Chapter 728: Chapter 569 Zhou Lan’s Arrangement_2
Zhou Lan’s somewhat pale face broke into a smile as she said, "Actually, it’s possible to bypass Menghe Mountain. Not only that, aside from Menghe Mountain Pass, there’s another path that can cross over Menghe Mountain!"
Yang Zhenshan was taken aback, exclaiming, "Really?"
"Of course!" Zhou Lan said with a smile.
Yang Zhenshan asked, "Where can we cross?"
Zhou Lan told the maid beside her, "Go bring the chest from under the bookshelf in my study!"
The maid bowed and went to fetch the chest from the study.
Zhou Lan continued to explain to Yang Zhenshan: "Over the years, I’ve sent many people to Menghe Mountain, even establishing a small settlement nearby!"
"Wait! What do you mean by ’small settlement’?" Yang Zhenshan asked, puzzled.
With a sly smile, Zhou Lan said: "It means selecting more than a hundred soldiers to disguise as members of the Hu Clan and entering the Wuliang Hu Clan’s territory from the snowfields. They are now settled in a gorge in the northern part of Menghe Mountain!"
Yang Zhenshan was astonished, he hadn’t thought such a strategy was possible!
"Wouldn’t they be exposed?"
Zhou Lan replied, "Not likely, because to the north of the Wuliang Hu Clan there are countless little-known settlements; these could be said to be part of the Wuliang Hu Clan or belong to the Hu Clan from the snowfields."
"Many of the Wuliang Hu Clan actually come from the snowfields, and there’s no clear boundary between their territory and the snowfields. It’s common for members of the Hu Clan from the snowfields to wander into Wuliang Hu Clan territory."
"The Wuliang Hu Clan doesn’t concern themselves with these small settlements. As long as they don’t infringe on the larger settlement’s territory, no one cares about their origins or identities!"
Yang Zhenshan began to sweat, "I never thought this was possible!"
It wasn’t so surprising he hadn’t considered settling a small tribe within Wuliang Hu Clan territory, given that during his time in Chongshan Town, he hadn’t begun infiltration efforts against the Wuliang Hu Clan, whereas Zhou Lan had started to gather intelligence on the Wuliang Hu Clan in her second year there.
As they were talking, the maid brought in the wooden chest.
Yang Zhenshan opened the chest to find an extremely detailed map of Menghe Mountain.
Zhou Lan, weak in body, could only sit on a soft couch and explained: "It’s not difficult to bypass Menghe Mountain. You can go around through the snowfields to the north. During summer and autumn, the snowfields aren’t very cold, which is sufficient for tens of thousands of soldiers to bypass."
"However, taking this route means traveling over two thousand li, and though the path is not difficult to traverse, the distance is far. If moving with a large army, provisions along the way would cost quite a bit."
"Apart from going around to the north, it is also possible to bypass on the south side, following the Tu Wusheng River southward, roughly bypassing a hundred li north of Beiyuan Town to Dasheng City!"
"But that area belongs to the territory of the Tatar Tribe, and it’s more appropriate to say you’d have to fight your way through than simply bypass it. Also, the Tatar Tribe has built many forts there, and the difficulty of breaking through is not much less than passing through Menghe Mountain Pass."
"The shortcut I’m talking about is located a hundred li north of Menghe Mountain Pass, where one can cross Menghe Mountain through a narrow gorge and cliffside. The downside is that it’s difficult terrain—practically no roads at all. Both people and horses can make it through, but you can’t carry a large amount of provisions."
Yang Zhenshan found the small path Zhou Lan had mentioned on the map and felt a headache looking at the route—it was winding, probably a thousand li long.
Passing here was actually not easier than going around the snowfields.
Zhou Lan continued, "If you take this route, you can launch a surprise attack on the Chi Ci Tribe settlement. Although it’s impossible to capture the fortresses inside Menghe Mountain Pass, it’s enough to throw the Chi Ci Tribe’s lands into complete chaos."
The Chi Ci Tribe has more than one settlement; as a large group, the Chi Ci Tribe has a population of more than one hundred thousand, with over a dozen settlements, large and small.
Additionally, many small to mid-sized settlements are affiliated with the Chi Ci Tribe.
"Originally, my plan was for us to initiate the attack and the Wuliang Royal Court to defend. This way, we could split into four armies: one to engage the main force of the Wuliang Royal Court at Menghe Mountain Pass, and the remaining three to circumvent or take the small paths through Menghe Mountain."
"But now that the Wuliang Hu Clan has launched an offensive, they must have sealed off the southern part of Menghe Mountain, leaving us only the option to bypass from the north."
Yang Zhenshan nodded slightly, "I see, these two paths are enough. Leave the rest to me, and you just focus on recuperating!"
A rough plan had already begun to take shape in his mind. Although it was not yet perfect, he felt it should be feasible.
Neither of them mentioned the Wula Tribe, because, in truth, they didn’t consider the Wula Tribe worthy of attention.
While the Wula Tribe is touted as one of the eight major tribes of the Wuliang Royal Court, in reality, both King Liang’s tribe and the Wula Tribe are just there to make up the numbers.
Cui Liang’s King Liang tribe had only been established in recent years. Although Wu Tuo had given him many smaller settlements, these were actually quite poor and didn’t possess much strength in themselves.
The Wula Tribe was somewhat better; originally a branch of the East Sea Hu Clan, they pledged allegiance to the Wuliang Royal Court after the East Sea Hu Clan’s collapse. However, compared to the other six tribes, the Wula Tribe was much weaker.
The Wula Tribe’s current territory is on the eastern side of Menghe Mountain, and they were merely fodder for Wu Tuo, buying time.
Wu Tuo didn’t hold high expectations for the Wula Tribe; in his view, if the Wula Tribe could delay the army from Chongshan Town for ten days to half a month, that would be enough.