knife

Chapter 75 The cooked duck flew away
Tiele watched with regret as Yan Sheng led his troops away in a cloud of dust.

He was almost certain that Yan Sheng's chances of escaping unscathed were extremely slim.

Although the information we have so far is only fragmentary and cannot paint a complete picture of the whole situation,

However, the true nature of this matter has been completely exposed.

The various parties collaborated, all plotting to seize Yan Sheng's Baoping Prefecture.

Xiao Changche, Li Dachui, and surely Tai'an City as well.

In recent years, Baoping City has been vigorously developing bulk trade by taking advantage of its convenient transportation at the confluence of two rivers, and has already taken a significant share from Tai'an City. Because of its inherent advantages, Baoping City's future development prospects are indeed more promising.

How could that old fellow in Tai'an City sit idly by?
Since we can't win by competing, we might as well just snatch it and make it our own.

"Xiao Changche has actually colluded with bandits!" Lu He exclaimed. "I wonder how they'll divide the spoils now. It would be best if the spoils were divided unevenly and they started fighting amongst themselves!"

"Placing your hopes on the enemy is the most foolish thing to do!" Gross retorted without mincing words.

"Just kidding, there's always hope!" Luhe rolled his eyes, used to being criticized by Gro, so he didn't mind. He and Gro were like two henchmen by Tiele's side; usually, Gro was responsible for giving advice and suggestions, while he was responsible for drawing his knife and chopping people down.

Ruch thought this was a good idea.

Gro was the same age as him, but now half of his hair had turned white, while he was still full of energy and could party every night without any problem.

“Your Highness, in this way, all our plans have come to naught!” Gro sighed. “After years of planning and instigation, just when we were about to succeed, this happened. It is truly disheartening.”

It was like a cooked duck flying away; Tiele was extremely upset, but he still appeared calm on his face.

“To accomplish great things, there will naturally be many twists and turns along the way. If everything goes smoothly, it will actually make one feel less accomplished,” Tiele said. “If we miss this opportunity, then let’s look for another one!”

“If Yan Sheng is finished this time, Xiao Changche will take control of Baoping Prefecture. This man has connections with Li Dachui and Tai'an City, and he harbors deep hatred for our Great Yuan. In the future, we will have another powerful enemy! Your Highness, I'm afraid your plan to use one enemy to devour another will have to be abandoned halfway,” Gro said.

Tiele smiled slightly, pulled on his horse's head, and said, "Let's go. Yan Sheng is definitely finished. Can 20,000 men and 20,000 lambs withstand the attack of 3,000 tigers? What's more, Li Dachui's Tianzi Camp must be roaming around nearby! If Yan Sheng falls into Xiao Changche's hands and finds out I'm here, I'm afraid I'll become his target."

Gro and Ruch's expressions changed drastically; they hadn't expected all of this.

"Go back immediately!" Lu He shouted. "It would be terrible if Xiao Changche smelled Your Highness's scent."

"What do I taste like?" Tiele asked Rukh with a smile.

Lu He laughed heartily: "Your Highness naturally has the scent of a hero. That Xiao Changche, although he is our enemy, must be said to be a hero as well. Isn't it said that heroes cherish each other? You are too close to Xiao Changche. Don't heroes cherish each other? Who knows, he might be able to smell the bloody scent of heroism on you!"

Tiele burst into laughter at Luch's amusement: "This is the first time I've heard that heroes appreciate each other in this way. Luch, you should read more books!"

The group laughed and turned their horses around.

Tiele was a man who could take things in stride. Since Yan Sheng was no longer reliable, he should let go of him sooner rather than later. Holding grudges in one's heart would not do any good and would only make one's morale decline.

It's just starting over.

“Your Highness, after we return, I will go to Yandu immediately. Akdun will surely love those Chu beauties you acquired last time! Why don’t I bring them to him?” Gro said.

Tiele nodded: "I originally intended to reward you and Rukh, but now Aktun will have to benefit from it."

Groze and Tiele walked side by side. "Jebe has followed His Majesty in battle these past few years. Not only has he achieved great military exploits, but he has also always been by His Majesty's side. This closeness is more important than any merit. When they return to Yandu, Jebe will definitely be the one with the highest popularity."

Tiele nodded: "That's the eldest brother! Although our Great Yuan doesn't follow the primogeniture system, the eldest son still has some advantages."

"It's a pity that Your Highness failed this time, allowing Jebe to stand out from the crowd. However, given Jebe's personality, he will definitely be arrogant and cause trouble. If we make good arrangements and take advantage of the situation, the opportunity will come. However, since Your Highness is rarely in Yandu, this matter can only be handled by Aktun."

"Would Aktun be so stupid as to stand up for us?" Ruch interjected.

Gro explained, “Why is it for us? Isn’t it for his own sake? Jebe is riding high and has become the only one in power. Now that the two weaker ones are here, they will naturally join forces to suppress the one who is sticking out first. When Aktun makes his move, His Highness will follow up and naturally be able to bring down Jebe’s arrogance. At least we should bring the three of them back to the same starting line.”

