Sun Yuan didn't show much enthusiasm when he saw Lin Muheng.

He was the oldest in the southwest.

Even if the prince comes, he must obey his orders.

Lin Muheng glanced at his forced smile and knew what he was thinking.

Now is not the time for power struggles. As long as he has the ability to lead troops and win battles, Lin Muheng is willing to listen to him completely.

However, seeing that he had lost two cities in less than a month, Lin Muheng did not think he was a reliable general.

The Sun family had some capable ancestors, but their descendants haven't produced any outstanding individuals.

Fortunately, over the years, Sun Chun, who knew how to use people, has emerged, which is why the region has been able to hold on for so many years in the southwest.

However, Sun Chun's ambition was too great; he thought that with the Empress Dowager's backing, he could enjoy decades of glory, but they hadn't grasped the principle that prosperity inevitably leads to decline. Now, they also hadn't figured out the Emperor's temperament.

Thus, the Sun family, who were always opportunistic, became the first military family to be dealt with by Emperor Rongsheng.

Lin Muheng sighed inwardly, thinking that the Sun family had probably been completely eradicated this time.

The Emperor spared the Sun family a chance because he saw that they could still be used to guard the country's borders. If they were no longer of any use, why would the Emperor keep them around?

Sun Yuan was unaware of this.

Looking at his arrogant demeanor, anyone who didn't know better would think he had won a great victory!

However, before Sun Yuan could show off his power enough to Lin Muheng, an imperial edict arrived in the southwest.

The imperial edict reprimanded Sun Yuan for his dereliction of duty and ordered him to be demoted to centurion, with Lin Muheng taking command of the Southwest Army.

Sun Yuan was stunned; he never expected the emperor to be so decisive and resolute.

Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war; why can't he suffer a defeat?

Lin Muheng looked at Commander Sun and wondered why he didn't know how to be grateful. Given the emperor's temperament, this was an immense favor to him.

It was because the emperor wanted to keep Sun Yuan around to keep him in check.

Otherwise, they would be killed on the battlefield.

For a time, the Sun family army was filled with unease.

If I don't achieve any merit in the war, I wonder if the emperor will hold me accountable later.

Lin Muheng took out the commander's seal and said, "All soldiers, listen to my command! It is not terrible to lose a battle, but to lose the will to win. Today, I hereby guarantee that as long as you bravely go into battle and kill the enemy, all the mistakes you have made before will be wiped clean. Afterwards, rewards will be given according to merit."

The soldiers looked at each other, their faces filled with disbelief.

The generals have all become centurions; won't they face some kind of punishment?

One soldier mustered up the courage to ask, "If we perform meritorious service, will we also receive a reward?"

"Yes, the imperial court will reward merit based on the number of enemy heads taken."

There was a slight commotion in the crowd.

They labeled themselves as part of Sun's army, thinking that having lost two cities, they could only make amends and dared not hope for any reward for their contributions.

Unexpectedly, the Prince of Yu did not treat them differently.

He received the same treatment as the soldiers he brought with him, something not every general could do.

Having witnessed countless instances of factionalism, the military is no exception.

However, with Prince Yu's words, they had no more worries.

When the enemy attacks, no one wants to be defeated.

The problem lies within the Sun family; it's not the soldiers' fault.

With the soldiers relieved of their worries, things were different for the direct descendants of the Sun family.

They were filled with anxiety.

Sun Yuan became a centurion, while they became ordinary soldiers.

They were all meant to fight and charge into battle; if they weren't careful, their heads would become tools for the enemy to use for rewarding their merits.

Sun Yuan was unwilling to accept it, and Sun Chi was even more unwilling.

Before the Prince of Yu arrived, Sun Chi had to listen to Sun Yuan.

He had stopped Sun Yuan from advancing rashly.

Sun Yuan didn't listen.

Now that the city has been lost, Sun Yuan can still be a centurion, while he has become an ordinary soldier.

That's not fair.

Sun Chi completely forgot that he had tried to kill Sun Yuan on the battlefield because he was a direct descendant of the Sun family.

The commander-in-chief was killed by his own men. Isn't that just handing the enemy victory?

Sun Chi didn't care; he was ruthless and determined to kill Sun Yuan by any means necessary.

Lin Muheng could hardly believe that the Sun family had fallen into such a state of disgrace.

To dare to make such a move on the battlefield.

The news Jiang He gathered was even more shocking: "In the Battle of Lufeng Mountain, the Sun family army clashed with the enemy again. Sun Chi seized an opportunity and fired a cold arrow at Sun Yuan amidst the chaos. Sun Yuan was unable to dodge in time and fell to the ground, struck by the arrow."

Taking advantage of the situation, the enemy soldiers shouted that General Sun was dead. This greatly boosted their morale, while many of Sun's troops, seeing General Sun lying on the ground, thought he was truly dead and immediately abandoned their armor and weapons, fleeing in panic.

Lin Muheng angrily ordered, "Bring Sun Chi up here."

I thought it was just infighting, but they actually shot their own people in the back right on the battlefield. This is blatant treason.

Sun Yuan always thought that he was shot by the enemy, but he never expected that Sun Chi wanted to kill him.

Isn't this treating soldiers' lives like dirt and military discipline as a mere formality?

When Sun Chi was brought up, he thought that the Prince of Yu was going to give him an important task.

He is a direct descendant of the Sun family.

Even though he is now just a lowly soldier, he can command a large following.

Prince Yu is not stupid; he should be able to see the situation clearly.

Upon arriving at the makeshift military tent set up by the Prince of Yu, Jiang He couldn't help but kick him, yelling, "Kneel down!"

Sun Chi recognized Jiang He and angrily shouted, "Jiang He, you're asking for it!"

A good-for-nothing playboy, relying on his marriage to Prince Yu, shamelessly came here to gain military merits, and even dared to make a move.

He's tired of living; he's a soldier who risked his life on the frontier.

Sun Chi jumped up, ready to fight Jiang He to the death.

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