We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

The Ministry of Rites' military camp.

Zhou Tianze gritted his teeth and looked at Xue Fan.

Xue Fan remained calm, showing no fear whatsoever.

"Your Highness, I am Lord Qin's subordinate, not yours."

"In truth, Your Highness, you have already lost. If it weren't for Lord Qin, you wouldn't even have this final qualification."

Zhou Tianze was furious.

"How dare you say that!"

"If you hadn't failed to tie down the fake prince's main force, how could my cavalry have fallen into this trap?"

"It's clearly your fault!"

Xue Fan glanced at Zhou Tianze indifferently.

"Lin Tong is a well-established and renowned general. His military tactics on the battlefield are far beyond my ability to compete with."

"Whether he stays or leaves, how can I possibly control him?"

To put it bluntly, Xue Fan was tricked by Lin Tong's illusion.

Lin Tong left behind a group of men to create momentum, and Xue Fan dared not launch a large-scale attack. How did he know that Lin Tong had left?

This resulted in the complete annihilation of Zhou Tianze's main force.

Zhou Tianze shook his head.

"I don't care what you say, I only have one thing to say: kick the fake prince out right now!"

"For a lowly person like him to participate in the military training competition is already an exception. Are we really going to let him stay here indefinitely?"

"I want him to be the first one kicked out of the tournament!"

Seeing Zhou Tianze's unyielding attitude, Xue Fan was already getting impatient.

He waved his hand and called out to the guards behind him.

"Send His Highness away. Make sure he has three meals a day. But if His Highness wants to lead troops, I will kill anyone who dares to obey his orders!"

The two guards hesitated.

Xue Fan did not hesitate at all. He drew an iron sword and plunged it directly into the throat of a guard.

Fresh blood gushed out immediately.

Zhou Tianze was so frightened that his face turned pale and he didn't dare to say a word.

Another guard immediately became alert, rushed to Zhou Tianze, and whispered something.

"Your Highness, please come in."

Zhou Tianze slowly stood up, his legs trembling.

Xue Fan glanced at him and spoke indifferently.

"I am representing the Ministry of Rites in this competition not for the sake of any particular ranking."

"Whether the Crown Prince ranks first or you, Third Prince, rank first, it has no effect on me. I only have one mission: to kill the Crown Prince."

"Third Prince, you can't threaten me. I advise you to save your breath!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the guard led Zhou Tianze away.

Xue Fan sheathed his sword, and the entire iron sword looked like a wooden sword.

And that's the source of his confidence!

He returned to his seat and beckoned his confidants to come forward.

"Send people to persuade the troops of the other tribes to come and pay their respects to the Third Prince."

"Furthermore, this matter must not be told to His Highness. Although we borrowed his reputation, I will absolutely not allow him to ruin my plans!"

The confidant nodded slightly and immediately dispatched troops to leave.

The entire hunting grounds thus entered their final stage.

Factional conflicts erupted in northern Xinjiang, leading to the breakdown of the second alliance.

Sun Tong led his men to seek refuge with Crown Prince Zhou Tiancheng.

Shi Cheng and Hou Feng were locked in a stalemate, and with the addition of the Crown Prince, a three-way power struggle was emerging.

On the other end.

Xue Fan quietly rallied that rabble and silently expanded his power.

This is the end.

The overall situation of the training competition is clear!

In the end, Shi Cheng couldn't hold back any longer and led his troops to attack Hou Feng first.

He would rather fail himself than allow a backstabbing villain like Hou Feng to succeed.

This is the fiery temper of a military general.

at the same time.

Xiao Shi's reconnaissance team also noticed something was wrong.

As the various groups gradually fell silent, their investigations revealed the truth.

The Third Prince not only survived but also captured the Ministry of Rites' camp with just fifty cavalrymen.

Besides, those rabble, like Li Zheng, directly joined the Third Prince's camp, gathering a full 1,600 men and remaining inactive!

Upon learning this news, Xiao Shi immediately became vigilant and personally returned to the military camp to report it.

When he told Lin Tong about this in the central command tent, Lin Tong's face was extremely pale!

"Qin Zhi'ang's reach is a bit too far!"

"He'd throw away all his dignity for first place in a military training competition!"

"Five hundred men from the Ministry of Rites couldn't defeat fifty men from the Third Prince? Aren't they afraid of being ridiculed by the world?"

Xinhua, Xiao Shi, Lao Er, and the others stood to the side with dark faces, not saying a word.

This is indeed a bit excessive.

Seeing the tense atmosphere, Zhou Tiancheng chuckled softly.

"Alright, alright, we easily defeated the Third Prince's five hundred cavalrymen, so what are we afraid of now with his fifteen hundred infantrymen?"

"With all of you here, I believe he won't amount to anything. On the contrary, we should be more wary of Hou Feng and Shi Cheng."

Lin Tong did not speak.

Now, including Sun Tong, they only have a thousand men in total. The key question is whether Sun Tong will betray them. Lin Tong doesn't know either, so he still has to be wary of him.

Overall, the situation seems favorable, but a slight misstep could lead to a dramatic fall.

All of this is because Qin Zhiang broke the rules!

"Your Highness, I believe we can no longer sit idly by and wait to die."

"Now that Shi Cheng and Hou Feng have already started their war, why don't we take this opportunity to wipe out the Third Prince's rabble with swift and decisive action!"

Zhou Tiancheng did not agree immediately.

He hesitated.

"Is now perhaps not the best time to act?"

Lin Tong also provided an answer.

"Whether Shi Cheng or Hou Feng wins in the end, they will inevitably face us. If we make a move then, we may be attacked from both sides."

"What I fear most is Sun Tong. He claims to be forming an alliance, but I'm still uneasy about him."

Who doesn't dream of winning?

"If he betrays us, we might end up being the most aggrieved losers."

"Why don't we take advantage of Shi Cheng and Hou Fengteng's inaction and eliminate the Third Prince first? This will not only deter Sun Tong but also eliminate future troubles, allowing us to focus on dealing with the Northern Frontier faction."

Zhou Tiancheng looked at Xiao Shi and the other centurions.

Xiao Shi thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

He felt that doing so was the right thing to do.

Because the threat posed by the Northern Frontier faction is far greater than that rabble.

Xinhua stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and then nodded.

"Your Highness, this humble general believes that Instructor Lin's words make sense."

"The key is that if we send troops now, we can test Sun Tong and see if he will take the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on us."

"I suggest that the attack on the Third Prince be mainly carried out by infantry, while the cavalry remain in the camp, ready to capture the flag and leave at any time, so as not to give Sun Tong the opportunity to seize the flag."

Since everyone agreed, Zhou Tiancheng had no reason to refuse.

He nodded slightly in agreement, and then immediately instructed Lin Tong to begin mobilizing troops.

Thus began the second battle of the National Protection Army.

Everyone was looking forward to a great victory for the National Protection Army, and even Zhou Tiancheng himself did not take the Ministry of Rites' rabble seriously.

But they all overlooked one thing.

Xue Fan has experience leading troops!

He came from a bandit background and had not received any systematic education; his ability to train troops was also not outstanding.

However, his experience in commanding troops was no less than that of the generals from the Northern Frontier faction!

Upon learning that Lin Tong had led his men to attack, Xue Fan immediately gave the order.

"escape!"

"And don't escape together, escape separately!"

"Sixteen hundred men, divided into three groups. Each commander, with their men, return to their respective camps immediately!"

"I'd like to see which battalion Lin Tong plans to attack!"