Ma Jiamen: I was forced to fight for supremacy

At night, the moon is dark and the wind is high.

The thick smell of blood and the choking smoke intertwined and filled the air.

Xiangcheng has been known as the heart of the world since ancient times.

On the top of Xiangcheng City, the Chu battle flag no longer fluttered, its pole cut down with a single blow. In its place was the Huben Army battle flag with red characters on a black background.

From this moment on, Xiangcheng, an important city of Chu State, was captured by Liang State, which dominated the north. Zhao Gou, the second prince of Liang State, moved into the city lord's mansion of Xiangcheng.

After capturing the city, Ma Botong, the vanguard general of the Tiger and Leopard Army, hurriedly found Zhao Gou who had not yet had time to take off his armor.

After the two men with serious expressions whispered to each other several times, Ma Botong immediately took the thirteen retainers of the Ma family and headed north overnight.

Ma Botong's face was darker than the sky at the moment. He had just experienced a great battle, and a brutal murderous aura was surging around him.

He tightly grasped the Overlord Spear in his hand. The blood on the spear had not yet completely solidified. It was like an exploding giant python, ready to bite anyone.

The thirteen retainers looked like demons crawling out of a bloody prison, looking around vigilantly and guarding the master of the family.

Fourteen majestic war horses exhaled white air, the power of their blood awakened, and galloped north with red eyes.

A carrier hawk flew across the sky, and as it flew over the northbound cavalry, it let out a cry and galloped away.

The hawks raised in the Liang Dynasty palace were mainly bald eagles from the Northeast demon tribe. They had extremely fast flying speeds, great endurance, and few natural enemies in the air.

This strong and swift carrier eagle will bring the news of the Second Prince's successful capture of Xiangcheng to the capital of Liang State as soon as possible.

——Three days after the fall of Xiangcheng.

In the central part of Liang State, there is Heyan City.

A prosperous city about 500 miles away from Handan, the capital of Liang State.

Outside Heyan City, the cry of a baby forced Ma Botong and his men to stop their horses again.

In the bamboo box hung on the chest of Ma San, a servant of the Ma family, was a baby boy.

Ma San used the cloak as a blanket and wrapped himself in it.

Hearing the baby crying, Ma San hurriedly dismounted. He drew water from the bamboo tube at his waist, dissolved a brown pill, untied his cloak, and poured it into the baby boy's mouth.

The baby boy was just three days old when his body changed from the bright red at birth to the bronze color it is now.

This baby boy is still in the stage where he doesn't know how to open his eyes, but his natural strong energy and blood make people feel that this child is definitely not an ordinary person.

Ma San's rough big hands touched the damp heat of the cloak, and he immediately stopped feeding the baby and turned around to shout.

"Boss, is your cape dry? The child peed again."

Ma Da, a servant of the Ma family, hurriedly took out a washed cloak from his arms, ran to the bamboo box, and together with Ma San, clumsily "changed clothes" for the baby boy.

Ma Botong looked at the rough and clumsy hands of his two retainers and couldn't help shaking his head and sighing.

He thought to himself, 'I've led these thirteen brothers through countless bloody battles, and now they can't even handle a newborn baby.'

After the baby was wrapped, Ma San used his inner strength to warm the water. Feeling it was about the right temperature, he was about to lick it to test the temperature when Ma Da slapped him on the head.

"What are you licking? Didn't the old woman in the fireworks village say you can't lick it?"

Ma San scratched his head and chuckled. "I forgot, I forgot."

Ma Da grabbed the bamboo lid of the potion, carefully poured a drop onto his wrist, and muttered, "Alright."

Then the two of them worked together to feed the medicine into the child's mouth.

Maybe because the temperature was just right, the baby boy no longer resisted like before and started sucking the medicine actively.

Ma San was delighted when he saw it, and sighed, "Little ancestor, you can finally eat your meal in peace."

This brown pill was just an ordinary Yang Yuan Pill. Every member of the Tiger Guards would carry a few pills before going on an expedition. If food supplies ran out, taking the pill would replenish the body's nutrients.

