Chapter 1 Zhong Tianlang returned south with his army, feeling extremely pleased with himself after showing off a bit. After he left, Zheng Fan had Liang Cheng lead five hundred cavalry to put on a show of pursuit.

Liang Cheng knew what to do and didn't charge recklessly, because he also had to guard against that silver-armored general launching a counterattack. Basically, the Qian cavalry were in front, and Liang Cheng was behind, providing a bit of pressure.

This scene was very similar to when Zheng Fan led his army back from Qian some time ago, with the Qian Kingdom's various cavalry escorting them.

There's a military tactic called "Don't trap a retreating army, and don't pursue desperate enemies."

It's about this situation; if the opponent is determined to go home, trying to stop them will definitely lead to a desperate fight. Whether you can intercept them is one thing, but your own losses will definitely be significant.

In reality, this so-called pursuit is just to provide an excuse for later "accountability."

Probably, only Zheng Fan could get Liang Cheng to do something like this.

When the sky turned white, Liang Cheng led his army back, the same number of people who went out came back, not a single one missing.

Zheng Fan seized the time to wash up and sleep. He had been standing on the city wall in the cold wind for most of the night and couldn't really take it anymore.

When he woke up, it was already past noon.

Zheng Fan could sleep, but others couldn't. After Liang Cheng returned in the morning, he dispatched another five hundred cavalry.

This time, naturally, they weren't going to pursue the enemy, but to clean up the battlefield.

That's right, after the Qian Kingdom finished fighting, Cui Liu Fort was responsible for cleaning up the battlefield.

When Zheng Fan finished washing up, eating, and came outside, he discovered that hundreds of stragglers were already sitting on the field, eating lunch.

These stragglers didn't look too good, and their faces were filled with panic, but each of them was probably extremely hungry, wolfing down their food.

Zheng Fan walked onto the wall and asked the blind man, who had switched from a wheelchair to crutches,

"How many people have we gathered?"

"A little over three hundred."

"Not bad."

"Yes, not bad indeed."

Last night, the Qian cavalry wiped out a small fort and four military outposts, causing many casualties to the Yan army. Of course, many also managed to escape during the camp raids.

After all, it was a night assault and battle; it was impossible to completely seal it off without any leaks.

"Since we've taken these people in, we can't possibly spit them back out."

Zheng County Commandant gave a guiding principle.

In fact, despite the numerous military achievements Zheng Fan had made on the Yan side, and not even knowing that there was still a prince's head being transported, waiting to be signed for;

Strictly speaking, Zheng County Commandant's actions were not only not free from warlordism, but even more like a warlord than a warlord.

Before real hard battles, he retreated, even diverting the disaster to others. After the battle, he quickly reacted to absorb strength.

Actually, it couldn't be blamed on Zheng Fan for being too ruthless, but this world had taught Zheng Fan this principle the first time he was a civilian laborer.

Those whose hearts weren't ruthless enough, or those who still had innocence in their hearts, would have grass growing tall on their graves long ago.

Zheng Fan had also wondered whether he could stand on the cusp of a storm for a so-called greater good, shouting "Fight to the death and never retreat."

But that was just a thought, after all, this was a completely new world, not the history he was familiar with. If it were a traditional transmigration, as a transmigrator, perhaps he would really have that feeling.

"My lord, I plan to put these stragglers in the lowest rank, and then promote them after they have made military contributions in the future."

"Yes, I agree."

Stragglers naturally have to look like stragglers. Taking you in to protect you from punishment is already good enough; don't talk about status or anything else for now.

Just then, a messenger arrived, conveying a military order, saying that Xu Wenzu was nearby, and requesting that Zheng County Commandant go to see him.

Zheng County Commandant didn't hesitate, put on his armor, and left with A Ming.

Xu Wenzu's location wasn't far from Cui Liu Fort. At this time, his fat body was sitting in the center of a military outpost, which was already in ruins.

Around Xu Wenzu were hundreds of South Hope City garrison soldiers, as well as the other five garrison commanders he had seen in the signing room yesterday.

When Zheng Fan arrived, he just stood at the back, not saying a word.

Xu Wenzu sat there like a mountain of flesh, and the suppressed emotions emanating from him could indeed be presented as official authority.

