Chapter 409

First Volume, Chapter 409: Let the Arrows Fly for a While

Zhao Yuxiong knew his own martial prowess well and never falsely downplayed it, but in matters of military strategy, he was far inferior to Qin Feng; this campaign against Nanping County was a perfect chance to learn and hone his skills.

"Brother Qin, the city is already in chaos—why not strike now while they're unprepared?"

Qin Feng sat atop his horse, gripping the reins, watching the heads darting along the City Wall, and chuckled lightly: "Why the rush? Let the arrows fly for a while."

"Arrows? What's that?" Zhao Yuxiong's eyes sparkled with "voracious curiosity."

Realizing he'd slipped up, Qin Feng simply refused to explain and changed course: "Let the arrows fly for a while."

Zhao Yuxiong still didn't grasp the deeper meaning behind Qin Feng's words, but seeing Qin Feng's calm, composed demeanor, he knew the time for a siege had not yet come, so he fell silent and waited.

Those confused weren't just Zhao Yuxiong—the officers of the Chariot and Cavalry division were equally baffled.

Earlier, Qin Feng had established his authority with iron fists, mobilizing the Chariot and Cavalry forces to the city's gates precisely to attack Pingnan County—so why was he suddenly not in a hurry?

Just as everyone was puzzled, the other scheme Qin Feng had arranged last night played out once more.

Two black riders escorted a man dressed as a powerful clansman straight to the base of the City Gate.

One black rider gripped the man by the nape of his neck; the other brandished a short knife and roared: "Audacious traitor! How dare you secretly collude with the Northern Di? Your crimes are unforgivable!"

The man, terrified beyond reason, screamed: "Military Master, spare my life! I was merely following Huang Cheng's orders! Huang Cheng promised me a thousand taels of gold if I helped him communicate with the Northern Di—using the complete destruction of Pingnan County to secure the Sanggan Army's breach of Beixi County!"

The black rider glared with furious eyes: "Bullshit! Huang Cheng is inside the city—does he not care if he lives or dies?"

The man's face turned deathly pale, his whole body trembling as he wailed helplessly: "Even if you gave me a hundred lives, I'd never dare deceive you, Military Master! Huang Cheng's wife, children, and elders have already been moved to the Northern Di! The Northern Di King promised his clan endless glory and wealth—Huang Cheng's single life in exchange for his family's prosperity is perfectly reasonable!"

The black rider pressed further: "What of the ten thousand defenders inside the city?"

The man sobbed: "The lives of those nubi mean nothing—they're merely stepping stones for the Huang Family to ascend to heaven! If you don't believe me, wait until the city falls and capture Huang Cheng to question him—I swear by thunder and lightning that I've spoken not a single lie!"

The black rider grabbed the man's hair and yanked him upright: "Fine! When we take the city and capture Huang Cheng alive, I'll make you two face each other!"

With that, the two black riders mounted their horses and dragged the man away with ropes—suddenly, the entire Pingnan County echoed with the man's hysterical screams.

Once out of sight of the city's defenders, the two black riders yanked hard on the reins, halted abruptly, dismounted, and helped the dusty, bloodied man to his feet.

"Comrade, how are you?"

The middle-aged man, covered head to toe in a mess of blood and dirt, waved his hand with great bravado: "Minor wounds—what's there to mention? If I can fulfill Young Master's Great Plan, even this flesh wound is nothing—cut off my head and it'll leave only a scar the size of a bowl!"

Soon after, a warhorse arrived carrying heavy armor; the man donned it fully and returned with the two black riders to camp to report.

Upon learning of Qin Feng's Bitter-Meat Stratagem, Jing Qianying teased: "Isn't that a bit too fake?"

Qin Feng grinned wickedly, his mind brimming with mischief: "So what if it's fake? The city is already in chaos—rumors are flying, truth and lies mixed—who can tell them apart? As long as the wind of Huang Cheng betraying his men blows, the rest is none of our concern."

The defenders crouched atop the City Wall, having witnessed the entire scene, exchanged bewildered glances.

"Isn't the General's family still inside the city? When did they go to the Northern Di?"

"Unclear, but one thing's certain—the General did have contact with the powerful clan's Household Retainers."

The Village Elder beside them, holding a great sword in his arms, let out a cold laugh: "Just an Attack the Mind Tactic—don't panic! If the traitor were truly caught, he'd be executed on the spot or dragged to the Prison for interrogation—why would they bring him to the City Gate to parade? Clearly a Bitter-Meat Stratagem, meant to shake our Military Morale."

Hearing the Village Elder's analysis, several nearby defenders nodded vigorously: "That makes sense!"

But no sooner had the words left his mouth than a scream rang out from a nearby stretch of the City Wall.

Immediately, seven or eight defenders, faces splattered with blood, charged forward holding the severed head of a regimental commander.

The leader, gripping the head, gnashed his teeth: "That dog Huang Cheng—for the glory of his clan, he's betrayed us! We've already rebelled once—what's one more time? Comrades, storm the County Yamen, chop off Huang Cheng's dog head!"

Hundreds of defenders had witnessed this Bitter-Meat Stratagem; once even a few believed it, the panic spread like a plague.

Most of the defenders had already been on shaky ground—seeing others lead the rebellion, they followed en masse.

Even louder cries rose: "There were rumors before—the outer garrison isn't an Iron Barrel! There's a gap in the southern City Gate, but the Supervisor of the Army guards it! Let's kill the Supervisor, escape through the gap, and save ourselves!"

"That's right! Dying for that dog Huang Cheng isn't worth it! We were promised promotion after taking the County City—either a Pacification Edict from Jingdu granting us rank and title, or attrition of the Zhou Fu to strengthen ourselves—clear strategy! But what happened? We were suddenly surrounded by the enemy army!"

"Huang Cheng's words can't be trusted!"

More and more defenders joined the mutiny.

At that moment, the veteran who had seen through Qin Feng's Evil Scheme stood up and swung his great sword: "Kill the Supervisor of the Army! Chop off Huang Cheng's dog head!"

Seeing several young defenders staring blankly, the veteran, ever shrewd, barked coldly: "What are you waiting for? The tide has turned—there's no turning back. Only by riding this wave can we have a chance to survive!"

The young defenders snapped to their senses—whether they believed Huang Cheng didn't matter; survival did. In an instant, nearly all defenders stationed on the City Wall turned traitor, the rebellion spreading like a virus into the city.

The brocade-clad guards stationed below the wall, hearing the deafening shouts and wails from within, smirked and turned to report to Qin Feng.

Two hours later, the first group of men burst out from the southern City Gate and fled southward.

This scene meant the Supervisor of the Army had either defected or been slaughtered.

Holding the city was impossible—fleeing south was the only chance for survival.

This rebel force of eight hundred men ran less than Ten Li before being annihilated by the surrounding black riders and Tianji Camp.

The entire battle lasted less than one incense stick time—almost a one-sided massacre.

Xu Mo kept pulling arrows from corpses and shoving them back into his quiver, shaking his head in lament: "These are all civilian laborers with no military training..."

"These rabble somehow captured Pingnan County? Hmph—no wonder Brother Qin said that after the city falls, everyone above the rank of Yamen Runner must die—no wrongful or false cases."