"Pass the word, no one is to halt or slacken speed, get away as soon as possible."

  Jiang Kungming rapidly issued a series of orders, completely disregarding the messenger's astonished gaze.

  Hundreds of riders galloped from behind, and the first one was Fang Lichen, the true commander-in-chief of the Red Ocean Legion. At this time, his eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and his face was full of worry.

  It was not the Black Flag Army that had just laid out the suspicious formation on the mountain, but rather the several hundred Red Ocean warriors led by Fang Lingchen, who had completed their mission and were now hurrying back.

  "Director Fang, how many more troops have the Xiongnu people added?" Jiang Gongming asked.

  Fang Lingchen was startled and his eyes swept towards Xu Haifeng. Xu Haifeng slightly shook his head, indicating that he had not leaked anything.

  Jiang Kongming snorted disdainfully and said, "If it weren't for the enemy's overwhelming force, and our clear disadvantage, how would my master have hastily ordered a retreat? Although the three million strong Golden Wolf Army of Kublai Khan is formidable, it's not necessarily a sure win against our two families joining forces. The only possibility is that the Xiongnu reinforcements have arrived."

  His gaze swept across Fang Lingchen's face, his hand holding a fan covering his face, and he said: "If the student's guess is not wrong, the Xiongnu aid army should be around 20,000, and it's also your old enemy Tuer Hongji's Flying Horse Legion."

  Fang Lingchen was shocked and lost his composure, his eyes could no longer conceal the astonishment and fear in his heart. He had actually guessed this too out of thin air.

  It's already extremely difficult to guess that the Xiongnu has arrived with reinforcements based on Xu Haifeng's reaction, and Fang Lianchen may not be able to do it even if he is willing. If you want him to say out loud which troops came to reinforce and how many people there are, then even if you kill him, don't think about achieving it.

  This person's intelligence is truly comparable to that of ghosts and gods.

  Xu Haifeng turned his head away, although he already had the composure of a master, but at this moment he still felt extremely amused, and a faint smile still lingered on the corner of his mouth. From where he stood, Jiang Kongming was not hiding anything from him, so he could clearly see the sly smile hanging on Jiang's face, which was covered by his fan.

  Mind-reading is indeed an extremely useful skill.

  Jiang Kongming is not the real Zhuge Kongming after all. No matter how powerful he is, he can't predict the future.

  He was the only one who could see through people's words and expressions, and as soon as he saw Xu Haifeng's appearance, he knew that something unexpected would happen, so he ordered to speed up the march. Fang Lianchen hurried over, thinking in his heart about how to respond to this situation.

  Since he is not a master and does not understand the power of the mind, how can his thoughts in his heart be concealed from Jiang Gongming? At a glance, he suddenly knew the reason.

  Fang Lingchen made a strenuous effort to force out a smile, his attitude becoming increasingly respectful: "In the opinion of Military Strategist sir, what should be done at this point?"

  Jiang Kongming put down his fan and became serious, saying: "We now have an army of 200,000. It's impossible for so many people to take a small detour. Since that's the case, let's speed up our march. Along the way, gods will kill gods, Buddhas will kill Buddhas, and we'll fight all the way to Wulong City."

  His words were extremely overbearing, but they coincided with the hearts of Fang Ling and other martial artists. Everyone shouted in unison and rode away on horseback, waving their whips.

  Yuè Hú Town, once a place of breathtaking beauty, with lush greenery and gardens everywhere, was renowned for hundreds of miles around as the best summer resort. Every year during the hot season, people flocked here to escape the heat. But this year is different, with eight-tenths fewer merchants and travelers coming and going.

  As for its origin, it is well-known to all.

  The great invasion of the Xiongnu has caused a chaotic situation where people are worried about their lives, and who would still care about the slight changes in the weather.

  A group of riders galloped into the small town, and it was Liu Zhengqi and his men.

  They originally had more than 80 people, but with so many people gathered together, they would inevitably attract attention. So Zhang Zihua ordered Liu Hualiang to take them to hide far away and only led seven people into the town to replenish food.

  This place is far from the capital, and no one has ever been here before. However, the two characters "Dà Zuò" (meaning "large inn") on a flag are visible from afar as they flutter in the wind.

  Although this is not a big city, there are still many inns. Zhang Zihua chose one of the most inconspicuous small inns and stopped his horse in front of it. This so-called inn was only made up of several simple rooms. Judging from its appearance, it's clear that most of the guests who come here are just ordinary people.

  He dismounted his horse and entered the inn, where a sixty-year-old man with a smiling face welcomed him.

  "How many people will be staying overnight?"

  Zhang Zihua changed his usual gloomy expression and said with a smile: "Old man, bring some food, and prepare more dry rations for us, the more the better."

  "What's this? Aren't you guests here to escape the heat?" the old man asked in surprise.

  "It's not natural, we have an emergency and need to rush."

  The old man's face flashed a hint of disappointment, but still said: "Alright, let's go." He turned his head and shouted loudly to the inside, and a response from an old woman came from the inner room.

