The World Shocked 135. Xinyang Conquered

Xinyang City

On the city wall, Leng Qingyu looked at the banners rolling in the distance with a gloomy face. Xinyang has been surrounded by the army for more than ten days. If it cannot be relieved, it will soon collapse from the inside even if it is not broken by the Xiling army. In addition, most of the troops that just arrived at the border were injured as soon as they arrived at the border, and the deputy general, the son of Nanhou, disappeared on the battlefield, which made the soldiers defending the city even more demoralized. If the defenders of Xinyang City had not died, and there was no one to take charge of the overall situation in Xinyang, it would still be unknown whether he could still stand on the city wall now.

"General Leng, when will the troops from the court arrive?" A general with a tired face came in a hurry and asked Leng Qingyu rudely. Originally, these soldiers were very dissatisfied with this general who was the commander of an army at such a young age. What's more, he was beaten badly by the King of Xiling Zhennan before he arrived, which made everyone look down on him. But he was the son of the general of the state, and the general appointed by the emperor himself. The defender of Xinyang City died in battle, and he was the highest commander of Xinyang. Although everyone was respectful on the surface, no one knew what they were thinking in their hearts. As for those senior generals in Xinyang City, they were too lazy to even do the superficial work. Leng Qingyu's stern face flashed with a trace of rage and anger. He had been smooth sailing since he was a child. With his own ability, he became the commander of the Beijing Yulin Army and one of the best young talents in Chujing. However, he encountered setbacks one after another when he became a career, which made him feel hesitant and suspicious in his originally confident heart.

Frowning, Leng Qingyu said, "The time will come naturally, General, just wait patiently."

The man's face darkened and he said, "I can wait, but Xinyang City can't! General Leng, look at the city below and inside. How many days do you think Xinyang City can hold out?!"

"Shut up!" Leng Qingyu shouted in a deep voice, his eyes shooting at the people in front of him like sharp arrows. He said coldly: "Xinyang City will not be broken!"

The man was startled by his murderous eyes, turned around and snorted, "Since General Leng has such confidence, I will wait and see!" After saying that, he turned around and walked away quickly with a flick of his sleeves. Seeing the other party's eyes walking away without hesitation, Leng Qingyu's eyes became more sinister, but looking back at the dark and endless enemy in the distance, he could only suppress it.

The sound of drums suddenly rang out from under the city walls. Leng Qingyu was startled and looked into the distance. The crowd of people with banners that had been motionless began to move. Taking a deep breath, Leng Qingyu raised his voice and said, "Defend the city!"

On the city walls and below, the two armies once again began a fierce battle. The defenders had already shown obvious signs of fatigue and weakness, which made the soldiers below the city excited and rushed up.

From a tall building somewhere in Xinyang City, a deafening shout of killing could be heard from the direction of the city gate through a slanted window. Inside the window, an ordinary-looking man said in a deep voice, "Xinyang City can no longer be defended. Get ready, we're going to retreat."

Another man frowned and said, "Should we ask the Yuan army to support them from the outside? The princess and the reinforcements are already halfway on the way."

The man shook his head and said, "It's useless. Haven't you noticed that the Xiling army's offensive has been much more fierce in the past two days? I'm afraid that the King of Zhennan will take Xinyang City at all costs. Leng Qingyu can't suppress the soldiers of Xinyang City. Even if General Yuan has been harassing outside for the past few days, it won't stop them for long. It's very likely that General Yuan and his men will be trapped together."

"Okay, send a message immediately to ask the Yuan army to leave the battlefield and return to Jiangxia. You go first, I will stay and deal with the affairs of Xinyang City."

"Okay, be careful."

After seeing off his companions, the man turned around and walked quickly downstairs to the residence of the chief official of Xinyang City.

Xiling Military Camp

King Zhennan sat calmly in a comfortable chair, with one hand supporting his chin, closing his eyes and waiting for news from outside. Today, there will definitely be news of the fall of Xinyang City. Although the boy in Xinyang City has some skills, he is still too young and has no power to turn the tide. When he thought that the countless food, cloth, gold and silver in Xinyang City would become his supplies for the future attack on Da Chu, he felt indescribably happy.

"How is Yuan Pei's preparation going?" Thinking of something, King Zhennan opened his eyes and asked.

The general who was also sitting quietly waiting for news immediately stood up and said, "In compliance with the prince's orders, our army has secretly prepared a way back to Jiangxia. Although we cannot find Yuan Pei's troops for the time being, once Xinyang is captured, he will definitely return to Jiangxia, and we will not worry about not being able to catch him then."

King Zhennan nodded with satisfaction, "Very good."

Outside the tent came the call for troops to be called back. The smile on King Zhennan's face deepened. He stood up and said with a smile, "Xinyang has been conquered!"

All the generals were delighted. "Congratulations, Your Majesty." King Zhennan shook his head and said, "No, congratulations to all of us. With Xinyang, we will be invincible when attacking Da Chu. This time, God really blessed Xiling." All the generals praised in unison, "God bless Xiling."

