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

Li Che's cold words were like the bitterly cold wind in the coldest days of winter, instantly penetrating Zhai Yan's eardrums and piercing his confused and frightened heart.

Huang Daban? Which Huang Daban?

Zhai Yan's mind went blank for a moment, and he couldn't even immediately associate this title with a specific person.

In the past few days, he had imagined the scene of meeting Li Che countless times and rehearsed various responses.

He thought that Li Che would show concern for him and try to appease him; he thought that Li Che would use threats and inducements to try to extract military intelligence from him in the south of the Yangtze River.

He even prepared for the worst.

Thinking that Li Che might be enraged by the stubborn resistance of Shouzhou and Qingliuguan, he simply chopped off his own head as a warning to others when they met.

But he never thought that the first thing Li Che asked was the life or death of a eunuch!

That old eunuch Huang Jin who followed the late emperor and spoke in a soft voice?

Zhai Yan commanded a large number of troops and was the commander of the Southern Army, which dominated the area.

Could it be that in the eyes of this King Feng, he is not as important as a eunuch?!

However, his instinct for survival prevented him from showing any dissatisfaction.

He carefully considered his words, lowered his head even lower, and replied cautiously, "Your Majesty, I have nothing to do with Huang Zongguan's death. He committed suicide."

Zhai Yan tried to completely shirk responsibility. After all, he didn't know what the Prince Feng wanted. Anyway, he escaped when the eunuch died.

Before he could finish his words, he felt the gaze above his head become sharper, almost piercing through him.

"Tell me the truth! If you don't tell me, I can ask other people..."

Zhai Yan's body trembled violently, and he kowtowed quickly, saying, "Your Majesty, please understand! I dare not deceive you. Huang Zongguan was indeed the one who bumped into my sword!"

At this moment, Li Lin, who was standing beside Li Che, shouted sternly: "Now you admit that it's your knife?!"

This shout was like thunder exploding in Zhai Yan's ears.

"I...I..." Zhai Yan's body softened and she almost collapsed to the ground.

Li Che looked at his miserable appearance, a hint of nostalgia flashing in his eyes.

That cowardly eunuch eventually died out of respect for Emperor Qing.

Then, his gaze turned cold and hard again: "Tell me, why did you enter the palace with a knife? And why did you let the chief steward who served the late emperor for decades crash into your knife and die?!"

Zhai Yan hesitated, and the cold sweat on his forehead gathered into drops of water and dripped onto the ground.

He racked his brains but could not find any reason to justify himself.

He finally understood what Li Che meant. He had committed an unforgivable crime the moment he forced the emperor to abdicate. How could he be forgiven just because he surrendered?

No emperor could tolerate a general who had led troops into the palace.

"Zhai Yan, I really can't understand why you surrendered today." Li Che's tone suddenly softened. "You are not naive enough to think that I will let you, a traitor who participated in the palace coup, go free?"

He glanced at the kneeling Southern Army generals behind Zhai Yan and spoke in a slightly slower tone, "The other soldiers who were bewitched by you might be given a lighter sentence, or even acquitted, considering that they were soldiers who obeyed orders."

His gaze finally settled on Zhai Yan, and his voice suddenly turned harsh: "And you... Zhai Yan! You are the culprit of rebellion! The root of rebellion! The main culprit that caused the division of the country!"

"How can I tolerate you?!"

The last sentence, like the sound of a gavel of final judgment, completely extinguished Zhai Yan's hope of survival.

He felt his eyes go dark, all the strength in his body was drained away, he could no longer hold on, and he collapsed to the ground.

It was like a stray dog ​​that had been ruthlessly abandoned by its owner, with even its dog bowl taken away, unable to even utter a last whine.

Li Che didn't even look at him anymore and lightly squeezed the horse's belly.

The majestic Heifeng under his crotch understood, and stepped forward calmly, surrounded by a group of Fengtian Army generals, and stepped into the already opened Qingliu Pass.

The wheel of history will eventually crush the losers and move forward.

When Li Che and most of the generals entered the pass, only Wang Sanchun was left at the scene.

Wang Sanchun sneered, slowly drew out the blood-stained sword from his waist, and was about to chop down the neck of Zhai Yan who was slumped on the ground.

"Wait a minute."

A voice stopped him. It was Li Lin who had returned.

Zhai Yan had already closed his eyes, waiting to die, but when he heard the word "wait", the fire of hope in his heart flickered faintly again.

He suddenly opened his eyes and looked at Li Lin with pleading eyes.

Yes! I am the commander of the Southern Army. I am still useful! I can still survive!

Li Lin looked at Zhai Yan coldly as if he had seen a pile of disgusting filth.

"Don't kill him yet. I will personally take him to my father's tomb and use this traitor's blood to sacrifice to Huang Daban's spirit in heaven!"

. . . . . .

That night, Li Che, surrounded by his generals, climbed up the city wall and looked at the wilderness in the distance.

"Mr. Xue," Li Che called over Xue Zhen. "What do you think of Qingliu Pass? How does it compare to Shanhaiguan?"

Xue Zhen thought for a moment and said, "Qingliu Pass is a dangerous mountain pass, nestled in a mountain gorge with narrow roads. It is indeed easy to defend but difficult to attack."

"However, its defense relies heavily on the natural obstacles of the terrain. Once the front line is breached, the entire defense line will easily collapse."

"On the other hand, Shanhaiguan, with its back to the mountains and its front to the sea, is tall and fortified. It has a moat, a barbican, and a rampart in front, and a citadel in the rear for support. On the ridges of the Great Wall on both sides are enemy towers and beacon towers, forming a crossfire network."

"I think Shanhaiguan is more difficult to capture."

Li Che nodded slightly. Xue Zhen did have some strategic vision.

Shanhaiguan had never been breached by external forces through direct military attack for nearly three hundred years before the fall of the Ming Dynasty.

Neither the Mongolian cavalry nor the Later Jin army was able to capture Shanhaiguan in a field battle.

Although it was eventually lost, the defending general Wu Sangui took the initiative to open the gate and surrender to the Qing army, which also proved from the opposite side that it was difficult to conquer. Even Li Zicheng and the Qing army were unwilling to confront it head-on, and finally resolved it politically.

On the other hand, Qingliu Pass, although dangerous, is not insurmountable. It has been breached many times in history, and has been breached almost every time there has been a change of regime.

Li Che couldn't help but sigh, "This shows that no matter how high or strong the city walls are, they are far less cost-effective than developing technology."

Upon hearing this, all the generals showed expressions of approval.

If someone had told them a few years ago that building a city wall was useless, they would have scoffed.

But since the Fengtian Army embarked on the path of using firearms, vivid examples have been presented before our eyes.

Those city walls that took years to build and even generations to reinforce were no match for artillery.

Everyone is equal in the face of firepower.

A person who thinks that there will be eternal peace and security by hiding behind the city walls is as ridiculous as his city walls.

Li Che smiled, did not continue the conversation on this topic, and turned to look to the south.

"I wonder what those people behind the walls of the imperial capital are thinking right now?"

Qingliu Pass is only two hundred miles away from the imperial capital.