Chapter 95

At first, he thought it was an illusion, but soon the sound grew louder and louder, and in the end, even the ground began to tremble.

Only then did Zhen Jiang confirm that it was no illusion. Her face immediately lit up with joy as she said, "This is the movement of a large-scale cavalry advance!"

"Great! It must be the imperial army passing by; we are saved! Guard Geng, hold on a little longer!"

"Understood!"

Soon, from far away, Zhen Jiang and the others saw clouds of dust rolling as a troop of iron cavalry charged toward them at high speed.

"Oh no! It’s the imperial iron cavalry! Run! Quickly!!"

The Yellow Turban army on this side also realized this and, without the slightest hesitation, immediately ordered a retreat.

But this was a plain!

Surrounded by flat, open land, where could they possibly escape to?

"Kill!!!"

Before long, they were caught up to by Su Xuan and the Profound Armor Army; in less than ten minutes, they were completely wiped out.

Zhen Jiang witnessed Su Xuan’s heroic posture throughout the entire process, and for a moment, she was somewhat mesmerized.

She waited until Su Xuan led his troops back and rode his horse toward her.

Zhen Jiang finally snapped back to reality. Seeing Su Xuan now less than two meters away, she looked at his magnificent, handsome face at close range, and her pretty face couldn't help but flush red.

Then, she hurriedly stepped down from the carriage and bowed slightly to Su Xuan, saying, "Zhen Jiang of the Zhongshan Zhen clan pays respects to General Su. Many thanks to the General for saving my life!"

"Oh?"

Hearing this, Su Xuan looked Zhen Jiang over, appreciating her beauty and full figure, and said with some surprise, "You know me?"

This Zhen Jiang might be slightly inferior in appearance to Zou Zou Qian or Xun Cai, but her figure surpassed Xun Cai’s and was comparable to Zou Zou Qian’s.

She was definitely a top-tier beauty.

The key was that her capable and generous temperament was also very attractive.

"Yes!"

Zhen Jiang seemed to notice Su Xuan’s gaze, and her earlobes turned red instantly. She looked at Su Xuan with a face full of admiration and said, "The General’s prestige is known throughout the world. Even a small woman like me has heard of it like thunder; I have long known of your fame."

"Is the General heading to Lu Nu to suppress the rebels?"

"Indeed!"

Su Xuan nodded affirmatively, while feeling very satisfied with Zhen Jiang’s admiring gaze.

He then asked, "I remember the Zhongshan Zhen clan’s headquarters is in Lu Nu, right? Would you like to accompany us?"

"May I?"

Hearing this, Zhen Jiang’s eyes lit up.

This was too good!

She was longing for more opportunities to interact with Su Xuan!

At the same time, a thought popped into her mind: "Perhaps I could marry General Su as a concubine?"

That would still be better than being sent by her family for a political marriage to some unknown person she neither liked nor looked up to.

As for becoming Su Xuan’s legal wife, she didn't even dare to think about it.

She wasn't worthy.

But she was already very satisfied with being Su Xuan’s concubine.

This was Su Xuan, after all.

He was top-tier in every aspect.

Ability, temperament, talent, and appearance—he had it all.

Furthermore, marrying Su Xuan as a concubine could also greatly help her family, perhaps sparing the Zhen clan from the covetous eyes of the wolves surrounding them?

Afterward, Su Xuan took Zhen Jiang and her party and headed toward Lu Nu.

On the way,

"Hey! Huang Hansheng, look at the way Miss Zhen Jiang is looking at the Lord; it’s clear she has already fallen for him! It seems we are about to have another Lady of the house!"

Old Dian Wei rode his horse alongside Huang Zhong, leaned in, and teased in a low voice.

"You!"

Huang Zhong heard this and glared at Old Dian Wei with annoyance, saying, "Do not discuss the Lord’s affairs behind his back."

"Just do our own jobs well!"

As subordinates, it was better to discuss such things less.

"Alright!"

Old Dian Wei heard this and gave a sheepish laugh: "What you say makes sense!"

One day later, Su Xuan and his party arrived at Lu Nu.

There were no Yellow Turban rebels here at the moment.

Su Xuan immediately sought out the Administrator of Zhongshan State, who had come to welcome him, to ask about the situation.

It seemed that after entering Zhongshan State, they had encountered very few refugees or Yellow Turban rebels.

"So that’s what it’s about!"

Zhang Zou Qian, the Administrator of Zhongshan, replied respectfully, "Reporting to the General, this matter actually goes back more than ten days."

"At that time, a very strong Yellow Turban force came from the direction of Julu, with numbers likely exceeding one hundred thousand."

"The person leading them is said to be named Zhang Yan."

"After this person entered Zhongshan State, he did not go to attack the cities that had not yet been occupied by the Yellow Turban thieves."

"Instead, he swept through all the counties of Zhongshan State, taking all the refugees, Yellow Turban rebels, and so on that he could carry with him, and headed north."

"I heard they fled directly into the Heishan mountain range."

"That is why the General has found that the number of refugees and Yellow Turban thieves in Zhongshan State has decreased significantly."

"In fact, a few days ago, one could barely see any Yellow Turban rebels within the entire territory of Zhongshan State."

"Those you see now are all people who have recently fled here from other commanderies and counties."

After all, the imperial army is currently slaughtering Yellow Turban rebels in every commandery and county of Jizhou.

As long as these people aren't stupid, they know to avoid the main force of the imperial army.

"So that’s how it is!"

Su Xuan nodded in understanding upon hearing this, then said, "Even so, I still need to sweep through Zhongshan State."

"Next, our army needs to stay here for a few days with Lu Nu as the center; please make arrangements for us."

"We also need some support in terms of grain and provisions."

They had captured quite a bit of grain and provisions back at Guang Sect.

But most of it had been taken away by those ten thousand Yellow Turban Warriors.

A portion was taken by the ten great armies under Zhang Yan.

Afterward, a significant amount was also distributed to General Huangfu Song. Although his army was not short on grain, it was always good to have a little more.

If they couldn't finish it, they could secretly have merchant caravans transport it back later!

In the future, grain and provisions would be very important.

One can never have too much.

"Hehe! Naturally! Naturally! Please, General, come inside!"

"I have already prepared a banquet to host the General."

Zhang Zou Qian hurriedly agreed and extended an invitation.

He did not dare to look down upon or slight this young general with such illustrious battle achievements; he was focused entirely on currying favor.

This made Su Xuan sigh inwardly: "Sure enough, when you are strong enough, you find that everyone around you is a good person and very easy to get along with!"

Isn't his current situation exactly the same?

From the previous Administrator of Changshan to the current Administrator of Zhongshan, they were all the same.

But one must not take their goodwill at face value.

If you were to fall on hard times or have bad luck one day, they would definitely show a different face, and would certainly not hesitate to kick you while you were down.

"Miss Zhen Jiang, will you join us?"

Su Xuan looked at Zhen Jiang and extended an invitation.

— Author's Notes —

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