Starting with a Wei Wu soldier

Chapter 199 The Horror of the First Snow

Murong Mingyue only stayed in Dingbei City for three days.

Over the next three days, she inspected the military camps, checked the armory, and personally inspected several newly established sentry posts and beacon towers, making further fine-tuning of defense details. Her decisive style and clear, explicit instructions quickly established her authority within the Northern Frontier army. Meanwhile, in the capital, intelligence from Jia Wen's Censorate, the first batch of winter supplies allocated by Su Xiaoxiao's inner court, and extra rewards arrived one after another, greatly stabilizing morale and demonstrating to generals at all levels the central government's emphasis on and support for this campaign.

On the morning of the fourth day, the sky was overcast, with leaden clouds hanging low, making it hard to breathe. Murong Mingyue summoned Pang De.

"General Pang, the defense system of Dingbei City has been initially sorted out and can be operated according to plan. I am going to Juma Fortress." Murong Mingyue's tone was calm, but her words left no room for argument.

Pang De frowned, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Your Majesty, please reconsider! Juma Fortress is the front line. Recently, the Snow Wolf Clan's cavalry activities have become increasingly rampant, and enemy traces have been frequently spotted thirty miles outside the fortress. Your Majesty is of noble birth and is pregnant with the Crown Prince. How can you personally venture into such a dangerous place? If anything happens to you, I will be eternally ashamed!"

"Precisely because it's the front line, that's why I must go." Murong Mingyue's gaze turned north. "I want to see for myself the terrain, the morale, and the capabilities of the Snow Wolf Clan's cavalry. More importantly, I want the soldiers of Juma Fortress to know that they are not alone; the King and the Central Government are with them. It is not my duty, Murong Mingyue, to issue orders from a safe distance in the rear." She paused, then looked at Pang De. "General Pang, do you perhaps lack confidence in your defenses and cannot guarantee my safety at Juma Fortress?"

Pang De puffed out his chest and declared proudly, "This humble general will do everything in his power to protect the Queen! Although the Juma Fortress is an advanced fortress, its walls are high and its moat deep, and its troops are well-trained and well-supplied; it is by no means an easy place to breach! However..."

"No, just," Murong Mingyue interrupted him. "Make preparations. We'll depart this afternoon, and you'll accompany us. The military affairs of Dingbei City will be temporarily handled by the deputy general."

"Your subordinate obeys!" Pang De knew he could no longer persuade him, so he could only clasp his hands in agreement, secretly resolving to do his best in protecting his subordinates.

In the afternoon, the sky grew increasingly overcast, and a cold wind began to swirl and scatter fine snowflakes—the first snowfall of the winter in northern Xinjiang. Murong Mingyue and her entourage of two hundred riders braved the wind and snow, heading north. The scarlet queen's banner stood out starkly against the grey sky and falling snow.

The further north they went, the more desolate the terrain became. The withered yellow grasslands were covered with a thin layer of snow, revealing their mottled underlying colors. At the beacon towers and sentry posts they passed along the way, the soldiers who saw the Queen's banner were all thrilled and saluted from afar. Murong Mingyue would sometimes stop briefly to inquire about the defenses and the enemy situation, and reward them with some dried meat and strong liquor, which moved the soldiers to tears of gratitude and boosted their morale.

Twenty li from Juma Fort, a scout sent out on horseback reported: "Reporting to the Queen and General Pang! Five li ahead, a small group of unidentified riders, about ten people, have been spotted loitering behind a hill to the southwest, seemingly spying on our army's route!"

Pang De immediately looked at Murong Mingyue: "Your Majesty, should we temporarily retreat, or send troops to drive them away?"

Murong Mingyue narrowed her eyes, gazing at the snow-covered wilderness ahead: "More than ten people? It seems they are the 'eyes' of the Snow Wolf Clan. They're quite bold, daring to get this close. General Pang, you take fifty cavalry and flank them from the left, aiming to annihilate them or capture them alive. Be quick. I will lead the rest of the troops and speed towards Juma Fortress. If they escape, do not pursue them too closely, lest it be a trap."

"Yes!" Pound responded, quickly mustering fifty of his most elite cavalrymen, who charged out diagonally like arrows released from a bow, disappearing into the wind and snow.

Murong Mingyue then ordered the remaining cavalry to tighten their formation, increase their speed, and head straight for Juma Fortress. She personally rode in front, her expression calm, as if she were about to encounter not enemy cavalry, but an ordinary snowstorm.

Sure enough, less than a quarter of an hour later, faint shouts of battle and the clash of weapons could be heard from behind, but they quickly subsided. After traveling several more miles, Pang De and his troops caught up, several bloody heads hanging beside their saddles, and two tightly bound, struggling Hu prisoners being escorted by them. Pang De's armor was stained with blood, but his expression was spirited.

