Chapter 23: The Ruthless Plan

  The Korean army looked into the distance in confusion. This is a battlefield, how can there be crying sounds?

  As the distance between them narrowed, the sound gradually became clear and audible. Yes, the South Korean military had not misheard. It was indeed a cry, and amidst the crying, there were also sounds of scolding and whipping.

  In the midst of the Korean army's bewilderment, a vast and distant troop finally entered their line of sight. The Korean army was enraged in an instant.

  No one can remain calm. The scene before their eyes is so bloody - thousands of Qin soldiers are pushing tens of thousands of Korean civilians towards the Wild King City, with about 10,000 Qin cavalry escorting this group of unarmed people, most of whom are old, weak, women and children.

  The wailing came from the common people, because every step they took was accompanied by the whip of the Qin army. Even if the common people's progress was slightly slower, the Qin army's fists and long spears would bring "warm greetings".

  There were several young men trying to protect the women and children behind them from being whipped by the Qin army, but this move seemed to enrage the Qin army. Two or three Qin soldiers dragged out a hot-blooded Korean youth, one of whom swung his long spear at the youth's knee, and after the youth fell to the ground, another Qin soldier took advantage of the situation and beheaded the youth with one sword. As if showing off, the Qin soldier showed the head to the crowd and threw it towards the direction of Yeouido Island.

  Even under the cruel pressure of the Qin army, the old, weak, women and children in the team could not keep up with the speed of the main force, so people kept falling down. At this time, the Qin army would often beat those who fell to the ground, if they got up in time, it was fine, but if they couldn't get up, there was only one outcome, that is, being beaten to death.

  Who can bear their own parents and relatives suffering such a disaster? So the top of the wild king's castle suddenly became a piece of scolding.

  "You tyrannical Qin dog, if you have the guts, come at me! What's the point of bullying ordinary people?"

  "Damn you, Qin dogs, you are no better than pigs and dogs. If I don't wipe all of you out, it will be hard to vent the hatred in my heart."

  "Colonel, please open the city gate! I want to take my men and slaughter these beasts!" A squad leader with a tear-stained face knelt down and begged.

  "Dad! Let me go, I want to save my dad!" A young man desperately tried to break free from the blockade, intending to go and rescue his own family.

  All kinds of voices were mixed together, and the scene on the city wall of Ye Wang Cheng began to get a little out of control.

  Many of the people in the city who were besieged by the Qin army had relatives serving as soldiers in Ye Wang. The Qin army's actions thoroughly enraged the Han military. Even those soldiers who did not have family members in Ye Wang felt a sense of sorrow and sympathy, with a heavy heart.

  For a moment, the Korean army forgot the huge gap between the enemy and us, and only thought of rescuing their relatives and friends, with some emotional people wanting to force open the city gate. The school lieutenant quickly dispatched someone to report this emergency situation to Crown Prince Yeon, while doing his best to stabilize the military's mind.

  "What? The Qin army has brought along civilians to attack the city?"

  The crown prince was shocked to hear the news. From ancient times to the present, it is rare for a general to drive away civilians and attack the city. In his memory, only the Mongols and the Later Jin had done such inhumane things. After all, this move was extremely damaging to the heavens and many generals had reservations about it. Unexpectedly, the main general of the Qin army, Hu Yang, did not care about his reputation and did such a thing that angered both heaven and man.

  In Qin's camp, General Hu Yang was listening to reports from his subordinates.

  "General, according to your instructions, this time the cavalry regiment has captured more than 6,000 Korean civilians. I have come to ask for your instructions on how to deal with these civilians."

  "Let us beat the drums to gather our troops, and let the Korean civilians advance with the vanguard to attack the city together! I'd love to see if the defenders of Yeouiju will turn their swords against their own people!"

  Wang Tong remained silent and rarely echoed the commander's views.

  Yesterday, Wang Tzu proposed a strategy to lure the main force of the Korean army out of the city for a decisive battle. Hu Yang also thought of what he considered a clever plan - driving civilians to attack the city. In this way, when attacking the city, the Korean army would inevitably be intimidated and hesitant, and their casualties would be greatly reduced.

