Disaster to the country
Wuxia went to Lingnan alone, but Yuan Cheng was nowhere to be seen. Jingwan asked her anxiously, "Why didn't Lord Yuan come with us?"
After a long journey, Wuxia was exhausted, both physically and mentally. Her eyes were lifeless, and her former spirited demeanor was gone. Jingwan held her hand and led her into the mansion, but she did not let go, allowing Jingwan to lead her.
After leaving Pingdu, Yuan Cheng changed his mind and sent Wuxia to Lingnan first.
"Sir, aren't you coming back with me?"
Yuan Cheng shook his head: "I can't let Great Wei be destroyed like this. If the Hu people occupy Pingdu, they can invade Great Wei to the east and south. If we don't seize the opportunity to control them here, Great Wei's country will not be safe."
"The Great Wei has changed. Go back to Lingnan and assist Lu Chang!"
He lifted Ah Xun onto his horse, and before leaving, he asked Wu Xia to pass on a message to Lu Chang: "Just ask him what kind of person he wants to be in the future!"
Wuxia read the words aloud to Lu Chang, one by one, but the man in front of her remained silent.
He was also asked this question:
"In the Northwest, there are many who generously serve their country and many who sacrifice their lives for it. I ask you, what kind of person are you?"
What kind of person is he, and what kind of person does he want to be? In this life, if we set aside the troubles of the world and worldly fame and fortune, we just want to ask ourselves, what kind of person do you want to become after coming to this world?
Before news of the Pingdu incident even arrived, the Li family father and daughter knew the time had come when they saw Yang Nancheng personally leading his Shence Army away from the Northwest.
As soon as Yang Nancheng left, the Northwest Army made a major move. Its already weak forces became even more vulnerable after Yang Nancheng's departure. The border generals were disloyal, and most of the soldiers were not locals. They could not withstand the wind, sand, and cold, and had no fighting spirit. Therefore, when Li Ling led his troops westward, he relieved the Northwest border generals of their command within ten days, and all twelve passes in the Northwest fell into Li Ling's hands.
The vast land of a hundred miles changed hands once again, and Li Ling, from the small town of Runan, became the master of the Northwest.
When news of Pingdu's fall arrived, Qin Ziyou stormed into the commander's tent, slammed his hands heavily on the table in front of Li Ling, and shouted at him in front of everyone, "You did it! You let the barbarians into Pingdu?"
Such insubordination would have been met with execution of anyone else, but the Qin family was still useful. Upon his ascension to the throne, he needed the Prime Minister Qin to personally draft the edict, requiring upright officials like the Qin family to kneel before him before other powerful families would follow suit.
Li Ling did not speak to him, but only ordered his subordinates to invite the princess over.
Changying strode into the military tent. Before she could even catch her breath, she pulled the man out of the tent. The soldier had just reported her arrival when she rushed over, fearing that this fool might offend her father.
After pulling the man away, she flung Qin Ziyou's hand aside and scolded him fiercely, "Are you crazy? If you offend my father, you'll be in big trouble!"
Qin Ziyou finally understood why they had brought the Qin family to Lingnan. The attack on Pingdu had been planned long ago. As soon as Yang Nancheng left with his troops, they took advantage of the lack of troops in the Northwest and occupied this land first.
"Was it the Hu people or your Li family's troops that captured Pingdu?" Qin Ziyou asked her anxiously, gripping Changying's shoulders.
Pingdu, that's the land that nurtured him, his homeland, the capital of the Great Wei Dynasty. There lie his most beautiful memories: the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, the Weaver Girl's Workshop, Gong Shu's home... and the East Bridge Night Market...
Changying felt as if her shoulders were gripped by eagle claws. She forcefully broke free from Qin Ziyou's restraints and shouted angrily at him, "We have them all! All kinds of people! We have Hu people, we have Runan soldiers! What do you want? You want to go back to save them, go back to save the Emperor? Dream on! Let me tell you, Pingdu has already been occupied by us!"
Qin Ziyou was shocked and grieved. He was so stupid that he had not discovered Li Ling's conspiracy and had put Pingdu in such a dangerous place!
When he was young, he learned martial arts and was often beaten by his master until he cried. He remembered that a man should not easily shed tears. But now, he could only shed these useless tears to mourn his homeland.
Li Ling's soldiers were ruthless killers, no different from the Hu people. He had personally witnessed their madness in massacring cities. Regardless of age or gender, all were victims of their blades. They raped, plundered, and committed all sorts of atrocities. That's how Pengcheng was destroyed!
It turns out that Pingdu is the next Pengcheng!
"That's my home...it's my home!"
Li Changying hated his hypocrisy to the extreme. Seeing his grief, she was still not satisfied and mocked him, saying, "So what if it's your home! Since you came to the Northwest, how many homes of Northwesterners have you destroyed?"
Qin Ziyou slowly knelt on the ground, his ten fingers digging into the sand, and he wept silently.
Li Changying sighed deeply, squatted down, and gently stroked his hair with one hand. His voice was extremely gentle, a stark contrast to his previous domineering demeanor: "This is war. Someone always has to die. Don't worry, the entire Qin family went to Runan, and they are all safe and sound."
She wanted to comfort him by assuring him of the Qin family's safety, but little did she know that what weighed heavily on Qin Ziyou's heart was not his own family.
When he first came to the Northwest, he knew Li Ling's intentions: to seize Li Muyun's military power together with Yang Fujin.
Killing Li Muyun was not part of his plan for this trip, but at that time, the die was cast and he had no choice but to act.
He was wrong from the very beginning.
He had always thought it was just a power struggle among court officials, nothing more than an internal strife within the Great Wei Dynasty. He believed that once all parties got what they wanted, the war would end, and he could use his military achievements to break free from the Qin family's control and go find Jingwan with Uncle Gong and his mother.
