Chapter 853: The Death of Song Gongbao (11400 Supplement)

"Greetings, Lord Privy Commissioner!"

Song Gongbao bowed meticulously: "My unit has already taken the stronghold... but the losses are heavy, I request permission to recuperate!"

"Denied!"

Gao Qiu waved his hand: "General Song is heroic; although there were minor setbacks before the main army, it is of no great consequence... As for resting, let us wait until the county seat is taken and the evil Taoist is captured... Oh, there is one more small matter. It is said that the evil Taoist Xulingzi has a type of Fire Jujube that is quite good. After you take the city, remember to present it! This is a tribute for the Emperor!"

"My Lord... my unit has truly suffered heavy casualties. Even if we must attack the city, please let us rest for a few days!"

Song Gongbao kowtowed repeatedly.

Yet he saw Gao Qiu's expression turn displeased: "General Song, could it be that you intend to desert before the battle?"

Then why are there still people on the city walls?

Doesn't the Liang Army only have a mere five thousand men?

Two rows of the Liang Army parted, allowing a tall figure to emerge.

"Destroy the Cloud Ladder!"

Lishui County seat.

Song Gongbao held his long sword high and arrived beneath the city wall.

The main army had been attacking the city for seven days. This was not a siege without assault, but rather a fierce attack every single day; both sides had suffered heavy losses.

Clearly, this was a battle-supervising squad!

Once anyone dared to flee, they would be executed immediately!

He was still alive only because his personal guards were capable, sacrificing their lives to block spears for him.

"Kill!"

Wu Xing looked at this scene, the Feather Fan in his hand already crushed out of shape: "Seven days, a full seven days!"

"Brother Li?!"

"Follow me and kill!"

"Battering Ram? Where is the Battering Ram?"

He had a dark complexion, a leopard's head and round eyes, and held a Flower Steel Great Axe. At this moment, with one swing of the axe, he split an astonished brother from the Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold in two.

"That is also true... I heard that the Liang Army general Tang Xun defeated two flanking divisions. If he didn't care about defending the prefectural city, he could indeed..."

Wu Xing's tears flowed like rain.

Song Gongbao gave a bitter smile: "Even if we defect to the Great Liang, could both sides truly forget the blood feud of these past two months... Furthermore... the Great Liang Prime Minister only brought five thousand men. In these days we have lost over ten thousand, and he has lost at least two thousand. Otherwise, why would he not defend the stronghold and instead retreat to the county seat? The Liang Army... is already short on troops!"

Therefore, these past few days he had also personally braved the arrows, fighting to the death without retreating.

Song Gongbao let out a loud shout, drew his long sword, and faintly transformed back into that heroic and spirited master of the Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold...

What's more... he had previously heard rumors, being enfeoffed as a duke or a marquis? Heh... he hadn't even achieved that yet! How could a mere rebel deserve it?

Just wait to be posthumously honored after death!

It is truly too simple for a superior to kill someone in the army.

"Die!"

A Cloud Ladder was set up, and soldiers climbed up one by one.

At this moment, he had no other thoughts, knowing only that if he broke the county seat and died in battle, the Imperial Court's suspicion would end, and the other brothers would have a chance to live!

If you dare to resist, you are a rebellious subject, a traitor, and everyone has the right to kill you!

The next day!

A Cloud Ladder was placed against the city wall, and a string of soldiers with sharp knives in their teeth climbed rapidly.

Several fingers fell down.

His own side had lost over ten thousand, and there had even been a mutiny, which was then suppressed by the Imperial Guard.

Song Gongbao heard the urging drums from the rear and smiled miserably: "I have committed a great mistake, implicating many brothers... This time I must lead the charge myself, hoping only to quickly break the county seat and give the brothers a way to survive!"

Song Gongbao exclaimed in shock, only to find the opponent expressionless, charging toward him as a door-sized board axe smashed down.

"Then it is settled. Tomorrow, continue the attack on Lishui County seat... This Privy Commissioner awaits General Song's good news."

