Having children earns benefit, start competing for dominance in the world by marrying a wife

With these thoughts, Lin Xiuming immediately said, “Let him in.”

As Lin Wanyun was about to leave, Qin Yushan pushed the door open and entered. He glanced at Lin Wanyun, obviously not taking her into consideration, and then turned his head to address Lin Xiuming, “General Lin, the situation in Tianguang City is not optimistic. The Prince has ordered you to lead twenty thousand imperial troops north immediately to defend against the Barbarian Tribe.”

Upon hearing this, both Lin Wanyun and Lin Xiuming were stunned.

The situation wasn’t optimistic?

How could that be possible?

Last time, the North Prince led fifty thousand Heavy Cavalry and annihilated the Sky Wolf King’s three hundred thousand army. How could it be that they couldn’t deal with the North Fre King’s two hundred thousand army?

Was this true?

Immediately, Lin Xiuming asked, “Senior Qin, what exactly is the situation in Tianguang City right now?”

Qin Yushan directly stated, “The Prince’s Black Cavalry suffered over forty thousand casualties. They only managed to repel the North Fre King’s army, but the enemy’s forces still launch occasional attacks from the south, harrying Tianguang City.”

“The city’s garrison is exhausted and in dire need of replacement troops.”

This…

Lin Xiuming felt bewildered after hearing Qin Yushan’s words.

The North Prince’s Heavy Cavalry had been annihilated?

What a joke!

Though Heavy Cavalry didn’t have much of an advantage over light cavalry on the plains, they surely wouldn’t be at a significant disadvantage. It was nearly impossible for the North Fre King’s army to defeat a fifty thousand strong Heavy Cavalry force.

How could there be over forty thousand casualties?

Over forty thousand casualties meant that this Black Cavalry had been effectively wiped out.

Could that be possible?

Qin Yushan’s words were filled with eeriness, but Lin Xiuming couldn’t be sure they were false. Although the Heavy Cavalry was indeed formidable, anything could happen in war. The situation could change in the blink of an eye. For instance, they had never expected the North Prince to defeat the thirty thousand strong Barbarian Tribe army.

Therefore, to ascertain the truth of this news, they would have to go to Tianguang City. Since the North Prince had already ordered them northward, they would soon find out whether the news was true or false.

Lin Xiuming immediately stood up and said, “I will lead the troops north at once.”

Having said this, Lin Xiuming took out some silver and placed it on the table, then promptly returned with his men to their temporary encampment.

After Lin Xiuming left, Lin Wanyun hurriedly sent this critical piece of news to the Mysterious Moon Palace.

Fifty thousand Heavy Cavalry were gone just like that.

North City had just started to gain power again and now was back to its former state so quickly.

This could be a major blow to North City, but for the Mysterious Moon Palace, for Chen Wanrong and the others, it was an incredible piece of good news.

It was finally an opportunity for the Mysterious Moon Palace to assist the North Prince.

Previously, the North Prince ignored the Mysterious Moon Palace because North City already had fifty thousand Heavy Cavalry, and a robust military strength, so there was no need to rely on the Mysterious Moon Palace.

Lu Chen had the power to participate in the struggle for succession on his own.

But now, things were different. The North Prince had lost his Heavy Cavalry. While the armor for the Heavy Cavalry might still be there, training a powerful new Heavy Cavalry would take a considerable amount of time, not just a month or two or even a year or two.

During the time when the Black Cavalry is being rebuilt, North City would be relatively vulnerable. The Great Sum court, as well as other Seigniors, would definitely not allow the North Prince to rebuild his Black Cavalry.

Under pressure, the North Prince would likely choose to collaborate with the Mysterious Moon Palace. That way, Chen Wanrong would get the chance to get close to Lu Chen and administer the Love Worm to him.

However, for some reason, after sending out the message, Lin Wanyun’s heart did not feel elated as she expected.

At that moment, Lin Wanyun looked out at the falling snow through the window, her mind replaying memories of Lu Chen. Recently, she had been pondering one question: Did she really want to help Chen Wanrong restore her country and, in the process, harm the biological son of her dear sister?

Even though Lu Chen was not as important to her as Chen Wanrong, if something were to happen to Lu Chen, could she face Chu Yue after her death?

