After Zhong E left, Guan Tiannan and the other two naturally began discussing the matter.
Now that they knew Western Xia's target wasn't Yanan Prefecture, they couldn't keep sitting around waiting here.
The Beggar Sect hadn't sent any word, probably because the First Rank Hall had either already slipped into Song territory or was waiting at the border. But if so, it had to be near Jingzhao Prefecture.
So, should they go to Jingzhao Prefecture?
Or perhaps Weizhou?
"Masters, True Person, please wait here for a little while. I'll have the Beggar Sect members gather information at once, and then we'll make our preparations."
"Guild Leader Guan, if possible, I hope you can split your forces in two."
Zhong E returned, having already sent the intelligence back. Looking at Guan Tiannan and the other two, he said, "I've informed my father, and he agrees with this deduction. But at this point, it's undoubtedly too late to redeploy troops. Even if we summon the forces and send them out, by the time they arrive, the Western Xia army will probably already have withdrawn. And as soon as they show signs of marching on Jingzhao Prefecture, it'll basically be impossible to surround them. The troops will have to hurry south to reinforce the capital. So, if we want to deal Western Xia a heavy blow, the only way is to trap them in Weizhou. That will require the authorities in Weizhou to be informed and make preparations, while troops from Xianzhou cut off Western Xia's retreat..."
After Xuanci called him out of the room, Li Su found the inn's atmosphere unusually tense.
The hall was packed with people. A few voices could be heard, but everyone kept them deliberately low, and their expressions were grave.
Li Su took one look and immediately understood. Tianming must have passed on his analysis, and they were already making arrangements. He hadn't expected them to react so quickly. It hadn't even been a day. Given the Song Dynasty's usual pace, he'd thought they wouldn't do anything for at least a day, or even two...
Guan Tiannan, Master Tianming, and True Person Xuanxin came out.
Their gazes swept over everyone present. "Everyone, I'm sorry for suddenly calling you all together, but the situation is urgent. I won't waste time on pleasantries. The Western Xia First Class Hall's destination has been found. We'll split into two groups and head out to intercept them.
"Without a doubt, this operation will be extremely dangerous. We may even find ourselves on the battlefield, and I can't guarantee your safety.
"Of course, since you came here at a time like this, I believe everyone present has already made peace with that.
"Now for the arrangements. I'll lead one group with True Person Xuanxin, while Master Tianming leads the other. Jiantong, join Master Tianming's group."
True Person Xuanxin spoke up as well. "Ming Yulong, Xu Jing, you two go too."
"I've already told Master Tianming where to go. Master, I'll trouble you with this."
Master Tianming nodded. "All right. Once we arrive, if things are 'quiet' over there, I'll head west immediately."
"Understood!"
Master Tianming didn't waste time either. "Xuanjie, bring the other junior monks. Wang Jiantong, Ming Yulong, Xu Jing—you're coming too. We'll have to move quickly, so prepare yourselves."
"Yes!"
At this moment, even the usually lively Ming Yulong wore a serious expression.
Master Tianming soon led everyone out of the inn.
He hadn't said where they were going?
Following along with the others, Li Su blinked. They knew to keep the destination secret. Not bad.
But this group was probably headed to Jingzhao Prefecture, right?
As for Xuanci and the others, Ming Yulong, the girl Ming Yulong called Sister Blue Bird, and Wang Jiantong were all newcomers to the martial world. They might have made names for themselves, but they were nowhere near as renowned as Murong Bo and the others, who had been famous for years.
A group like this definitely wouldn't be sent straight toward Weizhou, the Western Xia army's primary target, even with the first-rate Master Tianming leading them.
After all, Shaolin monks were strong, but they weren't skilled at killing.
That was right. If the Song Dynasty had truly reacted in time, the danger around Jingzhao Prefecture would be greatly reduced.
They might not even have a chance to fight.
Without a doubt, that was a very good outcome for Li Su.
If the Song Dynasty could wipe out this invading force from Western Xia in one fell swoop, then Song and Western Xia probably wouldn't go to war again for decades.
After all, he remembered that Li Yuanhao didn't have long to live—just a few years at most. Western Xia would inevitably be weakened by internal strife, further draining its strength. If it lost this war, would it be able to recover within a few decades?
