"The Envoy of Annihilation..." Zuan recalled the Doomsday Beast he encountered in the demon world, which could destroy the powerful demon world on its own.
The Annihilation God Envoy was of a much higher level and stronger than the Doomsday Beast.
“Indeed, unless they were at the level of divine messengers, those soldiers tainted by the power of annihilation would have no chance of killing Augustus.” Hermes said solemnly.
"What about the other Templars, like Adrian?" Zaun asked again.
"After that great battle, there was no news of him. Although we didn't see his body, battles with the followers of Annihilation often leave no intact corpses, so I guess he's probably dead," Hermes said with displeasure. "I know you two have a grudge. Are you satisfied now?"
Zuan: "..."
He didn't explain, but instead discussed the upcoming situation with the other party: "The imperial reinforcements will arrive soon, we just need to hold on."
“We can hold on, but the Six Elders in Jinzhou on the front line may not be able to.”
"Going to rescue them now will only result in them surrounding the point and attacking the reinforcements again. If we fail to rescue them, it will also cause the entire Guan Ning defense line to collapse."
"I know more about these things than you do. Is this all you've come here to say?"
"By the way, does the Second Elder know Chen Yuanyuan?"
Hermes paused, then looked at him warily: "Why are you asking her?"
Judging from his reaction, he had clearly fallen in love with Chen Yuanyuan, just like in history. He couldn't help but sigh, "Second Elder is popular with countless women in all realms. I never thought he would fall in love with a woman now. I wonder if you could introduce me to him?"
"Hmph, she's in Beijing. You'd better focus your attention on the war here and stop worrying about these trivial matters." Hermes' eyes flashed with disgust, as if he extremely disliked this kind of womanizer.
Zuan wasn't being lecherous; he just had a vague feeling that something was off.
Although Chen Yuanyuan is very famous in history, Hermes has seen all kinds of beauties in the myriad worlds, so why would he be moved by a native beauty from a trial world?
He regretted leaving the capital in such a hurry, without visiting Chen Yuanyuan. Perhaps seeing her would have answered his questions.
...
The two argued for a long time and eventually parted on bad terms. However, Zu'an, holding the imperial edict, kept the garrison at Shanhaiguan and Ningyuan under control, preventing them from easily going out to rescue Jinzhou, lest they be defeated one by one.
Of course, he wasn't idle during this time. Instead, he secretly conducted on-site investigations in various places outside the Great Wall and even launched surprise attacks on some Manchu scout cavalry. He gained a concrete understanding of the combat capabilities of Manchu soldiers at all levels, and his sense of unease grew stronger. These soldiers were even stronger than he had imagined.
Over the next month, reinforcements from the imperial court arrived one after another.
The plea for help from Jinzhou City grew increasingly urgent, and the Second Elder urged them to hurry and rescue the Sixth Elder.
Zu'an remained unmoved, because he could see that this was an upgraded version of the Qing army's strategy of besieging a point and attacking reinforcements.
Given the strength of the Qing army, if they had launched a full-scale attack, Jinzhou City would not have been able to hold out for so long.
But they stubbornly held their ground, which was clearly a deliberate act by the Qing army, so that the Ming side would send the Calabash Brothers to rescue their grandfather one by one.
So he turned the tables and chose to proceed cautiously and steadily, using Ningyuan City as a base to gradually wear down the Qing army, always maintaining logistical distance and avoiding being stretched out of the battle lines.
Thus, they achieved a series of victories, even inflicting a major defeat on the Qing army at Rufeng Mountain.
However, it is still quite a distance from Jinzhou City.
Hermes was very dissatisfied with his tactics. A series of victories made him realize that the Qing army was not so terrible. He suggested that he press his advantage and join forces with the Second Elder's troops in Jinzhou. This would make their forces even stronger and allow them to directly attack the Qing army's main camp in Shengjing.
However, Zu'an refused. He always felt that the victories in this period of time did not reflect the true strength of the Qing army. Moreover, although the Qing army suffered a humiliating defeat in the Battle of Ru-Feng Mountain, it was definitely not fundamentally damaged.
Hermes argued with him several times about this, but Zaun continued with his established strategy.
Not long after, the First Elder sent over the military supervisor Chen Xinjia, clearly because the Second Elder had complained.
Zuan knew that it was Chen Xinjia who had urged the war in history, leading to the disastrous defeat at the Battle of Songjin, so he still refused.
The Grand Elder had no choice but to communicate with him remotely via imperial edict, warning him that there was no point in holding onto the territory, as it would also be a failure for the Order faction. Only by completely eliminating the Qing army could the Order Ceremony be completed and he could leave this world.
Zu'an expressed his concerns and explained the Qing army's tactic of besieging a point and attacking reinforcements, pointing out the dangers of rash advances. He also offered his solution: advance step by step, wearing down the Qing forces and approaching Jinzhou, while Zheng Zhilong's fleet would coordinate an attack from the sea on the Qing rear, ultimately annihilating the main Qing force beneath Jinzhou.
Although this plan is time-consuming and costly, it is safe enough, and the government's finances have now been redesigned by the Chamber of Commerce, which can support this approach.
After a heated discussion, the Grand Elder finally agreed to his plan, but also warned him not to drag it out for too long, because Li Zicheng was making a comeback in the Northwest, and the new financial system of the court might not last long.
Zuan was somewhat puzzled. In this world, Li Zicheng's Dao heart had been shattered by his own attack. How did he manage to make a comeback?
However, the Grand Elder agreed to his plan, and the biggest burden was lifted.
This would avoid the disastrous defeat in history. As long as the strongest Qing army is defeated, it will not be too difficult to return and quell the weaker Li Zicheng.
He continued to wear down the Qing army's strength, and after several months, he finally reached the walls of Jinzhou. Through this period of training, his army became more and more elite, and as the Qing army grew stronger, his own strength also weakened.
The Second Elder went from initially opposing him to later admiring him; he had actually accomplished all of this.
Zu'an clashed with the Qing army several times outside Jinzhou City, and finally, with the cooperation of the Jinzhou garrison, gradually turned the tide and surrounded the enemy.
The Chamber of Commerce and various other forces invited many powerful figures to participate in the Order Ceremony. Now that the overall situation is settled, even if the Qing army has the power of annihilation to help, they cannot turn the tide.
However, Zuan felt uneasy. Everything seemed to be going too smoothly, and he wondered if he had overlooked something.
Just then, a commotion suddenly came from afar. It turned out that a figure was rushing towards them. The soldiers thought it was a Manchu assassin and rushed to intercept him.
The man kept shouting, "I want to see your commander-in-chief! I have important news to report!"
Upon hearing that familiar voice, Zaun was startled; it was Adrian.
He hurriedly ordered the other man to be brought before him. At this moment, Adrian was no longer the glorious son he once was. His clothes were tattered, his body was covered in wounds, and he was barely breathing.
Just as Zaun was about to offer his help, Adrian grabbed his hand tightly: "Sixth Elder Naraku is a traitor!"
It seemed he had been holding his breath for this very moment; after he finished speaking, his eyes dimmed and he breathed his last.
Zu'an felt a chill run down his spine. No wonder Augustus died, no wonder Jinzhou hadn't been captured. What was supposed to be a siege of the Qing army had now turned into his army being sandwiched between the Qing army and Jinzhou!
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