RWNEFE -Chapter 284 Among Horses, Red Hare; Among Men, Shen Lanxi!

The gloom on Wei Dongzhu’s face hadn’t eased much. Liang Shao, on the contrary, could tell that he was even angrier.

“Cousin, don’t worry. I’ll have people keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn’t step out of the gate.”

Wei Dongzhu was still uneasy.

“Elder Brother, it would be better to send their mother and son away as soon as possible.”

Liang Shao frowned and said, “No matter what Qiao Niang is like, that child is still blood of the Wei family. If Aunt and Uncle were watching from the afterlife and saw the child grow safely to this age, they would surely be very happy.”

Only Wei Dongzhu and that child remained of the Wei family. Liang Shao wasn’t pitying Qiao Niang and her son—he simply wanted to leave an heir for the Wei family.

“Elder Brother…” Wei Dongzhu’s brows were tightly knit.

Liang Shao persuaded him, “I know what you’re worried about. Rest assured, news of their mother and son will definitely not be leaked to outsiders. You don’t trust how I handle things?”

Even so, Wei Dongzhu didn’t believe there was such a thing as a wall without cracks.

If he hadn’t admired Shen Lanxi, he wouldn’t have feared others finding out about Qiao Niang and her child.

Seeing his hesitation and knowing he was wavering, Liang Shao persuaded him again, “The fact that their mother and son survived must be due to the protection of the four hundred thousand heroic spirits of the Wei Family Army. Cousin, everyone who survived the Wei Family Army did so with great difficulty!”

He sighed, unable to bear seeing his cousin treat Qiao Niang and her child this way.

Thinking of the child, Wei Dongzhu finally softened.

“Don’t let them step outside the courtyard. Once the fighting calms down, send them away immediately!”

Liang Shao knew that was as far as it would go. He nodded lightly and didn’t urge him to visit Qiao Niang and the child.

…

After Shen Lanxi took over the Zhenbei Army with great fanfare, she immediately turned her sights on the cities of Hailing and Xiling.

Since Zhou Ruan had taken charge, the two cities believed themselves to be aligned with the imperial princes. On the surface, they still appeared loyal enough.

Shen Lanxi personally made a trip there, executed four officials, promoted six, and replaced several generals, firmly bringing the two cities under her control.

As time passed, the first clash with the Turkic Three Tribes began.

Peace talks failed, and the two armies faced off outside Huangtu City.

The commander of the Three Tribes was Abu Khan. On the Zhenbei Army’s side, Shen Lanxi personally took the field.

“Today is the day to let the Three Tribes taste our strength!”

At Shen Lanxi’s command, Wei Dongzhu led the deputy generals in a fan-shaped charge. Once the two armies were locked in chaotic combat, Shen Lanxi drew the Banyue Saber in her hand. Like a fierce gale, she charged straight into the enemy ranks, cutting down all before her!

If it had been anyone else, they would certainly have been protected as the army’s supreme commander.

But in the Zhenbei Army, no one dared.

No one dared approach the range of the Companion Star Saber. Even the lowest soldier in the Zhenbei Army knew to stay far away. The general’s blade harvested only souls—whoever was slow would become a ghost beneath it.

The Turkic Three Tribes, however, had no such warning. Every soldier thought of killing the enemy commander to earn merit.

After Shen Lanxi swept her blade horizontally, some who had been watching her side closely finally remembered—that great saber had once split their warriors cleanly in two with a single strike.

By the time they wanted to warn others, it was already too late. The clash of weapons shook the heavens, horses screamed, and no one could hear anything.

The soldiers of the Three Tribes were like scallions delivered to the chopping block. Shen Lanxi cut down wave after wave!

In the blink of an eye, wherever Shen Lanxi passed, corpses lay strewn everywhere. She moved as if through an empty land, slaughtering on all sides!

The more Abu Khan watched, the more anxious he became. He roared angrily, “Attack! I refuse to believe we can’t exhaust that little beast!”

“Bring up the trebuchets, the horse-tripping ropes, the heavy armored troops—send them all in!”

