Chapter 161 Xiao Li Meeting

Xixia Stone Valley was hundreds of miles away from Yingzhou, and the Khitan army could not return in one day, so they set up camp forty miles north of the valley as a place to rest.

This move also showed that the Khitans were still determined to do something evil and wanted to wait and see the movements of the Zhou army and eye the two states of Tan and Ping.

Although the Khitan army won a great victory overall in the bloody battle during the day, they won first and then lost, suffering a small loss.

Although not many soldiers and horses were lost, they were driven away from Xixia Stone Valley by Zhao Ji and could not clean up the battlefield, which meant that there were no spoils of war.

And the absence of spoils was totally unacceptable to the nomadic tribal soldiers who were accustomed to plundering.

Fortunately, the Khitans had already made enough money from Zhao Wenhui and Zhang Xuanyu, and Li Jinzhong had also accumulated a certain amount of political prestige.

Otherwise, the battle of Xixia Shigu cost the lives of countless warriors, but gained nothing in return. In the eyes of the Khitans, this was undoubtedly a great failure.

To sum up, the Khitan won this battle, but not completely.

At this critical juncture, Li Jinzhong generously distributed all the previously accumulated spoils to the soldiers in order to stabilize the morale of the army.

However, he had no choice but to do so. Seeing that the wealth he had just obtained was given away before he could even warm it up, Li Jinzhong's heart was bleeding.

The lights were bright in the main tent of the Khitan camp.

Sun Wanrong looked at Li Jinzhong's face, which was as black as the bottom of a pot, and said to him in a comforting tone: "Khan, we have won this battle after all. We have killed many enemies and made the Zhou army unable to pose a threat to us for a while. The slight damage is still worth it."

"Victory? What kind of victory is this? If we win a few more battles like this, I, Li Jinzhong, will probably have to replace someone else to sit on the throne of Khan." Li Jinzhong shook his head painfully.

Li Jinzhong jumped up excitedly, puffing his beard and glaring, "Let's not talk about the wealth I gave away. In today's battle alone, we lost two great generals, He Axiao and Li Kaigu, and nearly 6,000 troops."

"Even if the Zhou people lose 10,000, 20,000, or 50,000 people, they can be replenished immediately. But if the Khitan loses a few thousand people, that would be a serious blow!"

Sun Wanrong did not refute, but nodded repeatedly to show his understanding: "Khan is right. But this battle must be fought after all. It is better to take the initiative than to passively accept it."

"We won this battle and demonstrated the strength of the Khitan. The Mohe and Xi people were willing to obey our orders and serve us."

"With the reinforcement of the Xi and Mohe people, sacrificing a few thousand people is nothing."

Li Jinzhong waved his hand to refute, disagreeing with Sun Wanrong's statement: "You can't say that. How can foreigners compare to us Khitan men?"

Sun Wanrong hesitated for a moment and said, "In the final analysis, it was because the Zhou army's support came too quickly, beyond our expectations. Otherwise, we would have won a great victory. Who is the young general facing us today?"

Li Jinzhong sighed and said, "I asked Zhang Xuanyu. Among the generals of the Zhou army going on the expedition, there is only one who is this age. He is Zhao Ji, the general of the Qianniu Guard, the personal army of the Great Zhou emperor."

"This man has never led an army before. Who would have thought he was so powerful? He killed He Axiao in one move, captured Li Kaigu alive, and broke up our army's formation."

Sun Wanrong looked solemn and thoughtful, "The Great Zhou is really full of talented people. Any unknown young man can make us feel difficult. It is too difficult for the Khitan tribe to fight against the entire Great Zhou..."

Having said this, Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong both lowered their heads and remained silent, and the tent fell silent for a while.

At this moment, Li Jinzhong's trusted guard came to report outside the tent: "Khan, a distinguished guest from the snake spirit has arrived from Yingzhou City."

Li Jinzhong didn't take it seriously at first, and asked casually, "Is Xiao Jing here?"

"Yes, not only Xiao Jing is here, but their female leader is here too." The trusted guard replied in a deep voice.

Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong exchanged glances quickly, then straightened their clothes and said loudly, "Please let them in."

Before he finished speaking, Xiao Qingfang's sharp and crisp voice had penetrated the curtain and entered the tent: "Governor Li, oh no, you are the Supreme Khan now. It is a great pity that I was not able to be there in person on the day you were proclaimed Khan. Hahahaha..."

As the curtain was gently lifted by the Khitan guards, Xiaomei and Xiao Jing stood on both sides, surrounding Xiao Qingfang and entering the big tent.

Li Jinzhong sat upright on the commander's seat, looking quite arrogant, with no intention of greeting him.

