Chapter 159 "This East Wind Seems Strong Enough"

"This east wind seems strong enough; otherwise, it couldn't move Xu Wenzu."

The blind man said while cracking sunflower seeds.

Clearly, this east wind wasn't just prepared for Zheng Fan; Xu Wenzu had also prepared himself.

Zheng Fan held his teacup with both hands, warming them, and nodded.

Xu Wenzu was a man of both sensibility and ruthlessness. Now that he stood with the Zhenbei (North Suppression) Marquis's manor and the Yan Emperor, he no longer had his previous hesitation.

Such a person was truly terrifying when wholeheartedly doing something or climbing the ladder of power. He was a highly capable bureaucrat.

He could see further, thus anticipating the right position to leverage himself, preparing in advance.

"But I still don't understand, what is this east wind?" Zheng Fan asked.

Liang Cheng, sitting to the side, remained silent.

"This is actually normal, my lord. Xu Wenzu handles a massive amount of supplies every day. Although these supplies were seized by the imperial court after the destruction of the aristocratic families, they can't just be sent to Yinlang (Silver Wave) County and the front line without any consideration, regardless of whether they're needed or not.

There must be a focus. Though it's not very obvious, as long as you grasp these subtle focal points, you can discern the Yan Emperor's true intentions.

This is an information gap. Without equal access to information, Xu Wenzu can see it, but we can't. That's normal."

Liang Cheng said:

"You've said so much, but it amounts to nothing."

"Just trying to comfort you. However, one thing is certain: it should be soon, possibly within this period, that the true southward advance of Yan will begin."

"The reason?" Liang Cheng asked.

"First, the Zhenbei Army's annihilation of the aristocratic families should be complete. The remaining aftermath can be handled by the Yan capital's Imperial Guards or the Great Prince's county troops.

Neither the Zhenbei Marquis nor the Yan Emperor would allow this blade, sharpened for a hundred years in the desert, to only be used against their own people. That would be a desecration of this blade."

"Are you saying, the Zhenbei Army is about to move south?"

"It should be in the coming days."

"What else?" Zheng Fan asked.

"Also, if we don't fight, winter will pass. I've researched the geographical conditions from the Qian capital to the Three Borders based on the information I have.

The Qian Kingdom's Three Borders are the main line of defense against Yan. Behind the Three Borders are Chujun, Xishan (West Mountain) Jun, and Beihe (North River) Jun. Beyond that is the Qian Kingdom's capital region, Bianzhou Jun, which is like our Yan Kingdom's Tiancheng (Heavenly Success) Jun. The capital of Bianzhou Jun is the Qian Kingdom's capital.

After breaking through the Three Borders, the subsequent counties are mainly paddy fields. This was a forced conversion to paddy fields many years ago to defend against the Yan Kingdom's iron cavalry.

At the border between Bianzhou Jun and Beihe Jun, the Qian people forcibly diverted the Qian River many years ago, risking breaches that would flood hundreds of miles, just to create the Bian River.

These are all preparations made to defend against the Yan's southward advance.

Now it's winter, and everything has turned into frozen earth. Even the Bian River is frozen.

If we don't use our troops during this season, when spring arrives and the ice and snow melt, the preparations made by the Qian people to defend against the Yan cavalry will all be useful."

After a pause,

The blind man continued:

"Unless, the Yan Emperor is willing to wait another year, but that's clearly impossible. Oh, right, there's one more thing. Once the war starts, although I don't know what war plan the Yan Emperor and his advisors intend to execute, assuming the war goes smoothly, the Great Yan cavalry can sweep across most of the Qian Kingdom's northern territory from the Qian capital to the Three Borders, causing the spring planting to be abandoned in half of the Qian territory.

Qian has a large population. If spring planting is abandoned, the Qian people will face a food shortage, greatly weakening the Qian Kingdom's war potential.

Furthermore, despite Qian's wealth, the lives of the Qian people may not be as good as those of our Yan people. This can be seen from the Qian people who 'smuggled' themselves north to Yan some time ago.

In recent years, peasant uprisings have occurred frequently within Qian. If a food shortage is added, it will truly be a case of 'officials forcing the people to rebel.'"

Zheng Fan took a sip of hot tea,

And said:

"It's not scary when barbarians know martial arts; it's scary when barbarians have culture."

Here, the barbarian refers not to the barbarians, but the Qian people's derogatory term for the Yan people.

Not only can you not defeat the barbarians, but these barbarians also want to play mind games and politics with you.

