The emperor would rather have a

Chapter 136 Zuo Ling'er

"That's right!" "Exactly!" "Let's beat that son of a bitch who joined the Shu army..."

The generals were immediately filled with righteous indignation, all shouting to drive the Shu army back. The battle went smoothly from beginning to end, and the Qin and Feng Shu armies were routed like clay chickens and earthenware dogs.

No one thought it would be too difficult to attack the Shu army at Qingni Ridge. They all felt it was an easy victory and that it was a good opportunity to take it!

Besides, we can all go back to Tokyo after the battle, so what's there to hesitate about?
Even Pan Mei was eager. Since the start of the war, he had been following the vanguard without gaining any merit. Seeing that this was his last chance to earn credit, he didn't want to miss it… As for whether they could win or not, what was there to fear with Commander Li in charge!
Seeing the high morale of the crowd, Li Yi felt much more confident and nodded, saying, "I also think we should take the initiative and drive these Shu troops back, so that they will never dare to set foot in the four provinces of Qin and Feng again."

At this point, he looked around at his generals and said frankly, "But this is just my personal idea, not the court's plan. I haven't even told Commander Wang yet. Although I am very confident in this plan, it hasn't been implemented yet, so I can't guarantee that it will succeed."

"However, if we can defeat the Shu army north of Qingni Ridge and remove the threat that Shu poses to the four prefectures of Qin and Feng, the court will certainly not pursue the matter, and the merits that deserve them will not be less."

Li Yi explained the pros and cons and then fell silent. Li Hanchao, as his own brother, was the first to speak up in support, saying, "This humble general believes that this plan will definitely succeed. Commander Li has led the brothers all the way here, and when have we ever suffered a loss? Don't you agree?"

Upon hearing this, everyone agreed, shouting for battle and wishing they could fly over Qingni Ridge immediately to wipe out the Shu army.

Seeing that none of the generals objected, Li Yi walked to the map, pointed in the direction of Qingni Ridge, and said, "According to the mountain people, there is a small path leading south of Qingni Ridge that can bypass the area to the back of Qingni Ridge."

"The Shu army is now terrified. Most of the Shu troops who retreated to Qingni Ridge have deserted. Now only the Imperial Guards sent by Shu are of any use, and there are at most three thousand of them."

"If we advance from here, and our advance is less than a hundred li, we can cut off the retreat route of the Shu army at Qingni Ridge and annihilate this force north of Qingni Ridge."

"As for the time of departure, it will be set for the morning of the day after tomorrow. Each unit only needs to carry three days' worth of provisions, which will be enough for the round trip."

The attack plan was quickly finalized. This kind of surprise attack was all about speed and efficiency, without having to worry too much about logistics. The most important thing was to have the belief that victory was certain.

After the generals dispersed, Li Yi breathed a sigh of relief and then sat down in his chair. His tactics in this campaign against Shu had been consistently risky, but also very effective. After all, only risky strategies could achieve a swift victory.

As the facts have proven, Li Yi won one or two key battles in a very short period of time, completely crushing the will of the Qin and Feng Shu armies, which led to the current situation.

The same applies to the Shu army at Qingni Ridge. We must crush the last vestiges of hope of the Shu court with overwhelming force, forcing the Shu army to obediently stay on the Xingzhou front and not dare to have any further thoughts about Qin, Feng, and the other four prefectures.

Just then, Li Yi suddenly remembered that he had been so busy arranging the battle that he had forgotten about Zuo Ling'er, who was in the inner room. The little girl was still wearing wet clothes.

He quickly summoned his personal guards and ordered them to go to the homes of nearby villagers and buy a set of clothes for his concubine, new or old, it didn't matter.

Li Yi's residence was the main barracks of the military camp, with his bedroom and the council hall connected together, separated only by a corridor and two walls.

When he turned around and entered the bedroom, he saw Zuo Ling'er lying on the bed, fast asleep, with a blanket tightly wrapped around her body.

