"Did you get any news?"
In the battle of Zhanjiang Pass, the Nie army had suffered a crushing defeat. They had lost nearly 200,000 soldiers and horses, and almost all the elites had died.
Although tens of thousands of soldiers had successfully broken through, they had no order, no will to fight, and no supplies. They were almost like headless flies flying around. They were very unlucky. After so much trouble, they met Jiang Pengji's triumphant troops on the way back and were beaten up again. After going through so many hardships, the troops were almost completely scattered. Fortunately, Fan Chen and a few other old officials were still alive and managed to gather the remaining soldiers.
The Nie army was left with only the remnants of the soldiers. They didn't have enough supplies. In order to fill their stomachs, they had to start killing wounded warhorses.
After Fan Chen and the other old officials met, they carefully inquired about the whereabouts of Wei Yong and the others. There was still no news for two or three days.
After this great defeat, a few old officials who were extremely unhappy with Wei Yong put all the blame on him, using this as an excuse to avoid their own responsibilities.
Fan Chen ignored these voices. After all, it was not the time to quarrel and fight.
He sent people out to inquire about Wei Yong's whereabouts. No matter what, he had to see him alive or dead. He couldn't disappear from the world.
There was no news in the first few days. Fan Chen almost suspected that when Wei Yong was killed in the battle, the specific news came back.
"Report — the military counselor's whereabouts have been found, but —"
The soldier's clothes were ragged and he looked dispirited. He didn't know how long it had been since he had a good rest. His eyes were covered with fine veins.
Fan Chen couldn't help but grab the soldier's arm and ask, "But what? Tell me! "
He didn't finish his sentence. Did he want me to die of anxiety?
The movement on Fan Chen's side also attracted the attention of the old officials who were resting nearby. They couldn't help but stretch their ears to eavesdrop.
The soldier gritted his teeth and said with tears in his eyes, "The military counselor was captured … already … already met with misfortune."
Fan Chen was so shocked that he took a step back. After waiting for the news for two days, he also guessed that Wei Yong might have been captured by the enemy, but he didn't expect that he would die. On second thought, this result was also reasonable. According to Wei Yong's temperament, it was already considered peaceful that he didn't die as an apology.
"How did he die?" Fan Chen continued to ask. "Himself or Liu Xi …"
The few people who were eavesdropping were also shocked, as if they hadn't expected such an outcome. They looked at each other and sighed inexplicably.
Even though they didn't like Wei Dan, they had to admit that Wei Dan was another "pillar" for the Nie clan, which was currently in a precarious situation. If he died, the Nie family's future would be even more uncertain. Of course, the Nie family's future would be even more uncertain.
The man spat and cursed, "You deserve to die! He really suspected that this person was a spy sent by Liu Xi. Ever since he, Wei Dan, took control of the military, did anything go well for our army? Now, they went all out to attack Zhan Jiang Pass, but they didn't get any advantages. Instead, the enemy found a chance to wipe them all out. If you say that this place wasn't sold out by Wei Yan, this old man will not believe a single word of it! "
The Nie army had already fallen apart. If there were any more conflicts, they might not even be able to return to Zhongzhao.
Fan Chen clenched his fists in his sleeves. His nails left deep marks on his palms.
He took a deep breath and pretended not to hear the old man's insults. He patiently asked the soldier.
"I heard that Liu Xi tried to recruit the military counselor, but he refused," the soldier said with tears in his eyes. "The military counselor sought death and died under Liu Xi's sword."
Fan Chen asked again, "Could it be … no one came forward to plead for the military counselor?"
Everyone in the world knew that Wei Yong's brother was loyal to Jiang Pengji.
The soldier shook his head. "I only heard this. I don't know the rest."
Fan Chen sighed in his heart and asked, "Did Liu Xi send someone to deliver the military counselor's corpse?"
No matter what, Wei Yong was dead. According to the customs of the two armies, the corpse should have been sent back.
The soldier said, "The military counselor's corpse has been collected by his brother. He sent someone to bury it in his hometown."
Only then did Fan Chen remember that Wei Yong was from the Wei family of Langya, a branch of the Wei family of Bianzhou. Because they had been separated for two or three hundred years, their land was in Langya County. If Wei Ci helped to collect the corpse, Wei Yong's corpse would most likely be sent back to Langya County.
Thinking of this, Fan Chen felt endless pressure rush toward him like a tide. His vision darkened and he almost fainted.
Everyone hurriedly helped him awake. If even Fan Chen knelt, then the Nie army really had no one who could shoulder the burden.
"What should we do now?"
Fan Chen said, "I'm afraid the news of our defeat can't be hidden. It's better to gather the remaining troops and return to Bianzhou as soon as possible. The lord's safety is more important."
Where there's life, there's hope. Gathering the remaining troops could gather tens of thousands. Together with the troops in Nie Qing's hands, they might be able to stabilize the situation.
Fortunately … fortunately, the lord Nie Liang had already dealt with the ambitious fellows who had attached themselves to the Nie family before he died.
Otherwise, if the army was defeated and returned with a bunch of injured soldiers, they would probably be devoured until not even their bones were left.
"Liu Xi won't let go of this opportunity."
The Nie family's assets had all been lost. At this moment, Zhongzhao was like a shelled and defenseless egg, allowing the enemy to do whatever they wanted.
Fan Chen said, "Of course Liu Xi won't let go of this opportunity, but she won't be able to fight again in a short period of time."
The Nie family had suffered heavy losses, but would Jiang Pengji feel better?
Don't forget, she had divided her troops into two groups to resist Nie Liang's and Yang Tao's troops at the same time. Her troops were too scattered, and the pressure on her rations was great.
If she didn't take some time to recuperate, she was afraid that she wouldn't be able to hold on.
Although the time was short, it was at least a chance to breathe.
Fan Chen had never been a person who liked to sit and wait for death. He would always struggle to the last moment before he was willing to give up.
His suggestion was naturally not wrong, but there were people who didn't want to agree. They were very afraid.
The Nie family was invincible in Zhongzhao, but whenever they met Jiang Pengji, they were met with a wall. Jiang Pengji had the protection of a miracle when she fought on the front lines. She had the protection of a miracle when she launched a sneak attack in the middle of the night. It was obvious that God was biased to the extreme. They were just a group of ordinary people. How could they compete with the "Son of Heaven" who carried destiny? Nie Liang and Wei Dan had tried to challenge her, but what was the result? One died of illness, the other was killed.
When Fan Chen heard these reasons, he was so angry that he almost vomited blood.
During the battle at Zhanjiang Pass, it could only be said that they were one step behind and fell into the enemy's trap. Their skills were inferior, so why did they have to push the blame to God?
No matter how many voices of opposition there were, they still had to return to Zhongzhao. Otherwise, they wouldn't even have enough to slaughter the warhorses for food.
Just as half of the remaining troops left, the news of the army's defeat reached Nie Qing's ears.
"What, what did you say?"
He could recognize every word of the person who came, but when put together, he couldn't understand it.
How could the Nie army …
The person who came gave a concise and concise account of the battle that day. Nie Qing's face grew paler and paler.
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.
