Chapter 19: Murder and Usurpation

  "Damn it, come and die for me."

  Long before the two hundred elite soldiers broke into the camp, Luo Zheng had already drawn his sword and charged forward.

  "Lu Zhēn xiǎo ér, mǒu ráo bù liǎo nǐ."

  Translation: "Luzhen is going to catch you, and there's no way you can escape punishment."

  Hu Mao let out a loud roar, hastily drawing his sword to block the attack, but his feet quickly dodged to the side. In his heart, he was filled with regret, his intestines turning green. Neither he nor Niu Jin had expected Luo Zheng to have malicious intentions, so they hadn't brought many people along.

  If I had known earlier that Luo Zheng had the intention of killing both of them, I would never have come to Luo Zheng's camp.

  Want to run?

  Luo Zheng laughed coldly and chased after him in one swift motion. He raised his long sword, which was always by his side, and with one slash of his knife, he beheaded Hu Mao.

  Next to the sound of the wind, but it was Niu Jin who couldn't rush out and came over with a fierce sword.

  Luo Zheng dodged and hid, while several bodyguards rushed over and attacked Niu Jin.

  Niú Jīn was drinking and scolding at the same time, while fighting with all his might.

  Two men led a few personal soldiers and small schools into the account, and also fought with Luo Zheng's fine soldiers, killing each other in confusion.

  Luo Zheng swung his sword and rushed up, joining forces with several bodyguards to surround and kill Niu Jin. In less than ten breaths, they beheaded Niu Jin.

  "General Niu Jin is dead."

  "General Hu Mo is dead."

  Hu Mao and Niu Jin led their troops in a fierce battle cry, fighting bravely without fear of death.

  As for the more than ten officers and men brought by the two of them, except for the two who were still fighting desperately, the rest had stopped their hands and stood aside.

  Luo Zheng's eyes swept coldly, and he said sternly: "Kill without mercy."

  Two hundred elite soldiers rushed up, knives fell together, and the remaining die-hard rebels were chopped into minced meat.

  At this time, the slaughter outside the account also entered its final stage.

  Hu Mao and Niu Jin each brought 50 personal soldiers to the camp, but under Luo Zheng's cavalry siege, they either died or surrendered. No one expected that Luo Zheng would lure Hu Mao and Niu Jin into the camp and kill them all off.

  In the past, the two would never sell Luo Zheng's account.

  However, the two of them had just been in a fierce battle today. Firstly, they both wanted to win Luo Zheng's support as an ally. Secondly, the two men had already completely torn their faces apart and did not dare to enter each other's camp again, fearing for their lives.

  If you want to discuss things, you can only come to Luo Zheng's neutral faction's big camp.

  Taking advantage of this, Luo Zhengcai laid an ambush outside the account and eliminated the two at once.

  Since he witnessed the two leading the army in a fierce battle with his own eyes, he had already made up his mind to kill them.

  If we let these two fools continue to make trouble, not only will they force the Allied Forces of the East to retreat and complete Dong Zhuo's mission, but this Western Liang cavalry will also be doomed to perish sooner or later. It is really unavoidable to kill them, it must be killed.

  In a military tent next door.

  "Please take your seats."

  Luo Zheng waved his hand and sat down in the main seat first.

  Hu Mao and Niu Jin had more than a dozen small school students under them. You looked at me with your eyes, and none of you dared to sit down.

  Surrounded by two hundred menacing Western Liang soldiers, who were staring at them with sinister intent, how could anyone feel at ease?

  Luo Zheng's eyebrows furrowed and he said in a deep voice: "Sit down."

  More than ten young teachers were startled and hastily sat down, each with a solemn expression.

  Luo Zheng's expression on his face finally eased, and he said in a deep voice: "General Hu Zhen was killed in battle, leaving our army without a leader. However, Hu Mao and Niu Jin, those two fools, fought each other for power and profit, disregarding the overall situation of our army. I had no choice but to execute them to complete the task entrusted by my lord, and unify the command of our army."

  More than ten young students didn't respond, all of them listened attentively with rapt attention.

  Luo Zheng continued: "Hu Mao and Niu Jin are incompetent, this time they led the army to fight with fire, even if I don't kill them, when we return to Luoyang later, our lord will not spare them either. You all have a share in this, do you know what crime is?"

  As soon as the words fell, a small school stood up and said loudly: "General Luo also doesn't need to say these useless things, brothers are not afraid of being big. To be honest, I am also very ashamed of Hu Mao and Niu Jin's approach, so I just didn't take action. As a general in charge of the army, he does not consider the overall situation, but instead puts his own private interests first and ignores the prime minister's plan, even if he dies, there is nothing to say."

  Another man stood up and said, "That's right, I think so too. Hu Mao and Niu Jin are dead, and to be honest, I've been unhappy with those two incompetent guys riding on our heads for a long time. General Luo is good at commanding troops, and although the brothers don't say it out loud, they all admire you in their hearts and are willing to follow you into battle."

