Chapter 224 All's Fair in War
“I didn’t say that. But when you’re out in the field, you may disobey the emperor’s orders. Although the Crimson Xuan Army was brought out by the former Prince Anshun, they now obey my orders, and I would never lead them to do anything that would betray the country,” Leng Tieyi said.
Ceding out cities is tantamount to selling out one's country.
He was a general promoted by the late emperor. In his later years, he did not seek merit but only to avoid mistakes. He absolutely could not do something that would make him a laughingstock and ruin his reputation in his old age.
Before the civil official could argue further, guards rushed in in a panic.
"General, Vice General Lin was killed by the people of Lanyu Kingdom. Of the hundred elite soldiers, only twelve managed to escape."
"What?" Leng Tieyi was startled and pointed to a guard in blood-stained clothes behind him. "Wasn't Vice General Lin supposed to be gathering intelligence? How did he end up in a conflict with the Blue Feather Kingdom?"
The guard who had escaped was still in shock, his lips trembling as he spoke.
"Reporting to the General, last night we discovered that Lan Ying was swaggering out of the Northern Frontier King's camp, carrying the Northern Frontier King's sister, Wen Weizhu, and the two seemed to be very close. Deputy General Lin suspected that the Northern Frontier King had reached an agreement with the Blue Feather Kingdom, so he prepared to capture Lan Ying and bring her back to the camp for interrogation. However, after we caught up with Lan Ying, a large group of Blue Feather Kingdom soldiers suddenly appeared, outnumbering us several times over."
"Deputy General Lin immediately ordered us to retreat, but he was entangled by Lan Ying and eventually died tragically under Lan Ying's blade. Lan Ying was also killed by our soldiers in the chaos."
Upon hearing this, Leng Tieyi was even more astonished, and even the two civil officials widened their eyes.
"You killed Lan Ying? The Lan Ying who was the commander of the Blue Feather Kingdom? They outnumbered you several times over, how could any of you have escaped alive?"
Lan Ying is the most powerful general in Lanyu Kingdom, and his martial arts skills far surpass those of Deputy General Lin.
He was just killed like that? How did the Blue Feather Kingdom manage to leave so many survivors despite their overwhelming numerical advantage?
This seems too unusual.
The guard was also somewhat puzzled, nodding and saying, "It was indeed one of our men who killed him, but the scene was too chaotic at the time. I only saw that the person who did it was wearing the same clothes as us, with long hair covering his face. He was extremely skilled in martial arts, and it was only thanks to him that we were able to escape. But later, when we reached a safe place, we couldn't find him. We don't know if he was injured and fell behind, or if he was killed by the people of Lanyu Kingdom while covering us."
The civil official stroked his beard and sighed deeply.
"There are such powerful people in the military camp? The Crimson Profound Army is truly full of hidden talents. But the Emperor has just ordered us to negotiate with the Blue Feather Kingdom to jointly deal with the Northern Frontier King. Now this has suddenly happened. What should we do?"
"What should we do? The Blue Feather Kingdom has wounded over a hundred of my elite soldiers and killed my deputy general. Should I be expected to humble myself and apologize to them, and then hand over the city of the Golden Moon Kingdom with both hands?"
Leng Tieyi frowned and said coldly, "Whether or not to attack the Tiger Soaring Army of the Northern Frontier King is something I need to consider further. However, the Blue Feather Kingdom has always been too arrogant. Now that their commander has died, they will not let this go easily. If our army is not prepared, we will be at their mercy!"
Leng Tieyi's words hit the nail on the head.
Now it's no longer a matter of them wanting to negotiate. With Lan Ying dead, the anger of the Lan Yu Kingdom is unimaginable. The relationship between the two armies was already tense, and now that this has happened, it has reached the point of being on the verge of war.
The civil official knew that Leng Tieyi was right; if Lanyu Kingdom wanted to fight, they couldn't just surrender.
But the Emperor only cares about the results, not the process. If he knew they had disobeyed the imperial decree, he certainly wouldn't let their relatives who remained in the capital off the hook.
Moreover...
The civil official said worriedly, "But if we fight against the Blue Feather Kingdom, it will inevitably be a fierce battle. What if the King of the Northern Frontier takes advantage of the situation and attacks?"
Leng Tieyi gave a bitter smile. "I don't know what to do either. Now, I can only fight with all my might against the Blue Feather Kingdom. As for the King of the Northern Frontier, I can only pray to God that he will be a man who does not kill indiscriminately, who remembers old friendships, and who considers the overall situation."
The timing of Lan Ying's sudden escape from the Northern Frontier King's camp last night, as well as the appearance of the Blue Feather Kingdom's soldiers, were suspicious. Leng Tieyi had already guessed that the Northern Frontier King was very likely behind it all, and even the death of Deputy General Lin was related to this person.
Even a veteran like him had to admire the Northern Frontier King; he was indeed quite capable.
All's fair in war.
Regardless of whether the Northern Frontier King was responsible, the Crimson Profound Army and the Blue Feather Kingdom now have an irreconcilable hatred, and a major war is inevitable.
As for whether the King of Northern Frontier would take advantage of his predicament, he could only gamble.
The emperor, driven by personal grudges, disregarded the lives of soldiers and civilians. He gambled that the King of the Northern Frontier might have more compassion than the emperor.
He understands the cruelty of war and, considering that most of the soldiers in the Crimson Army were once under his father's command, he shows them some leniency.
Leng Tieyi was right. When the soldiers of Lanyu Kingdom carried Lan Ying's body back, the entire Lanyu Kingdom military camp was filled with righteous indignation.
Before they went to pick up Lan Ying, the military camp suddenly received a letter saying that Lan Ying would be released back to camp that night and that they should send someone to pick her up.
They were skeptical, but led over a thousand men to pick him up. They did manage to get him, but they watched helplessly as Lan Ying was killed before their eyes, leaving them with only his body to return.
They saw that the person who killed Lan Ying was the deputy general of General Leng of Jin Yue Kingdom. Everyone suspected that Lan Ying must have been discovered by the enemy when he returned, which led to his death.
Although they harbored some resentment towards the King of the Northern Frontier for failing to fulfill their duty of protection, what they hated most was naturally the person who killed their general.
After Lan Ying's death, the Lan Yu Kingdom's military camp was not leaderless.
Lan Ying was the commander-in-chief, and there was also a sixth prince who originally assisted Lan Ying in handling the peace talks between the two countries. After Lan Ying was captured by Wen Zhiming, everyone in the military camp had been obeying him.
The sixth prince did not have much combat experience, but he had studied formations diligently since childhood. The emperor of Lanyu Kingdom had always doted on this son of his favorite concubine and had always wanted to make him the crown prince.
However, the sixth prince was neither the eldest son nor the legitimate heir, and therefore could not win the support of the people.
The emperor then ordered him to accompany Lan Ying to handle the peace negotiations. After the matter was accomplished, rewards would be given according to merit, which would allow the ministers to recognize the sixth prince as the crown prince.
The sixth prince had been in the military camp for several months, but the peace talks had not been concluded, and he had long been quite dissatisfied with this.
In his view, signing a peace treaty was not a great achievement; driving the Golden Moon Kingdom's army out of the northern frontier and conquering its cities along the way would be the real feat.
Previously, with Lan Ying's dissuasion, he was able to restrain himself. Now that Lan Ying is dead, he immediately raised his arm and led an army of 100,000 men to march towards General Leng's camp.
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