Chapter 101: The News Reaches Zhu Ying!

For the Shen family at this moment!

They could never possibly admit that Zhu Ying, the officer ranked Wan Army and granted a noble title, was the very Zhu Ying they had betrayed.

Besides believing Zhu Ying had no ability, they fundamentally refused to accept it.

Even if it were true!

They still refused to believe it.

But now!

Shen Wansan’s face was extremely grim.

He understood clearly.

If this Zhu Ying truly was the Zhu Ying they knew, then the Shen family was in dire trouble.

If it really were.

Then someone so young, granted generalship and nobility through military merit, would have an unimaginable future.

And to be deeply favored by the Emperor of Yingtian—this was even more rare.

After all,

If it were merely promotion to general,

Military merit alone, through the army or Ministry of War, would suffice.

But granting a noble title could only be done by the current Emperor; titles were honors bestowed by imperial authority, reserved for the aristocracy.

Watching his sons argue incessantly in the hall—though all insisted it could not be that Zhu Ying—their underlying fear was plain to see.

After a moment of deep thought,

“It couldn’t be that coincidental.”

“You all know who Zhu Ying is.”

“He had no talent, no martial skill. He could never have survived the battlefield.”

“This Zhu Ying absolutely cannot be him.”

“Moreover, such rapid promotion, without someone paving the way, is impossible—he must be from the imperial clan,” Shen Wansan said slowly.

As soon as he spoke,

His many sons nodded in agreement.

Shen Wansan, who rose from obscurity to immense wealth, relied on merchant profit-seeking and sharp insight into human nature and power.

In his view,

A commoner with no status entering the military could never rise so fast, nor could one man alone achieve so many great feats.

In short,

Shen Wansan did not believe the Zhu Ying raised under his own roof possessed such ability.

In this age,

There were skilled warriors.

There were the strong and brave.

There were those gifted in commanding troops.

But it could never be Zhu Ying.

“Father’s words are spot on.”

“It must be a coincidence of identical names.”

“This Zhu Ying is merely sharing the same name.”

“Exactly.”

“Absolutely.”

“…”

Shen Wansan’s words were fully accepted by his sons.

Perhaps they felt uneasy, perhaps they suspected this Zhu Ying was the one they had betrayed—but deep down, they clung to the greatest hope of denial.

“Of course!”

Shen Wansan spoke again, his aged face carrying the calm of a plotted scheme: “We must investigate thoroughly—whether this Zhu Ying is truly that Zhu Ying.”

As he spoke,

Shen Wansan’s gaze settled on the steward.

“No matter the cost, no matter what bribes or arrangements are needed,”

“Find out exactly who this Zhu Ying is,” Shen Wansan said firmly.

“Your servant obeys.”

The steward immediately replied.

Yet after a moment’s hesitation, the steward asked nervously: “Master, if this Zhu Ying truly is that Zhu Ying, what shall we do… what shall we do?”

“He harbors boundless hatred toward our Shen family. If it is truly him, now that he has power, he will surely destroy us one day.”

“This…”

As these words fell,

Shen Wansan’s brows tightened, and his narrowed old eyes revealed a flash of murderous intent.

“We’ll decide everything after we find out the truth,” Shen Wansan said slowly.

…………

Liaodong!

“Kill.”

“Slaughter every last Yuan soldier scum.”

“Kill…”

Cavalry charged.

Like a long dragon.

At the front,

Ming archers in red armor fired forward, while the dragon-like cavalry swiftly encircled.

Ahead,

Was a small Liaodong town.

The Yuan soldiers now fled in panic toward the city gates.

“Retreat… hurry, retreat!”

“These are the subordinates of the Ming demon!”

“Retreat…!”

Thousands of Yuan troops fled in chaos.

The city gates stood wide open.

Even though the Yuan commander inside ordered them closed, there was no chance—the gates were blocked by the fleeing troops, impossible to shut.

Behind them,

Zhu Ying wore full battle armor, gripping a tiger-headed greatsword.

