Chapter 20 Northern Expedition (7)

  Listening to the thunderous applause, the soldiers of the foreign tribes outside the pass were all pale-faced, and even their bodies were trembling with fear. Yelü Zhaochang and Shen Jie were also pale-faced, and they suddenly realized that in front of them was such a powerful opponent. This is an ancient nation with thousands of years of civilization, a magical place that has created countless brilliant achievements. When their own nation was still establishing its own civilization, the civilization of the Divine State had already reached an unparalleled height; when they were trying to establish their own regime, the political civilization of the Divine State had already been fully perfected. Their footprints had once covered the entire continent of the Divine State, and their armies had once conquered the entire world. When they were weak, they were indeed carved up by the world, but as soon as they became strong, they would immediately dominate the entire continent. They have an extremely long history and extremely brilliant glory, and on this ancient continent, they are the only nation that has lasted for over a thousand years.

  After thousands of years of wind and rain, although they have faced all kinds of difficulties, although they have encountered countless hardships, they still walked through strongly. And every time they suffered, it was a phoenix's rebirth, after the great disaster, they would surely rise again. Although the current Qingfeng Empire has been penetrated by the corrupt Confucianism, and even the bones are filled with a strong smell of decay and decline, but their people, their civilians, still have an extremely proud blood flowing in their bones, and their hearts still bear the brilliant and bloody mark of the divine state for thousands of years. When this hot blood in their hearts is fully ignited, that will be the time when their nation rises again. Looking at the northeastern sky, Yelü Zhaochang let out a long sigh: Prime Minister, can such a nation be defeated by our humble Northeastern Three Kingdoms? Was your decision correct or wrong? Are we going to make our nation flourish, or bring nightmares to our nation?

  Looking back, seeing the stern and majestic soldiers of the Divine State, Ye Lü Zhaochang suddenly felt a few points of fear rising from the bottom of his heart, which was something that had never happened to him in decades of battle. Another long sigh, Ye Lü Zhaochang thought to himself: If he could go back to Mandan, he would definitely advise the king and the prime minister to give up their idea of opposing Qingfeng, such a great nation is fundamentally impossible to defeat.

  However, Yelü Zhaochang's idea was doomed to fail, because after the cheers, Hengtian had already shifted his gaze towards him.

  "Soldiers, tell me, what shall we do with these barbarians from beyond the border?" Huang Tian thundered.

  "Kill! Kill! Kill!" All the soldiers shouted in unison, while Yelü Zhaochang and thousands of Xīwài soldiers' faces were completely bloodless. They never thought that Huáng Tiān would not even spare the prisoners who had already surrendered.

  Listening to the deafening roar of the soldiers, neither the military uniform nor the Confucian uniform expressed any opinion. Although the three countries outside the pass still had tens of millions of Chinese people in their hands, although they needed to use captives to exchange for civilians with the enemy, they could not let the blood of the soldiers flow in vain, and could not chill the hearts of hundreds of thousands of soldiers.

  "Good! Today we will use these barbarians to sacrifice to our divine state's millions of fathers and elders!" Haotian picked up his sword, pointing it at the sky. In the midst of the tens of thousands of soldiers' cheers, countless arrows fell like raindrops on the enemy's position outside the pass, Ye Lü Zhaochang had not yet reacted when he was shot by hundreds of sharp arrows, becoming a hedgehog, and all his soldiers were also killed without exception.

  "What? The Hexi Corridor has been recovered?" Tian Du Sheng Jing, Dingxi Wangfu, Dingxi King Song Zhengfeng said with an incredulous face. And Li Tieren and Zhang Cangxiong beside him were also shocked.

  "Haotian, 19 years old, stationed in Qingyun County, Dingzhou, with a thousand cavalry. He is the son of Haotian, the county magistrate of Dingzhou. He was ordered to follow the Northern Expedition Army and retreated intact after the Battle of Fenglingdu. After escaping back to Qingyun, he joined forces with Lü Xiang, a minor official from Dingzhou, and He Fu, the captain of the South Gate of Dingzhou, to capture Dingzhou. The next day, they captured Yanzhou and Chengzhou. Along the way, they met two generals, Dugu Yueming and Bian Zhongxing, and three staff members: Lü Xiang, Chu Xiangcheng, and Xuán Jī. However, Xuán Jī's background is unknown. This Haotian is indeed a young hero!"

