revealed, Liang Xiao decided to change into a brocade robe and wear a helmet that revealed only his eyes.
Lü Yi even lent Liang Xiao one of his prized horses, "Ten Thousand Miles of Clouds and Smoke."
Liang Xiao had previously tested riding this dark green steed. Weighing eleven hundred catties, it was remarkably docile and calm compared to ordinary heavy warhorses.
As long as Liang Xiao disassembled the halberd head of his Sky Dragon Breaking City Halberd and used it as a silver spear, its weight would pose no problem for "Ten Thousand Miles of Clouds and Smoke."
News of the barbarian challenge quickly spread throughout the camp, and all the soldiers eagerly anticipated it.
At the barbarian encampment below Mount Helan, the warriors became excited upon learning that Lü Yi had accepted the challenge.
The Right Worthy King, holding a copy of the Great Qian Daily newspaper that featured 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms,' smiled and said, "Know yourself and your enemy, and you will win a hundred battles. The newspaper has indeed influenced the soldiers of Great Qian."
A black-robed warrior, nine feet tall with a broad, burly physique, stepped forward. "I, Hu Yan Xiuluo, am willing to be the vanguard and avenge my two elder brothers!!"
The generals who had been vying for the vanguard position immediately fell silent.
The Hu Yan clan was a renowned family of formidable warriors among the barbarians.
Hu Yan Xiuluo's two elder brothers, Hu Yan Jue Luo, had been slain by General Tian in battle.
As for Hu Yan Jia Luo, following the allegiance of the remnants of the Great Heng Kingdom to the Great Qian, the Left Worthy King deduced that he had been murdered by Zuo Wushang, rather than dying at the hands of the Sword Saint.
"General Hu Yan possesses the might to challenge ten thousand men. He is indeed suitable!" the Left Worthy King praised.
No one objected, and the Right Worthy King swiftly selected his thirty-six generals.
The two armies were now only fifty li apart, both vigilant against a surprise night raid.
The Great Qian army intensified its training while awaiting the weather to warm.
Three days later, the Great Qian generals and commanders emerged from their camp and looked towards the west.
"Marshal! The wind and snow have stopped. The weather will warm up soon!"