Zhou Nuo also looked at Niu Chengwu's wounds and said, "His body is covered in holes, it's quite frightening!"
Zhou Chuan asked doubtfully, "Are there bandits too?"
Zhao Wu said, "It's hard to say. They could be mountain bandits or sea pirates. You didn't see how scared he was just now, saying he saw a ghost... Hmm? Could it really be a ghost?!"
Zhao Cheng patted Zhao Wu's head as usual and said, "I hate this kind of superstition! Whether they are mountain bandits or sea pirates, if they can turn the Seven Generals of Yangmen into this state, then their strength level is about the same as ours."
"I now seriously suspect that the Southern Zhou army brought all seven generals of Yangmen with them."
“I suspect that when Commander Xiao was exchanging women and children with the Southern Zhou army that night, there was more than one of the Seven Generals of Yangmen sneaking up the mountain.”
"Another possibility is that they were tricked by the group of people on the mountain!"
Xiao Luomu said with lingering fear, "Then aren't we caught in the middle?"
Zhao Cheng said, "You could say that."
Xiao Luofeng looked at Yang Taozhi and Zhou Chuan and asked, "Did you find anything while hunting?"
Zhou Chuan shook his head and said, "No."
Yang Taozhi turned and walked towards the camp, saying, "This group of people attacked the Seven Generals of Yangmen, but didn't bother us. They must be from Jing. Since they are hiding in the shadows and don't want to show themselves, we don't need to be too nervous. Maintaining the current balance won't do us any harm."
Yang Taozhi's words clearly indicate that she no longer wants to discuss the matter.
Yang Taozhi lifted the tent flap and said before going in, "Zhao Wu, hurry up and roast the food, I'm hungry."
"Here's some roasted!" Zhao Wu quickly handed the roasted rabbit to Yang Taozhi.
“This is mine…” Xiao Luomu looked at Zhao Wu expectantly, but was interrupted by Zhao Cheng before he could finish speaking.
Zhao Cheng said, "Shut up if you don't want to die."
“I said this is my wine.” Xiao Luomu quickly picked up a bottle of wine and handed it to Yang Taozhi.
"Hey! You all have a strong will to survive!" Zhao Cheng rolled her eyes at Xiao Luomu.
...
"Damn it!! Is there a ghost in Lingshan?!"
Yang Qingzhi was no longer as refined as before. He directly overturned a broken table in the room, which frightened the tabby cat so much that it quickly jumped onto the roof beam.
Only Bao Sheng and Zhu Weijiang stood in the room.
Seeing these two alone, even Yang Qingzhi, with all his composure, couldn't hold back any longer and burst out cursing, "The mighty Seven Generals of the Yang Clan, now only the two of you are left! Is the enemy too strong, or are you too weak?!"
"We've paid such a high price; even if our plan succeeds, it will be a Pyrrhic victory!"
"What's the point?"
Zhu Weijiang glanced at Bao Sheng and saw that Bao Sheng was squinting and looked like he was about to fall asleep, obviously not wanting to respond when Yang Qingzhi was in a bad mood.
Unlike Bao Sheng, he wasn't as patient and retorted, "Young Commander, you mustn't lose your composure. Precisely because we've paid such a high price, the plan must succeed!"
"We lost five generals just by capturing Zhao Cheng, and the worst part is we haven't even caught him yet!"
"Aren't you ashamed??"
Yang Qing angrily slammed his fist on the wall, shouting, "Niu Chengwen and Niu Chengwu, those two idiots! They said it was just reconnaissance! Reconnaissance!! They're asking for it!!!"
"Things have developed to this point, and it concerns the Grand Commander's reputation. The Grand Commander's reputation is the dignity of Southern Zhou! Junior Commander, whether or not Zhao Cheng is arrested is no longer important; we must use swift and decisive measures to salvage our dignity!"
"Then General Zhu, tell me, what kind of swift and decisive measures should be used?"
"Fire attack!"
Zhu Weijiang coldly shouted, "Let's set fire to show the might of my Southern Zhou!"
"No."
Just as Zhu Weijiang was about to speak, Bao Sheng, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up: "I do not agree with fire attack."
Zhu Weijiang glared at Bao Sheng and shouted, "General Bao!"
"General Zhu, there's no need to rush."
Bao Sheng took two steps forward, facing Yang Qingzhi, and said, "Of the seven generals of Yangmen, five have already been lost. The unfinished mission is to capture Zhao Cheng alive. Setting fire to the mountain could indeed wipe them all out, but in terms of the mission itself, it would still be a failure. Therefore, a fire attack is a compromise, an acceptance of defeat, and it will not enhance our army's prestige."
Upon hearing this, Yang Qingzhi nodded, quickly calmed down, and said, "A fire attack is definitely not an option."
"Dignity is important, but planning is even more important."
"If this fire starts, we will be completely exposed and will have no choice but to go home."
Bao Sheng quickly clasped his hands in greeting and said, "Young Commander, your thoughts are far more profound!"
Having said all that, Zhu Weijiang realized he was in the wrong and stopped arguing.
He asked, "Then what should we do?"
"General Zhu, I think you are right to suggest using swift and decisive measures."
Yang Qingzhi stepped forward, walked to the door, looked outside and said, "I was too gentle before. Being in enemy territory, I only cared about keeping a low profile and was too timid. I have an unshirkable responsibility for the sacrifice of the five generals. Regardless of the success or failure of this plan to raid the thirteen cities of Jingdong, I will apologize to His Majesty when I return."
"That's something for when we get back, but right now..."
We must not repeat the same mistakes.
As he spoke, Yang Qingzhi put his hands behind his back and clenched his fists.
"How can our two thousand elite Southern Zhou soldiers be intimidated by a hundred men on the mountain?"
"Tomorrow at dawn, we'll head up the mountain!"
"All-out attack!!"
...
Qingdong City.
Zhongyashu (Central Office).
Acting Assistant Chen Hai and several colleagues are listening to the work instructions given by the Prefect of Qingdong City.
Just as the city magistrate was speaking with great enthusiasm and spittle flying, a clerk ran to the door and shouted, "Report! The magistrate has news to report!"
Chen Hai glanced at the city prefect, and seeing that he was still not satisfied, he quickly said, "Prefect, shall I go and take a look?"
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