Chapter 745

First Volume, Chapter 745: There's Such a Tactic?

Qin Feng had already shown sufficient sincerity; since Ma Tingyun failed to recognize the situation, Qin Feng did not hesitate, waving his hand directly: "Then let us send Garrison Commander Ma to his death!"

A commander who could remain calm, possessed considerable military insight, and refused to surrender even at the cost of his life—though he earned Qin Feng's respect—would only become a menace to Shedynasty if left alive.

If so, better to kill him cleanly!

Ma Tingyun was immediately taken away; within just a few breaths, the executioners returned, carrying bloodied Zhan Dao blades.

"Marquis Qin, Ma Tingyun has been beheaded. Shall we present his head?"

Qin Feng smiled faintly: "Of course we must see it."

Moments later, the executioners returned with Ma Tingyun's head; seeing the unyielding expression frozen on Ma Tingyun's face at death, Qin Feng nodded with deep admiration: "Undeniably, the Northern Di still have many capable generals."

"Place Ma Tingyun's body and head together in one grave. Choose a fertile patch of land outside Xiongying Ridge Fortress and bury him with honor."

"He died for Xiongying Ridge. Though he cannot return to his ancestral soil, being buried on his own fortified position is fitting—end with dignity."

Opposite him, Li Chou felt both fear and sorrow.

Li Chou knew Ma Tingyun's character too well—he would never surrender—so he had ordered Ma Tingyun bound, hoping to gain Qin Feng's mercy. And Qin Feng had shown goodwill… but Ma Tingyun's nature was too rigid, and death was inevitable.

Moreover, Qin Feng's Sha Fa Guo Jue filled Li Chou with dread.

He had thought Qin Feng a kind man, yet he turned out to be a demon—smiling calmly, effortlessly severing Ma Tingyun's head.

Losing to such a man is not shameful.

…

Inside Beixi Xian Ya, Li Zhang was carefully studying the terrain and fortress structure of Xiongying Ridge, but the more he studied, the more confused and hopeless he became.

"As a Heavy Fortress, Xiongying Ridge is nearly impossible to breach with any Military Equipment. The many Catapults built by Brother Qin can only destroy buildings and facilities inside the fortress, but have virtually no effect on the fortress itself."

"The Garrison inside can simply rely on ImprovisedCover and continue to Consume time."

"County Magistrate Lin, Brother Qin claims he will take Xiongying Ridge within a month—I can't help but feel this is utterly unrealistic."

Li Zhang sighed deeply, pulling his gaze from the map and turning toward Lin Quqi, who sat behind the Shushu, sipping tea with calm ease.

Seeing no trace of tension on Lin Quqi's face, Li Zhang grew even more puzzled.

"County Magistrate Lin, aren't you worried at all?"

Without hesitation, Lin Quqi replied: "Why worry? If Brother Qin says he can take Xiongying Ridge, he will do it."

Lin Quqi had zero doubt about Qin Feng's military ability; as a civil official, he was unskilled in warfare and thus had no grounds to comment on military matters—he believed he need only trust Qin Feng unconditionally.

Li Zhang's doubts about Qin Feng were not about Qin Feng himself, but stemmed from his deep understanding of the difficulty of this Battle.

Li Zhang couldn't help sighing again: "In terms of military ability, I've admired only Brother Qin in my life—but capturing Xiongying Ridge within a month is still like a fairy tale."

"Still, this month's Consume isn't meaningless—if we greatly shorten the time the defenders hold out, we lay groundwork for future Siege Warfare."

Just as Li Zhang had concluded that capturing Xiongying Ridge in the short term was impossible, Xu Mo burst in, ecstatic.

"Prince! County Magistrate! Xiongying Ridge has surrendered!"

"Hahaha! No wonder Brother Qin—he forced the garrison of Xiongying Ridge to madness in just a month! Such a brilliant stratagem—only Brother Qin could pull this off!"

Xu Mo was wildly excited; as a military officer who spent his days leading troops, any unconventional victory always stirred his blood.

Especially since this Battle was led personally by Qin Feng.

Li Zhang froze, staring at Xu Mo in disbelief, wondering if he'd misheard.

"Xu… Xu Mo, what did you just say?"

"I must've misheard, right?"

Xu Mo slapped Li Zhang's shoulder, snatched the Tea Cup from Lin Quqi's hand, gulped it down, and burst into loud laughter.

"Prince, you didn't mishear—the Front Line messenger just delivered the Beixi County War Report: Xiongying Ridge has been taken by Brother Qin."

"The overall Garrison Commander of Xiongying Ridge, Ma Tingyun, was beheaded!"

Li Zhang stared blankly at Xu Mo, unable to believe his ears.

One of the strongest fortresses on the Southern Front Line of the Di had truly been captured by Qin Feng in just one month? How was that possible!

Li Zhang forced himself to calm down and asked sternly: "How many died?"

In Li Zhang's view, Qin Feng must have launched a full-scale assault, using Tianji Camp Guards and Black Cavalry as Elite Troops to forcibly breach the City Defense.

But even the most elite troops would suffer unimaginable casualties in Siege Warfare.

Only if casualties remained within acceptable limits could this be called true victory—otherwise, exchanging massive losses for a fortress was not worth it.

Sensing Li Zhang's grave expression, Xu Mo couldn't help laughing: "Hahaha, dead? A few did die—earlier, when Lü Ci led the Cavalry in Offensive Action, the Vanguard Camp's Bow Infantry clashed with them and lost nearly a hundred men. But… weren't you aware of that?"

Li Zhang spat: "Tsk! I'm asking about this final assault—how many died? Why bring up old events?!"

Xu Mo shrugged indifferently: "No one died."

What?!

So stunned, Li Zhang stepped back, eyes wide, staring fixedly at Xu Mo.

"Xu—you're lying to me, right?"

"How could launching a full assault on Xiongying Ridge result in zero casualties?!"

Xu Mo's grin widened: "Who told you there was a full assault?"

"Heh, Prince, let me tell you straight—Brother Qin never sent a single soldier to attack the City. He merely used a small trick, and the entire garrison of Xiongying Ridge went mad."

Li Zhang frowned even deeper: "A small trick…"

Xu Mo beamed with pride, as if he himself had won the Battle: "All those corpses, Fire Attack, Stone bombardments—they were all meant to Consume the defenders' resources."

"Once the garrison ran low on drinking water and dared not use it to wash away filth, Brother Qin began hurling feces and rotting kitchen waste into the fortress day and night."

Li Zhang felt as if he were listening to a myth—could such a tactic even exist?!