Wu Feng surged forward relentlessly.

The battle blade protected him,

As he plunged straight into the fleeing enemy ranks.

He slashed wildly.

One Yuan soldier down with each strike.

“Slain Northern Yuan soldier: +10 Strength, +10 days of lifespan.”

“Slain Northern Yuan soldier: +10 Inner Qi, +10 days of lifespan.”

“…”

System prompts flashed continuously.

Battle blade guarding, he cut through the fleeing Yuan troops.

Zhu Ying was like the sharpest tip of a spear—thrusting, piercing, ruthless.

Behind him, his soldiers followed, slashing enemies in frenzy.

Soon,

Zhu Ying alone reached the city gate first.

Amid the chaotic mix of Ming troops and fleeing Yuan soldiers, the few Yuan archers on the walls could not concentrate their arrows—they were powerless to stop him.

Seeing the crowded gate ahead,

Zhu Ying gripped his battle blade tightly, his gaze sharp and fixed. The next instant, he channeled his Inner Qi into his arm, pouring all his strength into it.

As Wu Feng charged forward, mere steps away,

“Power Strike!”

Zhu Ying roared inwardly.

The blade brimmed with potent Inner Qi—though it could not be projected outward, it could be channeled into weapons or fists and feet, and its explosive force was immense.

The blade descended!

An explosive force nearing ten thousand jūn.

There was also the burst of an invisible blade qi.

“Ah… ah…”

The city gate.

Dozens of Yuan soldiers let out piercing screams.

In an instant.

Countless Yuan soldiers fell.

Those cut cleanly in half by the blade, those beheaded.

Those killed outright by his invisible blade qi shattering their internal organs.

The city gate was already piled with over a dozen corpses.

“Slain a Northern Yuan soldier: +10 speed, +10 days of lifespan.”

“Slain a Northern Yuan soldier…”

Each slash triggered continuous system prompts.

Zhu Ying had been slaughtering on the battlefield for so long; the enemies he had cut down exceeded three thousand, and he felt no ripple of emotion toward these corpses.

“Giddyap!”

Zhu Ying shouted.

Wu Feng trod upon the corpses of Yuan soldiers and charged into the city.

Zhu Ying’s battle blade swung relentlessly, still furiously killing enemies.

“We swear to follow the General!”

“Follow the General and kill!”

“Kill!”

Behind them.

Four hundred personal guards roared; the cavalry surged ahead.

They followed Zhu Ying into the city.

Behind the personal guard camp.

“Soldiers, kill!”

“Our Da Ning border troops are no weaker than anyone.”

Chen Heng roared in excitement, swinging his long saber, riding his horse, charging toward the city front.

Behind him.

Five thousand infantry rushed forward in a furious assault.

“Kill, kill, kill…”

Every Ming soldier let out deafening roars, brimming with exhilaration.

Soon.

The Yuan banner atop the small city was cut down.

The Ming flag was planted atop the city gate, fluttering in the wind.

The city’s command post!

“Of course.”

“Except for that Man Jier, who didn’t have time to take the silver and gold from the command post, everything else was emptied.”

“If we want another windfall, we’ll have to go to Liaoyang.”

After ransacking the command post, Zhu Ying found little of value and was deeply disappointed.

“Reporting to the General.”

“Qingcheng is secured.”

“In this battle, we slew over two thousand enemies and captured over three thousand.”

Chen Heng and Wei Quan hurried forward, reporting excitedly.

Especially Chen Heng—his expression betrayed long-suppressed excitement.

Before Zhu Ying took command, our Da Ning border troops, under those fierce generals from Huaixi, were constantly engaged in battles, but we only handled logistics and menial tasks—we never got to fight on the front lines, never had a chance to earn battle merit.

But since Zhu Ying took command.

Our Da Ning border troops received Feng Sheng’s orders and split from the Huaixi forces to act independently.

Under Zhu Ying’s leadership.

In just ten days.

