Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 245 Through Wind and Rain, Xuanwu Gate Awaits You
"Civil officials can sit on the fence, but you, a military general, can't even sit on a feather?"

“Look at the other military generals, apart from you, which one of them didn’t choose a side?”

"What are you doing here, trying to stand out from the crowd?"

"Get over to Li Er's side!"

"Remember, in the future, just bow and don't speak!"

Li Jing was a political idiot.

Given his political awareness at that time, he could easily cause problems by saying even a single word, let alone a politically related statement.

Unfortunately, his performance in this area is simply not trustworthy.

Li Jing, still in a daze, was suddenly filled with dread.

I turned my head unconsciously.

Upon inspection, it was clear that the military officers had indeed already formed factions.

Regardless of winning or losing, at least make your stance clear.

Even most of the civil officials were divided into factions.

Most of the people perched on the wall by the sea pool, watching from the side, were old men like Pei Ju.

Many of them had served through several dynasties and had seen far too many such scenes.

Of course, I understand what kind of people are qualified to sit on the fence.

Li Jing hurriedly got up and ran to Li Erfeng's side to bow.

He kept his head down and didn't speak, but Li Erfeng personally dismounted to greet him, smiling broadly as she placed her hands on Li Jing's shoulders.

"With the help of the pharmacist, victory in this battle is assured!"

Seeing this, Li Jiancheng on the other side was so angry that he gritted his teeth.

"I'll knock you on the head~~~"

In high spirits, Li Erfeng nodded repeatedly, "Pharmacist, what do you think we should do in this battle?"

When the topic of war came up, Li Jing immediately perked up.

After observing carefully, he bowed and reported, "Your Highness, we should use a detachment to annihilate the Eastern Palace's troops, while the main force directly attacks the King of Qi."

"Oh."

Li Erfeng's eyes flickered. "Why is that? Shouldn't we strike the stronger enemy first?"

"Judging from the Changlin Army's formation, it is clear that they are isolating the Qi Prince's troops from the outside, and are secretly on guard."

Li Jing spoke eloquently: "The Qi King's troops are equally wary of the Changlin Army, and the two forces are not of one mind."

"Changlin is valiant, and attacking Changlin first might be too much for us."

"If we attack King Qi first, Changlin will certainly not come to our aid."

"The defeated King Qi was driven to charge his routed troops into the Changlin Army formation."

"If we can kill the King of Qi in battle, we can shake the morale of the Changlin Army."

"But we must be quick. If Prince Qi can hold out, Changlin will surely come to the rescue!"

"If we're attacked from both sides, I'm afraid..."

Li Erfeng was overjoyed, "With the help of the pharmacist, I am truly fortunate!"

"Gentlemen!"

"Mount!"

From the Jin Dynasty onwards, similar private feuds and killings occurred frequently.

Even in the capitals of various dynasties, it was common to see people fighting in the streets with their family retainers.

Its origin lies in the customs brought by the grassland tribes.

The current situation at Xuanwu Gate is essentially the same.

If there's any difference, it's that the stakes are much higher this time.

How big is it?
The fate of the world will be decided!

At that moment, large clumps of leaden clouds drifted into the sky.

It surged and rolled, like the ebb and flow of waves.

The wind rises and the rain falls.

The wind was like a knife, howling past.

The rain fell like threads, connecting the sky and the earth.

The tracks of the infantry fighting vehicle turned, making a continuous crunching sound as they rolled over the ground.

They drove all the way to Xuanwu Gate, the cannons of the infantry fighting vehicles pointing diagonally to the sky.

'Boom! '

A bright tracer bullet shot out.

Lin Dao's roar came from the external loudspeaker on the infantry fighting vehicle.

"The first Xuanwu Gate Championship is now beginning!"

Amidst the wind and rain, the Qin Prince's Mansion, with fewer people, took the lead in attacking.

The sound of horses' hooves pounding the ground and shouts echoing through the air.

