The army set out, and the scouts were twenty li ahead.
Thick smoke rose above Willow River Village, and a report was immediately sent back.
Not only did the marching formation not stop, it even began to speed up. On the side of the road, a few scouts came to a halt and reported, "Master, Willow River Village has been set on fire and looted. The fire inside the village is very strong, and we can't get close. "
Among the scouts, there was a young female Daoist master. She was of medium height, around twenty years old, and had a thin golden rat tail behind her head. Her face was ruddy, and she seemed to be very spirited. She wore a set of armor inlaid with metal plates, and her expression was cold. The guards beside her had anxious expressions, and wanted to say something, but stopped.
This young Daoist master was the White Flag Banner Master of Jianzhou, Hwang Tae-gil. He looked coldly at the gray smoke rising from the mountain ridge in the distance, and calmly said, "My fifth brother was the vanguard, and left a day earlier. He should have reached Willow River Village by now. If he was in the village, it definitely wouldn't be like this. It's very likely that my fifth brother left the village in a hurry, and someone sneaked over to attack. This guy … he's got some guts, huh. "
Hwang Tae-gil's guess was close to the mark, but he wasn't in a hurry to help Willow River Village. He only sent more scouts to confirm the situation ahead, and the two thousand soldiers under his command slightly quickened their pace.
By the time the army reached Willow River Village, the entire village had been burned to the ground, and there were corpses everywhere amidst the smoke and fire. Hwang Tae-gil got off his horse and stepped onto the scorching ground. He examined a few corpses among the ashes, and said, "Strange, many of these people who were burned to death weren't our people, but rather soldiers who came to rob us."
The corpses were burnt black, and the others covered their noses to hide. Hwang Tae-gil, however, picked up a knife and cut open the abdomen of the corpses, and checked the food inside the stomach and intestines. He said with even more surprise, "These people who attacked us ate well, so they should be the enemy's elite soldiers. But why did so many of them die? It seems like they were purposely burned to death. "
After a while, the scouts who were searching all around brought two people over. One of them was injured in the shoulder. It was Daer Han and Yang Jian, who had escaped earlier. Da 'er Han was covered in blood and his face was pale. When he saw Hwang Tae-gil, he immediately knelt down and told him about Mangurtai's battle with Chu Ying. He also told him about Zhou Qingfeng's ambush and raid. After saying that, he cried bitterly and begged for death, no longer speaking.
Yang Jian also knelt on the ground and recounted the situation. He only said that Zhou Qingfeng was cunning and treacherous, and had even learned the way of military formations. This kind of scourge must be eliminated as soon as possible.
Hwang Tae-gil pondered for a long time before asking Yang Jian, "What's the background of this Zhou Qingfeng? If he really was only eight years old, yet he had the courage and talent he had today, it was really too shocking. Moreover, why does he insist on becoming enemies with Jianzhou? Our Jianzhou has not mistreated him, has it? "
Hwang Tae-gil's tone was calm and unhurried. He was not angry just because Zhou Qingfeng had burned down one of his strongholds. However, the question he asked hit the nail on the head, causing Yang Jian to stammer and find it hard to answer.
"That Zhou brat … there's something wrong with my master. He was actually forcefully taken in as a disciple by my master. He has always wanted to escape. " Yang Jian felt his heart tremble under Hwang Tae-gil's cold stare. He could only avoid the question and push the problem to his master.
Hwang Tae-gil did not understand the reason and did not pursue the matter. He only nodded in acceptance of this explanation. He then turned to look at Daer Han and scolded him in a harsh tone, "You, Daer Han, are also a warrior of the Ula Tribe and a servant of Grand Concubine Abahai. Last time, you failed to protect the Grand Concubine and instead caused the Grand Concubine to fall into enemy hands. My father is always worried and should have beheaded you.
I should have let you atone for your crimes by going to Heculun to protect the Grand Concubine, but today, you have completely lost the face of my Jianzhou. You were actually defeated by a young child. This Willow River Stronghold was originally a place for my army to store rations and rest. Because of your negligence, it was burned down by someone. I miss your many years of hard work, but the military law my father set up will not forgive you. "
Hwang Tae-gil's tone was cold and harsh. The guards behind him also had fierce looks in their eyes and their hands were on the hilts of their swords. Daer Han was already heavily injured and his forehead was dripping with sweat. Now, he did not dare to say a single word and could only bury his head in the dust, allowing himself to be dealt with.
But after Hwang Tae-gil furrowed his brows and angrily rebuked him, he turned to the guards behind him and said, "Take this piece of trash to treat his wounds. We are about to attack Heculun. When we charge, let him go first. It's better for him to die on the frontlines than to be cut down by me."
Two guards stepped forward and dragged Daer Han away.
Daer Han hurriedly shouted in gratitude, "Thank you, Master, for your grace. Thank you, Master, for your grace."
Seeing Daer Han being dragged away, Yang Jian was so scared that he felt like he was standing in front of the gates of hell. But when Hwang Tae-gil looked at him, his expression became much gentler. After asking about Zhou Qingfeng in detail, he arranged for his subordinates to take him to rest.
Looking at the burned Willow River Stronghold, Hwang Tae-gil's expression darkened again. Originally, he had thought that with his fifth brother, Mangurtai, here, he would definitely be able to ensure the safety of this outpost. But now that it had been burned by someone, it would be quite troublesome.
