Chapter 464 - 385: Lord of Martial Peace Bai Qi Killed in Action, Prince Zhenbei Xiao Shi Seriously Injured
Chapter 464: Chapter 385: Lord of Martial Peace Bai Qi Killed in Action, Prince Zhenbei Xiao Shi Seriously Injured
The grand army set out.
Xiao Mo and Qin Jingsu led the army toward Quezhou.
Quezhou originally belonged to the Jin Kingdom, but it had been captured by the Qin Kingdom. Since then, the Qin Kingdom had garrisoned a large force there to hold Ghost Gate City, in preparation for the next invasion of Jin.
"Did Father say anything to you before we set out, Brother-in-law?"
Qin Jingsu asked with a smile, riding his horse beside Xiao Mo.
Xiao Mo looked at the Eldest Prince and didn’t hide anything, replying truthfully, "Your Majesty said I am to keep an eye on you, Eldest Brother, to prevent you from getting too impulsive and doing something irrational when facing the Jin Kingdom."
"Hahaha..." Qin Jingsu chuckled. "I do indeed hate the Jin Kingdom, so Father’s concerns aren’t unfounded. But don’t worry, Brother-in-law. Even if I die, I will be the one to bury the Jin Kingdom with my own hands!"
"..." Xiao Mo shook his head and didn’t respond to Qin Jingsu’s declaration. Instead, he stressed, "In the army, my word is final. Eldest Brother, do not defy military orders and put me in a difficult position."
Qin Jingsu nodded. "I know."
"It’s good that you know." Xiao Mo looked into Qin Jingsu’s eyes, sighed, and said in a low voice, "Eldest Brother, Siyao has already lost one brother. If something were to happen to you, what would she do? Please, think about that."
With that said, Xiao Mo spurred his horse and rode ahead.
Behind Xiao Mo, Qin Jingsu lowered his head, gripping the reins tightly. He spoke slowly, as if to himself, "I know..."
...
「Twenty-five days later」
Xiao Mo and Qin Jingsu arrived at Ghost Gate City.
After the army rested for a day, Xiao Mo and Qin Jingsu led their troops to attack the city.
Around this same time, Xiao Shi and Xiahou Nan had also gone to war with the Zhao Kingdom and the Qi Kingdom, respectively.
In terms of grand strategy, the Qin Kingdom needed Xiao Mo to annihilate the Jin Kingdom, allowing Xiao Shi to gain an advantage against the Zhao Kingdom.
As for Xiahou Nan, he only needed to halt the advance of the Qi Kingdom’s army. His job was to delay them for as long as possible.
Meanwhile, the three kingdoms of Qi, Zhao, and Jin had their own plan: the Jin Kingdom would tie down Xiao Mo’s grand army, while the Qi and Zhao Kingdoms would press their advantage, seize territory, and perhaps even invade the Qin Kingdom itself.
The Qi Kingdom’s forces were commanded by Gu Fei.
Gu Fei was a veteran general who had served three sovereigns, a Jade Realm Cultivator of the Military School. His command style was exceptionally fierce; he had once conquered ten cities in the span of three months!
In several thousand years, only two people had accomplished this feat. The other was Xiao Mo.
But as Gu Fei discovered, Xiahou Nan was truly a master of defensive warfare.
Xiahou Nan knew every section of Phoenix City’s walls like the back of his hand and always planned ahead, leaving Gu Fei almost no openings.
Phoenix City had been one of the Chu Kingdom’s most fortified citadels, like a tortoise shell.
And not only did Xiahou Nan retreat into this tortoise shell and refuse to come out...
...he even sealed up all the cracks with stones!
Gu Fei tried shouting insults from below the city walls, doing everything he could to infuriate Xiahou Nan.
In response, Xiahou Nan sent back a letter: "Your provocations lack any real bite. In the past, the Frost King tore up my family registry in a fit of thunderous rage and even sent an envoy to present me with women’s clothing. Now *that* was a truly soul-crushing insult."
In plain terms, it meant: "Your taunts have no sting at all. They’re nothing compared to when the Frost King sent my family tree to the heavens and then sent an envoy to give me women’s clothes. *That’s* what you call a soul-crushing insult."
Upon receiving Xiahou Nan’s reply, Gu Fei was so enraged that he pointed at the letter and roared with laughter. "If General Xiahou has such... predilections, then we shall indulge him."
