The drumbeat is like thunder, and the military song is loud and clear.

  The city guards held their heads high and marched in with steady and firm steps from the south gate of Wodragon City.

  Along the way, the people welcomed them with open arms.

  Since the first city guard entered the south gate, the cheers of the people have never stopped.

  And when Xu Haifeng sat upright on the dark cloud, appearing at the city gate that moment, the people boiled over, countless people frantically shouting his name.

  Above the sky, all kinds of flowers are floating, and under the sunshine, they become more and more beautiful.

  He slightly raised his head, and on Xu Haifeng's face was the most confident and gentle smile. His eyes were profound and unfathomable, anyone who made contact with them would think he was gazing at himself, instantly triggering another round of thunderous applause.

  Little did he know, Xu Haifeng's eyes had no focal length, he was just casually looking straight ahead.

  In his heart, he was thoroughly disgusted with this grand celebratory ceremony.

  If it were up to him, this ceremony wouldn't have been necessary in the first place, or at the very least, he shouldn't have been dragged into it.

  However, a letter from Jiang Kung-ming made him finally choose this compromising approach.

  Because he also knew that this seemingly laborious and costly ceremony was actually the best way to boost morale and calm the people's minds.

  The Caesarians have not yet been repelled, and behind them there are enemies a hundred times more formidable, watching with eager eyes.

  At this time, whether it is the army or the people, they must ensure extremely strong cohesion, otherwise, in a situation where their strength is relatively disparate, they will be defeated and not victorious.

  So this grand celebration is inevitable.

  The dark cloud under his crotch was deeply connected to the surname of human beings, and he didn't need to drive him away at all. At this time, he automatically filtered out those loud shouts in his ears, and his eyes casually gazed at the flowers dancing in the air.

  Roses, sunflowers, lotus flowers...

  He was bored and counting.

  Suddenly, his eyes widened a little, the long flower swayed in mid-air, like a feather drifting down.

  This is actually a dandelion.

  Lightly, bright red petals floated down onto his shoulders, yet he felt no weight at all.

  Paper flower, an artificial flower made by folding red colored paper.

  No need to ask, this must be the masterpiece of a certain military strategist.

  At this time, Xu Haifeng's thoughts suddenly returned to the road of envoy to Xiongnu. At that time, didn't he also order to pick all the rare flowers and weeds within a radius of ten miles to please those thousand gold misses?

  The smile on his face grew warmer.

  Gao Gao raised his own arm and waved it at the surrounding people.

  His actions, similar to those of a demagogue, immediately triggered a wave of applause that was almost deafening. The emotions of the people reached a fever pitch at this moment.

  ※※※※

  In the distance, a private residence in the city, the tall building showed the extraordinary status of the owner.

  "What a Xu Haifeng indeed..."

  On top of a tall building, an old lady with white hair sighed softly.

  By her side was an elderly man of similar age. If Xu Haifeng were here, he would surely recognize them as Fang Lao Tai and Lu Ding Sheng.

  "Older sister... after all, this isn't our territory." Lu Ding Sheng's smile carried a hint of helpless sigh.

  This is after all Wulong City, the former capital of Tuyuhun State Lin'an.

  Here, 80% to 90% of the people are originally Tubo subordinates. Although at this time, Wolong City has been incorporated into the Great Han territory, but wanting to gain their loyalty is by no means an overnight task.

  Xiang Ming and Xu Haifeng are both masters of Wodragon City, but the attitude of the people in the city towards them is vastly different.

  This doesn't mean that Xu Haifeng's relationships are better than Fang Zhiming's, but because Xu Haifeng has a good wife.

  Lin Wanwan, the only surviving princess of the Tufa Imperial Family.

  Although she lived a secluded life and rarely appeared in public, her reputation and background had already made her a great political asset.

  Especially in Wolong City, her influence is unparalleled.

  Reputation comes from bragging, as Jiang Dajun said, reputation is blown out.

  Under his hype, the story of a hero saving a beauty had long been widely spread in the city.

  For this Master Xu who saved Her Highness the Princess from the clutches of the Caesarians, the people have a very good impression.

  Thereafter, with the emergence of a series of preferential policies, the citizens in the city tasted the initial sweetness. The second expansion of the City Guard absorbed a large number of residents near Wolong City, and under the relevant interests, Xu Haifeng's foundation in the city became increasingly solid.

  Up till now, he has been carrying the momentum of a great victory, sweeping into the city with an imposing air, fully displaying the demeanor of a king.

  When the people's hearts are won over, it is merely a matter of course, like water flowing into a ditch.

  In comparison, the various big families who temporarily settled here were much inferior.

  As Lu Ding Sheng said, after all, this is not their territory, and it's already quite good that they didn't end up with a case of homesickness.

  "Prosperity, what plans do you have for your family?" asked Mrs. Fang seemingly without any concern.

  He shrugged his shoulders, and his frail body trembled slightly as if overwhelmed by the question: "Just go with the flow."