  "Wei Yuan Wang's son, Zhang Ji, casually curled his lips: "What's so great about that? It's just good luck."

  "Shut up!" Wei Yuan Wang Zhang Cangyong coldly shouted, calming down his emotions. He then said: "A tiger father has no dog son. But what I didn't expect was that Huo Yan would actually die like this. The third son of the Xianlie family, Huo Yan, who had been awarded the title of 'Flower of Exploration', actually lost his life at the hands of the barbarians."

  Li Tieqiang sighed: "He had long wanted to die. When Qin Shang died in childbirth, his heart was already dead. If it wasn't for the young child still in swaddling clothes at that time, he might have killed himself out of loyalty. Otherwise, with his talent and intelligence, he would not have ended up dying at the hands of the barbarians."

  Song Zhengfeng also let out a long sigh: "Did the prince remember Qin Xianzi?"

  Li Tie nodded: "The king's words are extremely correct, I indeed thought of the heavenly Qin Shang of that year. That was really an era belonging to her alone! The heroic and majestic English gentleman, the talented and brilliant Huan Lie San Cai Zi, and our three young and arrogant people, were just fleeting years, and in the blink of an eye, twenty years had passed. The beautiful and elegant heavenly Qin Shang had already faded away, and the literary and elegant Huan Lie Tan Hua had also sacrificed his life for the country, alas!

  The Crown Prince of Jingxi, Li Xiao Mo, obviously heard the hidden worry in Li Tie's words and asked curiously: "Hao has already died, what is Father King still worried about?"

  "Tan Hua may be dead, but the champion and the second place are still here." Song Zhengfeng took over the conversation.

  Li Xiao's expression changed: "What does Uncle Wang mean? But wasn't the top scorer, Lu Juyuan, executed back then? And didn't the second-place winner, Chu Xiangcheng, die of illness on his way to exile in the Blood-colored Plateau?"

  Song Zhengfeng let out a bitter laugh: "Lingering death? Who knows if the person who was executed back then was really him, but at that time it was indeed hard to distinguish between true and false. At least his old lover, Tian Wu Xing He's sect leader Su Jin Hong, died in the Heavenly Prison while trying to save him. As for Chu Xiang Cheng, he never even made it to the Blood-colored Plateau; he mysteriously disappeared halfway there. If I'm not mistaken, one of the two attendants by Huang Tian's side, Luo Dang, must be the same person as Luo Jiuyuan from back then. After all, he and Huang were extremely close, like brothers, and they both pursued Qin Xianzi at the same time. Heh heh, since the number one scholar has already emerged, I suppose the number two scholar won't be willing to lag behind either."

  Dingxi Wang's son, Song Jun, raised an eyebrow: "So what if it is? Aren't they just two Confucian scholars? Why make such a big deal out of it?"

  "Are they really Confucian scholars?" Zhang Cangyong sneered, "It's the first time I've heard someone dare to say that these two are Confucian scholars. Chu Xiangcheng is a seasoned statesman with exceptional talent in planning and strategy, even the current Grand Preceptor and State Preceptor can't help but praise him. If not for some unexpected events later on, he would at least be sitting in the position of Taishi Sima Dengyuan now. Moreover, this man has extraordinary diplomatic skills, when the 200,000-strong Rouran army attacked the Guanzhong region, Chu Xiangcheng went to the Rouran camp alone and persuaded them to retreat without a fight. As for Luo Jiuyuan, he is cunning and ruthless, with exceptional strategic thinking, making him one of the top strategists in the world. Furthermore, this man has some military achievements, when he was ordered to pacify the Great Wall defense line, coincidentally, the Haixi army attacked the pass, he led 300 light cavalrymen to launch a surprise attack on the Haixi army's central camp during the day, defeating their 60,000-strong army. In this battle, they beheaded 12,000 and captured 7,000 enemies. If this man is truly loyal to Huangtian, then Huangtian is not someone to be underestimated."