Years ago, had it not been for Chu Yue, she might have died long ago; she would not have become the adopted daughter of Lin Gaoyuan.

Her background was very similar to Bai Qingqing’s. Both were picked up by Chu Yue from the streets—more accurately, Bai Qingqing’s situation resembled hers, as she encountered Chu Yue earlier than Bai Qingqing did.

The only difference between her and Bai Qingqing was that she was sent to Lin Mansion, becoming Lin Gaoyuan’s adopted daughter, while Bai Qingqing was taken to the Imperial Palace to serve as a maid to Lu Chen.

Although she and Bai Qingqing went to different places, Chu Yue’s treatment of her was not much different from that of Bai Qingqing. During her days in Lin Mansion, Chu Yue often visited her, and their relationship was extremely close.

Chu Yue saved her life and treated her as her own younger sister, but now she found herself in a position to harm her biological son. Just thinking about it filled Lin Wanyun with a profound sense of guilt.

At this moment, amidst the swirling snow, Lin Wanyun thought she saw the figure of Chu Yue, who seemed to be saying something to her.

Lin Wanyun stood still, trying to make out what Chu Yue was saying to her.

In her dazed state, she thought she really heard Chu Yue’s voice.

“Wanyun… help me… take good care… of Chen’er…”

Lin Wanyun’s heart skipped a beat.

She suddenly snapped back to reality.

The snow still fell thickly outside the window, but the figure of Chu Yue was no longer there. Lin Wanyun sighed softly and rubbed her temples.

The stress had been too great recently, causing her to experience hallucinations and even auditory hallucinations.

After returning to the military camp, Lin Xiuming immediately summoned the soldiers. After a roll call, they set out northward through the night.

He didn’t know the exact situation in Tianguang City, but since the North Prince had ordered him to head north, it likely indicated that the situation there was indeed dire.

He was a man of the court, representing the court. With so many secrets in North City, his moving north could expose them to him and the Imperial forces.

That’s why the North Prince initially had them remain in Yan County. If it wasn’t for a particularly urgent situation, the North Prince would definitely not risk exposing the secrets of North City by ordering him to move north.

At this moment, Lin Xiuming seriously suspected whether the North Prince’s fifty thousand Heavy Cavalry had truly been wiped out.

If they had, he had to hurry northward immediately; this was an excellent opportunity for him to earn military distinction.

Last time he went to North City to retrieve corpses for the North Prince, upon his return to the Capital City, he was ridiculed by many friends, who called him a ‘corpse hauler’.

This time, on his visit to North City, he had to earn some military honors to bring back. If he returned to the Capital City empty-handed again, wouldn’t he be mocked as a ‘transport worker’?

As for whether Tianguang City was in danger, that was no longer Lin Xiuming’s concern.

There was no such thing as a war without danger.

How could a true man be afraid of going to battle because of a little danger?

Just as Lin Xiuming was full of fervor, eager to head north to earn military honors, he discovered that the roads north had been covered by heavy snowfall.

Although they were Cavalry, it was still difficult for them to advance.

Looking at the army’s snail-pace progress, Lin Xiuming was dumbfounded.

It made him want to curse. How much shit was in the brain of the North Fre King for him to think of moving south to attack North City in the middle of winter?

With this heavy snow, could the North Fre King’s forces even move?

At this moment, one of Lin Xiuming’s trusted soldiers approached and said, “General, at our current pace, it will be tough to reach Tianguang City in less than a month. Is the situation in Tianguang City truly urgent?”

Lin Xiuming, frowning, replied, “We must accelerate our pace. Advance as quickly as possible; it’s highly likely that Tianguang City is really in trouble.”

There was no choice; under these circumstances, they could only try their best to reach Tianguang City.

Just then, a Scout Soldier came to Lin Xiuming and announced, “General, there is a situation up ahead!”

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuming immediately demanded, “Take me there!”

The Scout Soldier quickly led Lin Xiuming to the place where the anomaly was reported.

The ‘anomaly’ the Scout referred to was the footprints and wagon tracks in the snow. Although the heavy snow had covered those marks, they were still faintly discernible, and it was highly likely that they had been made in the past two days.

Looking at the endless snow-covered horse tracks before him, Lin Xiuming’s expression kept changing.