novelzi Chapter 142
Chapter 142
Lin Yao and his companions didn’t dare to linger for a moment.
Before leaving the Camp, there were several lines of blockade to pass through.
However, they arrived before Kadan’s men did.
The Northern troops stationed at the blockade hadn’t received orders yet, and with Tia accompanying them, her life was in the hands of this group.
They had no choice but to cooperate and order the guards to let them pass.
Successfully breaking through several lines of blockade, they rushed into the desert.
However, they almost got lost in the vast snowy wilderness.
The night was dark, the north wind howled, and there wasn’t a single star in the sky, making it extremely difficult to discern the direction.
Fortunately, one of the Women’s Army had previously traveled with a caravan of Hu merchants and learned from them how to navigate in the desert.
She said, “I heard the Hu merchants say that in the desert, where there is no sun or stars visible, you can determine the direction by observing the direction of the snow dunes. In this desert, the prevailing wind is from the northwest, so the windward slope of the snow dune is to the northwest, and the leeward slope is to the southeast.”
The windward slope had a gentle gradient, while the leeward slope was extremely steep.
After finding their direction, the group continued to travel through the desert at night.
Among them, Lin Yao and Wang Biao were both injured, and the Women’s Army named Shikui was also wounded.
Walking at night in the desert, coupled with their unfamiliarity with the terrain, even though they endured the wind and snow all night, they still heard the cries of eagles the next morning.
At first, they didn’t pay much attention to the eagle soaring in the sky above the snowy wilderness, except for Tia, who was desperately hiding her excitement.
Along the way, she began to do everything in her power to delay the journey, either insisting on taking a break or complaining of a stomach ache.
She severely injured Shikui, an Women’s Army who had accompanied her all the way, but the Women’s Army had never given her a good look.
When she once again said she needed to relieve herself, an Women’s said directly, “If you need to relieve yourself so badly, just do it in your pants!”
Tia, after all, was a princess who had never heard such vulgar words in her life.
Her face turned red and then pale, a mix of anger and resentment in her eyes.
The Women’s Army sneered, “Still thinking of yourself as a noble Northland princess? Right now, you’re just a prisoner!”
Having Tia with them was for two reasons: To prevent the Northern people from catching them and using her as a hostage, and to capture Northern Barbarian princess alive to use as a bargaining chip when the Northern people attacked again.
Tia was retorted, but she didn’t argue back with the Women’s Army, only a hint of arrogance in her eyes that she couldn’t hide.
Once again, the group continued to advance southeastward.
Lin Yao noticed that the falcon above their heads only hovered in the sky above them when they stopped.
But as soon as they started walking again, the falcon immediately followed.
Perhaps once or twice could be considered a coincidence, but it happened several times in a row.
Lin Yao soon realized that something was amiss with the falcon.
He looked at Tia. “Is that your falcon? Its appearance here indicates that Kadan is not far from us. Are you intentionally delaying the journey?”
Tia’s face changed abruptly, but she stubbornly said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
However, her expression moments ago had already revealed everything.
The Women’s and Wang Biao’s faces also changed instantly upon hearing Lin Yao’s words.
They all knew what the consequences would be if they were caught by Kadan.
Lin Yao coughed a few times in the cold wind and said, “Biao Zi, let’s split up. You take a few men to Lei Prefecture and inform the Marquis of the Northern invasion, about to capture everything south of Liangzhou.
Let him prepare in advance and send the news back to Jianghuai. If anything happens, in case His Highness cannot deploy troops in time, Lei Prefecture can provide timely reinforcements.”
Wang Biao was worried about Lin Yao’s health. “Brother, what about you?”@@@@
Lin Yao replied, “I’ll go back to Qiangliu Pass to report the news.
The Northern troops are already moving south in force.
We must inform His Highness as soon as possible.
Shen Yanzhi and Li Zhong may not be able to hold onto Bianjing.”
Although Li Zhong had sought refuge with Shen Yanzhi when he had no other choice, the grudge between them had been deep-seated for a long time.
It was uncertain whether they would reconcile or continue their conflict.
