Longzang

Chapter 756 The time has come
In the winter of the sixth year of the Tianqi reign, Li Chengfeng of the Zhao Kingdom mobilized an army of 100,000 men. Within a month, they marched 7,000 li (approximately 3,500 kilometers), winning nine battles in a row. They advanced straight into Hanyang Pass, besieged the city for half a month, and finally captured Hanyang Pass in one fell swoop, shaking the world.

When the princes and princesses of Zhao heard about this, they all said that their personalities had changed drastically. In particular, the sixth prince, who had been the one who had led the surprise attack on Hanyang Pass and resulted in the annihilation of his entire army, had accidentally killed several maids.

The Crown Prince was training troops in the rear, but upon hearing the news, he abandoned his training and rushed back to the front lines overnight to personally command the offensive against Yun and Xiang prefectures.

The fall of Hanyang Pass sent shockwaves through the Western Jin court and the public. It meant the western gateway was closed, and the territory of Dingxi Jiedushi, the most powerful regional military governor, was now isolated outside Jin territory. At this time, Jin was surrounded on three sides, with Eastern Jin to the east.

The three Jin states had been fighting to the death for the legitimacy of the Great Jin. The Eastern Jin was already being polite by not taking advantage of the situation to send troops. Even if the situation in the Western Jin was in a state of disarray, the 500,000 troops stationed on the eastern border did not dare to make a move.

When news of the fall of Hanyang Pass reached the capital of Jin, the King of Jin immediately convened an emergency court meeting at dusk, an unprecedented move, to discuss the matter.

Once all the officials had arrived, the Prince of Jin threw the map directly in front of the Right Chancellor and rebuked him: "You've been in charge of military affairs for twenty years, and this is how you've managed them?! You couldn't even defend the east, and the first strategic pass in the west was taken by 100,000 Zhao soldiers. Even if I had a dog tied to your position, I wouldn't have done any worse!"

The Right Chancellor's face turned ashen; he had never expected the Prince of Jin to be so ruthless.

At this moment, the Left Chancellor stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger! The fault lies with Wei Yuan. The Zhao army marched right under his nose, yet he remained inactive, which is truly suspicious of colluding with the enemy! I request Your Majesty to issue an edict ordering Wei Yuan to recover the lost territory within one month, or else bring him to the capital for punishment!"

Prince Jin narrowed his eyes, scanning the assembled civil and military officials. He noticed that the officials' expressions were unusual, but clearly not out of fear or respect. Prince Jin knew that if he pressed further, the entire court would likely kneel down to plead for the Right Chancellor and persuade him to retract his order.

The Prince of Jin suddenly thought: What if I insist on beating the Right Chancellor to death in court?
He glanced at the guards standing outside the hall out of the corner of his eye, and already knew the answer in his heart: the guard commander would definitely drag his feet and delay, and then the officials would continue to plead. If he didn't give them face... then he would have no choice but to take action himself.

The Prince of Jin closed his eyes slightly, as if he saw himself descending the steps with his sword, personally beheading the Right Chancellor. Then, the officials tried to stop him, some grabbing his waist, others pulling his hands. In the chaos, he suddenly felt a pain in his body, then lost consciousness, fell headfirst, and hit his head, bleeding profusely.

Finally, the imperial physician arrived, but to no avail. He announced that he had died from a sudden attack of anger. The ministers then installed a young emperor, and several ministers appointed themselves regents to oversee state affairs.

As for the young emperor… Prince Jin suddenly thought of Prince Fu.

The thought sent a chill down his spine, and he couldn't help but wonder: Could it be that he is also like that?
"Holy King, Holy King?" Several calls brought the Prince of Jin back to reality.

The Prince of Jin opened his eyes and said wearily, "I haven't slept much these past few days, and I'm quite exhausted. Let's continue our discussion. What is Wei Yuan doing right now?"

A military officer in charge of intelligence reported, "Your Majesty, Wei Yuan is refining elixirs."

"Alchemy?" The Prince of Jin was greatly surprised, and the civil officials, including the Left and Right Chancellors, were also astonished.

The military officer said, "For the past two months, Wei Yuan has been staying at home, refining pills. He has already opened three furnaces of Great Sun Rising Pills, and each furnace has produced extraordinary phenomena. The last furnace even attracted a heavenly tribulation. It is said that Wei Yuan has an exceptional talent for alchemy, far surpassing his peers in the Creation Temple. The master of the Creation Temple intends to pass on the position of master to him."

