Chapter 73: Come Back Alive
In the following days, the Golden Mountain Battlefield seemed to fall into calm.
The Northern Frontier Army did not continue attacking, nor did the Naiman People launch a sneak attack.
Both sides were silently adjusting their strength, preparing for the next major battle.
Meanwhile, Li Xiao selected a total of two thousand troops from various units over these few days.
They were all honest and simple-minded herdsmen or slaves.
These people did not have so many schemes, were obedient and easy to manage, and would not collapse directly due to simple dangers.
Then, Li Xiao selected another thousand from the original Seven Forts Allied Army and Zhelan slaves as his direct lineage force to stabilize morale.
Making up exactly three thousand troops, as the entire main force for crossing A Lai Ridge this time.
Li Xiao divided these three thousand into three parts.
Each part one thousand men, appointing a Chiliarch for each.
Li Xiao personally led one, and the other two were Li Dashan and Luo Ping respectively.
Under each Chiliarch, there were ten Centurions, served by disciples from the four forts respectively.
Under each Centurion, there were ten Sergeants, then Corporals.
Li Xiao gathered everyone together and set up a separate camp.
It was noon, the army was eating, and Li Xiao led people to patrol the camp.
Walking to a large pot, it was full of mutton, surrounded by a circle of soldiers sitting and eagerly waiting for the meal to start.
From their clear eyes, it was evident how much they craved the pot of mutton full of gaminess.
“Lord.”
“Chiliarch Lord.”
When these soldiers saw Li Xiao and his men approaching, they hurriedly saluted, and some subconsciously wiped the drool from their mouths.
“All sit down.”
“No need to stand on ceremony.”
Li Xiao smiled faintly, looked at the mutton in the pot, and nodded slightly.
“Everyone has worked hard in the training these past two days.”
“Today, eat as much as you want, plenty of mutton.”
Hearing Li Xiao’s words, the soldiers all showed smiles and cheered.
“Great~”
It was called training, but it was not overly complicated.
The main purpose was to build trust between the soldiers and the newly arrived Sergeants and Corporals.
To let the soldiers know who to listen to.
As for more physical training and tactical drills, there simply was no time.
With little training and meat to eat, the soldiers were quite happy about this.
“What’s your name?”
Taking advantage of mealtime, Li Xiao chatted with these soldiers to make them more familiar with him.
“Me, me name Da Sha~”
The man pointed out by Li Xiao stammered.
“What’s your surname?” Li Xiao asked.
The man shook his head.
The Sergeant of these ten men was Li Xiao’s little brother, named Wang Dachun.
Having gotten familiar with the soldiers over these two days, he explained to Li Xiao.
The man had been orphaned since childhood, sold himself to a wealthy household as a sheep slave.
This time, it was supposed to be the wealthy household’s son to enlist, but the household was reluctant to let their son risk death, so they sent this foolish man instead.
He had not even realized he should negotiate terms with the wealthy household.
“Want to eat meat?” Li Xiao looked at Da Sha and asked.
“Want~”
Li Xiao nodded with a smile: “Good!”
“Then kill more enemies, earn military merit, and you’ll be able to eat meat every day from now on.”
The situation in the Western Regions and Grassland was like this.
Even nomadic people could not eat meat frequently.
Cattle and sheep were the most important family property, not easily slaughtered.
Ordinary herdsmen’s daily food was dairy products and coarse grains; they only ate meat during major festivals.
Even so, this was already the level of a well-off family.
There were also large numbers of poor people and slaves with nothing, struggling daily on the edge of starvation.
When starving, they could only eat coarse grass like cattle and sheep.
And this time, many of those selected by Li Xiao were such penniless youths.
If they wanted to eat meat every day, to cross classes and gain wealth, they had to seize and fight with their own hands.
Seeing that the mutton in the pot was almost stewed, Li Xiao let them eat freely and led his men away.
Walking to another group, their Sergeant was also Li Xiao’s little brother.
Li Xiao had come to back up his own people, also worried that Wang Dachun and the others were young and might be looked down upon by their subordinates.
But not long after, Li Dashan found Li Xiao.
“Da Long, the Princess is here.”
“Waiting for you in the large tent.”
“Xiao Yanyan?”
Li Xiao nodded lightly: “Let’s go!”
“We should go back to eat too.”
Li Xiao led his men away.
Upon returning to his large tent, he found Xiao Yanyan actually sitting on the stool directly facing the tent entrance, holding a sheepskin and reading it very seriously.
Li Xiao immediately smiled, walked in and said: “Princess, this seems to be my seat, right?”
Xiao Yanyan put down the sheepskin, looked at Li Xiao and smiled charmingly: “What, can’t I, Li Chiliarch, sit in your seat?”
Li Xiao shook his head: “Sit wherever you like.”
“Anyway, the entire Great Liao is your family’s, sit wherever you want.”
With that, Li Xiao began to unfasten the armor on his body.
This thing was troublesome to put on and take off, but there was no way around it.
