The Emperor Reigns Them All

Chapter 217 Being Unexpected

Yang Fuguang said this for Li Ye’s sake. He was worried that Li Ye would become angry, due to embarrassment, as he had not able to conquer Tongguan, for such a long time, and that he would ask the Pinglu Army to keep attacking it, out of desperation. He was afraid that the soldiers would be dissatisfied in the end. And when casualties reached a certain point, they needed to rest, in order to recover. By that time, the Yanmen Army would certainly take advantage of the situation.

Li Ye smiled. “Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.”

Yang Fuguang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately asked, “Then tomorrow?”

Li Ye said, “Let the Pinglu Army attack the city.”

Yang Fuguang was stunned for a moment. Was what he said earlier, just a waste of breath?

Li Ye saw Yang Fuguang looking a bit muddled. He wanted to persuade him not to be so reckless, but he was afraid that the other side would suspect him of being partial to Li Keyong.

Li Ye was moved in his heart. Suddenly, he asked, “When do you think we can conquer Tongguan?”

Yang Fuguang sighed. “Your Highness, please forgive my honesty. I’m afraid that we can’t conquer Tongguan in less than a month.”

Li Ye smiled and said, “Tomorrow.”

Yang Fuguang was stunned.

“This is top secret. I hope you keep it a secret.” Li Ye’s smile became more profound, but he did not intend to explain it.

Yang Fuguang was confused and thought that Li Ye was talking in his dream. He left with mixed feelings. Before long, Shangguan Qingcheng, Song Jiao, Zhao Polu and Liu Dazheng came to meet Li Ye, at the same time.

Looking at them, Li Ye asked faintly, “Is everything ready?”

Everyone said, “Everything is ready as you commanded.”

Li Ye nodded and finally looked at Song Jiao. Song Jiao understood and took the initiative to answer, “It has been confirmed for the seventh time.”

When she spoke, she emphasized the three words “the seventh time”. Apparently, she was a little tired, as Li Ye kept tormenting her in this way.

Li Ye stood up and went before the map. His fingers slid on the map and his gaze gradually became fierce. “The last few days, we sent out twenty thousand old troops to fight. After months of fighting, among the hundred thousand Pinglu soldiers, the eighty thousand new troops have already made rapid progress. They are much better than the twenty thousand old troops. However, even the old troops were able to capture several square cities in Jingu, easily. After days of fierce fighting, the enemy troops are exhausted and the arrows and ordnance have all been used up. Once the new troops go out to fight, Tongguan will inevitably be conquered!”

After he spoke, Li Ye glanced at everyone, “After conquering Tongguan, the troops should not stop. Shangguan Qingcheng, you lead the three thousand cavalrymen of the Wolf-tooth Troop and go straight to Huazhou. I will give you another five thousand cavalrymen and I have only one request. You lead the eight thousand cavalrymen to drive straight into Huazhou!”

Shangguan Qingcheng said with cupped fists, “The two armies have been fighting in Tongguan for many days. Not only the Zhongwu Army and the Yanmen Army, but also the enemy troops who guarded Tongguan and Huazhou thought that the battle was bound to end in a deadlock. Tongguan is not far away from Huazhou, so the elite cavalrymen can rush there in two or four hours. If Tongguan can be quickly conquered, Huazhou will not be able to respond in time. I can directly rush into the city, without giving them the chance to respond and close the gate.”

Li Ye nodded slightly. “The Black Office has already dispatched elite cultivators to lurk in Huazhou. As long as you don’t move too slowly, the Black Office can help you to stall them for a while, even if Huazhou responds to close the city gates.”

Shangguan Qingcheng said, “Your Highness, please be assured. If I can’t conquer Huazhou, I will return to you, without my head!”

Li Ye nodded, without saying much.

Li Ye was determined to conquer Tongguan and Huazhou, and he didn’t intend to share a bit of achievements with Li Keyong. By that time, when Li Keyong responded, Shangguan Qingcheng had already rushed past Tongguan.

This was the reason why Li Ye sent only the old troops to attack the city for the past few days. He wanted to let Li Keyong take it lightly, and neglect to take precautions. Li Keyong thought that Li Ye couldn’t conquer Tongguan in such a short time, therefore, Li Ye would have a chance to “surprise” him.

As for the two masters in the Spiritual Master Realm in Tongguan, they had been confirmed by Song Jiao several times.

The next day, Li Ye did not put on any armor, just a cyan robe. He did not go to Tongguan, but followed Liu Dazheng to the twelve linked cities in Jingu.

Li Keyong heard that Li Ye had gone to Jingu, without wearing an armor. Obviously, Li Ye didn’t intend to supervise the battle on the battlefield, and he just wanted to look around, and stay in the background. Li Keyong couldn’t help, but curl his lips in disdain. He said to Huiming, “When Li Ye occupied Dengzhou, defeated Zhu Wen, and wiped out Guandong, everyone in the world praised Li Ye for being brave, battlewise and even better than Li Xian. I originally thought that he was the hidden genius, but now I think that he has been overpraised.”

Huiming replied, without any expression on his face, “Men of talent come out in succession during troubled times. But how many, really great talents can there be? Li Ye was able to occupy Dengzhou. In the final analysis, it was because Zhu Wen fought a bloody battle to occupy Dengzhou and he was exhausted. And Li Ye joined forces with the Zhongwu Army and had great momentum. He took advantage of the general trend.”

“When it comes to fighting on the battlefield, how can the Pinglu Army compare with the Yanmen Army? The Shatuo tribe has been garrisoning the borders for generations. Fighting on the battlefield is a common thing for them. The cavalrymen of the Tartar tribe are good at riding, since their childhood days. In terms of skills for shooting and riding, the cavalry of the Central Plains can’t catch up with them.”