In three days, fourteen soldiers who had never held a child in their arms were tortured by this child.

I don’t know how much Yangyuan Pill was wasted, and none of it was fed to the child.

Ma Botong looked at Ma San's silly smile and cursed.

"Don't yell and scare the child, you idiot."

After wrapping the child and putting him in the bamboo box, the baby boy felt the red barrier covering his eyes again.

Just as Ma San was about to hang the bamboo box on his chest, he heard Ma Botong's sudden order.

"Alert~"

——Heyan City.

Starting from the capital, a group of people carrying the flag of the emperor's special envoy team made a simple supply and passed through the city without stopping.

Because the incident happened suddenly and the convoy was in a hurry, when the convoy entered the city, the prefect of Heyan County only learned that the emperor's special envoy was in the city for supplies.

When a group of officials of all ranks in the city rushed to the South Gate, ready to flatter the important officials in the capital, the convoy had already headed south, leaving only a cloud of dust behind the officials.

——Yuling Guards, the personal guards of the Emperor of Liang.

They wore black clothes and black face masks. Unlike the black armor of the Huben Army, the Yuling Guards did not wear armor. They wore black cloth clothes and only wore black armor on the knees and elbows.

The Yuling Guards are composed of masters of the fifth rank or above, and there are only a few hundred of them.

At this moment, the twelve feathered guards led the way, and in the middle of the cavalry was a red military horse, pulling a black carriage and galloping southward.

The carriage was made of metal, with a flowing light array visible. Inside, an old man with white hair and a red robe sat with his eyes closed, resting.

Suddenly, the old man opened his eyes slightly, and the aura of a master emanated, raising a cloud of dust outside the carriage.

The driver was a feminine man in his teens. He stopped the carriage in panic, turned inside and asked in a low voice.

"Grandpa, do you have any instructions?"

"You are waiting here."

The white-haired old man had a shrill voice, and the mere sound of it was enough to send chills down one's spine. Before he could finish his words, the old man had vanished.

Ma Botong watched Ma San put the child away, and suddenly felt the aura of a master rushing towards them. The pressure made Ma Botong feel cold all over.

Perhaps it was because of the seven days of running around that Ma Botong neglected to restrain his breath and was captured by a master.

Ma Botong ordered the formation to form. Thirteen retainers dismounted instantly, placing Ma San in the center. Ma Botong stood at the head of the formation, spear in both hands.

The next moment, a red robe fell in front of Ma Botong, and the man in the red robe spoke.

"General Ma, there's such a strong smell of blood."

The person who came was the white-haired old man in the cavalry of the emperor's special envoy. When Ma Botong saw the person, he breathed a sigh of relief and spoke slowly.

"Chi Changshi, how are you?"

Chi Changshi, the chief of the Ten Changshi of Liang State, has served two generations of kings and is a first-rank master who can move at will.

His martial arts skills are so mysterious and tricky that countless masters have died at his hands.

The family of Chi Changshi encountered a crisis that year. In order to revive the family, they sent the six-year-old Chi Xin into the palace.

Twenty years later, the new emperor ascended the throne. Chi Xin's sister Chi Xia entered the palace as a noble lady and gave birth to the prince Zhao Gou.

Another identity of Chi Changshi is the uncle of the second prince Zhao Gou.

Ma Botong is a loyal member of the Ma family and serves under the command of the second prince. He is Zhao Gou's loyalist and is absolutely "one of our own" along with Chi Changshi.

Ma Botong waved his hand, and the thirteen retainers relaxed their guard. "Greetings, Lord Chi."

Chi Changshi nodded slightly and spoke.

"General Ma, why are you in such a hurry to leave instead of staying in Xiangcheng to assist the Second Prince?"

As Chi Changshi spoke, he glanced at the people from the Ma family.

Then, his eyes fell on Ma San.

Ma San felt cold all over, breathing was difficult, and even his fingers became numb.

Chi Changshi spoke with an excited look on his face.

“This child…”