The Return of the King: A Generation of Prodigies

Since Fourth Master Qian has been arrested, Shen Tingzhi has nothing to worry about.

He ordered people to lock up Mr. Qian Si and Taoist Ji Yue in a yard and keep them under strict watch.

After that, he prepared to mobilize troops to go out and subdue those private soldiers in the barren mountains.

It had been a long time since he had fought a battle, and Shen Tingzhi was feeling a little excited.

Yu Sheng had also found evidence of collusion between the Qian family and the Western Rong people, so Shen Tingzhi handed over the affairs of Pingzhou to him.

"Master, you should find someone else to take care of Pingzhou's affairs. I am the captain of your personal guard and I cannot leave you."

Yu Sheng expressed his dissatisfaction with Shen Tingzhi's arrangement.

As the captain of Shen Tingzhi's personal guard, he should be with Shen Tingzhi all the time, especially in dangerous times like now.

Yu Sheng’s greatest responsibility is to help Shen Tingzhi avoid danger and protect Shen Tingzhi’s safety.

Shen Tingzhi glanced at someone who was dissatisfied with his arrangement and said disdainfully, "You've been away from me for a long time, so why are you saying this now?"

Yu Sheng lowered her head guiltily and said, "The current situation is different from usual. Now you are going to quell the rebellion, and I want to follow you and serve as your vanguard."

Shen Tingzhi rolled his eyes and said to Yu Sheng, "Do I still need you to lead the charge and be my vanguard?"

"General Tong alone is enough to give me a headache, and now General Chu has come along. If you get involved, I'm afraid my headache will never go away."

Shen Tingzhi is really having a headache now. If he wants to attack those people on the barren mountain, Tong Tai must go with him.

If Tong Tai wasn't allowed to go with them, he would probably make such a fuss that he would poke a hole in the sky.

Now there is another Chu Yan. When he came, he said that he came on the orders of his sister, the current queen.

What were they here for? To help him put down the rebellion, of course.

Although the Shen and Chu families are not from the same family, they are both under the jurisdiction of the Marquis of Zhenbei and are Yun Li's army.

If you are too clear about the differences at this time, it will damage the harmony, which is not good.

Although he didn't know why Shen Tianjiao asked Chu Yan to come to Pingzhou, since he was here, Shen Tingzhi couldn't ignore Chu Yan for Shen Tianjiao's sake.

Otherwise, it would be equivalent to losing face for Shen Tianjiao, which would not benefit anyone.

What is giving Shen Tingzhi a headache now is that Tong Tai has a hot temper and refuses to admit defeat, and Chu Yan is no exception. They are the same, and neither of them is better than the other.

Before they even started to go to the barren mountain, the two of them had already started arguing. The reason for the argument was very simple: who would take the lead.

If only Tong Tai was there, Shen Tingzhi could still handle it, but now with Chu Yan coming, things have become difficult.

When two old men with hot tempers get together, the situation is really not something that ordinary people can handle.

"Are you really going to take General Chu with you this time?"

Although Yu Sheng was not very familiar with Chu Yan, he had heard a lot about the deeds of this great General Chu.

Although General Chu was a rough man, he was a fierce general who fought bravely and was as brave as any general under the Marquis.

It's just that he has a very hot temper, the kind of person who will start fighting if he gets angry and disagrees with someone.

Tong Tai also happened to have a hot temper, but because he was under the supervision of the Marquis, he did not dare to be too arrogant on weekdays.

As long as you don't lose your temper, you can still be a normal and low-key person. But if you lose your temper, to put it bluntly, you are no longer a human being.

When these two people collide with each other, you can imagine what will happen. No wonder his master has a headache. Except for their marquis, anyone else would have a headache.

"I'd like to not bring him, but is it possible?" Shen Tingzhi shook his head helplessly, sighed and said, "He came here on the Queen's orders. If I offend him now, wouldn't that be like slapping Jiaojiao in the face?"

"The eldest lady asked him to come. Could there be some misunderstanding here?"

His eldest daughter is not such an unreliable person. Yu Sheng seriously suspects that there is a lot of water mixed in these words.

"You think I don't know." Yu Sheng and Yu Sheng could tell something was wrong, so how could Shen Tingzhi not know?