Song Gongbao was undaunted; his long sword flicked, parrying a long spear, and then he slashed along the spear shaft.

It is the same old saying: if the sovereign wants a subject to die, the subject must die. If you go and die, you are still a loyal subject and will receive posthumous honors!

"Kill!"

"Pass on my order: Attack!"

His fall was like a domino, knocking down a string of soldiers beneath him.

Not far behind them, over a hundred thousand Imperial Guard soldiers stood with blades and spears like a forest, arrows nocked, faintly aimed at them.

As a rebel leader, it was already generous of him to give this much face.

Forcing these recruited rebels to choose only between fighting to the death and dying in battle.

And he was indeed skilled in martial arts, killing soldiers one after another, clearing a space on the city wall to let more and more of the Song Army up.

"Now it is a case of the sovereign wanting a subject to die, and the subject cannot even harbor resentment! Otherwise, it is disloyalty!"

Even though they were forcibly conscripting able-bodied men in the city, the difference between the conscripts and the regular army could be seen at a glance.

If it were an ordinary soldier, being this reckless every time, they would have died countless times over in seven days.

"Taking a step back, even if we defected to the enemy before the battle, the Liang King would gladly accept us... but what about our families left in the rear?"

"Fall!"

"Fight? With what are we to fight?"

Even so, the Liang Army opposite remained expressionless, suddenly gritting their teeth and charging over!

Song Gongbao was dauntless, his sword sweeping across the air to behead them.

Song Gongbao led the remaining thirty thousand-plus men, arranging them into a square formation.

"And the General... I fear he has already resolved to die!"

Gao Qiu waved his hand, signaling Song Gongbao to withdraw.

"If this continues, our Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold will truly be wiped out..."

The Liang Army was mostly composed of such soldiers who feared not death; having encountered them often, he had grown accustomed to it, and he knew even better that it was unsafe to leave the enemy severely wounded—it was best to kill them.

Those who were battle-hardened and fought to the death without retreating were surely the Liang King's elite!

"Could it be... that the Liang King is sending reinforcements?"

This person was none other than Li Xuanfeng!

However, Aaron had been lazy when refining the Six Jia Divine Soldiers in the later stages and had not given them a makeover, so they were recognized at once!

This could be considered a lucky mistake; the shock and awe it brought to Song Gongbao were almost devastating.

Wu Xing also saw through this arrangement, his eyes turning red with rage: "General... this is too much bullying, let's fight them to the death!"

Clang!

The amnesty for Xiaohuang Mountain Stronghold did not just include the soldiers; many had families settled in the north!

Once a rebellion occurred, their families would be traitors and could be executed!

At this time, there was no such thing as "the disaster does not extend to the family"; plotting rebellion and having one's nine generations executed was the reality!

Wu Xing was immediately doused as if by a basin of cold water, and he could only smile bitterly: "The Imperial Court, the Imperial Court... did they harbor evil intentions when they first settled our families? The Imperial Court never trusted us for even a single day..."

Several Liang Army soldiers, expressionless, charged over with long spears raised.

A shout rang out from atop the city wall, and immediately, steel blades hacked at the Cloud Ladder, chopping off the ladder's hooks before pushing the whole thing away.

And Song Gongbao was even clearer that only if he died would there be a possibility for his brothers to survive.

These words carried killing intent; Song Gongbao shuddered and hurriedly said: "This subordinate would not dare!"

By now, they were almost completely depleted.

"Brother!"

Song Gongbao's figure was like an ape as he also climbed up and reached the city wall.

And the defending troops in the city must have lost another two thousand, right?

"Fire arrows! Fire arrows!"

Suddenly, the sound of heavy armor dragging on the ground rang out.

Atop the city wall, boiling Golden Juice was poured down; the leading soldier immediately let out a miserable scream from the scalding and fell off.

And no matter how high his Wu skills were, he was far inferior to Li Xuanfeng.

After less than three rounds of combat, his long sword was knocked flying, and looking at the descending axe, only one thought remained in his heart: "Could it be... that this is my retribution?"

(End of this chapter)