Luo Yue's eyebrows twitched. He said solemnly, "Please elaborate."
He must have been blind.
He thought Meng Heng was a gentle and kind scholar. He didn't expect him to be so crazy and decisive.
No wonder he was Meng Zhan's son. His ruthlessness was inherited.
"Killing one thousand enemies while sacrificing eight hundred men. Perishing together!" Meng Heng sneered. Luo Yue's heart skipped a beat. "Huang Song attacked Hu County for the food after the autumn harvest. We can burn it. If we can't get it, Huang Song won't get it either. "
Luo Yue's eyelids twitched. "Burn it?"
Burn his own food?
Crazy?
Meng Heng said, "Not all of it. We're burning the fields within a hundred miles of the Sanshan Valley."
If the food was burned, what was the point of Huang Song's attack?
He could just cry in Mound River County!
Luo Yue looked at Meng Heng with shock in his eyes. His breathing was rapid and heavy, and his eyes were bloodshot.
Burning the crops within a hundred miles of the fields …
How could he bear to do it?
In this era, people would sacrifice their lives for a meal. How could he do it?
"If you don't make a decision, you'll be in trouble." Meng Heng said coldly, "General Luo, make a decision."
Luo Yue squeezed the handle of the knife. His knuckles turned blue from the force. His bones were almost protruding out of his skin. It was obvious how much he was struggling. The choice Meng Heng gave Luo Yue was too difficult. No matter what he chose, Luo Yue couldn't bear to do it.
Cheng Yuan held his breath and looked at the two with a complicated expression.
"Is there really no other way?" Cheng Yuan helped Luo Yue speak his mind.
Meng Heng said, "Huang Song will attack the Sanshan Valley with all his strength. We can at most hold on for five days. That's at the cost of the lives of all the soldiers. My lord's army is restraining Huang Song's but Huang Song is avoiding the battle. He'll use the terrain to delay them. It won't be a problem to stall for ten days to half a month. By then, Hu County will be in Huang Song's hands. Is that what you want to see? "
The two were speechless. Luo Yue hung his head in pain.
Meng Heng said, "Sacrificing a hundred miles of fields in exchange for the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers and half of Hu County. Isn't that worth it?"
Luo Yue said, "Advisor … In two months, it will be the autumn harvest —"
Meng Heng said, "But we're exhausted after persevering for five days. How can we last until the autumn harvest?"
Since ancient times, wars had only involved seizing other people's territory and food. Who would burn one's own food?
After a while, Cheng Yuan said, "If news of the people burning a year's worth of hard work gets out …"
Meng Heng asked, "Isn't there a ready scapegoat?"
Luo Yue and Cheng Yuan were both stunned, not knowing who Meng Heng was referring to.
"Some people worked with Huang Song from the inside for wealth and glory. Why didn't anyone burn the food and take the opportunity to surrender to Huang Song?" Meng Heng said, "Anyway, they're a bunch of people who are about to die. It's not too much to add another crime to them. Let their deaths be more worthwhile."
Both of them were silent.
What was the reason for the arson?
Anyone with a discerning eye would know that Huang Song attacked Hu County for the food. Which idiot would burn the food as a sign of allegiance?
As if he could see the two's doubts, Meng Heng said, "It's just burning the fertile fields near the Three Mountain Valley. We can say that the burning of the fields is to distract our army and mislead us into sending troops to extinguish the fire. This will weaken the defending forces of the Three Mountain Valley. It's good as long as it makes sense."
There was no lack of fallacies and ordinary people who were brainwashed by them.
As long as the majority of people believed in alcohol, a minority would naturally choose to remain silent.
"Has General Luo made a decision?"
Luo Yue looked dispirited and said in a hoarse voice, "If we can survive this battle, I'll personally ask for forgiveness from the Lord —"
Not only did he fail to defend the territory that the Lord had given him, but he also escaped by burning his own fields.
Such an incompetent and prodigal performance made Luo Yue want to find a hole to hide in and never come out again.
Huang Song's army came in a menacing manner. They were very ferocious and did not give anyone a chance to breathe.
The two armies fought from day to night with the Three Mountains Valley as the boundary. The gate of the pass was smashed by a giant tree once. If it were not for the timely use of dozens of saber carts to block it, they would not have been able to hold on for a day. Everyone was panic-stricken and did not dare to close their eyes at night, afraid that the enemy would take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack.
Luo Yue transferred a few thousand soldiers to disguise themselves as ordinary guards and sneaked out of the Three Mountains Valley in the middle of the night.
Because of the war, the people nearby had already packed their belongings and headed north to avoid disaster. The fertile fields were left unguarded, which made it convenient for them to move around.
Huang Song and the others did not choose to attack at night. Instead, they let the army rest and build up their strength, because the battle situation during the day determined that the enemy was more nervous than they were and did not dare to sleep the whole night. If they didn't sleep for a whole night, the enemy's physical condition would naturally be inferior to theirs, and they would have the advantage the next day.
Based on the current situation, they would be able to take down the Three Mountains Canyon in three to four days.
No matter how strong the enemy was, they were still mortals. It was impossible for them to not sleep for a few days.
In the middle of the night, a faint orange light lit up behind the Three Mountains Valley.
At first, it was not obvious, and Huang Song and the others did not pay much attention to it.
As time passed, the orange light gradually spread and dyed the dark sky with an orange edge.
After two to four hours, Huang Song was woken up by someone.
"What happened?"
Huang Song finally managed to fall asleep. Just as he was sleeping soundly, he was woken up by the ruckus outside.
He tightened his pajamas and raised his hand to rub his sleepy eyes.
"Master, something bad has happened. There's a fire!"
Fire?
What fire?
Huang Song's mind quivered. He mistakenly thought that the enemy had come to set a fire at night and was so scared that he was completely awake.
He grabbed Yuan Chong's hand and asked, "Where's the fire?"
Yuan Chong could not explain clearly, so he ran to the observation deck with Huang Song. There was a dazzling line of fire on the horizon in the direction of the Three Mountains Valley!
"What, what's that?"
Huang Song felt like he was dreaming. Why was the enemy's rear on fire?
Yuan Chong said, "The enemy's rear is on fire. I don't know who set it."
The two looked at each other.
At this moment —
The enemy's rear was on fire?
Huang Song suddenly had the illusion that he was the chosen one.
He looked at the fire in the distance and vaguely felt that something was wrong.
Huang Song asked, "Where's the location of the fire?"
Yuan Chong could not tell him the specifics and could only give him a rough location.
Huang Song's mind flashed and he was shocked. He quickly climbed down the observation deck.
At this moment, Cheng Jing and the others also rushed over. Their faces were frighteningly gloomy.
They checked the locations of the Great Universal Geographical Map and were shocked to find that all the locations of the fire were fertile fields!
"Such a big fire may not be extinguished in three to five days —"
They did not know how much grain that was about to ripen had been burned, but they knew that it was not a number they wanted to see.
"They're crazy!!!"
Huang Song's emotions suddenly exploded. He waved his hand and overturned the table.
The bamboo slips and documents on the table scattered on the ground, and the table fell to the ground with a dull thud.
In the Three Mountains Valley, Luo Yue looked in the direction of the fire and wiped his tears.
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