knife

Chapter 635 Responding to Scorn
Xiong Yi leaned against the wall, his veins bulging, his fingernails flipped upside down, and blood dripping from them.

He suddenly turned to look at Na Wei: "Na Fuzheng, did you see that? We all rise and fall together. Wang Dao is slapping the face of the court, but isn't he also slapping your face?"

Na Wei sneered: "Lord Xiong, do you mean that the failure of this great battle is because of me? My Southwest Wolf Army fought bravely and annihilated countless enemies, all the way to the walls of Ruyin. At that time, we agreed that I would take Ruyin. My battle objective has been achieved, but Chen Yan failed. If you were in my shoes, would you have retreated?"

“The General did not retreat!” Xiong Yi said.

“He does want to!” Na Wei said casually, “but he has a big face, so Li Dachui and Jiang Qian chose him.”

"Li Dachui and the Demon Queen can only choose one side. Since they have already surrounded the General, they can no longer surround you. Why don't you continue to attack Ruyin and share the pressure on the General?" Xiong Yi questioned.

Na Wei looked at Xiong Yi with a mocking expression: "Lord Xiong, have you ever led troops or fought a battle? Before the opponent's pieces are even placed on the chessboard, I'm not a god who can predict whether he will choose me or the General. The only choice I can make is to move first, so they don't have time to surround me! General Xiang is old; his former decisiveness is gone. He hesitates and looks back and forth, which is why the opponent takes advantage of him. If he were like me, retreating immediately when the situation is not good, would he be trapped in this predicament today?"

Xiong Yi was speechless.

Even though they knew the actual situation wasn't like that, Na Wei spoke with such conviction that they couldn't refute him. They couldn't very well accuse Na Wei of colluding with the other side from their position on the city wall, could they?

Morale had already plummeted to rock bottom. If the people below found out that the new regent was actually colluding with the enemy, how could they possibly save face?
"Alright, enough said!" Zhou Zheng, his face ashen, said, "You, the regent, were just appointed regent by His Majesty. All military, political, and civil affairs are decided by you. You should at least come up with a plan for how to handle this matter."

Na Wei waved his hand and said, "How should we deal with him? If he dares to come ashore, I will definitely crush him to pieces. If he doesn't come ashore, then let him be!"

"Let him be?" Zhou Zheng was dumbfounded.

“Otherwise?” Na Wei said, “Send the soldiers to swim over and fight the enemy? This is the mess you’ve created, and I won’t take the blame for it!”

After saying this, Na Wei turned around and left in a huff.

"The chancellor is as good as the confidant; if he falls, the others will suffer. Tong'an County must be saved!" Zhou Zheng shouted, watching his retreating figure.

"Of course we must save them!" Na Wei stopped and turned around, saying, "But right now, our forces can only protect Danyang. As you have seen, if it weren't for my Southwest Wolf Soldiers, Wang Dao would probably have landed and wreaked havoc! To save Tong'an County, we either have to wait for the troops I've transferred from the Southwest, or we have to transfer troops from the surrounding counties. Don't even think about having troops in Danyang right now!"

Zhou Zheng was speechless. He turned to look at the swaggering fleet on the river and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

"Find a way to mobilize troops!" Xiong Yi said through gritted teeth.

Zhou Zheng walked to his side, shook his head, pointed to the fleet on the river, and said in a low voice, "Prime Minister, in the current situation, which of the surrounding counties would be willing to send troops? Who is not afraid that after their own county's troops are all mobilized, Wang Dao's navy will rush over and cause trouble on the shore? As for those further away, distant water cannot quench a nearby fire!"

“But we have to find a way, even if it’s far away, we have to mobilize troops!” Xiong Yi said.

"I'm afraid it'll be too late!" Zhou Zheng closed his eyes. "Prime Minister, our Great Chu cannot be without a navy!"

