Martial Arts Universe: With a single command, 100,000 iron cavalry will sweep across the martial wor

A burly, imposing middle-aged general said to Liu Hai:

"Liu Hai, commander of the Netherworld Iron Cavalry Legion, I didn't expect you to be here too."

Upon seeing the Xuanwu Legion, Liu Hai immediately said to Wang Meng:

"Commander Wang Meng, the Emperor has ordered that the Murong family in the city be eliminated as soon as possible. This matter requires the assistance of your Xuanwu Legion—cavalry movement is not convenient within Gusu City."

"Rest assured, our army has taken control of the city gates and came here to welcome Your Majesty. In that case, I will immediately order the annihilation of the Murong family."

"Okay, let's act together."

"Zhao Kuan, you lead 10,000 Xuanwu soldiers and wait here for the emperor. I will go into the city with Commander Liu Haijun to deal with the Murong family."

"Yes, Commander."

"Let's go into town!"

Suzhou City

At this moment, the people of the city were in turmoil. They all knew that the imperial court had dispatched a large army, and that the new city lord was Wu Xiangjun Su Qingfeng, a nobleman whose title had reached the level of a monarch. Everyone secretly speculated whether this Wu Xiangjun would target the Murong family.

Inside a grand mansion, many people hurried back and forth, while the guards were also preparing for battle, ready to repel the imperial army.

Bao Butong said anxiously to Murong Fu:

"My lord, the imperial court has sent Lord Wu Xiang this time. Should we retreat immediately? The city gates are now under the control of his army, and we only have five thousand men. It is impossible for us to resist them."

Murong Fu, however, remained calm:

"The Song army is nothing to fear, why rush to leave? We have only controlled Suzhou for half a year, and the wealth in the city has not yet been transported out. I must not give up in vain."

Bao Butong remained deeply worried:

"Young master, this time is different from the past. The imperial army looks very elite, and our guards are no match for them."

Murong Fu slammed his fist on the table and roared:

"No need for further words! I've taken Suzhou. How can we restore our kingdom without cities to recruit soldiers?"

He thought to himself, "I finally got rid of the former city lord, how can I leave before I've even settled into my new position? This place is the foundation for the future restoration of the kingdom, I absolutely cannot lose it."

At this moment, Deng Baichuan rushed in and loudly reported:

"My lord, it's terrible! The imperial army has stormed into the city, and our guards were no match for them; they've all been executed. They're capturing members of the Murong family everywhere. Please, my lord, leave quickly!"

"What? Five thousand elite guards couldn't stop them?"

"The enemy is well-equipped and has powerful weapons. They killed most of them with crossbows at the first encounter, and the rest were killed on the spot. The imperial court is clearly targeting the Murong family this time. Young master, escaping is the most important thing!"

"But what about the money here?"

"Young master, we can always pursue wealth later; right now, preserving your life is the most important thing!"

"……Walk!"

"yes!"

Not long after Murong Fu left, the Xuanwu Legion stormed into the mansion and captured all the guards and servants.

"Commander, Murong Fu has already escaped."

"He escaped? Immediately order a search for Murong Fu within Suzhou City, and tighten security at all city gates. He must not be allowed to leave the city!"

"Yes, sir!"

At this moment, Su Qingfeng had also arrived at the gates of Gusu City. Looking at this ancient city, he felt a surge of emotion—this would be the foundation upon which he would settle down and build his career from now on.

Upon seeing Su Qingfeng, Zhao Kuan, the deputy general of the Xuanwu Legion, immediately stepped forward and knelt down.

"Greetings to Lord Wu Xiang."

The ten thousand Xuanwu Army soldiers behind them also knelt down in unison, shouting:

"Greetings, Lord Wu Xiang!"

Su Qingfeng looked at the Xuanwu Legion and nodded in satisfaction. The army the system provided was indeed elite; opening the treasure chest this time was worthwhile.

"Get up, everyone."

"Thank you, Lord Wuxiang."

Zhao Kuan, standing beside Su Qingfeng, quickly reported the situation:

"Your Majesty, Commander Wang Meng and Commander Liu Haijun have entered the city to wipe out the Murong family. Please enter the city now."

"Go into the city, to the city lord's mansion."

