Chapter 53

"Are you okay?" Luo Shixin saw Pingyang get up with Pei Qingyi's support.

Princess Pingyang, who had a strong ability to control her emotions, had already regained her composure. She herself also looked puzzled, rubbed the back of her head, and felt nothing strange, "Maybe I was too tired from the pursuit? Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head, followed by dizziness."

Luo Shixin patted the dust off his clothes and didn't respond. He was somewhat dismissive of Princess Pingyang's words. It had been several days since the major pursuit. Even if she was a bit thick-skinned, she should have recovered by now. Besides, fatigue wouldn't cause such a reaction. Could it be anemia? I heard anemia can cause fainting...

He wasn't a doctor and couldn't see anything amiss. Since she said she was fine, it should be fine, right?

Luo Shixin kept an eye on Princess Pingyang, and only after confirming she was truly unharmed did he feel relieved.

After passing through Hengzhou and Zhen Ding, Luo Shixin and his group finally arrived in Dingzhou.

Li Yi had already received the news and came to welcome them, dressed in splendid armor, with a group of spirited and fierce soldiers and generals standing behind him.

Luo Shixin watched from a distance and couldn't help but secretly sigh: Li Yi could indeed dominate the northern region, and he had some real skills. The soldiers and generals behind him all exuded a fierce and powerful aura, not to be underestimated. Especially the two people standing on either side of Li Yi... They looked identical, both with sword-like eyebrows and tiger-like eyes, incredibly fierce. The only thing that marred the scene was their newly grown short hair.

Luo Shixin had seen them during the campaign against Liu He Ta: They were Li Yi's left and right hands, Xue Wanjun and Xue Wanche. Li Yi's dominance in the region was closely tied to these two, whose military and strategic skills surpassed Li Yi's.

Li Yi said proudly, "The princess has arrived just in time. The Turks have been driven back to Yuyang by my forces. We just need to wait for the prince's army to arrive and deploy troops at the border. Given the nature of those Turkish brats, they will likely retreat to the grasslands." As he spoke, he kept glancing at Luo Shixin, as if the situation was entirely under his control and had nothing to do with Luo Shixin.

From the looks of it, Li Yi didn't know about their victory over ten thousand Turks in Le Ping. After all, as Princess Pingyang's deputy, he needed to report to her regularly. Why would Princess Pingyang need to report to him?

Luo Shixin said urgently, "How can we let the Turkish bandits retreat so easily? We only inflicted a few hundred casualties on them, which is nothing. If we don't give the Turks a severe lesson, they will come back next year and the year after. In my opinion, we should beat them so hard that they will think twice before invading again."

Li Yi laughed inwardly, thinking Luo Shixin was worried about not having any achievements. He thought to himself, "Trying to steal my credit, are you ready yet?" These days, he had been leading Xue Wanjun and Xue Wanche to attack on all fronts. Whenever the Turks moved, his entire army would launch a strong offensive, forcing the Turks to abandon their plundering. This way, he could claim all the credit, making it known to the world that Luo Shixin was just a lucky guy, and anyone who worked with him wouldn't get any credit.

"General Luo is young and doesn't understand. The Turks are known for their cavalry, which can come and go without a trace. You can't just fight them whenever you want. I have eight thousand elite cavalry, and I've assigned five hundred as scouts to monitor the Turks' movements day and night. It took many days to achieve the current results. With less than three hundred cavalry and the cumbersome陌刀队 (mò dāo duì, a type of heavy infantry), it's not that I look down on you, but your mixed troops are not ready to fight the Turks." Li Yi, feeling confident, spoke in a condescending tone.

Luo Shixin turned back and looked at Mo Hu'er, saying, "Captain Mo, what do you think?"

Mo Hu'er, with a blank look, said in confusion, "I can't understand it. I really don't know where Prince Li gets his confidence from. With eight thousand cavalry, he only managed to kill three hundred Turks, while our general used two thousand five hundred 'mixed troops' to defeat ten thousand Turkish cavalry. Who is the inexperienced one? Oh... no, in terms of age, the general is indeed younger."

Mo Hu'er was only nineteen, with a bold and fearless nature. He didn't care about Li Yi's status and said whatever he wanted. He showed no mercy to anyone who dared to belittle the Right Brave Guard.

Luo Shixin nodded in satisfaction and then turned back, saying, "Mr. Li, you don't know yet, do you? Not long after you left, a Turkish ten-thousand-strong unit crossed Taiyuan. By a stroke of luck, Princess Pingyang and I defeated them, almost wiping out the entire unit."

"This is impossible!" Li Yi's expression changed dramatically, and he looked at Princess Pingyang in disbelief, hoping for a satisfactory answer.

Princess Pingyang felt a headache. These two, one with a narrow mind and constant provocations, the other unwilling to back down, made it difficult to command them. She could only say, "General Luo's self-created陌刀阵 (mò dāo zhèn, a type of heavy infantry formation) was highly effective against the Turkish cavalry. He used his two thousand five hundred troops to suppress ten thousand Turkish cavalry and achieved significant results."

Li Yi's expression changed instantly, his face turning pale. Compared to Luo Shixin's achievements, his own were insignificant.

The generals behind Li Yi exchanged glances, and they couldn't help but feel admiration for Luo Shixin. They had fought the Turks many times in Youzhou and suffered countless losses, knowing the Turks' strength. Luo Shixin's ability to defeat the Turks with inferior forces was truly remarkable. However, they didn't show it out of respect for Li Yi's face.

Li Yi, feeling embarrassed, called for Princess Pingyang to enter the city.

"Is it necessary to do this?" Princess Pingyang deliberately slowed her pace at the front.

Luo Shixin was initially taken aback, then smiled bitterly, realizing that his thoughts had been seen through by this intelligent princess.

"This move of mine is definitely stronger than your order." Luo Shixin didn't hide it and whispered in response.

Luo Shixin knew Li Yi's petty mindset too well. If Li Yi knew about Pingyang's full plan, would he still fully defend Dingzhou? He would likely sabotage the plan in secret.

Therefore, after Princess Pingyang proposed the plan, Luo Shixin insisted that the plan to defeat the enemy should not be told to Li Yi, as it would only cause trouble.

But to ensure the plan's success, Dingzhou could not give the Turks any opportunity. Dingzhou was much richer than Yizhou and could only be protected by Li Yi with his eight thousand cavalry.

To make Li Yi cooperate, Luo Shixin deliberately provoked him. If it was about achievements, you're not even fit to tie my shoes. Given Li Yi's nature, how could he tolerate this? He would likely go crazy trying to fight the Turks in Dingzhou.