Zheng Fan put down his teacup and added:

"But, blind man, all your assumptions are based on the premise that the Yan Kingdom's cavalry will have a smooth war."

"Whether the Yan Emperor knows how to fight a war, I don't know, because many people who are good at playing politics don't actually know how to fight wars. After all, a person's energy is limited.

But the Zhenbei Marquis and the Jingnan (South Pacification) Marquis have the Yan Emperor's complete trust. With these two marquises responsible for formulating the war plan, I believe there will be a great effect.

If everyone specializes in their own field, nothing in this world is difficult.

I admit that there are indeed some generals in Qian who know how to fight wars, but they definitely don't have the same freedom as we do in Yan."

Zheng Fan nodded, stretched, and said:

"I won't take the fifteen hundred barbarian soldiers out this time. Help me focus on their ideological education."

The blind man nodded, indicating that he understood.

"Sigh, people are definitely going to die tomorrow," Zheng Fan said with some pain.

Xu Wenzu had already made it clear that Cui Liu (Green Willow) Fort would have to put forth all its strength tomorrow.

"You can't catch a wolf without putting in some effort. Besides, my lord, there's no such thing as only taking benefits without doing anything in this world."

"I understand that principle. By the way, still no news of San'er?"

"No."

"Release the barbarian riders further out, search for him. San'er can't die so easily."

"As you command."

"Let the brothers have a good time tonight."

"Understood."

The blind man and Liang Cheng exchanged glances, both clearly seeing their lord's low mood.

But, this is war.

"I'm tired."

"Your subordinate takes his leave."

"Your subordinate takes his leave."

The blind man and Liang Cheng left. Soon, Si Niang (Fourth Sister) opened the door and came in, pulling the bolt behind her.

"My lord, a bath?"

"What time is it?" Zheng Fan smiled.

"There's a war tomorrow. My lord must rest early to conserve energy for tomorrow."

"Too early, I can't sleep yet."

"Hmm, you'll be able to sleep after coming out once."

"Heh."

"My lord, shall I go heat the water?"

"Alright, I'm indeed a little tired, let's wash up and sleep early."

"What color would my lord like to choose today?"

"Flesh color."

…………

"Hey, have you heard? That Yan general named Zheng Fan was killed by our Young General!"

"Are you talking about that Yan dog Zheng Fan who attacked Mianzhou City twice?"

"Of course, it's him."

"Really killed?"

"Killed! His head has already been brought back by our Young General. Our Young General led our Great Qian cavalry straight into Yan, taking four Yan military outposts and capturing and killing the Yan dog Zheng Fan."

"Wow, that's amazing."

"Hey, look, look, before our Western Army went north, the border troops of the Three Borders were being beaten down by the Yan, almost humiliated by the Yan riding on their necks. Now that our Western Army has arrived, haven't we directly pushed them back?

Damn it, everyone keeps saying that the Yan cavalry is the best in the world, but I don't think so."

"That's right, that's right."

Two cooks were washing vegetables by the well, unaware that a pair of ears were eavesdropping on their conversation from below.

What, Master is dead?

Xue San was first shocked!

Then, he subconsciously touched his body. Hmm, I haven't disappeared.

Moreover, I don't seem to have died suddenly!

Huh?

Hahahaha!

So, I don't have to die if Master dies!

After shock and joy,

Xue San quietly felt around again and found that his strength hadn't changed at all.

Bah, you really can't trust what that iron-headed Fan Li says.

Master is dead, and the restrictions on us haven't disappeared.

After a surge of intense emotions, Xue San fell silent again.

Sigh,

Master is dead.

Suddenly, there was a faint sadness in his heart.

At the same time, looking at the Fu King's head, wrapped in cloth and already pickled,

He suddenly felt that it wasn't so cute anymore.

His own master also had his head cut off.

Xue San suddenly felt a little lost in life. On the one hand, he felt free, which was what he had always dreamed of, but that was followed by emptiness.

He didn't seem to have really thought seriously about what to do after freedom?

If Master is dead, wouldn't the blind man and Si Niang be gone too?

A feeling of loneliness welled up in his heart.

Xue San decided not to wait any longer. In fact, he had tried to get out these past few days, but Mianzhou City seemed to be occupied by some big shot, and that big shot's subordinates had sealed the city tightly.

Xue San had tried to get out several times, but had to retreat back into the well.

As an assassin, ensuring a sure kill was his instinct.

But after learning of Zheng Fan's death, Xue San couldn't help but feel a little self-destructive.

So, after the two guys outside had washed the vegetables and left, Xue San came out of the well again.

