Chapter 259: Seizing Military Command in Seconds

Lu Xiong was sleeping soundly when suddenly a pair of cold hands clamped tightly over his mouth and nose. He snapped his eyes open to find only pitch darkness before him, yet he could vaguely make out the ice-cold face of Zhang Zhang Jiaqi.

The inability to breathe instantly clouded Lu Xiong's mind. He struggled desperately, trying to cry for help, but Zhang Zhang Jiaqi's grip was too tight; no matter how he thrashed, he could only emit low, muffled groans.

At that moment, moonlight filtered through the door curtain, allowing Lu Xiong to finally see the scene clearly—Zhang Zhang Jiaqi was pressing him hard against the ground, while the long sword in her hand was already pressed against his throat, its cold gleam fully exposed, as if it would take his life in the next second.

Lu Xiong's eyes widened as he finally realized the situation was hopeless. His heart pounded wildly, his mind racing to figure out who these uninvited guests were and how they had entered the main camp. Unfortunately, it was all too late. Lu Xiong despaired, realizing that this sleep might very well be his last.

His muffled sobs grew fainter as the blade at his throat drew closer and closer... In this moment, the scythe of death had already been raised high, ready to reap his life in the next second. Lu Xiong closed his eyes, waiting for the final light of his life to extinguish.

A slight smile curled Jiang Jiang Mingyu's lips, his eyes gleaming with cunning. He asked softly, "I am Jiang Jiang Mingyu. Where is the military tally? Answer with even one wrong character, and your life is forfeit."

Lu Xiong's eyes widened, his face filled with terror and disbelief. He wanted to shout for help, but Zhang Zhang Jiaqi's long sword was already at his throat, ready to take his life at any moment.

Despair filled Lu Xiong's eyes as he trembled and pointed toward the commander's desk not far away. Li Goudan immediately strode over and turned the entire desk upside down. Finally, a brass military tally fell from a pile of official documents as high as a mountain. Li Goudan quickly picked it up and carefully presented it with both hands before Jiang Jiang Mingyu.

"My Lord, I found it!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu gently traced the patterns on the military tally, a flash of cunning joy passing through his eyes. He smiled triumphantly and was about to speak when he saw Zhang Zhang Jiaqi's long sword suddenly flick upward, instantly ending Lu Xiong's life.

Lu Xiong's eyes remained wide with unwillingness before he finally toppled sideways in front of the commander's desk. Zhang Zhang Jiaqi coldly wiped the fresh blood from the sword tip. Jiang Jiang Mingyu paid no further attention to the corpse on the ground, carefully secured the military tally, and said to Li Goudan with a smile, "After dawn, let the forty thousand soldiers in the city come to pay homage to their new master."

Li Goudan nodded respectfully, his eyes also flashing with excitement. He never expected they could seize the military tally so smoothly; next, they only needed to win over the soldiers in the city, and Jiang Jiang Mingyu's great cause could proceed without hindrance.

Day broke quickly. Jiang Jiang Mingyu steadily raised the corners of his mouth in a smile of triumph and said softly, "Beat the drums."

Immediately, the resounding and powerful drumbeats echoed through the clouds, piercing the morning silence. "Boom, boom, boom." After three drum signals, the forty thousand troops had fully assembled, standing straight and motionless.

The soldiers below looked at one another, whispering among themselves, "Why beat the drums for drills so early? Is something major about to happen?"

"Could it be that the rebel army has already breached the city?"

"What nonsense are you spouting! Jiang Jiang Mingyu is already dead; where are the rebels?"

"True, it's broad daylight; you're talking in your sleep! Hurry and assemble."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu looked triumphantly at the forty thousand troops glaring at him, cleared his throat, and said calmly, "Everyone, allow me to introduce myself. I am Jiang Jiang Mingyu."

"No good, this man claims to be Jiang Jiang Mingyu!"

"What? The Jiang Jiang Mingyu who is already dead?"

"What is going on? Could Lu Xiong have been stripped of his military command?"

Murmurs of dissent rose and fell; many soldiers looked terrified, utterly bewildered as if lost in a thick fog.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu smiled with understanding, slowly drew the brass military tally from his sleeve, and said calmly, "I am indeed Jiang Jiang Mingyu himself, simply not yet dead. As for Lu Xiong, I have executed him."

"Now, the military tally is in my hands. You have only two paths: surrender or death. Surrender, and your lives will be spared; join me, Jiang Mou, in achieving great deeds. If you resist, you can only follow Lu Xiong to hell!"

The forty thousand troops erupted in chaos, about to start arguing with seven mouths and eight tongues. Jiang Jiang Mingyu, helpless, waved his hand at his subordinates behind him, "It seems they still do not believe. Make a move!"