Everyone stood like that for a long time. Finally, Xu Wenzu raised his head, and a sharp glint flashed between his narrow eyes.

He spread out his hands and said:

"Everyone knows what happened. I summoned you here not to question your responsibility, because the face has already been lost. Whether we question it or not is meaningless.

This time, we were attacked by the Qian people, and they left in a grand and open manner.

I, you, you, you, all of you here,

None of you can escape,

Death is not enough to atone for your sins!"

Xu Wenzu didn't shirk any responsibility, nor did he look for any reasons. In fact, almost a day had passed, but there was still no news from the Jingnan Army camp.

The Marquis must know what happened last night, but the Marquis still didn't say a word.

This silence was very strange, yet it was often the most terrifying.

"I care a lot about my official position, and I also care a lot about my life and the foundation of my existence. I believe you all care about the same.

To say something that might be considered taboo, centuries-old aristocratic families can disappear just like that, so what is our little wealth and status?

Right now, with the national war imminent, what we, all of you, are really seeking is just this little bit of military power in our hands?

This is a national war, a national war!

Our Great Yan has waited a hundred years for this opportunity again. History is right in front of us, and we have the possibility and the opportunity to leave our names in history!

To be honest, I sent a memorial to Marquis Jingnan's camp this morning, but there wasn't a single word from the Marquis.

Yesterday, in the signing room, you and I both said that Great Yan only has the Jingnan Army and the Zhenbei Army, which is too few. We also have to create a strong army.

Great, as soon as we finished speaking, we were slapped in the face that night.

I am from the North. In the North, there's only one principle, and that is, however many people you barbarians dare to kill in our Yan territory, the Zhenbei Army will go to the desert and kill twice as many!"

Saying that,

Xu Wenzu took a deep breath,

And shouted:

"Usually, we fight among ourselves, but this time, it's not as simple as infighting. Tomorrow, each family and department, don't hide anything, bring out your most capable troops!

Gather here, reorganize the army here, and we will all kill our way to the Qian Kingdom. If the Qian people killed one of us last night, we'll slaughter two of them tomorrow.

We won't return to camp until we've killed enough!

The soldiers under my command will be the first to attack the city and the first to capture the fort!

You can take the military merits first, and I will replenish the lost equipment and troops after the war!

I just want to ask one thing,

All of you are men with balls,

Do you dare to work together tomorrow to win back this breath!"

Xu Wenzu shouted very excitedly, his face was flushed and steaming.

The five garrison commanders present knelt on one knee together,

Cupped their fists and said in a deep voice:

"This subordinate obeys!"

Everyone held equal rank, Xu Wenzu was also a garrison commander, but because of the difference in their duties, Xu Wenzu could usually hold them down, but at this moment, these five garrison commanders regarded Xu Wenzu as their superior, and they considered themselves subordinates.

It wasn't that Xu Wenzu's words just now had a particularly strong appeal,

They were all adults, and veterans who had been through the military ranks, not young people who could be stirred up by a few slogans.

The reason for this was, first, that last night's incident had caused Great Yan to lose a lot of face, actually allowing the Qian people to kill their way in and out.

Secondly, they themselves knew very well that right now, they really needed a leader to lead everyone to concentrate their strength and first fight a turnaround battle.

Since Xu Wenzu was willing to say this, it proved that he had already shown this attitude. Besides, those who could receive Xu Wenzu's order to make a special trip from their own fortresses to come here were already slightly aligned with this side in terms of emotion, and had already been initially screened.

Zheng Fan and all the other county commandants and centurions also knelt on the ground on one knee and responded in unison.

"Let's not do anything like swearing an oath of allegiance. We are the Yan army, not mountain bandits. I hope everyone hasn't forgotten that they are Yan people!

Alright, go back and prepare. Tomorrow, we will gather our troops here and set off!"

The generals left one after another.

Zheng Fan stayed behind.

Xu Wenzu signaled Zheng Fan to follow him into a tent that had collapsed in half. Outside, there were personal soldiers guarding it, so no one else could get close.

"Phew... That scared the crap out of me!"

After entering the tent, Xu Wenzu cursed and sat down on the ground.

