Currently, Wei Shao has 400,000 soldiers.

In the north, from west to east, thousands of kilometers above the border defense line, surrounded by military barracks, laid his nearly 100,000 soldiers.

The warlords of the Han Dynasty were in constant warfare, while Xiongnu, a foreign tribe that lived across the Sangan River opposite the Han people, had been the strongest for hundred years.

Although their great monarch, Yi Xiemo, was now old and several of his sons were competing with each other, plus the Wei family’s hooves once trampled the grasslands of their kingdom, Wei Shao knows very well that this northern foreign monarch, who rose at the same time as his grandfather, was one of the few outstanding military commanders he has ever met in his life.

During the decades of this great monarch’s rule, the Xiongnu population grew massively. The cavalry expanded from less than 100,000 in Wei Shao’s grandfather’s time to a claimed 300,000 today.

One must know that war horses were precious. To some extent, the value of a war horse was much higher than a soldier.

During the decade when the Wei family curbed the south, the Xiongnu, under the leadership of this great monarch, occupied more than ten regimes, such as the East Hu, Yemaek, Su Shen, and Loulan, controlling a large part of the western region, and conquered the kingdoms of the Quzhe, Li Kun and Li Li.

Even the current Wei Shao had to admit that the Xiongnu’s old and dying monarch was not an enemy he could take lightly.The Liangzhou he took from the hands of others can be lost, and Pingzhou and Jizhou can also be lost. But Youzhou absolutely can not be lost!

The part of the army and horses he left behind in Youzhou was a great wall to protect the northern border and also a guarantee of his base in the Youzhou region. No matter what happens in the front, he must not mobilize them.

Tomorrow, after the ceremony, he will lead the 300,000 troops he can mobilize to the south, together with the leading forces, ambushing Xing Xun’s 500,000 soldiers on the northern bank of the Yellow River, a battle of life and death.

Wei Shao knew that this would not be an easy war. Xing Xun was headstrong and arrogant, but he must not underestimate his strength. With the momentum of last year’s victory over Yuan Zhe, Xing Xun must be aggressive when he goes north this time. But Wei Shao did not feel the slightest fear.

On the contrary, from the moment he learned that Xing Xun had been declared emperor and wanted to send troops north to conquer him, the blood in his body’s veins flowed faster and even boiled with excitement. He felt unprecedented excitement brought by the war, unlike those small battles. This war was his first showdown with one of the powerful opponents in Central China.

Changes in the wind. The nine states will begin a new chapter.

The outline was ready, and only waiting for the ceremony to start tomorrow morning. At this moment, Gongsun Yang, Wei Quan, and others sat in the hall while nervously checking the provisions, the ceremony’s orders, and other seemingly trivial but complicated things.

When it was about to get dark, Wei Shao returned.His excitement about the war filled his head these days, and suddenly the little woman who was carrying a child for him came to his mind. His heart slowly surged with a heavy feeling of pity and reluctance.

He entered the Sheyang Residence, raised his eyes to see the dim light coming out of the window, and stopped in his tracks.

No matter how late he returned, the lights in this window were always on for him. He quickened his pace to the bottom of the steps, gestured to the servant woman on duty to be silent, and gently pushed open the door.

He crept around the screen and saw that she was not lying on the bed.

She was sitting in front of the dressing table with her back facing him. There was an open letterbox resting on the table. She was looking down as if she was reading a letter.

When she heard his footsteps coming in, she put down the letter, folded it, and put it under the box.

Wei Shao went behind her, sat on his knees, held her waist and belly from behind, resting his palm on her bulging belly, and asked, “Who sent this letter?”

Xiao Qiao turned her face back to meet his gaze and smiled, “My sister wrote from Lingbi. General Jia sent it to me just now.”

Wei Shao’s eyes faintly moved, only gave an ‘oh’ and did not ask anything.

A few days ago, Yang Xin wrote a letter saying that the spies had reported that Liu Yan had gone to Lingbi again, supposedly to visit Bi Zhi. The result was unknown, only that Bi Zhi sent Liu Yan out of Lingbi. The fact that Liu Yan visited him three times was a sign of his sincerity. It must be hard to be unmoved.

“Is Man Man tired today?”