“Bang bang bang!”

The deep sound of Hailan Jiabo knocking on the wooden table echoed in the big tent, and the atmosphere was depressing.

“Do not……”

After thinking for a long time, he shook his head, his tone revealing a hint of firmness, “This matter is definitely not that simple. Although Chagan Wuli is cautious, he will definitely not make such a meaningless provocation at this time. Otherwise, he is not Chagan Wuli.”

“So what the general means is…” someone asked tentatively, with a hint of uneasiness in his eyes.

“I mean……”

Hailan Jiabo spoke slowly, with a hint of coldness in his eyes, “The appearance of these envoys may have other hidden reasons. We can’t jump to conclusions easily, and we must not be blinded by superficial emotions.”

He stood up, his eyes swept across the crowd coldly, his tone revealing an unquestionable majesty: “Pass the order down, strengthen the surveillance of Hailanhak.

At the same time, send someone to secretly investigate the origins of these envoys. I want to know whether they are the real envoys of Chagan Wuli or someone else!”

“Yes!” Everyone answered in unison. Although they were somewhat puzzled, they quickly retreated to carry out Hailan Jiabo’s orders.

The big tent was quiet again. Hailan Jiabo stood alone, his eyes deep and cold. His hand gently grasped the sword at his waist, as if he was thinking about something.

“I hope I’m overthinking it…but everything will have an answer when the people we sent out come back!” He murmured in a low voice, with a hint of complex emotions in his tone.

However, what he didn’t know was that the messengers he sent out had already been discovered by Yuan Jingxin and killed.

All he faced next was endless waiting.

……

Inside Hu Yanhuan’s camp, the wind blew in from outside the tent, lifting the tent curtains and bringing a hint of chill.

The candlelight flickered in the wind, and the dim light shone on Hu Yanhuan’s face, making his expression seem even deeper and more unfathomable.

He sat in the main seat, holding a map in his hand, and his eyes coldly swept over the markings on it.

His fingertips tapped lightly on the table, making a low sound, as if adding an invisible sense of oppression to the silent night.

“There is not much time left to the front line, and Lin Zhongyun is still…” Hu Yanhuan murmured in a low voice, with a hint of deep thought in his tone.

Although he had deliberately slowed down the pace of the march, he was surprised by Lin Zhongyun’s inaction.

According to his expectations, Lin Zhongyun should have taken action long ago and tried to hijack the prison van to prevent them from escorting Li Zhongwu to the front line.

However, until now, there was still no movement in Lin Zhongyun’s camp. This unusual silence made Hu Yanhuan feel a little uneasy.

“Lin Zhongyun…” Hu Yanhuan whispered the name, with a complex emotion in his eyes.

“What are you waiting for? Are you really going to give up on Li Zhongwu and not care whether he lives or dies?”

This thought flashed through his mind, but he quickly rejected it.

He sneered, shook his head, and there was a hint of coldness in his eyes.

“impossible.”

Hu Yanhuan said secretly in his heart, with a firm tone in his voice, “Lin Zhongyun will never give up on Li Zhongwu. He knows better than anyone that once Li Zhongwu successfully reaches the front line, it will be a huge blow to the morale of the rebels on the front line.”

He slowly put down the map in his hand and stared at the flickering candlelight with deep eyes, as if he was peeking into Lin Zhongyun’s heart through the faint light.

“The reason why he didn’t do it was because he felt the time was not right.”

Hu Yanhuan pondered in his heart, a sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, “Lin Zhongyun is always cautious and calm. He will not act easily unless he is sure that his plan is foolproof.”

Thinking of this, Hu Yanhuan’s expression became even more stern.

He knew very well that Lin Zhongyun’s inaction did not mean that he was not taking any action. Instead, it might be that he was secretly laying a trap and waiting for the most appropriate time to launch a fatal blow.

“The more silent you are, the more dangerous you are.”

Hu Yanhuan said in a low voice, with a hint of coldness in his eyes, “Lin Zhongyun… do you think I will be confused by your silence? No, I will be more patient than you. I want to see how long you can endure.”

He stood up, walked to the door of the tent, and looked into the darkness in the distance.

The night wind blew in with a chill and a hint of murderous aura. His eyes swept coldly across the distant camp, as if he was looking through the darkness in the direction of Lin Zhongyun.

“Pass the order.”

