Chapter 5 Ceasefire and Rest

  After Wei Ming told Emperor Wang Ding of Jin about the encounter with Lei Meng, Emperor Wang sat in his study behind a long desk, staring blankly for half a day without reacting. Just as Wei Ming was getting impatient and wanted to leave, Emperor Wang suddenly sighed: "I calculated everything, but I didn't expect Lei Meng to appear out of nowhere. It seems that the battle against Hu Tian can't be won."

  "What? How can you say that?" Wei Ming's face was full of surprise, unsure why Wang Ding had suddenly come to this conclusion.

  Wang Ding stood up from behind the desk, took two steps, and said: "Firstly, although the Thunderbolt Army is small, it's very elite. It takes a lot of manpower to deal with them, but what we gain is not much, only that little place by the White River. Moreover, for Jin Yuan, the supply line on that side is too long, and even if we get it, we can't hold onto it, just like a chicken rib."

  Wei Ming listened, lowered his head in contemplation, and thought that from Jin Yuan's southwest to Yangming and then to Wujijiang, the thousand-kilometer journey was all undulating hills without any large towns. To send more troops and supplies again would indeed result in huge losses. Moreover, it was uncertain whether they could even take down Lei Ming's stronghold. Thinking of this, he raised his head and said, "Yes, it's indeed a chicken rib!"

  Wang Dingjian nodded in understanding after a long time, with a hint of joy in his heart. It seemed that Wei Ming was indeed far inferior to him in this aspect. He slightly raised his head and continued to analyze: "Secondly, the Heavenly General couldn't summon the Thunderous Army, nor did he want to waste too much military strength on them, so he put them at the White River, and Jin Yuan took the bait, falling into Chu Wei's trap."

  "So Jin Yuan didn't attack and let Huan Tian lose three cities for nothing." Wei Ming clapped his hands, looking suddenly enlightened.

  Wang Ding smiled and nodded, saying: "Thirdly, Jin Yuan and Haotian will continue to fight each other, both countries will inevitably weaken, while the Leiming Army, which has not been affected by the war, will slowly rise! By then, there will be another strong enemy on our side!"

  "Oh!" Wei Ming learned a lot again.

  "Fourthly, our strength and Haotian's are evenly matched on other fronts, with both sides suffering losses. Continuing to fight will not bring any benefits." Wang Ding analyzed confidently, finally concluding, "Therefore, if Jin Yuan does not attack Leiyin Army, the war with Haotian will soon come to an end. If Haotian's army does not entangle with Jin Yuan, they will shift their attention to Leiyin Army. When Haotian has expended a considerable amount of troops, it will be another opportunity for Jin Yuan to gain territory..."

  Weiming nodded, seemingly having thought it through completely, but he suddenly furrowed his brow and asked: "Then what about Wang Ding? For several decades, Jin Yuan and Haotian were at peace. Why did you initiate war with Haotian?"

  "Occupying land and expanding territory is a glorious achievement that will be remembered for centuries!" King Ding said with a mouthful of nonsense.

  Wei Ming looked at Wang Ding with a skeptical gaze and said, "Really? I don't think so!"

  Wang Ding felt a chill in his heart and hastily denied it: "How can that be!"

  Wei Ming listened, smiled strangely, leaned in front of Wang Ding, and sneered: "Hehe, exposed. Is it because..." He deliberately prolonged the tone, waiting for Wang Ding to continue.

  "Ah! I remember now, I still have something to take care of." After saying that, Wang Ding turned around and hastily pushed the door open to leave, leaving Wei Ming with a suspicious and uncertain expression.

  In the imperial palace of Emperor Hu, in a study lit by dim lanterns, Chu Wei was also analyzing the battle situation. His audience consisted only of Cai Yan. He wore a dragon robe, with his long hair tied back behind him, and slowly paced back and forth with his hands clasped behind his back, muttering to himself: "Jin Yuan is too weak, actually five million troops were defeated by Lei Ying's over one hundred thousand men!"

  He walked back and forth a few more steps, then continued: "Wang Ding that kid will definitely not send troops to fight against Lei Meng again. After all, the supply line in the southwest is too long, and even if he wins, he can't hold on..."

