(Two 10,000-word chapters completed.)
The Southern Dynasty had its own imperial court, but its rank was lower than that of the Northern Royal Court. When the older generation first entered Beimang's territory, some of the more experienced aristocratic families of the Central Plains had seen the scene of disagreements and fights breaking out at every turn. At that time, they were shocked. They couldn't imagine that such an uncouth imperial court could challenge the Liyang Dynasty, which had already unified the Spring and Autumn Period. Later, the Empress showed mercy, and the Southern Dynasty was established. This imperial court was obviously much more cultured and elegant. There were endless disputes in the main hall, and there were bound to be some red faces and ears. However, for more than ten years, there had never been a quarrel like today, to the point where it was about to turn into a fight. All of this was due to the new smoke rising from the southern border. The 10,000 Dragon-Elephant Cavalry first slaughtered the strategic border town of Tile-Building. If they had stopped after winning the first battle, it would have been fine. Then, under the leadership of the second son of the King of Beiliang, they made a detour and raided the next strategic town, Gentleman's Pavilion. The 6,000 Long Xiang Army unexpectedly defeated 8,000 soldiers and horses. The two major defeats of the Southern Dynasty were already an indisputable fact. The situation was not only hot, but also painful. Except for Zhong Shentong, who didn't dare to return, the other generals who held authority all kept silent. Occasionally, they would exchange glances in the hall, then slightly shook their heads and sighed. On the contrary, the civil officials of the Jia surname Gaohua were quarreling. Among them, there was a fatty wearing a purple robe who scolded the most fiercely. He almost pulled out the eighteen generations of Hong Gu 'an's ancestors, who had died for the country. Not only did he scold the civil officials who were giving orders, but he also insinuated that a few old generals were also included in the scolding.
The fatty's saliva flew everywhere. "This bastard surnamed Hong is fishing for fame. Even if I survive, I will stab him to death with a knife! The tiled city overlooks the green tiled basin, the cavalry has an innate advantage in the charge. You look down on the Dragon Elephant Army, leaving the city to fight, but you actually have the guts to let the idiot lead the troops to the bottom of the slope. What, do you wholeheartedly want to start a completely fair fight with the Northern Liang cavalry? Didn't Hong Gu 'an claim to be well-read in military books? What did he read so much that he defecated? I don't remember which old general's favorite student Hong Gu 'an was. Who dares to remind me? "
Everyone in the hall quietly looked at an old general who was resting with his eyes closed. The general had white hair but a youthful complexion. He was very good at keeping his composure, and didn't seem to have any intention of being calculative with Fatty Dong..
Fatty Dong's cheeks trembled, and he pointed to a third-rank official in charge of the Southern Dynasty's Ministry of Revenue. "Using Tile-Building Army and Gentleman's Pavilion Army, we only managed to defeat half of the Northern Liang's Dragon-Elephant Army. You motherf * cker actually told me to have the border armies of Li Gu and Maolong take the initiative to pursue them. What? These 14,000 troops aren't human, they're all your Yuan Zhen family's maids. You think you can kill them as you wish? Old man, you sure have the boldness of not being afraid of squandering money when you have a big family. You are just playing with His Majesty's generosity! "
That aged civil official was so angry that his face turned ashen. His righteousness was awe-inspiring as he confronted that fatty. However, his voice was trembling as he said, "My Northern Mang Nation's prestige cannot be disgraced! Our Southern Dynasty's generals and soldiers are not to be insulted! "
Fatty Dong's words were extremely harsh. He glared and said, "Dead old thief, guard your Ministry of Revenue well and make money. If you overstep the rules and talk about military affairs, I'll beat you with a club and put you in the coffin! Don't think that I won't take care of you just because your pockmarked granddaughter threw flirtatious glances at me! "
The old man was humiliated and fainted on the spot. He had no choice but to be carried out.
A young official who had jumped through the dragon's gate because of the imperial examination couldn't stand it anymore. He said softly, "That King of Beiliang's second son is deranged. Killing nine thousand people wasn't enough. Afterwards, he still wants to massacre the city. He's clearly a madman. If the Beiliang cavalry insists on going their own way, ignoring the two towns of Feng Li and Gu Maolong and going north, they'll soon reach us. Do we really want the generals to disregard the defensive line and move the troops here? If by any chance it was a diversion to the east and attack to the west, using a lone army to tie down too much of our dynasty's military power, Xu Xiao would personally lead the elite troops to the northeast. Together with Gu Jiantang advancing on the eastern front, it would be difficult to deal with. We can't be led by the nose by Beiliang. I've heard that General Dong never cares about small gains and losses when leading troops. It seems that today is different. "
This newly appointed official, who was ranked second in the imperial examinations and favored by the empress, had a dignified appearance. His voice wasn't loud, but the old Minister of Revenue had fainted from anger. It was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard in the main hall. Furthermore, his words weren't without aim, so he seemed to be full of energy.
Fatty Dong sneered and said, "Pedantic scholar, you're just an armchair strategist. Wait until you've killed people and seen blood before you come back to reason with your Grandpa Dong."
The young official responded with a sneer. He didn't want to pester this extremely lucky fatty. He didn't overdo it and just wanted to express his stance. In the future, if what he said was true and the empress came to settle accounts, it would be equivalent to trampling on Fatty Dong. Unknowingly, it would raise his own prestige by a large margin. However, before that day came, an old general's words made him feel ashamed. It was Great General Huang Songpu, who was the first person to seize military power as a remnant of the Spring and Autumn Period. Although the Southern Dynasty was showing signs of rising up from behind, Liu Gui, who was praised by the empress as half of Xu Xiao, and Yang Yuanzan, who was a commoner and had defected to the army, were beginning to overshadow Huang Songpu in terms of prestige. However, seniority wasn't important. Yang Yuanzan himself was once half of Huang Songpu's vanguard. Furthermore, only Old General Song was willing to discipline Dong Zhuo, the devil incarnate. As a result, Huang Songpu's words carried the most weight in the Southern Dynasty. Hong Gu 'an, who had caused this disaster, was under Great General Huang Songpu. It was difficult for him to escape being scolded by Fatty Dong in the imperial court.
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.
