Chapter 179: Calm Before the Storm

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together.

The two major generals of the Western Border Army, Yu Chi Rui and Ma Qi, although both born into aristocratic families, still had very great differences.

Yu Chi Rui was a veteran general of the army, an old general, coming from a minor aristocratic clan.

He started from a lowly soldier, experienced over a hundred battles, suffered wounds countless times, and finally grew to his current height.

Such a famous general, even when the Sima Clan held power initially, they did not replace him, but chose to win him over.

The so-called "Fierce generals must rise from the ranks, prime ministers must originate from local posts," he is a typical example among them!

And this time, the Quanrong Tribe suddenly invaded, the main force of the Western Army resisting them was precisely Yu Chi Rui's army corps.

As for the other major general Ma Qi, he was born into a great aristocratic clan.

His rise, to a certain extent, naturally involved his own talent, but was also related to the aristocratic Ma Clan he belonged to.

The confidants, partial generals, and school captains around him were likewise mostly born from high-ranking officials' sons.

As for other cold clan disciples, they simply could not enter this small circle of military power.

And this is still not the most important thing.

The key is, this time the Quanrong invaded, Ma Qi's army corps clearly displayed a posture of passive defense and preserving strength, sitting by and watching three large and small cities nearby be breached, and thousands of commoners captured and plundered.

Although Ma Qi continuously submitted memorials to explain, saying the enemy bandits were powerful, that they could only avoid the enemy's sharp edge, and the like.

But his over twenty thousand border troops, compared to the performance of Yu Chi Rui's army corps, indeed differed far too much; this is an indisputable fact!

Ma Qi's performance, just like other aristocratic clans in the Great Zhou Dynasty, was a chronic malpractice continued over thousands of years.

However, as a border army group, to want to deal with him, one must be cautious again and cautious, and plan slowly.

And since Gu Xuan's arrival, there were too many things needing to be done, and the order of priority also had to be weighed.

Therefore, before this, he merely used favors, rewards, and awe-pressure as much as possible to temporarily stabilize Ma Qi and his confidants, guaranteeing they would not rebel on the spot was enough.

And seeing that even the powerful Sima Clan, the Jie Tribe, and others had already been destroyed.

No matter how much Ma Qi feared in his heart, he did not dare, under the condition of domestic political balance, to openly tear face and directly lead troops to rebel.

And now, the opportunity has finally matured, arriving at the time to thoroughly resolve this problem.

However.

Before this, Gu Xuan did another major thing.

He personally led twenty thousand elite forbidden army troops, rushed to the Western Border, and with the assistance of local officials centered on "Open Passage Society" members, resupplied several times along the way, and recruited a certain number of civilian laborers.

Finally.

After a month of rushing to aid, they arrived at the destination, timely assisting Yu Chi Rui's army corps, opposing the Quanrong Tribe's over thirty thousand archers invading this time.

On the road, Gu Xuan had already, in the Zhou King's name, sent a secret letter to Yu Chi Rui.

In the letter, he discussed many things; the primary was attempting to sandwich the Quanrong main army's military intelligence, secondly there was preferential treatment for Yu Chi Rui and his confidants' families, and so on.

The so-called "A strong general commands a nest of strong men, a bear general commands a nest of bears."

Originally speaking, the Forbidden Army System's combat power was not higher than the Border Army, and was even often regarded by people as flower racks.

However.

The current Forbidden Army Commander is Gu Xuan, plus the "Open Passage Society's" baptism, the current Forbidden Army is almost reborn, combat power absolutely world-shaking!

Even having experienced a long forced march, very fatigued, the Forbidden Army still rapidly completed the sandwiching of the Quanrong main army's rear route.

Only a pity.

The Quanrong Tribe prepared early to grab a bite and withdraw, and did not, as the Southern aristocratic clans hoped, penetrate deep into the Central Plains heartland to plunder wildly.

Therefore.

Gu Xuan and Yu Chi Rui's two great army corps, under utmost pincer attack conditions, only managed to eat up three thousand Quanrong cavalry acting as rearguard.

Although it can also be said to be not a small harvest, it still did not achieve the greatest military objective.

However.

After this battle, the dangerous situation of the Quanrong Tribe invading was finally considered pacified.

The Quanrong people, led by the Southern Rong King, had quite a bit of a "bird startled by the mere twang of a bow" attitude; within a short time, it is very unlikely they will invade the border again.

After this battle.

Gu Xuan ordered cattle slaughtered and sheep butchered, and opened the treasury, to reward the soldiers of the two great army corps; as for military merit rewards and punishments, that goes without saying.

And he also held a close meeting with this Western Army old general Yu Chi Rui, deciding on many matters.

Furthermore, after these matters spread, the most panicked person was none other than the other Western Army major general Ma Qi.

And as Gu Xuan led the elite forbidden army troops, returning from a great victory with high battle intent, displaying the great banner symbolizing the current Zhou King, approaching Ma Qi's Western Army corps, this person's panic grew more severe by the day.