But now everything has changed. The Great Wei has been established for hundreds of years, and this is the first time that the Hu people have entered the heart of the Central Plains and reached Pingdu. It is unimaginable how they will wreak havoc on the entire Great Wei!
Not only is the Northwest in chaos, but the entire Great Wei is on the verge of chaos!
"Li Changying, have you considered the consequences of leading the Hu people into the capital?" Qin Ziyou was heartbroken. He knelt on the ground, staring blankly at the clear Black River flowing by.
So that's what he was worried about. Li Changying smiled faintly: "They only have Pingdu as their spoils. After they've taken Pingdu, they'll head north and leave the northwest border region, as agreed with my father."
Qin Ziyou laughed, and his laughter grew louder and louder, making Li Changying feel confused. She got angry and said, "What are you laughing at!"
He didn't speak, but even Li Ling in the distant tent could hear his laughter. However, as he laughed, even more tears welled up in his eyes.
Qin Ziyou slowly stood up, ignoring the sounds behind him, and dragged his stiff and heavy legs away.
Soon, Li Changying knew what Qin Ziyou was laughing at.
When Heito's dazzling wealth is displayed before everyone, who still remembers the promise they made!
The Hu people only regretted that they were born in the wrong place. Why did they have to live a miserable life on the cold border and always have to worry about being driven away by the northwestern border army? Why could these people from the Central Plains keep their great wealth, live in warm houses, and eat delicious food?
Their wolfish ambitions were laid bare. When the Runan soldiers who had accompanied them asked the Hu people to raid the city and take the spoils back to the northwest, the Hu people turned their weapons on their own allies.
The wealth of the capital was too tempting. After the Hu people killed the last soldier from Runan, they occupied Pingdu and sent another army to the southeast.
The southeast was very prosperous, the grain capital of the Great Wei, and a famous land of fish and rice. Along the way, the Hu people plundered everywhere. After conquering a city, they massacred the inhabitants and then set it on fire. The roads were filled with smoke and fire, and the people could only flee to Lingnan.
When news of the emperor's death from falling from a building spread throughout the Great Wei, the local troops of each prefecture no longer had any intention of sending troops to Pingdu to quell the external rebellion. What a joke! The emperor is dead, what's the point of saving a dead city?
The states were weak and could only defend themselves. Those that could not even defend themselves had their governors flee first.
Starting from the heart of the Central Plains, the Great Wei was thrown into chaos.
In this chaotic world, a group of refugees suddenly rose up in the south. They gradually grew stronger and fought against the enemy all the way, eventually stopping the Hu people at Yang County and preventing them from moving south.
I heard that the leader of this group of refugees was just a young and handsome scholar who was good at strategy, had the talent to lead troops, and was fair in rewarding people, so the refugees mostly trusted him.
Unfortunately, the Hu cavalry was too powerful, and the common people could not withstand them. The refugee group was scattered, and it is said that even the scholar in blue robes lost his life in the war and was never seen again.
However, the resistance of this army still bought Lu Chang time to lead his troops north. When the army from Lingnan crossed mountains and valleys and entered the Central Plains, the people of Wei, who had suffered from the ravages of the Hu people, finally saw a glimmer of hope for survival.
The Lu family's banner was finally planted on the land of Great Wei again after fifteen years!
The betrayal of the Hu people enraged Li Ling in the Northwest. He originally wanted to repeat the same drama in Pingdu. The Hu people caused chaos in the capital, and he, Li Ling, sent troops to quell the chaos, winning a good reputation in the Great Wei. As a member of the royal family, he had both the bloodline and the reputation to ascend the throne. Who would dare to stop him!
But these barbarian wolves, with their own ambitions, couldn't resist the good things they saw and even dared to go south and cause chaos!
When Li Ling learned that Lu Chang had launched an attack, he set his sights on Lingnan.
He still had 50,000 troops left in Runan. When Lu Chang left Lingnan with his troops, he could send 30,000 troops south to launch a surprise attack. Even if he couldn't swallow up the entire Lingnan region at once, as long as he controlled the passes into Lingnan, he could keep Lu Chang from getting in or out. Just by wearing him down, he could wear Lu Chang down to death.
Unfortunately, he still miscalculated!
When the 50,000 troops from Runan marched south, they were intercepted before they even reached northern Lingnan.
Clad in full armor, Cui Dongchi pointed his sword at the heavens and earth, ordering the Jianchuan army behind him to charge forward.
His Jianchuan soldiers were well-trained and adapted to the current situation. Three months later, Li Ling's 50,000-strong army was defeated and retreated.
Behind Cui Dongchi lay the vast Lingnan region, where 30,000 Jianchuan soldiers followed him.
He gripped his blood-dripping longsword, mounted his steed, and gazed at the majestic Daguan Ridge behind him, lost in deep thought.
Lu Chang is not in Lingnan. If he wanted to, 30,000 Jianchuan troops could step into this land. Jianchuan is in the east and Lingnan is in the west. If he had both places in his hands, he would be the greatest king of the Great Wei.
Not far away lies Daguanling, this ancient mountain range now standing like an old man gazing at him, asking, "Would you like to come over?"
Cui Dongchi smiled faintly, tightened the reins, and his horse trotted up lightly: "Five thousand soldiers will be stationed in Lingnan to guard against enemy attacks. The rest of you—come back to Jianchuan with me!"
The horse galloped westward, getting further and further away from Daguanling. Behind him was a magnificent sunset, and the glow of the clouds reflected on Cui Dongchi's face. The man on horseback thought to himself, "Lu Chang, I can guard Lingnan for you!"
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