Chapter 388: Battle of Shenglong

"My life is here; if you have the ability, come and take it!"

Shi Yufeng immediately provoked.

Having fallen into the enemy's encirclement, with just this bit of remnant soldiers in his hands, there was no hope of breaking out.

As a general of Great Yue, he wanted to use the last afterglow of his life to strive for as much breakout time as possible for the main army.

But this kind of self-deception could fool others, but not himself.

They exhausted all their strength, and the enemy troops they held back with their lives were at most one garrison of troops.

The rest of the Great Dayu army were still on the road pursuing the main force.

However, with the country in difficulty, one had to do something; otherwise, he wouldn't be at ease even in death.

Deep in his heart, he was full of resentment toward Hu Xinbo.

Having nothing to do and being full, running to challenge the Great Dayu Dynasty was purely courting death.

During the late Emperor's reign, so many preparations were made, but in the end, he still chose to hide behind the scenes, inciting the White Lotus Sect to fight with Great Dayu.

Hiding behind the scenes and standing in front of the stage were two completely different concepts.

Not personally entering the field—even if it was exposed, at most, throw out a few scapegoats, and the matter could be revealed.

Great Dayu would not open a new battlefield when facing internal and external troubles.

As for the border conflicts that happened before, this was a common occurrence.

In the past hundred years, both sides would have friction every few years.

Who was right and who was wrong had long become a muddled account.

"General Shi, if you don't consider yourself, you should also consider the soldiers under your command!"

"Their families are all waiting for you to bring them back."

"The rebel Hu Xinbo acts perversely, not only claiming the title of Emperor without authorization but also sending troops to invade the Heavenly Dynasty; it is truly an unpardonable crime."

"Rather than following him to the dark, it is better to abandon darkness for light..."

Before the middle-aged man finished speaking, an arrow flew down from the mountain and landed more than ten meters in front of him.

"Ruan Yunxiang, you damn traitor, I am ashamed to be with you!"

Shi Yufeng couldn't help but curse angrily.

He thought his Assistant Regional Commander had died on the battlefield and had secretly felt sad for a long time; never did he expect that this guy had actually become a traitor.

If it weren't for the musket ammunition being exhausted and the distance between the two sides exceeding the bow and arrow range, he would have wanted to kill the traitor immediately to stabilize the military morale.

"Shi Yufeng, you old immortal, if you have lived enough, just wipe your own neck; why drag others along!"

"Brothers on the mountain, listen: the Heavenly Dynasty has an order: those who put down their weapons and surrender will be forgiven for the past."

"If you resist stubbornly, not only will you die, but your nine generations of family will also be treated as rebellion."

"Before making a decision, think about the wives, children, and elders at home."

"Shi Yufeng, this old bastard, for the sake of his own reputation, wants to drag your entire clan to die."

"Don't be fooled by his fake benevolence and righteousness; taking this wrong step will implicate nine generations!"

Ruan Yunxiang touted energetically.

Merely two or three hundred remnant soldiers had no value to the Great Dayu Dynasty militarily, but politically, it was of extraordinary significance.

Wanting to recover Annan, relying solely on military force to suppress was not enough; it also needed to win over a batch of local people.

Once these people surrendered, it represented that the Yue army had opened a precedent for organized surrender.

Slightly reorganized, these remnant soldiers were the best helpers for Great Dayu to govern Annan.

"Don't listen to his nonsense; the Great Dayu army cannot..."

Before he finished speaking, Shi Yufeng had an arrow on his body.

"Why... old man..."

He had thought of all kinds of ways to die, but never did he think he would die at the hands of his own people.

"General, sorry."

"You are old and not afraid of death, but we haven't lived enough!"

"Brothers, don't look at me like that."

"This arrow was not only shot for myself but also for everyone."

"We die, it doesn't matter, but if it implicates the wives, children, and elders at home, then the sin is great."

"You also don't want to bury the entire clan because of a moment of impulse, right?"

The strong man's explanation made the anger everyone had accumulated dissipate quite a bit.

At this moment, being loyal requires paying a price.

At this moment, the fear of the Great Dayu Dynasty in their bones was instantly awakened.

"Dong, dong, dong..."

The sound of weapons falling rang out one after another.

The courage scattered, and the desire to resist was gone.

In the clan era, one can die, but the clan cannot be destroyed.

No one dared to bet that after Great Dayu won, it wouldn't carry out a massive liquidation.

Prime Minister's Mansion.

"Why is there cannon fire in the city?"

Cui Ziyan, who was entertaining guests, was startled by the sudden sound of artillery fire.

"Prime Minister, listening to the sound, it should be coming from the South Gate; it seems there is also cannon fire in the west."