  Wang Xi immediately tactfully pointed out that this move would damage Hu Yang's image, and even if they won, it would go against the will of heaven. As an orthodox military man, Wang Xi had always believed that war was a matter for men, and women and children should get out of the way. Even those civilians could only transport grain and supplies.

  Hu Yang, however, did not think so of Wang Tuo's words. In his view, history was written by the victors. What he had to do was to re-engrave the prestige of Great Qin with the numerous white bones of Ye Wang City, and establish an eternal achievement that would last for thousands of years.

  As for the deputy general's concern that this move would be criticized by the world, it is even simpler to solve - slaughter the city. After taking down Ye Wang, after slaughtering Ye Wang and leaving no chicken or dog, who will still remember that he drove away the common people and attacked the city? He was just trying to reduce the loss of the Great Qin, the ones who slaughtered the civilians were the Ye Wang garrison troops, the Han army, not his Qin army!

  Wang Ding had nothing to say in response. He knew he couldn't persuade the stubborn commander, so all he could do was respond with silence, showing his attitude.

  As soon as Hu Yang's order was given, the lieutenant of the cavalry regiment was stunned. He subconsciously looked at Deputy General Wang and seemed to want to verify whether he had misheard. Such an order was something he had never encountered in his decades of military service. Could it be that the commander wanted him to capture Korean civilians not for digging trenches but for attacking the city?

  "Huh? Didn't you hear General Ben's order? Or are you thinking of disobeying?"

  Seeing his subordinates react like this, Hu Yang let out a cold snort.

  Sweat immediately broke out on Xiaowei's forehead. "Yes... I dare not, I will arrange this matter at once."

  The crown prince immediately sent someone to inform Tian Hu's Tiger Riders to gather, while he himself rushed to the city gate to stabilize the situation.

  "The Crown Prince has arrived." Someone with sharp eyes caught a glimpse of the Crown Prince.

  Crown Prince.

  Crown Prince.

  Innumerable people knelt down to pay their respects. For this prince who was close to the people, loved the people, and was willing to advance and retreat with the common folk, the people of Ye Wang genuinely admired him.

  The crown prince directly came to the top of the city wall, looking at the distant Qin army's siege troops gathering slowly, and said loudly: "Everyone please rise. I already know everyone's intentions, those captured below the city wall are our Great Korea's people, they are everyone's relatives, I will absolutely not abandon them."

  "The Qin army is so brutal and inhumane, extremely cruel. I think everyone also knows that if we let the Qin army attack the city, after the city falls, it won't just be us who die, our loved ones will also die. Are you willing to accept this?"

  "Refuse!" The prince's response was met with a chorus of angry roars.

  "Good, that's exactly what I want to hear. Your mission is to guard the city well, and I will send people to rescue your families, but on one condition: you must focus on your duties. If this one wants to save his father, and that one wants to save his child, who will guard the city? Do you expect me to guard it myself?" The crown prince shouted loudly.

  "Believe me, believe your comrades, we can rescue your family members. But tell me loudly, are you worthy of our trust? When we go out to fight and kill, can you guarantee that Ye Wang City will remain in our hands?"

  "We can! We can! We can!" The Korean military responded with all their might.

  "The city is in, the people are in! The city is lost, the people are lost!" Who knows which brave soldier shouted out this slogan.

  "The city is in, the people are in! The city is lost, the people are lost!" countless Korean soldiers shouted.

  After calming down the defenders' nerves, Tian Hu rushed over in a hurry just in time.

  "Your Highness, isn't it time for our Tiger Cavalry to take the field?"

  "Yes!"

  The crown prince spoke concisely and directly ordered the Tiger Riders to prepare for immediate departure. He specifically instructed that the primary goal of the Tiger Riders was to rescue the captured civilians, and they must not engage in a prolonged battle. After all, there were several times more Qin troops outside the city than the Tiger Riders.

  In order to cooperate with the Tiger Riders, they will also make a series of deployments to disrupt the Qin army. In short, the Tiger Riders are carrying the trust of the entire city this time, and can only win but not lose.

  Originally full of joyful expression, Tian Hu also rarely showed a serious look, loudly responding: "Your Highness can rest assured, Old Tian will stake his life to not disappoint the trust Your Highness has placed in him!"

  Under the drumbeat of the Qin army, the siege troops of the Qin army have assembled. A fierce and intense battle is about to break out at any moment.