The group soon left Yanan Prefecture through the west gate, heading toward Western Xia.
After traveling about five li, Master Tianming led them onto a different road and turned south.
Ming Yulong and the other two couldn't help but stare in surprise.
"Master, where are we going?"
Xuanci finally couldn't hold back.
Master Tianming answered directly. "Weizhou!"
"Huh?"
"Based on the current situation, Western Xia's target is probably not Yanan Prefecture, but Jingzhao Prefecture. The ten thousand troops stationed across the four prefectures are there mainly to draw the Song Dynasty's attention as much as possible."
Everyone was taken aback. They quickly recalled Murong Bo's analysis from a few days earlier.
Attacking Yanan Prefecture would only be a losing proposition for Western Xia.
But what about Jingzhao Prefecture?
Wang Jiantong's eyes narrowed at once. There was no doubt the possibility was high. No, that had to be it.
As a Beggar Sect disciple, he knew the geography of the regions around the Song Dynasty extremely well, even better than Li Su.
There was no need to consider Taiyuan Prefecture. Since it bordered both the Liao Kingdom and Western Xia, even if troops moved there, at most one or two armies would change direction slightly. They wouldn't enter Yanan Prefecture.
They traveled quickly.
They set out at noon and kept going until nightfall before stopping.
Xuanjie and the others were practically exhausted. Even Xuancheng, the strongest among them, was panting heavily and drenched in sweat.
Even Wang Jiantong was struggling by then.
Of everyone there, only Master Tianming remained as calm and composed as he had been when they set out at noon.
"Rest here for two hours."
After taking in everyone's condition, Master Tianming waved his hand and stopped.
Li Su let out a long breath. By now, he was drenched in sweat, and his qi was almost depleted.
Weizhou was about as far from Hezhong Prefecture as it was from Yanan Prefecture—nearly a thousand li away. This time was different from before; they were traveling at speed.
They had only set out at noon, yet now they were almost at Qingzhou. Beyond Qingzhou lay the territory of Jingzhao Prefecture, with only Yuanzhou between it and Weizhou.
*******
Meanwhile, the other group was traveling just as quickly, heading clearly west toward Huanzhou.
They had covered nearly two-thirds of the journey, without a doubt moving no slower than Master Tianming's group.
Seeing how exhausted everyone was, Guan Tiannan and True Person Xuanxin discussed it for a while before stopping to rest.
"True Person Xuanxin, there are too many people in the group. We're moving too slowly."
"What does Guild Leader Guan propose?"
"I'll take a few of the strongest people and go straight past Huanzhou to notify the authorities in Xianzhou. If the Western Xia army hasn't moved yet, then we can send troops from both Huanzhou and Xianzhou to intercept them. If they've already passed through, we'll block their retreat and surround the invading Western Xia troops inside our territory. As for you, True Person, take your people toward Liupan Mountain. That's the only route Western Xia can take to invade Weizhou."
"Very well!"
True Person Xuanxin nodded.
Guan Tiannan soon found Murong Bo and Wang Xianglong. The three of them left the group and sped off.
Western Xia should have gotten the news by now.
Walking behind Guan Tiannan, Murong Bo's eyes flickered.
He hadn't expected the Song Dynasty to have capable people too. They'd seen through Western Xia's real target in such a short time: not Yanan Prefecture, but Jingzhao Prefecture.
Given the current route, and the fact that Master Tianming had split off ahead of them, the Song Dynasty's plan was probably to use Huanzhou, Qingzhou, Weizhou, and Xianzhou as four points to cut off or surround the Western Xia army that had slipped into their territory.
Unfortunately, it had all happened too suddenly. They'd set out without any preparation.
Even he had only figured out the truth just now.
But it didn't matter.
The message had already been sent. Whether Western Xia understood it or not was up to them.
As someone devoted to restoring his kingdom, Murong Bo didn't care whether Western Xia or the Song Dynasty won. His only wish was for the battle to drag on as long as possible. After all, only in troubled times would there be opportunities.
But who was it? Who had deduced, from so little information, that Western Xia's target wasn't Yanan Prefecture, but Jingzhao Prefecture???