“Take care of this matter when you get back!” Tiele said. “I will keep a close eye on this area. If Xiao Changche gets Baoping Prefecture, the most anxious person will not be us, but Linghu Ye. Who knows what Linghu Ye might do? We might not be without an opportunity.”

For the past three years, Xiao Changche has been under strong suppression by Linghu Ye. The impoverished General of Chariots and Cavalry could only barely survive by selling his possessions and borrowing heavily from foreign countries. Even so, he was still the second-ranked force among the Qin army outside the pass.

Xiao Changche's reputation among the Qin army outside the pass was no less than that of Linghu Ye.

Previously, Xiao Changche was extremely poor. Once he takes over Baoping Prefecture and has money in his hands, his strength will inevitably increase dramatically. At that time, it will be interesting to see who is in charge of the Qin army outside the pass.

Can Linghu Ye just sit idly by?

Absolutely not. When two tigers fight, one will surely be injured.

There is much I can do in this.

If we could get Linghu Ye and Xiao Changche to fight each other, that would be wonderful. No matter who wins or loses, they will both be severely weakened, and we can reap the benefits.

“Geluo, go to Zhenwu City first and meet Li Guohua.” Tiele said, “No need to say anything else, just catch up, strengthen our friendship, and talk to him about the people we’ve captured on both sides this year due to friction. I think now is the time to exchange prisoners.”

Gro smiled and said, "Alright, I understand. It'll be good to see how they deal with Xiao Changche seizing Baoping Prefecture. Your Highness, do you think Linghu Ye will interfere?"

“I think they will intervene, after all, he is still the highest-ranking officer of the Protectorate General of the Northeast. If Xiao Changche dares to disobey military orders, he will have an excuse.”

"To punish Xiao Changche?"

"That depends on Linghu Ye's courage. If he really dares to do that, I'm willing to lend him a hand and give him ten thousand iron cavalry!"

Gro laughed: "Borrowing too much, I'm afraid Linghu Ye is worried that it's easy to invite a god but hard to send him away, so he wouldn't dare!"

“Three to five thousand is not out of the question. Even if he loses all three to five thousand cavalry, I won’t blame him in the slightest!” Tiele laughed. “As long as they fight each other, that’s fine.”

"I will definitely convey your meaning to Li Guohua! Also, Your Highness, I think we can agree to the horse market they've been trying to establish."

“Go and negotiate yourself!” Tiele said. “As long as we can get them to make a scene, we don’t need to worry about what we have to pay, because we will get back many times over in the future.”

Mao'er Mountain.

Overnight, everything had changed dramatically.

Yan Dong, who had just gotten up, passed through the camp and arrived at the foot of the mountain. Looking up at the layers of wooden chevaux-de-frise, deer antlers and all sorts of defensive facilities on the hillside, his face turned green.

He arrived here yesterday, and night was already falling, so he did not rush to attack.

He felt there was absolutely no need for a night attack in a battle he was certain to win.

The pitch-black night and the frigid weather would cause resentment among his soldiers, and the night would give the enemy more opportunities to take advantage of the chaos. If a leader like Wild Wolf were to escape in the confusion, the final results of a large-scale encirclement and suppression operation would be greatly diminished.

So he simply ordered that Mao'er Mountain be completely surrounded, so that not even a rat could escape.

When dawn breaks, all that's needed is to proceed slowly and methodically, pressing down evenly, and that will be enough to crush the rats on the mountain into pieces.

But reality gave him a harsh slap in the face.

If anyone were to tell Yan Dong that Wild Wolf was a bandit, Yan Dong would definitely kick that person away.

Horse bandit?

Could an ordinary bandit have set up such a complex defensive position?

Moreover, how did they manage to produce so much defensive equipment in just one night?

Looking at the opening that was deliberately left no more than two zhang wide, Yan Dong clenched his fist.

Beside the opening were two simple earthen ramparts, with openings in them. Although one could not see what was inside, Yan Dong could guess what was inside.

Eight-shot repeating crossbow!

Each repeating crossbow bolt is several feet long and fired from a mechanism. Within a hundred meters, neither heavily armored individuals nor horses can stop them. Could it be that those with superior martial arts skills would rush forward and wipe out these repeating crossbow bolts?
There must be a master fisherman hiding inside that bunker.

Even if you manage to rush up, you might not have time to do anything before being killed by the opponent's martial arts master.

Not only Yan Dong, but the other Yan family generals who came upon hearing the news were also dumbfounded.

"Surround them here! In this weather, I don't believe they can hold out for long!" A general said, "Young Master, if we launch a direct attack, I'm afraid we'll suffer many casualties. I don't think it's worth it!"

Yan Dong remained silent, staring intently at the mountain peak, and slowly said, "These things could not have been made overnight. It seems that Wild Wolf knew he was going to be surrounded by us at Mao'er Mountain, so he sent people here in advance to make defensive preparations? This is too unbelievable."

It's not only absurd, but also utterly outlandish.

Yan Dong turned around and looked at the generals behind him, but his eyes revealed fear.

Yes, fear!
In this massive hunt, who is the hunter and who is the prey?

(End of this chapter)