Chapter 205: Just a Little Bit Short

Jiang Jiang Mingyu waited for several days but did not see the messenger return with a letter for Liu Liu Yifei; instead, the scout sent by Zhang Zhang Jiaqi arrived in Decangzhou City a step ahead.

"My Lord, Fei Hou's side is in a complete mess. His heavy exactions and oppressive taxation have caused the common people to complain bitterly, and now rebels are rising up everywhere."

"Yizhou in the east, Lanzhou in the northwest, Guizhou in the southeast..." He took a breath. "To put it plainly, apart from Jingzhou, every other place is opposing him."

Hearing this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu laughed heartily: "So it seems we rebels have surrounded Fei Hou so tightly that not even water can get through?"

The scout nodded: "My Lord speaks correctly, and moreover, I accidentally overheard a great secret."

A secret? Jiang Jiang Mingyu's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly asked: "What secret? Speak quickly!"

The scout swallowed hard, lowered his voice, and said: "I happened to hear that Fei Hou, in his panic, hired a group of assassins."

Assassins? Jiang Jiang Mingyu was stunned, did not interrupt him, and signaled for him to continue.

The scout spoke with a solemn expression: "It is said they ran away from Jingcheng; Fei Hou intends to use them to assassinate the leaders of those rebel armies."

"Our two previous blows against Fei Hou cost us two hundred thousand troops alone. Adding the heads and letters we sent, Fei Hou must already hate us to the bone." Jiang Jiang Mingyu sneered, "He wants to use assassins against us? He underestimates us too much! We are not so easily killed!"

The scout quickly agreed: "Yes, My Lord is wise and divine. Fei Hou is nothing but an illiterate piece of trash; no matter how many assassins he finds, it will be useless!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu waved his hand: "Do not be too careless; assassins can be quite troublesome sometimes. Go tell General Tu and Miss Zhang about this and have her be extra careful. Additionally, you must also ensure your own safety and do not let the assassins spot you."

The scout respectfully replied: "Yes, this subordinate obeys!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu had lacked confidence in his heart all along; in these past six months, he had caused quite a few troubles.

Tang Xing Youli had fled, and Fei Hou had sent assassins to cause trouble; he was now in a situation where danger lurked on all sides.

He had just sent people to investigate the movements of Dafeng and immediately fortified his residence as tightly as an iron bucket.

Before his transmigration, he knew how formidable these assassins were; they could fall from the sky, burrow from the ground, and perhaps one day cut him in two.

Later, Tu Tu Kesiluo and Zhang Zhang Jiaqi also told him that these assassins were fearless and had to be dealt with carefully.

However, after waiting for several days, Liu Liu Yifei and the others had arrived in Decangzhou, yet the thing he worried about had not happened.

But Jiang Jiang Mingyu's heart grew even more anxious because Liu Liu Yifei had come.

If those assassins who had not yet revealed themselves took advantage of the situation to attack Liu Liu Yifei's family, it would be disastrous.

Apart from sending a few more guards, he had no other way. Zhang Zhang Jiani had improved greatly by the time she arrived in Decangzhou, which made Tu Tu Kesiluo sigh with relief amidst his worry.

Besides that, Liu Liu Yifei also brought Jiang Jiang Mingyu a piece of good news.

"Jiang Lang, two days ago Lord Murong Murong Yunhai went to Yisimo Regional Military Commissioner."

Lord Murong Murong Yunhai? Jiang Jiang Mingyu immediately felt something was wrong.

"Did something happen on Shangmu's side?"

Winter had passed; had the Xi Xia people, who had endured the harsh winter, already begun to launch a retaliatory attack?

Seeing him somewhat nervous, Liu Liu Yifei hurriedly comforted him.

"Do not worry; something did happen on Shangmu's side, but it has been resolved now."

Liu Liu Yifei said that just a few days ago, a group of Xi Xia dogs, gnashing their teeth, had killed their way to the gates of Shangmu City.

They had heard that this son of a bitch, Jiang Jiang Mingyu, had long since fled and gone to serve as a rebel at Yisimo Regional Military Commissioner.

But as soon as they arrived at the Shangmu City gate, they saw Jiang Jiang Mingyu's red flag fluttering.

Remembering the tens of thousands of brothers he had caused to die back then, the Xi Xia people, who originally intended to rush up and fight to the death, suddenly lost their courage and quickly set up a camp outside the city, wanting to first investigate the movements inside.

