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In the golden tent, Tuoba Hongye was very troubled.
Since August, more than 20,000 people in the army have fled due to hunger and cold. Some Hachiman soldiers even fled directly into Xuanwu Pass.
This dealt a huge blow to Tuoba Hongye, which meant that his prestige in the Munro Empire was no longer as convincing to his people as before.
The morale of the army was disorganized, food and pay were in short supply, and the victory over Xuanwu Pass was still far away. For the first time, the overlord of the unified grassland felt a strong sense of powerlessness in his heart.
Today's Tuoba Hongye no longer has the heroic appearance of galloping on horseback. He is like an old man in his twilight years, feeling even more lonely.
He thought of Wei Rong, the princess of the Zhou Dynasty and his favorite concubine. At this moment, he really wanted to go to her palace again and quietly watch her become a female celebrity.
He is old. The former prairie eagle is still old after all. He is no longer full of energy, especially after experiencing this endless war, which makes him look more decadent than ever before.
The brazier in the tent was still burning brightly, and the soft sound of the burning suet torch still echoed in my ears.
For a moment, Tuoba Hongye felt that everything in front of him was so strange, and he even doubted that he was really the Holy Emperor who single-handedly created the Munro Empire?
He had a dream. He dreamed that he led the world's invincible cavalry to level the Xuanwu Pass. He dreamed that people from all over the Central Plains howled heartily under the iron hoofs of Mengluo's eight banners. He dreamed that he was sitting in the capital of God (renamed Chang'an by Liu Ce). ) in the palace hall, conquered the rich land and his people here.
This dream really made him have endless aftertaste, because in that dream, there was no Liu Ce, no Han army, and no Jingwei flaming banner that people wanted to avoid.
Yes, it's Liu Ce! it's him! It was him who ruthlessly shattered his dreams! Let the grassland peoples fall apart.
Why does such a terrible opponent appear? Is it God's will?
Who would have thought that the formerly submissive people of the Central Plains would dare to resist under his command, and that the corrupt army would become brave and good at fighting under his training.
Why, why should such a terrible opponent appear? Like a copper wall, let your dominance stop here.
"Liu Ce! Cough cough cough..."
Thinking of the excitement, Tuoba Hongye coughed violently.
He suddenly covered his mouth with the handkerchief and felt a sweetness in his throat. When he looked again, a pool of blood appeared on the silk handkerchief.
Tuoba Hongye was shocked. This was a bad omen. His body had been worn down by this war. If there was no result soon, once his condition was known to others, the Munro Empire would be in great danger. It may collapse instantly.
The Munro Empire actually still existed in the form of a tribe, with the royal court as the center and expanding outward.
This form of empire has many drawbacks. In order to compete for some resources, various ministries only care about their own interests and do not consider the feelings of the empire at all.
Tuoba Hongye can still order all the ministries to unite them together, but once Tuoba Hongye is gone, they will immediately fall apart...
Just like the Mongol Empire in its previous life, not long after the fall of Genghis Khan, the huge empire was immediately divided into four khanates by his descendants, and they fought endlessly with each other. In just over a hundred years, they were immediately beaten back to their original shape.
This is the nature of the nomadic people. Personal interests override national interests, and there is no complete unifying thought.
The former grassland hero held the blood-stained handkerchief tightly in his hand, determined to step into the rich land of the Central Plains before his life came to an end.
However, just as Tuoba Hongye's thoughts came to his mind, a piece of bad news suddenly came from outside the tent.
"Oh no, Holy Emperor, something big has happened!" Tuoba Xi, the army staff officer, rushed into the tent with a sad face, and immediately knelt in front of Tuoba Hongye, "The leader of the Zhengbai Banner, Yuchi Brownlan, led a hundred thousand troops this morning Soldiers and horses, break camp and leave!"
"What did you say!" Tuoba Hongye was shocked, "Why are you reporting such an important thing now!"
Tuoba Xi lowered his head and said, "Sage Emperor, please calm down. I just realized that there is no one in the main camp of Yuchi Banner."
Tuoba Hongye stood up with a roar: "A hundred thousand people escaped in one night, and I only know it now! Do they still take me, Emperor Mengluo, seriously? Someone is here!"
"Report~~It's not good, Holy Emperor~~"
Another piece of bad news came amidst the exclamations of the servants.
"Reporting to the Holy Emperor, the leader of He Dan Banner was dissatisfied with the distribution of food and grass in the army, so he led 70,000 troops embroidered with white flags and left the camp an hour ago..."
Tuoba Hongye's cheeks immediately turned pale when he heard this. Two white flags and nearly two hundred thousand troops ignored his own decision and left the military formation without authorization. This situation exceeded his expectations.
Now, how can we fight this battle?
Tuoba Hongye slumped down on his chair helplessly, and was suddenly at a loss for words.
A total of two banners of the six banners under Xuanwu Pass have left, which has dealt a greater blow to the already fluctuating military morale. It can be said that this war has failed.
However, what frightens Tuoba Hongye even more than the defeat of the war is that the Munro Empire is very likely to become unstable and fall into endless civil war.
This was a scene that Tuoba Hongye didn't want to see, but he had to take precautions to deal with it.
"Cough cough cough..."
The anxious Tuoba Hongye coughed violently again and covered his mouth tightly with a cloth handkerchief.
Tuoba Xi, who was kneeling on the ground, caught a glimpse of Tuoba Hongye's mouth with a trace of blood from the corner of his eye, and his heart suddenly tightened.
"I'm afraid the Holy Emperor's health is not optimistic. What should I do if there is an accident?"
Tuoba Hongye panted heavily and said sarcastically to Tuoba: "Tuoba Xi, you immediately send an order to the entire army. Three days later, the entire army will break camp and return to the royal court."
"This slave obeys your orders."
Tuoba Xi took the order and left, leaving Tuoba Hongye alone in the golden tent, shaking his head and sighing, his face full of unwillingness and annoyance...
At this moment, Yuchi Brownlan had led his 100,000 troops to run hundreds of miles overnight.
Looking at the silver-frosted grassland, he shouted to the sky, and then said loudly to his men: "Warriors! It's time for us to end this war and return to our homeland!
The Holy Emperor is old and is no longer the hero he once was. He should not choose to launch a war against the Central Plains at this time. We, the warriors of the Yuchi tribe, cannot die meaninglessly.
So, let's go home, go back to our own home! Let's go, warriors! "
"Ouch~~"
Yuchi Brownlan's response was a thundering howl of a wolf, and every face was filled with excitement.
At this time, Yuchi Brownlan's younger brother, Yuchixun, said nervously: "Flag Master, aren't we afraid that the Holy Emperor will blame us for doing this?"
Unwilling to do so, Yuchi Brownlan replied: "If the Holy Emperor dares to invade, will the 200,000 warriors of our Yuchi tribe sit back and wait for death?
Of course it is impossible. Anyone who dares to stop us from going home is our enemy. No matter who the opponent is, we will not allow it!
What's more, the Holy Emperor no longer has the energy to target us. Let's go home! "
"Ouch~~"
Amidst the roaring cheers, the warriors of the Zhengbaiban tribe all embarked on their return journey.
