Please call me Your Majesty!

Chapter 272 The Fourth Prince's Reputation
Chu Shizhao had instructed Huo Qinghuang about this when he called her aside.

Female general Huo Qinghuang's eyes never left Zhang Yi, waiting for the moment when he would show his true colors.

After all, Zhang Yi was just a spy, and lurking and spying were his strong points.

But in a head-on confrontation with a master like Huo Qinghuang, there would be no room to fight back.

He was easily taken down. Huo Qinghuang's spear was as accurate as a venomous snake, and one strike nailed him to the city wall.

Chu Shizhao calmed the troops as soon as possible. The most important thing now is to eliminate the soldiers' doubts and boost morale.

"Soldiers, do you understand now? This man, like Feng Laosan, is a spy of the Dark Night Cult." Chu Shizhao's voice was loud and powerful, echoing on the city wall.

His finger pointed at Zhang Yi who was nailed to the wall, and then at Feng Laosan's body.

"The reason why the Ice Wolf Riders attacked them was not because they said something they shouldn't have said, or did anything they shouldn't have done."

His tone became serious and cautious: "It's just because the Ice Wolf Riders have the ability to distinguish the evil skills practiced by the Dark Night Cult."

"They are my loyal warriors and will never attack you without reason."

"Now, the spy has been caught." He looked around, watching the soldiers' expressions gradually become clear.

"We can rest assured and fight the Northern Di people." This sentence was like a shot of adrenaline, making everyone's eyes become determined.

If this was said at the beginning, even if Chu Shizhao spoke up, the soldiers would not completely believe it.

But now, Chu Shizhao has proved the identities of Feng Laosan and Zhang Yi.

What's wrong with the Ice Wolf Riders killing the Dark Night Cult's spies?

These guys from the Dark Night Cult are so cruel that they even use pregnant women and civilians to capture Xueyuan Pass.

The soldiers saw all these actions.

The soldiers exchanged glances with each other and gradually understood Chu Shizhao's good intentions.

"Your Highness is mighty and powerful. Those spies from the Dark Night Cult are no match for Your Highness at all."

"This guy Zhang Yi is actually a spy of the Dark Night Cult." Another soldier shook his head in disbelief: "If it weren't for Your Highness, I would never believe it even if you kill me."

Everyone's sighs came together. At first there were only a few scattered voices, but soon they swept across the entire city wall like a wave.

"Long live His Highness!" This cry came from the heart, with sincere admiration and loyalty.

"Long live your highness!"

"Long live your highness!"

The sound became louder and louder, shaking the bricks and stones on the city wall slightly.

Hearing the deafening roar from the city wall, Murong Dayu in the Beidi camp in the distance suddenly became gloomy, and his fingers unconsciously clenched the whip.

"Hmph. The mess was resolved so quickly." Murong Dayu said gritting his teeth, with sparks of anger flashing in his eyes.

"Wait...what are they talking about?" He suddenly reined in his horse and pricked up his ears to listen carefully.

"The prince of the Great Zhou has come to Xueyuan Pass..." This discovery made Murong Dayu's face change drastically, "Why didn't I know?"

Murong Dayu turned his head suddenly and glared at the Dark Night Cult messenger beside him. His voice was as cold as ice, with a chilling murderous intent: "You must give me an explanation."

The messenger's face was hidden in his cloak, and his expression was completely invisible. Only a hoarse voice came from the shadows: "He is just a prince."

"General, are you afraid of a prince?" The messenger asked with a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

"Just because a prince has arrived, we are stopping and no longer attacking? This doesn't seem to be your style, General." These words were like a sharp knife, piercing Murong Dayu's self-esteem.

The crisp sound of metal friction suddenly rang out, which was particularly harsh on the grim battlefield.

Murong Dayu's scimitar was suddenly unsheathed, and the sharp blade reflected a chilling cold light in the sunlight.

The exquisite patterns on the blade are like the scales of a poisonous snake, beautiful yet dangerous.

"Don't try to play any tricks in front of me." Murong Dayu's voice was as low as thunder, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

His eyes were as sharp as a knife, staring at the Dark Night Cult messenger.

"A prince is indeed nothing. The princes of the Southern Dynasty are no different from a group of rabbits."

"But the arrival of a prince can greatly boost the morale of Xueyuan Pass."

"This unexpected change is likely to disrupt our overall layout."

"Don't think I'll forget about it just because you piss me off."

"Tell me, why didn't you tell me that the prince of the Great Zhou would come to Xueyuan Pass." His voice was like ice, filled with endless murderous intent.