Hearing this answer, Cui Ziyan's expression changed instantly.

Shenglong City was the capital of Great Yue, and the garrison's artillery had strict management; without an order, it was not allowed to fire arbitrarily.

Either a mutiny occurred in the city, or the enemy troops had attacked.

"Report!"

"Prime Minister, something bad happened!"

"There are many... many enemy troops outside the city; they..."

The bad news brought by the messenger made this banquet lose its laughter, and everyone staged a face-changing performance.

The enemy troops had reached the foot of the imperial city; this was a matter of life and death.

Many people present had run to the capital from their hometowns to avoid the chaos of war.

Now that the enemy troops had killed their way over, it meant that the last peace was also about to cease to exist.

"Master Lin, the enemy troops have reached the foot of the imperial city; do you have nothing to say?"

Cui Ziyan immediately questioned.

The Emperor was not in the capital, and military and political affairs were all handled by him taking the lead.

Now that the situation had deteriorated, he needed to bear unavoidable responsibility.

He was going to be unlucky, so naturally, he couldn't let others off.

The first to bear the brunt was Lin Zeliang, who was responsible for collecting intelligence.

The enemy had reached the doorstep, and no warning had been issued in advance; dereliction of duty was unavoidable.

"Prime Minister, for the enemy to attack, they had to pass through many regions along the way."

"Moreover, near Shenglong City, two large camps were also established to guard the imperial city."

"With so many people, even if they couldn't block the enemy troops, they should have sent back news."

"The Great Dayu army only landed three days ago; as long as the troops along the way weren't dead, they could have delayed for a few days."

"Unless the troops we recruited and pacified rebelled again and directly let the Great Dayu army in."

Lin Zeliang hurriedly explained.

This pot was too big; he didn't dare to carry it.

The main force encountered trouble during the withdrawal and couldn't return to Shenglong City in time; at this moment, the number of garrison troops in the city was only thirty thousand.

It looked like a large number, but most of the soldiers were farmers who had just put down their hoes.

The two large camps outside the city were all rebel troops that had been pacified.

They wanted to use them to deal with the Great Dayu army, but they were also worried that these guys would take the opportunity to rebel, so they put them outside.

"Impossible!"

"The Great Dayu army and the White Lotus Sect fought to the death, and both sides were covered in each other's blood."

"The power of hatred had long been deep in the bone marrow."

"Having finally escaped the sea of suffering, how could they go back and be dogs for the Great Dayu Emperor again!"

Cui Ziyan immediately denied.

As the behind-the-scenes financier of the White Lotus Sect, from the outbreak of the Guangxi Rebellion, Great Yue and the White Lotus Sect had always been in a cooperative relationship.

He could recite the grievances and entanglements between the White Lotus Sect and Great Dayu backward; both sides could be said to be enemies as deep as the sea.

Based on the principle that the enemy of an enemy is a friend.

After the failure of suppressing the rebels, Cui Ziyan changed his strategy, using military suppression as a supplement and political pacification as the main focus.

The effect was very good; many rebel teams had the intention of accepting pacification.

Up to now, many rebel troops had accepted their pacification.

To eliminate hidden dangers, he even found opportunities to swap these pacified rebel troops.

The two major camps outside the city were all composed of troops drawn from multiple rebel teams, and the commanders were his confidants.

Suddenly in the banquet, seeing two familiar figures, he almost spat out a mouthful of old blood.

"Bai Youlin, Shi Hongjun, you two bastard sons of bitches, why are you neglecting your duties?"

Cui Ziyan couldn't help but question.

At such a critical moment, the two camp commanders were not in the camp controlling the overall situation but instead ran over to wish him a long life.

If nothing happened, it would be fine; now that problems had arisen, wasn't this putting him on the fire to roast!

The enemy troops were at the city gate, and he was still busy celebrating his birthday; this was a proper political disaster.

By the time the Emperor returned, he definitely wouldn't be able to escape.

"Prime Minister, we will return to the camp to mobilize troops and generals right now; we will definitely block the enemy troops outside the city!"

Bai Youlin responded first.

Whether they could complete the mission was not important; anyway, blow the cowhide first, and wait until they passed this hurdle before talking.

Deep in his heart, he felt very stifled.

Who attended the birthday banquet today, Cui Ziyan might not remember, but those who didn't come would definitely be remembered.

As a confidant younger brother, he definitely couldn't be absent.

This was the political ecology of the Great Yue Imperial Dynasty.

Want to be an official, first be a person.

If the ways of the world were not grasped properly, even if noble families entered the officialdom, they would still bump their heads and bleed.

"Someone come, take these two people who neglected their duties, and wait for His Majesty to deal with them!"

"Pass down the order for the garrison in the city to hurry and take action; be sure to guarantee that Shenglong City is not lost."