Wearing this armor in front of new recruits helped establish Li Xiao’s image and prestige.
Clothes make the man, this thing could still intimidate people.
“Let me do it!”
Seeing Li Xiao struggling on his own, Xiao Yanyan shook her head with a smile and stepped forward to help him remove the armor.
After all, this thing was quite heavy, normally requiring two people to put on.
Li Xiao did not refuse, instead chuckling:
“The Eldest Princess of Chu State personally removing my armor for me—this treatment is unique throughout Great Liao.”
Xiao Yanyan stood behind him, untying the ropes one by one, scoffing: “Still so glib.”
But Li Xiao was not wrong.
In all her life, aside from Xiao Simo, this was the first time Xiao Yanyan had removed armor for a man.
Li Xiao’s treatment was grand.
“This counts as your reward.” Xiao Yanyan said.
“I risked my life crossing A Lai Ridge Pass, attacked the Naiman People, and the reward is just this?”
“Hmph, when you return, there will naturally be more.”
“How’s the selection of your men going?” Xiao Yanyan asked from behind Li Xiao.
Soon, the arm guards on Li Xiao’s two arms were removed.
Watching Xiao Yanyan lift them with one hand and hang them on the wooden rack, Li Xiao glanced sideways at her.
This woman had considerable strength.
“The men are all selected, and the training is almost done.”
“We can set off in another two days.” Li Xiao said.
Xiao Yanyan nodded slightly and continued to unfasten Li Xiao’s breastplate, which was even heavier.
“Let me do it~”
Seeing Xiao Yanyan struggling, Li Xiao took the armor from her hands and hung it on the wooden rack.
Turning around, he found Xiao Yanyan staring at him.
“What? Something dirty?”
Li Xiao touched his face, not too concerned—who cared about a clean face on the battlefield.
Xiao Yanyan shook her head: “No~”
“It’s just, I owe you another favor.”
In Xiao Yanyan’s view, Li Xiao had crossed A Lai Ridge Pass this time for her sake.
Before, Xiao Yanyan had even prepared to go to the Northern Naiman.
But at the critical moment, Li Xiao’s appearance was like a ray of holy light, illuminating her helpless heart.
It was this youth again.
Previously, facing pursuit and kill by the Geluolu People and falling into desperation, it was also this youth who saved her.
“Ha~”
Seeing Xiao Yanyan’s serious look, Li Xiao found it adorable.
Shaking his head, he said: “Since you owe a favor, just repay it slowly.”
“If you really can’t repay it, no choice, you’ll have to marry me.”
Hearing this, Xiao Yanyan glared at him: “Can’t you be serious?”
“I’m six years older than you.”
Li Xiao unfastened his skirt armor and put it on the wooden rack, saying indifferently: “So what about six years?”
“Ever heard the saying, woman three years older, holds a golden brick.”
“Six years older, I get to hold two golden bricks.”
Li Xiao seemed to be joking with Xiao Yanyan, but she fell silent.
Her gaze fixed tightly on Li Xiao’s busy figure, she suddenly said softly: “Do you really want to marry me?”
At these words, the tent immediately quieted.
Li Xiao froze in place, looking at Xiao Yanyan with astonishment.
How was he supposed to respond to that?
Were Khitan women all this bold?
“What do you mean?” Li Xiao tsked, saying somewhat guiltily.
No way?
This woman was so direct?
Could it be his heroic actions had moved her, turning Xiao Yanyan into a love-struck fool?
If Xiao Yanyan really insisted shamelessly on marrying him, should he agree?
It seemed he couldn’t refuse!
With Xiao Simo’s military order, Li Xiao had to marry her whether he wanted to or not!
Otherwise, should he reluctantly accept her?
Seeing Li Xiao’s stunned gaze, unaware of the tangle in his mind, Xiao Yanyan suddenly scoffed: “Silly.”
“Just teasing you.”
“I’m not an ordinary woman; I won’t just marry some random man like those common women and give birth one after another like an ewe.”
“I want to be a female general, help my brother pacify Under Heaven.”
Xiao Yanyan held her head high, like a proud swan.
Li Xiao also came back to his senses, breathing a slight sigh of relief.
But for some reason, there was also a trace of disappointment in his heart.
“Heh, ambitious.”
Li Xiao chuckled affirmatively at Xiao Yanyan: “If you achieve something in the future, Princess Pingyang might have to bow to you.”
The two quickly ended the topic and turned to discussing how to cross A Lai Ridge, and afterward how to coordinate with the Shanxi Golden Mountain army to encircle and annihilate the Naiman People army.
The two ate mutton while chatting about many things.
When Xiao Yanyan was about to leave, she suddenly turned at the tent entrance and said to Li Xiao.
“Li Xiao, come back alive.”
“I’ll wait for you.”
With that, Xiao Yanyan turned and left, leading her people away from the camp.
Li Xiao shook his head with a smile.
Wait for me?
Wait for what?
“This woman, using the beauty trap on me?”
