Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 410 Let's skip a grade, A-Yuan!

After Wei Fang left, Chen Qingzhi praised Ren Yuan, saying, "A Yuan, you have done a great service again this time."

"It's all what I should do," Ren Yuan said softly. "Actually, it was just good luck. If I had come a day later, things wouldn't have ended so easily."

"Luck is also part of strength," Chen Qingzhi laughed. "That just means you're my lucky charm."

"Commander Chen, you flatter me..." Ren Yuan smiled, then said seriously, "I didn't expect the army to be in such chaos after only a year without a commander."

“That’s normal. Soldiers and bandits are not much different.” Chen Qingzhi said in a deep voice, “That’s why the army must be strictly disciplined and trained diligently.”

"Yes, and we need to properly reorganize and train them before we can bring these 100,000 troops to the battlefield," Ren Yuan said softly.

“You’re right.” Chen Qingzhi nodded, then changed the subject, “But there’s no time.”

"Oh." Ren Yuan looked at Chen Qingzhi in surprise and whispered, "Commander Chen, are you planning to finish this quickly this time?"

“That’s right.” Chen Qingzhi nodded and said, “The battle of Pengcheng cannot be rushed, and the battle of Shouyang cannot be delayed. We must take advantage of the enemy’s ignorance of our change of commander and their belief that we are still leaderless and disorganized to launch a sudden attack, so as to catch them off guard and strike when they are unprepared.”

"But according to Lao Yu and his team's reconnaissance, Li Xian has ordered his son Li Changjun to rebuild Shuangchengzhai, a strategic pass outside Shouyang City, to control the Huai River and the key land route, similar to the role of Shitoucheng in Jiankang." Having been busy putting out the fire, Ren Yuan finally had time to report the military intelligence he had gathered to Chen Qingzhi.

"So if we want to attack Shouyang, we must first take Shuangcheng. But once we take Shuangcheng, Shouyang will be alerted. How can we catch them off guard and launch a surprise attack?" he asked, puzzled.

"What I mean by catching them off guard is catching Shuangcheng Village off guard," Chen Qingzhi replied with a smile.

“That is hopeful.” Ren Yuan nodded, still puzzled, “But Shouyang City has long been fortified. Taking Shuangcheng Village is necessary, but it probably won’t make the attack on Shouyang any easier.”

"We can't be so absolute," Chen Qingzhi said with a faint smile. "We still have a trump card to play."

"What trump card?" Ren Yuan asked hurriedly.

“Yuan Jian, who surrendered earlier, is Li Xian’s son-in-law…” Chen Qingzhi answered softly.

"Really? There's this connection too." Ren Yuan exclaimed with delight, "If Yuan Jian is willing to help, we can pretend to be defeated soldiers and 'escape' with him to Shouyang, thus gaining entry to the city gates!"

“Ah Yuan is indeed clever, he understands immediately.” Chen Qingzhi changed the subject and said, “But the problem is, it has been more than a month since the Battle of Pengcheng. The news of Yuan Jian’s defeat and capture has probably already reached Shouyang.”

"It's alright..." Ren Yuan thought for a moment and said, "The two places are far apart. Even if there is news in Shouyang, it has been passed around several times. A simple 'rumor' can be used to cover it up."

"Then how do you explain that it took more than forty days to travel a distance of four or five hundred li?" Chen Qingzhi asked. "He was fleeing for his life, not taking a walk."

“That’s easy to explain.” Ren Yuan continued, “We said we wanted to lead our troops back to Shandong, but our retreat route has been blocked by Du Luozhou. We can’t defeat him, so we have no choice but to come and seek refuge with my father-in-law.”

"You're quite good at making things up," Chen Qingzhi couldn't help but laugh. "But all of this is just one side of the story. They'll only believe you if the other party is willing to believe you."

“Li Xian is suspicious, and it’s wartime, so he’s not so easy to fool.” He paused and continued, “Besides Shuangcheng Village, there are several other fortresses protecting Shouyang. I think he’ll probably send Yuan Jian to garrison those places and won’t let his army into the city rashly.” “Then there’s no point…” Ren Yuan sighed softly, “A son-in-law is not a son after all, and Li Xian certainly won’t take too many risks for Yuan Jian.”

"So we need to launch a surprise attack on Shuangcheng Village first and take his son's city!" Chen Qingzhi said in a deep voice, "Then let Yuan Jian rescue his son when the city falls, and see if Li Xian will open the city gates!"

“That way, Li Xian will definitely not suspect him!” Ren Yuan clapped his hands and said, “There is no reason to let the son who has suffered a crushing defeat enter the city, but to let the son-in-law who just saved the son be stationed outside the city.”

“That makes sense,” Chen Qingzhi said with a smile. “The only problem now is that we can’t get Yuan Jian to cooperate.”

"..." Ren Yuan's smile froze instantly. Why were you making such a fuss just now?

"So I want you to impersonate Yuan Jian to gain the trust of him and his son." Chen Qingzhi smiled, then said seriously, "Of course, this mission is very dangerous, and you can refuse."

“I’m not afraid of danger, but I’m afraid I can’t hide it from Li Xian and his son. After all, they are family…” Ren Yuan said solemnly.

"It's alright," Chen Qingzhi said. "Your illusion magic is best at deceiving people and fooling them. Yuan Jian is a prince, and his relationship with Li Xian and his son is far from close."

He paused for a moment, then continued, “I specifically asked Yuan Jian, and he only met his father-in-law a few times before and after the wedding. After that, he served as an official in two different places and only corresponded with him through letters. So as long as you find out the basic situation of their family, you still have a good chance of fooling them for a while.”

"Understood, then I have no problem," Ren Yuan said readily.

"Alright, go back to Jiankang now and observe Yuan Jian's words and actions carefully. Try to get as much information from him as possible to make it seem convincing," Chen Qingzhi ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Ren Yuan hurriedly replied loudly.

"Also, take advantage of your return to the capital to further improve your strength," Chen Qingzhi instructed him. "Although it's already quite impressive to have reached the Great Divine Power level in such a short time, mastering the Supreme Divine Power as soon as possible will give you the ability to protect yourself."

“Yes.” Ren Yuan nodded with a wry smile, deeply agreeing. “Back in the countryside, I thought that having four or five orifices was already an unparalleled master, but now that I’ve experienced the power of a demigod, I realize that even with nine orifices, one is still just a mortal with flesh and blood.”

"You have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time," Chen Qingzhi comforted him. "Those who truly rely on their own hard work to hone their Nine Apertures can actually escape from the hands of a demigod. Only those like Xiao Hong and Yuan Jian, who rely solely on external alchemy and have no real combat experience, can be easily subdued by a demigod."

“I wanted you to take things one step at a time and build a solid foundation, but time waits for no one…” Chen Qingzhi sighed meaningfully.

"Fortunately, you already have enough combat experience, unlike them who possess extraordinary abilities but can't unleash their true strength." Chen Qingzhi patted his shoulder and said softly:

“Let’s all do it, Yuan.”

"Don't worry, Commander Chen." At this moment, Ren Yuan simply thought he was stating the facts and didn't know that Chen Qingzhi's heavy sigh had a deeper meaning. So he answered very decisively: "I will definitely not let you down."

"Okay, I believe you." Chen Qingzhi nodded with satisfaction.

End of this volume

(End of this chapter)