Li Erfeng took the lead and launched an attack on the troops of Prince Qi's mansion.

Logically, the first order should have been for mounted archers to launch a surprise attack and harass the enemy formation.

At the same time, both the Prince Qi's Mansion and the Changlin Army retaliated with powerful bows and crossbows.

But now it's raining.

When the bowstring is soaked by rainwater, its elasticity decreases, greatly increasing the risk of breakage and significantly reducing its effectiveness.

Furthermore, if the fletching on the arrow gets wet, it will increase its weight, shorten its flight distance, and affect its trajectory.

In short, after a rain shower, the ranged attacks on both sides were rendered useless.

In comparison, these weather conditions were more favorable to Li Erfeng.

The area around Xuanwu Gate is actually not that big.

They set up their formation, and the distance between the two sides was quite short.

The Changlin Army and the Qi Prince's Mansion had a large number of soldiers and crossbows.

If she opened fire, the dense rain of arrows would cause Li Erfeng to suffer heavy losses.

The cavalry in the first few rows of the Qin Prince's Palace approached the Qi Prince's Palace troops, passing by sideways, and threw out their short axes, throwing hammers, short spears, and other weapons.

The ranks of the Prince of Qi's residence immediately fell into chaos.

Following them, the Qin King's troops, blindfolding their warhorses, charged straight into the chaotic ranks.

What followed was a brutal close-quarters battle.

Lin Dao stood on the armored vehicle, holding a transparent umbrella in his hand.

In his other hand, he was holding a phone and recording a video.

This is absolutely firsthand historical footage; if it were shown in the modern world, it would definitely cause a sensation in the archaeological world.

"Li Yuanji, he's trying to escape."

Lin Dao, with his extensive battlefield experience, quickly realized that the Qi Prince's mansion was not holding out.

Ever since Li Yuanji shouted, "I will not fight!", the soldiers of the Qi Prince's mansion lost their morale and fighting spirit. What were they fighting for?

Winning has nothing to do with them; those who get to eat meat and drink soup are the people from the Eastern Palace.

If you lose, you'll pay with your life!

With this mindset, the soldiers of the Qi Prince's mansion had no fighting spirit whatsoever.

Even though their numbers were not small, and their equipment and combat strength were not bad, they had lost their will to fight.

As expected, the soldiers of Prince Qi's mansion scattered and fled, turning their attention to attacking the Changlin Army.

"Big Brother~~~"

Li Yuanji, on horseback, cried out, "Help me!"

Li Jiancheng couldn't bear it, so he refused the advice of those around him and ordered his troops to clear the way and let Li Yuanji in.

As soon as they opened up the area, Li Erfeng and her group seized the opportunity and charged in.

Faced with the charge of the Qin Prince's cavalry, the Changlin Army could only rely on its armored soldiers to withstand the attack, and their previously orderly battle formation gradually collapsed.

The powerful bows and crossbows used to counter cavalry were rendered ineffective due to the weather.

Suddenly, they found themselves in a passive situation.

"Li Jiancheng." Lin Dao, holding up his phone, shook his head repeatedly. "You're really no good at fighting."

"He is indecisive and stubborn."

"Either directly absorb Li Yuanji's troops and treat them as one entity."

"Either we ignore it and watch it dwindle."

"You first guarded against Li Yuanji's troops taking advantage of the situation, and after his troops collapsed, you abandoned your formation and took the initiative to accept the attack."

"The battle has already progressed to this point, why don't you hurry up and send out the Youzhou cavalry to counterattack and stabilize the formation?"

“Every choice you make on the battlefield is wrong, just like your agreement to fight for supremacy at Xuanwu Gate.”

"The gap between you and Li Er in combat command ability is as wide as the entire Zhuque Avenue."

Lin Dao wasn't making fun of Li Jiancheng.

It's written clearly and plainly in history books.

Wei Zheng repeatedly advised Li Jiancheng to seize the opportunity presented by the Crown Prince's greater power in Chang'an and quickly eliminate Li Erfeng.

