Chapter 257 The Long Road to Southern Xinjiang, Shadows Lurking Along the Way

The 100,000-strong Southern Pacification Army formally embarked on their southern expedition.

Banners stretched like forests, blades and spears like a sea, extending for dozens of miles like a massive steel dragon slowly crawling across the earth.

Imperial Guard General Li Chuang, clad in heavy armor, rode a tall warhorse at the very front of the formation.

He was a quintessential soldier—burly, with a resolute face, his years of military life etched upon him by the winds and frosts.

He was full of confidence regarding this southern campaign.

In his eyes, a mob of displaced refugees was nothing to be feared.

The only thing that annoyed him was the monitor the Emperor had forcibly inserted into his ranks.

Western Depot Chief Agent, General Su Meng.

At this moment, General Su Meng was leading over a hundred elite Secret Agents from the Western Depot, following at a distance behind the center of the army.

They were also in military attire, but their black flying fish robes and the embroidered spring blades at their waists made them stand out starkly within this massive army.

General Su Meng sat on his horse, expressionless; the scar running from his brow to the corner of his mouth gave him a fierce appearance.

His gaze, however, was exceptionally steady, sweeping across the surrounding terrain and the marching ranks from time to time, like a vigilant lone wolf.

General Li Chuang glanced back at General Su Meng's party and snorted through his nose.

"A eunuch's lackey, and he thinks he's qualified to monitor me?"

Although he felt disdain in his heart, he did not show it.

After all, it was the Emperor's decree; he still had to maintain appearances.

The army marched for several days, and the journey was peaceful.

Yet, inside General Su Meng's heart, a string remained taut.

Before their departure, the instructions from Emperor Liu Sheng still echoed in his ears.

He knew that this southern journey would never be as peaceful as it appeared on the surface.

True danger often hides in the most unexpected places.

And what he did not know was that on a small road a dozen miles behind the main army, a convoy disguised as a merchant caravan was also moving along at a leisurely pace.

This merchant caravan was quite large, consisting of over a dozen horse-drawn carriages laden with goods, covered tightly with tarpaulins.

Escorting the caravan were dozens of sturdy-looking laborers and guards.

The two leaders were a tall, honest-looking man who resembled a loyal old steward, and a young woman with a fiery figure, dressed in neat, tight-fitting clothes with a long sword hanging at her waist, looking heroic and like a formidable young mistress of the house.

These two were the other two Chief Agents of the Western Depot, Shi Potian and Hong Niang.

They were leading the most elite group of experts from the Western Depot.

This was the contingency plan laid out by Emperor Liu Sheng.

On the surface, General Su Meng was leading the monitoring team.

In secret, the "merchant caravan" of Shi Potian and Hong Niang followed like a shadow, silently trailing the army, ready to respond to any emergencies at any time.

"Sister Hong, do you think the Superintendent is being too paranoid?"

Shi Potian asked in a low voice as he drove the carriage, leaning toward Hong Niang.

"We've been walking for several days now, and we haven't even run into a petty thief. It's calm and peaceful; where could the danger be?"

Hong Niang rolled her eyes at him.

"What do you know? The calmer it is, the more likely there's something fishy going on."

"Think about it, that mad dog from the Eastern Depot, Superintendent Wang Yue, suffered such a huge loss. Do you think he can swallow that anger?"

"The Superintendent had us follow just to guard against him. I bet Superintendent Wang Yue is definitely brewing some evil scheme, preparing to hit General Su Meng hard."

Shi Potian scratched his head and smiled honestly.

"Sister Hong is the thoughtful one, as always. However, with us here, no matter what schemes or tricks he has, we can just smash them to pieces with a punch."

Hong Niang looked at his fist, which was the size of a sand pot, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

"You only know how to use brute force. The Superintendent gave instructions: we are the final trump card, and we cannot expose ourselves unless absolutely necessary."

"Alright, stop talking nonsense and perk up. The road ahead won't be easy."

As she spoke, her gaze turned toward the rolling mountain ranges in the distance.

The sunset's afterglow plated the mountains in an eerie blood-red color.

The army's marching speed gradually slowed.

Ahead, a post station appeared.

The post station was built in a mountain hollow, surrounded by mountains on three sides, with only one narrow passage for entry and exit.

On the post station's banner, three large characters were written—Wangyue Slope.

General Li Chuang looked at the sky and ordered: "Pass the order down, the entire army will rest here for the night and set off again tomorrow morning!"

The order was passed down, and the 100,000-strong army began to set up camp around the post station in an orderly fashion.

General Su Meng looked at this dangerous terrain, and his brows furrowed imperceptibly.

This kind of place was best suited for an ambush.

He immediately sent several trusted Secret Agents to sneak into the surrounding mountains to investigate the situation.

The post station master was a middle-aged man who looked honest and simple. He greeted them with a beaming smile and invited General Li Chuang and the other officers into the best courtyard of the post station.

Hot water, wine, and food were quickly brought up.

The soldiers also began to cook meals and draw water from the post station's well to wash away the dust of the journey.

Everything seemed perfectly normal.

However, no one noticed that after the smiling post station master turned around, a flicker of imperceptible coldness and greed flashed in his eyes.

Even less did anyone know that in the back kitchen of the post station, a colorless and odorless medicinal powder had already been quietly poured into several huge water vats.

The powder dissolved rapidly in the water, showing no signs of anything unusual.

A meticulously planned conspiracy had already quietly bared its Fangs.

The night deepened.

The Wangyue Slope post station fell into silence.

Only the occasional cry of night birds in the mountains made it seem particularly eerie—

The next morning.

Just as the sky was beginning to brighten, a chorus of coughing and groaning erupted throughout the military camp.

"My head is spinning…"

"I have no strength, I can't even lift my arms."

"What's going on? I feel something is wrong too, like I've caught a cold."

Many soldiers struggled to crawl up from their tents, only to feel their limbs sore and weak, their heads heavy and feet light, unable to even stand steadily.

A personal guard stumbled to the outside of General Li Chuang's tent and reported urgently.

"General! It's bad! Many brothers have fallen ill!"

General Li Chuang was putting on his armor and was stunned by the news.

He himself felt his body a bit heavy and lacking energy, and he had thought it was because he had drunk a few too many cups last night.

"What are you panicking about!"

He scolded, forcing himself to walk out of the tent.

Looking out, the entire military camp was permeated with a lethargic atmosphere.

Many soldiers were pale, leaning against their tents, looking listless.

"What is going on?"

General Li Chuang grabbed a military doctor and asked.

The military doctor was drenched in sweat and answered anxiously: "General, this subordinate cannot say for sure. Looking at the symptoms, it seems like they are not accustomed to the local climate, or perhaps they have all collectively caught a cold. But it happened too quickly and too universally; it is somewhat suspicious."

General Li Chuang frowned.

"Not accustomed to the local climate? We've only been out of the capital for a few days, where would this come from?"

He felt faintly in his heart that something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on what it was.