At the critical moment, Cui Ziyan showed a wise side.

The Great Dayu army could reach the city so quickly; the two camps of troops outside the city had probably rebelled.

What was the reason that led these people to rebel again—he racked his brains and couldn't figure it out.

But he knew that at such a sensitive moment, he absolutely could not let Bai Youlin and Shi Hongjun go out again.

In case the two were worried about punishment and ran to defect to the Great Dayu army to act as guides, that would be a big trouble.

"Prime Minister, wronged!"

"Prime Minister, wronged!"

The grievances of the two were collectively ignored by the group.

Even if they were relatives and friends, one by one they spontaneously distanced themselves from them.

Smart people knew that with such a big change, there would inevitably be a need to find someone to carry the pot.

Rushing up at this time, it was possible to get oneself involved.

The roaring artillery fire continued constantly.

After a loud "boom," a section of the originally sturdy city wall collapsed directly, and a gap more than ten meters wide appeared.

"Charge!"

Without the slightest hesitation, the Great Dayu army launched a charge at the first opportunity.

Watching outside the battlefield were also the White Lotus Sect rebel troops pacified by the Annan people.

"Regional Commander, give us a chance, let the brothers participate in the battle?"

The bearded man begged Zhang Ning.

After entering the Annan country, although they killed many enemies, they couldn't stand the fact that the system of implication was too terrifying.

Plus, this was based on heads for military merit; many times, even if they successfully killed the enemy, they couldn't necessarily preserve the heads intact.

Wanting to pardon all their relatives, everyone still needed to work hard.

"Rest assured, there will be opportunities for you to perform."

"After taking the city, this general will ask for merit for you from the Marquis!"

Zhang Ning promised immediately.

Being able to advance to the foot of Shenglong City so quickly, these righteous troops played an important role.

Not only did they rely on pacification to blind the Annan court, but they also brought the lower reaches of the Jiulong River into their sphere of influence.

Relying on their cover, the main army suddenly reached the foot of the city, catching the enemy troops off guard.

Even now, Zhang Ning's brain was still buzzing.

He truly could not understand what the Annan people were thinking, actually hoping to rely on pacifying these rebels to block the Yu army's advance.

Even more unbelievable was that these armies occupied the lower reaches of the Jiulong River, and they didn't take any precautions.

It couldn't be that because these people were from the White Lotus Sect rebel prisoner background, they thought they were die-hard White Lotus Sect members, living only to overthrow the Great Dayu Dynasty.

Daring to let them come over—that was after screening, confirming that the danger was not great.

The stubborn elements of the White Lotus Sect had long been thrown into the mines for reform.

After a brief loss of focus, Zhang Ning quickly straightened out the logic.

As an insider, he felt the Annan people's thoughts were bizarre.

But changing to the Annan people's perspective, it was another situation.

It wasn't that they didn't guard against these pacified rebel troops; it was mainly because the domestic military strength was empty, and wanting to guard required having troops.

The rebel troops' territory was all fought for with their own real knives and guns, not something that would be handed over with a word of pacification.

Even if they were willing to hand it over, there had to be troops to garrison it.

Since they couldn't do it, they just gambled.

Winning was a big profit; losing wouldn't have more losses.

To reduce the risk, they even drew troops from multiple pacified teams to form two garrisons to guard the imperial city.

Under normal circumstances, this kind of mixed team of multiple rebel troops could maximize mutual restraint.

The bloody slaughter continued; following the first gap, new gaps soon appeared.

The newly debuted new-style artillery declared its status in the war with a gorgeous picture.

Looking at the giant artillery that continued to show power, everyone knew that from today on, the mode of war would change.

In front of such steel giants, the sturdy city walls of the past would become unworthy of mention.

If it was said that the giant artillery solid shells had great impact, then after changing ammunition, other artillery increased lethality.

Compared to the original shells, both the lethal radius and the explosive power were greatly improved.

The only pity was that the quantity of these new-style ammunition was limited and could not supply the whole army.

If it weren't to take Shenglong City as soon as possible, Li Mu wouldn't have taken them out to use.

There was no way; the production of white sugar was limited, and the price was truly too expensive.

The fierce offensive scared the garrison in the city.

Especially the temporarily conscripted farmers, facing the Great Dayu army like gods of slaughter, they soon collapsed.

"Come back quickly!"

"Hurry back, block them for me!"

"Who..."

The shouting of the garrison commander was like the dying struggle of a drowning person.

In front of the general trend, it was not something individual strength could reverse.

Realizing the situation was not good, the noble children holding important positions in the army took the lead in running away.

The butcher knife of the supervision team was held high, but in the end, it didn't dare to fall.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 389 =====