“Whoever kills Shen Lanxi will be promoted three ranks and rewarded with a thousand taels of silver!”

Before long, the reward became a thousand taels of gold.

At first, the warriors of the Three Tribes were tempted and eager to try. But after watching wave after wave of men die, no one was foolish enough to charge forward alone anymore.

That wasn’t a woman!

Even if she were a man, even a great hero, none could match Shen Lanxi!

Among horses, Red Hare; among men, Shen Lanxi!

Seeing his soldiers shrink back in fear, Abu Khan flew into a rage. “Whoever dares retreat even one step will lose his head!”

His men immediately killed two soldiers who had tried to retreat. The rest were cowed into not retreating—but they also no longer dared to charge forward.

Blood already flowed like a river beneath Shen Lanxi’s feet. Holding the Banyue Saber in one hand, her entire body reeked of slaughter as she advanced toward Abu Khan like a butcher.

Around her stood Three Tribes soldiers wielding long spears. Each step she took forward, they stepped back. Their eyes were filled with terror, panic, and fear.

Abu Khan shouted, “Archers—”

Wei Dongzhu called out loudly, “Archers—”

The Three Tribes’ archers aimed at Shen Lanxi; the Zhenbei Army’s archers aimed at Abu Khan.

Now it came down to who dared to release first. If Abu Khan dared, he would never return to the Turkic lands in this lifetime.

“General, retreat!” his subordinates urged anxiously. “We can’t gain any advantage today.”

Abu Khan was unwilling!

He stared fixedly in Shen Lanxi’s direction. He was the invincible General Abu Khan—how could he lose to a woman?

How could this motley army be stronger than the former Wei Family Army?

Shen Lanxi’s gaze was blazing as she said, “Withdraw from Dawa City, and I’ll let you leave. Otherwise, today we fight to the death!”

No matter how unwilling Abu Khan was, he knew morale had collapsed. If the battle continued, his soldiers would only suffer greater losses.

“Withdraw to Dawa City first!”

As for giving up Dawa City—don’t even think about it!

Shen Lanxi shouted, “Kill!”

After ordering the retreat, Abu Khan quickly issued another command: “Release arrows!”

Wei Dongzhu swept his left hand, and hundreds of soldiers carrying shields charged toward Shen Lanxi.

Immediately after, he also ordered, “Release arrows!”

Arrows fell like meteors. Before long, the Three Tribes realized something was wrong.

“Why do they never run out of arrows?”

Wave after wave of archers rotated in tight formation, shooting at the Three Tribes without pause.

Abu Khan’s face changed drastically. Impossible—how could they have so many arrows? He’d heard no news of the Great Zhou court sending iron supplies.

The Great Zhou people must have used some trick—they were too cunning!

“General, the Three Tribes are already defeated. Shall we pursue while we have the advantage?” Wei Dongzhu asked excitedly, his blood surging.

Shen Lanxi said, “Pursue for another two li. Keep some distance—don’t press too close. After two li, withdraw.”

Wei Dongzhu felt it was a pity. Why leave room? This was clearly the chance to kill Abu Khan.

“General, I’m confident I can kill Abu Khan!” he insisted.

Shen Lanxi looked at him and said slowly, “If we reclaim the Northwest so quickly, will the court show any consideration for our hardships?”

Wei Dongzhu froze.

“And will Liang Shao and the others still have chances to earn merit?”

Wei Dongzhu fell silent. If Abu Khan were killed so easily, Liang Shao would no longer be so important to the court.

“Have people clean up the battlefield.”

Wei Dongzhu replied, “Yes!”

Back then, the Wei Family Army had been too honest. If they had also known how to advance and withdraw with flexibility like the General, would they have ended up like this?

Wei Dongzhu led troops to pursue Abu Khan, while Liang Shao and the others stayed behind to clean up the battlefield.

Three days later, Abu Khan once again requested peace talks with the Great Zhou court.

Shen Lanxi made the same demands as before, and at the same time submitted a memorial to the court regarding the battle with the Turkic Three Tribes.