Zheng Fan also sat down on the ground with him.

This time, Zheng Fan wasn't as natural and enthusiastic as he had been when facing Xu Wenzu before.

"This place is so close to your Cui Liu Fort, didn't you receive any news last night?"

Xu Wenzu began to ask.

Zheng Fan smiled bitterly: "Among all the border fortresses, only my Cui Liu Fort lit the beacon fire last night."

Xu Wenzu was choked.

Don't look at how many soldiers are piled up on the Great Yan border, Xu Wenzu knows the chaos in the system here.

First of all, this is the fault of the former Xiao Dahai, and even the fault of the fortress system's abandonment before that. Secondly, the court has stuffed a lot of garrison commanders over here recently. With so many troops coming, Marquis Jingnan is not responsible for sorting things out. Everyone is like a headless fly, there's no leader, it would be strange if they could be organized.

"Ah." Xu Wenzu sighed and looked at Zheng Fan with a much gentler gaze.

In fact, Zheng Fan also knew very well that, don't look at how Xu Wenzu told him in Tiger Head City that he was going to dedicate the city to the Zhenbei Marquis's mansion, Xu Wenzu was actually different from him.

Xu Wenzu was a genuine Yan person. Now, the Zhenbei Marquis was obviously standing with the Yan Emperor, preparing to go south. If he continued to preserve his strength and avoid battle in such an ugly manner, if Xu Wenzu found out, he would dare to turn his back on him.

Some of the arrangements and embellishments last night were, to put it bluntly, a performance for Xu Wenzu to see. Fatty Xu was now his biggest backer, and he was also in charge of so many supplies in South Hope City, so naturally he had to coax him well.

"Sir, last night I sent troops to pursue that Qian cavalry, but I couldn't catch up. The other side had a lot of troops, and I was afraid of being ambushed."

There was half-truth and half-false in this sentence.

Xu Wenzu nodded, indicating that he knew, but his expression was a little faint.

Obviously, Xu Wenzu had guessed something, and he deliberately conveyed this emotion to Zheng Fan.

He suspected that Zheng Fan was avoiding battle, and he was also using this method to warn Zheng Fan.

Xu Wenzu had been a civil official, and he had also been a military officer. He had also eaten sand in the north. How could he not know the ins and outs of this?

If you pursued without taking back some enemy corpses, what kind of pursuit would that be?

Zheng Fan smiled bitterly again:

"Sir, the target of that Qian cavalry was this subordinate."

Xu Wenzu was stunned, and didn't care about playing any emotional information transmission anymore. He turned his head to look at Zheng Fan and asked:

"How did you know that?"

"Last night, the main general of the Qian cavalry came outside my Cui Liu Fort, holding a head, saying that he had already killed Cui Liu Fort's County Commandant Zheng Fan, and destroyed Cui Liu Fort, and told us to wash our heads and wait for him to come and take them in the future."

"............" Xu Wenzu.

Xu Wenzu's face was flushed, and he looked like he wanted to laugh but had to hold it back.

Laughing at this time would be a complete failure, but damn it, this was really funny, hahahaha!

"This subordinate didn't see clearly whose head it was, but I think that Qian cavalry general must have mistaken the person and attacked the wrong place. Therefore, when the other party left, this subordinate's pursuit was a little too cautious, because this subordinate knew that the other party's target was this subordinate, was Cui Liu Fort.

This subordinate can be defeated, and can also lose soldiers, to say something from the bottom of my heart, if I could leave that Qian cavalry behind, even if I had to fight until Cui Liu Fort was completely wiped out, this subordinate wouldn't frown!

But when two countries are at war, what is emphasized is a contest of momentum.

This subordinate has entered Qian several times and achieved good military merits, promoting the prestige of my Great Yan. This subordinate's name is probably already on the desks of those Qian generals, and they all wish they could kill this subordinate and be done with it.

This subordinate can be defeated, but if Cui Liu Fort is gone, or if this subordinate is killed, and they really take my head.

The impact of this would be much greater than the gain or loss of just one person and one fortress."

"Ah!"