Hu Yanhuan suddenly spoke, his tone revealing an unquestionable majesty, “Everyone speed up the march, don’t waste any more time, and order the troops on the front line to be ready to welcome Li Zhongwu at any time. When Li Zhongwu arrives at the front line, behead him on the spot!”

“Yes!” A deputy general quickly accepted the order and retreated quickly.

Hu Yanhuan watched the deputy general leave, then turned around and returned to the main seat.

His eyes fell on the map, and his fingers gently ran over several key locations marked on it, with a hint of deep thought in his eyes.

“Adding fuel to the fire, Lin Zhongyun…” He murmured in a low voice, with a hint of teasing and coldness in his tone, “Now I want to see if you can still keep your composure?”

After saying this, he waved his hand and signaled a personal soldier to call the two guards who were guarding Li Zhongwu.

A moment later, two guards walked quickly into the tent, one fat and one thin. Although their body shapes were very different, they both had a cold smile on their faces.

“Greetings, General!” The two men saluted in unison, with respect in their tone.

Hu Yanhuan raised his head and glanced at the two of them coldly, his tone low and dignified: “How is Li Zhongwu doing recently? Is there anything unusual?”

Upon hearing this, the two guards looked at each other, and then simultaneously revealed a cold smile.

The fat guard spoke first, his tone revealing a gloomy tone: “General, don’t worry, the two of us will give Li Zhongwu ‘extra meals’ every day in the next few days, so that he can have a taste of our ‘hospitality’.

However, we have a sense of propriety and we will keep him alive and will not let him die easily.”

The thin guard took over the conversation and sneered, adding: “That’s right, General. Although the guy is still alive, he is already half dead and can’t put up any resistance at all.”

After hearing the two people’s answers, Hu Yanhuan nodded with satisfaction, and the sneer on the corner of his mouth became more and more obvious.

He knew very well that Li Zhongwu’s life and death was of vital importance to Lin Zhongyun, and what he had to do was to take advantage of Li Zhongwu’s situation, exert maximum psychological pressure, and force Lin Zhongyun to reveal his flaws.

“very good!”

Hu Yanhuan nodded in satisfaction at the two’s answers, and then continued with a hint of chill in his tone, “But in order to make the plan foolproof, I have one more thing to tell you!”

He picked up a small sachet from the table and placed it in front of the two guards. He stared at them coldly, with a tone of unquestionable majesty: “Sprinkle these things on Li Zhongwu’s body without leaving any trace. Remember, especially without leaving any trace. I don’t want anyone to notice anything unusual.”

He said this, especially the words ‘without a trace’ which exuded a strong chill.

How could the two guards not understand the implication of Hu Yanhuan’s words?
They looked at each other, then laughed loudly at the same time, with a hint of cold respect in their tone: “Please rest assured, General, we will complete the mission and ensure that there will be no flaws.”

Hu Yanhuan nodded with satisfaction, then waved his hand, signaling the two to leave.

“Lin Zhongyun, do you think you can control the situation by keeping calm?”

Hu Yanhuan murmured in a low voice with a hint of sneer in his tone, “No, the more silent you are, the more I will make you feel confused. The moment you really make a move, that will be the beginning of your weakness.”

Not long after, a series of intermittent wailing sounds suddenly came from the solemn and cold camp. The sound was low and shrill, which made people shudder.

Hu Yanhuan’s mouth curled up slightly, revealing a cold smile. He knew that the voice came from Li Zhongwu’s prison, and this was exactly what he wanted.

“Let him feel pain, let him suffer, but never let him die.” Hu Yanhuan said in a low voice, with a hint of cold murderous intent in his tone.

“I want Lin Zhongyun to know that Li Zhongwu’s life and death is in my hands, and all he can do is watch helplessly without being able to save him.”

Hu Yanzhong, who had always been standing behind Hu Yanhuan, watched all this with indifference.

His expression was like frost in a cold night, as if nothing could stir up the slightest ripple in his heart.

However, at this moment, he suddenly spoke, his tone low and calm, with a hint of deep thought.

“But, General, would Lin Zhongyun really risk his life to rescue the prisoner?”

Hu Yanzhong’s eyes narrowed slightly, and there was a hint of doubt in his tone.

“After all, no matter how much he values ​​Li Zhongwu, if he relies on his few remaining soldiers to rescue the prisoner, he is afraid that they will never return.

This kind of risk is too unwise. If it were me, I would definitely not do it.”

Upon hearing this, Hu Yanhuan slowly turned around, with a meaningful smile on his face.

