Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
The 20,000 Dragon Army troops departed that very night, and they caught up with Shulitu's main force, who had already departed, the following morning. At this time, the cavalry of Heaven's Pa.s.s was still nowhere to be seen.
The soldiers of the Western Regions had plenty of fight in them and barely showed any signs of fatigue, which was very different from the previous image that the Norland army had.
Dugu Xian arrived even earlier, with no attendants except for the single bodyguard, Tie Linglong. He was wearing a Norland-style short coat and had an unkempt beard and terribly red eyes; he looked no different from a common refugee. So in the beginning, barely anybody noticed this one-armed general who was travel-worn and weary.
The large army kept marching on staunchly. After a quick wash and shave, Dugu Xian changed into a general's uniform and then stood beside the Dragon King, talking with the counselor and the others as they walked.
From this moment on, Dugu Xian began to attract the attention of others and rumors immediately started spreading. By dusk, when the army was setting camp, his name had already become known to a lot of officers and soldiers. Although, the soldiers were more used to calling him the "one-armed man."
"Did you see the way that the Dragon King talked to him? I've never seen the Dragon King act so politely to anybody before."
"How many times have you seen the Dragon King?"
"I saw the Dragon King kill people."
"It seems that His Highness knows this one-armed man. They were talking and laughing like old friends."
"Um, I heard that he used to be a general of the Norland army, and that later, he joined the Dragon King's side and won a lot of battles."
The battle at Xiaoyao Lake had shocked the entire Western Regions, but the common Norland soldiers knew little of it. On this occasion, however, it became the topic of many soldiers' conversations again. The part where the female soldiers of the Land of Fragrance had shown up like G.o.d's army gradually lost it l.u.s.ter, and one particular commander of that battle gained popularity rapidly.
Gu Shenwei wished that he had brought Dugu Xian here earlier, because just half a day was too short for the general to shoot to fame. Right now, the extent of the troops' discussion about Dugu Xian was merely this: they deemed him suitable to be the commander of the Dragon Army, but not the Commander-in-chief of the allied forces.
Some veterans of the Norland army did remember Dugu Xian, though, and there was even a captain among them. This captain thought the world of this old army comrade, but when Shulitu voiced his opinion about Dugu Xian becoming the Commander-in-chief, the captain shook his head in refusal repeatedly. "An outsider? That's impossible. The officers will never follow his commands."
This was the general situation right before the election for the Commander-in-chief that night. Shulitu was resigned to the situation. "There's nothing we can do. The Dragon King has created some miraculous achievements before, but it'll take General Dugu a long time to gain enough recognition… Can we delay the election?"
Gu Shenwei shook his head. When they were facing imminent war, they couldn't afford to delay the election of Commander-in-chief by even one day.
At the second night-watch of that night, the 60,000 cavalrymen from Heaven's Pa.s.s arrived and also set camp. Old General Mo Chu went to the young king's camp, along with Azheba. The first thing he did was meet with Prince Duodun.
The total troop count of the allied forces was smaller than 180,000. Shulitu's troops numbered 90,000, and made up the majority of the force, but they were also the most varied in terms of composition — the Court Attendants Army and the subordinates of the former kings were all included.
The Dragon Army numbered 20,000, most of whom were from the Shule Kingdom and inexperienced in battle.
The Second Consort's army had 10,000 men. But they were known for the superior treatment they received, not their fighting capability.
Duodun's army totaled 60,000. Most of the troops were veterans and they were undefeated throughout the Shule Kingdom.
During the Commander-in-chief election taking place that night, the only ones who had a say were Shulitu, the Dragon King, the Second Consort and Duodun. Fang Wens.h.i.+, Dugu Xian, Liman, Mo Chu and more than thirty other senior generals were present as observers; they could express their opinions only when asked to.
Shulitu was the host, so he was the first one to talk. "I recommend General Li Shun."
A black-faced old general nodded at the crowd silently.
"General Li Shun a.s.sisted my grandfather through countless battles and won numerous victories. The previous Khan once gave him the t.i.tle 'Gra.s.sland Hawk.' He's more than qualified to be the Commander-in-chief of our allied forces."