The hurried footsteps of the messenger soldiers were heard outside the tent, "Your Majesty, Xinyang City has been captured!"

"Very good, where is the boy guarding the city?" asked King Zhennan.

The signalman hesitated for a moment and said, "Xinyang commander Leng Qingyu has not been found."

Upon hearing this, King Zhennan couldn't help but frown and waved his hand, saying, "Go and inquire again. Report back immediately if you have any news."

"yes!"

An hour later, the soldiers who had gone to attack the city had returned to the camp, and the big tent was filled with joy. However, only the King of Zhennan frowned, and his subordinates couldn't help but ask, "My Lord, is there something wrong?" The King of Zhennan shook his head and said, "I don't know, I always feel that something is not right..."

"Your Highness, something terrible has happened!" Someone outside the tent loudly asked for an audience. King Zhennan's heart sank, and he said coldly, "Come in, what happened to Xinyang City?" The man said, "Your Highness, for some reason, less than 20% of the food and grass that should have been in Xinyang City is left!"

"What?!"

Everyone was shocked. "Could it be that the people of Dongchu knew they would lose and moved the food and grass in advance?"

"It's impossible. After Xinyang was surrounded, not even a mosquito could fly out, let alone so much food and grass."

King Zhennan looked gloomy and asked in a deep voice, "What else?"

The soldier looked at the face of the King of Zhennan and said tremblingly: "The treasury of Xinyang City and the cash and banknotes of several banks are all missing. Now the silver that can be taken out in Xinyang City is less than 30% of the original amount."

There was silence in the tent. All the generals looked at the King of Zhennan's expression but no one dared to speak. Xinyang was not the richest city in East Chu, but it was the place with the most military supplies and one of the top five cities in terms of commercial trade, although their trading partner was Xiling. Originally, everyone coveted this city because of the countless food and gold and silver here, but now... there was nothing left.

"Good!" After a long while, the King of Zhennan suddenly sneered, "What a great Dingguo Palace!"

Everyone was stunned, and someone asked suspiciously: "Prince, are you saying it was done by the Dingguo Palace?"

Prince Zhennan laughed and said, "Apart from Prince Dingguo's Palace, who else could hide all the food and grass so quickly and without anyone noticing?"

"But isn't Prince Ding in Beirong?"

"That means there is another expert in Dingguo Palace."

"Your Highness, General Zheng has just ordered a massacre in the city!" a soldier hurried to the door and reported.

"Nonsense!" King Zhennan slammed the table and shouted, "Who gave the order?"

The soldier was frightened by him and said quickly: "General Zheng... General Zheng led his men to take things from a pawnshop and had a conflict with the people in the city, and then... then General Zheng ordered a massacre in the city..."

"Go and pass on my order immediately to stop the massacre! Anyone who dares to disobey will be executed on the spot. Order Zheng Bian to come to see me immediately."

"yes!"

In the big tent, all the soldiers looked at each other in bewilderment. "My Lord, those Dong Chu people can be killed if they are killed. It is a waste of food to keep so many of them alive."

"That's right, Your Majesty. If Xinyang is captured, we won't get anything. Let's just kill all those Dongchu people and teach them a lesson."

"Stupid!" King Zhennan said coldly: "How many people are there in Dongchu? Have you killed them all? Now only the army of Dongchu will resist us. Once the people of Dongchu know about the massacre, all the people will resist us together."

Many people didn't care. "The army of Dongchu couldn't do anything to us, so what use can a few civilians be?"

King Zhennan said in a deep voice: "In short, without my order, you are not allowed to kill the people of Dongchu at will!"

"Your Highness, Yuan Pei has led tens of thousands of Mohist troops to break out and head towards Jiangxia."

Upon hearing this, King Zhennan frowned, "What's going on?"

"The troops sent by the Crown Prince to stop Yuan Pei were ambushed and wiped out. Moreover, Yuan Pei seemed to be very familiar with our army's deployment and terrain. He led his troops in several groups and slipped through the gaps in our army. Although some troops were lost, the main force of the Mohist army did not suffer too much damage."

"Your Highness, I just received news from the Southern Army that the Crown Prince was attacked three days ago and was seriously injured."

King Zhennan stood up suddenly, "How is Tengfeng?"

"The prince is no longer in danger, but his injuries are severe. I'm afraid he won't be able to lead the troops for a while."

King Zhennan lowered his head and pondered for a long time, slowly suppressing the anger in his heart, and waved his hand and said, "I understand, go down first."

The atmosphere in the tent, which was originally full of joy, became depressed because of the continuous news. After a long time, the King of Zhennan laughed softly, "Well, the Dingguo Palace is indeed full of experts. This time, I really didn't win."

"Prince?"

"Forget it. Send someone to tell Teng Feng that I will send someone else to take over the southern army. Let him come to Xinyang as soon as possible." King Zhennan waved his hand and said calmly, "No matter what, Xinyang is ours after all. Let him come and take charge of the situation. I don't believe that the grain and gold and silver can fly away. They must still be in the city!"

"yes."