Having a guilty conscience is the main reason for Ma Qi's panic.

In the Ma Clan aristocratic clan he belonged to, many clansmen had committed quite a few evil deeds.

Even he himself could not be considered very glorious; moreover, this time the Quanrong invaded, he chose to preserve strength, sitting by and watching the commoners be slaughtered.

And yet, facing the current Zhou King His Majesty, he basically had no chance of winning at all!

What is more special is, the army values military merit above all!

The Western Army high-level led by Ma Qi, by choosing to fear battle and not sortie, had already sparked some dissatisfaction among bottom-level soldiers; they had relatives killed by the Quanrong.

Therefore.

Facing the nearly twenty thousand elite forbidden army troops returning with a great victory, Ma Qi and his confidant partial generals, school captains, and others, increasingly felt insufficient confidence, and army morale also seemed unstable.

Especially, in the recent year and more.

Gu Xuan, on the pretext of martial arts training, inserted quite a lot of sand into Ma Qi's army corps, that is, "Open Passage Society" members, many being middle-rank officers.

Although they long suffered exclusion from Ma Qi and his confidants, marginalized in various forms.

But to say they were truly dismissed, or even killed, Ma Qi and the others still did not have this courage.

And waiting until the current situation before them, Gu Xuan's this kind of subtle sand-inserting action, ultimately still took effect.

A considerable portion of the low-ranking soldiers had come to understand the "Open Passage Society" platform, and also understood the many events that had occurred within the Great Zhou Dynasty, including the imperial examinations for selecting talent, land distribution, and so on.

They also finally understood who truly treated them well, and who wanted to keep exploiting them...

Under these circumstances, even if Ma Qi wanted to raise troops and rebel, it was far from as easy as it had been initially.

Finally.

When Gu Xuan personally donned armor, rode a warhorse, and led his forces to arrive beneath the city where Ma Qi's corps was garrisoned.

This tense atmosphere had already reached a peak.

Ma Qi led a dozen or so confidant partial generals, school captains, and others, looking at the Zhou King's great banner fluttering in the wind below the city, and also saw the majestic figure of the lead rider.

Based solely on that indescribable yet truly existing peerless aura.

All the officers and soldiers, including Ma Qi, knew that it must be the current Zhou King His Majesty!

With the supreme status of a monarch, leading hundreds of officials and attendants and guards, turning the tide and destroying the power minister family Sima Clan — Zhou King His Majesty!

With peerless courage and divine aura, capturing and killing the Sima Clan remnant Cheng Luo, and sweeping away the North Border Jie Tribe that had caused harm for decades!

With ambition surpassing past and present, implementing new policies, breaking the rule of the aristocratic clans!

And also now, personally leading the elite forbidden army, resisting the Quanrong great army's invasion, defending the borders and protecting the people!

For a moment, Ma Qi couldn't help but give a slight bitter smile.

Facing such a generation of Zhou King, even if he could completely control the twenty thousand plus border troops in his hands, what could he do?

Moreover, the current him couldn't even be said to have complete control; perhaps barely having a few thousand confidant officers and soldiers was already not bad.

Just at this time.

On the city wall, a mysterious scholar concealing his face with a black robe whispered in Ma Qi's ear.

"General, make up your mind. What we promised to give, not a fraction will be less."

Obviously, although this black-robed scholar's identity was mysterious, he had obtained Ma Qi's permission; otherwise it would be impossible to approach this close to the main general.

This person was precisely the southern aristocratic clans' lobbyist, using bait such as "enfeoffing Ma Qi as the Zhenbei King" and many other benefits, bewitching Ma Qi to launch a great cleansing in the army, wanting to kill all the "Open Passage Society" officers and soldiers, and completely defect to the aristocratic clans' side.

It was just that these days, Ma Qi had never truly agreed to him.

Waiting until this moment now, whether it was Ma Qi or this black-robed scholar, both knew they had arrived at the final moment of decision.

"I already know. Sir, go down first. I will discuss with the officers and soldiers one last time."

Ma Qi turned his head, his expression somewhat indifferent, yet his eyes carried a hint of complexity, looking at this lobbyist.

The black-robed scholar let out a barely perceptible light sigh, retreated backward, until he withdrew from Ma Qi's sight.

Unexpectedly, after a few breaths, a sudden change occurred!

Just as Ma Qi summoned his confidant partial generals, school captains, and others for a final small decision-making meeting.

From a certain spot in the city, there actually came the creaking sound of bowstrings, and then two bed crossbows shot out violently, their target being the Zhou King His Majesty below the city!

"Who is it?!"

Such a sudden change made even Ma Qi involuntarily change color, and he immediately roared out in anger.

In front of so many soldiers, firing bed crossbows at the current His Majesty — this is naked rebellion.

And the elite forbidden army below the city likewise roared in anger, and simultaneously with the clanking sounds, dozens of fine iron shields were erected neatly, blocking in front of Gu Xuan.

In fact.