"I wonder if Chen Yan is dead or not!" "Prime Minister, if Chen Yan is still alive, would you still dare to use him? Hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of naval men have been completely destroyed by him!" Zhou Zheng said.

"Can you find a naval commander stronger than Chen Yan?" Xiong Yi said, "The defeat at Red Cliffs really can't be blamed on him. Back then, when Zhu Chi had just brought back the blueprints for new warships from beyond the Great Wall, he demanded that new ships be built, which we were unwilling to do. We didn't want such new warships to fall into the hands of the Empress Dowager, but in the end, she still possessed these new warships, while we didn't. Furthermore, no one could have imagined that the wicked woman would actually show up to help in the Battle of Red Cliffs! Chen Yan is guilty of the defeat at Red Cliffs, and we can't escape responsibility either. As for the remaining three points, that's fate!"

Zhou Zheng closed his eyes, but what appeared before him was the scene of Jiang Qian dressed in plain clothes beating drums to cheer on the troops during the Battle of Xiangyang.

The image of the empress left a deep impression on the army.
When this scene reappeared on the battlefield, it's no wonder that Chen Yan's navy was demoralized and had lost all will to fight.

"There is no place for our navy on the great river anymore!" Zhou Zhengdao said, "After much thought, the only option is the Danjiang River, the Yunwu Mountain! There is a shipyard there, and more importantly, the narrowest part of the Danjiang River is only a few dozen feet wide. With fortifications on both banks, catapults, and powerful crossbows, one or two thousand elite soldiers can defend the river."

"If Chen Yan hadn't died, let him take charge of this matter: shipbuilding, training troops. We have no shortage of craftsmen or skilled naval personnel. In less than two years, we'll be able to build a powerful navy again!" Xiong Yi slammed his fist heavily on the wall, but unexpectedly, his fingernail had flipped over earlier, and this time he winced in pain.

“But in the next few years, I’m afraid we’ll have to swallow our pride and bear it!” Zhou Zheng said.

"You take care of this matter. First, try to get as much money as possible out of the Ministry of Revenue. Otherwise, once Na Wei changes the people in the Ministry of Revenue, it will be difficult to squeeze money out of him!" Xiong Yi said. "It's really difficult. Next, we not only have to fight with Jiang Qian and Li Dachui, but also with Na Wei!"

"I hope General Xiang can return soon, then we'll have an easier time!" Zhou Zheng said.

“You want him to abandon the army and return alone? He will definitely refuse. Even if he wants to come back, he will have to wait until Tongan falls! Moreover, he wants to defend Tongan County to the death.” Xiong Yi shook his head and said, “You go and worry about the navy. I will do the work of persuading the surrounding counties to send troops to rescue Tongan County. Even if it means losing face, we will put together an army.”

Watching Xiong Yi's hunched figure stagger down the city wall, Zhou Zheng felt a pang of sadness. He couldn't help but recall the spring when Jiang Qian had summoned him, He Jiong, Lin Yunqi, and others to the palace for a meeting. At that time, they were discussing how to take advantage of the chaos in Qin to diligently manage internal affairs, reorganize the army, and then seize the opportunity to march north to see if there was a chance to unify the world.

For hundreds of years, the State of Chu has played a role of self-preservation, while the State of Qin has been aggressively attacking. Why can't the situation be reversed?

In just half a year, the State of Chu has fallen to its current state.

Did i do something wrong?
Zhou Zheng lowered his head.

After leaving, Director Wang smashed the dock in Danyang to pieces, set off another rocket that ignited a raging fire, and then drove away.

Niu Er, who had been trembling with fear outside the city, finally returned home. Although he hadn't found any work today, he had brought back a small amount of rice on his way home. If he ate it sparingly, it would last him for about ten days.

Niu Er was happy when he opened the door to his home.

In the darkness of night, a figure stumbled onto the Danyang dock. Looking at the destroyed dock, the man knelt down with a thud and wept silently.

(End of this chapter)