The Prince of Jin asked in surprise, "Is Wei Yuan so skilled in alchemy? Could it be that the longevity pill he presented last time was something he refined himself?"

Some of the old ministers in the hall had strange expressions. If Wei Yuan had refined the longevity pill himself, wouldn't there be a second one if there was one?
The Prince of Jin composed himself and said, "The defenses in the south are in disarray, that is a fact. The Right Chancellor has been overworked lately, so I grant you a year's leave, and all your duties will be taken over by Lü Zhongzhi. Furthermore, issue an edict to Wei Yuan, ordering him to immediately send troops to recapture Hanyang Pass, without fail!"

The Left Prime Minister's long eyebrows twitched slightly, but this time he did not object. The Right Prime Minister thanked him for his kindness, returned to his position as the head of the military officers, stared at his toes, and said nothing more.

A moment later, the court session ended, and the Left and Right Chancellors walked side by side. The Left Chancellor suddenly said, "If it weren't for his alchemy, I would have almost forgotten that he has extraordinary talent and is destined to walk the path of immortality."

The Right Chancellor nodded. Wei Yuan would eventually relinquish worldly ties and embark on the path of immortality; he was fundamentally different from them. Why provoke him now?
Standing atop Hanyang Pass, Li Chengfeng looked westward and saw the setting sun like blood, its rays casting a golden glow upon the vast green sea below, as if draping the earth in a golden-red cloak.

He was in high spirits and had an urge to let out a long howl. He also wanted to compose a poem, which he titled "Feelings on Li Chengfeng's Ascent of Hanyang Pass".

Suddenly, a black dot appeared on the horizon. Li Chengfeng rubbed his eyes and looked closely, realizing he wasn't seeing things; a person was indeed flying towards him. This person was incredibly fast, arriving in front of him in the blink of an eye.

The guards were shocked and drew their swords, but when they saw that the person who came was Wei Yuan, they put their swords back.

Li Chengfeng waved his hand, ordering all the guards to step back, and said, "Brother Wei, what advice do you have for me?"

As he said this, Li Chengfeng kept repeating to himself: This guy is over two hundred years old, this title is not shameful, not shameful... But even so, his face still felt a little hot.

Wei Yuan asked, "What were the losses during the siege?"

"There were no major losses. There were only 20,000 to 30,000 defenders in the city, mostly new recruits or local militia. I besieged the city for half a month, and they surrendered. The total number of casualties was less than 3,000."

Wei Yuan said, "Indeed, the record is indeed brilliant."

Li Chengfeng gave a wry smile and said, "The Xu family hasn't sent any heavy troops to garrison this place. So far, their main force hasn't made a move. I'm currently focusing on building up the city's defenses. I don't know when this place will be surrounded by the Xu family's main force."

Wei Yuan said, "Take all the valuables in the city, just sell the refugees and prisoners of war to me. I don't want people with homes or legitimate businesses in the city." "Brother Wei, if you want them, just take them. It would seem like we're being distant if you don't sell them. Of course, it would be even better if they could help us pay off some of our debts."

Wei Yuan said, "Of course we can withstand it. But do you plan to stay here long-term?"

Li Chengfeng's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Brother Wei, what advice do you have for me?"

"The land has been conquered, the reputation has been established, and your strength has not been damaged. Isn't this the best outcome? As for defending the territory, it would be better to leave it to someone else, such as one of your brothers or sisters whom you don't like. After all, you have blocked my path and divided me and the tens of thousands of troops stationed in Jin in two."

Li Chengfeng immediately realized what was happening and broke out in a cold sweat. He hurriedly asked, "This operation will take some time. How much longer do I have?"

Wei Yuan laughed and said, "I still have several batches of pills to finish refining, which will take at least three months, probably after the New Year. During these months, don't be idle. Go out and explore the surrounding areas, such as Huangping County, and help me find more refugees. However, there may be a few tough battles to fight in Huangping County, so you need to prepare early."

Li Chengfeng, however, was not afraid and sneered, "Those private troops of the Xu family? I'm not bragging, but it would be too much of an insult to them to fight them one-on-one."

Wei Yuan laughed and said, "If you don't fight with unstoppable momentum, who among your brothers and sisters will dare to come and meet you?"