"Also, who is the prince who is coming?" This question was asked with gritted teeth, and it was obvious that his patience had reached its limit.

"I don't believe that you, the Dark Night Cult, would ignore such important information."

"If you can't give me a satisfactory answer."

He moved his scimitar forward half an inch, almost against the messenger's throat: "I will cut off your head and give it to your Dark Night Cult." This sentence was said lightly, but it made people shudder.

"Let's see if you, the Dark Night Cult, will tear your relationship with me for an envoy." Murong Dayu's eyes flashed with sarcasm.

Although the expression of the Dark Night Cult messenger could not be seen, from his slightly trembling fingers and his subconscious defensive yet abrupt movements, it could be seen that this usually mysterious messenger was not without fear at all.

The hem of his cloak fluttered slightly and his breathing became rapid.

After thinking for a long time, the Dark Night Cult messenger finally spoke. His voice was hoarser than usual, as if it had been rubbed with sandpaper:
"I understand your anger, General." The messenger said slowly, his speech was very slow, as if he was carefully considering every word.

"But there are some things. It's not that I won't tell you, but I'm not qualified to know this information." This explanation sounded reasonable, but Murong Dayu frowned even more tightly.

"All I can tell you is," the messenger lowered his voice, "according to our original plan, this prince should have died at Xueyuan Pass."

"I just don't know why I can still live until now." The messenger sighed helplessly.

"However, judging from the current battle situation, our plan at Xueyuan Pass must have failed."

Murong Dayu frowned. Although the Dark Night Cult's messenger had said a lot, when he thought about it carefully...

But there is not much really useful information.

These ambiguous words could not satisfy him at all.

"Who is the prince you want to deal with?" Murong Dayu asked directly, with his scimitar already at the messenger's throat.

"Chu Shizhao!" This time, the messenger answered very straightforwardly.

"What?" Murong Dayu exclaimed, his voice full of disbelief.

The name was beyond his expectation.

Even the barbarians of the Northern Di knew that knowing yourself and your enemy would ensure victory in every battle. Murong Dayu knew some important figures in the Southern Dynasty, and he was very familiar with the name Chu Shizhao. This prince, who was known for his wisdom and strategy, had made many outstanding achievements and was one of the most feared opponents of the Northern Di people.

Murong Dayu's expression instantly turned extremely ugly. If he had known earlier that Chu Shizhao was in Xueyuan Pass,

He would never underestimate the enemy and advance rashly. Now thinking about it, it is not surprising that Murongze, the vanguard, suffered a disastrous defeat.

The reason why Murong Dayu was so surprised, his pupils suddenly contracted, and his breathing stagnated, was not because he was afraid of Chu Shizhao.

As a famous general of Beidi, he never feared any opponent.

But he knew very well how powerful the Fourth Prince was.

Although he did not get a full picture of everything he did in the Great Zhou, Beidi also obtained a lot of intelligence.

If he had known that he was in the city, Murong Dayu would never have been so careless and underestimated the enemy.

He would definitely mobilize more troops and formulate a more thorough battle plan instead of launching a hasty attack like he is doing now.

Because of excessive anger, the veins on Murong Dayu's hand holding the knife bulged and his knuckles turned white. The sharp scimitar trembled violently in the sun, and the cold light reflected from the blade danced on the messenger's neck.

He almost killed the Dark Night Cult's messenger.

"You bastards, do you know how much you have delayed this general's work?" Murong Dayu's roar was so loud that the guards around him involuntarily took a half step back.

"What a crap Zhu Mingyuan! I can be sure that the person who fooled Murong Ze and caused the vanguard army to be defeated and suffer heavy losses is definitely the Fourth Prince Chu Shizhao." He spat with gritted teeth.

Before, Murong Dayu didn't believe the exaggerated battle report brought back by the defeated army.

Zhu Mingyuan, the defender of Xueyuan Pass, led his cavalry to harass the Northern Di cavalry for a whole night.

Not only did they cause great losses to the Beidi cavalry, but they also broke into the Beidi camp directly from the front battlefield, destroyed the craftsmen's camp, and burned the siege equipment they had made.

Moreover, they could charge back and forth in the Beidi camp as if they were in an empty space.

No matter how you think about it, this battle report is a bit too exaggerated.

Murong Dayu immediately concluded that this must be a lie made up by the defeated army in order to shirk responsibility.

Thirty thousand cavalry were defeated, someone must be held responsible for this.

Deliberately exaggerate the enemy's strength. The stronger the opponent is described, the more excusable your failure will be.

