I was living in the Five Dynasties period, just after crossing the Zhongdu Bridge.

Since entering Daizhou City, life in Fuweidu has suddenly become much more leisurely.

Although Shi Hongzhao was known for his ruthless and ruthless nature, he was also a man who clearly distinguished between rewards and punishments.

In the battle of Daizhou, Shen Lie led the new army to kill Wang Hui, a truly meritorious achievement.

Therefore, the task of garrisoning the northern gate barbican fell to Fuwei Du.

It was called a garrison post, but in reality it was a rest and recuperation site.

Besides his daily patrols, he spent his days sunbathing and repairing his armor on the city wall.

Although Liu Zhiyuan had captured Daizhou, he had no intention of advancing further north.

The King of Taiyuan was a clever man.

He became the first to provoke such a reaction by declaring himself emperor.

But he wasn't interested in going head-to-head with Yelü Deguang's main force and tackling the tough challenge of Yanmen Pass.

Moreover, the current situation in the Central Plains is so chaotic that it's dizzying.

Shen Lie sat on the rampart of the barbican, holding a bowl of freshly cooked mutton soup in his hands, listening to the idle chatter of several couriers who had come from the south.

"Have you heard? Something's happened in Xiangzhou."

A courier slurped up his noodle soup and said, "They say that Liang Hui, the bandit leader from Fuyang, led a group of people to occupy Xiangzhou and has already submitted a letter of surrender to our... no, to the emperor."

"That Liang Hui?"

Yang Ting chimed in, "Isn't he just that scoundrel who robs and plunders in the mountains?"

"It's him."

The courier put down his bowl, wiped his mouth, and said, "It's funny to think about. The previous dynasty had this Tianwei Army, supposedly to train local militia. They collected the money, issued the armor, and trained them for over a year, only to find that these peasants knew nothing but how to eat. So they simply took all the weapons and armor back and made every seven households pay 10,000 coins to send these people back to farm."

"But once a person's heart becomes wild, why would they ever want to go back to farming?"

Shen Lie lowered his head and took a sip of soup, but he knew exactly what was going on in his mind.

This so-called Heavenly Might Army is a joke.

They gathered a group of idle and unruly young men together, gave them a title, but didn't set any rules for them.

When the group disbanded, they were unwilling to farm and had no other way to make a living, so they naturally went up the mountain to become outlaws.

But this mess has now become an asset to Liu Zhiyuan.

Now that the Khitans have arrived, these bandits have transformed themselves, raised their banners, and submitted to the Han Dynasty. No sooner had Liu Zhiyuan granted them a title than Liang Hui led his men to conquer Xiangzhou.

This was tantamount to stabbing the Khitans in the back.

Then there's Jinzhou.

Liu Zhiyuan sent a man named Zhang Yanhong to deliver the imperial edict, but Zhang was detained by Luo Conglang, the deputy military governor who was left in charge.

They initially thought things were going to go wrong, but that very night, Yao Kechou, a general in Jinzhou, launched a mutiny, beheaded Luo Conglang, and appointed Zhang Yanhong as his successor.

There is also Zhao Hui from Shanzhou.

This man was even more of a tough nut to crack. When Yelü Deguang sent someone with an imperial edict appointing him as the acting governor of Baoyi, he killed the messenger, burned the edict, and stubbornly withstood the attack from Gao Mohan, who was sent by the Khitan.

Having just won the battle to defend the city, a petition to surrender to the Han Dynasty was sent to Taiyuan.

All of these events were telling Liu Zhiyuan: Don't rush, let the bullets fly a little longer.

Liu Zhiyuan's declaration of himself as emperor in Taiyuan was like overturning the first card.

Immediately afterwards, Han Chinese armed forces that did not want to be dogs of the Khitans sprang up like mushrooms after rain in various places.

This is what is meant by "the world has suffered for too long".

Although Yelü Deguang changed into Han Chinese clothing, his Khitan soldiers did not change their nature.

They truly treated the Central Plains as a pasture and the people as sheep.

This fire will start on its own without Liu Zhiyuan fanning it.

He only needed to sit in this city of Daizhou, watch the Khitans' rule in the Central Plains slip through the cracks, and then wait for the fruits to fall into his basket on their own.

Given this, it is perfectly reasonable for Shi Hongzhao's army to remain stationary in Daizhou.

"Shen Du Yu Hou" (Shen Du Commander).

Just as he was pondering this, a shout came from below the city.

Shen Lie peered over and saw a soldier from Wu Jiedu standing below the horse path, holding a jar of wine in his hand.

"Commander Shi Du requests your presence."

Shen Lie put down the bowl, patted the crumbs off his hands, and stood up to straighten his clothes.

What's meant to come will come.

······

The banquet was held in a side hall of the former Defense Commissioner's residence, where the aroma of wine and meat filled the air.

Although alcohol is prohibited in the army, that rule applies only to the lower-ranking soldiers.

If you reach the rank of Commander-in-Chief and win a battle, and you don't even have a few jars of good wine to reward yourself, then you might as well go home and take care of your children.

Inside the hall, more than a dozen commanders and officers were exchanging toasts.

Upon seeing Shen Lie enter, the previously noisy tent fell silent for a moment.

"Oh, the Commander of Shendu is here!"

The first to speak was a commander from Wujiedu, surnamed Zhang. Normally arrogant and haughty, he stood up, waving his wine bowl around, and said, "Come, come, sit here! In this battle, Commander Du Yuhou really made a name for himself!"