Our Da Ning border troops had already broken through three cities in Liaodong.

The soldiers who had longed for glory finally had the chance to fight and earn merit.

At this moment.

For the Da Ning border troops of the Ming, who craved battle merit, Zhu Ying’s prestige was immense.

“Good.”

Hearing the battle results, Zhu Ying nodded with a smile.

Then,

He looked at Chen Heng: “Chen General, same as before—leave a thousand men to hold the city, leave two thousand logistics troops to care for the wounded and clear the corpses; the rest rest for half a day, then move out immediately.”

“Your servant obeys.”

Chen Heng immediately replied, face alight with excitement.

“Chen General.”

“Have you had your fill of killing these past few days?” Wei Quan asked with a grin.

“More than enough. Absolutely satisfying.”

“Before General Zhu arrived, we spent every day doing logistics—our border troops all longed for glory but had no chance.”

“Now that the General has come, we’ve broken three cities and earned so much merit.”

“The men’s morale is soaring—they’re overjoyed,” Chen Heng said with a smile.

From his demeanor, it was clear he was truly exhilarated.

Know that

On the battlefield, military merit was the only path to promotion for soldiers; even without personally slaying enemies, once a battle ended, any soldier who participated in capturing a city would receive rewards from the court and the Ministry of War.

Those who took part in major campaigns naturally saw increases in their pay.

Most soldiers in the army were not from wealthy families.

Eight or nine out of ten came from poverty—they needed their pay to support their families.

That’s why soldiers craved battlefield merit—not just for personal glory, but to feed their families, to fight for themselves and their entire household.

Before, denied the chance to fight and earn merit, the Da Ning border troops had grievances; now, with Zhu Ying leading them to break three cities in succession, Zhu Ying had become their hero.

“By the way.”

“Where is the Garrison Commander?”

Zhu Ying called out urgently.

“Your servant is here.”

The campaign Garrison Commander immediately stepped forward before Zhu Ying.

As Zhu Ying’s status transformed, the army naturally assigned a Garrison Commander to tally battle merit and casualties and report to the Ministry of War.

Zhu Ying’s campaign Garrison Commander was named Luo Yang, Deputy Garrison Commander of the campaign guard battalion.

“Quickly compile the list of soldiers who earned merit by slaying enemies.”

“Even more critical is the list of fallen soldiers for compensation.”

“These two matters are paramount,” Zhu Ying said solemnly.

“Your servant obeys.”

Luo Yang bowed immediately.

“Where are Lan Yu and the others advancing now?” Zhu Ying asked.

“Reporting, General.”

“Though they have numerical superiority, their advance speed hasn’t matched ours—they’ve only captured two cities so far,” Wei Quan sneered.

“They have over fifty thousand more troops than our Da Ning border troops—their advance speed should be faster than ours.”

“To break Tie Ling before them, we must rely on the speed of our cavalry.”

“Only then can we get there first,” Zhu Ying said grimly.

“Rest assured, General.”

“The men are ready to follow your orders at any moment,” Zhang Wu replied immediately.

“Let the men rest well first,” Zhu Ying said gravely.

“Yes.”

Chen Heng and Zhang Wu bowed respectfully.

At that moment!

“Report!”

“A squad leader from Huizhoucheng has come to see you—he says he has urgent news to report to the General.”

A personal guard entered the hall and bowed respectfully before Zhu Ying.

"Huizhoucheng?"

Zhu Ying blinked, puzzled, looking at his personal guard.

After a moment’s thought,

he could think of nothing.

Huizhoucheng lay at the border between Danning and Liaodong; before the imperial forces had launched their campaign to reclaim Liaodong, the city had endured days of fierce assaults by Yuan troops.

Only through the desperate defense of Danning’s border troops had the city held.

Yet,

Zhu Ying had never been to Huizhoucheng, and could think of no other reason.

"Send for him."

Zhu Ying immediately told his personal guard.

"Yes."

The personal guard promptly withdrew.

