Chapter 14 Past Events (Part 1)

  Yang Shuang's eyes sparkled a few times, and he said lightly: "You mean, they are now starting to prepare for the final struggle for leadership?"

  "This is inevitable, even if they haven't started yet. All the turmoil will eventually have only one emperor, this is an eternal and unchanging rule. For the Menis region, there can only be one person who can be called Sargon! This is a historical inevitability, a rule that no one can violate. No matter how close they were in the past, even if they wore the same pants. What friendship between the two sides is higher than the sky and deeper than the sea, brothers plus comrades-in-arms are all just empty talk. In front of Sargon's imperial crown, even if they were born from the same mother, it's useless. It's either you die or I live, that dazzling golden crown can only be worn on one person's head. As for who that person will be, whether it's the leader of the Light Empire Army, the Pope of the Mani Church, or the commander of the Loyalty and National Salvation Army, it depends on their respective strengths. So, before the Imperial Border Defense Army completely withdraws from the Menis region, they will all be conserving their strength while trying to avoid conflicts with the Imperial Border Defense Army, so as not to cause unnecessary losses. But once the Imperial Border Defense Army completely withdraws, there is no doubt that they will definitely engage in a fierce battle, although they have already had many frictions before. Not to mention the leader of the Light Empire Army and the commander of the Loyalty and National Salvation Army, the Mani Church will definitely be the first to launch an attack, seizing more population and land."

  He paused for a moment, took two steps forward, and turned back to look at Yang Su's contemplative expression. Yang Ji continued: "The reason why Manichaeism is anxious is that their backers are the Semites and Akkadians who were once down on their luck. These two ethnic groups occupied the most fertile areas of Xingchuan Road and Yangchuan Road in the Minis region, and they got used to a comfortable life. However, they were later driven out by Xiaomohe and forced to survive in the harsh environment on both sides of the Blood-colored Plateau, suffering from harassment and looting by nomadic tribes, living a hard and difficult life. Therefore, their longing for Minis far exceeds that of Cao Cao and Peng Yue. They are eager to re-occupy areas such as Yangchuan Road."

  Yang Xuan said with a frown: "So what's the plan of Peng Yue's rebel army?"

  Yang Ji Rui said: "The backer of Peng Yue's rebel army is the Swan Goose Kingdom. In the Yiyun continent, the national strength of the Swan Goose Kingdom is not strong, whether it is the Loulan Kingdom in the south or the Harare Kingdom in the north, their national strength is stronger than that of the Swan Goose Kingdom. The relationship between these two countries and the Swan Goose Kingdom is not good. Therefore, the land that Peng Yue and others are eyeing is probably just Qingchuan Road, which is the largest grain-producing area in Minis. The Swan Goose Kingdom is under great military pressure from both the south and north, so they can't take care of themselves, so their support for Peng Yue's rebel army is very limited. However, they urgently need a fertile place to transplant their growing population, and Qingchuan Road is undoubtedly the best choice."

  Yang Shuang nodded thoughtfully: "Then what about the Radiant Empire of the Capture Hand? They control the most land and population, and their strength is also the greatest. It's said that they have over a million cavalrymen alone. Their plan must be to take over the entire Menis region?"

  Yang Jirui thought for a moment and said, "The Radiant Empire of the Catchers is a very complex organization. The backers behind them are also very complicated, including the Ximon people, the Wala people, and some of the Yu Zhen people. I heard that the Xi Hu people also have a part in it, probably all the nomadic nations are gathered there. But the actions of the Catchers themselves are very strange, the Catchers themselves are the military judges of the 68th Division of the Imperial Border Defense Army..."

  Yang Shuangfeng was startled: "What? The catcher is actually a rebellious imperial officer? This loser!"

