The female soldier captain casually tossed the empty wine bowl on the ground with a loud clatter.
She clapped her hands in disdain.
"Useless, he passed out after just one bowl of wine."
"Take him away and let him keep Eunuch Wei company."
Two female soldiers stepped forward and dragged the unconscious Eunuch Li away like a sack of potatoes.
…
Meanwhile, at the Peacock Kingdom's camp fifty miles away, the atmosphere was heavy.
Inside the commander's tent, the lights were on.
Tula, the general of the Peacock Kingdom, was staring intently at a charred piece of iron on the table.
It was taken from a soldier's chest.
The piece of iron was small, but its edges were sharp enough to easily cut through the skin, and it had a pungent smell of saltpeter.
"General, we have lost more than three thousand men."
A lieutenant reported in a trembling voice, not daring to even raise his head.
"The opponent only used one volley."
Tula did not speak.
He stretched out his rough fingers and gently touched the piece of metal, feeling a cool sensation on his fingertips.
He couldn't understand it.
How could the State of Yan possess such a thing?
Their Peacock Kingdom had only recently obtained the gunpowder formula from a group of mysterious people.
However, its power is different from the "heavenly thunder" we saw under Liucheng City today.
That's a power that no ordinary person could possess.
"Have you heard anything from the people we sent out?" Tula asked in a hoarse voice.
"Reporting to the general, we have obtained the information."
"The one guarding Liucheng now is Jiang Hongying."
"Who?" Tula turned around abruptly.
The lieutenant trembled in fright.
The piece of iron in Tula's hand fell to the ground.
His face instantly turned ugly.
If I had known this person had such abilities, I should have wiped out all those hundreds of defeated soldiers back then!
Tula was filled with remorse and slammed his fist heavily on the table.
"Pass down the order! The entire army shall retreat twenty li and set up camp. Without my order, no one is to approach Liucheng!"
"yes!"
The lieutenant, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, scrambled out of the room.
Tula paced back and forth in the large tent, his eyes filled with malice.
A direct assault won't work.
But this grudge cannot go unavenged!
…
A thousand miles away, in the capital of the Yan Kingdom.
Inside the Imperial Study in the Imperial Palace.
The new emperor, Mo Fei, slammed the memorial in his hand to the ground with a loud thud.
"This is outrageous!"
The young emperor was so angry that his face turned red and his chest heaved violently.
"First it was Eunuch Wei, and now it's Eunuch Li!"
"Two angels and four imperial edicts have all vanished without a trace!"
"What is Jiang Hongying trying to do? Is she planning a rebellion?!"
The one kneeling below was a general.
"Your Majesty, please calm down! She must be busy with the border war and unable to spare the time. She did not intend to disobey the imperial decree!"
"Busy?" Mo Fei sneered. "Even if she's busy, doesn't she have time to return to the capital to meet the Emperor? I think she's just using her military power to make herself important and doesn't respect me at all!"
"Moreover, this general's position was never hers to begin with, yet she's become addicted to it!"
"I want her dead!"
…
In Liucheng, in the dungeon of the General's Mansion.
This place is less like a dungeon and more like a fairly comfortable guest room, only it has no windows.
Eunuch Wei was holding a roasted chicken leg, crying his eyes out.
"Why is our life so miserable? Waaah..."
Beside him, Eunuch Li lay on a stretcher, one leg in a splint, being fed a bowl of steaming meat porridge.
He cried too.
"Yeah, my leg is ruined for life, boohoo..."
"Don't cry, try this good wine. Anyway, she can't kill us now, let's drink our fill first!"
"Hmm, good wine..." Eunuch Wei coughed, "Give me another piece of meat..."
"This meat is stewed until it's so tender, oh my god, it tastes even better than the imperial kitchen's..."
A female soldier on guard leaned against the doorway, picking her ear listlessly.
These two eunuchs from the capital are really strange.
From morning till night, we just hug each other and cry.
She was crying, but she ate with more relish than anyone else.
They also have a particularly large appetite.
…
Inside the Peacock Kingdom's main camp.
Tula has calmed down.
He summoned his strategist.
"Sir, in your opinion, what should be done now?"
The strategist spoke slowly and deliberately:
"General, Jiang Hongying's heavenly thunder is incredibly powerful; our army cannot withstand it."
"But the most fortified cities are often breached from within."
Tula's eyes lit up. "What do you mean, sir?"
"Jiang Hongying holds considerable military power and defies imperial orders. Doesn't the new emperor of Yan suspect her?"
A smile appeared on the strategist's lips.
“General, we can send an envoy under the guise of peace talks to Liucheng to request an audience with Jiang Hongying.”
"Peace talks?" Tula frowned. "How could I possibly negotiate peace with her!"
"Of course it's not a real peace negotiation," the strategist laughed. "It's just a show for outsiders."
"General, you sent people there in a grand manner, making a show of seeking peace."
"On the other hand, we will send people to spread the news that Jiang Hongying is colluding with foreign enemies and intends to rebel."
"This is called a divisive tactic."
Tula understood instantly.
He looked at his strategist with admiration in his eyes.
"Let's do it this way!"
"I want that woman to be crushed by the very king she wants to protect!"
"I will not only ruin her reputation, but I will also make her soldiers doubt her!"
A look of satisfaction appeared on Tula's face.
Why use a knife to kill?
Winning people's hearts is enough!
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