Lock Dragon Pass
The Lock Dragon Pass faced the Yellow River to the north, and was situated halfway up a mountain to the south. It was the eastern gate of Qin Prefecture, and had always been a battleground for military strategists. The surrounding mountains were connected to each other, and the valleys were deep and the roads were narrow.
"Boom!"
Smoke rose from the beacons as the sun shone down on the ground. The soldiers were perspiring profusely as the order was given.
"Kill!" The black mass of soldiers followed the ladders and climbed up!
"Quick, release!" The guards urged the soldiers as rocks and logs were thrown down from the walls, causing blood to spurt everywhere. The soldiers who were climbing up were only halfway when they were hit by the logs, causing them to tumble to the ground.
There was even a pot of golden liquid that spilled everywhere.
The stench permeated the air, and screams of pain could be heard. The soldiers who were climbing up the ladders fell to the ground. Some of them didn't fall to their deaths, and rolled around on the ground as they screamed in pain.
Not only did this cause severe burns, but it could also cause severe infections. Unless a Daoist intervened, there was no chance of survival.
Of course, the attackers were prepared. Someone gave the order, "Release!"
The catapults continued to hurl rocks at the city walls, causing them to explode. There were also carts that were pushed forward. These carts were extremely thick, with a layer of leather and a layer of iron. Small rocks wouldn't budge, while large rocks would roll down the walls. Firewood wouldn't even burn them. The carts had two wheels, and could carry twenty people.
At this point, an order was given, and all the archers leapt forward, shooting arrows at the city walls.
"Pu pu" The arrows rained down on the city walls, causing a group of soldiers to scream out in pain as they fell to the ground.
"Ai …." King Lu watched on, his fingers clenched tightly. Xie Cheng Dong stepped forward, "King Lu, although this pass is dangerous, we can prevent the Imperial Court from interfering."
"Hence, the moment we started our attack, we rushed here. Along the way, Wang Xiong County surrendered without a fight. Although the Lock Dragon Pass refused to surrender, the defending troops weren't able to react in time. However, there were only a thousand of them. No matter how much they resisted, they wouldn't be able to hold out for more than a few days."
"Besides, we've spread the word of righteousness. Although it's a lie, the soldiers can't tell the difference. Hence, their morale has been affected."
Xie Chengdong glanced at the soldiers who were crawling on the ground and recalled what happened not too long ago.
When King Lu heard about this, he mobilized his troops and entered the capital city to protect the Emperor. He killed the traitorous officials and cleaned up the Emperor's side. When the Governor and the Governor heard about this, they immediately followed the Emperor into the capital city. Why do you all still want to work for someone who has imprisoned your father? "King Lu hadn't even attacked the city when he sent someone forward to warn everyone.
Although his words didn't seem to have much effect, he could see that both sides of the city walls were engaged in a fierce battle. However, it was obvious that the number of people fighting on the city walls was decreasing. He laughed, "I think we can leave today."
Before he could finish his sentence, someone on top of the city wall shouted, "We've passed."
An Officer led his men forward, and as soon as they charged up, a few soldiers stabbed them with their spears. The Officer wiped the sweat off his face and leaped forward, rolling to the side to dodge. With a single slash of his saber, a soldier's spear was sliced in half.
Because of this delay, there were even more people charging forward. At that point, a hole was formed in the city wall. King Lu was overjoyed as he shouted out, "Find out who this is. You will be rewarded handsomely."
"How many men have we lost?" King Lu asked as the Officer replied, "King Lu, we've sent four thousand men up. It looks like we've lost two thousand men."
"Two thousand?" King Lu was filled with hatred as he took several steps forward, "This time, I've lost so many soldiers. Kill them all, kill them all."
Xie Cheng Dong stood by the side and watched as the city was breached. When he heard that King Lu wanted to kill the rest of the soldiers, he was taken aback and said, "King Lu, you can't do that. Originally, we had to kill those who resisted. If everyone resisted, what would happen? However, this is your first battle, and is a good example. If you accept the surrender, then everyone else will surrender. "
"That's right, King Lu, we mustn't kill them anymore. If we ask them to surrender now, the next time we attack, they might surrender." Eunuch Liao spoke out as well.
When King Lu heard this, he was enraged. At this point, his emotions and logic were fighting. He took several deep breaths before he could calm himself down. He then said, "You're right. Let's follow this plan and get them to surrender."
"Yes, King Lu."
Xie Cheng Dong then spoke out, "Tell them to surrender first. If they surrender, then split up the surrendered soldiers. Find a deputy general. If the deputy general isn't enough, find a Officer. Force them to surrender, and lure them with benefits. There will definitely be someone who will surrender. As long as there's one person who surrenders, that would be enough to set an example."
He then turned to King Lu and said, "King Lu, please act as if you're willing to pay a thousand gold to buy someone's bones."
King Lu waved a hand and said, "You're right. I understand. Let's do as you say."
The Officer received his orders and left. Before long, a loud shout could be heard, "Those who surrender will not die. Those who surrender will not die."
"We're doing this for the Imperial Court. How can we allow these traitors to surrender? Kill the traitors." Outside, there was a commotion, as if the people outside were unwilling to surrender.
"Fire the arrows!" King Lu didn't speak. He only heard people shouting, "The Crown Prince has imprisoned the Emperor. King Lu sent his troops to the capital city to protect the Emperor. Even the Governor and the Governor have followed His Highness. Why are you still willing to work for someone who has imprisoned their father? If you still refuse to repent, then we can only kill you. "
"Traitors!" Another person shouted out. However, as soon as he shouted out, he was shot dead by arrows. Finally, someone couldn't take it any longer. He knelt down and shouted, "We are willing to surrender. We shall follow King Lu into the capital city to punish the traitors."