Facing this elite forbidden army whose equipment could be called the most elite in the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, this kind of open assassination by bed crossbow basically had no possibility of taking effect, unless it was a sneak attack.

Clang—!

One bed crossbow pierced through a full three layers of fine iron shields, causing three or four forbidden army soldiers to be killed or wounded.

The other bed crossbow was actually knocked away by Gu Xuan personally with his great halberd, embedding into the land beside him, sinking in more than half a meter.

The power of the bed crossbow can be seen from this; it is truly worthy of being one of the most terrifying long-range weapons of this era.

But the Zhou King His Majesty's single strike's power also equally shocked all the soldiers on and off the city.

With his own power, easily knocking away a bed crossbow that can pierce through several armored horses and three or four layers of fine iron shields — what kind of martial power is this!

And then.

"Ma Qi, do you really want to commit treason and cause trouble?"

From Gu Xuan's mouth, a shouted question like thunder piercing the ears, the sound wave sweeping the city up and down, the whole city trembling, the hearts and minds of the myriad people all shaken.

He had fully activated the Great Zhou God King Formula, intending to establish authority.

Obviously, the reason Gu Xuan asked like this was also because he vaguely saw something slightly suspicious on the city wall; otherwise he would have long since ordered an assault on the city.

And on the city wall.

Ma Qi, whose heart was shocked and angry to the extreme because of that inexplicably fired bed crossbow, reacted not slowly either.

He dispatched his capable personal guards at the first moment, capturing those culprits who had secretly fired the bed crossbows — and sure enough it was that black-robed scholar from before!

These days, he had used heavy gold as bait and had already bribed several soldiers responsible for the bed crossbows.

And the reason he did this was naturally harboring ulterior motives — it was to force Ma Qi to openly break with the Zhou King His Majesty, thoroughly embark on the path of rebellion, thereby striving for a better opportunity for the southern aristocratic clans.

Upon seeing this person at this moment, the resentment of Ma Qi and his confidant partial generals and others was naturally self-evident; someone had already beaten this person severely.

But at this moment, Ma Qi had even more important things to do.

He gave a bitter laugh; ahead was the peerless Zhou King His Majesty, behind were the scheming aristocratic clans — his path forward could be said to be fraught with danger at every step!

And it was also at this moment that he ultimately still made his final choice.

"The current His Majesty is divinely martial and extraordinary; the general trend cannot be defied. I wish to submit — what are your intentions?"

Ma Qi's eyes were bright and piercing, looking at the many confidant partial generals, school captains, and others before him.

At this moment, he ultimately erupted with the prestige of a veteran general of many years, and the awe of a superior.

Although far from comparable to this Zhou King Gu Xuan, it could also be considered an extraordinary emperor.

Under this pressure, the many partial generals, school captains, and others looked at each other in dismay, but in the end the vast majority bowed their heads: "Willing to follow the General's orders."

But that black-robed scholar, hearing these words, could not help but jump up, cursing angrily: "Foolish! A bunch of fools, not enjoying wealth and honor, but insisting on..."

Before he could finish speaking, at Ma Qi's signal, someone beat him with several punches, knocking out several teeth.

Had it not been known to all that this man must be kept for trial before Zhou King His Majesty, he would long since have been slain by the resentful soldiers.

Afterwards.

Ma Qi personally walked to the battlements and shouted loudly downward.

"Your Majesty, we shall go out of the city to pay our respects immediately!"

"We hope Your Majesty will forgive us; earlier, a petty man used a bed crossbow without authorization."

Among the ten thousand troops, Ma Qi's roar sounded somewhat hoarse, but it was ultimately heard by many soldiers, calming their inner restlessness.

"Ultimately, we need not turn our weapons against our compatriots!"

This was the voice of most soldiers, especially the Border Army on Ma Qi's side.

A quarter of an hour later.

Baring his upper body, with a thorn branch of unknown origin wrapped around his back, Ma Qi led more than ten School Captains under his command out of the city and knelt before Gu Xuan to surrender.

On the city wall, his most capable and trusted Partial General was still leading men to maintain order, ensuring no one would run amok again.

Ultimately.

This route of the Border Army in Xi Jing also ultimately fell completely under Gu Xuan, this Zhou King.

At the same time Ma Qi went to the Imperial Capital and became Deputy Mountain Chief of Martial Arts.

His Ma Clan also received a certain degree of pardon and preferential treatment because of this wise action of his, of course, those clansmen who had committed many evils were still inevitably executed according to law.

Thus, all military power in the North Border of the entire Great Zhou Dynasty was completely controlled by Gu Xuan!

He could also, just as in the Forbidden Army System, promote the "Open Passage Society" program among all Border Armies.

Simultaneously.

That route of the Bu Shi Lang, who went to the north-south border to guard against southern gate-clan harassment, also ultimately repelled the enemy army.

Thereafter.

The external threats to the entire North Border were temporarily lifted, while the New Policies continued to be carried out with great vigor.

Within a full year's time, neither the north nor the south started hostilities again, but both sides knew this was merely the calm before the storm!

(Chapter End)