  The old man carefully pulled out a stool and habitually wiped it with his sleeve.

  Liu Zhengqi furrowed his brow, looking at all this with disgust, but under Zhang Zihua's hint, he still sat down. Gao Chengwei and Liu Zhengzhong naturally scattered around him, subtly protecting him.

  Zhang Zihua's face piled up with a warm smile and asked: "Old man, how has the business been lately?"

  The old man shook his head and said, "It's tough. If it were in previous years at this time, there would be so many people coming here that you can't even imagine it. Although my small shop is simple, the number of customers is not small." He sighed for a while and said, "To tell the truth, half of the summer has passed, but I haven't received several batches of guests yet. This day is really hard to get through."

  He muttered a few words and took up the cloth, gently wiping down the table and chairs.

  "The Huns, I must definitely drive them back." Liu Zhengqi cursed in a low voice.

  Zhang Zihua was startled, and his eyes darted to the old man, who continued wiping without pausing for a moment. He let out a soft sigh and turned his head to shake it at Liu Zhengqi. Liu Zhengqi knew he had misspoken and smiled awkwardly at him.

  The inn's door curtain suddenly opened, and a young man strode in, calling out loudly as he walked: "Father, I'm back!" He had a package on his back, apparently having gone out to purchase goods.

  The old man raised his head and greeted: "It's good that you're back. How come it took so long?"

  The young man sighed and said: "I don't know how it is, but the city is sealed off tightly, saying that they want to catch some big thief, and I almost couldn't get out."

  He spoke carelessly, but Liu Zhengqi and others were simultaneously on high alert.

  The old man snorted in anger and said, "I knew this group of wolf cubs had no good intentions."

  The young man only saw Liu Zhengqi and others at this time, his face suddenly changed, and he repeatedly gave a wink to the old father, hinting that he should not talk too much. The old man glanced at him and said, "Help me entertain the guests well, I'll go help your mother."

  The young man responded with a "yes" and watched the old man enter the inner room. He turned his head around, smiled and said: "My father is getting on in years, he often talks nonsense these days, please don't mind him."

  Zhang Zihua stood up and smiled: "Nothing, old man, it's all like this." He turned his words around and asked: "Little brother, what do you say is going on with the city being closed?"

  The young man waved his hand and said, "I heard that someone escaped to this place. Not only the city, but also the roads in the south are all blocked." As he spoke, he looked at Zhang Zihua, suddenly his eyes narrowed, as if he remembered something, and moved down along his shoulder, staring tightly at Zhang Zihua's broken arm. The smile on his face immediately disappeared, replaced by a look of shock, but with some surprise in it.

  Zhang Zihua's heart skipped a beat, and he pretended not to know, smiling and asking: "What's wrong, little brother?"

  The young man, as if waking from a dream, forced out a smile and said: "Gentlemen, please sit for a while, I'll go help my parents prepare wine and dishes for you."

  Zhang Zihua smiled and nodded, but as soon as he walked into the inner room, the smile on his face immediately disappeared. He took a step forward, came to the door, and listened carefully with his ear against it.

  "Dad, we're going to get rich." A voice that had clearly been suppressed rose up softly.

  "What's gotten rich?"

  "Hmm..."

  "What's with all this sneaking around?" The old man said discontentedly.

  "Dad, I saw him at the city gate, the notorious thief wanted on that poster is that man at the entrance."

  "What? You're not seeing things, are you?"

  "Absolutely not." The young man's voice was filled with extreme excitement: "Dad, as long as we provide the officials with their whereabouts, we can get 500 taels of silver!"

  "Five hundred taels?" An old woman gasped, for these common people, five hundred taels of silver was an unimaginable huge sum.

  "You really can't be wrong?"

  "Absolutely impossible." The young man cursed and swore, "That fellow not only looks exactly the same, but also has a broken arm. How could you possibly mistake him?"

  Inside the house, Zhang Zihua fell silent, his face pale. His lone arm gripped the hilt of the dagger in his bosom tightly. As for Gao Chengwei and others, they had long been waiting in ambush, ready to strike at any moment.

  "Father, you hold them back, I'll go report to the authorities."

  "No way." The old man flatly denied it.

  "Why?" The old woman's voice was full of surprise.

  "Father, have you gone mad? This is 500 taels of silver!"

  "Hmph, I've run this shop for a lifetime, and I still have some discerning eyes. Do you know what kind of horses those people outside are riding?"

  "What?"

  War horse.

  "What's the big deal?" The young man was perplexed.

  "Fool, since they're riding military horses, it means they're soldiers, got it?"

  The young man remained silent.

  "It's now the world of the Xiongnu, and what kind of general would still be wanted by them? Even if I were to become poor, I couldn't do something that would make me hang my head in shame."

  After a moment, the young man's voice sounded again, but this time he had no more enthusiasm: "Dad, what do you think we should do?"

  "Get the dry rations ready, give them to them. Today, no one has come to our shop." The old man's voice was firm and solemn, without any ups and downs, but it seemed like a gentle stream that could directly penetrate people's hearts.