Chapter 280: The Mastermind Behind the Scenes

Both sides exchanged greetings, and the polite words came in two rounds first; everyone was smiling, and there was a sense of affinity as if they had met before.

After all, the safety of Xiazhou depended on Zhao Pan.

And whether the battle on the northern front line could be fought depended on whether General Manager He could transport grain here.

The mutual dependence of the two sides determined that the relationship was very close from the beginning.

Zhao Pan seemed to have grown according to the template of a great general in the eyes of the common people: tiger-backed and bear-waisted, thick eyebrows and sideburns, his face full of boldness, and his laughter seemed to be able to shake the small trees beside him.

The military grain was delivered, and the border troops naturally went to take over. He Chunhua's team could finally rest.

Zhao Pan pulled He Chunhua toward the camp, wanting to set up a banquet to welcome him.

It was already the beginning of the Shen hour (around 3 PM), and there were five people sitting in the big tent. Opposite were Zhao Pan and a deputy general, and on this side were He Chunhua, his son, and Liang Zhanglao.

It is worth mentioning that there was also a hornbill standing on Zhao Pan's shoulder, half yellow and half black, with a curved beak that was surprisingly large, occupying at least one-third of its body length, and there was an exaggerated helmet protrusion above its eyes.

He Lingchuan very much doubted whether the hornbill's two small eyes could see the scenery directly in front with this helmet protrusion blocking them.

After the introductions were made, the food was brought up.

He Lingchuan took a look; there were only two things on each person's table: mixed rice, stewed meat, and a small bowl for wine.

Then, the wine bowls were filled, and it was quite fragrant.

There were two bowls of meat on Zhao Pan's table because the hornbill on his shoulder jumped onto the table and began to peck at the meat.

It didn't have hands, but fortunately, its beak was large; it would hold the meat, throw it into the air, open its mouth to catch it, and swallow it.

One bite after another, very fast.

"A wild boar weighing three or four hundred jin hit the fence this morning, and then it became the bowl of meat on the table. Otherwise, apart from mixed rice, wild vegetables, and this jar of wine, I really couldn't bring out a fourth thing to treat guests." Zhao Pan laughed. "This is probably knowing that General Manager He is coming; otherwise, the front line hasn't seen a living thing for a long time."

The birds and beasts in the nearby mountains and forests had long been eaten clean by the starving soldiers.

The brown rice was mixed with a lot of beans; He Lingchuan could only recognize soybeans and mung beans, and there was another variety with mottled colors that he didn't know. The pork was just boiled, with only salt added. He Lingchuan took a piece into his mouth and felt the muttony smell filling his mouth; it was simply hard to swallow.

Wild boar and domestic pig, the meat quality was worlds apart.

This front line of war was always short of grain, and they could barely eat, let alone use ginger, garlic, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, or soy sauce to remove the smell and increase the fragrance.

However, He Lingchuan didn't even frown and ate it with a smile. When he was squatting and guarding demons on the Chapa Plateau, he had stuffed even harder and stranger things into his mouth.

On the contrary, Liang Zhanglao only took a bite and put down his chopsticks, not eating.

Zhao Pan's gaze swept over, and he saw it all.

On that side, He Chunhua also talked about the battle on the road, and then apologized: "I have failed the trust of my King; of the 20,000 shi of grain raised by the Royal Court, I only transported 9,000 shi; I am truly incompetent!"

He hadn't reached the front line yet, so he sent a special envoy to deliver the news, so Zhao Pan had long pondered this news several times, digested it several times, filtered out most of the negative situations, and only shook his head and sighed: "Thanks to General Manager He personally escorting it; if it were someone else, I'm afraid they wouldn't have been able to save a single grain from Hong Chenglue's hands!"

He Lingchuan looked at his father, and seeing him hesitate to speak, he took his place and said: "Is Zhao General's evaluation of Hong Chenglue so high? We have rarely heard this name before."

"Hong Chenglue's reputation is all in the Northern Demon Kingdom; he fought more wars with the countries in the east, so his deeds rarely spread here. But Nian Zanli and I have been guarding the north for many years, and we are very clear about his past." Zhao Pan waved his hand. "Those who are good at fighting have no glorious achievements. In today's chaotic world, there are many who become famous in one battle, but how many can be victorious in a hundred battles, or even win without fighting? Let me say one more person, you must know—"

"Hong Xiangqian."

He Chunhua was slightly stunned: "Rebel leader?" Zhao Pan suddenly mentioned this person, and He Chunhua immediately realized that both of them were surnamed Hong.

"Not bad, the rebel leader who disturbed the central part and pressed toward the capital, Hong Xiangqian, is Hong Chenglue's own brother!"

Both father and son were very surprised: "Hong Xiangqian's own brother is actually in Xiazhou?"

Hong Xiangqian committed the crime of exterminating the clan, which meant that Hong Chenglue was a fugitive? "Yes, the gap between these two brothers is very deep, so Hong Chenglue didn't go to help Hong Xiangqian rebel. Otherwise, whether Ke Jihai and the others could defeat Hong Xiangqian and resolve the crisis of the capital would be hard to say." Zhao Pan sighed long. "Hong Chenglue is best at seizing opportunities on the battlefield; at least in two key battles, he was able to subdue the enemy without fighting. General Manager He could save nearly 10,000 shi of grain from his hands; I dare not ask for more."

He Chunhua frowned: "But this person wandering behind our army is always a major hidden danger; we must find a way to get rid of him."

He had already seen Hong Chenglue's slipperiness; he had escaped from under the eyes of the Xiazhou army twice last night, and almost killed his son.

All of Hong Chenglue's opponents wished they could kill him, but he was still living well now.

Thinking of this, another thought suddenly floated in He Chunhua's mind.

"Subdue... the enemy without fighting?"

