Chapter 727: The Tragic Valley

"Don't come over! Don't come over!"

Ji Yong was also the number one great general under Qiao Yuan.

He had originally thought he could trade a few blows with Pei Qianyun, but who would have known he had truly thought too much...

Pei Qianyun, although he had not eaten or drunk well for half a month, was still like a wild beast at this moment, his body radiating an aura that made one's heart palpitate.

Very quickly, the few personal guards by Ji Yong's side were all wiped out by Pei Qianyun.

Only Ji Yong remained alone.

"Don't come over, don't come over, I am a Great General of Liaodong Commandery!"

"If you kill me, you will suffer disaster!"

"I am Qiao Yuan's confidant!"

Bang!

Pei Qianyun smashed a fist over, and Ji Yong's body instantly flew up like a leaf, then crashed to the ground, spitting out a mouthful of fresh blood.

Pain!

Pei Qianyun was almost crying.

Is this even human? This isn't a person, this is a wild beast!

"Really, don't kill me, don't kill me, keeping me alive is useful to you all!"

"Don't kill me!"

At this moment, Ji Yong was already completely desperate, weeping bitterly; where was there any of the arrogant bluster from the previous days?

During this time, some more Liaodong guards came to attack Pei Qianyun, yet Pei Qianyun at this moment was like a tiger released from a cage—who could stop him? Soon, corpses were already piled up around Ji Yong.

A fist was thrown out once more.

Ji Yong wailed loudly: "Don't! Keep me alive!"

The fist did not fall.

Pei Qianyun picked him up with one hand and, like a gust of wind, left this place.

Kill!

This was almost a war without any suspense. But despite being such a war, the scene was still sufficiently bloody and sufficiently tragic. With the coordination of artillery fire, the Liangzhou Army side was almost an invincible existence. Advanced Weaponry and Equipment and advanced tactics launched a ruthless slaughter against this group of Liaodong Army soldiers who had not fought a battle in a long time.

There were specialized commanders using flags to direct where cannonballs would land and where explosives would be.

Which side of the mountain would collapse, and which side was safe.

It was as fluid as moving one's own arm.

Xie Fang and the others were already stunned.

They had originally thought it would be a simple and crude bombing battle.

But they hadn't expected this.

Liu Zheng could still minimize losses in this kind of charge.

Art.

The art of war was once again displayed before their eyes.

Even the Prince of Wei was stunned at this moment.

Tie Mucheng was the same. This time, Tie Mucheng had come to Longyan, and this young man named Liu Zheng brought him shocks that came in wave after wave. He had not expected this young man's ability to read the battlefield to be so formidable. His command of the war, his arrangements, his strategic planning.

He looked indifferent.

He was calm and composed.

Yet he directed things effectively, with a perfect balance of tension and relaxation.

He could consider every single detail.

"Kill!"

This battle lasted for a full day.

From daytime to night.

No one had expected such an outcome. Wangchuan Valley was almost razed to the ground by the explosions, and the animals on this mountain had all fled in panic. The number of Liaodong Army soldiers who lost their lives in the explosions alone was countless. The Liangzhou Army led by Liu Zheng very successfully intercepted these nearly two hundred thousand Liaodong Army soldiers tightly within the valley.

And so.

The situation was thus reversed.

They had originally intended to ambush the Liangzhou Army in the valley, but they never expected the situation to be reversed like this; they had been perfectly ambushed by the Liangzhou Army side.

The corpses of two hundred thousand people were buried together with the dust kicked up by the continuous explosions. Countless amounts of blood had already dyed those rocks red.

Two hundred thousand...

This was already a quite terrifying number. If there were no cannons, and they had to hack away with swords and blades, they would likely have to hack for several days...

The thirty thousand Liao had long since run off to who knows where.

Pei Qianyun, carrying Ji Yong, arrived before Liu Zheng.

With a bang.

Ji Yong knelt down, in a wretched state, his head broken and bleeding, his face bruised and swollen, he looked up in panic at Liu Zheng.

Vice Minister Liu?

Was it him?

Was it this young man with a face full of spring breezes?

Liu Zheng chuckled and asked, "What is your name?"

Ji Yong trembled: "Ji Yong..."

The Prince of Yong walked over: "Liaodong Great General, Ji Yong?"

Swish, swish, swish—many people looked over.

Ji Yong's face was full of shame and humiliation; he gripped the ground tightly with both fists, blood seeping from his fingers. Before, he was the renowned Liaodong Great General, but now, in such a short time, he had become a prisoner! If this were to spread back to Liaodong, would he ever be able to hold his head up again?

Liu Zheng nodded indifferently: "General Ji, I am Liu Zheng."

It really was him!

Ji Yong took a deep breath, finally raised his head properly, and gave a miserable smile: "What was done today was planned by me, Ji Yong, alone; it has nothing to do with the Great King... or Lord Qiao!"

A man of iron will; he could still be considered a real man.

Liu Zheng laughed heartily, hurriedly helped him up, and said: "General Ji, what are you saying? You speak too seriously! What is 'his' or 'yours'? Liu Zheng only knows that today we were attacked by the mountain natives, and General Ji heroically came to our rescue. It is just a pity that these natives were fierce in battle; the brothers of the Liaodong Army are all heroes!"

Huh?

Ji Yong was stunned.

Is this how it's played?

"Hypocrite!"

Xie Fang, watching from the side, also twitched the corner of his mouth. What he despised most about Liu Zheng was this hypocrisy! He could clearly use Ji Yong to bring charges against Qiao Yuan, yet he insisted on doing this kind of empty, pretentious thing.

Most of the others probably had the same thought.

Clearly holding the moral high ground but refusing to use it—what was the point of this? Besides, in this battle, the other side had already lost an army of two hundred thousand; what were they still afraid of?

Little did they know, Liu Zheng had his own ideas.

If he were to put on an air of wanting to punish Qiao Yuan at this moment, it would certainly trigger a backlash of emotions from the Liaodong side. Furthermore, do you really think that when they say the Liaodong Army has three hundred thousand, it only has three hundred thousand? That is Liaodong! The Liaodong that Longyan has not managed for hundreds of years! How many prisoners are exiled there every year? Have you ever heard of a prisoner exiled to Liaodong returning to Longyan?

Almost none!

Although this mountain was about to be blown up, no one knew what the situation was like over in Liaodong.

Only by doing this could Liu Zheng truly enter Liaodong and then plot his next moves!

"Quick, quick, quick, help General Ji up. What is this for? What is this for?"

Liu Zheng laughed heartily, and Ji Yong was helped up, looking completely bewildered.

Thinking he was surely going to die, he bowed deeply to Liu Zheng.

Only then did Liu Zheng continue to look toward Wangchuan Valley.

Waiting for Ji Yong to wash up, apply medicine, and change into a new set of clothes.

Liu Zheng then smiled and turned back: "General Ji, but to avoid harming friendly forces, the General still needs to send word to the Liaodong side not to send reinforcements for the time being..."

"Huh?"

Ji Yong was taken aback.

"Because we still have to blow our way through... this whole mountain is going to be blown up!"

Liu Zheng wore an innocent, harmless smile.

Pfft...