Xu Wenzu lowered his head and finally suppressed that smile. He reached out and patted Zheng Fan on the shoulder,

And said:

"That's true, you absolutely couldn't have an accident last night. If something happened to you, then this time our Yan Kingdom's face would be greatly tarnished. Most importantly, if that Qian cavalry really took your head back, the morale of the Qian people would definitely be greatly boosted.

I estimate that Qian general probably mistook Apricot Flower Village for Cui Liu Fort, because the other fortresses are all too small, and only the soldiers and horses in Apricot Flower Village are considered relatively numerous."

Zheng Fan said with some shock:

"Wouldn't that mean that the head that the Qian general was holding up with a spear last night was Vice General Deng?"

Xu Wenzu nodded and said:

"It's very likely."

Zheng Fan sighed, his face without a trace of schadenfreude, only a faint sadness.

Although there were contradictions, they were all Yan people after all, all Yan soldiers, all comrades-in-arms, alas...

This degree can't be too much, if it's too much it will be a bit fake. Fortunately, Zheng Fan's acting skills have greatly improved in this world, and Xu Wenzu is the first opponent he's been in a scene with, so he's also very skilled.

Xu Wenzu pursed his lips,

Seeing Zheng Fan's expression,

He comforted Zheng Fan and said:

"Don't think about these things anymore, the Qian people are going north, who they attack is not the same, they are all Yan soldiers, there's no such thing as attacking the wrong person. What made me slightly relieved last night was that one vice general and four county commandants all died in battle, not a single one survived."

Zheng Fan clenched his fists,

And said:

"They are all... good sons of my Great Yan!"

"Well, by the way, have someone go to my place to collect those fifteen hundred barbarian soldiers later. I've equipped them with warhorses and armor. Time is of the essence.

Several garrison commanders have lost troops this time, especially that Garrison Commander Yang. Deng Ziliang was under his command. This time, Apricot Flower Village was completely wiped out, and he suffered the greatest losses.

I'm afraid they will try to get their hands on those barbarian soldiers again. You should take them back and digest them as soon as possible.

Also, don't talk about today's events anymore. Let the Qian people say what they want, but we shouldn't say anything about it ourselves."

"This subordinate understands."

"Well, I've given you the soldiers, the warhorses, and the military equipment, and you heard it just now, I made a military pledge in front of those five garrison commanders.

Tomorrow, you have to give me your all and help me win back this face!"

"I dare not fail to serve to the death!"

"Don't die, but don't hide anything tomorrow. I know that your troops are really capable, so give it your all and show it to me.

If we can sing this scene well tomorrow, I will be able to win over these five garrison commanders."

The words were spoken to this point.

Raising soldiers for a thousand days to use them for one hour, Xu Wenzu had already made his words clear.

I'm giving you Zheng Fan soldiers and military equipment, and I'm helping you so much, but I want you to fight for me!

Just like how Sixth Master is helping Zheng Fan, he also wants Zheng Fan to rise in the army, so that in the future, he can have military assistance when competing for the throne or when saving his life.

In this world, there has never been such a thing as a free lunch.

At the same time, Xu Wenzu also wanted to use this matter to tie those five garrison commanders to his chariot, which also involved political considerations.

"Don't worry, sir, Cui Liu Fort will definitely not let you down tomorrow!"

"Well, alright, you should go back and prepare too, and I have to go back and clean up."

Zheng Fan helped Xu Wenzu up,

After Xu Wenzu stood up, he was still holding Zheng Fan's wrist,

And said meaningfully:

"Yesterday, I already reported your military merits."

"Thank you, sir."

"Don't thank me, you earned it all through your own abilities. What I want to say again is that in this life, you always have to seize something.

It's like flying a kite, you always need wind to fly it. You have the ability, and you've always been appreciated by the big shots above. This is your blessing, but don't be lazy or complacent."

Zheng Fan frowned slightly, thinking about the deep meaning in Xu Wenzu's words.

Xu Wenzu patted the back of Zheng Fan's hand again,

And said:

"This wind is about to rise, you have to seize it, if you seize it..."

"If I seize it, then what?"

Xu Wenzu reached out and lifted the tent, bent down and walked out,

He looked up at the blue sky,

And said:

"Then you'll ascend to heaven."