Zhao Pan put down his bowl: "What did General Manager He say?"

"Oh, nothing." He Chunhua raised his wine bowl. "I toast General Zhao a bowl. With you guarding the border, it is the blessing of Great Yuan."

Zhao Pan was a great general on par with Ke Jihai and Wu Di; if someone else came, they really wouldn't be able to block Nian Zanli's offensive.

He raised his bowl and drank it all in one gulp, not being modest.

"My son visited Bai Lu Town and heard that Hong Chenglue and his wife lived in seclusion there for three years, and their life was actually destitute." A proud and arrogant famous general living in seclusion and willing to suffer poverty and anger—even storybooks wouldn't dare to write like this, because it simply didn't make money. He Chunhua asked again, "What is going on here, General Zhao, do you know the truth?"

"There are many versions from the Northern Demon Kingdom, and the most widely circulated one is that Hong Chenglue was displaced in his youth and was saved by his wife A Jin twice when he encountered danger; the two wandered and suffered together, so their feelings were deep. Later, A Jin had a difficult labor, and Hong Chenglue made a blood oath to seal his blade, but unfortunately, the child still died, and his wife was paralyzed. He was disheartened and bound by the oath, so he simply hung up his seal and resigned, living in seclusion in the countryside from then on."

He Chunhua couldn't help but laugh: "Nonsense. Can such a small thing make a general in his prime seal his blade? Child's play!"

"I also think it can't. But the common people love this kind of storybook the most." Zhao Pan laughed. "I heard in my early years that Hong Chenglue was once involved in the royal family's internal strife, and he stood on the wrong side, assisting the arch-enemy of the current Demon Emperor. Hehe, you and I both know the danger in it. So it is very likely that he resigned to avoid disaster, perhaps using his wife's difficult labor as an excuse. This was also running well and fast; otherwise, after the new Demon Emperor of Beijia ascended the throne, he might not have the magnanimity to tolerate people."

Even if there was, Hong Chenglue didn't dare to gamble at that time.

"This makes some sense." He Chunhua pondered. "However, he is now making a comeback and leading troops for the Xunzhou people; this is mostly instigated by the Northern Demon Kingdom behind the scenes."

"That is inevitable. Nian Zanli suffered two defeats under his hands, but Hong Chenglue is now leading Xunzhou troops. If it weren't for the Northern Demon Kingdom's instruction, how would he serve his defeated opponent?" Zhao Pan snorted. "There is fighting everywhere, and there are traces of the Demon Kingdom stirring up trouble everywhere. It doesn't even take the field itself; it's hateful!"

He Chunhua gave an 'um', thoughtful.

Everyone had been chatting for so long, and the food had long been finished.

Zhao Pan was still considerate: "You have come from afar, and it is dark, so I won't disturb your rest."

He Chunhua said: "No problem, I want to go to the front line to see now."

The new Xiazhou General Manager was dedicated to his work and different from those pampered officials, so Zhao Pan naturally wouldn't object: "Then please follow me."

He Lingchuan naturally followed behind his father to visit the front line.

It turned out that the enemy and our side were separated by a Hanhe River, the river surface was about fifteen zhang wide, the north of the river was occupied by the Xunzhou people, and the south of the river was stationed by Zhao Pan's army.

The camp of the Yuan government troops was stationed quite neatly, and the opposite bank was also brightly lit; from the position where He Lingchuan stood, he could still see the figures of sentries holding long spears in the Xunzhou military camp.

The distance between the two sides was so close, but the atmosphere was quite peaceful at the moment.

He Chunhua also asked: "Haven't fought recently?"

Even on the front line, they didn't fight every day.

"In the past two days, the farmland in the rear is planting seedlings, so the front line has agreed to stop fighting." Zhao Pan pointed to the yellow flag flying in front of the camp. "The season has arrived; if we don't rush to plant the fields, there will be nothing to eat next year."

"It seems that Xunzhou's grain is not abundant either." Otherwise, the Xunzhou people should have exerted force to attack fiercely and destroy the opportunity for the Yuan army to reclaim and farm the land.

"Xunzhou had a drought last year, and the grain harvest was poor. If it weren't for Hong Xiangqian suddenly attacking Woling Pass this year and the Grand Marshal launching a national change, I estimate Nian Zanli wouldn't want to choose to defect this year."

"The Northern Demon Kingdom doesn't support?"

"After Sun Fuping was killed, Nian Zanli's rebellion was exposed, and he had to surrender to the Beijia Kingdom first; I heard that the Beijia Kingdom's attitude toward him is relatively cold."

He Chunhua laughed: "Forced buying is not a deal." If the Beijia Kingdom took the initiative to persuade Nian Zanli to surrender, the treatment given to him would definitely be very high.

"Yes, if Beijia supported Nian Zanli, giving money if he wanted money, and grain if he wanted grain, we wouldn't have been able to persist for so long." Zhao Pan said hatefully. "It just wants to watch us consume each other and then sit back and reap the benefits. Nian Zanli, this idiot!"

"However, the Northern Demon Kingdom has also taken action now, employing this villain Hong Chenglue." He Chunhua pondered. "Its strategy toward the Yuan Kingdom may have changed."

Zhao Pan sighed: "There are no outsiders here, let me give you the bottom line. General Manager He, in the eyes of an ancient country with a long history like the Northern Demon Kingdom, we are actually a small state. Its focus is now in the east, and it should have no interest in reaching out here."

He Chunhua was silent. Beijia Kingdom's attitude toward Nian Zanli was enough to show the arrogance of this country.

After all, it had always been the strong in the six hundred years of history.

He Chunhua's mentality was very subtle, as if he should be glad for Beijia Kingdom's indifference here, otherwise Xiazhou would be even more precarious.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 281 =====