  Yang Jirui wanted to speak but hesitated, probably because he didn't know how to put it into words. After thinking for a moment, he said: "The process of the Capture Hand joining the Empire is very complicated, and its true nature may never be known. The 68th Division of the Imperial Border Defense Army, also known as the 'Ju Flower Division', has a division commander named Qingyue Lieutenant General who is good at showmanship and only cares about superficial achievements. He has a good relationship with the media, so many newspapers in the Empire have hyped up his division as the so-called 'Ju Flower Division' and even selected it as one of the top five most combat-effective divisions in the Imperial Army. In reality, however, Qingyue was embezzling huge amounts of military funds and had a division with only 4,000 people, including over 1,000 temporary recruits from nearby areas who hadn't received regular combat training. The combat effectiveness of such a division can be imagined. As a result, when the rebellion in Menis broke out and the Wala people's 50,000 cavalry marched south, the 'Ju Flower Division' was immediately annihilated, and Qingyue himself surrendered to the Wala people..."

  "What about the catcher?" Yang Shuangfen asked anxiously.

  Yang Ji Rui said, "Don't be impatient, I will explain in detail. The captor himself was not on the front line at that time, he took a secret order from Qingyue to another place to carry out a task that could not be seen by the light of day. When he returned, he received Qingyue's surrender order. Qingyue shamelessly ordered the remaining officers and soldiers of the Ju Hua division to surrender. Such an order was naturally met with strong resistance from the remaining officers and soldiers, but the captor secretly carried out Qingyue's order. He privately deserted his unit and defected to the Wala people, also becoming one of Qingyue's deputy officers."

  With a heavy cough, Yang Ji Rui said with emotion: "In these years, the catcher has been defending himself, just executing the orders of his superiors, making excuses for his shameful surrender. But who in the empire does not regard him as a shameful traitor? His most hateful place is not opposing the court, but introducing wolves into the house. Now it's all rumors that he actively colluded with Ximon people and Wala people to enter the Menes area, he is indeed a traitor!"

  Yang Shuang's eyes were cold as he said, "He is indeed a traitor who deserves to be killed by everyone! Leading troops to rebel against the imperial court is one thing, but this corrupt government doesn't matter anyway. However, no matter what, it is absolutely unforgivable for him to collude with foreign enemies and slaughter his own compatriots!"

  Yang Jirui took a deep breath, seemingly to suppress the anger in his heart. After a moment, he spoke in a low voice: "Not long after the rebellion broke out, the imperial central government sent three central army divisions to quell the rebellion. These three divisions were all elite troops of the empire, fully equipped with the latest Minsk rifles. The Ministry of Military Affairs hoped to take swift and decisive action to eliminate the rebellion at once. Unfortunately, the commander of the army was an idiot..."

  Yang Shuang said irritably: "Who is that commander after all? Why does no one mention his name every time someone brings up this matter? What kind of person is he?"

  Yang Jirui's expression was somewhat painful, as if he had fallen into some kind of bitter memory. After a while, he said with a sigh: "That person, that person is Jiang Ning Da Jiang, the younger brother of the current empress, and also the only closed disciple of the war god Yue Shen Zhou..."

  Yang Shuangfeng was suddenly speechless, feeling only that his head was heavy and his feet were light, as if all the strength in his body had been drained away. He said weakly: "No wonder the Empire strictly forbids discussion of this matter. It turns out that it's actually related to Yue Shen Zhou. Oh my god, how could the War God Yue Shen Zhou have such a stupid disciple?"

  Yang Ji Rui said painfully: "This matter, it's not entirely the fault of General Jiang Ning. Although Jiang Ning is extremely greedy, he still has a set of military command skills, you should also know that his archery skills are recognized as the best in the empire, even Eagle Dan is inferior to him. Unfortunately, due to various reasons, the empire equipped his troops with firearms for quick battles, while the army commanded by Yue Shen Zhou back then was all cold weapons, so naturally he didn't teach Jiang Ning how to command firearm units..."

  Yang Shuangfeng almost jumped up: "That Jiang Ning is an idiot! He can't even study by himself?"

