We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

boom--

There was another loud bang, but it was definitely not an ordinary cannon shot. The sound was too close and too dull, as if it was exploding right next to my ear, shaking the dust off the beams.

The brush in Zheng Mao's hand fell onto the map with a click, staining a large area of ​​territory black.

He looked up in surprise and asked, "What's going on? Where's the cannon firing?!"

Almost at the same time, a personal guard tumbled and crawled into the study:

"General! It's bad! A large number of enemy troops appeared outside the north gate. They were all cavalry wearing white robes and flying the flag of the Fengtian Army."

"I don't know what magic they used, but they've already blown down the city gates, and are now charging into the city!"

"What?!" Zheng Mao suddenly stood up, knocking over the armchair behind him.

"Fengtian Army? Attacking the city? Nonsense!"

"Their main force is still on the other side of the Ji River, and Wang Sanchun's troops are far away in Dingtao. How could the Fengtian Army dare to attack Rencheng?"

The guards were almost in tears, pointing towards the north gate and speaking incoherently: "It's absolutely true, General, the mountains and plains outside the city are full of cavalry. A corner of the city gate tower has been blown down, and they are about to charge into the general's residence!"

"General, please take cover quickly and leave the city through the south gate!"

Zheng Mao's brain buzzed and went blank in an instant.

He staggered to the window and pushed it open roughly, only to see smoke and dust rising into the sky and flames flickering in the north!

A battle flag with the word "Feng" on a dark background and a red dragon on it fluttered in the smoke and dust, and next to it was a slightly smaller but more eye-catching battle flag with the word "Chen" on it.

It’s Chen Pingzhi! It’s really that white-robed ghost general, Chen Pingzhi!

He actually bypassed hundreds of miles of defense lines and appeared directly under Rencheng!

"Hurry! Hurry!" Zheng Mao grabbed his personal guard by the collar and roared, "Call all the soldiers to the city wall... No, go to the north gate, and have them drive the enemy out! Block the gap!"

He seemed to have remembered something and added hastily:

"Also! Have Captain Zhang bring his personal soldiers back immediately to defend the headquarters! Quick! We must defend the headquarters!"

Zheng Mao had read military books for so many years that he naturally knew the truth that "it is easy to get thousands of soldiers, but it is difficult to get a good general."

This Captain Zhang was originally named Zhang Lin, and he was one of its best generals.

This man was born into a bandit family in Daye Lake. When the world was in chaos, he led a group of bandits to gather in the mountains and forests, and his influence was quite powerful.

When Emperor Qing took over Yanzhou, he did not have enough troops and had no time to wipe him out.

It was not until the whole country was unified that Zhang Lin realized that he had no way out, so he and his brothers accepted the amnesty.

Emperor Qing had many brave generals under his command, so he naturally looked down upon a bandit like Zhang Lin who changed his stance according to the situation, and gave him a marginal military position and sent him away.

Originally, such a small figure would have stopped here in his life if nothing unexpected happened, but he happened to meet a good leader like Zheng Mao who had the ability to "judge people".

In Zheng Mao's opinion, this man has been through many battles and is a useful general.

Although it was experience in robbery, didn't Li Che also start his business with a group of criminals?

Moreover, Zhang Lin's men were extremely brave and were exactly the good generals he had in mind who could turn the tide.

He spent a huge sum of money and promised a title to recruit this person!

The guards scrambled to deliver the message, while Zheng Mao slumped down in his chair, still muttering to himself:

"Impossible... Impossible... Leading a lone army deep into the enemy's territory, with no logistics support and no escape route, is a cardinal sin in military strategy. How could he dare to do this? How could he have done it?"

He couldn't understand it at all. According to the military books, this was simply courting self-destruction!

But unfortunately, this army that should have been destroyed had already arrived at his doorstep.

. . . . . .

Rencheng is far away from the front line and has enjoyed peace for a long time.

In addition, the commander-in-chief Zheng Mao was a "master of military strategy" who only knew how to talk about war on paper, and the defense of the city was far more lax than expected.

Little do people know that the true essence of military strategy lies not in the tactics of using troops like a god, but in small matters such as food, clothing, housing and transportation.

A qualified commander will make his base impregnable, no matter how safe it may seem.

The city gate was easily blown open by the concentrated use of explosive packs, which was smoother than Chen Pingzhi expected.

Chen Pingzhi's white robe was as white as snow, hidden among the cavalry, his long sword pointed far ahead: "Target, the enemy headquarters! Anyone who stands in our way will die!"

"Roar!"

The white-robed cavalrymen behind him responded in unison, their voices shaking the sky.

The army poured into the streets of Rencheng like a flood breaking through a dam.

The defenders in the city came in scattered groups, trying to stop the White Robe Army's advance, but they were unable to organize an effective formation.

Often, before people got close or raised their shields, they were hit by a wave of crossbows and musket fire from the white-robed army, turning them into a bloody mist.

What's even more terrible is that Zheng Mao didn't even understand the flags in the army. The White Robe Army had already rushed into the city, but the defenders didn't even put up a flagpole to gather the troops.

Without the guidance of flags and the command of the commander, the defenders were naturally defeated, while the white-robed army rushed towards the city center along the main road like a hot knife through butter.

Just when they were 500 meters away from the Marshal's Mansion, a group of cavalry suddenly appeared from the street ahead.

The leading general was a dark and sturdy man with a face full of pockmarks. He held a giant axe that was as big as a door panel.

The cavalrymen following behind him were mostly in disarray, wearing a variety of clothes, and some even didn't have their helmets on.

But they all have fierce eyes, are strong and powerful, and exude a strong bandit spirit from head to toe.

It was none other than Zhang Lin, the good general that Zheng Mao had high hopes for, the former great bandit of Daye Lake, now a captain!

When Zhang Lin saw the neatly-dressed and murderous white-robed soldiers, he was not afraid. Instead, he grinned grimly, revealing his yellow teeth.

His original name was Zhang Mazi, but after he raised the banner of rebellion, he felt that his name was not domineering enough, so he changed his name to Zhang Lin at the suggestion of a down-and-out scholar under his command.

The word "lin" means "dragon is the leader of scaly insects", which shows this person's ambition.

Zhang Lin always felt that the Fengtian Army generals were nothing special. Aren’t those famous ones like Wang Sanchun and He Conglong all born as bandits?

Especially that Wang Sanchun, I heard that he was just a small bandit before.

I also came from a bandit family, but I wasn't as lucky as them, otherwise I might not be worse off than them.

And now, the opportunity has come!

Although Chen Ping is not as famous as his colleague Wang Sanchun, if he can be killed, it will be an opportunity to become famous!

Thinking of this, Zhang Lin swung the giant axe in his hand and said, "My men, the fat sheep has been delivered to our door!"

"Follow me and chop off the head of that white-robed general. Then go get the bounty from General Zheng!"

The bandits behind him let out strange howls and urged their horses to rush over like a swarm of bees.

The white-robed cavalry in front reacted quickly, and immediately launched another wave of bows, crossbows, and musket fire, shooting down a large number of enemy cavalry rushing in front.

However, unexpectedly, the other party was not frightened, but became even more excited after seeing the blood.

Zhang Lin spurred his horse to the front, his pockmarked face full of bloodthirsty look.