No objections arose. Just as Shulitu had said, Li Shun was indeed a pre-eminent general.
The second speaker was the Second Consort, and she recommended Azheba. "He's the most renowned archer in all of Norland, young and promising, and deeply loved by the troops. He's precisely the daring and valiant Commander-in-chief that we need."
Azheba was merely a centurion, and technically, he wasn't even qualified to attend this meeting. But, the Second Consort had no outstanding generals in her army and her recommendation was more of a part of an overall strategy. Thus, so n.o.body raised objections either.
Both of the last two people politely asked the other to speak first, and at last Duodun accepted the other's gentle offer. "Liman."
With a grave look on his face, Liman nodded to the other generals.
After a pause, Duodun resumed his explanation of his nomination. "I have lost count of the number of the wars that Liman has partic.i.p.ated in. He has fought battles side by side with his father and King Rizhu from childhood. Some people might say that he has no previous experience of being a Commander-in-chief, but I don't think that that is going to be a problem. As the saying goes, 'eagles do not breed doves.' How incompetent could general Zhe Su's son possibly be? The Naihang Tribe's our ally, and if the old general were here, he would definitely support Liman too."
The Norlanders heavily valued lineage. Duodun's words thus exerted a strong influence on those generals. Even Li Shun, whom Shulitu had recommended, nodded his approval. He was a clever man, and he knew that both he and Azheba were just foils for the other nominations.
The Dragon King was the last one to speak and everybody watched him attentively, wondering how he would introduce Dugu Xian, the one-armed outsider who had come out of the blue.
The General of the Right, Shang Liao had stayed behind in the Xiaowan Kingdom, and Dugu Xian was attending this meeting as the Commander-in-chief of the Dragon Army. However, he had spent his entire day accompanying the Dragon King, and he hadn't even had enough time to get to know all of his subordinate officers.
Gu Shenwei stood up, but didn't directly say Dugu Xian's name. "Luoluo's a highly experienced general. If we want to fight him, we need a Commander-in-chief who has been through hundreds of wars."
There was no doubt about this, and all the generals agreed on this point. However, none of them voiced the other criterion: no matter how many battles he had fought, the Commander-in-chief had to be recognized by the Norlanders first.
Duodun had made some preparation in advance, and he was ready to point out that neither side in the battle of Xiaoyao Lake had been a professional army, and that Dugu Xian's victory in that battle was worth nothing in the eyes of the Norlander.
Gu Shenwei resumed his explanation, saying, "The new Commander-in-chief is to command several armies, so he must also be selfless."
Duodun smiled as he interrupted to say, "Your concern's unnecessary, Dragon King. Maybe we Norlanders have our respective personal interests, but we always unite in a concerted effort when it comes to war. We know that teamwork ensures victory, and that fighting alone only exposes our vulnerabilities — we've all learned this when as kids."
With this casual contradiction, Duodun had managed to screen out any potential Commander-in-chief candidate who wasn't a Norlander.
Gu Shenwei didn't say anything in response. Judging from the look on his face, it seemed as if he was about to make a desperate attempt, but it also seemed like he was about to yield.
"Mo Chu. I recommend general Mo Chu."
The orderly main tent fell into disorder instantly. All the generals who were unqualified to speak immediately started talking.
"Mo Chu? Why Mo Chu?"
"Mo Chu's not the Dragon King's subordinate."
"This doesn't make any sense…"
But in that moment, n.o.body could explain precisely why it didn't make any sense.
With a pink flush spreading over his cheeks, Duodun abruptly stood up, and it seemed like he was about to angrily snap at the Dragon King. Sitting beside him, the Second Consort was also shocked, but more composed than Duodun. She glanced at him and signaled him to sit down.
Shulitu and Fang Wens.h.i.+ had been informed of this beforehand, so they remained silent.
The one who was the most surprised was Mo Chu himself, as he had attended this meeting with a completely indifferent att.i.tude. There had even been a couple moments when his eyes had felt so droopy that he almost fell asleep. When he heard his name coming out of the Dragon King's mouth, he was startled awake. Even after, he jerked his head up and looked around in confusion, as if he had just woken up from a nightmare.
