knife

Chapter 65 The prologue begins
By turning Yan Sheng of Baoping Prefecture against the enemy, it would be equivalent to controlling the two largest rivers outside the pass, the Qingshui River and the Juma River. Possessing the Yan family's navy would mean greater tactical mobility, which would be a fatal blow to Linghu Ye outside the pass.

What will Linghu Ye do when he discovers that this land cannot be his support but will instead become a burden to him, given that he has an ambitious dream of using the area outside the Great Wall as a base to establish himself as a king and then to explore the glamorous world inside the Great Wall?
In order to protect this territory of the Qin state, a life-or-death struggle must be waged against the Yuan Dynasty.
That's a joke.

Linghu Ye did not want to become a sacrifice and wanted to remain on the chessboard as one of the players. His only option was to lead his troops back into the pass.

This is what is meant by "driving a tiger to devour a wolf."

When Linghu Ye, this fierce tiger, entered the pass, it was like pouring oil on the already raging fire of the Qin state. The fire would soon become uncontrollable, and the Qin state would complete its final journey amidst this raging flame.

For the Northern Yuan, this was a tremendous strategic victory.

The chaotic Qin Dynasty will become a hunting ground for the Yuan Dynasty.

Among those skilled at hunting in this hunting ground, only a handful are qualified to become true rivals of the Great Yuan.

Gro came in carrying a large, cleaned fish. Judging by its size, it probably weighed over ten pounds, but it was already frozen solid.

Gro wielded his knife with lightning speed, slicing off thin, cicada-wing-thin pieces of fish and arranging them neatly on a plate. The translucent fish meat, illuminated by the firelight, revealed even the fine lines on its surface.

Placing the plate in front of Tiele, Gro said, "Your Highness's plan is indeed far-sighted, but I think that although you have outmaneuvered Linghu Ye, people like Xiao Changche and Li Dachui will still be obstacles in our way."

"Do you think Xiao Changche won't retreat to the interior with Linghu Ye?" Lu He asked.

Tiele picked up a piece of fish and put it in his mouth, chewing slowly: "Xiao Changche's mere three thousand soldiers are not enough to shake the overall situation. Even if he is powerful on the battlefield, what good will it do? What if Wutu had arrived in time for that battle three years ago that made Astu lose face? What if we had been willing to save him back then?"

Luhe laughed heartily: "Your Highness is right. Astu is determined to stand by the Third Prince's side and makes things difficult for you at the drop of a hat. That battle made him lose his spirit. The Third Prince thought Astu could become a fierce tiger under his command, but in the end, he can only be a vicious dog."

"If you lack strength, what good is a military genius? You'll still have to kneel before me in the face of the big picture. One or two local victories can't change the overall trend, so Xiao Changche is nothing to fear. It's Li Dachui who's a bit unpredictable. We have far too little intelligence on him. Without understanding him, we can't formulate targeted measures. We really need to be careful with such an unstable factor."

“This person only caught our attention three years ago, but so far, all we’ve found is that he has some connection with Tai’an City.” Gro said with some frustration, “Just give me some more time. Before, this person was a venomous snake hiding in the shadows, but now, he’s a hungry wolf in the light. It’s not like there’s no way to find him now.”

Tiele nodded and said, "Hurry up and investigate. I don't want any variables I don't understand to appear in this big picture."

"Don't worry!" Gro glared at Ruch beside him, who was devouring fish sashimi. Most of the fish he had sliced ​​for himself had ended up in this glutton's stomach.

Ruhe chuckled, picked up a plate and stood up under Gro's murderous glare: "You keep His Highness company for a while, I'll go outside and check the security!"

Baoping Prefecture, Jixiang.

On the snow-covered mountaintop, a few people stood at the highest point, gazing at the wisps of smoke rising in the distance.

"Commander, we've investigated everything. Yan Ke and his men left the manor two days ago with a large shipment of grain and supplies, and are on their way to Bao Ping City. Currently, the manor is being guarded by Yan Ke's eldest son, Yan Shan, who is a fifth-rank martial artist. The highest-ranking martial artist remaining in the manor is a man named Zhou Huan, who practices external martial arts and can barely be considered a sixth-rank. There are also over three hundred guards in the manor. Yan Ke has taken away the main force of the manor. He probably never expected that we would raid his stronghold!" Han Qi, who was wrapped tightly in a white cloak, said smugly.

Gu Xiaoman raised the monocular telescope in her hand. It was made by a skilled craftsman that the young master had found, and it took several years to make. It was very expensive, but it was very effective for looking into the distance.

With the naked eye, one can only see wisps of smoke rising in the distance, but with this mirror, one can clearly see the layout of the entire manor and even distinguish some small moving black dots.

"We'll make our move after dark! We'll spend the night at the manor! It's freezing outside." Gu Xiaoman carefully tucked the monoculars into her bosom and nestled them close to her body before turning and heading down the mountain.

First, take down the manor, and then attack Yan Ke's troops.

He will be the one to begin the battle to subdue Yan Sheng of Bao Ping Prefecture.

This village in Jixiang is called Jizhuang.

The owner of Jizhuang is Yan Ke, the younger brother of Yan Sheng, the ruler of Baopingzhou.

Jixiang has the character "xiang" in its name, but it is actually a county.