Not long after,

a squad leader clad in border army battle armor arrived before Zhu Ying.

Upon seeing Zhu Ying, his eyes burned with fervor.

"Your subordinate bows to General Zhu."

Xiao Han bowed deeply to Zhu Ying.

"Stand easy," Zhu Ying raised a hand.

"Thank you, General Zhu!" Xiao Han replied, trembling with excitement.

"Brother, what is it you need?" Zhu Ying asked, puzzled.

Bu Wan was currently with the army; he himself was merely a military officer—there should be no official matters requiring his attention, and if there were, Bu Wan would have come directly to him.

"May I ask, General Zhu,"

"is there a steward and a familiar young lady from your hometown?"

Xiao Han asked, nervous.

"How do you know?" Zhu Ying blinked, quickly asking.

Hearing this, Xiao Han’s face lit up with joy: "General Zhu! Recently, a man calling himself Lin Fu and a girl named Shen Yuer arrived at Huizhoucheng, searching for someone named Zhu Ying. I happened to hear your name, compared the details, and realized it might be you—so I kept them at the Huizhoucheng inn and received orders from the Battalion Commander to come report to you."

"Lin Bo and Yuer came to find me."

"That’s wonderful."

"They’re safe."

Hearing this, Zhu Ying’s face broke into a smile.

He had been in the army for nearly a year.

Dragged far away to Danning Prefecture, he had feared the Shen family might harm Lin Bo; now, hearing this news, he felt at ease.

If they had reached Danning Prefecture, they were safe.

"What’s your name, brother?"

Zhu Ying asked at once, smiling.

"Reporting to General Zhu,"

"your subordinate is Xiao Han, assigned to the Huizhoucheng garrison under Danning’s border army system."

Xiao Han replied, eyes alight with excitement.

For him, this was unquestionably his chance to change his fate.

"Brother Xiao, thank you for your efforts."

"The two you mentioned are my family," Zhu Ying immediately bowed to Xiao Han in thanks.

Seeing Zhu Ying’s gesture of gratitude, Xiao Han was overwhelmed, almost terrified.

"General Zhu,"

"you are our Danning’s great hero—how could your subordinate accept such a bow? It is utterly impossible!"

Xiao Han immediately bowed deeply with clasped fists.

"There’s nothing impossible about it."

"Those two are my family—my most important people in this life. You kept them safe—that is a debt to me."

"Brother Xiao, if there is anything I, Zhu Ying, can do for you, I will not refuse." Zhu Ying smiled.

Hearing this,

Xiao Han immediately knelt down, earnestly saying: "Please, General, grant me the chance to serve at your side."

"You are a hero of this world—if I may follow you, it will be my greatest honor."

Seeing Xiao Han’s earnest, resolute expression, Zhu Ying showed a flicker of surprise.

He was slightly taken aback by Xiao Han’s request.

The favor he had offered was no small thing in Danning.

Yet Xiao Han asked only to stay by his side.

But!

This only made Zhu Ying respect Xiao Han even more.

"Brother Xiao Han—are you serious?"

"I, Zhu Ying, rose from the ranks of battle, and the places I’ve been are war zones full of peril. If you follow me, you become my personal guard—far more dangerous than ordinary soldiers." Zhu Ying said solemnly.

But Xiao Han’s gaze remained unwavering.

"General, you are our Danning’s War God—your name shakes the northern frontier."

"If I may serve under you, even if I die on the battlefield, I will have no regrets." Xiao Han said firmly.

Seeing this,

Zhu Ying nodded, then asked: "Zhenfu! What is required to transfer troops from the garrison?"

"Reporting, General,"

"during wartime, all soldiers under Danning’s military system may be reassigned."

"Only a change of military registry is needed."

The nearby Zhenfu Luo Yang replied at once.

"Good."

Zhu Ying nodded, then turned to Xiao Han: "Brother Xiao, since you wish to follow me, I accept your loyalty—I shall grant it."

……

(End of Chapter)