But even if he knew everything, it wouldn't change anything.

"So it seems that General Chu is not as bad-tempered and brainless as the rumors say."

"He's quite scheming. I just don't know why he has to get involved in this matter."

As the captain of the personal guard who protects Shen Tingzhi's safety, Yu Sheng is born with keen observation skills and alertness to dangerous things.

"I don't know what his purpose is yet, but he probably doesn't have any bad intentions."

Although Shen Tingzhi and Chu Yan did not have much interaction, they had fought against enemies together after all, so Shen Tingzhi had some understanding of Chu Yan's character.

"Okay, let's not talk about this anymore." There will always be a way when you reach the mountain, and there will always be a way when you reach the bridge.

Shen Tingzhi was not in the mood to discuss these troublesome things anymore. He had more important things to tell Yu Sheng.

"There's no room for negotiation this time. You must stay and take charge of Pingzhou temporarily."

"Although we have taken over Pingzhou now, the Qian family has been operating in Pingzhou for several generations and has a very deep foundation. If there is no capable person to suppress them, I am afraid they will rebel again."

The Qian family has lived in Pingzhou for generations, and their people are everywhere in Pingzhou. Those in the open can be arrested, but what about those unknown people in the dark?

"There are more important things for you to do if you stay here. Investigate the Qian family's dark web as quickly as possible and eliminate all those people hiding in the dark."

"Now that we have taken Pingzhou, we must not allow any unrest to occur there. Otherwise, it will lead to a situation where people suffer and their livelihoods are in utter misery."

"Then everything we did before was all in vain."

What Shen Tingzhi is most worried about now is that those people in the Qian family who are hiding in the dark will take the opportunity to cause trouble, causing Pingzhou, which has finally calmed down, to fall into chaos and panic again.

"I understand." Yu Sheng was not someone who couldn't tell the difference between the important and the unimportant. Since he was more needed here, he would just stay here obediently.

Anyway, with Tong Tai and Chu Yan here, they will never let anything happen to Shen Tingzhi.

Even if the two of them can't take care of it, there are still those personal guards. In a word, as long as he doesn't follow Shen Tingzhi, Shen Tingzhi will be safe.

"Gan Jiu is a useful person. You just need to grasp the right degree."

"You can tell him that no matter what he did in the past, as long as he promises to mend his ways and never do it again, then all his past deeds will be written off and I won't pursue them."

When these words came out of Yu Sheng's mouth and were spoken to Gan Jiu, they had a different meaning.

Yu Sheng is someone close to Shen Tingzhi. When he told Gan Jiu these words, it was equivalent to Shen Tingzhi telling Gan Jiu in person.

In this way, Gan Jiu received a clear and concrete guarantee, and could help Shen Tingzhi without any worries.

"Yeah, I understand." As for how to manipulate people's hearts, Yu Sheng had been with Shen Tingzhi for a long time, so she had naturally learned a little bit. Although she couldn't do it as easily as Shen Tingzhi, she had no pressure at all.

"Also, there's something wrong with Jiyue, the boy you brought back. He needs a thorough investigation."

Shen Tingzhi has always been very good at judging people. He went to meet Ji Yue. Although he didn't know this person's background, he just felt that something was wrong.

"Yes." Even if Shen Tingzhi didn't explain the matter of Ji Yue, Yu Sheng would still investigate it.

"By the way, let's obey orders and go back. The situation in Shangjing is complicated. It would be more reassuring if we had more people around Jiaojiao."

Shen Tingzhi himself didn't care about exposing the Qian family's secrets, but he was worried about Shen Tianjiao.

He was afraid that the Qian family’s forces in Shangjing City would unite at this time and make things difficult for Shen Tianjiao.

With Fengming around, Shen Tingzhi has fewer worries.

"I've already arranged for them to go back early this morning. The report should have been presented to the young lady by now. If this matter gets out of hand, the capital will be in an uproar."

"The young lady doesn't have many people around her who can help her. Fengming's fighting ability is quite good. With them around, the safety of the young lady, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and the princess will definitely not be a problem."

