After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

The chaos in the Daqian army formation was too sudden. Chen Futu raised an eyebrow and looked to the northeast, where he saw a troop of men charging in. The two young generals at the head were Chu Jiang and Cui Zhengyu.

The two men, with more than three thousand cavalry, dared to charge into the enemy lines. Chu Jiang learned the essence of Yue Fei's swift and decisive attack, leading his men straight to the heart of the enemy and storming into the central army.

Upon seeing this, Liu Bainian fled at the first sign of trouble, not daring to fight back.

The defeat was swift and decisive. The Daqian army retreated, but the two young men, having failed to spot Chen Futu, continued their pursuit, capturing countless weapons and warhorses.

"Those two guys certainly know how to find an opportunity."

Now that the Great Qian army had retreated, Chen Futu wasted no more time. He stopped Jialan, who was planning to pursue the remaining troops, and continued his journey north. The young palace master, seeing the defeated Great Qian army, was so angry that he almost cried.

How could the ancient palace have chosen such a useless dynasty to support? Tens of thousands of people! Even if tens of thousands of pigs stood still and let themselves be slaughtered, they wouldn't be able to be killed in a short time!

Galan snorted, "No wonder the master looks down on the Great Qian Dynasty. I see now, the ruler and his ministers are all useless!"

The defeat of the Great Qian Dynasty had a significant negative impact.

Even if it wasn't the Northern Frontier King who sent troops to defeat the northern forces, it would still be great news for the rebel kings in the south of the Great Qian Dynasty. Now the imperial court would have a real headache.

A day later, Chen Futu and his party arrived at the border.

From afar, they saw Qin Liangyu and Chen Yuling leading their troops out of the bridgehead to observe. Upon seeing Chen Futu approaching, Qin Liangyu quickly stepped forward, her elegant face filled with anxiety. "Why did you enter the Northern Mountains again? How many times have I told you? If something happens to you, what will happen to the Northern Frontier?"

"Honey, don't be angry."

Chen Futu scratched his head, grinned, and took her small hand before introducing Diao Chan to her.

Diao Chan immediately lowered her head and greeted her gently, "This concubine greets the Mistress."

Qin Liangyu exclaimed in surprise, "She is indeed as graceful as the rumors say."

"You flatter me, Madam."

Diao Chan knew that the woman before her was of immeasurable nobility, so she adopted a very humble posture.

Qin Liangyu nodded, then looked at the disheveled Jialan.

Galan awkwardly clasped his hands in a fist and said, "I am my master's servant. You are the famous General Qin, truly worthy of the title of Goddess of War."

Who slaughtered the mortal ferry?

Qin Liangyu changed the subject, and Jialan immediately looked away guiltily.

Chen Futu hesitated for a moment, then pulled Qin Liangyu to a secluded place to explain the situation.

Qin Liangyu said bitterly, "So, Your Majesty intends to deceive the people and have someone else take the blame?"

“I gave her the Three Corpse Brain God Pill, and she has to endure the torture of being torn to pieces every month. That young palace master is no good either; using him to take the blame doesn’t mean I’ll let the living off.”

"Now that Your Majesty has made a decision, you must appease the people and ensure that the news does not leak out, otherwise it will damage the hearts of the people."

"Hehe, I'm glad to have your support."

Just as Chen Futu was about to have some more private words with Qin Liangyu, Chen Yuling suddenly came over and said, "Brother, why didn't you take me with you when you went to the Northern Mountains? I want to go out and play too."

"What are you playing at, you brat? What nonsense are you spouting?"

Chen Futu glared at her irritably, then asked Qin Liangyu about Chen Yuling's situation in the military camp during this period.

Qin Liangyu suppressed a laugh and said, "Ling'er is still very well-behaved. I think she has the potential to be a general."

Chen Yuling did not accept a high position from Qin Liangyu because of her status. Instead, she trained with the White Spear Soldiers and started from the bottom. As a result, she gained a lot of prestige in the army, and the soldiers respected her.

In the following days, Chen Futu rested in the barbican. By evening, a battle report came back that Chu and Cui Zhengyu had captured a major town from Liu Bainian, and the morale of the Northern Army of Daqian had plummeted to its lowest point.

They were rebel kings secretly cultivated by Chen Futu, so they don't count as breaking the Xuan Shui Alliance. The only thing to worry about now is that the Ancient Palace is cooperating with the Great Qian Dynasty, and more powerful figures may lead armies on the future battlefield.

After giving Chen Yuling some more instructions, Chen Futu and his group headed to the Red Dust Ferry.

When they arrived, the royal army had already been stationed at the Red Dust Ferry to clean up the mess.

Corpses can still be found among the broken walls and ruins; the once bright and clear sky is now just a charred mess.

Chen Futu looked at Jialan with a gloomy expression, while the latter lowered his head and did not dare to utter a sound.

"My lord, you're finally back."

Dian Wei arrived in a hurry, along with Long Luo and Nannan.

The young girl, upon learning Chen Futu's identity, appeared timid. Coupled with the major upheaval she had suffered, she had lost her previous vigor and spirit, and looked sickly.

"Where is Boss Zhou?" Chen Futu asked bluntly.

"It disappeared and hasn't reappeared since. I've sent many people to look for it, but we haven't found it."

Dian Wei scratched his head somewhat awkwardly, then recounted the casualties: over 380 people were slaughtered, and over a thousand were injured, mostly from burns caused by the fire. The dead were currently being buried in a centralized location north of the ferry crossing.

"Your Majesty, please grant us justice!"

"Your Majesty, waaaaah—"

No one knows who spread the news, but the survivors at the Red Dust Ferry heard that the King had captured the culprit and gathered around, kneeling down and hoping that the King would give them justice.

Even Nannan knelt down with a thud.

Chen Futu sighed inwardly, then pointed to the young master tied to the horse, "This person is the mastermind."

"kill him!"

"kill him!"

Angry shouts echoed through the sky.

Chen Futu had Dian Wei take the bewildered young master away. What awaited him next was the fate of paying for his sins with his life. He had no tongue and was destined to be unable to exonerate himself.

Chen Futu tidied himself up, changed his clothes, and personally presided over the grand ceremony. People from the surrounding villages and towns also came to pay their respects.

Before everyone's eyes, the young master's heart and liver were ripped out, his head was chopped off, and his body was placed before the altar as a sacrifice to the dead.

As Galan looked at the young master's ashen head, for the first time, she felt a sense of fear, despite her high position.

It's estimated that the young master himself never understood until his death that he was the one who was framed. However, his death was not unjust. If he hadn't been used as a scapegoat, he would have been dead days ago. The fact that he lived a few more days was actually a benefit to him.

After the grand ceremony, white mourning clothes fluttered in the air at the Red Dust Ferry, paper money flew in the wind, accompanied by countless cries, creating an indescribable scene of sorrow.

In the afternoon, Chen Futu dismissed everyone except Jialan, and led her through the ruins. Every now and then, they would encounter survivors who had lost their loved ones kneeling and weeping beside the rubble. There were even cases where entire families had been killed, leaving only a single child. Looking at the empty eyes of those children, Chen Futu asked Jialan with a cold smile, "Well, are you satisfied now?"

Galan didn't speak, nor did he dare to look around.

Chen Futu continued, "What kind of beast could wantonly harm the innocent? Is she born without parents, or is she a born evil being?"

"I was just following the orders of the Ancient Temple. To be honest, the crime of murder doesn't fall on my head, because I only fought Lu Bu when I came to the Red Dust Ferry. I didn't kill anyone else." Garan defended himself in a low voice.