Chapter 336: Growing Flowers?

Mount Paektu is covered with snow all year round and is steep and cold.

After crossing this mountain, you will officially enter the territory of Luojiang.

After the Wuyi Blood Guards left with their hands sore from building snowmen all night, the Lion Army stopped and camped at the foot of the mountain.

Three days later, Ye Yan and Buyan, escorting 120,000 war horses and food supplies, finally arrived and joined the army.

The soldiers put on thick winter clothes and armor, picked up their weapons, mounted their horses, and their confidence increased instantly.

At this time, news of a great victory came from the southeast front.

Under the leadership of Yun Zhongjun and Huo Leiting, this group of veterans are old but quite capable.

With one strike, the rebels were beaten so badly that they cried for help and were lost. The united rebel forces broke through the rebels' defense line and wiped out most of the enemies, and seemed to be able to wipe out the rebels in one fell swoop.

This great news was undoubtedly a good way to boost the morale of the army, sweeping away the gloom of months of hardship that had plagued the Lion Army and inspiring the entire army.

Huo Gannian and Yun Chen began to lead the entire army to reorganize and count.

After the army was assembled, a worrying thing arose.

When the Lion Army evacuated to the southeast, some civilians followed the team out.

As they went north, the weather became colder and colder, and the people left one after another.

But there were still dozens of homeless people who followed the Lion Army all the way to Mount Paektu and refused to leave no matter what. Even Yun Chen’s personal persuasion was useless.

Among dozens of common people, there were seven or eight beautiful girls gathered together, among them was Qiangwei, who was in love with Rong Yi.

Yun Chen called Rong Yi to persuade him and gave him the task of persuading the people to leave, so that he would not be depressed all day because of Rong Jiang's affairs and stay in the tent.

Yun Chen pulled Rong Yi up from the couch and told him what had happened. Rong Yi wiped his unshaven face, opened his red and swollen eyes, and asked weakly:

"My lover? Which one?"

Yun Chen almost wanted to twist Rong Yi's head. But seeing that he was still in a bad mood, she held back and cursed:

"That girl who comes to see you every other day! Who the hell are you asking about?!"

Rong Yi was now even more confused: "Jasmine? Canglan? Peony? Azalea? Or who?"

Yun Chen was stunned and said angrily, "It's Qiangwei! I was wondering where all those pretty girls came from! They're all your lovers?? Are you just cultivating flowers here?"

Yun Chen dragged Rong Yi, the promiscuous "scumbag", in front of the girls and was just about to apologize to him as the "scumbag's" direct superior for not governing his subordinates strictly.

Unexpectedly, when the girls saw Rong Yi looking dejected and being pulled by the collar, they immediately surrounded him and asked him about his well-being.

Qiangwei was so distressed that she used a handkerchief to wipe Rong Yi's face, and she almost hugged him in her arms to comfort him.

The girls pushed Yun Chen aside and started talking about Rong Yi:

"Brother Yi, don't be sad. Seeing you like this makes me feel even worse..."

"Quickly bring a blanket and cover Brother Yi with it, so he won't get cold."

"Brother Yi, are you hungry? I'll make you a bowl of sweet soup."

Yun Chen was stunned by this scene.

But seeing that the girls had followed the Lion Army all the way, all of them were dressed neatly and cleanly, and they didn't look like they had suffered any grievances, it was known that Rong Yi usually treated them very well.

Although Rong Yi relies on his handsome appearance to be a playboy, he is definitely not a scoundrel who will not admit his mistakes.

The girls there are all in love with each other, and they break up amicably.

As long as the girl is nice to him for one day, he will spend all his family fortune to treat her well.

When the Lion Army evacuated the southeast, Rong Yi asked the girls one by one, and they all said they were willing to go with him, and only then did he appear in the team.

Yun Chen couldn't help but sigh:

"Luckily this guy is rich, otherwise he really couldn't afford to raise so many 'flowers'."

Let Rong Yi decide where the girls will go. Whether he marries three wives and four concubines or buys a house for the girls to settle down, it is all Rong Yi's private matter.

What about the rest of the people? They all had families, young and old, and they begged Yun Chen to find them jobs in the army.

Yun Chen tried to persuade them for an hour, his throat was hoarse, but no one listened.

Finally, Huo Gannian was alarmed. He stood in front of everyone without saying anything, standing majestically like a solemn Buddha, making everyone fall silent unconsciously.

Except for Yun Chen, everyone - even those who met him for the first time - was afraid of Huo Gannian. This was nothing new.

Huo Gannian took off his water bottle and handed it to Yun Chen to moisten her throat. At the same time, he stuffed a piece of pear candy into her hand to moisten her throat, and then said to the people:

"Everyone, after this mountain lies Luojiang. Everyone knows we are heading north to fight, but we never know what lies ahead."

Yun Chen guessed what Huo Gannian was going to say. She was surprised that he was going to disobey the court's order not to disclose the news, but she did not speak to stop him.

She always believed that Anian was thorough and must have his own considerations.

Huo Gan read the story, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince led an army of 400,000 men to the north to attack Luojiang, but they were completely annihilated. This is the real reason why the Lion Might Army had to abandon the southeast and head north. We didn't tell you before because we were afraid of disturbing the people's hearts. Now that the Lion Might Army has left, your lives are in jeopardy. It will only be more dangerous for you to follow us, so we have to tell you the truth. Please go to the Legal Affairs Officer to collect 80 taels of silver for resettlement and settle down on your own."

When these words fell, the people were shocked.

Some people burst into tears:

"So... so you're not deserters abandoning the Southeast... you... you're heading to that inferno where 400,000 people have already died..."

Carrying the infamy of the entire Southeast and even the world, the Lion Army is actually going to a place more dangerous than the Southeast battlefield.

What awaits them ahead is a mass grave of corpses, a bitterly cold desert, and millions of brave soldiers from Luojiang.

The people left the Lion Army with this truth, and the news quickly spread throughout the land of Nan Kingdom.

People were saddened by the death of 400,000 fellow soldiers, and even more indignant about the injustices the Lion Army suffered when it withdrew from the southeast.

For a time, the entire Southeast felt extremely guilty towards the Lion Army. Those who had insulted the Lion Army as "cowards" and "deserters" regretted their actions and cried bitterly, beating their chests and stamping their feet in regret.

Despite being under the harsh control of the Black Scale Cavalry, a saying quietly emerged in the southeast:

Southeast is filled with deep shame and regret. If the lion's might were to return, the southeast would surely collapse and fall.

If the Lion Army can come back alive, Southeast will swear to follow them until death without any second thoughts to make up for our regret.

Amidst the nation's self-blame and prayers for peace, the Lion Army began its advance towards Mount Paektu.