He stared at Hu Yanzhong coldly, his tone revealing a hint of certainty: “You are right, Lin Zhongyun will not take this risk easily, but what if we deliberately create an ‘opportunity’ for him and make him think that this is the only chance of winning?”

Hu Yanzhong was slightly startled, then his eyes lit up, and he vaguely guessed Hu Yanhuan’s intention: “General, what you mean is…”

“Pass the order out.” Hu Yanhuan spoke slowly, with a hint of coldness in his tone. “From now on, my army will attack Hailanhak.”

“Attack Hailanhak?” Huyan Zhong’s eyes flashed with doubt when he heard it, but he soon realized it.

A sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, and there was a hint of admiration in his tone: “General, do you mean that this is just a show?”

“exactly.”

Hu Yanhuan nodded, his eyes full of deep thought.

“The reason why Lin Zhongyun didn’t take any action was because he felt the time was not yet ripe. He was waiting for a reason that would make him take action.

And I just want to give him this reason, to make him feel that this is his only chance.”

In fact, this was a strategy that had been discussed with Hailanhak early this morning.

Only in this way could Lin Zhongyun believe that there was a rift within the Northern Barbarians, and then think that this was the best opportunity for him to fish in troubled waters.

He turned around, staring coldly at the key location on the map, his tone revealing a hint of chill: “Lin Zhongyun thinks he is smart, he will definitely seize this ‘opportunity’ and try to rescue the prisoner.

But what he doesn’t know is that we have everything under our control. What he calls ‘opportunity’ is nothing but a trap we have carefully laid.”

After hearing this, Hu Yanzhong couldn’t help but smile in admiration: “General, this plan is indeed brilliant. In this way, Lin Zhongyun will not only fall into the trap, but also completely expose his intentions. We will definitely win this battle.”

“The outcome is still undecided, but the situation is set.”

Hu Yanhuan said calmly, his tone showing a hint of calmness, “Next, every step must be carried out according to the plan, and there must not be any mistakes.

Only in this way can we completely defeat Lin Zhongyun and leave him no chance of recovery.”

“A good show is about to begin…” Hu Yanhuan looked into the distance gloomily and murmured in a low voice.

……

Chagan Uli’s camp was only a hundred miles away from the front line.

People were hurrying throughout the camp. Soldiers were carrying out their respective tasks in an orderly manner. Messengers were shuttling back and forth, and military newspapers were pouring into the tent like snowflakes.

Although the atmosphere in the camp was tense, there was no trace of chaos. It was as if a huge war machine was operating efficiently.

In the big tent, Chagan Wuli sat in the main seat with his eyes lowered, staring at the intelligence and plans spread out on the table.

His fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a low sound, as if adding a touch of invisible pressure to the busy atmosphere.

“Huyanhuan…” Chagan Uli murmured in a low voice, with a hint of deep thought in his eyes.

He flipped through the intelligence in front of him, which covered the latest battle situation on the front line, Hailanhak’s response, and Hu Yanhuan’s latest plan progress.

The information was organized in an orderly manner and was obviously presented after careful consideration.

The corners of Chagan Wuli’s mouth rose slightly, revealing a satisfied smile.

He knew that although he had handed over full command of the front line to Hu Yanhuan, Hu Yanhuan still continued to report to him without interruption.

This not only reflects Hu Yanhuan’s respect for him, but also makes him more confident in Hu Yanhuan’s ability and loyalty.

“It seems that he still has me, the Great Khan, in his heart.” Chagan Uli said secretly in his heart, with a hint of relief in his eyes.

He slowly put down the intelligence in his hand, raised his head and looked at several trusted generals in the tent, his eyes revealing a deep look: “Hu Yanhuan is now more calm and more sophisticated.

It seems that handing the Northern Barbarians over to him is indeed a good choice.”

Upon hearing this, a confidant hurriedly stepped forward, with a hint of respect in his tone: “The Khan is wise, General Huyan is indeed a rare talent in our Northern Barbarians.

He is not only good at planning, but also has a good insight into the overall situation. Now the situation on the front line is under control. Sooner or later, the rebel army and Lin Zhongyun will be completely defeated by us.”

After hearing this, Chagan Uli nodded slightly, with a gleam of relief in his eyes.

He knew very well that Hu Yanhuan’s current performance was not only a testament to his ability, but also a hope for the future of the Northern Barbarians. (End of this chapter)