“Wait… let me think about it!” The Crown Prince frowned tightly, feeling extremely troubled.

She understood clearly in her heart that although she was a descendant of the Bai family, granddaughter of Duke Zhenguo Bai Weiting, and had even personally beheaded enemy generals, the Crown Prince and the various generals still felt that no matter how capable she was, in past military campaigns she had only followed her elders’ arrangements.

Therefore, for this first battle, the Crown Prince might not necessarily listen to her.

The reason she kept her concerns and plans about the Western Liang army hidden in her heart, waiting until Wanping to ask the Crown Prince to summon the accompanying generals for discussion, had several purposes…

First, it was to let the Crown Prince and the generals see her capabilities, paving the way for her future voice in military matters!

Second, it was not to give the Crown Prince and generals more time to plan, so that when tomorrow’s great battle suddenly arrived, she could win a chance to meet with the remaining Bai family army.

Third, it was for the possible Tiger Eagle Battalion of the Bai family army in Wanping.

The Bai family army’s Tiger Eagle Battalion was cavalry that also excelled at mountain ambush warfare. They could move along cliff faces with ropes, swooping down like flying eagles, extremely brave and fierce, hence called the Tiger Eagle Battalion.

She knew the Tiger Eagle Battalion still existed because in her previous life, when she served Prince Liang, she heard that Liu Huanzhang had two special forces called “Heaven-Sent Miracle Troops.” Although she had never seen them, she firmly believed those two special battalions were the predecessors of the Tiger Eagle Battalion.

The Tiger Eagle Battalion was established by Bai Qingyan’s fifth uncle, Bai Qijing, and was directly under Bai Qijing, who was skilled in mountain warfare. In the military records, the grandfather had sent the fifth uncle Bai Qijing, to lead twenty thousand troops to bypass Feng County and raid the Western Liang military camp. Given the fifth uncle’s cautious personality, he would never have taken the entire Tiger Eagle Battalion away.

If the Tiger Eagle Battalion remained, Bai Qingyan guessed they were either in Weng City or here in Wanping, where she currently was.

She understood deeply that for this Nan Jiang expedition, the Crown Prince wanted to use her but also guard against her. Unless necessary, he would certainly not let her command the Bai family army.

But if tonight the Crown Prince didn’t use her strategy, when tomorrow’s battle reports from Weng City arrived and the Crown Prince discovered there was indeed an ambush at Nine Curved Peak mountain road…

At that time, with the battle situation drastically changed, if the Crown Prince failed to seize the initiative and Weng City’s battle situation became urgent, the Crown Prince would either have to use her or lose Weng City.

But the Crown Prince simply couldn’t afford to lose!

She calmly lowered her head and feigned persuasion: “Your Highness, opportunity knocks but once! Please make a swift decision!”

“After a tiring day, everyone should go rest first! Let me think about it!” the Crown Prince said.

Coming out of the prefectural office, she saw that Wanping city was already shrouded in cold moonlight. Apart from two large lanterns lit in front of the prefectural office entrance, only two or three scattered merchants’ lights were still burning.

“Elder sister!” Bai Jinzhi caught up with her. “Is it settled? Will the Crown Prince send troops?!”

Bai Qingyan shook her head.

“The Crown Prince invited his elder sister precisely to offer counsel and strategy. Why won’t he listen to his elder sister?!” Bai Jinzhi looked anxious. “Our Bai family army’s last ten thousand soldiers in Weng City absolutely cannot have any more incidents! Since my elder sister guesses the Tiger Eagle Battalion might be in Wanping, why don’t we…”

“Young Master Bai!” Zhang Duanrui chased after them and bowed to Bai Qingyan. Bai Jinzhi swallowed her unfinished words and stepped aside to stand with Xiao Ruohai.

Zhang Duanrui said, “Tonight, His Highness probably won’t arrange troop deployments according to Young Master Bai’s words. However… I’ll go persuade him again in a while. But if we still miss this good opportunity, I wonder if Young Master Bai has any other countermeasures?”

After returning the bow and straightening up, Bai Qingyan said, “If General Zhang could truthfully tell Yan where the Bai family army’s Tiger Eagle Battalion is, Yan might still have countermeasures.”

Hearing the three words “Tiger Eagle Battalion,” Bai Jinzhi’s eyes lit up as she looked toward Zhang Duanrui, her heart surging with excitement.