Soon, the generals realized that they were misbehaving, and they fell silent one by one. With a smile, the Second Consort said, "The Dragon King recommended you as the Commander-in-chief of the allied forces, old General Mo Chu."
"What?" Mo Chu seemed as if he couldn't even articulate his words properly. "I… I can't. I'm too old…"
"That's why you're more experienced than Luoluo," said Gu Shenwei.
"But for all these past years, I've always been a counselor…"
"Experience can't be lost. More importantly, the Khan put the 70,000 cavalrymen of the Western Regions under your command. I trusted the Khan, and so I trust you."
The real reason why the Khan had put Mo Chu in command of the 70,000-strong Norland army was because Mo Chu was so old and feeble that his favorite son Duodun should have had a chance to replace Mo Chu. But the Khan had never told any outsiders about this intent of his. Duodun and the Second Consort had their speculations, but they couldn't tell anybody else either.
Even after so many years, the t.i.tle "Khan" still had its magical influence on any citizen of the gra.s.slands, let alone in this circ.u.mstance. These generals, who had attended this meeting as observers, suddenly felt that the Dragon King's recommendation was somehow reasonable — why would the Khan choose Mo Chu if he was incompetent?
Duodun's face reddened with anger. Yet again, he had made thorough preparations and set a trap, but all for naught. The Dragon King had merely taken a detour around it.
The Second Consort had to stealthily pull on the tail of his clothes in case the prince lost control of himself.
"Hha, I think that I must be blus.h.i.+ng. The Dragon King discovered an extraordinary talent among the Norlanders, but I was unaware of him all along. Old General, please excuse me." The Second Consort's face was full of smiles.
Mo Chu stood there, transfixed, as he replied, "Uh… But I really don't have enough energy to…"
"Alas." The Second Consort didn't agree with him, and said, "We are in a moment of crisis, old General, so please help us out. I approve of Mo Chu being the Commander-in-chief. What do you think, Prince Duodun?"
Duodun still believed that Liman had a chance. Mo Chu's a mole who has been colluding with the Unique King, and his just deserts would be a public beheading. How can I let him become the Commander-in-chief? But the Second Consort's signal was very obvious, so he had to force a smile onto his face and reply, "As the saying goes, 'I sit under a tree, but fail to see the tree.' General Mo Chu is the Commander-in-chief of my army, and he's also my teacher. It was my fault that I had failed to think of him earlier. I approve of him being the Commander-in-chief."
"As do I," said Shulitu immediately. "General Mo Chu is indeed our best choice."
All the generals, who had been extremely surprised previously, changed their att.i.tudes instantly. The speed of their change was far faster than the Flame Foal's running speed.
Mo Chu still wanted to refuse, but he no longer had a choice. Some impatient generals had even already rushed out of the tent to declare the results.
The election of the Commander-in-chief went so smoothly that all of the troops were greatly surprised. Many of them even felt relieved as they commented, "It seems that this alliance is serious."
But the meeting in the tent wasn't over yet. They had designated their Commander-in-chief, but they still need deputy commanders, and the choices were very obvious — each of the four armies designated one. As expected, Li Shun, Azheba and Liman were all appointed deputy commanders. And the Dragon Army naturally designated Dugu Xian without any objections. Just like Azheba, Dugu Xian had received an enormous promotion, skipping several ranks.
With this move, Gu Shenwei had partially achieved his goal — blindsiding his opponent.
After returning to their tent, the Second Consort started lecturing Duodun with a cold face. "Your performance back there was too careless. Even Shulitu was more composed than you."
"He's with the Dragon King… Fine, I acknowledge my mistake. But I still can't understand why we made Mo Chu the Commander-in-chief. If we join hands, we can definitely overturn the Dragon King's recommendation."
"Because nominally, Mo Chu's your man." The Second Consort became even more severe. "Even if we succeed, people will question the unity of our army. Is that what you want?"
Duodun didn't know how to reply to this.
The Second Consort let out a soft sigh as she eased her tone to say, "Now, you're going to have to compete with the Dragon King for control of Mo Chu, so stop making mistakes. We used to have the upper hand, but now we're standing on the same starting line as him now."
Gu Shenwei was ready for war.
