On Huaxia's western frontier, the customs and atmosphere were almost foreign. Merchants from every nation came and went without cease. A hundred-li-long chain of camps stretched across the borderlands, and the army drilled day after day, never resting. For countless years, it had remained in a long-term state of war readiness, sleeping with weapons at hand and awaiting dawn.
Yue Qianchou quietly appeared in the rear section of the central command tent. The cultivators he had dispatched were first startled, then delighted when they saw him. They were about to bow when he stopped them with a wave. Gently parting the tent curtain to reveal a narrow slit, he saw Shi Wenguang and his son gathered around a desk, gesturing at a map.
Yue Qianchou was just about to step out when he suddenly heard Shi Yintian mutter in a low voice, "Father, are we really going to keep waiting like this? The army has been drilling with its bowstring drawn tight all this time. If this goes on too long, anyone would grow weary. It truly does no good for morale..."
"Shut your mouth. Mister Yue naturally has his arrangements." Shi Wenguang shot a look toward the rear tent, signaling for him not to speak carelessly; Yue Qianchou's people were still behind them. Then he said gravely, "Do you think I do not know? You secretly sent a group of men back to the capital recently. What exactly are you trying to do?"
"I knew I could not hide it from Father." Shi Yintian gave a bitter smile. "I arranged for people to return and gather intelligence, to see whether there was a chance to bring the entire family here. We have been separated for far too long. This cannot go on forever."
Shi Wenguang sighed softly at those