  He stopped in his tracks, looked up at the crimson roof with intersecting beams and sighed: "It seems that Jin Yuan will soon propose a ceasefire! That kid just wants me to shift my attention to Lei Hong."

  "Haha, I won't! Let's see who'll suffer when this old tiger grows up!" Chu Wei sneered with a sly smile.

  Cai Yan, who was standing aside, broke out in a cold sweat as he listened. He had experienced the ferocity of the Lei Meng army before and if they were allowed to grow stronger, it would be difficult to control them. Although he had concerns, he was not the decision-maker and could only passively accept the cruel fate.

  In the White River City, Leiming also gathered a group of generals in the grand hall under the lamp to discuss. Leiming sat upright in the central main seat, swept his eyes over the various generals sitting on both sides, and said: "The army of Jin Yuan was defeated, the master retreated, I don't know what you gentlemen think about the future situation?" After finishing speaking, he looked at Mr. Wen on the left side with inquiry.

  Mr. Wen stood up straight, his left hand gently stroking his gray beard, and looked at Lei Ming and Yang Tian with a calm expression, saying: "In the opinion of Wen Mou, Jin Yuan will not send a large army to invade again."

  Luoyang Tian and Qin Hao, who were sitting on the right side, were shocked to hear this. They both focused their attention on Mr. Wen. Mr. Wen saw Huang Chu nodding in agreement and continued: "We are hard to attack, Baihe is hard to defend, and the supply line is long. These three reasons led Jin Yuan to give up the mouthful of chicken ribs!"

  Huang Chu nodded repeatedly after listening, a smile appeared on his face, it seems that what he saw was similar, and there is hope for peace here for a while.

  Luoyang Tian and Qin Hao showed a sudden realization, while Yang Tian, who was standing at the top right, curled his lips in disdain. For him, fighting against tens of thousands of people was just a small dish, and it was unbelievable that Jin Yuan would give up after losing just once.

  Everyone's expression was reflected in Leiming's eyes. He smiled and said, "Yes, Mr. Wen is a talented man and his analysis makes sense. I wonder what Mr. Huang thinks?"

  Huang Chu heard the thunder and asked himself, then cupped his hands and said: "Huang Mou agrees with Mr. Wen's analysis, Jin Yuan will not attack us. Moreover, Huang Mou also thinks that Hua Tian will ignore us."

  "Oh? Why?" Lei Meng revealed a very interested expression.

  Huang Chutian puffed out his chest and said confidently, "Emperor Haotian knows we're not loyal, yet he still sent us to the front lines. He must want Jin Yuan to have another opponent. So, Haotian will let us gradually build up our strength to deal with Jin Yuan's army guarding the Black Chicken."

  Qin Hao understood the reasoning and happily said: "Then we can develop in Baihe with peace of mind!" Huang Chu smiled and nodded.

  Yang Tian snorted and said, "That's no fun at all!"

  Lei Meng glanced at Yang Tian and said, "Don't think you're invincible just yet, bring more top-notch players and we'll be done for."

  "Then I'll train some masters to deal with them and see who's stronger!" Yang Tian was getting more and more irritated, he was becoming more like a child.

  Lei Meng listened with a smile and nodded, he was thinking of Yang Tian in this way. He faced the gaze of the crowd and said: "According to Mr. Wen's and Mr. Huang's analysis earlier, we should calm down for a while without fighting, but this situation is unlikely to last long, because one day they are not happy, they can send a large army, gather high-ranking officials to trample us!"

  Everyone's heart skipped a beat upon hearing this.

  The thunder rumbled, and the general's eyes gleamed with a fierce light as he said: "If all our soldiers had the martial arts skills of Lin Chong and Liao Yun, Jin Yuan and Huang Tian would not dare to come near! Moreover, we can also..."

  When everyone was listening with bated breath, Lei Meng suddenly stopped and smiled awkwardly: "Oh dear, I've gone off on a tangent. Let's take a good look at Jin Yuan and Huan Tian's reactions first."

  So, everyone dispersed, some practicing martial arts, others analyzing and strategizing...

  Time flies like water, and a month has passed in the blink of an eye. The residents of Bahe, Baishan, and Hexi Sancheng are nervous, but Leimeng and others have restrained themselves well, and there are no soldiers to disturb the people.