In contrast, Sun Wanrong stood up to greet him with a polite smile on his face and said, "We are sorry for not welcoming you from afar, distinguished guests. We hope you will forgive us." "Oh, the military camp is simple, I'm sorry to bother you, please take a seat." Li Jinzhong raised his hand slightly, his action revealing a bit of perfunctory, as a gesture of welcome.

Seeing this, Xiao Jing and Xiao Mei's faces darkened. They became increasingly dissatisfied with Li Jinzhong's attitude, and there was a hint of coldness in their eyes.

Although Xiao Qingfang was unhappy in her heart, she did not show it on her face.

She found a seat and sat down leisurely, looking directly at Li Jinzhong, and said, "The Khan has won a series of great victories, first defeating Zhao Wenhui and then defeating Zhang Xuanyu, and has shocked all the tribes in the northern border. This is truly cause for celebration."

Li Jinzhong smiled calmly and said, "It's all thanks to the intelligence on the Zhou army and the help from the insider provided by the Snake Spirit. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to capture Yingzhou so quickly, and we might not have been able to defeat Zhang Xuanyu's army."

Xiao Qingfang was quite pleased when she heard this: "This is nothing to the Snake Spirit. We are just getting what we need."

However, Li Jinzhong's eyes suddenly became sharp, as if he was about to call the army to task: "General Xiao, do you know that our Khitan army almost suffered a great defeat today? Why haven't we received any news about the reinforcements sent by Danzhou City?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Qingfang frowned and looked surprised: "Is this true?"

Li Jinzhong's tone was filled with resentment: "It is true. Our army could have won a great victory and wiped out tens of thousands of Zhou troops in one fell swoop. But..."

He paused, a look of regret flashing in his eyes, "But because Zhao Ji suddenly attacked with his cavalry, our army lost two generals, and Yan Fei Shi and Zong Huaichang's troops escaped, so our mission failed."

Xiao Qingfang's eyes flashed with contemplation, and he bowed his hands and apologized, "Khan, the Snake Spirit really doesn't know about this, otherwise we would never sit idly by."

Sun Wanrong started to play the good cop and said, "General, there is no need to blame yourself. On the battlefield, things change rapidly and who can predict the future? This defeat is also due to our lack of precautions. This is why we suffered a loss."

Li Jinzhong still looked unhappy and interrupted, "Alright, now that things have come to this, there is no point in discussing this. My Khitan tribe suffered heavy losses in this battle, so we have to retreat and rest."

"I'm afraid that the plan we promised you to attack Danzhou and Pingzhou will not be carried out."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Jing wanted to step forward to argue, but was stopped by Xiao Qingfang with a look.

She smiled slightly and said calmly: "Khan, a man cannot stand without trust. The Khitan has already provoked Wu Zetian's anger. How can she let it go?"

"You have just annihilated tens of thousands of people. It is too late to surrender. The imperial court's expeditionary army will only increase in number. Without the help of my snake spirit, the Khitan will probably be unable to resist alone."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the tent suddenly changed, becoming solemn yet a little tense.

Sun Wanrong quickly stepped forward to mediate: "General Xiao, you know us Khitans well, and you should know that it is not that we do not follow the covenant, but that we alone are not strong enough to fight against the entire Great Zhou."

Xiao Qingfang gave the two of them a reassurance: "Don't worry, the Turks will soon join this war, and then you will naturally not be fighting alone."

Li Jinzhong and Sun Wanrong looked at each other and became serious: "Are you serious? Isn't Jili Khan famous for his friendship with the Great Zhou?"

Xiao Qingfang smiled and said, "It's absolutely true. He is friendly with the Great Zhou, but many of his subordinates may not think so. If a fight really breaks out, he won't be able to do anything about it."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wanrong's face lit up with joy and his excitement was evident in his words.

Li Jinzhong's eyes also flashed with excitement and greed, but then he fell into deep thought again, obviously still having concerns in his heart.

Xiao Qingfang observed his expression and guessed what he was worried about, so she spoke again: "Don't worry, Khan. The Turks are more interested in the Great Zhou's territory in the west, and have no intention of coveting the land east of your Songmo Governor's Mansion."

Upon hearing this, Sun Wanrong looked at Li Jinzhong again.

The latter finally smiled and said with relief: "No matter what, it is a good thing to have the Turks share the pressure of the Great Zhou. We will wait for good news."

Seeing Li Jinzhong's change of attitude, Xiao Qingfang struck while the iron was hot and said, "Khan, don't be anxious. Perhaps when the Khitan and Zhou armies are deadlocked, if the Turks take action again, the harvest will be even more abundant..."

Upon hearing this, Li Jinzhong showed a strange look on his face and fell into deep thought again, not knowing what to do next.

(End of this chapter)