Chapter 1731

"This subordinate obeys the decree!"

Wang Xiao cupped his hands and went to issue the order.

"Wait!"

Gao Yang called out, and Wang Xiao turned back to look at Gao Yang.

"In this battle, anyone holding a blade is to be treated as resisting; kill them all!"

Wang Xiao's body trembled, and he said with a solemn, murderous look, "This subordinate obeys the order!"

Lu Zhen stared at Gao Yang, his whole body trembling, his face horrified. He probed, "Kid, are you... killing the captives?"

Upon hearing this, Gao Yang immediately retorted, "Grandfather Lu, what kind of talk is that!"

"Am I, Gao Yang, that kind of person? It's just that during the pursuit, my soldiers kill captives for military merit; this Prime Minister cannot stop them."

Lu Zhen remained silent.

"Kid, this goes against the Dao of Heaven!"

Gao Yang's expression was indifferent as he looked into the distance. "There are already many captives from this battle. Bringing back another batch would mean the daily consumption of grain and fodder would be an astronomical figure."

"The two kings, Zhenyue and Langya, are cunning by nature. This battle in Hexi will still be a long struggle. These captives... must absolutely not be released!"

"Once released, they will be summoned by King Zhenyue and King Langya and turn back into a sharp sword stabbing at our army!"

"Gao Yang would rather bear the infamy of the ages and be reviled for ten thousand years than do such a stupid thing!"

Gao Yang's voice was very soft, but Lu Zhen heard it very clearly.

He looked up at the battlefield; it was indeed as Gao Yang said, there were already many Xiongnu captives.

In this battle, they hadn't brought much baggage, fighting by "supporting the war with war."

Now that the two armies had merged, not counting the Da Qian soldiers who had died in battle, there were still over twenty thousand people, plus the Xiongnu captives... as Gao Yang said, the daily grain consumption was a huge drain.

This was a very cruel problem.

Just like the Great Chu captives back then; if they were returned to Great Chu, they would attack Da Qian again next time. If not returned, their settlement would become a huge problem, wasting grain every day!

In the end... Wu Zhao, not fearing her reputation, ordered the captives to be killed!

Now, the difficulty was the same.

"Kid, I am old; let this order be considered as issued by me."

"You are still young; you don't have to be like this."

Lu Zhen took a deep breath and spoke heavily to Gao Yang.

Gao Yang was a junior, and he felt there was no need for him to bear this reputation.

Hearing this, a hint of warmth welled up in Gao Yang's eyes.

He smiled and shook his head. "Grandfather Lu, there is no need."

"As for mere reputation, do you think I have any left? Besides, this isn't the first time I've done something like this!"

Lu Zhen couldn't help but think.

Under the walls of Changancheng, Gao Yang used alcohol to burn the Great Chu rattan-armored soldiers, leaving them cooked everywhere.

Previously, after crossing Mount Canglan, Gao Yang even ordered his subordinates to execute the "Three Alls" military order, killing the Hexi Xiongnu until they wailed.

Afterward, he even threw the carcasses of livestock into the water source. It was fortunate that no plague occurred, otherwise, this battle wouldn't have needed to be fought...

"Forget it!"

"You brat, what gains did you have in the Xiongnu rear?"

Lu Zhen shook his head and changed the subject.

Hearing this, Gao Yang raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Grandfather Lu, the gains were too great."

"Oh?"

"Tell me about it!"

Lu Zhen became interested instantly.

"The journey was smooth and unimpeded, so the results were naturally great. For example, King Zhenyue's wife and children—Grandfather Lu, you might not know, but King Zhenyue has quite a few wives and children."

"But I wiped them all out in one go."

Lu Zhen raised an eyebrow. "Breaking the city of King Zhenyue and capturing his wife and children—not bad, this is a heaven-sized merit!"

"Grandfather Lu, that's just the beginning. Compared to the good things found in King Zhenyue's city, this is nothing!" Gao Yang said with a light laugh.

"Oh?"

"What good things? They are so astonishing!" Lu Zhen was full of curiosity.

Gao Yang revealed a smile and said to Lu Zhen, word for word, "The Xiongnu holy object—the Golden Man for Heaven Worship!"

"Hiss!"

Once these words were spoken, Lu Zhen's face was filled with horror.

The next instant.

He couldn't help but laugh out loud, a laugh that was extremely heroic.

"Good!"

"Good indeed!"

"Damn it, this Golden Man for Heaven Worship is a Xiongnu holy object, and it has actually fallen into the hands of our Da Qian!"

"The shame of the Taizu of the past has been completely washed away!"

Lu Zhen was full of excitement, laughing heartily.

"Prime Minister Gao, should we send this good news to Changancheng with all speed?"

"I imagine His Majesty has been worried all along!"

Chen Sheng looked at Gao Yang and said.

"Wait until the army finishes the pursuit, then send it back to Changancheng. Anyway, His Majesty has waited this long, so there's no rush for this moment."

Gao Yang waved his hand, speaking with an indifferent look.

But Lu Zhen suddenly couldn't laugh anymore and fell into a silence.

He took a deep breath, patted Gao Yang on the shoulder, and said, "Kid, send an urgent report to Changancheng with all speed!"

Gao Yang: "?"

He stared at Lu Zhen, full of confusion.

"Two days ago, I felt it was impossible for you to arrive in time, and King Zhenyue and King Langya were coming very fast, wanting to encircle and annihilate our army..."

Gao Yang's body immediately trembled, and he stood straight.

He stared straight at Lu Zhen, waiting for the rest.

"Therefore, therefore... when the Xiongnu were encircling us, I ordered people to ride at full speed and send a military report that was quite desperate and worried!"

"Now that I think about it... it will arrive in Changancheng in a few days."

Gao Yang: "..."

He took a deep breath and spoke without hesitation, "Someone!"

"Quickly send the military situation of this battle to Changancheng via 800-li urgent dispatch, not a moment can be delayed!"

"Yes!"

Hearing this, Chen Sheng immediately went down.

"Grandfather Lu, there's no need to worry too much. This trip involved three armies, and only one route's disadvantage being reported is of no great consequence." Gao Yang comforted him.

Lu Zhen, as if having grabbed onto a backbone, said, "Correct!"

"You brat, you are right. Of our three armies, only one route suffered a setback; it is of no consequence."

The two stood on the Hexi grassland, gazing in the direction of Changancheng, and spoke for a while.

"..."

Da Qian.

Changancheng.

Early in the morning, the horizon was tinged with a fish-belly white.

On the official road outside the city, Da Qian iron cavalry clad in black armor and carrying black dragon flags were galloping.

"Get out of the way quickly!"

"800-li urgent dispatch!"

"Directly to His Majesty!"

"Emergency military situation in the Hexi region!"

"Death to those who block me!" ===== CHAPTER 1733 =====