It seems she was really exhausted from running back, and she must have been quite cold since she was soaked in sweat... Li Yi couldn't help but feel a little helpless. The bedding that had just been aired out a couple of days ago had been soaked by Zuo Ling'er sleeping on it, so he would have to change to a new one tonight.

He walked to the bedside and looked at Zuo Ling'er's pretty face. There were still traces of tears on the corners of her eyes, and she was muttering to herself from time to time, which made people think of the description "I feel sorry for her".

Li Yi thought to himself: Everyone says that beauty can't put food on the table, but the ancients said that beauty is food for the eyes, and that makes a lot of sense.

If I had to choose between Luo Yufeng and Zuo Ling'er for dinner, I would definitely choose Zuo Ling'er without hesitation. Who the hell would be crazy enough to choose Sister Feng? Of course, this excludes brothers with special fetishes!
As he thought about it, Li Yi felt like a peeping tom, staring at a sleeping girl for no reason, so he immediately prepared to leave.

However, Zuo Ling'er woke up at this moment, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, and then she slowly opened her eyes.

When she saw Li Yi standing by the bed, she was stunned for a moment before she realized what was happening and quickly asked, "When are you going to take people to rescue Yada'er and Kuza'er?"

The little girl looked pitiful, lacking her usual liveliness.

Li Yi comforted them, saying, "Yada'er and Kuza'er will be fine. The Shu army still needs them, so they certainly won't take their lives. We'll set off early the day after tomorrow and get there within a day. We'll definitely help you rescue them."

Zuo Ling'er didn't understand military strategy, but Li Yi's assurance reassured her somewhat. After all, she was only fifteen or sixteen years old, and when faced with trouble, she instinctively wanted to find someone to rely on.

A short while later, a guard brought over a set of narrow-sleeved trousers that were about 70% new. In those days, women from ordinary families had to work and wouldn't wear wide-sleeved robes, nor could they afford such luxurious clothes.

As for the so-called narrow-sleeved pants, they are essentially a skirt on top and pants on the bottom. The skirt hem only reaches the thigh, and the pants are several layers layered together, making them slightly loose.

However, this outfit looked quite different on Zuo Ling'er compared to her usual ethnic costume, giving it a unique charm. It was just a pity that the little girl's body hadn't fully developed yet, so it didn't quite fit her.

Seeing that it was getting late, Li Yi prepared to have someone send Zuo Ling'er back to the village. The villagers who had been with her earlier had already gone back.

Although Zuo Ling'er said she wanted to go with them to rescue people, it's definitely not appropriate to bring women along when it comes to fighting.

But the little girl was determined to go, so Li Yi could only patiently persuade her, "If you don't go back tonight, your mother will definitely worry."

As he said this, he was actually a little puzzled. How could his family let such a beautiful and delicate girl like Zuo Ling'er run around everywhere without worrying that she would be kidnapped?

Upon hearing this, Zuo Ling'er became somewhat dejected and bit her lip, saying, "My mother has passed away."

“This…” Li Yi was stunned. He had become somewhat familiar with Zuo Ling’er recently, but he really didn’t know anything about her family situation.

Thinking that the little girl often mentioned her father, Li Yi added, "Then your father will worry about you too."

“My father practices Taoism in the mountains and only comes back to the village to see me once a month…”

"Cultivation?"

Li Yi finally understood why Zuo Ling'er was so different from those mountain people. It turned out that her father was also an extraordinary person... Could it be that he was cultivating Taoism and refining elixirs to seek immortality?

But now was not the time to think about these things. Li Yi then tried to persuade her a few more times, but Zuo Ling'er insisted on staying in the army, seemingly afraid that Li Yi would embarrass her and not take her with him to rescue people.

Li Yi wanted to get angry and kick her out, but the words wouldn't come out. The little girl hadn't done anything wrong, so she could stay if she wanted... Having a pretty girl by his side wasn't a loss for him anyway.

However, when it was time for Li Yi to go to bed at night, he discovered an embarrassing situation: there was only one bedroom and only one bed.

