It all started with one person becoming a shaman, but the Stand user...

Those people are really biased.

It's fairly obedient in normal use.

But if they encounter someone who isn't acting on their own orders, or someone with questionable qualifications, they'll bully them.

Finally, the orders from above were absolute and could not be delayed.

Liu Zhiyuan was planning to lead Qing Hemiao's eight hundred personal guards into battle.

Although Qinghe Miao's training methods have indeed resulted in elite personal guards, coupled with Liu Zhiyuan's heroic qualities, they may well be able to complete the mission.

But it's "easy to say but hard to hear".

If it were obvious to discerning people that the commander was absent and only his personal guards were out, then while showing their faces, they would also expose their true colors.

Fortunately, I returned in time.

Charged past in one go!

Qinghe Miao killed more than a dozen people!

He is the sharpest point of the blade; wherever he goes, corpses litter the ground!

Of the hundreds of elite Yan soldiers who rushed forward, only a dozen or so survived after the battle!

The defenders who had just gained a foothold on the city wall were terrified!

"Kill! Charge in!"

Qinghe Miao took the lead and charged into the surging enemy ranks, his target aimed directly at the city gate below!

The sticks were swung around in the narrow space, and several people were knocked away, blood splattering everywhere!

Almost simultaneously, the Taihang Army troops also rushed up the city wall!

Then came a series of muffled thuds from the collision of flesh!

Liu Zhiyuan, wielding a hundred-refined longsword, followed closely behind Qing Hemiao, while also helping to identify and fill any gaps in his command.

Qinghe Miao only needed to charge forward, and soon he reached the city gate.

The defending general, who had long since retreated to this position, had bloodshot eyes and brandished his long, dulled sword, letting out a final roar!

one move!

Qinghe Miao's long staff drew a perfect arc.

The defending general suffered a crushing defeat, and some clever individuals, under command, began to open the city gates.

At that moment, the city gates opened slowly, allowing free passage between the inside and outside of the city, and the city walls fell into a deathly silence.

Immediately afterwards, the Taihang Army erupted in a deafening cheer!

The defenders, already exhausted from the brutal siege, finally collapsed.

They dropped their weapons and shields, crying and fleeing in all directions, desperate to escape this hellish scene.

Zhou Dewei, who had initially felt something was amiss, showed a satisfied expression when he saw that everything was as he had expected.

Without thinking it through, he raised his hand and gave the final order:

"Breaked through!"

Behind them, the sound of war drums suddenly exploded!

The infantry surged forward like a tidal wave, covering the entire mountainside!

Faced with such a torrent, the scattered defenders had no power to resist.

The outcome is decided.

Qigou Pass has been breached.

Chapter 106 A New Year Needs to Be Full of Energy

"Hey kid, come out fishing!"

The taxi driver glanced at the young man in the back seat wearing a white short-sleeved shirt and black shorts through the rearview mirror.

Out of professional habit, I made conversation even when there was nothing to say.

At the young man's feet were a long, wrapped-up item, a bucket, and a folding parasol.

A standard set of "fisherman's" equipment.

Tsk tsk, so young, how did you get hooked on fishing?

"Yes, there are no classes at school this morning."

Qinghe Miao leaned back in his seat and responded proactively.

The driver was a man in his fifties from Northeast China, his face tanned from years of exposure to the sun and wind.

As he skillfully steered the wheel, he began to mutter to himself:

"Hey, I'm not kidding, but you fishermen are really addicted! You come all this way just to spend a whole day by the water? Be careful, there are lots of mosquitoes and snakes by the water this time of year..."

Qinghe Miao smiled but didn't reply, turning her gaze to the outside of the car window.

The car was getting further and further away from that northern metropolis, and the scenery on both sides gradually lost the traces of the city, replaced by the unique landscape of the white mountains and black waters of the Northeast.

In the distance, the mountains are verdant and the sky is a clear blue, with the air carrying the earthy scent rarely found in the city.

Of course, in this day and age, even on roads far from the city, there's bound to be something on both sides.

Every now and then, the shadows of enormous creatures would appear before my eyes.

Those were mostly large estates, villas, and resorts built during the years when the economy was good.

They believe that there will only be more and more wealthy people who are willing to spend money, thus creating consumer venues.

Now that the hype has died down, most of them are abandoned before they were even finished being renovated. The doors are locked, the signs are worn and faded, and weeds are growing wildly from the cracks in the cement.

There are also some old villages that have not been demolished.

Nestled on both sides of the road, with red bricks and gray tiles, and wisps of smoke rising from chimneys, you can occasionally see elderly men and women sitting in front of their doors basking in the sun.

Qinghe Miao's gaze slowly swept over these scenes, but his mind was still thinking about what had happened before.

Time flew by after the Battle of Qigou Pass.

Just as recorded in history, Zhou Dewei forced Zhuozhou to surrender in one battle and accepted the surrender of the governor Liu Zhiwen.

