Martial arts mastery? But I'm just a spoiled brat!

"General!!!"

Just then, another communications soldier came running over.

"Give it to me!"

Upon hearing this voice, Cao Ying's fleshy face twitched involuntarily.

Before the communications soldier could speak, he had already jumped off his horse and snatched the telegram from the soldier's hand.

Clearly, the continuous stream of battle reports had made it impossible for him to remain calm.

"Damn it!!! What are the Zhang family from Northeast China doing getting involved now?! I'm attacking the Yan family, not digging up the Zhang family's ancestral graves!"

Cao Ying's eyes widened, her face contorted with rage, and she could no longer remain calm.

"General..."

Just as Cao Ying was enraged, a dashing man, also dressed in a general's uniform, rode forward on horseback.

"The commander-in-chief has ordered me to lead my troops back to reinforce the area immediately!"

As he spoke, the man's eyes were fixed on the telegram in Cao Ying's hand, clearly indicating that Cao Ying had already received it, so he did not offer any further explanation.

"snort!"

Cao Ying's face twitched, but she only gave a cold snort.

This time he has an army of 400,000, of which 200,000 are his brother Cao Kun's troops. Now the Zhang family in the northeast is leading their troops down the mountain, and they seem poised to attack the capital city where his brother Cao Kun is located.

It's no wonder that the eldest brother, Cao Kun, was nervous, given that it concerned his own vital interests.

However, Cao Ying had no reason to refuse. The soldiers were sent by his elder brother, and as the saying goes, if the lips are cold and the teeth are gone, once his elder brother's territory was occupied, he, Cao Ying, would be left to fend for himself.

The general who had just stepped forward was clearly not there to ask for instructions, but to inform Cao Ying. So after he finished speaking, he didn't care about Cao Ying's expression anymore. He then cupped his hands to Cao Ying, and rode away.

Cao Ying stood rooted to the spot, his expression unreadable; no one knew what he was thinking.

"Will……"

One of his subordinates, who was standing nearby, cautiously stepped forward, about to ask what the next step should be, but he was interrupted before he could finish speaking.

"call!!!"

Upon hearing his subordinates address him as "General," Cao Ying could no longer suppress his anger. He turned around and threw a punch.

Although Cao Ying was slightly overweight, he was very fast and his punches were heavy. His punches, accompanied by a whistling wind, struck his subordinate in the chest.

"Click!!"

A fist struck his subordinate's chest, and a crisp sound of bones cracking echoed from the subordinate's body.

However, what was somewhat strange was that the subordinate was not knocked away by the heavy blow. His upper body went limp and he collapsed onto Cao Ying's arm, with a very clear fist mark emerging from his back, accompanied by a mist of blood.

"Pass down the order: have the army withdraw and prepare to return to provide support!"

Cao Ying withdrew his arm, leaving his subordinate's corpse limp on the ground, and then spoke coldly. However, as he spoke, his gaze still unconsciously drifted towards the direction of Jin Province.

Cao Ying was easily angered and had a strong desire to kill, but he was not stupid. He knew very well that the Cao family's current power was entirely due to his elder brother, Cao Kun.

Once the capital city where Cao Kun is located is lost, the three places currently occupied by the Cao family—the capital city, Tianjin, and Hebei Province—will all be lost.

"yes!!"

Upon hearing this, all the subordinates accepted the order in unison and then quickly walked away, preparing to inform their subordinates to begin the withdrawal.

"Don't worry, Lin'er, I will definitely avenge you!"

Looking into the distance, Cao Ying left only this sentence before mounting her horse and leaving without looking back.

No one knew better than Cao Ying, the father, what kind of person his son Cao Shaolin was.

Based on his son's crazy tendencies, he simply didn't believe his son had any chance of surviving.

However, as a master of internal energy, he made sure to remember the Yan family thoroughly this time.

……

"No, this yard is still a bit too small..."

In the Yan family compound, Yan Qing stood in the small courtyard, looking somewhat troubled.

The courtyard where he lived was actually quite large, but it was clearly not suitable for Yan Qing to continue practicing the "Lifting and Leaping Technique". Every time he tried to speed up after a few leaps, he would have already reached the end of the small courtyard, making it difficult for him to fully utilize his skills.

"Young Master!!"

Yan Qing was standing in the courtyard, pondering where would be a good place to practice the "Lifting and Leaping Technique," when Wan Xing came running in from the doorway.

"Young Master, the Cao family has withdrawn their troops."

As she spoke, Wanxing looked at Yan Qing with eyes full of admiration.

Originally, they thought their young master was just a martial arts prodigy, but they didn't expect him to have such a strategy. He made the Cao family's 400,000-strong army return empty-handed with only a small price to pay.

Most importantly, all of this seemed to be within the young master's expectations. Even while in the courtyard, he did not slack off in his martial arts training.

Even though all the orders were passed through her hands, she never imagined it would go so smoothly.

Just a moment ago, she was worried that the Cao family would launch a fierce counterattack.

"They retreated decisively, but whether they'll have enough time to recover is another question."

Yan Qing showed no surprise whatsoever.

Although he initially only wanted his father, Yan Fengqi, to use a strategy of "besieging Wei to rescue Zhao," first taking over Ji Province and then leading troops to besiege the capital.

Once the capital is attacked, the surrounding forces will inevitably join in the attack. At that time, although Shanxi Province will certainly suffer heavy losses, it will be able to be saved.

However, when he learned that Wu Hong was from Northeast China, he changed his mind and chose a better plan.

That would be to join forces directly with the Zhang family in the Northeast. Now that the Cao family is vulnerable, as long as the Zhang family leads troops to the capital, and his father Yan Fengqi leads troops north to encircle and surround the Cao family, the crisis in Shanxi Province can be resolved directly.

As for what benefits they can gain in this process, that depends on how much capital the Zhang family in Northeast China is willing to invest.

However, these were no longer part of Yan Qing's plans. Now, he was more concerned with finding a new place to practice the "Lifting and Leaping Technique".

"Wanxing, have someone keep a close eye on the battle situation and report back immediately if anything happens."

After giving instructions to Wanxing, Yan Qing looked at Lanyue, who was waiting to the side:

"Lan Yue, have your men begin infiltrating the Northeast. I need all the intelligence on the Zhang family there."

"yes!"

Lan Yue's eyes were full of stars as she looked at Yan Qing, her gaze seemingly capable of drawing silk threads.

In her mind, Yan Qing's image grew increasingly lofty, and his actions became increasingly unpredictable.

"By the way, find a spacious and secluded place, suitable for practicing the 'Lifting and Leaping Technique'."

Just as Lan Yue was about to leave, Yan Qing spoke up again.

In fact, the practice of the "Lifting and Leaping Technique" could be carried out at the Yan family's residence. After all, although the courtyard was not spacious enough, Yan Qing could practice freely outside of it.

However, he still didn't like to expose his strength. His long-term cultivation of the Tiger Form True Meaning made him always wary of the outside world.

Tigers only show their fangs when hunting; otherwise, they don't even exert any extra effort when walking.

"There is a dense forest two miles north of the Yan family's residence. I have sent people there to keep watch and prevent anyone from getting close."

Lan Yue made arrangements almost without much thought.

"Alright! You all make the arrangements, and then go to the secret room to choose a cultivation technique. Your strength is a bit weak right now."

Yan Qing nodded, but still gave one more instruction.