  "There's also Dugu Yueming and Bian Zhongxing." Li Tiesheng let out a long sigh: "Bian Zhongxing was born into a commoner family, although due to his family background he couldn't rise high, but his talent is indeed unquestionable. His defensive abilities surpass those of the Xuanwu Army Corps, even within the Empire he's second to none. As for Dugu Yueming..."

  Song Zhengfeng said solemnly, "This man was originally a mountain bandit, but he is extremely brave and skilled in battle. His military tactics and leadership skills are among the best in Yizhou Road, but his personality is arrogant and unyielding."

  "There's also that mysterious thing, since this person was obtained by the National Master when he went down to the Yin Wind Mountains with the Emperor of Heaven, it's highly likely that it came from the Tianji Valley. Hehe, if these people can really work together, then the Empire will probably have to go through another storm." Zhang Cangyun said with a smile.

  Zhang Jisheng asked in confusion: "Uncle, what do you mean?"

  "What's the meaning of this?" Zhang Cangxiong looked at his nephew with some disappointment. He didn't have a son, so he had specifically made his younger brother Zhang Cangyu's son, Zhang Jishi, the heir to the Huai River region in order to balance its power. However, this nephew's abilities were indeed limited and couldn't be compared to those of his own daughter or Li Xiaomo and others of the same generation.

  Sighing, Zhang Cangxiong continued: "Hao Tian is a descendant of Hao Fei, and the reason why Hao Fei and the other two fell from the sky to the ground back then was because they had offended the current emperor. To eliminate them, the previous emperor even specially brought Iron Truth back from the border regions. Although they were all disciples of Taishi Sima's return, the resentment of being demoted wouldn't be easily forgotten. Moreover, Qin Shang... this deep-seated blood feud, I'm afraid no one can forget it."

  Li Tieqiang shook his head: "This is hard to say, Hua has always been loyal to the empire, and Taishi is still alive. If it wasn't for Taishi's plea at that time, I'm afraid all three of them would have been executed by lingchi. This kindness, they will not forget. Your Highness, don't forget, if the mysterious machine really came from Tianji Valley, then as long as Guoshi is still alive, the mysterious machine won't dare to confront Guoshi head-on. Guoshi, he also originated from Tianji Valley."

  "Let's just wait and see what happens next. However, if Haotian is truly loyal to the Empire, then we must eliminate him as soon as possible. We absolutely cannot leave a poisonous thorn like him on our backs." Song Zhengfeng said coldly, his body emitting a killing aura that even made Li Tiepeng and others tremble slightly.

  The last resistance force of the foreign tribes outside the Great Wall on the Yellow River Road was eliminated, and the six states of the Yellow River that had fallen into enemy hands finally returned to the empire's embrace. However, during this month-long occupation, the people of the Yellow River Road paid a huge price. The original population of the six states of the Yellow River was over 8 million, but in less than a month, more than 2 million people died under the butcher knife of the Hu barbarians, most of whom were young and strong men. At least half of their houses were destroyed or completely burned down in this disaster, and their property, including food, was almost depleted. Although the Yellow River Road is one of the main grain-producing areas of the empire, after experiencing such a disaster, most of its production was destroyed, and due to the war, the originally bustling Yellow River Road now has almost no merchants coming and going. This series of problems is what Emperor Huan is currently facing.

  Haotian sat in the main hall of the temporary Taishou Mansion, his brow furrowed. Beside him were Lu Xiang and Xuanji, two strategists. As for Xue Sha and Gong Jing, they were all busy reorganizing their troops, racing against time. Guan Ying's intelligence showed that Yelü Changhai's third coalition army was almost fully assembled and would head south within days. The soldiers of the Yellow Sleeve had suffered heavy casualties in the Battle of Jizhou, and although they had received a large number of reinforcements, they still did not dare to relax for even a moment.