"And then what happened?"

Wei Yuan smiled slightly but did not answer.

After Wei Yuan left, Li Chengfeng immediately summoned his generals and divided them into several units, each with three thousand men, which were then dispersed in all directions to raid counties and prefectures.

Wherever they went, they plundered all the grain and fodder. If they couldn't take it with them, they burned it. In short, the army left neither food nor houses in its wake. If they encountered strong resistance or the main force of the Jin army retreated, Li Chengfeng would lead the main force to meet them.

This order was quite strange, and the generals were puzzled by Li Chengfeng's intentions, but they still carried it out.

The New Year has arrived in the blink of an eye.

This year's New Year in the Western Regions was extremely bleak, with war raging everywhere, people displaced, cities engulfed in flames, and countless refugees, dressed in thin clothes, trudging through thick snow towards Qingming. Rumors had already spread far and wide that once they reached Qingming, at least they would have something to eat.

Many people still have Qingming porridge tickets. In the five southwestern prefectures, these porridge tickets can be exchanged for small amounts of food from the Qingming army, making them more useful than immortal silver.

Li Chengfeng was a truly capable man. Leading his army against the elders of the Xu family, he defeated them one by one, dividing the Xu family's forces scattered across various cities and annihilating them piecemeal. Two months later, he had occupied most of Hanyang County and half of Huangping County. The Jin army and the main force of the Xu family's private army in the two counties suffered heavy losses and were no longer able to fight.

At Li Chengfeng's insistence, and specifically by name, the Sixth Princess of Zhao finally arrived with an army of 200,000 to take over the defense of the two prefectures. The Sixth Princess and the Crown Prince were siblings from the same mother; she was well-versed in military strategy and had repeatedly distinguished herself in battle.

The two sides met in a small town on the outskirts of Huangping County, each bringing their fully armed guards, and confronted each other.

Li Chengfeng took the lead and walked to the center of the two armies, smiling and saying, "It's been a long time, Sixth Sister, you're as charming as ever!"

Opposite him stood a female general in full armor, extremely beautiful, but also exuding a murderous aura. She said, "Fourth Brother has directly called my name. If I hadn't come, Father might have married me off. I will definitely repay Fourth Brother's kindness in the future!"

Li Chengfeng smiled and said, "Sixth Sister, you're too kind. There's no need to repay me; it's what I should do. Being able to cause you two siblings some trouble is my greatest reward. Oh, by the way, there are many unruly people in these two counties. You must be careful. If you are defeated and captured, and fall into the hands of the enemy, and have several children, you won't even be able to get married in the future."

The Sixth Princess coldly replied, "If you can conquer it, I can defend it!"

Li Chengfeng laughed and said, "Sixth Sister, you're known for being all talk and no action. You might not be able to hold onto the places I conquer!"

The meeting between the two was filled with hostility; they couldn't agree on anything and after exchanging sarcastic remarks, Li Chengfeng threw her a map and led his troops away.

The map indicated the evacuation time for each city, with the entire evacuation taking no more than three days. The Sixth Princess immediately divided her troops and marched at full speed, barely managing to arrive at each city before Li Chengfeng's troops withdrew and take over the defense of the cities.

In the past three months, the Prince of Jin issued twelve imperial edicts urging Wei Yuan to send troops, but Wei Yuan remained in seclusion to refine elixirs and did not even glance at the edicts.

Now he's getting more and more skilled at refining the Great Sun Rising Pill. Every time he opens a furnace, there's a heavenly tribulation. He produces many spirit pills with three or four patterns, and even several five-patterned profound pills. In three months, Wei Yuan has endured seven heavenly tribulations, leaving him scorched on the outside and tender on the inside.

Although Wei Yuan was free, Qingming was extremely busy. Li Chengfeng was quite capable of causing trouble, and his plundering was so extensive that a large number of people in the two counties became refugees and fled to Qingming.

In the first three months alone, more than three million refugees were received from the two counties of Xujia, and a total of two million were received from the three counties of Xiangrong and others.

In the seventh year of the Tianqi era, Qingming already had a population of thirteen million. Wei Yuan assessed his own fortune and saw that his human fortune and azure energy had exceeded two million. Knowing that the time was ripe, he decided to reopen the fragments of the world.

(End of this chapter)