Immediately, fifty thousand troops surged forward like a tidal wave, completely surrounding Lu Xiong's three thousand remnants, leaving them unable to move an inch. Countless cold arrows were aimed at them, ready to kill these thirty thousand lives at any moment.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu's subordinate Li Goudan reached out and tossed the head of the enemy commander, Lu Xiong, before the crowd. Lu Xiong's head rolled to the ground, covered in blood. Seeing this, the enemy army immediately trembled in fear, their morale instantly collapsing. A light smile appeared on Jiang Jiang Mingyu's face as he looked at this mob of undisciplined soldiers, his mind already made up.

"Everyone, you have seen the situation. Whether you surrender or not is up to you." Jiang Jiang Mingyu spoke, his tone calm and composed.

Before Jiang Jiang Mingyu's words had fully faded, a burly man in the enemy ranks wearing the uniform of a deputy general, his face still full of defiance, forced himself to stand up. "Surnamed Jiang, you are nothing but a rebel; you want us to surrender? Dream on!" Before the man could finish, a sharp arrow pierced his throat, and blood sprayed forth. Jiang Jiang Mingyu remained expressionless, as if he had anticipated his resistance all along.

"Who else wishes to say a few words? Jiang Mou will accompany you to the end." Jiang Jiang Mingyu said coldly. The corpse lying in the pool of blood made the enemy army tremble with fear; no one dared to speak again.

The thirty thousand besieged enemy troops, their faces pale with panic, weighed life and death. Finally, a young soldier was the first to drop his weapon, knelt on both knees, and shouted tremblingly, "I surrender! I surrender!" His action seemed to open Pandora's box; more soldiers threw down their weapons and knelt one after another, begging for mercy.

Finally, all thirty thousand enemy troops dropped their weapons and knelt on the ground begging for mercy. Jiang Jiang Mingyu, his wish granted, finally smiled. He raised his voice, "It seems you have finally learned to be smart! Put down your butcher's knife, and you can become a Buddha on the spot. Follow me from now on, and I guarantee you will have food and clothing without worry!"

The thirty thousand enemy troops now had only one path to survival: submission to Jiang Jiang Mingyu. They would rather be surrendered soldiers than die in vain. Jiang Jiang Mingyu's army systematically collected the enemy's weapons and armor, registering their names. Jiang Jiang Mingyu had the head of the enemy commander, Lu Xiong, hung high to warn the world of how miserable the fate of those opposing Jiang Jiang Mingyu would be.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu was very satisfied with the handling of the surrendered soldiers. He ordered his subordinate Li Goudan to disperse these surrendered troops and mix them with his own army under strict guard; any sign of unrest would result in immediate execution for all. He also smiled kindly at the surrendered soldiers kneeling on the ground, "Trust Jiang Mou; I always keep my word." These gentle words made the surrendered soldiers shudder with cold fear before they were led away by Li Goudan for reorganization.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu then turned to Zhang Zhang Jiaqi and said, "Go quickly to take command of the city defense; we will soon be at the gates of Taojiang City." Zhang Zhang Jiaqi immediately agreed, smiled at Jiang Jiang Mingyu, and strode away to carry out his orders.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu sat in the main camp, deep in thought while looking at the map before him, when a guard outside suddenly reported, "My Lord, General Tu Tu Kesiluo has returned." It turned out that while Jiang Jiang Mingyu led the troops to attack, Tu Tu Kesiluo had led the light cavalry back to Jingcheng at high speed, far faster than the infantry. At this moment, he had returned after completing his mission.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu raised his head and immediately said, "Quickly invite him in." Immediately, Tu Tu Kesiluo and his companion Fang Hang appeared before Jiang Jiang Mingyu. Jiang Jiang Mingyu hurriedly asked, "How did it go?"

Tu Tu Kesiluo seemed somewhat exhausted; without ceremony, he plopped down into the chair opposite Jiang Jiang Mingyu, took two large gulps from a teacup, and then said with a smile, "Big Brother, this trip went very smoothly. General Fang didn't say much, and Fei Hou believed the story he fabricated."

"Fei Hou has already issued orders for us to quickly eliminate your remaining party and bring your head to Jingcheng to claim the reward. When Tu Tuke Siluo and I left, that pig-headed fool was leading people to worship his ancestors, wanting to show off quite a bit." Speaking of this, Tu Tu Kesiluo could not help but burst into loud laughter.

After hearing this, a cold smile also curled Jiang Jiang Mingyu's lips. He said with satisfaction, "Good, Tu Tu Kesiluo, your and General Fang's contribution on this trip is immense. This is even more important than annihilating Fei Hou's one hundred and twenty thousand troops back then."

As long as Fei Hou remained completely unprepared, they could soon capture Taojiang Commandery and Jingcheng. Jiang Jiang Mingyu had already calculated a perfect strategy in his mind.