Su Qingfeng turned and mounted her horse. Gusu City had been captured, and Murong Fu's rabble would be wiped out shortly. Su Qingfeng had always disliked the Xianbei people.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Jingni and Yan'er had changed into beautiful clothes. They also saw the 10,000 Xuanwu Legion outside the city. Jingni became more and more curious about Su Qingfeng—she originally thought that the 10,000 iron cavalry were Su Qingfeng's entire force, but she did not expect that he had already sent the Xuanwu Legion to control Gusu City.

Looking at the tall city wall, Yan'er asked happily:

"Mother, is this Suzhou? Will we be living here from now on?"

Jingni gently stroked Yan'er's head:

"Yes, we won't have to run away anymore."

"I want to go down and take a look. Would you like to come with me, Mother?"

"Okay, let's go take a look."

Looking at the vast city of Gusu, Su Qingfeng wondered: How did Murong Fu manage to breach the city walls? The walls are so high, how could his rabble possibly have broken through?

"Greetings to the Lady Jun, greetings to the Princess."

When Zhao Kuan saw a very beautiful woman and a little girl step out of the carriage, he quickly bowed.

Get up.

When Yan'er heard that the general had mistaken her for someone else, she didn't explain. She just saw her mother's cheeks turn slightly red and secretly smiled.

"Thank you, Princess."

Zhao Kuan led the way, guiding them toward Su Qingfeng. The surrounding soldiers immediately went on alert—having just emerged from battle, it would be their dereliction of duty if any assassins disturbed the lady and the princess.

Su Qingfeng surveyed the ancient city of Gusu, nodding in approval. The city was quite large, seemingly housing at least 100,000 people.

Upon arriving at a certain place, they saw hundreds of people kneeling in front of the road, guarded by soldiers of the Xuanwu Army.

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

"Are these all members of the Murong family?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. These are all guards from the Murong family."

"Kill them all. From now on, anyone captured who is not an important member of the Murong family will be executed."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The centurion immediately gave the order: "**Hands, prepare—fire!"

Screams erupted.

Before long, all of Murong's guards were executed.

Su Qingfeng had turned and left long before he ordered their execution—he really didn't want to see that bloody scene again, and he still felt nauseous. It seemed he needed to work on his courage.

He asked Wang Hu, "How did Gusu City fall into the hands of the Murong family? The spies should have found out by now."

Wang Hu replied with disdain for the former city lord's army:

"Your Majesty, the garrison of Gusu City was previously transferred to the border to fight against the Western Xia, and there are hardly any soldiers left in the city."

"With the original city lord dead, the Murong family directly attacked the city. You also know the fighting strength of the Song army; the remaining 10,000 men fled without a fight."

Su Qingfeng then understood:

"So it was an inside job. The Murong family must be removed, otherwise they will try to take over Suzhou sooner or later."

He thought for a moment and then instructed Wang Hu:

"Issue two orders in my name: First, notify all cities that the Murong family is plotting a rebellion and order the nationwide capture of all members of the Murong clan; second, issue a bounty in the martial arts world: ten thousand taels of gold for capturing key members of the Murong family, fifty thousand taels for capturing Murong Fu, and the rest you can decide."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Is this the City Lord's Mansion? Let's go in and see where we'll be staying from now on. Also, change the plaque to 'Wu Xiangjun Mansion'."

"Yes, ma'am."

Jing Ni led Yan slowly toward Su Qingfeng. Just now, when Su Qingfeng ordered the execution of the rebels, Yan was so frightened that she gripped Jing Ni's hand tightly, her eyes filled with fear as she looked at Su Qingfeng—he seemed like a stranger to her at this moment.

Jingni gently comforted her:

"These people deserve to die. Su Qingfeng did nothing wrong. You don't need to be afraid."

She never expected that the seemingly gentle Su Qingfeng would have such a decisive and ruthless side. She really needs to get to know this Lady Wu Xiang better in the future.

Yan whispered:

"I'm not scared... I just feel like he's not the Su Qingfeng I knew before."

She watched Su Qingfeng and the guard commander walk and talk, feeling a little confused and apprehensive.

Jingni took her hand and followed her:

"You'll understand later. Let's go."

"Um."