  "Going with the flow? This doesn't sound like something the once renowned General Ding Tian would say." The old lady's tone carried a hint of subtle surprise.

  "General Ding Tian?" He laughed self-deprecatingly, and Lu Ding Sheng said: "Wanting to establish the Ding Tian is not an easy task, even Brother Dong couldn't do it, how could I dare to be presumptuous."

  "You've also grown old." Old Lady Fang gazed at him with a sigh.

  "Yes." Lu Ding Sheng sighed: "Since the Dong brothers' downfall, I knew that nothing can go against heaven's will. General Ding Tian had already died back then."

  The room fell silent, with only the sound of cheers coming from outside the window. But why did this sound of joy seem so jarring at this moment?

  The eyes of the two old men wandered downwards, amidst the countless common people were many sturdy men, their mouths shouting loudly in unison, but their eyes constantly scanning around, as if monitoring, searching for something.

  Mrs. Fang's gaze stayed on a Han man, shaking her head and saying, "There are many spies in the city."

  Listening to the old lady's words, Lu Ding Sheng seemed to have a deep feeling. He followed her gaze and looked down, suddenly losing his smile: "No matter how many spies there are, they can only see some superficial things."

  Old Lady Fang smiled slightly and did not object to Lu Ding Sheng's evaluation.

  Nowadays, when they two meet here, those scouts cannot know any news.

  The two of them have experienced the upheaval of the Northern Six Prefectures Rebellion forty years ago, and the earth-shaking changes that resulted from the downfall of the Dong family.

  Being able to live so many years in peace and safety is of course the main thing, but one's own abilities must not be overlooked; how could a few small scouts have been able to track them down?

  "Elder sister... are you taking good care of Cheng's family?" Lu Ding Sheng suddenly asked.

  Upon hearing this, Old Lady Fang's face turned extremely complex, and after a long while, she finally sighed: "Let's just wait and see how the Battle of Taiyuan turns out."

  Lu Ding Sheng's silent bitter smile.

  The Battle of Taiyuan was not only related to the fate of the Xiongnu and the Great Han, but also involved countless throbbing hearts.

  Mrs. Fang looked up at the sky, the relationship between the Fang and Cheng families was complicated, if it weren't for the Cheng family's treachery, Fang Ling Tian would not have died in the capital, and Fang Ling De would not have died on the battlefield either.

  Their feud with the Cheng family has become so great that they cannot live under the same sky.

  But in this world, there are no eternal friends and no eternal enemies.

  The Cheng family of today is indeed the number one family in the Han Dynasty.

  Since controlling the puppet emperor Liu Zhengting, the Cheng family has taken over the 100,000 elite soldiers of the 50,000 Huanglong Army and the 50,000 Canglang Army.

  Then Zhang Jinzhong led the 800,000 brave warriors of the Tianying Army to rush overnight, plus Cheng's tens of thousands of private soldiers who had been trained for decades.

  Nearly 300,000 strong troops are amassed in Taiyuan, waiting for the arrival of the Xiongnu.

  Facing the great Han general Wei Qing, the Xiongnu people did not dare to be slightly careless.

  The Golden Wolf Army of 100,000 poured out. In order to besiege the Northern Great Camp, they had already lost nearly 20,000 people, but after drafting some elite soldiers from various places and supplementing some reserve personnel, they finally gathered again to a total of 100,000.

  Apart from this, tens of thousands of troops from four vassal tribes and the 50,000 Flying Horse Army are also marching towards Taiyuan.

  Although the Xiongnu had a national army of as many as 300,000, using them to defend their own homeland and occupied territories, nearly 150,000 combatants were already the limit that Hami could mobilize.

  The two families stationed their troops in Taiyuan, waiting for everything to be ready before launching a world-attention-grabbing war.

  This war has a profound impact on the future situation of the entire continent.

  Even looking back on history, there are few battles that can be compared with this one.

  The two nations' most direct and final passionate collision occurred.

  If the Cheng family loses, the Xiongnu can take advantage of the situation and march south with great momentum, and the south will have no one to resist.

  This ending is probably one that no Chinese person would want to see.

  So they had no choice but to pray for Cheng's victory.

  However, the Cheng family, a family that had many grievances with all the major families, whenever they thought of their ultimate victory, Old Lady Fang's heart would involuntarily feel a wave of annoyance.

  The wolf-like ambition of the Cheng family, these people are well aware of each other's intentions. In a chaotic world, everything is determined by strength. If the Cheng family really possesses the kind of power to dominate the world, what choice would they make to preserve their family?

  Even if it were Dìxiàng Míng and Dìxiàng Zhì, the two proud sons of heaven who had experienced the pain of losing their father, they deeply understood this principle.

  What's your surname?

  Xiongnu?

  "Alas..." A deep sigh echoed through the room as Old Lady Fang's helpless voice trailed off: "Let things drift with the tide, then..."

  （）