I asked you to go hunting, and you ended up wearing a yellow robe?

"Yeluda—!!"

"If I am not mistaken, what is riding on horseback is Yelü Da's head!"

No one knows who was the first to roar out, but the sound was like lightning piercing the night sky, instantly igniting the entire silent city.

"It's Yelüda's head! That beast who slaughtered three hundred people in Wangjia Village!"

"Lord Qi...Lord Qi killed Yelüda!!"

"Victory!!"

"May Lord Qi be victorious!!!"

"Lord Qi is truly a savior of us Han people!"

"For decades, for decades, Qingyang County has not seen the head of General Yelü."

"Our luck has turned around! Our luck has turned around! Lord Qi is simply the savior of our Great Qian Dynasty!"

The cheers erupted like a volcanic eruption, like a raging tidal wave, instantly sweeping across every corner of Qingyang County.

The thousands of people who had just been listless with fear and despair now seemed to have been injected with the most powerful stimulant.

They cried, laughed, and roared, turning all their pent-up emotions into the most primal and fervent shouts.

Countless people spontaneously knelt down, not for the county magistrate on the city wall, nor for the banner with the character "Yuan," but for the figure who had returned from the brink of death, his posture as upright as a spear.

Today, their savior has returned in triumph!

In their hearts, this Lord Qi held a far higher position than the person sitting on the dragon throne thousands of miles away.

……

The back hall of the county government office.

In stark contrast to the roaring waves outside, it was so quiet here that you could hear the soft popping of a candle flame.

Zhao Bingkun braced his hands on the table, his body still trembling slightly. He tried to appear calm, but his gray beard betrayed him.

How could I possibly stay calm?

That was Yelü Da, a brave general of the Yelü people, famous for his skill in battle, and who had made many immortal achievements. No one knows how much blood of Han people was on his hands.

Even the generals in the imperial court wouldn't dare say they could take Yelü Da's head.

Such achievements are truly extraordinary.

It is estimated that for the next 30 years, no one will be able to surpass him.

He's so old, yet he still managed to meet this person!

Pointing the sword at the Great Qian Dynasty is a fortunate thing!

However, he then turned his gaze to Yuan Tianlong, who was sitting in the hall. He naturally recognized Yuan Tianlong; he was the commander of the Yuan Battalion, a proper general in charge of tens of thousands of troops, who had marched north to fight against the fierce warriors of the various tribes on the grasslands.

These were among the few border troops whom Zhao Bingkun could regard with respect.

Looking at the vast and imposing Yuan-character battalion border troops behind him, he suddenly felt a pang of anxiety.

He saw He Yong's army leave, most likely because the Yuan Battalion had come to their aid and forced He Yong to retreat. Could it actually have been the Yuan Battalion and Yuan Tianlong, not Qi Shan, who killed Yelü Da? This reasoning is plausible; after all, it's almost impossible for one or two hundred men to win against 3000. Even if the Yuan Battalion was involved, this is still a major victory.

Qi Shan coordinated the efforts from the sidelines, which was also a great achievement.

Yuan Tianlong did not sit down. He stood in the hall like an iron tower, his gaze sweeping over Qi Shan and Meng Da before finally landing on Zhao Bingkun.

He untied a heavy bundle from his back and casually tossed it onto the table with a "bang".

The package was unpacked, and a large banner with a wolf's head, stained with blood and dust, rolled out—it was the commander's banner of the Yelü tribe.

"Lord Zhao," Yuan Tianlong's voice was calm and steady, each word like a boulder crashing into everyone's hearts, "I hereby offer my congratulations on behalf of Qingyang County and on behalf of the Great Qian Dynasty."

He paused, then spoke clearly, word by word:

"Qi Shan, leading two hundred infantrymen, killed the enemy chieftain Yelü Da in battle amidst a camp of three thousand enemy soldiers."

boom!

Zhao Bingkun's mind was buzzing!

He felt dizzy and his legs went weak. If he hadn't grabbed the corner of the table in time, he probably would have collapsed to the ground.

Was it really Qi Shan who beheaded Yelü Da?

Two hundred infantrymen?

Three thousand enemy troops?

Slay the enemy chieftain in battle?

He knew Yuan Tianlong's character and knew that he would never resort to a direct assault.

If that's what they said, it seems to be true. Two hundred infantrymen fighting against three thousand enemy soldiers is no ordinary battle report.

This...this is no longer a battle report, this is a myth!

This is a story you only hear in the storytelling of the founding father of the People's Republic of China!

This mature and prudent minister, who had spent half his life studying the classics, had his worldview completely shattered at this moment, and was now rebuilding it from the ruins.

……

A hundred miles away, at the border army camp.

He Yong kicked over the wine table in front of him, and the glass cups shattered on the ground.

"Yuan Tianlong!!" His eyes were bloodshot, like a wounded wild beast. "How dare he! How dare he associate with that peasant!"

He Yongqi died. He almost completed the task assigned to him by the general: to kill Qi Shan, for which he would have been rewarded with countless high-ranking positions and riches. Now, not only did he fail to kill Qi Shan, he also failed to protect the retreat of Yelü's routed troops. It is said that Yelü's routed troops also suffered heavy casualties, with most being captured by the Yuan Battalion.

This time, Yelü's army attacked the capital of Jiangnan Province without Yelü Da's support from the rear, which can be said to have ended in failure. The number of casualties was close to 5000. Adding Yelü Da's 3000 infantrymen, the loss reached as high as 8000. Yelü suffered a huge loss.

The Yelü nobleman is still at the General's residence; who knows how angry he will be.

The trusted guard knelt on the ground, trembling with fear: "General, General Yuan's troops have already escorted the man surnamed Qi into Qingyang County. Our men... can't get close at all."

In a state of shock and anger, He Yong calmed down.

He knew that with Yuan Tianlong protecting him, any attempt to harm Qishan was nothing but a pipe dream.

But he couldn't let Qi Shan live!

This prodigy who created miracles—once he gains a foothold, he will surely be the one to die!

"Bring me pen and ink!" He Yong roared.

He hunched over his desk, his pen moving swiftly, and completed a secret letter in one stroke.

"Immediately! Send this to the General with the utmost urgency!"

The letter was delivered by express courier and arrived on General Liu Wei's desk that very evening.

Inside Liu Wei's tent, two richly dressed Yelü nobles were roaring angrily. Liu Wei, like a lapdog, smiled obsequiously and tried to appease them.

Upon reading He Yong's letter, Liu Wei's expression instantly turned extremely ugly.

"Useless!" A Yelü nobleman snatched the letter, glanced at it, and then cursed in broken Chinese, "Three thousand men! Their stronghold was wiped out by two hundred men from a single county! Now even a lowly county magistrate dares to slap you in the face! Is this what the generals of the Great Qian Dynasty are like?!"

Liu Wei was sweating profusely and quickly bowed, saying, "My lord, please calm down! There must be something fishy about this!"

A glint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

Yuan Tianlong...

good very good.

Since you don't give me any face, don't blame me for being ruthless.

He turned around, took out a pen and ink, and personally wrote a letter!

Sent to the capital!