Among the dozen or so counties under the jurisdiction of Baoping Prefecture, Jixiang is only of average to below-average size in terms of both population and area, and it is also far from Baoping City. However, it has one advantage: it is located at the foot of Helan Mountain. Although the Helan Mountain range where Jixiang is located is extremely treacherous, such treacherous places are also the most likely to produce rare and precious natural treasures.

The best quality medicinal herbs, such as aged ginseng and he shou wu, come from this area. Moreover, several villages and towns near Helan Mountain in Jixiang have unexpectedly succeeded in cultivating these precious herbs. Although they cannot compare to the aged herbs grown in the mountains, their appearance and quality are much better than those from outside the area when it comes to medicinal use.

This greatly increased Jixiang's importance.

So Yan Ke came here, and Jizhuang was built. The large amount of medicinal materials collected were stored in the manor for sorting. The best ones were naturally offered as tribute to Yan Sheng, the average ones were traded, and the worst ones were processed into various finished pills in the manor and then sold.

For the Yan family, Jizhuang was a continuous source of funds.

When Yan Ke went to Baoping City this time, he took most of the experts from the manor with him. Firstly, because the road was really not safe, ordinary bandits dared not easily provoke the Yan family. But there were always some reckless ones like Wild Wolf who specifically targeted the Yan family.

Among the goods this time was an extremely precious thousand-year-old ginseng, which Yan Sheng intended to present to a very distinguished guest. Other items, such as prepared medicines, could be stolen without consequence; at most, it would result in a loss of some silver. However, this thousand-year-old ginseng had been transplanted and cultivated within Jizhuang since its discovery. If it were stolen, it would be lost forever.

Therefore, not only did Yan Ke, a seventh-rank expert, personally take action, but he also brought most of the experts in the manor and a portion of the garrison from Ji Manor.

A cold wind howled, and the dark sky seemed to press down from above. Standing on the top of the watchtower, Yan Shan wrapped herself up tightly, with only her eyes showing.

Let alone someone with a fifth-grade cultivation level, even if they reached the eighth or ninth grade, what difference would it make? Without entering the Innate Realm, this alternation of hot and cold would still be unbearable.

“Young Master, it’s freezing cold. Who can stay out in the wild for too long? Isn’t that suicide?” Zhou Huan, standing next to Yan Shan, was holding an iron rod, wearing a dog-skin hat with long ear flaps hanging down and tightly fastened under his chin, while one of his noses was red from the cold. “The brothers patrolling the village and the lookouts are all very resentful. They’re freezing like dogs.”

Yan Shan glanced at Zhou Huan and snorted coldly, "Instructor Zhou, does the fact that my father isn't here mean you don't respect me anymore? My father made it very clear before he left that all precautions and security should be taken even more seriously than usual. Cold? How cold can it be? Can't you see I'm right here?"

Zhou Huan chuckled, looking at the dark outside the manor, and said, "Young Master is right. You've taken the lead, so those paid servants really have nothing to complain about. Of course, I wouldn't dare to disregard you, since I rely on the manor lord for my livelihood!"

"You know that much!" Yan Shan said coldly, "In Jizhuang, you can earn over a thousand taels of silver a year without doing anything. Where else can you find such a good deal? Is it possible in Tai'an City?"

“Of course not,” Zhou Huan said with a smile. “Why don’t you go to the watchtower to rest for a while and warm yourself by the fire, Young Master? I’ll keep watch here.”

"Mm!" Yan Shan tightened her cloak and nodded.

These江湖 (jianghu) men need to be kept on guard from time to time, otherwise people will really think they're something special!
He's only a sixth-rank official. A man in his early forties who's only a sixth-rank official has such a limited future.

For him, reaching the sixth rank was a sure thing, and the seventh rank wasn't out of the question.

Stepping into the watchtower, a warm atmosphere greets you. Sitting by the fireplace, I pick up the wine jug, pour myself a cup of wine, and drink it all in one gulp.

Zhou Huan stood by the door, his back slightly bent, extremely humble, but a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

Zhou Huan, who had just returned from his rounds, stepped into the watchtower and saw Yan Shan, who was leaning against a chair and fast asleep. A smile crept onto his lips. He walked straight up behind Yan Shan, held her head which was tilted to the left with both hands, and suddenly snapped it to the left. With a crack, Yan Shan's neck broke on the spot.

After doing all this, Zhou Huan arranged Yan Shan on a chair, walked out of the watchtower, and closed the door.

"Greetings, Instructor Zhou! Greetings, Instructor Zhou!" Many of the farmhands bowed and greeted Zhou Huan.

"Alright, alright, everyone go and rest for a while. The young master said that he understands everyone's hard work and will change the patrol to once every half hour." Zhou Huan waved his hand.

"Thank you, young master! Thank you, Instructor Zhou!" The servants were overjoyed.

Watching the servants walk away, Zhou Huan walked to the gate with a smile, removed the bolt, and then leisurely went back up the gate tower to the roundabout where the drawbridge was secured.

In the darkness in the distance, three red dots bloomed one after another.

Zhou Huan picked up a large axe from the side and gestured with it.

Suddenly, amidst the howling cold wind, the sound of rapid hoofbeats rang out, and Zhou Huan raised his axe high and chopped it down with force.

The high suspension bridge crashed down.

(End of this chapter)