The army then continued northward, encircling Youzhou, while simultaneously dispatching generals to conquer surrounding prefectures and counties.

Qinghe Miao made a name for himself in his first battle because of his bravery in fighting and his merit in capturing the city.

Zhou Dewei rewarded him for his merits, bestowing upon him gold and silk, and also recorded his name in the military report.

Subsequently, he and several colleagues were assigned to the Wuzhou direction to continue the attack.

The battle went smoothly, but some things didn't go so smoothly.

Regarding Liu Zhiyuan's inability to transfer other units, Qing Hemiao later specifically spoke with those "military leaders" about it.

Unexpectedly, their reasons sounded very reasonable, and they appeared to be extremely loyal and acting in Qinghe Miao's best interests:

“General, you weren’t here at the time. The orders were even from the superiors’ superiors. What if that Liu guy had bad intentions and got involved with outsiders in a shady way…”

In the context of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, this statement is actually quite reasonable.

The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period was a classic era of "the superior's superior is not my superior."

The military governor had his own personal guards, the prefectural governor had his own state troops, and the general had his own personal troops.

Each unit is relatively independent, and their thoughts are different.

Within a military unit, numerous factions exist, each with its own agenda.

Who knows what Liu Zhiyuan is up to?

The battlefield is dangerous, and the soldiers under their command, especially the veterans, are their lifeline. How can they be easily given away?

If Qinghe Miao hadn't been there, who knows who would have benefited from the credit in the end?

They were doing it for the good of the "collective".

The key point is these words, even though they had given Liu Zhiyuan a hard time before.

But from the perspective of this era, there's not much to say. Even Liu Zhiyuan himself, though frustrated, recognized the situation but didn't think it was a big deal.

Qinghe Miao felt that the matter was very serious, but he didn't know what to do. He just suddenly missed Zhao Kuangyin.

Zhao is a true man, no explanation needed.

Unfortunately, Zhao Da will not be born for another ten years or so.

In response, he could only give his subordinates a warning.

Then, as was customary, the entire army was rewarded after the victory, but Liu Zhiyuan was commended separately in private.

To be honest, it was already quite an achievement for Liu Zhiyuan to be able to pull the army to the designated position according to plan under such circumstances.

Even if they didn't achieve anything, they still put in a lot of hard work.

In fact, it has been common since the Tang Dynasty for a common soldier to be chosen as a personal guard and then rise through the ranks.

It can be said to be a tradition passed down from that era.

But Liu Zhiyuan's actions inevitably drew envy from some and resentment from others.

They spread all sorts of rumors behind people's backs.

Those who know say that General Qingmiao had a keen eye for talent, but those who don't know, if it weren't for the large age difference between the two, would think that Liu Zhiyuan was General Qingmiao's illegitimate son.

In addition, they are definitely from the same lineage as Li Cunxu, while Liu Zhiyuan was transferred from Li Siyuan.

Given Li Siyuan's current situation in the Jin state, it's inevitable that some people will use this opportunity to ridicule him.

Fortunately, Liu Zhiyuan has a strong mental fortitude. With Qing Hemiao clearly expressing his trust in him, he ignored the rumors and continued working as usual.

Qinghe Miao could only smile when he heard this.

After dealing with these scoundrels, who were considered "normal" during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period and were a common occurrence for almost every military commander, the Taihang Army and its comrades continued their military campaigns.

After capturing a few more towns and clearing out a few bandits along the way, including the battle at Qigou Pass...

Qinghe Miao's level has finally reached level 20, and he can now draw a new dungeon.

The moment the system notification sounded in his mind, he was standing on the top of a newly captured mountain stronghold wall, wiping his blood-stained clubs and gazing at the distant, continuous mountain range.

They didn't want to look at the hell behind them.

Seeing too much of this kind of thing really affects one's character.

A new instance is a new world, meaning countless new opportunities, new customs, and new worldviews.

It's a good opportunity to change my mood.

However, there's no rush.

In the following days, he continued to hand over the command of troops to Liu Zhiyuan, who did a good job.

Aside from occasionally reviewing documents and inquiring about military affairs, Qinghe Miao spent most of his time using his stand, [The Purple Hermit], to figure out what path to take next.

Before drawing new cards, he needs to replenish his hand.

So, I found an excuse to leave the school, took a taxi, and headed to the suburbs.

Once in the countryside, after getting out of the taxi and paying the fare, Qinghe Miao followed the banks of an unnamed stream and found a secluded section of the river with utility poles passing by.

He unfolded the sun umbrella, set up the folding chair, and cast the fishing rod into the water—a smooth and effortless process.

Anyone who saw him would recognize him as a typical angler.

The umbrella's shadow perfectly covered his upper body.

He closed his eyes, as if enjoying a leisurely afternoon.

In reality, the consciousness-controlled Stand, Red Hot Chili Pepper, has already been quietly activated.

An invisible current flowed along the inconspicuous utility pole behind him and silently merged into the crisscrossing power grid.