"Your Majesty, I have fulfilled my mission! I have beheaded nine and captured two alive. They were indeed Snow Wolf Clan scouts, extremely fierce and brave, who wounded three of my men. From their bodies, we found a horn, a bone whistle, and a sheepskin with a rough map and our outpost markings." Pound presented the blood-stained sheepskin and bone whistle.

Murong Mingyue glanced at the sheepskin. Although the markings drawn on it with charcoal sticks were rudimentary, the locations of the main outposts around the fortress were roughly accurate. "Take him back and interrogate him carefully. Display his head outside the fortress so that Uvi knows we can gouge out his 'eyes' at any time." Her voice was cold and devoid of any emotion.

"Yes, sir!"

As the imposing, dark gray silhouette of Juma Fortress emerged from the snowstorm, the garrison on the fortress walls, already alerted, erupted in cheers. The fortress gates swung open, and the commander led his troops out to greet them.

Juma Fortress is much smaller than Dingbei City, but it is more rugged and sturdy, situated on a gentle slope, controlling a vital passage from the north into the heart of Xingguo. The atmosphere inside the fortress is tense yet orderly. The newly transferred soldiers of the Trapped Camp and the Divine Arm Camp have already integrated and are patrolling and training alongside the original garrison.

Upon entering the fortress, Murong Mingyue, disregarding her travel fatigue, immediately inspected its defenses. She climbed to the top of the wall, letting the wind and snow lash her face, and carefully observed the terrain outside the fortress. To the north lay open meadows with excellent visibility, but several miles away were rolling hills and a grove of withered trees—truly a good place for enemy troops to hide.

"Double the number of lookout posts, especially at night; they must not be relaxed. Clear all weeds and bushes within three miles of the fortress and set up tripwires and barbed wire. At night, place more braziers and torches to illuminate the area outside the fortress walls as bright as day," Murong Mingyue instructed the garrison commander. "From today onward, interrogate the two prisoners brought by General Pang separately. I need to know the exact location of the Snow Wolf Clan's main force, their troop composition, Uvi's temperament and habits, and the details of their usual tactics—the more detailed the better."

"Understood, sir!"

That night, the wind and snow intensified. Inside the Juma Fortress, only the footsteps of patrolling soldiers and the howling of the snow created a profound silence. Murong Mingyue resided in the best room within the fortress, a charcoal brazier offering respite from the chill. Having finished processing several military reports, she was preparing to rest when suddenly, a piercing, sharp horn call—definitely not a natural whistle—faintly drifted from the far north, piercing the snow and reaching deep into the fortress!

Immediately afterwards, the alarm bells on the fortress walls blared! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Murong Mingyue instantly grabbed her sword and rushed out of the room. Pang De and the guards had also arrived in the courtyard, their faces grave.

"What happened?" Murong Mingyue asked in a deep voice.

A sentry, covered in snow, scrambled down the wall and urgently reported: "Your Majesty, General! A large number of torches have appeared in the north... in the north! They're covering the mountains and fields, slowly moving towards our fortress! They're about five li away!"

Murong Mingyue and Pang De exchanged a glance and quickly climbed the fortress wall.

In the snowy night, countless tiny lights, like will-o'-the-wisps, appeared at the dark horizon to the north, slowly but steadily spreading towards the fortified position. Illuminated by the firelight, the silhouettes of moving figures and horses were vaguely visible, creating a suffocating sense of oppression. The eerie horn sounded again, long and savage, like the howl of wolves in the snowy night.

"The Snow Wolf Clan...the main force has arrived?" The garrison commander's voice was somewhat dry.

Pound squinted, carefully observing the speed and scale of the moving flames, and shook his head: "It doesn't look like a full-scale attack by the main force. Although there are many flames, they are not moving fast, and the formation seems loose. It's more like... a probe, or a deterrent."

Murong Mingyue gripped the cold battlements, gazing intently at the slowly approaching sea of ​​fire, her red lips pressed tightly together. Snowflakes landed on her eyelashes, melting quickly. She knew that the true battle had begun from this moment.

"Order the entire army to deploy to the highest level of combat readiness. The Divine Arm Battalion, take up positions on the walls; the Trapped Battalion, stand by behind the gate. Prepare bows, crossbows, rolling logs, and hot oil. Without my order, do not fire a single arrow, nor send out a single soldier." Her voice rang out clearly in the wind and snow, calm as a rock. "If they want to 'see,' let them see clearly. Juma Fortress is a tough nut for them to crack. General Pang, send men to bring the heads of the cavalry we captured and killed during the day, and shoot them at their lines with crossbow bolts."

"Yes, sir!" Pound and the garrison commander responded sternly and sprang into action.

On the fortress walls, soldiers rushed about, weapons were in position, and the tense atmosphere was like a taut bowstring. Murong Mingyue stood atop the wall, her scarlet cloak fluttering in the wind and snow like an unyielding battle flag. She gazed at the approaching, eerie sea of ​​fire, her hand gently pressed against her lower abdomen, her heart icy and clear.

Uvi, is this your greeting? I, Murong Mingyue, await your instruction.