Outside Yunzhou City, in the barbarian camp, the young barbarian Right Virtuous King, with thick eyebrows and large eyes, was reviewing military maps and messages from two other locations.
"Reporting to the Right Virtuous King, the Tianjiang has frozen prematurely!"
The Right Virtuous King slammed his palm on the table. "Excellent! Immediately notify our allies in Shuofang and Yanzhou. If the enemy refuses to come out and fight, we will combine our forces, cross the Tianjiang, and capture Yunzhou!"
The moment Mu Xueqin left Tianshan, the Liang mansion and Tianshan received news of Liang Xiao's other wives being pregnant.
Even Jian Nanfeng, who was usually indifferent to worldly affairs, couldn't help but laugh until his mouth almost split open.
At this moment, Luo Changfeng, far away in the capital, was in the same situation.
Liang Xiao had made a serious promise: as long as he had children, he would never let the woman's family be without heirs.
Chrysanthemum hailed from the Western Regions, so there was no issue of lineage continuity.
According to Liang Xiao's wishes, he would not allow his descendants to compete for power. As long as they loved each other, treated each other as brothers and sisters, the family head's position was not important.
Liang Xiao's three brothers had perfectly embodied his philosophy. The most outstanding Liang Xiao had no intention of becoming the future head of the Liang family and instead supported Liang Feng.
This meant that if Liang Xiao's wives conceived normally and Chrysanthemum bore a male heir, Liang Xiao would not be without descendants. In that case, the children of Yue Lian, Luo Qingxue, and Jian Qinwan could take their mother's surname.
Although Gongsun Yu was Jian Nanfeng's biological daughter, she was to inherit the legacy of Marquis Dingguo. Therefore, Jian Qinwan's children were the ones who could potentially be the joint descendants of the Jian clan and Liang Xiao.
Luo Changfeng's Luo mansion also had hope of continuing its lineage.
Zuo Wushang returned to Yanzhou after completing his intelligence mission. Upon hearing that Yue Lian was pregnant, he performed a ritual to her ancestors that very night.
"I have failed my ancestors, Zuo Wushang. However, the Great Heng Kingdom is now a thing of the past. The Son of Heaven of the Great Qian, Liang Xiao, is the will of heaven. What I can do is ensure that my enemies do not perish. Liang Xiao has already promised, and the Son of Heaven has also decreed, that a sufficiently noble title will be bestowed upon the child in the future!"
"The people of this land have suffered enough. We should not cause further turmoil. The former Great Heng Kingdom failed its people, leading to widespread suffering and devastation. The Son of Heaven, with his virtue, repays grievances and protects his compatriots. Now, we should repay him with a bright and peaceful era and make amends for the people!"
Even when alone, Zuo Wushang no longer pledged allegiance to the past emperors of the Great Heng Kingdom. He only offered his reverence with a sense of guilt, reporting Yue Lian's situation to these ancestors.
The remnants of the Great Heng Kingdom were not deprived of their wealth and lived in prosperity, protected by the Imperial Guards and a small contingent of Shadow Guards. They also did not have to fear retaliation from the Spring Revival Sect.
The combination of the Great Qian's ruler and his minister had completely won over the former remnants of the Great Heng Kingdom.
Zuo Wushang merely paid a visit to Yue Lian, neither joyful nor sorrowful. After kneeling and paying his respects, he then looked at Zhuo Xun.
"Don't look at me like that, he hasn't even… yet," Zhuo Xun covered her blushing face.
Zuo Wushang, having understood Liang Xiao's intentions beforehand, simply grinned, bid farewell, and went off to his next mission.
He had always felt deep guilt towards his own daughter. For the rest of his life, he only wished to obey her in all things and dared not make any demands of her.
"Deputy Marshal, there are almost no barbarian scouts in the surrounding area, but we still haven't dared to relax our patrols!"
After hearing Zhuo Ying's report, Liang Xiao finally relaxed. He walked out of the tent and gazed at the sky full of fine snow.
"It's colder this year than in previous years. It seems the freezing of the Tianjiang will accelerate."
The generals became extremely vigilant. "Then the enemy is very likely to use the thick ice to easily cross the river from Yunzhou and launch a fierce attack on Yunzhou!"
Yunzhou was the largest gateway for the three regions. Once Yunzhou fell, Yanzhou and Shuofang, and even the capital, would face direct barbarian threats!
"The Marshal will hold firm in Yunzhou and will certainly not risk a frontal assault. With Yunzhou City, they can hold out for three months. The commander of Shuofang is also defending the city resolutely. The key lies with us in Yanzhou, which cannot afford to be lost," Liang Xiao said gravely.
The generals were awed and simultaneously looked north.