Shen Lie was not intimidated. He cupped his hands in greeting and sat down in the empty seat.

This is the rule in the military.

If you're incompetent, even a dog will despise you; if you're capable, everyone will look up to you.

Although Shen Lie's battle was ugly, with him in a mess and his horse dead, the result was undeniable.

"Commander Shi has arrived!"

A soldier outside the tent gave a long shout.

The generals, who had been sitting crookedly, all stood up at once.

Commander Zhang, who had just been trying to get Shen Lie to drink with him, swallowed his drink in one gulp, threw down his bowl, stood at attention, and didn't even dare to breathe loudly.

The curtain was lifted.

Shi Hongzhao strode in.

This famous general from Hedong, nicknamed "Iron-Boned General," was not wearing armor today, but only a round-necked, narrow-sleeved robe.

His gaze was sharp as he scanned the area inside the tent.

All the generals lowered their heads, silent as cicadas in winter.

"Why are you all standing? Sit down."

Shi Hongzhao walked to the head seat and sat down.

"Today is a victory celebration banquet, so let's not discuss military law."

Only then did the generals dare to sit down, but they only dared to touch half of their buttocks.

"Shen Lie".

Shi Hongzhao suddenly called out names.

Shen Lie stood up and clasped his hands in greeting: "Your subordinate is here."

"You deserve the greatest credit for the victory in the Battle of Daizhou."

"Just tell me straight, why did you leave Wang Hui's three hundred personal guards behind?"

Shen Lie pondered for a moment.

This is a difficult question to answer.

To say that he was full of clever ideas would be an insult to Shi Hongzhao's intelligence; to say that it was all luck would be to belittle his own worth.

"Return to the capital."

"There was no other way. We had to pay with our lives. I lost seventy-three brothers in Fuwei and more than a hundred were injured. We used those lives to fill the gap left by those three hundred horses."

The tent was deathly silent.

Shi Hongzhao stared at Shen Lie for a long time, then suddenly smiled.

"What a life-risking act!"

He picked up his wine bowl and raised it to Shen Lie from afar.

"He's an honest man. Unlike those pedantic scholars who insist on spouting military strategy when it comes to war. In this chaotic world, life is the most reliable thing."

After saying this, Shi Hongzhao drank it all in one gulp.

Shen Lie also picked up his wine bowl, tilted his head back, and drank it down.

The wine is a bit cloudy and a bit sour.

"Have a seat," Shi Hongzhao waved his hand.

"In this day and age, it's not enough to just know how to kill; you also need to have brains. The world is vast, and I'm short of someone capable of getting things done."

After a few rounds of drinks, Shi Hongzhao suddenly sighed, his tone carrying a somewhat inexplicable meaning.

"You're a sensible person."

Shi Hongzhao put down his wine bowl, seemingly lost in thought.

"You were the one who chopped off Wang Hui's head, and you were the one who had it delivered to Li Congxi. Li Congxi deserves half the credit, but I know it was your doing."

Shen Lie didn't reply, but simply bowed slightly.

In this chaotic world, it's common for superiors to steal credit.

If they leave you half, they're already being very considerate.

"Li Congxi is a good kid, but he's too soft."

"Fuwei is a newly formed army with a weak foundation. If you follow him, you'll only ever be a minor official."

"What does that mean, Yi Du?" Shen Lie asked.

Come to me.

Shi Hongzhao put it bluntly: "When I return this time, the Emperor will surely bestow a great reward upon me. I'm afraid my position will be moved up a bit."

Li Congxi just kept eating his meat in silence, seemingly not hearing a thing.

He's a smart man; he knows it's best not to interrupt in situations like this.

Shen Lie's heart stirred slightly.

Based on historical trends, Liu Zhiyuan would bestow generous rewards upon his meritorious officials within two months.

Although Shi Hongzhao had a bad temper, he was indeed Liu Zhiyuan's trusted confidant. Later, he was appointed as the Chancellor and Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guards, wielding immense power in the court.

If we can get in touch with this person, at least during the Later Han Dynasty, we will have a strong backer.

Of course, Shen Lie also knew that Shi Hongzhao did not end up well either.

But that's a story for another time.

In this world, just surviving this year is considered a victory.

As for what happens a few years from now, that's something Shen Lie will have to worry about a few years from now.

Shen Lie stood up and picked up his wine bowl.

"The Meng family will be honored." Shen Lie didn't say any nonsense about going through fire and water.

"Shen Lie's life was a lucky one. In this chaotic world, whoever gives you a way to survive and food to eat, that's who your life belongs to."

That was a flawless reply.

This both gave Li Congxi face and indicated a willingness to submit.

Although the current Fuwei Capital bears the name of Liu Zhiyuan's personal army, in terms of command, it is under the command of Shi Hongzhao.

In other words, Shen Lie is now Shi Hongzhao's man.

Since that's the case, why not latch onto this powerful figure?

"Hahaha!"

Shi Hongzhao laughed heartily, clearly extremely satisfied with the answer.

During the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, talking about loyalty to the emperor and patriotism was nonsense.

This kind of blatant exchange of interests, this frankness of "whoever feeds me is my mother," is actually the most reassuring.

Night was falling.

After the banquet ended, Shen Lie walked out of the mansion.

"Commander, how is it?" Liu Qing, who had been waiting outside the door, came up to him. The silly boy had two steamed buns in his arms.

Shen Lie took a steamed bun, took a bite, and the aroma of the bun filled the air.

"Go back to sleep."