The Qi Kingdom’s commander, Gu Fei, sent an envoy to present Xiahou Nan with a set of Qi-style women’s skirts, along with a note: "I hear you are quite fond of women’s attire. Today, I have specially sent this according to your tastes. I hope you won’t find it wanting."
Xiahou Nan simply smiled and had the envoy take a message back: "Tomorrow, at the *chen* hour, tell your General to come to the city walls. I have a gift for him in return."
The next day at the *chen* hour, Gu Fei actually did lead his army to the base of the city walls.
There, he saw Xiahou Nan, dressed in the skirts Gu Fei had sent, performing a sword dance atop the ramparts.
The sight of his big, hairy legs under the skirt was quite jarring.
The entire Qi army frowned at the spectacle.
’This man’s temperament is truly as the rumors say.’
From that moment on, Gu Fei knew that no amount of taunting would ever work.
As for trying to persuade him to surrender, he had already tried that long ago.
Only by the blade could the gates of Phoenix City be pried open!
「Eighty-seven days later」
After a relentless and costly assault by Gu Fei, the walls of Phoenix City were finally breached.
But his joy was short-lived.
Because by the time his army entered the city, Xiahou Nan had already fallen back to Luoyun City and established a second line of defense.
Xiahou Nan hadn’t even considered making a final, desperate charge!
Gu Fei now understood completely. Xiahou Nan was using the Chu Region to delay him. He didn’t care if the entire Chu Region fell.
Because as long as the Qin Kingdom could crush either the Jin or Zhao Kingdom and free up an army on one front, the Qi Kingdom would be forced to spit out every inch of territory it had swallowed, no matter how much it had gained.
In contrast to Xiahou Nan’s stalwart defense, Xiao Shi and Bai Qi had invaded the Zhao Kingdom!
The Zhao Kingdom had appointed Pang Nuan as their commander-in-chief to face Xiao Shi.
As a famous general of the Zhao Kingdom, Pang Nuan was cautious in his troop deployment and impartial in enforcing discipline. He was adept at analyzing the minds of enemy generals, and his strategies were no less brilliant than those of Xiao Shi or Bai Qi.
Unfortunately for him, the combat strength of the Qin Kingdom’s army of tigers and wolves was ultimately superior to that of the Zhao Kingdom’s.
Although Xiao Shi and Bai Qi’s conquest was not swift, they were still making steady progress.
On the other front, Xiao Mo and the Eldest Prince led their troops into the Jin Kingdom, and it truly felt as if they were marching through an unguarded land.
The Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry shattered one Jin city and pass after another.
The soldiers fought with a burning rage, especially since the Second Prince had died at the hands of the Jin.
And that’s not to mention that the Jin generals were facing the Frost King of Qin.
In their eyes, the Frost King was even more terrifying than his father, Prince Zhenbei.
After all, Prince Zhenbei had seen both victory and defeat in his lifetime of leading armies; he had simply won more than he lost.
But this Frost King was far too legendary!
Since he first took command, he had annihilated the Wei Kingdom, forced the surrender of Xiahou Nan, killed the Great Pillar of the Country of Wei, broken the Wei Capital, and then destroyed the Chu Kingdom—all without a single defeat in his life!
This made them question themselves: ’Can I really be the one to break his undefeated streak?’
It was precisely because of Xiao Mo’s undefeated record that his soldiers revered him with an almost religious faith!
It was as if so long as they followed the Frost King, they could not possibly lose!
Eight months passed. Xiao Mo had led his grand army deep into the Jin Kingdom’s Yuzhou Province.
At the heart of Yuzhou lay the capital of the Jin Kingdom.
According to the calculations of Xiao Mo and the Eldest Prince, they would need seven months at most to capture the Jin capital and annihilate the Jin Kingdom.
And once the Jin Kingdom was destroyed...
Xiao Mo and the Eldest Prince could each lead an army to strike at the flanks of the Qi and Zhao Kingdoms from the east and west.
In that scenario, Xiahou Nan, who had been holding the line, could seize the opportunity to switch from defense to offense, while the army of Xiao Shi and Bai Qi could coordinate with them.
The simultaneous annihilation of the Qi and Zhao Kingdoms would be within their grasp!
But just as Xiao Mo and the Eldest Prince were steadily advancing toward their envisioned grand victory...
...news arrived from the Zhao front that neither of them could believe—
"Lord of Martial Peace Bai Qi has been killed in battle.
Prince Zhenbei Xiao Shi is gravely wounded.
The Qin army has suffered a major defeat!"