Chapter 694: First Volume_Chapter 694: With Your Land, As My Shield

First Volume_Chapter 694: With Your Land, As My Shield

To an outsider, Qin Feng's words seemed very simple and clear.

But for a commander like Chen Si, these few simple sentences contained countless pieces of important information.

Beixi County's soldiers were strong and its horses robust; looking across the Northern Di, only the Xiongying Brigade and the Snow Wolf Brigade could withstand Beixi County's forces.

Yet these two elite brigades, locked in prolonged fighting, had both been pulled back to the Second Line for rest and reorganization.

The troops remaining at the border, though still numbering ten thousand Elite Troops, would find it no easy task to hold back Beixi County's full-force assault.

Precisely because they understood the gap between themselves, the front-line commanders would never dare to recklessly engage Beixi's forces in a hard-hitting Open Field Battle.

Beixi County's troops drove straight into the Rear Area of the border, their target unmistakable—Xiongying Ridge.

Then the front-line commanders would inevitably dispatch superior forces to set up defenses on the southern side of Xiongying Ridge to intercept Beixi's troops.

As a result, the defensive forces across the entire prefecture would correspondingly weaken.

Beixi County's forces, split into small detachments striking in all directions, could simultaneously launch attacks against every County City and Stronghold across the prefecture.

Moreover, Beixi County's troop configuration was extremely unusual.

Based on the Night Owl's long-term intelligence gathering, the Northern Di's commanders on all sides had already committed Beixi County's situation to memory.

This Beixi County had extraordinarily powerful Cavalry, its target being to match the Northern Di's Xiongying and Snow Wolf brigades.

Small contingents of light Cavalry could rely on their speed advantage to launch hit-and-run Ambush raids.

Meanwhile, the Beixi Black Cavalry and those Armed to the Teeth Heavy Infantry could coordinate with Infantry, pinning down the front line so that the defending Northern Di forces would not dare act rashly.

In the past, there had often been a voice among Northern Di commanders at every level.

It hinted that Beixi County's troop configuration was being built in the direction of an "Expeditionary Brigade."

Unlike other military forces focused on defense, Beixi County had always taken "Offensive Action" as its goal.

Only at that time, the two nations were locked in an inseparable fight, and no one could spare the energy to pay attention to this Expeditionary force brewing in Beixi County.

This time, Qin Feng needed only Ten Days to seize an entire prefecture with the force of a gale sweeping fallen leaves.

This undoubtedly confirmed the suspicions of the court's commanders in the past.

Beixi County's troops... were precisely an Expeditionary force!

Chen Si fell silent, because in his view, Beixi County was so close to the Northern Di Border.

For an Expeditionary Brigade to have grown right under his very nose—this itself was a disgrace!

It was not only the failure of the intelligence agency; he himself, as the front-line Main General, also bore an inescapable responsibility.

Chen Si's reaction was taken in completely by Lü Li.

Lü Li knew very well in his heart that Qin Feng's words were not false—he likely truly had seized an entire prefecture in a mere Ten Days.

But Lü Li was unwilling to accept it.

He gritted his teeth and snorted coldly: "Even if you've seized a prefecture, so what?"

"The mere ten-thousand-plus troops of one Beixi County City—once either the Xiongying or Snow Wolf Brigade is redeployed to the Front Line, they can take back the lost land!"

"What you say is correct; my Great Di's border City Defense is weak. This is a disadvantage for us, but the same holds true for you!"

"Even if you take it, how will you hold it?"

In Lü Li's view, though Qin Feng commanded troops like a god, when it came to grand strategy, he could hardly be called Gao Ming.

This prefecture—take it, but cannot hold it—what meaning does that have?

To try to use such a battlefield result as a bargaining chip for negotiation is far too naive!

Facing Lü Li's contempt and mockery, Qin Feng actually laughed.

"Lü Zhu Guo, since I ordered the attack, I have naturally already made thorough Preparation."

"Cannot hold it? What does it matter!"

"Who says I intend to hold it?"

"I need only drive all the citizens out of every City in this prefecture, and then burn them all to the ground."

"Every Fortress and Stronghold will be captured and destroyed, making it impossible for your follow-up forces to garrison them."

"I need only turn this stretch of land into a Land of War!"

Hearing these words, Lü Li could not help but furrow his brow tightly.

Because Qin Feng's plan had even exceeded Lü Li's comprehension.

"Land of War? What do you mean?"

Though Qin Feng still wore a smile on his face, his gaze had already grown sharp as a Golden Sword.

As a Liang Subject, there was no personal feeling mixed in—only absolute reason, absolute ruthlessness!

As long as it could benefit the nation, Qin Feng was willing to bear the infamy!

Qin Feng's finger pressed heavily onto the map.

Like a Golden Sword thrust into the plains and wilds of the Northern Di Border.

This single jab made the Northern Di Envoys present all involuntarily tremble with fear.

Qin Feng's voice rang out firm and resonant as he said in a deep voice: "Have you all heard of a Buffer Zone?!"

"Although my Shedynasty cannot hold actual control over this stretch of land, your Northern Di cannot either!"

"In the future, this stretch of land will become the Buffer Zone between our two nations."

"I need only fill this stretch of land with eyes and hidden sentries."

"The moment your Northern Di troops arrive, I will immediately dispatch forces to Ambush and harass you, so that you can never find peace, let alone rebuild."

"If the Northern Di wish to attack my Shedynasty, they must first pass through this stretch of land—and I will make you lose half your force before you even reach the city walls!"

"Heh heh, Lü Zhu Guo, I intend to slice off a piece of your Northern Di's national territory and use it as my Shedynasty's shield!"

With these words uttered, the entire Northern Di Envoy Group fell utterly silent.

Even Lü Li, the representative of the Hawk Faction, was left speechless for a long while.

His face flushed red one moment, then went deathly pale the next.

He never in his wildest dreams imagined that Qin Feng, at such a young age, could play "Geopolitics" so smoothly.

Unbeknownst to them, just to one side of the Negotiation Hall, a figure had been taking in every word of the talks just now.

The Liang Emperor stood with his hands behind his back, his face flushing with excitement again and again.

"Turn the Northern Di Kingdom's land into a shield for our Shedynasty."

"What a brilliant buffer strategy!"

"Qin Feng, I am willing to call you a National Hero of my Shedynasty!"

The Liang Emperor turned and left, his mood lighter than it had ever been; he was unwilling to waste any more energy on these State Peace Talks.

Because the Liang Emperor knew very well that Qin Feng had already firmly seized the initiative in these State Peace Talks.

Everything that followed would merely be a discussion of War Reparations.

A group of Northern Di Envoys, led by Lü Li, silently returned to their seats at the Negotiation Table.

Lü Li said nothing. Beside him, Han Yu couldn't resist shooting Chen Si a look and asked in a low voice, "General Chen, is what Qin Feng said feasible?"

Chen Si's expression was also extremely grave.

After a long while, he could only nod helplessly, his voice pressed very low.

"The Beixi County Soldiers and Horse were modeled after the Expeditionary Brigade; their Open Field Battle capability is extremely strong."

"Even my Xiongying Brigade and Snow Wolf Brigade can only drive them back, not defeat them."

"So long as Beixi County makes up its mind, it truly can turn this prefecture's worth of land into a dead zone."

"By then, any war of aggression against this prefecture will become a bottomless Consumption War."

"Any Stronghold or Fortress built on the spot will require heavy troops to garrison, or it will collapse at the first blow, making it impossible to consolidate a DefensiveLine here."

"This move of his has set a precedent none can match…"