Gao Xianzhi, Crown Prince Song, and a group of trusted aides camped in a secluded valley. Inside a large tent:
Gao Xianzhi looked at the pile of defeat reports with an extremely unsightly expression.
Crown Prince Song had been here for several days already, so he looked extremely haggard.
"Report!"
A guard rushed into the large tent.
"You found him?" Crown Prince Song asked anxiously.
That guard showed an unsightly expression as he nodded. "Your Highness, my condolences!"
As the guard spoke, he carried a corpse into the large tent. It was the corpse of the crown heir, Song Zhengxi. Dozens of bloody holes had appeared in his body, and the blood had already dried up. It was a gruesome sight.
"My son!" Crown Prince Song immediately walked over in grief.
Gao Xianzhi stopped reading the defeat reports in his hand. Then, he looked at the group of guards that entered and asked, "Where did you find him?"
"Beside Lin Chong's corpse. The Chen army also took advantage of the situation to loot. The camp was crowded and chaotic. We were also separated from the Crown Prince. Ten Imperial Bodyguards went to protect the Crown Prince, but they all died. We checked the weapons and the wounds. It was Lin Chong who risked his life to kill the Crown Prince! "The Imperial Bodyguard solemnly said.
"Lin Chong!" Crown Prince Song roared with a ferocious expression.
However, Gao Xianzhi took a deep breath. Bitterness and helplessness flashed in his eyes.
"Your Highness, I was already very fast. However, I was not faster than Gu Hai. He did not even give us time to eat. Haha! Gu Hai, I was too arrogant," Gao Xianzhi said bitterly.
"Gu Hai? I will tear you into pieces! "Crown Prince Song roared with a ferocious expression.
"I understand!" Gao Xianzhi's expression suddenly changed.
"Huh?" Everyone in the large tent looked at Gao Xianzhi.
"The one at Hulao Pass is not Gu Hai. It is not the real Gu Hai!" Gao Xianzhi's expression suddenly changed dramatically.
"What?" Everyone looked at Gao Xianzhi in shock.
"I should have thought of this earlier. When we first attacked the city, I should have gone all out. Ah! That is not Gu Hai. To think that it is not him! "Gao Xianzhi said with a regretful expression.
"Grand Marshal, what is not Gu Hai?" Everyone looked at Gao Xianzhi in confusion.
"Gu Hai is in Song City. Only when he is in Song City can he control all the details so precisely, such as the transmission of Lin Chong's family feud and how to save the crown heir, who had his head chopped off. Gu Hai is definitely in Song City. The slightest mistake would cause all our efforts to be wasted. However, Gu Hai did it. Even the fastest method of sending a message cannot be so precise. That leaves only one possibility. At that time, Gu Hai was in my Song Nation's capital, Song City!"
. "How can that be?" everyone exclaimed.
When the Song Nation's army was pressing on, facing great danger, not only did the other party change their commander, but this new Grand Marshal was not in the camp. Instead, he went to the enemy's capital to stir up trouble.
"Grand Marshal, is what you said true?" Crown Prince Song's expression changed as he asked.
"Yes. Your Highness, you should restrain your grief. This is not the time to be sad. Gu Hai might have already left. He might still be in Song City. Given my understanding of Gu Hai, this is not over yet. This … this is just the beginning! "Gao Xianzhi said with an unsightly expression.
"Just the beginning? What do you mean? "Crown Prince Song goggled.
"Gu Hai did not agree to the immortal sect's condition for defeating the eight-hundred-thousand-strong army but the Song Nation. Hence, Gu Hai definitely has more to do. There will be more to come! "Gao Xianzhi said worriedly.
"There will be more?" Everyone in the tent inhaled sharply.
Before the Song Nation's eight-hundred-thousand-strong army saw Gu Hai's people, they had already been routed. Gu Hai had not done anything yet. However, there was more to come …?
When everyone thought of what happened earlier, they all trembled in fear.
"Grand Marshal, what should we do now?" someone asked anxiously.