One person knelt down, followed by several others. Hundreds of people surrendered, and the sounds of killing gradually stopped.
After some time, a thirty-five or thirty-six year old general walked over. When he saw King Lu, he knelt down and kowtowed, "This general is the Vice General of the Dragon Lock Pass, Qiao Dao. I didn't know that King Lu was here to save the Emperor, and thus resisted the heavenly troops. I have sinned."
"Those who don't know are not sinned. General, you've finally come to your senses. It's a good thing that you've forsaken the darkness for the light. Please rise!" King Lu personally helped the Vice General up. He then looked at the soldiers who had 'woken up' and was overjoyed.
This was indeed an act. However, politics was like this. When someone took the lead, others would follow. When the number of people increased, it would become real.
If these soldiers were rebels, even if they could be used, they would have to undergo some changes.
However, now that he had told them that he was here to save the Emperor, they could be used immediately. As for the future, even if they knew the truth, it wouldn't matter.
He then laughed, "Let's enter the pass first."
The Dragon Lock Pass still had its own mansion. Before long, a map was laid out on the table. It was a map of the entire Qin Prefecture. King Lu was clad in his armor as he raised an eyebrow. Eunuch Liao and Xie Cheng Dong stood by his side.
"Mister Xie, we've already taken control of the pass. Do you have any suggestions?" King Lu turned his head slightly to look at Xie Cheng Dong, who was on his left. He had a smile on his face. This time, he had successfully taken control of the Dragon Lock Pass. His father the Emperor wouldn't be able to do anything to him.
Xie Cheng Dong thought for sometime before pointing to the map in front of him, "King Lu, once we've taken control of the Dragon Lock Pass, we'll be able to take control of Qin Prefecture. This is what I've said before."
"Now that we've taken control of the situation, it can be said that we're halfway there."
"However, the Imperial Court has control over the lands, and their strength isn't something that Qin Prefecture can match up to. If we ignore the Imperial Court and rely on the Dragon Lock Pass to take control of Qin Prefecture, when we're done, we'll realize that the Imperial Court's hundreds of thousands of troops have already arrived. Even if we can hold out for a period of time, we'll still be defeated."
"We have to take advantage of the fact that the Imperial Court can't mobilize their troops in time to attack the capital!"
"What?" King Lu's body stiffened, his face was filled with shock. He looked at Xie Cheng Dong and asked, "My army only has 20,000 men, how can we attack the capital city?"
Xie Cheng Dong couldn't help but laugh, "King Lu, do you remember the incident with the King of the Stone Nation four hundred years ago?"
"King of the Stone Nation?" King Lu was deep in thought.
He then heard Xie Cheng Dong continue, "That year, the King of the Stone Nation rebelled, and conquered Ning City. He proclaimed himself the King of the Stone Nation. In less than two months, he ordered Lin Xiang to lead an army of 20,000 men on a northern expedition. At one point, they got close to the capital city. Because they were alone, they were surrounded and killed by the King of the Stone Nation."
"Many people thought that this was a stupid move, as they were alone in the enemy's army!" Xie Cheng Dong revealed a cold smile, "But this was actually a stroke of genius. If King Lu were to look into history, you'd realize that this mere 20,000 men was enough to scare the entire capital city into sending reinforcements to protect them."
"The expeditionary army held out for close to two years. During this period of time, the King of the Stone Nation's army was invincible in the south. They took down several towns and cities, and their name spread far and wide."
"What's more, the Northern Expedition army disrupted the plans of the imperial court, and caused the south to have no troops to send in reinforcements. When the Northern Expedition army failed, the imperial court was freed up, and all the prefectures joined forces. Step by step, they killed the King of the Stone Nation in thirteen years."
"The King of the Stone Nation failed, but history has left us with the secret to their success. Furthermore, we can improve upon this secret. Our attack on the capital city was a strategy, and not a battle to the death."
"Along the way, if we can take them down, we will take them down, and use the money and troops we have. We can even transport them to Qin Prefecture. If we can't take them down, as long as we don't try to stop them, we can let them go. Along the way, we can spread the news that the Crown Prince is a promiscuous harem, and has imprisoned the Emperor."
"All of these were done to disrupt the plans of the imperial court, and to give Qin Prefecture a safe and peaceful environment."
"Your Highness is after all the son of the Emperor, and has the natural ability to inherit the throne. The King of the Stone Nation and Ji Bei Hou can't compare to him. As long as we get Qin Prefecture, we can then determine the direction of our attack."
"Let's hope that Ji Bei Hou can hold on for a longer period of time. That way, as long as we get three prefectures, we'll be able to overcome this crisis and fight for the throne."
"Good, Mister is indeed my strategist." King Lu thought about it carefully before he understood. He then smiled. A Daoist hurried in to report, "Ying Prefecture has been conquered, and Ji Bei Hou has been killed. The imperial army has returned to the capital."
When King Lu heard this, he was taken aback, "What?"
He revealed a look of shock and disbelief. Xie Cheng Dong was much calmer and sighed, "I thought that Ji Bei Hou didn't have the King's Qi. Who knew that he wouldn't even be able to hold on for such a short period of time."
"However, this proves that King Lu has good fortune. Think about it, if this news had reached us earlier, what would have happened to us?"
Seeing that King Lu had regained his composure, Xie Cheng Dong then spoke out, "But since Ji Bei Hou has been killed, our situation has become much more dangerous. I hope that King Lu can make up his mind."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
