Extreme Frontier Army: Starting from the bottom ranks, conquering the chaotic world

Shen Qingqiu tried her best to make her voice sound calm.

"He won't die."

Lu Jing raised his eyes: "Have you hidden your father's account books properly?"

Shen Qingqiu nodded: "As long as I don't speak, Gu Changfeng could turn Yanmen Pass upside down and still not find it."

"clever."

The smile had barely formed when it aggravated the wound on his side, causing him to grimace in pain.

"No matter what happens later, stay hidden in the shadows and don't come out. That old dog Zhao He is desperate now; he'll bite anyone he sees."

Shen Qingqiu looked at his pale face, then at the bloodstains spreading at his feet. "Can you still fight?"

Lu Jing used the knife to support himself on the ground and slowly straightened up.

After catching his breath, he forced a smile and said:

How can a man say he can't do it?

The words sounded flippant, but the voice was much lower than usual.

Zhao He ran away, but he certainly didn't go far.

Just now, Lu Jing saw out of the corner of his eye that the two grandsons disappeared into the thick smoke, heading towards the rear camp of the Eighth Battalion.

There was only one fenced exit; the other three sides were dead ends.

Tonight, Zhao He must reveal the location of the money exchange's private accounts.

Otherwise, this game will remain a dead end.

Lu Jing raised his knife, preparing to give chase.

A figure suddenly rushed out from the thick smoke that had not yet dissipated ahead.

Skinny Monkey, carrying a torch, ran so fast that he lost a shoe, and tumbled and crawled to Lu Jing.

"Sergeant, something terrible has happened!"

His voice was hoarse from shouting, and he pointed towards the rear camp.

"That old dog Zhao He has run into our camp! Brothers, block him with torches! He panicked and grabbed someone to use as a human shield!"

Lu Jing frowned.

"So what if they arrest us? The Eighth Battalion has hundreds of men. What's the big deal if a couple of cannon fodder die? What are you trembling about?"

The skinny monkey's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets.

"He captured the woman in your tent!"

Lu Jing paused, his hand gripping the knife.

The skinny monkey was so anxious that he kept stamping his feet.

"That's the high-society hostage in the red dress, the one with the terrifying temper! Zhao He's already holding a knife to her throat!"

Lu Jing's movements came to a complete stop.

Princess Ji Ruxue was kidnapped by Zhao He.

Although this woman is currently in dire straits, she still holds the power to mobilize three thousand imperial guards.

What's even more dangerous is that she knows too many secrets about Lan Yue Pavilion and the high-ranking officials of the Bei Xuan Army.

If she falls into Zhao He's hands, or is forced to reveal her identity in public, the entire Eighth Battalion will be buried with her.

"That old bastard really knows how to pick people."

Lu Jing spat and gripped his saber tightly.

The granary was only a hundred paces from the rear camp. Lu Jing carried his blood-stained steel saber.

Pushing aside the few veterans blocking the way, I walked to the fence.

Zhao He's bright armor was completely white and gray.

He hastily stuffed a few wads of cloth into the deep, bone-revealing wound beneath his armor and then bound it with the armor-binding rope.

He held Ji Ruxue's neck with his left arm, while the horizontal blade in his right hand pressed against the side of her fair neck.

"Back off!"

Zhao He was like a mad dog cornered in a dead end.

"Get back, all of you! If anyone takes another step forward, I'll slit this woman's throat right now!"

Ji Ruxue was forced to tilt her head back.

Those cold, sharp phoenix eyes stared at Lu Jing a few steps away through his disheveled hair.

This woman's ruthlessness was even more formidable than that of an ordinary martial artist.

Lu Jing slung his saber over his shoulder and took two steps forward.

"Commander Zhao, you have quite the unique taste."

He picked at his ear with his free hand.

"I've kidnapped a hostage with a temper harder than stone. Is your knife blade chipped? Do you want me to lend you a whetstone?"

Zhao He pressed the blade inward a little further.

Ji Ruxue let out a muffled groan.

"Lu Jing!"

Zhao He roared, his voice cracking.