Gao Xianzhi's eyes flickered as he said, "Fortunately, I killed the Chen Nation's six-hundred-thousand-strong army back then. Otherwise, with the Chen Nation's army marching down, my Song Nation would not be able to escape. The Chen Nation's strength is severely damaged, and so is my Song Nation's strength. However, my Song Nation's morale is damaged. Of the eight-hundred-thousand-strong army, only three-hundred-thousand-strong army can escape.
That way, we can gather more soldiers! "" That's right. The Chen Nation's strength is severely damaged and does not have many soldiers left. Grand Marshal, remain at the border and recruit more soldiers. I will immediately report this to Imperial Father and get the various cities to mobilize soldiers for you. Then, gather all the deserters! "
Gao Xianzhi nodded and smiled bitterly. "I will do that. However, I worry that it will be too late."
"How can it be too late? You already killed six-hundred-thousand-strong army of the Chen Nation. Could it be that Gu Hai can conjure another six-hundred-thousand-strong army? "Crown Prince Song asked in disbelief.
Gao Xianzhi nodded bitterly. "I don't know about others. However, as long as Gu Hai is given time, he can conjure another six-hundred-thousand-strong army."
Crown Prince Song: "…!"
"Grand Marshal, are you frightened out of your wits by Gu Hai?" Crown Prince Song asked in dissatisfaction.
"I am not afraid of him. This is just a normal deduction. After losing the morale of the army, how can it be easy to gather more soldiers? This is a change in the human heart. The human heart is the hardest to change. However, I will do my best. I will remain at the border city and reorganize the army in case the Chen Nation's army attacks. Your Highness, go back immediately and warn the emperor and the officials not to slack off. Spread the news of Gu Hai's calamity throughout the entire Song Nation. Don't let Gu Hai's schemes take advantage of you again. At the same time, you must pardon the deserters, "Gao Xianzhi said earnestly.
"I will. I will return to Song City immediately! "Crown Prince Song said through clenched teeth.
Several days later, in the Song Nation's royal court:
The Song Emperor sat on the dragon throne, and Crown Prince Song stood below him. Two rows of civil and military officials stood respectfully. At this moment, everyone was silent as they listened to Crown Prince Song describe the situation at the frontlines.
For a moment, everyone held their breaths as waves of bewilderment flashed through their eyes.
"Eight hundred thousand soldiers? The entire front collapsed? Gao Xianzhi cannot absolve himself from the blame, "an old official on the left said.
When the old official spoke, everyone looked at him. He was an old man, even older than the eighty-two-year-old Song Emperor on the dragon throne.
"Imperial Tutor Pang, Gao Xianzhi already did his best. Gu Hai was too ferocious, catching us off guard," Crown Prince Song said bitterly.
The Imperial Tutor Pang did not get angry. Instead, he frowned heavily and said, "Since the army is in his hands, he has the primary responsibility. There is no excuse. This old official knows that he did his best. However, he still did not realize the danger of Gu Hai's calamity. As a result, Gu Hai saved the crown heir. Otherwise, everything would not have gone to waste. "
"Imperial Father, Imperial Tutor Pang, officials, before I returned, I already sent people to capture the presiding judge from that day. I already investigated everything clearly. Indeed, it was hard to guard against. No one expected someone to impersonate the presiding judge and threaten him. However, this is not the time to investigate who is responsible. Gao Xianzhi is reassembling the army in the border cities. She told me to return and finish the domestic work as soon as possible. We cannot let Gu Hai take advantage of this loophole again, "Crown Prince Song said Solemnly.
"What did Gao Xianzhi say?" the Song Emperor asked sullenly from the dragon throne.
All the officials looked at Crown Prince Song.
"Pardon the deserters so that we can quickly reassemble the army!" Crown Prince Song said Solemnly.
"Permission granted!" the Song Emperor agreed.
"Search the entire city. Do not let go of any place, even my residence. Hopefully, we can find Gu Hai's whereabouts. At the same time, find the citizens that Gu Hai detained. Announce it to the world using the imperial notice and emphasize on Gu Hai's calamity to reunite the army. This will also allow the officials and citizens to be on guard in case Gu Hai continues to scheme, "Crown Prince Song said Solemnly.
"Permission granted!" the Song Emperor answered.