  The rest of the small schools also followed suit, and they all thought the same way as the two.

  Hu Mao and Niu Jin are mediocre in ability, but they can hold high positions because of their connections through marriage.

  These military commanders are not fools, although they don't say it out loud, they all understand very well in their hearts.

  Luo Zhen designed to capture two major generals under Sun Jian's command at the Battle of Xingshi, and since this expedition began, he has repeatedly come up with ingenious strategies. With a swift and decisive momentum, he attacked and captured Nanyang, and designed a surprise attack on Wan City. The soldiers did not know, but these commanders all knew in their hearts.

  For these grassroots officers, only a general who can lead them to victory can gain their recognition.

  Otherwise, even if you are an emperor, if you can't lead the army to victory in battle, these soldiers who risk their lives will not sell your account.

  Since Hu Mao and Niu Jin are already dead, following Luo Zheng is also a good choice. At least Luo Zheng has both bravery and strategy, which is much better than those two fools Hu Mao and Niu Jin. Under his command, there's also something to look forward to.

  Brothers take up their heads and come out to be soldiers, isn't it for making achievements and establishing merits.

  Following Hu Mao and Niu Jin, those two useless people, there's no hope of achieving anything.

  These troops didn't fight desperately today, and as that small school said, they were deeply resentful of Hu Mao and Niu Jin's method of self-destruction in the military struggle. However, since military orders are like mountains, they didn't dare to disobey, so they had no choice but to follow orders.

  "Good, well said."

  "Hey, what are your names?" Luo Zheng asked loudly.

  "Little Li Meng."

  The little schoolmaster spoke up loudly.

  "The Dwarf King's Method."

  The second speaker also straightened his waist.

  "Good, very good, Wang Fang, you dare to call yourself 'old master' in front of General Ben, your guts are not small."

  "Hehe!"

  Wang Fang scratched his head and let out a dry laugh.

  The crowd of officers and men burst out laughing together, and the tense atmosphere was suddenly relaxed.

  "However, General likes you being a real man. You guys, although are some ill-mannered rough men, but are more lovable than those scholars who speak of benevolence and morality but have evil intentions. General doesn't have many rules, in the future, as long as you don't do rebellious things, don't violate General's military discipline, everything else is fine, even if you call yourself 'old master' in front of General."

  "Hahaha!"

  More than ten officers immediately burst out laughing and relaxed a lot more.

  At this moment, these generals immediately and thoroughly identified with Luo Zheng.

  Even if some small schools still retained their original ideas, they have all let go of their worries.

  At least for now, General Luo seems like a decent person.

  In addition, Luo Zheng is quite capable of commanding troops. This person is also not bad, and it should be comfortable to lead soldiers under his command!

  Luo Zheng waved his hand, "Alright, you quickly go and prepare the troops, tell all the soldiers that Niu Jin and Hu Mao are going to kill each other, I tried to persuade them but they wouldn't listen, in the end they both died."

  "Roger."

  The officers all hastened to obey in unison, and went out of the tent with spirit.

  The low-ranking officers who were in charge of the troops had stabilized, and the crisis was finally over.

  Luo Zheng finally breathed a sigh of relief, this time killing Hu Mao and Niu Jin was indeed taking an extremely great risk.

  If these low-ranking officers and soldiers cannot be appeased, the 8,000-strong Western Liang Iron Cavalry may face a mutiny.

  It's okay, the process is still relatively smooth and hasn't deviated from what I can control.

  After obtaining the support of these low-level officers, Hu Zhong, Hu Mao and Niu Jin's troops were easily reorganized. After clearing away the three men's loyal followers, Luo Zheng finally got a grip on this cavalry force.

  After checking the troops in each department, the casualties were reported.

  After a series of fierce battles, Hu Mao and Niu Jin led their troops to another bloody fight. When they set out, there were 8,000 cavalrymen, but the number of casualties had already reached 6,400. Among them, Hu Mao and Niu Jin suffered the heaviest losses, with over 400 men killed or wounded.

  Luo Zheng's eyebrows furrowed as soon as he received the report.

  This is still a real tough battle hasn't been fought yet, and more than 600 people have been injured or killed, this is unbearable.

  If waiting for the withdrawal of the Eastern Warlords, the situation will be even more critical at that time. This Western Liang cavalry must face the siege and pursuit of the Eastern Warlords, and it is necessary to carefully consider how to return to Luoyang smoothly, and there is no room for error.

  Luo Zheng furrowed his brow and pondered for a moment before shouting towards the outside of the tent: "Enter!"

  "What does the general have to say?"

  Chen Tong entered at the sound of his name and stood with his hands clasped together awaiting orders.

  Luo Zhengdao said: "Immediately gather all military officers and come to the main tent for discussion."

  "Roger."

  Chen Tong retreated at the sound and quickly passed on the order.