But Li Jiancheng was indecisive and refused to take action.

At Xuanwu Gate, Consort Zhang warned him in advance, and Li Yuanji also advised him not to go into the palace.

But Li Jiancheng was stubborn and insisted on going.

The result is self-evident.

The same is true now.

All the generals urged Li Jiancheng to quickly unleash his strongest troops to launch a counterattack and contain the Qin Prince's mansion.

But Li Jiancheng just held it in his hand without moving.

They probably felt that their superior troop strength was enough to wear down Li Erfeng's morale, and that once her morale was gone, they could launch a counterattack to decide the outcome.

He was determined to fight this way, and no amount of persuasion from others could change his mind.

As a result, Li Erfeng, a master strategist, used the mobility of his cavalry to create local advantages, defeating one group of Changlin Army soldiers after another, and driving the routed soldiers to counterattack their lines.

The once formidable Changlin Army was thus systematically broken down piece by piece, shaking the morale of its troops.

As the situation gradually spiraled out of control, Li Jiancheng, in a panic, dispatched the Youzhou cavalry.

The desperate counterattack of three hundred Youzhou cavalry not only halted the Qin Prince's offensive but also forced Li Erfeng to fall from her horse.

But they struck too late.

Apart from the Youzhou cavalry, the other Changlin Army and Qi Prince's troops were either killed in battle or scattered, and were unable to come to cooperate in the battle.

The Qin King's troops, having recovered their strength, quickly launched a counterattack.

The Xuanjia Army, in particular, engaged in a life-or-death struggle with the Youzhou cavalry, with each side trading almost one for one.

Once the Youzhou cavalry, numbering only three hundred, was defeated, the outcome of this battle was already decided.

"kill!"

Covered in blood, Yuchi Jingde thrust his spear and stabbed Li Yuanji off his horse.

He jumped off his horse, drew his sword, and knelt on top of the struggling Li Yuanji.

The horizontal blade slashed forcefully down Li Yuanji's neck.

Li Yuanji's desperate screams were as chilling as those of a night owl.

"King Qi is dead!"

Yuchi Jingde raised Li Yuanji's ferocious head high and roared, "Why don't you surrender at once?"

With only twenty-odd civil and military officials left around him, Li Jiancheng stared blankly at his fourth brother's severed head not far away.

His heart was filled with despair.

"How could this be?"

Li Jiancheng couldn't understand how he could lose when he clearly had a three-fold advantage in troops.

He looked up at the sky, the cold wind carrying icy rain slapping against his face.

"Your Highness!" Xue Wanche roared, "They're almost at their breaking point. Our only option now is a desperate counterattack, a direct assault on the Prince of Qin!"

Twenty or thirty people isn't many, but the other side is also at their last gasp.

If it's a desperate gamble...
'Bang! '

The weapon in Li Jiancheng's hand fell to the ground.

"Let's lower it."

One sentence made the surrounding air seem to freeze.

Those around him all wore expressions of despair.

Why lower it?

Not all the people are dead yet!
The other side is about to collapse too!

Surrounded by scattered, defeated soldiers, they still have an advantage if they can regain their morale.
"I have already said it."

Before anyone could persuade him otherwise, Li Jiancheng, with his eyes closed, spoke again, "I surrender."

The cold rain fell on his face, mingling with his hot tears as they slid down.

Despite having such a significant advantage, Li Jiancheng fell into deep self-doubt.

'Could it be that I am truly inferior to Erlang?'

"Stay~~~"

Raindrops pattered on Li Erfeng's armor. He stopped the fighting everywhere and turned to look at Lin Dao, who was watching the spectacle from his armored vehicle.

Only then did everyone remember the true referee of this Xuanwu Gate battle.

Lin Dao put away his phone and looked at Pei Ju.

"Evil King, Li Er has won."

Pei moment'(°ー°〃)'

What did you call me?

(End of this chapter)