Chapter 410: First Volume, Chapter 410: Borrowing Troops to Wage War

First Volume, Chapter 410: Borrowing Troops to Wage War

In the back courtyard of the Beixi Xian Ya, the Chariot and Cavalry General paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, and when his Messenger finally arrived to report, he hurried forward to meet him.

"How is the battle at Pingnan County?"

According to the timeline, the fighting should have already begun; the Chariot and Cavalry General feared the siege would be brutal and drain his own forces.

The Messenger's expression was strange: "Report… Report, General, the battle is already over—the city gate has been breached."

At these words, the Chariot and Cavalry General stood frozen, exclaiming in shock: "What? Already over?"

The battle began at noon—only four hours have passed, and Qin Feng has taken Pingnan County? How is that possible!

The Chariot and Cavalry General had spent his life in warfare, witnessing countless brutal siege wars; even with superior forces attacking a desperate city, it usually took at least a full day and night, for besides siege warfare, they had to contend with street fighting. Yet Qin Feng had breached the gate and seized Pingnan County in just four hours?

This shattered the Chariot and Cavalry General's understanding of warfare.

But recalling how Qin Feng had stormed his own Camp and crushed morale with iron-fisted authority, the Chariot and Cavalry General could not help but sigh.

"The Sage sent Qin Feng to quell the rebellion out of trust—so such a swift capture is not impossible, after all, that scoundrel Qin Feng has always been cunning."

What the Chariot and Cavalry General cared about most was not the fate of Pingnan County, but his own army: "How many troops were lost? Any officers killed in action?"

After much hesitation, the Messenger finally gritted his teeth and spoke: "Report, General… from soldier to Deputy General, total casualties… three."

"And these three were killed by rioters upon entering the city."

The Chariot and Cavalry General was utterly stunned, speechless for a long while.

The Messenger was no better—he had delivered war reports for half his life, yet never once had he delivered such an unbelievable piece of Beidi War Intelligence.

"General, Qin Feng described quelling the rebels in Pingnan County as… milking a cow. Had it not been for mounting pressure from all sides, he wouldn't have bothered coming to the Northern Border himself—he could've just sent Xu Mo or Wu Wei to wipe out the Pingnan County Rebel Army."

Milking a cow…

The Chariot and Cavalry General suddenly understood, and couldn't help but laugh bitterly.

"I see now—Qin Feng summoned my army not to storm the city, but to encircle it and apply pressure from all sides, provoking internal chaos. Before arriving, Qin Feng must have reviewed the Ministry of War's Beixi County War Report and knew no other forces had any suspicion of rebellion, so he deduced Huang Cheng's army consisted entirely of conscripted civilian laborers and bandits, utterly untrained in combat."

"A slight show of force pushed the city's military morale to the brink of collapse; rumors spread, triggering mutiny; then a gap was opened to let the rebels flee, abandoning their desperate resistance—ambushes laid along their escape routes, eliminating them in batches…"

Here, the Chariot and Cavalry General fixed his Messenger with a gaze that held neither fear nor admiration: "If I'm not mistaken, the city gate wasn't breached at all, was it?"

The Messenger nodded, wiping sweat from his brow: "Huang Cheng's strategist, seeing the tide had turned, led his personal guards to defect, assassinated Huang Cheng, severed his head, and carried it out to surrender to Qin Feng."

Hearing this, the Chariot and Cavalry General raised an eyebrow: "And then? As I know, Qin Feng is the most sentimental man—he once stirred heaven and earth over a maid. Did he show mercy to the rebels who surrendered?"

The Messenger swallowed hard: "All were killed."

"From the moment Qin Feng entered the city, he ordered the arrest of every remaining rebel soldier and county official, lined them up, and beheaded them—the blood stained the City Gate Tower red; not a single participant in the rebellion escaped. But…"

The Chariot and Cavalry General's eyes bulged: "But what? Don't beat around the bush!"

The Messenger did not dare delay: "But the rioters? Not one was punished—even those who killed our soldiers were released on the spot. Qin Feng ordered that anyone who harassed civilians be executed on the spot."

Thud…

With a heavy thump, the Chariot and Cavalry General collapsed into his chair, shaking his head with a bitter laugh.

"This brat—he's so young, yet already terrifying."

"Children of Military Clans are often brutal; children of civil officials are often rigid. But Qin Feng Xiao'er—decisive in slaughter, yet subtle in strategy. He wiped out the rebels to shake the mountains and terrify the tigers; he treated the people well to set an example for all of Heaven—that the court executes only rebels and favors the people. If rebellion arises again, the people will no longer blindly follow."

"No wonder… no wonder… no wonder…"

The Chariot and Cavalry General repeated "no wonder" three times, his heart filled with awe—no wonder the Sage appointed Qin Feng as Special Envoy to quell the rebellion? Who else in Heaven could suppress a rebellion so swiftly?

As the Chariot and Cavalry General pondered this, a rapid clatter of footsteps echoed outside the courtyard.

Then came a thunderous roar.

The Chariot and Cavalry General rose instantly to investigate, but was blocked by Tianji Camp Guards.

"Old General, please stay—Sanggan Army has begun the siege. If you suffer any harm, Young Master Qin will punish us severely."

The Chariot and Cavalry General frowned: "How many garrison troops are in Beixi County?"

With war imminent, the Tianji Camp Guards showed no tension—indeed, they seemed almost idle: "Two hundred Tianji Camp Guards, five hundred Black Cavalry, three thousand New Army, five thousand Garrison Army—total eight thousand seven hundred."

On the way into Beixi County, the Chariot and Cavalry General had already seen the outer city's expanded Wengcheng fortifications.

With Beixi County's strength and these eight thousand seven hundred elite defenders, Sanggan Army's attempt to take the city was sheer fantasy—now it was only a matter of how many each side would lose.

Suddenly, the Chariot and Cavalry General realized, and could not help but laugh bitterly: "Had Qin Feng not come to my Camp to requisition troops, taking Pingyao County would have required withdrawing two-thirds of Beixi County's forces—then, faced with Sanggan Army's siege, Beixi County would have fallen. Clearly, Qin Feng foresaw all of this from the start."

At that moment, the Chariot and Cavalry General noticed a group of Black Cavalry slowly passing through the Yamen gate, heading toward the Cavalry Battalion to rest.

He frowned: "With war upon us, as Beixi County's elite, why aren't the Black Cavalry advancing to the Front Line to assist in defense?"

The Tianji Camp Guards smiled lazily: "No need for us to act—Young Master Qin already ordered us to hold the city. As for dealing with Sanggan Army, the Northern Border Garrison Troops will handle it. He even said… Beixi County has shouldered all the hard labor for so long; those pampered officers have lounged too long—it's their turn to pull their weight."

These words struck the Chariot and Cavalry General like a dagger to the heart.

Clenching his fists, trembling with rage, he growled: "That damned Qin Feng—is he using my army to hold off Sanggan Army?!"

Outside the city walls, the cries of battle shook the heavens.

The Chariot and Cavalry General's Deputy General rode ahead, sword pointed straight at Sanggan Army: "The Grand General is inside the city—repel the enemy, rescue the Grand General!"