The barbarians should have already gathered 200,000 troops.
Now, they finally understood why Liang Xiao had ordered the extermination of barbarian scouts in the surrounding areas.
This move would first ensure that the White Robed Army and scouts could sortie out at any time to ascertain the enemy's movements.
Once the enemy split their forces to reinforce Yunzhou and launch a full-scale attack, the Yanzhou side could also send cavalry to assist, as well as dispatch some other troop types to Yunzhou. As long as Lü Yi did not act rashly and come out to engage in battle, it would be entirely sufficient.
The lessons of Yanzhou were profoundly painful. The northern border today was different from the past. All civilians in the frontier were relocated inland to avoid repeating past mistakes. The northern soldiers also did not have the pressure of protecting the populace.
In the barbarian camp, the Left Virtuous King also received the news.
The Yanzhou defenders had completely controlled a 25-li radius around the area, making it difficult for barbarian scouts to penetrate!
"Marshal, if we approach Yanzhou City and force them to dare not send out scouts and White Robed soldiers, would we have more room to choose when to divide our forces without them knowing?" a general reminded him.
The Left Virtuous King shook his head.
"How could the enemy be so foolish as to not support Yunzhou? If they dare not come out of the city, and the Tianjiang has frozen prematurely, judging by Liang Xiao's experience defending Luzhou City, he is surely a master of strategy. Of course, he would defend the city resolutely and secretly dispatch troops to reinforce Yunzhou. The fact that we can see a large number of White Robed soldiers acting as scouts now indicates that Yunzhou is stable, and he is not in a hurry to reinforce it."
"Because Liang Xiao could not possibly not understand that if the Tianjiang were not frozen over a large area, it would take our hundreds of thousands of barbarian cavalry so long to cross the river that they would have enough time to travel from Yanzhou to Yunzhou and organize defenses! Given this, why not take advantage of our current advantage and lure the snake out of its hole?"
The military advisor agreed. "Your Highness is wise! The initiative is in our hands. If the Tianjiang doesn't freeze, and we divide our forces, we would instead be in a passive position, and our trip to Yanzhou City would be in vain! If Liang Xiao truly falls for the Marshal's strategy of luring the snake out of its hole, the barbarian cavalry fighting against over 100,000 Yanzhou defenders, our army will surely win! Even if Liang Xiao is determined to huddle within the city, by the time we reinforce Yunzhou, we will be just in time for the best opportunity to cross the river!"
A profound smile appeared on the Left Virtuous King's face, and he then issued a stern order: "Relay the order to the entire army to stand by and be ready to move at any time to reinforce Yunzhou!"
"Don't forget to spread the word to the Great Qian spies that this king intends to reinforce Yunzhou!"
In Yanzhou, at the Liang family ancestral hall, Liang Xiao's wives burned incense for the Liang family ancestors, standing behind Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao knelt before the memorial tablets of his parents, bowing repeatedly with a solemn expression.
"Father, Mother, Uncle, Aunt, Xiao'er is unfilial. The nation's hatred and family's vengeance shall be avenged today!"
The resonant oath echoed within the ancestral hall, sending a shiver through everyone's hearts.
Liang Xiao only looked at the memorial tablet of his father, Liang Anguo, and clenched his fist.
Ten years of ice water, yet the hot blood remains uncooled!
This was a grievance and a secret buried for ten years.
When he first heard of his parents' sacrifice and then his mother fell ill and passed away, the young Liang Xiao felt as if the entire world had collapsed.
Bearing the burden of national and family hatred, his family was ostracized by powerful court officials. The court engaged in peace and trade with the barbarians. Liang Xiao knew there was no path to serve his country. The aristocratic families would not allow those from military families to hold civil official positions, as there were countless historical precedents.
Whether it was the Nie family, the Luo family, or the Lü family in the past, those from the clan who became civil officials were few and far between. Even obtaining academic achievements was useless.
From then on, Liang Xiao lived a more reckless life, but he never indulged in excessive eating, drinking, or womanizing, fearing he would ruin his health. Instead, he silently practiced his strength and swordsmanship in his room.
Even as a dissolute noble, he never forgot that one day he would avenge himself against the barbarians, waiting for his moment of glory!
Even without the unexpected event of becoming a "special forces general," Liang Xiao would have fought the barbarians without hesitation when they invaded.
Looking at the present day, he was made a marquis as a youth, held military power, and the barbarians were invading!
After paying his respects to his parents and uncle and aunt, Liang Xiao settled his wives and headed to the military camp.
"Deputy Marshal! News from Yunzhou indicates that the winter this year is extremely cold, and the river will freeze prematurely. By the time I reached Yanzhou, it has likely already frozen!"