knife

Chapter 731: He who knows the current affairs is a hero
Chang Sheng stood atop the city wall of Boling County, looking out at the vast expanse of white land, his eyes filled with bewilderment and helplessness.

Just yesterday, the alarm suddenly came.

The Lu family's army in Fanyang, numbering between ten and twenty thousand, had crossed Huxiao Plain and was approaching from the south of Boling County. At the same time, the Beiting Protectorate's army, numbering over twenty thousand, was also rapidly heading towards Boling County from the direction of Yangguan.

The Yangguang forces only numbered a little over 30,000. Although they won the last battle of Yangguan, they certainly suffered a lot of casualties. But this time, they actually mobilized more than 20,000 men at once, which is almost like mobilizing their entire force!
Although it was expected that the Beiting Protectorate army would launch a counterattack after the defeat at Yangguan, no one expected it to happen so quickly!

It was originally estimated that they would need to gather reinforcements, provisions, and weapons from various places outside the pass, and even if everything was prepared, it would take more than a month.

But in the blink of an eye, they attacked. Don't their troops need to eat? Don't they need to replenish their weapons? Don't they need to rest?
Chang Sheng couldn't understand it.

"Is there still no news from the General?" Chang Sheng felt a surge of irritation as he watched a flock of sparrows fly in from afar.

Needless to say, this situation only proves that the enemy is getting closer and closer.

“Prefect Chang, what about the garrison in Caodian, Shayang, Shilin and other places? The enemy has mobilized such a large force, and these places are only guarded by a little over a thousand men. Although they have built strong fortresses, we need strong guerrilla forces to support them. Now the general has taken all the guerrilla forces away. Without support, these places will definitely not be able to be defended!” said an old general with graying hair.

"Make them all retreat!" Chang Sheng pounded the city wall hard and said, "These few thousand men are one of the strongest troops in our Boling County. We can't let the enemy defeat them one by one. If we bring them back, they can play a greater role."

"Good!" the old general said with a smile, waving his hand. Several scouts who had been waiting there immediately disembarked, mounted their horses, and galloped out of the city.

"What happened to the General?" Chang Sheng asked again.

"I wonder, Prefect, will something have happened to the General?" The old general was somewhat worried: "The Cui family's old residence is well-fortified, and the Cui family has many skilled fighters."

"In the eyes of the General, the Cui family is nothing more than a chicken or a dog!" Chang Sheng said dismissively.

"But if that's the case, why hasn't the General made any move even though the enemy has launched a massive invasion?"

"Perhaps the general is plotting how to crush the enemy in one fell swoop! Zhang Yan, I remember you're from Guanzhong, right?"

The veteran Zhang Yan understood Chang Sheng's meaning and said with a bitter smile, "Prefect, I have served in Boling for many years. Before Prefect Linghu came, I was just a paid employee who didn't do any work. I wasn't required to do any work. If I really wanted to do something, I would be punished. After more than ten years, I'm useless!"

"Crippled? I don't think so. A peak eighth-grade Xuan Yuan cultivation level is quite a figure in Boling!"

"There's not much to do, so I just practice martial arts!" Zhang Yan shook his head and said, "That's the limit. Unlike you, Prefect Chang, who is young and still has the opportunity to break through to the ninth rank of the Profound Origin Realm. Once you break through to the ninth rank, it will be a whole new world!"

"Now is the time to make a name for ourselves!" Chang Sheng glanced at Zhang Yan and said, "General Zhang is not old. If we can stop the attack of the Beiting Protectorate this time, it will be a great achievement. It is not impossible for General Zhang to be transferred back to the interior!"

Zhang Yan smiled and said, "I've been here for so many years, I've long since settled down here, so whether I go back or not doesn't really matter."

“That’s still different. If you make a contribution and get promoted, you should naturally return home in glory. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be like wearing fine clothes in the dark?” Chang Sheng said, “I grew up outside the pass, but my father was from Huazhou. When my father died, he told me that when we enter the pass and Commander Linghu becomes the emperor, we must go back to our hometown in Huazhou to pay respects to our ancestors!”

"Now that Prefect Chang has said that, I am truly tempted!" Zhang Yan looked at Chang Sheng and flattered him, but he was still very worried.

The situation is very bad right now!
First, Linghu Zhishu died at Huxiao Plain.

He was a very capable man, young but extremely popular with everyone, yet he died so easily. Cui Ming used to be a god in Boling County, and he died just like that.

And those heroes who marched proudly and confidently toward Yangguan Pass were instantly killed and wounded.

Li Zhengtai was a master of the Guanzhong Li clan, and they couldn't even retrieve his body.

Chang Sheng makes it sound so easy, but can he really win?

He was actually quite nervous inside, but he was only saying these things to boost morale! Just by looking at the other person's expression, he knew that the situation was probably not good.

As darkness fell, the armies of Caodian, Shayang, and Shilin all withdrew. The news they brought back puzzled the people in the county town, because the enemy who came from Yangguan was moving very slowly, showing no intention of speed. On the other hand, the Lu clan's army from Huxiaoyuan was getting closer and closer to them.

The change occurred around midnight. At that time, Zhang Yan was directing the able-bodied men and auxiliary troops in the northern part of the city to reinforce the walls. The army from the south, led by the Lu family of Fanyang, was nothing special, not much stronger than the army from Boling. But the army from the Northern Protectorate of Beiting was a deadly force.

Digging deeper trenches and building higher walls might save my life someday.

Zhang Yan worked diligently.

Until his son rushed to his side in a great hurry.

"Father, Chang Sheng has escaped!"

"Huh?" Zhang Yan didn't react immediately: "Who ran away?"

"Invincible!"

"Why did he run away?" Zhang Yan was dumbfounded. During the day, Chang Sheng was still lecturing him to work hard, strive to be ennobled and promoted, and then return to his hometown to bring glory to his ancestors!

“I heard that the General suffered a great defeat at the Cui family’s old residence. He was routed by the combined forces of Protector Li of Beiting and the Cui family. When Chang Sheng and the others received the news, they packed up their belongings and fled from the South City. Now the South City is in complete chaos. Father, we have to run too.”

"Where do you think you're going?" Zhang Yan grabbed his helmet. "We might escape, but what about your parents, your wife and kids? It's freezing cold, do you think you can survive running out there? Besides, what's the strongest thing about the Beiting Protectorate? Cavalry. Abandoning the city and fleeing in front of them is suicide!"

"Then what do we do? Defend the city?"

Zhang Yan paced around in circles for a few moments, then suddenly stomped his foot and said, "Damn it, soldiers get paid, so what difference does it make who we serve! You immediately gather all the troops we can control, and I'll go find those old brothers from the other divisions to see if we can take control of the county town."

"Surrender?"

"What do you think? Are we going to fight to the death?"

"That can't be done!"

(End of this chapter)