Where should Zuo Ling'er sleep?
He couldn't very well put the little girl in another room, and besides, Li Yi wasn't entirely comfortable with that. He believed that Zuo Ling'er was safest with him by her side throughout the entire military camp.

After all, it's hard for men to guarantee how much of a bottom line they can have when faced with the temptation of beauty, let alone in a military where everyone is a bunch of warriors.

Although Zuo Ling'er was lively and cheerful, she was not unaware of the proper boundaries between men and women. She only realized it was inappropriate when she was about to go to sleep, but she was too embarrassed to say anything. She could only awkwardly suggest that she could sleep in the living room.

In the end, Li Yi acted like a gentleman and let the little girl sleep in the bedroom, changing her bedding to a clean one. He then had someone bring him some blankets to make do in the side hall in the corner for the night.

The next morning, upon receiving the news, Wang Jing sent a messenger on horseback to inform Li Yi that he had agreed to the plan to launch a surprise attack on the Shu army at Qingni Ridge.

This veteran general, who has served five dynasties, finally showed his "youthful vigor" for once!
But most likely it was because he had confidence in Li Yi and felt that the plan to launch a surprise attack on the Shu army had a high chance of success. Wang Jing not only agreed to Li Yi's plan, but also said that he had sent two thousand men to assist in the defense of Guzhen, so that Li Yi could just focus all his efforts on fighting the Shu army.

After everything is arranged.

The five commanders of the vanguard officially set off from Guzhen and launched a surprise attack on the Shu army stationed there, along the path southwest of Qingni Ridge.

……

Even though it's summer, you can still feel the coolness of the mountains as you walk through the morning mist.

The march of the large army startled a flock of birds in the woods, all of which fluttered and darted out from among the treetops and branches, flying into the air with a "whoosh".

Li Yi rode his horse and looked around. A long line of people was slowly moving forward on foot, with no beginning or end in sight.

As dawn broke, the soldiers remained silent, continuing their journey in quiet contemplation.

According to Zuo Ling'er, this path was created by the local mountain people on foot. Sometimes they needed to go to Xingzhou to sell the game they hunted or to buy daily necessities.

In order to avoid being exploited by the Shu officials who guarded the main road, they tried to find ways to detour and avoid them, and over time this road was formed.

The path ahead was fairly flat, but still manageable for a slow horse ride. Li Yi, riding his horse, turned to look at Zuo Ling'er beside him. The little girl was also riding a horse, but she didn't know how to ride; a guard was leading her.

Zuo Ling'er appeared very nervous, gripping the horse's mane tightly, but her expression also carried a hint of excitement as she curiously surveyed the soldiers around her, as if this was a novel experience for her.

Li Yi smiled and then looked at the trees by the roadside. There were marks made by Zhou Jun's scouts on them. The scouts, led by several mountain guides, were exploring ahead to find out if the army's vanguard went astray.

During the daytime, it's fine. Zuo Ling'er is very familiar with this path, and with her leading the way, we shouldn't get lost. However, we're on the safe side at night when the lighting is poor, so we'll use the surrounding terrain and scenery as reference points.

This road has not been officially opened or repaired; it is a combination of some secluded paths that have been discovered by chance. It is winding and has many forks, unlike the main road of Chencang Road.

The road was narrow and the march was slow. The army set off before dawn and walked until sunset before reaching the fork in the road.

It's 60 li (about 30 kilometers) from here to Guzhen. We traveled this far even without stopping during the day. In the end, it's because the road was too difficult to travel.

The group ahead gradually stopped, and everyone began eating wheat cakes with water. After finishing, they continued on their way without setting up camp or resting.

According to the original battle plan, they were to run more than 90 miles in one go and only stop when they reached their destination.

Li Yi had only one thought in his mind: speed is the ultimate weapon in martial arts. Even if the Shu army knew that he was going to cut off their retreat, it would be too late for them to run away. Moreover, a hasty retreat might cause them to collapse. He had no choice but to bite the bullet and fight.