  Yang Jirui turned his face, bitterly saying: "Alas, the problem lies here. Jiangning is indeed a good student, and he has learned all of Yue Shen's skills. He has commanded several battles, and it's true that he's extraordinary, making people convinced. However, his biggest problem is that he only knows how to learn, but not how to research. The firearms unit is a brand new combat method, Jiangning hasn't grasped it yet, and he doesn't even understand its basic rules before being pushed onto the battlefield of Menis."

  Yang Shuangfen leaned against the carriage with a lack of energy and said with an itchy tooth: "This idiot!"

  Yang Jirui said in a low voice: "In the winter of 1724, General Jiang Ning led his army to Menis, ready to show off their skills. However, unexpectedly, the drought-stricken Menis suddenly entered its rainy season, and the army's gunpowder was most afraid of rainwater. But Jiang Ning did not take any preventive measures, and a large part of the gunpowder got wet, losing its effectiveness. As soon as the battle started, the imperial soldiers found that their firearms and cannons could not be fired, and they could only rely on the bayonets on their rifles to fight against the enemy. How could this be a match for the fierce Vara cavalry? As a result, they quickly retreated. From the first defeat, it was inevitable that the central army of the empire would be doomed to destruction. In that rainy season, the firearms unit was unable to exert its power. After the war, Jiang Ning was not brought to trial, but was instead dismissed and stayed at home. This was also because sending a firearms unit on an expedition in that rainy season was a fatal mistake, which was strongly advocated by the previous emperor. At that time, someone had reminded the previous emperor, but he insisted on his own way, resulting in a disastrous defeat.

  Taking a deep breath, Yang Jirui said laboriously: "Since the failure of Jiangning, people have been saying that it is heaven's will to abandon Minas Tirith. Why did it rain heavily when Minas Tirith arrived in Jiangning? And why was there not a single drop of rain before he came and after he left? No one can explain it. The vast majority of people believe that this is the will of heaven, that the heavens want the empire to abandon Minas Tirith."

  Yang Shuang Feng gritted his teeth and said: "The catcher and Qingyue must have played a very inglorious role in the battle, right?"

  Yang Ji Rui's cold voice said: "Qingyue naturally played the role of a rebel army advisor, but the catcher disappeared, and soon after, Qingyue was also assassinated by a mysterious figure. However, by that time, Jiangning's troops had already lost nearly 70-80%, and there was no chance to turn back. The imperial border was also in a state of alarm, and the empire could not dispatch more troops to Minis, so the former emperor had to order the withdrawal of the remaining troops with tears. When they set out, there were three divisions with nearly 80,000 people, but in the end, less than 3,000 could return, which was a complete defeat. Jiangning's failure this time led to severe consequences, and the empire was forced to abandon its control over the Minis region, watching helplessly as the riots escalated to an uncontrollable level. The former emperor, Tang Rong, also regretted his decision, blaming himself every day until he finally died of depression at the beginning of this year. The military also developed a distrust of firearms, and the central army, which had originally planned to replace all its weapons with firearms, stopped replacing them. Some young generals, such as Shangguan Qingquan and Die Fengwu, even openly opposed their divisions' replacement of firearms, and even the armies of Malacca and Yilan basically stopped replacing firearms. People generally believed that firearms were too affected by the weather, and unless they were installed on large ships or solid gun emplacements, they could hardly play a role."

  Yang Shuangfen frowned and said, "That's because Jiang Ning is too stupid, not because the Huoyao troops are not good to use. However, the Black Huoyao does have some drawbacks, if it were *Zha medicine, you wouldn't have to worry about rainwater."

  Yang Jirui did not notice that Yang Shuangfeng mentioned a new term, he just sighed sadly and said heavily again: "After the Imperial Central Army was defeated, the catcher came out again. He claimed to be the soul-possessed Sargon, sent by heaven to govern the Minas region. Of course, many people did not believe his nonsense, but he successfully persuaded the equally restless Simon people. The victory of the Vara people caused panic among the Simon people, who were worried that the balance of power on the Blood-colored Plateau would be broken, so they quickly organized a cavalry of 50,000 people under the catcher's temptation and entered the Minas region.