knife

Chapter 716: Death
"Cui Ming is gone?"

Li Guohua couldn't hide the shock on his face when he saw Cui Tu from the fourth branch of the Cui family come to deliver the news, and Yang Rong, who was standing to the side, suddenly stood up.

Cui Ming is a master of innate skill, one of the few people standing at the pinnacle of this world.

But now, it has died so easily.

"The patriarch first fought a fierce battle with Zhou Zhi at Yangguan, and then during the breakout process, he was besieged by Li Dachui and Xiao Changche. Although he managed to break out with all his might, he was seriously injured. After returning, he only had time to make some arrangements for the clan before he passed away!" Cui Tu lowered his head and said sadly.

"Is Cui Shu in charge of things at the old house now?"

“Yes, the patriarch had already decided that my second brother would succeed him. Now that the patriarch has passed away, it is only natural for my second brother to take over. There are no objections from the clan!” Cui Tu nodded.

After pondering for a moment, Li Guohua nodded and asked, "What are Cui Shu's plans next?"

"Second Brother means that we are in a critical situation right now, and the enemy from beyond the pass may soon enter. With such a formidable enemy at hand, we should not hold a grand celebration for the sake of the overall situation!"

“Even if it’s a simple ceremony, we still have to go and pay our respects!” Li Guohua looked at Yang Rong: “What do you say, Lord Yang?”

"Of course I must go and say goodbye to my old brother!" Yang Rong sighed, feeling a sense of shared sorrow.

"On behalf of the Cui family, Cui Tu, on behalf of the family, expresses our gratitude to the General and Lord Yang. I will now return home!" Cui Tu bowed and said, "The Cui family will hold a funeral in ten days!"

Li Guohua personally saw Cui Tu off at the gate. Watching Cui Tu's hurried departure, Li Guohua remained silent for a long time.

"This is too sudden!" Yang Rong sighed from behind. "With Cui Ming's death, our hope of holding onto Boling County has diminished even further! Cui Shu doesn't have Cui Ming's prestige, so it's unlikely he can unite the Cui family into a cohesive unit. Didn't the third and fifth branches of the Cui family send quite a few people to Nanyang a few days ago?"

“Indeed, there is such a risk!” Li Guohua turned around, his expression also somewhat solemn. “With the loss of Huxiaoyuan, Boling County is already in grave danger. I originally only planned to hold out for three to five months, but now that Cui Ming is dead, we can’t count on the Cui family at all. It would be good enough if they didn’t cause any more trouble!”

"Are you worried about infighting within the Cui family?"

“Possibly!” Li Guohua nodded and said, “If Cui Shu hadn’t been seriously injured by Li Dachui, he could have taken control of the Cui family. But now he certainly can’t maintain his Innate Realm. Meanwhile, Cui Cheng has established himself in Dongdu. The fact that the third and fifth branches of the Cui family went to Nanyang was arranged by Cui Ming. This means that Cui Ming has other ideas about the matter of the family head. This is certainly not a secret in the Cui family.”

“If anything goes wrong, it will most likely happen at Cui Ming’s funeral,” Yang Rong said. “It’s likely that Cui Shu’s succession as head of the family will be announced at the funeral. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be a done deal. Cui Cheng is far away in Luoyang, the eastern capital, and can’t do anything about it, so he will definitely let his supporters cause trouble!”

"We can't let them cause trouble!" Li Guohua said decisively. "So we have to go and keep things quiet!"

"Does the General support Cui Shu?"

"It doesn't matter who I support at all!" Li Guohua shook his head and said, "I just need Boling County to stabilize now so that I can hold it for a few more months, allowing Chang'an to prepare. Shanggu, Yuyang, and Hetao all need time to prepare for war. As for what happens after I leave Boling County, will it still matter if Cui Shu and Cui Cheng start fighting over who will be the general?"

Yang Rong nodded; indeed, it was no longer important. Once they left Boling County, their stronghold, the Cui family's importance would immediately diminish significantly. Even if the Cui family could rebuild their army, so what?
It is just a guest army. In the future, it will be moving around and will have to rely on the imperial court for money, food and military pay. Once it cannot control its own money and food, what autonomy can it talk about?

From this perspective, Cui Cheng may actually have the upper hand in the future battle for the position of family head.

"I'm going to have a serious talk with Cui Shu in ten days!" Li Guohua said. "If he's on the right track, then it's not impossible for me to support him from now on!"

Yang Rong was silent for a moment, then smiled wryly and said, "The General also tells me about such things?"

Yang Rong remained silent because Li Guohua's ambition to reorganize the private armies of powerful families and even annex them was already obvious.

In the past, Yang Rong would have definitely objected, but after witnessing the bravery of the cavalry from beyond the Great Wall and the strength of Li Dachui and Xiao Changche, Yang Rong felt that if everyone continued to fight on their own, the final outcome would likely be dire.

He understood the principle that if the skin is gone, what will the hair cling to?

"Master Yang, if we don't change now, we'll have no chance!" Li Guohua said in a deep voice. "This defeat was devastating, but it may also be a new starting point for us to get back on track. We cannot afford to fail. As long as we can learn from our failures, regroup, and regain our former glory, then this defeat will have been worthwhile, and even fortunate for me!"

"I'm afraid the general's wish will not come true!" Yang Rong said, "First, you helped him fight against the powerful army outside the pass in Boling County, and then after abandoning this place, you want to reorganize their forces. No one would be happy about that! When Cui Ming was still alive, he began to arrange for people to be transferred to Nanyang. Wasn't he just guarding against this move by the general? Although Cui Shu is not as good as his father, he is not easy to deal with either, is he?"

“If Cui Ming were alive, I really couldn’t use force! His prestige and connections would have been enough to incite most people to oppose me,” Li Guohua said calmly. “But if he were dead, things would be much easier! If Cui Shu is unwilling, Cui Cheng might be!”

“The rivalry between these two brothers can indeed be exploited!” Yang Rong nodded.

"Master Yang, let's go to mourn together in ten days."

"Traveling light and simply?"

“Of course not. Cui Minghao has been a hero all his life, we have to give him face. We’ll take three thousand elite troops to bolster his reputation!” Li Guohua said.

Yang Rong couldn't help but chuckle. This wasn't about building up momentum; it was about using force to intimidate others.

Most of the Cui family's five thousand armored men were either killed, wounded, or captured under Yangguan Pass. Although they were desperately trying to build a new army, could these hastily assembled recruits compare to veterans? I'm afraid that once Li Guohua's battle-hardened elite troops were deployed, the core figures of the Cui family would be the first to wilted.

Without the protection of strong military force, the Cui family's wealth is a sin, especially given that Li Guohua has decided to abandon Boling County. If they really fall out with Li Guohua, he is capable of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.

The value of this chicken will decrease over time, so swallowing it now won't necessarily result in much loss.

(End of this chapter)