Zhou Jun was not afraid of a head-on confrontation with the Shu army; he was afraid that the Shu army would not dare to fight!

As darkness fell, the soldiers lit torches. The roads were difficult to traverse, and in order to march through the night, they no longer cared about concealment.

There is a long stretch of road that winds its way up the mountain along the edge of a cliff. If you are not careful and fall down the mountain, you will most likely die.

Traveling 100 miles day and night along rugged paths is something that ordinary troops cannot do.

But Li Yi is leading the army to do just that. Everyone keeps their heads down and doesn't say much. Some people may be exhausted, but they are still gritting their teeth and enduring it.

This is the strength of the elite professional soldiers in the Central Plains. Although they are arrogant and fierce, they are difficult to control and often give their superiors a headache, but they are indeed very fierce when they actually fight.

However, Li Yi also understood that everyone was risking their lives for military merit and wealth.

There's only one reason to grit our teeth and persevere: to win, to win, and to win the damn battle!

At midnight, the army finally arrived at the designated location.

The detour was much longer than the main road to Qingni Ridge. Li Yi stood on a high slope, surveyed the surrounding terrain, and estimated that he was not far from the mountain road to Qingni Ridge.

He summoned Zuo Ling'er, pointed to the fork in the road to the south, and asked, "Does crossing this fork lead to the main road of Qingni Ridge?"

Zuo Ling'er nodded: "That's right. Going from here will take you to the middle of the main road. It should be about two or three miles. It's very secluded and you won't be discovered. However, there's a stream across the way, so you'll have to wade across."

Li Yi immediately called Li Hanchao and instructed him to wait for someone to cross the side road and rush to the vicinity of the main road to keep watch, just in case.

"Tonight, everyone should rest here for the time being and conserve their energy. We will set off early tomorrow morning and arrive behind the Shu army before noon."

The generals quickly relayed the military orders, and everyone lay down directly on the muddy ground. In no time, the whole mountain was covered with people, and soon the sound of snoring filled the air.

Li Yi sat around a campfire, and Zuo Ling'er came over and couldn't help but say, "So this is what war is like. I thought it would be much scarier."

Li Yi joked, "Right now we're just on our way, it's still a long way from when the real fighting starts, just don't be scared to tears when it does."

Zuo Ling'er retorted, "I'm very brave. I went hunting with the villagers, and I even shot a wild boar with my own hands."

"Women are just as capable as men, amazing!" Li Yi smiled and gave a thumbs up.

Upon receiving the praise, Zuo Ling'er giggled. Soon after, she asked curiously, "I heard from the people who brought you grain that you are a very powerful general who has won many battles. Can you tell me about it?"

Upon hearing the little girl ask this, Li Yi, who was not sleepy at the moment, immediately began to talk about his "great achievements".

From Gaoping to Xinkou, and now to the conquest of Shu, he recounted each and every event vividly, eliciting gasps of amazement from Zuo Ling'er.

But as they were talking, Li Yi noticed that Zuo Ling'er beside him had gradually stopped moving. He turned his head and saw that the little girl was sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees and her head resting on her own arm. She had fallen into a deep sleep at some point.

Li Yi found it amusing, took off his cloak, and gently draped it over Zuo Ling'er's shoulders.

After a while, he started yawning repeatedly, so he simply lay down on the ground, closed his eyes to rest, and drifted off into a daze. He didn't know how much time had passed when he was suddenly awakened by a commotion.

When Li Yi opened his eyes, he saw that the sky was gradually turning white. However, when he turned his head, he was startled to see Zuo Ling'er staring at him with her big, blinking eyes.

Li Yi sat up subconsciously. At that moment, a cloak slipped off his body. It was the same one he had draped over Zuo Ling'er last night.

Just then, Li Hanchao rushed over and said hurriedly before he even got close, "Shu troops have been spotted twenty miles north of the main road of Qingni Ridge!"

(End of this chapter)