In his hand, he still held the Fu King's head.

Since Master is already dead, in theory, this head is meaningless.

But there was no other way. These days at the bottom of the well, Xue San could only chat with the Fu King's head. At this moment, the Fu King was not a skull in his eyes, but a cute rag doll that had accompanied him for a long time.

This courtyard had become a "cooking class", so after the bacon was finished, Xue San wasn't short of food. But after leaving this cooking class, the defense outside suddenly became strict, especially near the city wall. Not to mention himself, even a bird couldn't fly over it.

"Gurgle gurgle gurgle..."

The sound of wheels came from the side of the wall.

Xue San immediately leaned against the wall. When he stuck his head out, he found that it was actually a night soil cart.

The Western Army had strict military discipline, which was reflected in all aspects, including hygiene. Wherever they needed to be stationed for a long time, the generals would make extremely strict regulations on hygiene within the military camp. This was the experience summed up from many years of war history, because many times, it might not be the enemy that defeated an army, but plague and infectious diseases.

The auxiliary soldiers and laborers next to the night soil cart had gone to the house next door to collect wooden buckets, and the night soil cart was parked there.

Xue San sighed,

Quickly took off the golden silk soft armor he was wearing inside, and carefully wrapped the Fu King's head in it,

And then…

……

In the morning, Zheng Fan led a thousand Cui Liu Fort cavalry out of the fort. Because he wanted to appease and "educate" the newly arrived fifteen hundred barbarian soldiers, the original barbarian soldiers in the fort had to stay behind to help recall the bitterness and think about the sweetness.

Most of these thousand riders were still convicts. Smiles radiated from their faces, because the merit record from Nanwang City had come down yesterday, and the messengers should be on their way. Their families would soon gain freedom because of their military achievements.

They had once been lofty aristocratic family members, but had been knocked off their pedestal. Fortunately, they could start over.

However, Zheng Fan was not in a good mood, because he knew that this time, Xu Wenzu had gathered the elite of six grand commanding officers, including Xu Wenzu himself, to fight a great battle that had never happened since the start of the Yan-Qian border war.

And he, as Xu Wenzu's direct subordinate, would definitely set an example. What kind of example?

To be the first to charge into battle, to be the first to scale the city walls,

To contribute the most,

And to have the most people die!

Zheng Fan could be ruthless to others without hesitation, but the Zheng garrison still had a bit of sentimentality for his own soldiers.

But as the blind man said, how can you not have people die in war?

The team arrived on time at the agreed meeting point. Here, the six grand commanding officers had gathered nearly ten thousand riders!

Of course, this was not all their forces, because they had to leave people behind to defend their homes.

But those who had been pulled out this time were definitely the elite under each grand commanding officer.

Even so, the Cui Liu Fort cavalry was still the most eye-catching among the nearly ten thousand riders.

Whether it was the warhorses or the armor and weapons, they were all luxurious.

They didn't know that these things didn't all come from Xu Wenzu's back door, but from the Sixth Prince's investment. Therefore, many people looked at the Cui Liu Fort army with envy.

It's common for talented people to be envied, and Zheng Fan was quite used to it. He wasn't interested in greeting or trying to get close to these colleagues.

The Zheng garrison, who was in a bad mood, just silently sat on his horse, wearing his armor.

This caused all the thousand Cui Liu Fort cavalry behind him to adopt the same posture, sitting straight on their horses, with no one slumping or leaning.

This made the cavalry under the other grand commanding officers, who had arrived early and were already resting on the ground, feel a little uncomfortable. All soldiers have the tradition of competing for honor, not just for food.

They had been silently compared, and who could stand that?

Even if they could stand it, when their boss came out with the other big shots and saw this clear comparison, could their boss stand it?

So, the various military leaders, captains, and garrisons began to scold their own soldiers, telling everyone to put on a show.

Zheng Fan ignored the chaotic complaints around him and silently looked ahead.

"My lord, we received news that Sanyue (March) Fort was completely emptied in the latter half of last night, and they should have gone to investigate the situation."

Zheng Fan nodded and said to Liang Cheng:

"They should be planning to attack a fort."

Sanyue Fort, like Zheng Fan's Cui Liu Fort, belonged to Xu Wenzu's jurisdiction. Clearly, the Sanyue Fort garrison must have been ordered by Xu Wenzu to investigate the battlefield situation.

In recent months, the military leaders along the Yinlang County line of the Yan Kingdom had been fighting fiercely with the Qian Kingdom's forts under the command of the Jingnan Marquis, occasionally capturing one or two forts, or losing a few teeth themselves.