They had marched slowly, and by chance, they ran into Lin Yao’s group.
Previously, scouts had discovered the tracks of the Northern riders and hurried back to report.
Further investigation revealed that one of the people they were chasing was Lin Yao.
Cen Daoxi had entered the desert to search for someone, so he didn’t bring many soldiers with him.
If they directly confronted the Northern riders, they would be at a numerical disadvantage, unfamiliar with the terrain of the desert, and with the harsh weather conditions, they would likely suffer losses.
When he thought of rescuing Lin Yao, he had Lin Zhao and her soldiers stand on the snow dune, and he planted all the banners he brought near the snow dune to create the illusion that their army was just the tip of the iceberg.
If Kadan was cautious, he would not dare to charge in.
Being able to scare off Kadan was beyond Cen Daoxi’s expectations, but the current situation truly surprised him.
It seemed that Kadan was determined to take Lin Yao’s life.
As Kadan continued to approach and found that they were reluctant to engage, he would surely realize that they were bluffing.
Cen Daoxi furrowed his brows, looking at the Northern riders chasing Lin Yao’s group relentlessly, then his gaze slowly fell on the snowy peak opposite them.
The snow-covered peak was towering and majestic, appearing magnificent from a distance.
However, Cen Daoxi smiled slightly and said, “We have a way.”
He turned to all the soldiers of Chu and commanded, “Yell loudly towards the snowy mountain!”
He had read in a travelogue that shouting loudly in the mountains could easily trigger an avalanche.
Lin Yao’s group was about to pass by that snow-capped peak.
If an avalanche occurred, the pursuing group led by Kadan would be engulfed.
To ensure the effectiveness of this method, besides shouting loudly, Cen Daoxi ordered his men to push the catapults to the snow dune and hurl incendiary bombs at the snowy peak.
This trip was originally to find Lin Zhao.
He only brought a hundred light cavalry with him.
After finding Lin Zhao, on their way back, they stumbled upon abandoned war chariots and large crossbows left from the previous battle.
It was a tradition in the army that if they found such weapons, even if they were damaged, they would bring them back.
If too damaged, they would take back intact parts.
The old and worn-out catapult they found in the desert unexpectedly came in handy at this moment.
The shouting had already caused cracks to appear in the snow on the opposite mountain.
With the additional impact of the incendiary bombs, snowflakes flew, and the snow on the mountain began to slide down like flowing sand.
The accumulated snow slid down the mountain and created a vast wave of white, causing the entire ground to tremble.
The Northern people were very familiar with natural disasters like avalanches. Seeing half of the mountain’s snow rushing down, they were terrified, tightening the reins and urging their warhorses to gallop away. “Avalanche! It’s an avalanche! Quick, run!”
With a loud rumble, the sliding snow collided with the ground, and snow waves rolled over, causing people and horses to fall.
The overturned snow quickly buried everything beneath it.
Lin Yao’s group, running ahead, was also affected by the avalanche, but fortunately, they only suffered minor injuries.
As they reached the snow dune, the Women’s Army saw Lin Zhao, their eyes filled with tears of gratitude. “Captain Lin!”
Seeing the hardships her girls had endured, Lin Zhao felt a pang of regret.
She looked at each of their dirty faces and said with red eyes, “You have suffered.”
The girls smiled back, “To see Captain Lin again and return to Great Chu, it’s not suffering.”
This sentence made Lin Zhao even more emotional.
She was about to approach Lin Yao when she suddenly realized that Wang Biao was missing, and her heart sank. “Brother, where is Wang Biao?”
Lin Yao replied, “He’s fine. He went to report to Leizhou.”
He then looked at Cen Daoxi and said, “Strategist, there is urgent military information that must be relayed to Qiangliu Pass immediately.
The garrison in the Northern Barbarian has all moved south. They never intended to engage directly with Beiting.
Instead, they are luring the tiger away from the mountain to attack the south, aiming for the heartland of Great Chu!”
Upon hearing this, even Cen Daoxi couldn’t help but show surprise.