When an army went on a journey, it wasn't just about being fierce and brave. Food and lodging were the key. If they didn't eat and drink well, no matter how strong an army was, it would become a weakling.
Although Hwang Tae-gil looked calm and indifferent, he was actually extremely wary of Zhou Qingfeng, who had burned down Willow River Stronghold. He guessed that Zhou Qingfeng had probably discovered the traces of his army and was unable to stop them. He didn't have time to gather his subordinates and retreat, so he decided to burn down the entire Willow River Stronghold. In his eyes, this kind of enemy could be considered ruthless!
Right now, he had to rebuild Willow River Stronghold and send troops to guard this place. This would delay him for at least half a month. This messed up Nurhachi's plan to conquer Heculun.
After another half a day, Mangurtai came back riding an earth dragon with more than half of his bodyguards that were either injured or dead. Seeing the burned down Willow River Stronghold, he was extremely shocked and angry. "Where is that slave Daer Han? He actually failed to defend the stronghold? "
"A brat named Zhou Qingfeng attacked this place and burned down the stronghold," Hwang Tae-gil also sighed and said, "I have already ordered my men to speed up the repairs and sent someone to ask Father Han for help. This time, I'm afraid it will be more troublesome to conquer Heculun. Fifth brother, you fought against Chu Ying. What was the outcome? "
At the mention of Chu Ying, Mangurtai was even more furious. He shouted in a low, muffled voice, "Today, Grand Concubine Abahai spread news from Heculun, saying that the brat named Zhou Qingfeng is not a peaceful person. He escaped from Heculun and attracted the pursuit of Chu Ying and Uța. I originally wanted to fight with Chu Ying, but who knew that Chu Ying would ambush me five miles away from Willow River Stronghold.
I defeated Chu Ying and chased after him, but on the way, I met Uța and the others. I killed many of their subordinates and could only return when it was dark. Who knew that Willow River Stronghold would be ambushed and burned down? Now that I think about it, this Zhou Qingfeng is the most hateful. It's just that I didn't see him on my way back. Otherwise, I would have definitely caught him and executed him. "
Mangueerte was furious and filled with hatred. Right now, even Master Zhou had become a street rat and had enemies everywhere. Not a single person liked him. Those who wanted to get rid of him were all powerful characters, and many of them were famous people.
"Although I didn't catch Zhou Qingfeng, I did catch a servant who escaped from his troops." Mangurtai waved his hand, and someone threw a tied up fellow from the saddle in front of Hwang Tae-gil.
After the rope was untied and the rag in his mouth was removed, the fellow hurriedly kowtowed and said, "Master, two masters, I am a loyal and devoted servant. My name is Mao Ada, and I have a blood feud with that Zhou Qingfeng. That brat …. That brat stole my son and killed my wife. He destroyed my family, and I cannot live under the same sky with him. "
Looking at the weeping Mao Ada on the ground, Hwang Tae-gil couldn't help but feel disgusted. Mangurtai also found him noisy and kicked him away, saying, "Don't be so long-winded. Repeat what you just said to me to Babei Lei."
"Yes, yes, yes …." Mao Ada told him how he followed Daer Han to Ehekulun to serve Grand Concubine Abahai, how he was forced to become a carpenter by his' enemy 'Zhou Qingfeng, how he escaped to Liuhe Village, and how he found an opportunity to escape. He also said that he saw Zhou Qingfeng escape from Liuhe Village after suffering a great defeat.
"Escape after suffering a great defeat?" Hwang Tae-gil felt that this was strange.
"This Liuhe Village has such a brave master like Babei Lei guarding it, how could that Zhou brat be his match? I saw that when he led his troops to Liuhe Village, there were more than two hundred people, but when I saw him escape, there were less than fifty people left. That hurried and wretched appearance was naturally because he suffered a loss at Babei Lei's hands and fled in defeat. "
Mao Ada didn't know the situation, and only relied on his imagination and some information to determine that Zhou Qingfeng had suffered a great loss at Liuhe Village and fled. Hwang Tae-gil didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he heard this, thinking to himself that if he was really guarding this Liuhe Village, how could he let others turn this place into ashes?
However, Hwang Tae-gil was rather concerned about the path that Zhou Qingfeng took to escape from Ehekulun. When he heard that the latter didn't take the main road but the waterway, and instead went ashore before approaching Liuhe Village, and how he didn't get discovered along the way, he couldn't help but click his tongue in wonder.
"This kid is quite courageous, and he does things very carefully. My fifth brother was fighting with Chu Ying, but he dared to come out and attack Liuhe Village. He could have escaped, but he retreated without hesitation before I arrived. His adaptability is quite decisive, and he will be a strong enemy in the future. "
Hearing Hwang Tae-gil's high evaluation, Mangurtai snorted coldly, "It's a good thing that I didn't run into this kind of person who hides. If I ran into him, no matter how adaptable he was, he would still die."
Hwang Tae-gil could only smile bitterly at his fifth brother's words, and the topic stopped there. No matter who it was, there was no way for them to create houses in Liuhe Village out of thin air. They could only arrange for their subordinates to camp out in the open, and send people to the rear to quickly send up the slaves who were working. Other than that, they could only send more scouts to scout around, and guard Liuhe Village well.
What about Zhou Qingfeng at this moment? He was retreating into the mountains with the last forty or so of his treasured backbone. He couldn't call for help, and neither could the heavens nor the earth. He was frowning and didn't know what to do.
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