Zhang Duanrui’s lips moved hesitantly.

Before leaving, Zhang Duanrui and the Crown Prince had been summoned before His Majesty, who repeatedly instructed… they could allow Bai Qingyan to offer strategies, but absolutely could not let Bai Qingyan see the Bai family army again.

Currently, the Tiger Eagle Battalion has suffered heavy losses, with fewer than two hundred people remaining.

The Tiger Eagle Battalion’s training methods had always been controlled by Bai Weiting’s fifth son, Bai Qijing. Others didn’t know the methods. His Majesty intended to preserve the Tiger Eagle Battalion at all costs and discover their training methods, so these people could train another batch of elite soldiers as brave as tigers and eagles for the Great Jin in the future.

Looking at Bai Qingyan’s calm and steady gaze, Zhang Duanrui felt guilty and hesitated for a long time before finally shaking his head: “I don’t know.”

Even if Zhang Duanrui wouldn’t tell her, Bai Qingyan wasn’t entirely without means to find out.

When the Bai family established the Bai family army, they had their own set of secret communication methods never taught to outsiders.

She bowed to Zhang Duanrui: “If that’s the case, please, General Zhang, do try to persuade His Highness the Crown Prince!”

Bai Jinzhi had been holding back a bellyful of words. She endured until returning to their room with Bai Qingyan and closing the door before speaking: “Elder sister, try using the Bai family army’s bone whistle communication! Perhaps we can find the Tiger Eagle Battalion!”

In the Bai family army camps, each battalion had ten people equipped with bone whistles for transmitting secret orders.

This method was to prevent nearby enemy forces on the battlefield from discovering changes in their deployments. Only bone whistle signal officers could understand the meaning—it was a more secretive method than flag signals. But bone whistles could only be used in critical moments.

“You go make contact, no need to meet face to face.” Bai Qingyan’s heart secretly hoped for tomorrow’s arrival as she opened the wooden chest containing her silver armor. “Just verify whether the Tiger Eagle Battalion is in Wanping. Be extremely careful.”

“Understood!” Bai Jinzhi left the room in high excitement.

With a whistle in her mouth, Bai Jinzhi carried a lamp and seemingly wandered carelessly through Wanping city in the bright moonlight, occasionally blowing a few notes, looking like a completely idle child.

The tavern owner, putting up door boards to close for the night, saw Bai Jinzhi, a little girl, wandering the streets and called out: “Little girl, go home quickly! Wanping city isn’t like usual days. Don’t wander the streets—be careful of being kidnapped!”

Bai Jinzhi’s eyes turned, and wanting to gather information from the merchant, she obediently bowed to him.

Soon after, Bai Jinzhi bought a pot of wine from the tavern owner. Walking out of the tavern, she took a sip and stuck out her tongue from the burning sensation.

She slung the wine pot over her shoulder and walked back leisurely, blowing her whistle.

While walking, Bai Jinzhi suddenly heard an extremely brief whistle response. Her throat tightened, but her steps didn’t stop as she blew again: “Is Tiger Eagle Battalion here?”

The whistle replied: “Yes!”

Bai Jinzhi asked again: “How many remain?”

The whistle replied: “One hundred sixty-three people.”

Bai Jinzhi’s eyes brightened as she blew “await orders.” The whistle sounds then became random as they faded with Bai Jinzhi’s departure.

In high spirits, Bai Jinzhi was returning when she happened to encounter Xiao Rongyan coming back from playing chess with the Crown Prince at the prefect’s residence.

Seeing the elegant and refined Xiao Rongyan getting off his carriage, Bai Jinzhi was in good spirits and called out after removing the bone whistle from her lips: “Master Xiao!”

Xiao Rongyan turned his head to look at Bai Jinzhi running toward him, his eyes and brows full of gentle smiles.

Bai Jinzhi ran up to Xiao Rongyan and asked with a smile: “Master Xiao, are you returning from the Crown Prince’s place?”

“Indeed!” As Xiao Rongyan spoke, he turned and extended his hand toward his guard.

The guard immediately placed a black lacquered food box in Xiao Rongyan’s hands. He took the food box and personally handed it to Bai Jinzhi: “These are pastries bestowed by the Crown Prince—rather sweet… You should like them!”