Su Qingfeng entered the city lord's mansion and found it to be more spacious and magnificent than he had imagined. He couldn't help but think to himself: the previous city lord must have plundered quite a bit, otherwise how could he have built such a luxurious mansion?

Looking at the huge mansion, he suddenly thought of Ziyun and her maids.

Wang Hu, go and bring all our servants from the capital city here, and arrange for Zi Yun and the others to come as well.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

At this moment, Wang Meng, the commander of the Xuanwu Legion, came to salute Su Qingfeng.

Su Qingfeng looked at the burly Wang Meng and instructed, "Wang Meng, the defense of Gusu City is entrusted to you. You must guard this city well."

Wang Meng reported back: "Your Majesty, rest assured. The main figures of the Murong family had escaped before our arrival, but the remaining followers in the city have all been executed. In addition, all the wealth accumulated by the Murong family in Suzhou has been seized."

Su Qingfeng didn't care: "So what if they ran away? If Murong Fu wanted to leave, you couldn't stop him. Tell me, how much did you seize?"

Wang Meng said excitedly, "Your Majesty, we have obtained more than 200,000 taels of gold and 600,000 taels of silver. These are all the spoils that the Murong family has plundered in Suzhou over the past six months."

Su Qingfeng took a deep breath: "There are so many... It seems the Murong family is really planning to take action. These Xianbei people are truly hateful."

He turned to Wang Hu: "Spread the word that the Murong family is of Xianbei ethnicity and intends to restore their kingdom. Also, tell them that Murong Fu forcibly seized money and fled with it. Remember, make sure everyone in the martial arts world knows this."

Having received this windfall, Su Qingfeng, though unsure whether Murong Fu was heartbroken, was determined to cause him further trouble. After all, no one knew the money was now in his hands.

Wang Hu accepted the order: "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will handle this matter properly. From now on, the Murong family will surely become the target of everyone's hatred in the martial arts world."

Su Qingfeng waved for him to do it, then remembered the Murong family's Swallow's Nest and instructed Wang Meng: "Send troops to wipe out Swallow's Nest outside the city. The enemy is mostly martial artists, so avoid close combat and use crossbows for long-range attacks."

"Yes, Your subordinate will immediately dispatch a centurion to lead troops there."

Su Qingfeng suddenly remembered Azhu and Abi, and hurriedly added, "Wait. There are two maids among them named Azhu and Abi. We must capture them alive and bring them back."

At this moment, Yan, who was initially somewhat afraid of Su Qingfeng, forgot her fear after overhearing him announce his plans to destroy Yanziwu and capture the maids as soon as she and her mother entered the city lord's mansion. She stepped forward and questioned him, "Why leave them alive? Were those two maids really that pretty? How can you do this to my mother?"

When Wang Meng received Zhao Kuan's message, he learned that the emperor's wife and daughter had also arrived. Looking at the sullen little princess, he couldn't help but feel a little awkward.

He just wanted to leave as soon as possible—this was a family matter for the emperor, and his presence here would only make things difficult for the emperor.

"Wang Meng, you can go ahead and get busy."

Su Qingfeng hadn't expected Jingni and Yan'er to come so suddenly. They must have misunderstood what had just happened, but she didn't know how to explain.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Wang Meng hurriedly left. He noticed that Lady Jun's expression was slightly cold, and if anything happened later, his presence would only make things more difficult for the emperor.

"Su Qingfeng, how could you face my mother?"

"Oh, girl, you're making me sound like a heartless man. I'm just choosing a few maids for you and your mother, don't overthink it."

"I don't quite believe it... You're not lying to me, are you?"

"How could that be? Here's what we'll do: if we bring those two maids back, you can take care of them, okay?"

"That's more like it! It's settled then, they're mine from now on."

"Alright, alright, it's yours. Come on, let's go see our new home." Su Qingfeng smiled, picked up Yan'er, and then took Jingni's hand and walked into the house.

Jingni blushed and let him lead her. She was always helpless with this Lord Wu Xiang, but seeing Yan'er happy, she didn't pull away.

-

A little over a month later, Suzhou returned to its former bustling state. Su Qingfeng had reduced many exorbitant taxes and levies, and the people were very grateful to Lord Wu Xiang.