Chapter 271

First Volume, Chapter 271: Military Siege Begins

The Colonel hesitated: "Beixi County City is built extremely solid. We lack siege equipment. Forcing an attack on a fortified city will cause massive losses. Moreover, the Imperial Spies who infiltrated the city have reported that the garrison numbers over a thousand."

Hearing the Colonel's concerns, Chen Si dismissed them: "Just a thousand untrained civilian laborers—nothing to worry about! Beixi County's defense doesn't lie in those thousand laborers, but in those twenty Tianji Camp Guards. We've already seen the tactical advantage and adaptation response of the Tianji Camp Guards. Even Zhong Ling, a general of divine strategy, with superior forces, suffered a horrific casualty ratio of three to two hundred at their hands."

"If we allow those twenty guards to continue boosting military morale, the longer we delay, the more those laborers will adapt to war. Then we won't be facing a thousand civilian laborers—we'll be facing a thousand county constables. Even when the main assault force arrives, capturing Beixi County will likely cost us dearly."

"Strike while their military morale is unstable and crush them outright."

"Launch the attack at noon, cease at nightfall. Whether or not we take the city, we'll deliver a crushing blow to their military morale!"

The Colonel's doubts vanished. He immediately bowed and departed to relay the military order to all units.

Meanwhile, Qin Feng had arrived at Fengming Lou as agreed.

Fengming Lou in Jingdu was among the most renowned wine houses, and its owner was honest and trustworthy, so business had always been good. It was mealtime, so the wine house should have been packed with customers, bustling nonstop.

But the vast wine house appeared empty, with only the Shopkeeper and a Clerk standing behind the counter.

Seeing Qin Feng, the Shopkeeper offered a complex smile—as if warning Qin Feng that the wine house would not be peaceful tonight.

Qin Feng paid no mind, stepping directly into the DaTang, with Shu Feng and Ning Hu following closely behind.

Qin Feng didn't do lone-wolf meetings. Was he stupid?

"Shopkeeper," Qin Feng asked with a smile, "where is the distinguished guest from Fuyun County?"

The Shopkeeper said nothing, merely pointing upward toward the stairs while repeatedly winking at Qin Feng, silently urging him not to go up.

Qin Feng's curiosity deepened. Before leaving, he remembered something and returned to the counter, casually asking: "Do you have paper and ink?"

The Shopkeeper dared not ask further and quickly produced paper and ink.

Qin Feng sketched a circle on the paper, set down the brush, and chuckled softly as he walked toward the stairs: "If anything happens tonight at Fengming Lou, tally the damages afterward and charge it all to the Imperial Treasury. Just bring this paper to Tianji Camp and ask my Second Sister, Liu Hongyan, for payment."

Hearing this, the Shopkeeper was deeply grateful and shoved the paper into his chest: "Young Master Qin, your great kindness, I shall never forget."

Qin Feng couldn't help laughing: "I just drew a circle. You don't even ask if the money can actually be withdrawn?"

The Shopkeeper's eyes burned with fervor, without a trace of hesitation: "If Young Master Qin says it can be withdrawn, then it can be withdrawn. In this capital, I trust no one else—I trust Young Master Qin above all."

Sharp!

Qin Feng no longer hesitated and stepped onto the stairs.

The stairs did not lead straight to the Second Floor; there was a turn halfway.

Around the corner, the scene suddenly grew lively.

In the narrow stairwell corridor stood four men, aged between twenty and thirty, dressed in wildly mismatched attire—the kind of rowdy, insolent types.

No need to guess: these four were surely notorious idlers from Fuyun County.

The leader, clad in blue linen, clutching two walnuts in his left hand, eyed Qin Feng with hostility and forced a sneer: "Young Master Qin, we've been waiting for you a long time. Why are you so late? Don't you take our boss seriously?"

Qin Feng had no patience for such minor thugs.

He pretended not to hear and kept walking upward.

Ignored, the blue-clad idler flew into a rage. He reached out to block Qin Feng—but before his arm could rise, Ning Hu seized his throat, yanked him sideways, and slammed him against the wall with a thud!

The thugs had not anticipated Qin Feng's men were so fierce—they were caught off guard.

While they were stunned, Ning Hu's cold voice echoed through the corridor.

"You birds from Fuyun County dare cause trouble in the capital? Blind fools! Whoever touches Brother Qin, I'll crack open their skulls!"

The blue-clad idler struggled to break free, but no matter how hard he strained, he couldn't budge an inch. He gritted his teeth and threatened: "Fine boy—dare you give your name?"

Ning Hu's face remained expressionless: "Why not? Ning Hu."

The once-arrogant blue-clad idler turned pale instantly, stammering: "Y-you're Ning Qianhu—the one who slew Zhong Ling?"

Ning Hu's gaze dripped with contempt. He said nothing, squeezed harder, and the idler lost control, tumbling down the stairs.

The remaining three idlers exchanged glances, quickly stepped aside, and dared not block Qin Feng further.

Qin Feng stepped onto the Second Floor. A clamor of noise hit him.

All six Yajian on the Second Floor were packed with people. A quick glance revealed they were all the same type as the four downstairs—idle, violent, rowdy thugs.

One sharp-eyed thug spotted Qin Feng and whistled loudly.

Whoosh!

Dozens of hooligans instantly jammed the Second Floor corridor, baring their teeth, surrounding Qin Feng as if ready to devour him alive.

Qin Feng remained unmoved, his face still wearing a faint, elusive smile.

At the same time, a boy stepped out from the room directly opposite.

Around fifteen or sixteen, bare-chested, clutching a roasted chicken in his left hand, holding a wine pot in his right—wildly unrestrained.

But his expression was utterly foul. Seeing Qin Feng, his nostrils flared, his tone dripping with disdain: "Hmph. I thought the legendary Qin Feng had three heads and six arms. Turns out he's just a weak, bookish scholar."

"All this fuss, bringing so many men—for this?"

Qin Feng nearly burst out laughing at the boy's insult.

Honestly, on the way here, Qin Feng had felt uneasy too.

After all, the Ming Prince's family had long been infamous.

Now seeing the opponent was just a green kid, puny and frail as a chick—it was too amusing.

Qin Feng suppressed his laughter, adopting the demeanor of an elder, and said solemnly: "If I'm not mistaken, you're the Baron of Fuyun County, Li Lang?"

Li Lang tore off a huge bite of chicken, chewing loudly and mumbling: "It's your grandpa!"

No wonder he's the Ming Prince's son—truly bold.

Too bad, so young, so reckless—he's clearly never been beaten down by the real world…

Qin Feng wasn't angry. He raised his hand and patted Li Lang's head, smiling warmly: "Little brother, be good. Tell me—where's Qin Xiaofu?"

The crowd of thugs stared in disbelief as Qin Feng's hand rubbed back and forth on Li Lang's head—each face twisted into an expression of utter shock…