Because only in the face of such a powerful enemy, their defeat is reasonable. At least this way they can save their lives and avoid being punished by military law.

This is a common tactic used by defeated armies, and Murong Dayu has seen it too many times.

However, when he learned that the person in charge in Xueyuan Pass was not that good-for-nothing Zhu Mingyuan, but the fourth prince of the Fourth Zhou Dynasty, Chu Shizhao, everything seemed to make sense.

Those seemingly exaggerated achievements seem natural when applied to Chu Shizhao.

Murong Dayu gritted his teeth and angrily retracted the scimitar, the blade drawing a cold light in the air.

His chest rose and fell violently, and he was obviously trying his best to suppress his anger: "Just wait for me, I will severely report you when I return to Beijing."

"Sound the retreat!" Murong Dayu's roar echoed throughout the Beidi camp.

Ding Ding Ding!
The sound of rapid metal knocking immediately rang out among the army.

The harsh sound of metal stopped the Northern Di army from advancing. The cavalrymen who had already formed their battle array looked at each other, not understanding why they suddenly withdrew.

The Northern Di cavalry, which were all over the mountains, slowly retreated like the receding tide.

War horses neighed, dust flew, and the originally murderous offensive came to an abrupt end.

On the wall of Xueyuan Pass, the defenders who had just completed their deployment, with spears like a forest, their momentum as high as rainbows, and fighting spirit burning in their eyes, were just waiting for the Northern Di people to attack and fight to the death.

As a result, the Beida Army retreated directly.

Li Batian kicked the battlement in a rage, causing gravel to fly. His copper bell-like eyes widened and his face was shaking: "How can this bunch of northern barbarians be so useless?"

His voice was like thunder, and his strong arms waved his saber, eager to rush out to fight immediately: "Retreat before the fight even starts."

Zhao Wenguang and Huo Qinghuang looked at each other and saw confusion in each other's eyes.

Zhao Wenguang's gray eyebrows were tightly furrowed, while Huo Qinghuang subconsciously clenched the spear in his hand.

After all, after the previous test, the Northern Di cavalry should have been fully aware of the situation inside Xueyuan Pass.

They had also been prepared for the riot on the city wall before.

It is impossible that the Northern Di people did not see the infighting among the defenders. This should have been the best time for them to attack.

Regardless of success or failure, this battle should be a bloody one. Everyone was ready to fight to the death, and even the wounded struggled to climb up the city wall.

As a result, before the battle even started, the Northern Di cavalry retreated obediently. This abnormal behavior left everyone puzzled.

Could it be that these guys are plotting something again?

Zhao Wenguang looked at the retreating enemy troops in the distance with concern, always feeling that things were not that simple.

"Your Highness, what do you think the Northern Di people are doing?" Zhao Wenguang turned to Chu Shizhao, hoping that this wise prince could give an answer.

Huo Qinghuang also looked over, with a questioning look in her cold eyes. Her fingers unconsciously stroked the gun barrel, waiting for His Highness' analysis.

Chu Shizhao was speechless and secretly complained in his heart.

He is not a worm in the stomach of the Northern Di people, so how could he know what those barbarians suddenly became crazy about?

But he absolutely cannot say these words. As a head coach, he must always appear confident.

Even if you are unsure in your heart, you must appear as steady as a rock.

"I was simply frightened by the morale of the soldiers." Chu Shizhao smiled as if he was relaxed, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear.

"We have just dealt with the spy hidden in the army." He pointed at Zhang Yi who was nailed to the wall, "Now is the time to be full of momentum."

"The general of the Northern Di Iron Cavalry is a man who understands military affairs. He certainly knows that it is the most unwise to attack at this time." This explanation was reasonable, and many soldiers nodded thoughtfully.

"As the saying goes, the first attack is powerful, the second is weak, and the third is exhausted." Chu Shizhao quoted the art of war with his voice rising and falling.

"They have a strong military force. As long as we retreat first and wait for the blood and courage of the soldiers to fade away before attacking again, the losses will naturally be much smaller."

"But this may not be a bad thing for us." Chu Shizhao changed the subject and spoke in a relaxed tone.

"We can also take this opportunity to rest and replenish our supplies, and rest more to replenish our energy."

"Oh, and there's Zhang Yi." Chu Shizhao suddenly lowered his voice so that only the people around him could hear it: "Let's find a place to have a thorough trial."

Chu Shizhao's eyes flashed with a hint of sternness: "If possible, try to find out the identities of the other spies."

(End of this chapter)