But because there had never been unified large-scale cooperation, they had not been able to truly break through the situation.

Clearly, Xu Wenzu planned to gather his forces and personally open a large gap in the Qian Kingdom's fort system under his own command!

Small forts were fine. When attacking, they could suppress the fort with arrows from the outside, then charge up. Inside, there were only dozens of Qian soldiers. Losing some subordinates would be enough to take it down.

But large forts had hundreds or even thousands of defenders inside. If you wanted to carve out a large gap, you couldn't leave these large forts alone.

Thinking that the cavalry under his command might have to become infantry and lead the charge to attack the city later,

The Zheng garrison felt a burning hatred in his heart.

But the situation was stronger than him, and he had no choice.

Yesterday, his performance in front of Xu Wenzu should have fooled him, and there was also news that his deputy general position would be coming down in a few days.

But official positions were all empty. In Great Yan, the most important thing was still the soldiers under your command.

If the aristocratic family soldiers were all killed, he would have to rely on barbarian soldiers to conquer the world again.

This would be a big constraint on his future development. The high quality of aristocratic family soldiers was not only reflected on the battlefield.

Xu Wenzu was not wearing armor, but a blue official robe, with a sword at his waist. Behind him, five grand commanding officers were all wearing armor, walking with vigorous steps.

After they came out,

All the Yan soldiers around shouted:

"Greetings, my lord!"

Those in armor didn't have to kneel.

But without organization and acting on their own initiative,

The thousand riders of Cui Liu Fort were the most orderly, giving a completely different feeling.

This was what Cui Liu Fort required. The stated purpose was that only a unified military discipline and pace could create a true iron army, but in reality, it was to cater to the bragging pleasure of their lord.

Xu Wenzu's eyes fell on Zheng Fan and the cavalry behind him. Clearly, he was very satisfied with Zheng Fan's attitude.

Today's battle was not only to regain face for the losses caused by the Qian cavalry's northward advance the night before, but more importantly, to establish Xu Wenzu's position as a powerful regional official in the Yinlang County line!

Looking at the excited Xu Wenzu, Zheng Fan felt a little disgusted.

That's right, you used to call him Fatty Xu when he was doing good things for you and opening back doors for you;

Now that he wants you to put forth all your strength and die for him, he becomes Fatty Pig Xu.

People are all like this.

What Zheng Fan was most dissatisfied with was that since they had decided to truly take down these forts, why didn't they prepare earlier?

If Zheng Fan were to organize this, he would rather spend an extra half month to build enough siege ladders and catapults, which would kill fewer people.

But clearly, bureaucrats are just bureaucrats sometimes, even if they love their country. The way they think about problems is really different from his own.

Fatty Pig Xu drew his sword,

Raised it in the air,

And shouted:

"Soldiers, revenge and expansion are today!"

First, the five grand commanding officers behind Xu Wenzu drew their sabers,

Then, all the soldiers present raised their weapons and shouted:

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

"Roar!"

Just then,

A group of riders returned from outside, led by the Sanyue Fort garrison commander himself.

Xu Wenzu wore a cordial smile. When the Sanyue Fort garrison commander Qiu Fangdao stopped and dismounted in front of him, he took the initiative to help him up and said:

"Fangdao, you've worked hard."

The Sanyue Fort garrison commander Qiu Fangdao's expression was a little embarrassed.

Xu Wenzu noticed and

asked:

"What results did you find?"

Xu Wenzu had selected three breach positions. Last night, he ordered Qiu Fangdao to lead his troops to investigate the situation, because Sanyue Fort was also his direct subordinate. At the same time, Sanyue Fort was located at the southernmost end of Yinlang County.

Qiu Fangdao cupped his fist and replied:

"Replying to your lord, the situation... the situation has changed."

Xu Wenzu was stunned.

The oath-taking ceremony had been prepared, and everyone's emotions had been aroused. And now you're telling me the situation has changed?

"What has changed? Did the Qian's Western Army move forward?"

"No, no, replying to your lord."

Qiu Fangdao bit his lip,

And said loudly:

"My lord, the Qian have abandoned all their forts and retreated thirty miles. Right now, all the large and small forts on the Qian Kingdom's border are empty!"

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

————

Congratulations to Yintian Linggan for becoming the 74th Alliance Master of *The Descent of Magic*. Thank you, Sister Nan, for the red banner.

The next chapter will be a big plot. Don't wait tonight. I'll post it after I've written it.