Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 70 Song Shi'an's Declaration of Rebellion
Your Highness, you cannot exterminate your entire family.

Xin Yue has no nine generations of relatives.

what?
"Let's go."

While Song Shi'an was still in a daze, Xin Yue spurred her horse and set off.

There was no other way but to quickly catch up.

What's the point of talking about nine generations of relatives? They're all external things!

Upon seeing the two men arrive, the soldiers on night duty quickly recognized them and immediately clenched their fists in salute: "Sir, Your Excellency."

Although Xinyue currently holds no official position, no one dares to underestimate or look down on her.

Even the captain and chief clerk had to address her as "Sir".

After all, they had been marching for more than twenty days. Who didn't know that Xinyue was the Sixth Prince's henchman?

Just like later on, everyone knew that Song Shi'an was the Sixth Prince's confidant.

The same applies to workplaces; whoever the top leader is close to is the "favorite" you can't afford to offend.

"Summon the captain and the clerk now, quickly," Xin Yue ordered directly from her horse.

"Yes, sir!" The soldier didn't hesitate and immediately went to carry out the order.

A few minutes later, the chief clerk and the general came out together and walked quickly toward this side.

In ancient times, soldiers slept in armor during marches. Even military civil officials had to be available at any time, and the sense of discipline of "obeying orders and prohibitions" was ingrained in their bones.

If a slow-moving college student goes in, he or she will basically be fired within a few days.

"What's this?" Qin Kuo looked at the two of them with some confusion, mainly Song Shi'an.

"His Highness has ordered everyone to assemble now; there is an important announcement to make," Song Shi'an said.

"What about His Highness?" Zhu Qing asked, equally puzzled. "Did he go out for a moment just now?"

"Yes, he'll be here soon. You two should quickly assemble the troops," Song Shi'an said very seriously.

Although the two did not know what His Highness wanted to do, he was the absolute superior here, and they had to obey him in everything. Moreover, with this prince's personal guard present, it must be His Highness's own will.

Then, in the dead of night, all the soldiers were awakened and gathered together in the open spaces between the tents at the riverside camp.

Everyone was completely bewildered.

Why gather at this time?

"Isn't it time to set off yet?"

"Could it be that Wuwei City has already fallen? We need to hurry to Shuofeng?"

Since it is still in the hinterland, there is no possibility of emergency military action, so the only speculation can be that it is related to the fighting on the front line.

At this moment, someone noticed that the young 20-year-old county magistrate, Song Shi'an, had climbed up to the foot of the "Wei" character flag on the watchtower.

Because there was someone on the only high point and light source, everyone gradually turned their attention to him alone.

Below the watchtower, guarding the simple ladder, Xin Yue gripped the hilt of her sword with one hand, her expression extremely solemn.

Zhu Qing and Qin Kuo, who were standing nearby, sensed a sense of unease.

After looking around, Zhu Qing asked, "Where is His Highness?"

Xin Yue said expressionlessly, "Coming right away."

Since he's coming so soon, what's the point of Song Shi'an going on stage?
Qin Kuo slowly raised his head and looked at the stage.

Suddenly, Song Shi'an exclaimed loudly, "Your Highness has seized military power in Langya and taken control of all the grain and supplies!"

Qin Kuo's eyes widened instantly: "!!"

Zhu Qing was dumbfounded and completely taken aback.

After a moment of collective silence, the soldiers below the stage erupted in cheers.

"What do you mean?! Seize military power?"

"Your Highness managed to take control of Langya all by yourself?!"

"What are you trying to do..."

"This is a mutiny!!!"

"Shi An!" Qin Kuo roared, his face ashen. "Get down here right now!"

Zhu Qing rushed straight towards the watchtower.

The next moment, Xin Yue drew her sword and pressed it against his neck, her voice icy: "Step back."

"..." Biting her lip, Zhu Qing raised her head, looking at Song Shi'an, the man entrusted to her by Lord Song to protect him, and clenched her fists. *I wanted to protect him, but this kid is trying to kill me!*
Faced with the uproar from the audience, Song Shi'an continued loudly, "Two hours ago, His Highness and I left the military camp. An hour and a half ago, we entered Langya City and lured the Prefect Luo Ting out alone with a secret order. His Highness forced him to disarm and then executed and hid him. Afterwards, His Highness, holding the Tiger Tally, mobilized all the supplies in the city and transported them to the water fortress."