"Imperial Father, this son believes that our Song Nation's officials and citizens are of one mind. As long as we take precautions early and everyone foresees the scheme, no matter how capable Gu Hai is, he will not be able to bring calamity to the Song Nation. With the Chen Nation's military depleted, Gao Xianzhi will definitely be able to quickly reassemble the army and lead them to destroy the Chen Nation in one fell swoop, "Crown Prince Song said Solemnly.
Song City: In a restaurant:
Gu Hai and Gu Han sat by a window, drinking wine as they watched the countless citizens outside the restaurant reading the imperial notice with righteous indignation. At the same time, discussions broke out in the restaurant.
"Did you hear? That old man, Gu Hai, destroyed the eight-hundred-thousand-strong army! "
"Of course, I heard. I thought that Gao Xianzhi was very incredible. Unexpectedly, he got played by an old man!"
"Don't listen to their nonsense. One of my nephews is a subordinate of Gao Xianzhi. That experience is too strange!"
"Oh? Tell me, what happened? "
"Have you heard of commanding an enemy army to battle before?"
"What? What a joke! How can one command an enemy army? Are you telling a story? "
"Hey, you might not believe it. How can a story be more interesting than the real thing? You all don't know this, but those eight-hundred-thousand-strong army seemed to be bewitched, controlled by Gu Hai. They were like marionettes. They did whatever Gu Hai wanted them to do. If he wanted them to charge into the Grand Marshal's camp, they charged into the Grand Marshal's camp! "
"Is that true?"
"Why would I lie to you? My nephews personally saw it. At first, it was only a small portion. Then, more and more people joined. Then, they controlled the Song Nation's army to force Gao Xianzhi to return and kill the crown prince. Then, they controlled the eight-hundred-thousand-strong army to destroy the entire camp. That was too horrifying! "
…
…
…
In the restaurant, the customers all talked at once about how Gu Hai lost the morale of the army, describing it step by step in great detail. When the customers heard this, they all cheered loudly. After all, the performances on stage did not have so many ups and downs.
"Fortunately, Gao Xianzhi killed the Chen Nation's six-hundred-thousand-strong army. Otherwise, once my Song Nation's eight-hundred-thousand-strong army was defeated, the Chen Nation's army would have marched in and destroyed my Song Nation. We would have become slaves to a fallen nation. "
"This is too scary. If Gu Hai really led an army to attack, we would be in trouble."
"That hateful Gu Hai captured innocent citizens and threw my Song Nation's army into chaos. My nephews died on the battlefield. It is all Gu Hai's fault!"
"Right now, I do not know if my son is dead or alive. That hateful Gu Hai!"
…
…
…
Soon, the initial description slowly changed to denouncing Gu Hai for his crimes.
As Gu Hai leaned against the window and listened to the customers' criticisms, he did not get angry. Instead, he revealed a faint smile.
"Adoptive Father, the Song Nation is trying to smear your name. It looks like they are afraid of you, not even letting go of the details of the battle. They want to plant the seeds of hatred in the hearts of the citizens to prevent us from doing anything, "Gu Han said with a slight frown.
"The hearts of the citizens can be used. The more they hate me, the faster the Song Nation will be destroyed." Gu Hai took a sip of wine and revealed a confident smile.
"Adoptive Father, are we going to start?" Excitement flashed in Gu Han's eyes.
"No, it is not enough. The Song Nation's citizens still do not hate me enough. They are still lacking. Since that is the case, let's push this hatred to a higher level!" Gu Hai said seriously.
"This is still not enough? Everyone is talking about it now. "
"It is still not enough. The momentum of the crusade against me is still too weak. Since that is the case, let's help them strengthen their momentum. Get everyone to suppress me and hate me! "Gu Hai said sullenly.
"Oh?"
"Release the family members of the detained Song Nation soldiers. Let them describe my evil deeds and make everyone believe that it was my scheme that destroyed the eight-hundred-thousand-strong army. Let the Song Nation's official propaganda be more convincing. Let everyone hate me, from the officials to the citizens! "Gu Hai said with confidence flashing in his eyes.
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