"Stop trying to talk your way out of my way! This woman came out of your tent, don't think I don't know how important she is to you! Get someone to clear a path and prepare a fast horse for me right now!"

Lu Jing was amused.

Are you blind or have you lost your mind?

He pointed with the tip of his knife at the Eighth Battalion soldiers around him, dressed in tattered rags and starving with green eyes.

"Look at these poor bastards, they don't even have a decent pair of pants. Where am I supposed to get them a horse? How about we steal one from the northern barbarians' golden tent?"

Zhao He gritted his teeth and backed away.

All he needs now is to escape the Eighth Battalion and return to his own centurion's tent.

Alternatively, they could charge straight into the main general's camp, and there would still be a chance to turn the tide tonight.

Private accounts can be created again if they are no longer available.

As long as he's alive, Gu Changfeng will spare his life out of consideration for those old grudges.

Lu Jing stared at Zhao He.

The old dog barked fiercely, but its heels remained unsteady, and its chest heaved faster than a normal person's; it wouldn't last much longer.

But a trapped beast is the most ferocious.

If he were truly pushed to the brink, he would slit Ji Ruxue's throat with a single stroke, and the Princess, who could be used as a shield to manipulate the court, would be completely shattered.

Just then.

A loud "boom" came from the direction of the grain warehouse.

The load-bearing column, which had been burned through by kerosene, finally broke, and half of the roof collapsed.

The towering pillar of fire, mixed with flaming pieces of wood the size of washbasins, was violently swept into the air by the north wind.

Several pieces of burning wood landed right on a pile of abandoned haystacks outside the fence.

The flames shot up three zhang (approximately 10 meters) high.

Next to the haystack, there were two dhows used to haul military equipment.

Lu Jing hadn't seen it at all before, separated by the firelight and the crowd.

Horses are naturally afraid of fire.

The sudden burst of fire, coupled with the strong smell of burning flesh, startled the two nags.

With a mournful neigh, its hooves, as big as bowls, kicked wildly, breaking the reins tied to the wooden stake.

Two startled horses crashed through the already flimsy wooden fence and charged wildly into the crowd.

The soldiers blocking the way were knocked away.

The crowd immediately descended into chaos.

"The horse is startled!"

"Get out of the way!"

The skinny monkey tumbled and crawled into the mud pit, nearly getting his head crushed by the horse's hooves.

Zhao He had been waiting for this opportunity.

These two frightened nags were living weapons to break through enemy lines.

"Get out of here!"

Zhao He suddenly shoved Ji Ruxue in the back.

He scrambled to the side, rolled half a circle in the mud, and barely managed to grab the broken reins of one of the nags.

Ji Ruxue lost her balance and fell straight down into the hooves of the galloping horse.

Lu Jing cursed under his breath.

His shoulders slumped, and the muscles in his legs tensed.

He darted out, his entire body skimming along the muddy ground.

At the critical moment, he grabbed Ji Ruxue's waist and used the momentum to roll to the side.

The two crashed solidly into a rotten wooden stake.

The bandage on Lu Jing's side snapped.

The wound inflicted by the short axe opened up again, and warm blood gushed out.

Ji Ruxue pressed against his chest, her hair disheveled.

"You're bleeding."

His voice remained cold and hard, but a flicker of emotion flashed in his eyes.

"Shut up, if you're not dead, find somewhere to hide."

Lu Jing pushed her away and stood up, supporting himself with one hand.

Zhao He had already mounted the horse.

That one move clearly exhausted a lot of his strength.

He lay on the horse's back, holding its neck, trying to control the mad beast as it charged out of the Eighth Battalion.

On the other side of the crowd, five black-armored guards took advantage of the chaos to gather around.

After the granary gate was breached, the five men took advantage of the chaos to escape to the rear camp.

Upon seeing Zhao He mount his horse, he immediately gritted his teeth and went to meet him.

Five shields, covered in knife marks, were erected in front of him, forming a semi-circular iron wall.

Three loaded military crossbows peeked out from the gaps in the shields.

The cold crossbow bolts gleamed with a ghostly blue light in the firelight, pointing directly at Lu Jing, who was closing in.

Crossbow formation.