Who knew that this rascal Lord Murong Murong Yunhai would not give them a chance to catch their breath; that very night, he led a group of Shangmu soldiers to sneak attack the Xi Xia camp in the dark.

The Xi Xia people did not have time to mount their horses, and their combat effectiveness was greatly reduced; after a chaotic battle, Lord Murong Murong Yunhai actually killed and wounded over ten thousand of them. Yet the Shangmu soldiers he brought lost only one-tenth of that number.

With this, the already guilty Xi Xia people became even more certain that Jiang Jiang Mingyu had not left. Thus, they lost even the desire for revenge and fled back to Xi Xia faster than they had come.

After listening to Liu Liu Yifei's report, Jiang Jiang Mingyu's face showed not a trace of joy; instead, he spoke with a worried frown.

"Brother Lord Murong fought this battle beautifully, but I fear that before long, Shangmu will welcome an even greater retaliation from Xi Xia."

The cavalry hailed as the most awesome on the Great Continent actually suffered setbacks twice in the small Shangmu; can that Great Wolf Lord of Xi Xia let it go?

Liu Liu Yifei poured a cup of tea for Jiang Jiang Mingyu and said, "Lord Murong Murong Yunhai has thought all this through; he came to Yisimo Regional Military Commissioner for two reasons: first to report good news, and second to request troops."

"But since you are fighting outside, Lord Murong Murong Yunhai had no choice but to run back to Shangmu himself and recruit another thirty thousand troops."

"Now Shangmu has an army of fifty thousand; are you, the newly arrived Prefect of Decangzhou, feeling a bit more at ease?"

Ignoring her sarcasm, Jiang Jiang Mingyu asked again: "Recruiting another thirty thousand people; does Shangmu have enough silver to support an army of fifty thousand?"

Back then, he had been extremely troubled just trying to support a garrison of fifty thousand, barely managing to make do.

Liu Liu Yifei gave him another meaningful look: "Do not worry; a few days ago I expanded the iron mine business in Shangmu several times. I have calculated it; the profits are enough to cover the military expenses."

Thinking to himself that he had married a capable wife, Jiang Jiang Mingyu pulled Liu Liu Yifei into his arms.

Liu Liu Yifei's body went soft, and she lacked the strength to struggle. She felt Jiang Jiang Mingyu's warmth and heartbeat, and her face flushed red and pale. She knew he wanted to be close to her, yet she felt somewhat shy and uneasy. She lowered her head and gently pushed against his chest.

Seeing her shy appearance, Jiang Jiang Mingyu felt even more affection in his heart. He gently kissed her forehead and said, "You are the greatest blessing of my life; I will treat you well."

Liu Liu Yifei leaned gently into Jiang Jiang Mingyu's arms, and the distance between the two became infinitely intimate at that moment. Jiang Jiang Mingyu reached out his hand and gently stroked her waterfall-like black hair, whispering something in her ear. His breath brushed against her Bai Xi neck, causing Liu Liu Yifei to shiver slightly.

Liu Liu Yifei could not help but moan, her cheeks crimson. Jiang Jiang Mingyu also felt his breathing quicken; he lowered his head, wanting to press a kiss onto Liu Liu Yifei's lips...

Just as Jiang Jiang Mingyu wanted to take the intimate contact with Liu Liu Yifei a step further, a knocking sound suddenly came from outside the door.

"Master, are you in the room?"

Damn it, just a little bit more, and I could have secured my first kill!

It was Zhu Ge Yu again! Jiang Jiang Mingyu cursed inwardly. He did not even know how many times this person had come to cause trouble.

By the time that scar-faced Zhu Ge Yu pushed the door open, Liu Liu Yifei had already hidden to one side, with two peach-blossom-like flushes flying across her face.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu rolled his eyes heavily: "What business do you have now?"

Seeing the appearance of the two, Zhu Ge Yu chuckled: "Sorry, Master and Mistress, for disturbing you; shall I come back later?"

Liu Liu Yifei glared at him with her small red face, turned around, and ran to the inner hall.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu rolled his eyes again: "Can you talk about serious matters now?"

Zhu Ge Yu put away his smile and spoke seriously: "Master, I am here to discuss with you what we should do next."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu nodded. "Tell me."