Chapter 496

First Volume, Chapter 496: Lightning Plunder

At this moment, another unit lay hidden outside the garrison camp; after rendezvousing with Ning Hu, they immediately slipped inside.

What was called a camp was merely a large courtyard, its walls no more than one zhang high, its defensive capability utterly negligible compared to a yamen.

After infiltrating the camp, Ning Hu and his soldiers eliminated the night sentries, then crept silently into the barracks, stood before each bed, exchanged a glance, and simultaneously brought down their blades, slaying the garrison soldiers in their sleep.

They then repeated the method, silently slaughtering every barracks in turn.

In the blink of an eye, more than half the garrison had been slaughtered.

Just as Ning Hu prepared to strike one final blow and wipe out the entire Pingcang County garrison, fate intervened—a soldier rising to relieve himself spotted the massacre, and instantly the alarm gongs erupted like thunder.

With their position exposed, Ning Hu did not hesitate: "Kill them all!"

At his command, the soldiers stormed the remaining barracks, forcibly slaying the garrison soldiers who were still dazed, just waking, or frantically fumbling for weapons they had no time to grab.

One barracks did manage to spill out its defenders—but instead of confronting the raiders, they fled headlong out of the camp without looking back.

Seeing his men move to pursue, Ning Hu shouted to stop them: "Ignore them!"

"Pingcang County is already alarmed—hurry to the storage depot and seize the grain and supplies!"

Ning Hu led his soldiers out of the camp and headed straight for the Pingcang County storage depot. The yamen runners guarding it knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for mercy, willingly unlocking the depot; to save their lives, they even volunteered to lead the soldiers to find the "large carts" without being forced.

Following Qin Feng's prior orders, they took only what would be consumed: bows and arrows, food, and leather water sacks.

During the looting, Ning Hu spotted two large vats of oil stored in the depot and swiftly ordered his men to load the oil onto the carts.

To avoid interception by enemy light cavalry reinforcements, everything had to be lightly equipped; thus, they could not carry too much. Once three carts were fully loaded, Ning Hu gave the decisive order to cease plundering and escorted the carts toward the city gate.

Meanwhile, the soldiers guarding the city gate shot down ten plus garrison soldiers attempting to flee the city for help.

Although the city gate was sealed, someone might still climb over the walls—so Pingcang County could not be lingered in; they must depart swiftly.

At Mingyun Township, less than twenty li from Pingcang County, three thousand troops had already assembled, and more soldiers, drawn from various regions, continued to join the Search and Exterminate Army.

The commander ordering this raid was Chen Ping, Gate General of the Fifth Battalion of the Xiongying Brigade, who had ambushed Qin Feng.

As Chen Ping and his subordinates studied mountain assault tactics by night, a messenger stumbled into the camp.

"General, disaster! Pingcang County has been plundered by the enemy army! The garrison fought their way out to beg for reinforcements—please send troops to Pingcang County at once!"

At these words, the entire ying zhang fell silent.

After a moment, one of the officers present could not help murmuring grimly: "At a time like this, how dare the enemy descend to plunder? Are these bastards made of bear's heart and leopard's courage?"

The night owl squad leader assisting in the encirclement frowned tightly: "After last night's battle, the enemy should have been crushed. How, in just one day, have they regrouped and launched another effective strike? Intelligence indicates their leader, Ning Hu, is a brute—brave but lacking strategy. How could such a reckless fool adapt so quickly?"

Chen Ping waved his hand, signaling everyone to calm down.

Recalling last night's battle, Chen Ping's eyes flickered with a trace of respect.

"Don't forget—they're Tianji Camp Guards. Any other enemy, lured into our carefully prepared ambush, would have been slaughtered to the last man. Yet these men carved a bloody path out and escaped with two hundred survivors. Remember: even General Chen Si fears the Tianji Camp Guards and ordered us to spare no cost to trap Ning Hu and the Tianji Camp Guards within our borders."

"Tonight, the enemy took an unexpected path—daring to plunder a county town. This proves they've prepared to make a last stand on Qingyu Mountain. In my view, ignore Pingcang County—immediately march on Qingyu Mountain, strike while they're still unsteady, and crush their fighting strength."

"The enemy numbers only two hundred—kill one, and they're one less!"

In Chen Ping's view, though the enemy were Tianji Camp Guards—the pinnacle of foot soldiers—they were stranded deep in Di territory, isolated and unsupported. High-pressure strikes were the optimal choice.

The officers present largely agreed with Chen Ping's proposal.

After all…

Chen Ping was the blood brother of General Chen Si—his martial prowess and strategic acumen needed no explanation.

But at that moment, the local governor sent to oversee the campaign outright rejected Chen Ping's proposal.

"Impossible! This Search and Exterminate Army consists of garrison troops drawn from county towns—they cannot be compared to regular army units. They struggle even to defend cities, let alone fight such a brutal battle? Qingyu Mountain's terrain is complex, and ascending at night would leave us vulnerable to ambush by the Tianji Camp Guards—we'd suffer catastrophic losses."

"Besides, Pingcang County sent a hundred men to reinforce us, leaving its defenses hollow—that's how the enemy slipped through. Moreover, every county in the region has poured out its resources to aid the front line. If we abandon Pingcang County's fate, how will the people of these counties feel? If morale collapses, General Chen, can you bear the blame?"

Facing the governor's rebuttal, Chen Ping silently cursed: "Civil officials ruin the nation."

Speed is the essence of warfare—the sooner we attack Qingyu Mountain, the greater the shock to the enemy. If we wait until the Search and Exterminate Army fully assembles, who knows how prepared the Tianji Camp Guards have become?

Most crucially, the night owl is right: Ning Hu is fearless, but not a general—he could never have conceived a raid during chaos. Someone behind him is guiding this.

Whether that mastermind is from Beixi County remains unknown.

Unfortunately, rank trumps all—and the governor invoked public sentiment. There was no choice: the mountain assault had to be postponed. Chen Ping immediately dispatched the Xiongying Brigade's cavalry to Pingcang County.

Less than half a Envoy later, the Xiongying cavalry charged through the city gate. The plundered county town should have been in chaos—but instead, it defied all expectations.

The entire county city lay utterly silent; the townsfolk along the streets slept soundly, utterly undisturbed.

But when the cavalry reached the county yamen, preparing to confront the County Magistrate, they found his family in tears—the County Magistrate had already been beheaded.

They then proceeded to the garrison camp—where they found a scene of hell: blood pooled into rivers. As for the Pingcang County storage depot, the loss of materials was minimal.

After beheading the lowly guard at the depot, the cavalry returned to Mingyun Township and reported everything to Chen Ping.

Upon hearing this, every person present turned furious eyes upon the governor.