Yu Sheng is worthy of being the worm in Shen Tingzhi's stomach. She always thinks the same as Shen Tingzhi and does things to the heart of Shen Tingzhi.

Shen Tingzhi nodded in satisfaction and said, "If there is any news from the capital, no matter how big or small it is, you must send someone to report it immediately."

Shen Tingzhi also knew what kind of person Qian Wanhe was. He was able to stay in the capital for so many years and escaped the fate of being demoted, stripped of his title, and even beheaded many times.

This shows that this person does have this ability, otherwise he would not be so arrogant.

Shen Tingzhi only knew that Qian Wanhe was arrogant, but what he didn't know was that although Qian Wanhe was arrogant, he was indeed a paper tiger with no ability.

The source of his arrogance was nothing more than the support of his uncles who were princes and his mother who was a princess.

If it weren't for these people supporting and indulging Qian Wanhe, he, Qian Wanhe, would actually be nothing.

"I understand." How could Yu Sheng not know Shen Tingzhi's worries? In Shen Tingzhi's heart, the eldest lady occupied a position even greater than that of the marquis.

All the things that needed to be explained had been explained, and Shen Tingzhi was about to lead his troops to set off.

If he could finish the Pingzhou issue as soon as possible, he could return to Shangjing quickly.

He was always worried about Shen Tianjiao when he was not in Beijing to watch over her.

When He Chao brought Wang Zongyuan to the location of the iron mine, Wang Zongyuan was completely stunned.

For no other reason than in just one short night, the soldiers under He Chao dug a deep trench along the entire mountain range.

The scale of this project is simply unimaginable.

"Old He, what are you doing?" Wang Zongyuan pointed at the deep ditch in front of him and asked in confusion.

He Chao looked at Wang Zongyuan's ignorant look, smiled and said, "What else can we do? Of course, we should prepare to set fire to the mountain."

"This mountain warfare is the most difficult to fight, because there are too many trees and weeds on the mountain. If the enemy has an advantage, they can cause us great damage."

"So, unless absolutely necessary, the best approach is not to go up the mountain and fight those people head-on, but to choose the most direct and simple method of setting fire to the mountain."

"By doing so, we can inflict huge casualties on the enemy while ensuring we achieve the greatest victory at the lowest cost."

He Chao's explanation made Wang Zongyuan suddenly enlightened. He had never been afraid of anyone in a war, but when it came to fighting in the mountains, he was indeed not as experienced as He Chao.

"Old buddy, there are many good men from Yunli in this mine. If we just set it on fire and kill them, wouldn't that be a waste?"

"If these people are expanded into the military camp, they will definitely become a powerful source of strength."

"Our eldest daughter is as far-sighted and courageous as the Marquis."

Wang Zongyuan couldn't help but look up and around when he said this. He lowered his voice and continued, "It may not be long before a multinational war breaks out."

"The eldest lady has already instructed me to expand the army. It would be useless if these people died here. It would be better to recruit them."

"These ready-made people can be deployed on the battlefield after a short period of training. They are much more useful than those newly recruited new recruits."

Wang Zongyuan's words made He Chao's eyes sparkle with stars.

"Old Wang, is what you said true?"

He Chao was almost frustrated to death from being a garrison commander these years.

The defending general said it nicely, that he was a military general who was protecting the peace of the area, but in fact, this was a disguised form of detention.

As defenders, let alone going out to fight, they don’t even have the right to leave their territory without permission. At most, they can only wander around the area under their jurisdiction.

Unless they were to be replaced or there was an imperial decree from the emperor, they were not allowed to leave their posts in their entire lives.

If he had a choice, He Chao would rather be an unknown soldier, taking revenge and killing to his heart's content on the battlefield, than be a general.

Now hearing Wang Zongyuan say that a multinational war might break out soon, how could He Chao not be excited?

If what Wang Zongyuan said was true, then He Chao would have to participate in this event no matter what, even if it meant not becoming a general.

"Of course it's true. When has our Lao Wang ever lied to anyone?"

Wang Zongyuan patted his chest loudly. He, Wang Zongyuan, always did things in an open and honest manner and never bothered to use any tricks.

In a word, you can doubt Wang Zongyuan as a person, but you cannot doubt that Wang Zongyuan has any problems with his character.