  "Mr. Luo, Military Advisor, now that we have taken down the entire Hexi Corridor, but in the three northern states, there isn't a single suitable administrative personnel, what do you think we should do about this?" Hu Tian's face was filled with worry, as the officials of the six states of Hexi had already fled south. His subordinates were all from military backgrounds and didn't understand anything about administrative governance. However, now that everything is being rebuilt, someone has to govern. As for the empire's previous officials, not a single one in Hexi was trustworthy, after all, when disaster struck, they only knew how to escape, why should anyone trust them again?

  Xuanji sank into thought for a moment before saying, "Tianyi young lady once told me that Hai Zhengsu, the disciple of Lin Taiyue, the governor of Kezhou, has great talent. Although he is still young, he has already inherited Lin's academic legacy and should be able to hold his own."

  "Who is Hai Zheng? I've never heard of him. However, since Heaven's will values him so much, he must be no ordinary person. Alright, let him go to Ji Zhou then." Haotian nodded and said: "But for now, An Zhou and Shi Zhou still don't have suitable candidates, please think carefully again, both of you."

  Luo Xiang hesitated for a moment before stepping forward and saying, "Your Excellency, I have a suitable candidate in mind. His name is Chu Xiangcheng, originally from Hetao Yan Prefecture. As it happens, he was a fellow student of your late father's, but later offended someone powerful and was banished from the capital. He should now be living in seclusion at his old home in Yan Prefecture; if Your Excellency is interested, he will certainly come to offer his assistance."

  Xuanji and Haotian's eyes both flashed with a sudden sharpness, Xuanji suddenly thought of several people who had disappeared twenty years ago, while Haotian's eyes were particularly deep. However, Haotian's eyes became especially calm in an instant, he smiled and said: "Chu Xiangcheng, Mr. Chu is of the same generation as my father, so I should have gone to visit him personally. But now I'm busy with many things, can't get away. So, let's do this, Lu Shishu, please take care of Mr. Chu's matter."

  "Please be assured, milord," Luo Xiang said with an unchanged expression. "I will definitely take care of this matter."

  "Hold on." Haotian paused for a moment and said: "The Hexi region has been restored to its former prosperity, and the burden on both of you is not light. Let's do this: have Wei He of Yan Prefecture take over as the prefect of An Prefecture, and have Mr. Chu take over as the prefect of Yan Prefecture, concurrently in charge of the affairs of the Hexi Military Governor's office."

  "My lord." Kou Xiang's eyes slightly contracted as he said repeatedly.

  "Sir, don't worry about it, this matter is settled. Since Mr. Chu is a good friend of my father's, his ability and character are naturally trustworthy." Haotian interrupted Ruo Xiang's words and continued: "Now there is only the vacancy of the Stone Prefecture Magistrate, do you two have any suitable candidates?"

  Xuanji was about to speak, but Luo Xiang suddenly interrupted and said: "Your Excellency, in Shizhou Heimian there is a fallen scholar named Zheng Chengen, who has a reputation for being virtuous. Although this person has great talent and loves the people like his own children, he is arrogant by nature and speaks too bluntly, I don't know if Your Excellency can..."

  Haotian burst out laughing: "Sir, what are you saying? According to your words, this person is actually a man of good character. Coincidentally, the position of Stone Prefecture Magistrate is vacant, let him go try it out first."

  "Yes." Luo Xiang said with his head down, exchanging a glance with Xuanyuan, both of them smiling slightly.

  After finishing the proper business, Haotian also stretched out a lazy waist: "By the way, where did Tianyi go? Why haven't I seen her figure for half a day?"

  Xuanji hastily stepped forward and said, "Tianyi young lady is currently visiting the wounded soldiers and civilians in the war hospital, with General Blood Kill by her side, Master need not worry."

  Haotian nodded: "Since that's the case, I'll go take a look at those soldiers. If it weren't for their desperate efforts, we wouldn't be able to sit here talking right now."

  "My lord, slow down. I and Mr. Luo still have some details to discuss, so I won't see you off." Xuanji said with a smile, while Haotian didn't mind, he just waved his hand and walked out of the hall.

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