Song Shi'an disclosed all the details of this process.

They even told a little lie: Luo Ting was killed.

The purpose was to make the soldiers believe.

And, they felt 'at ease' about what to do next.

"Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!" Upon hearing his description, Qin Kuo went completely insane. "They're all bastards! Why did they do such a thing? Why?!"

"Get down here, Song Shi'an!" Zhu Qing also felt a chill and shouted sharply.

The soldiers were all dumbfounded, their faces filled with fear and unease.

"Why launch a mutiny!"

"This is rebellion!"

"This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!"

"This matter has nothing to do with us, and we absolutely refuse to be implicated!"

Seeing that the soldiers were on the verge of mutiny, Song Shi'an immediately said, "Yes! You're absolutely right! His Highness's mutiny is tantamount to rebellion. But His Highness would rather rebel than let you die in vain!"

"A mutiny is suicide! To die by the sword of one's own people!" A centurion, who completely rejected PUA tactics, vehemently refuted this.

"So, deserters can survive?! And guarding the north wind can survive?" Song Shi'an retorted.

One sentence left the CEO speechless.

The remaining soldiers also whispered among themselves, discussing the matter.

“Defending Shuofeng is certain death! The Sixth Prince already knew this. Our reinforcements number only a thousand, and the soldiers defending the city are just remnants of Zhao Xiang's army. Facing Ji Yuan's army of one hundred thousand, going directly there is no different from sending ourselves to our deaths!”

In fact, all these soldiers knew.

But you can't talk to each other about it, because that's spreading negative thoughts.

Disrupting morale is the quickest way to commit a capital offense.

"Soldiers should take loyalty to the emperor and serving the country as their duty, and should not disturb the morale of the army!" Zhu Qing continued to rebuke.

But his words seemed to fail to resonate with anyone.

Because the rest of the soldiers had all focused their attention on Song Shi'an.

"How could that venerable one not die!" a soldier shouted.

“Almost all the available military equipment in Liangzhou is in Langya. In addition, more than 4,000 garrison troops have also been transferred away by Your Highness. Adding the nearly 10,000 soldiers originally in Shuofeng City, as long as we defend the city with all our might and can withstand the Qi bandits' offensive, there is absolutely no way we will fall into a situation of food shortage and insufficient military equipment!” Song Shi’an said with certainty.

He didn't say whether he could hold on.

He only said that even if he died in this battle, he would not die of starvation or from an empty air.

Moreover, the number of soldiers capable of defending the city is at least four thousand more than before.

"Think about it, everyone!" Song Shi'an raised his hand, pointing to the 'Wei' flag that was suddenly fluttering in the strong wind, "When have we ever gone on a campaign and received so much pay for our families?"

These words once again silenced the soldiers.

Yes, that never happens.

“That was all thanks to His Highness donating all his family's wealth and resources!” Song Shi’an said with great enthusiasm.

what?
Xin Yue was taken aback and couldn't help but glance up at him.

"I knew it! His Highness paid for it himself!"

"Yes, nobody cares about our lives!"

"Defending the city means death, deserting means death, and it will implicate our families. We might as well drag more people down with us!"

"No, we'll defend it together. As long as we can live and hold the city, everything else is forgiven!"

The soldiers quickly regained consciousness.

Yes, their fates are intertwined.

Beneath the grand narrative, the will of a thousand individuals, resonating in unison, is amplified to the extreme.

Their survival instinct led them to make the most rational choice.

Seeing that his speech had achieved its effect, Song Shi'an began with his final push: "The four thousand garrison troops of Langya and more than ten thousand of the north wind, totaling over ten thousand, are not our own men. Your Highness is not at ease using men who are not our own. Therefore, everyone will be promoted two ranks or more: soldiers will be promoted to squad leaders, squad leaders to centurions, centurions to captains, and captains directly to generals!"

(End of this chapter)