  On this day, the wind and sun were fine, white clouds were leisurely drifting in the sky, birds were happily chirping in the woods, it was a peaceful scene. Outside the White River City, there was a vast expanse of golden rice, stretching as far as the eye could see; on the official road between the rice fields, a black rider came galloping from the north at high speed. It turned out that Cai Yan had come to deliver a message on behalf of Chu Wei.

  Lei Meng had long received the scout's report and was waiting outside Baihe City. Meng stood quietly under the sun, looking down at his shadow on the ground growing shorter, when his anger was growing, a horse hoof sound came from afar: "Got it, got it!"

  Meng Fan took a deep breath, calmed down his emotions, forced a smile, and looked at Cai Yan who had rushed to his side: "Hey! Marshal Cai, we meet again!"

  Cai Yan heard the sharp tone in Meng Fan's voice, his body shook and he almost fell off his horse. He reined in his black horse ten meters in front of Meng Fan, dismounted, cupped his hands and bowed hastily as he walked quickly towards him: "Cai Yan has seen General Meng! Is General Meng well?"

  Meng Fan felt a sense of relief in his heart and said with an air of superiority, "Hmm, not bad lately. I wonder what brings the great General Cai here today?"

  At this time, the black horse snorted and whinnied, a soldier came forward to lead it into the city. Cai Yan turned his head and took a look, saying: "I have come to convey a message to General Lei Meng."

  "Alright, let's go!" Meng Fan said, flicking his sleeve and leading the way into the city. Cai Yan secretly looked down on him, but at the same time felt relieved that Meng Fan wouldn't be in close contact with himself, and followed behind Meng Fan into the city of Bairen.

  Lei Meng sat in the main hall of the city lord's mansion, waiting with Wen Xian and Luoyang Tian. When he saw Cai Yanzong enter the hall behind Meng Fan, he quickly stood up and cupped his hands: "Welcome, Great Guard Cai! I have pressing matters to attend to and couldn't go outside the city to greet you, please forgive my lack of courtesy!"

  Mr. Wen and Luoyang Tian heard Lei Meng's words, a faint smile on their faces, this Lei Meng is getting more and more slick, if it were Yang Tian, he would definitely make an ugly face.

  Cai Yan hastily bowed and shouted: "I don't dare, I don't dare! It's a great fortune to be able to see General Lei!" He had long heard that Lei Meng was a super master, Liu Jin's left arm was severed by his hand, how could he still have any pride?

  After a few awkward silences, everyone sat down. Lei Meng picked up his cup and took a sip, asking, "I wonder what Cai Shiwei came here for?"

  Cai Yan was a bit nervous, and the sweat on his forehead didn't dare to wipe it away, letting it flow down his face. He heard Lei Meng's question, cupped his hands, and said: "Huang Tian Emperor informed General Meng that Jin Yuan fought without gain, and has already ceased hostilities with Huang Tian."

  Lei Meng and Mr. Wen looked at each other and smiled, then said: "Yes, stopping the war to rest and recover is a good thing, the people don't have to suffer so much."

  Cai Yan felt a sense of relief in his heart, and he hastily wiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve, saying: "General Lei is truly considerate of the people! He is the blessing of Baihe and the three cities of Hexi!"

  "Is there another message?" Lei Meng smiled and looked at Cai Yan.

  "No more, no more!" Cai Yan waved his hands repeatedly, being stared at by Lei Meng, he felt a bit tense.

  "General Meng, I'll leave it to you to entertain Cai Da. I still have some urgent matters to attend to, so I won't stay any longer! Forgive me!" Leiming saw his guest out.

  Cai Yanzhong felt a sense of relief in his heart, as if he had been granted a great amnesty. He stood up and bid farewell to the crime, then walked out the door. Meng Fan hurriedly caught up with him.

  "Haha, I didn't expect General Lei to put so much pressure on Cai Yan." Luoyang Tian smiled happily.

  "Lei Meng is a powerful and accomplished warrior, having killed many people. Can he not be afraid?" Mr. Wen also smiled with a hearty laugh, stroking his beard.

  "Am I really that scary?" Lei Meng thought to himself.