Li Keyong said complacently, “I wonder if Li Ye understands the situation clearly, and is aware that his Pinglu Army can’t conquer the magnificent and dangerous pass, when he returns from Jingu today. Will he ask me for help?”

Huiming looked steadily forward. “Whether he will ask for your help or not today, he has to do so in the end. Why rush?”

“You’re right.”

Li Keyong was suddenly interested in drinking tea and playing chess with Huiming. As a military general on the battlefield, Li Keyong did not like playing chess, because he thought it was a pastime of the literati. But he was in a good mood today, so he was willing to play chess with Huiming. These days, seeing the Pinglu Army and Li Ye suffer defeats, Li Keyong grew happier, day by day.

Before they even played two rounds, a scout suddenly came and reported urgently, “Report! Commander, the Pinglu Army has captured a linked city in Jingu!”

Li Keyong was slightly stunned, “Oh? They did not make any progress in the last few days. I did not expect that they would succeed today.”

Huiming said, “They could not capture the square city for several days. It meant that they had attacked the city to a deep extent, so the square city, of course, could no longer withstand it.”

They stopped talking and continued with their chess game.

This time, when they just finished a round, the scout came to report again, with more urgency than the last time. “Report! The Pinglu Army has captured two square cities in succession!”

Li Keyong was stunned and his expression changed slightly. He kept the chess piece in his hand for a long time. He turned around and stared at the scout. “What’s going on?”

The scout replied, “The Pinglu Army’s offensive is particularly fierce today, and even Prince An is there, fighting in person!”

“Even Li Ye is fighting? No wonder they could capture two square cities in succession. He’s just angry due to the embarrassment. Is he going to fight desperately?” Li Keyong looked unhappy and worried. He glanced at Huiming who looked calm, and suddenly smiled. “Master, are the two masters of the Zhongnan Mountain Taoist sect, who are in the Spiritual Master Realm, still in Tongguan?”

Huiming said, “According to today’s morning report, they’re still there.”

Li Keyong smiled even more brightly. “That will be no problem. Since Li Ye is fighting in person, the two masters in the Spiritual Master Realm will not turn a blind eye to him. Now there are only two square cities left, and it’s probably the most difficult to attack. Those two masters in the Spiritual Master Realm definitely won’t sit idly by!”

Huiming’s voice was flat but confident. “Of course.”

They continued playing chess.

This time, before they could finish a round, the scout came to report once again. “Report! Commander, the Pinglu Army has captured a square city once again. Now all the rebels in Jingu have retreated to the last square city!”

Li Keyong’s expression changed greatly. He asked urgently, “Did the masters in the Spiritual Master Realm go out to fight?”

“No!”

Li Keyong did not continue with the chess game. He was startled enough to stand up and kept pacing back and forth in the camp, frowning. After a long time, he gritted his teeth and said, “No, I have to go and see in person! There is only one square city left. Although that square city is said to be as firm as Tongguan, the Pinglu Army is making too rapid progress today!”

Li Keyong immediately said, “Quick, get my horse!”

Huiming looked at the chessboard, without saying a word. The chess piece flew over his fingertips, but did not drop. Finally, he threw away the chess piece and stood up, to follow Li Keyong.

Li Keyong was impatient. He had no time to dispatch his trusted soldiers and the elite cavalry, so he directly led a group of master cultivators to fly to Jingu, by using a movement technique.

Flying over the ridges and valleys, he passed the eleven square cities along the way. Except for the first five square cities, the others looked badly damaged. Some of the city walls had crumbled and there were flesh and blood left between the cracks and gaps. Apparently, they had been cut off with a sword by a cultivator who had outstanding cultivation.

Li Keyong frowned and his eyes narrowed. His heart was shocked. “Even the cultivator at Level 9 of Qi-refining could not have such cultivation. How could there be such a master in the Pinglu Army? Did Li Ye fight in person? Wasn’t he afraid of being besieged by the masters in the Spiritual Master Realm?”

Even if he was able to defeat Wujizi, there were still two masters in the Spiritual Master Realm in Tongguan. Moreover, they were the master and the chief elder of the Zhongnan Mountain Taoist sect, and they were more powerful than Wujizi!

Li Keyong couldn’t figure it out. Normally, since those two masters guarded Tongguan, they should have fought earlier. Li Keyong knew clearly that if Jingu was captured, the troops would attack directly from the side into Tongguan!

Li Keyong saw the Pinglu Army. On top of the last hill, there was a camp made of stone. The walls were several meters high and over 500 meters in circumference. It was not a camp, but a city. It could accommodate thousands of soldiers!

Now, however, swarms of Pinglu soldiers were pouring into the square city, flooding the mountain. The battle cries were deafening, and they were in high spirits. There were at least ten thousand soldiers. In front of the troops, several cultivators clad in armor, flew up onto the top of the city wall, as swift as tigers or leopards. With the soldiers clad in armor, who climbed up the city wall using ladders, they fought a fierce battle on top of the city wall.

Li Keyong quickly approached. His gaze suddenly became serious and he looked shocked and surprised. His expression spread over his face, like a wave. Once it appeared, he couldn’t control it anymore.

He looked at the Pinglu soldiers under his feet in disbelief, as if he did not know them at all, and he had seen a strange army!

These Pinglu soldiers were far different from those he saw, when he watched the battle in Tongguan, and those he saw in Li Ye’s army barracks.

They wore bright clothes and armor, and the armor was so fine that one was envious of it. Every soldier was armed from top to bottom, a round shield in one hand, a long spear in the other hand, a knife on his waist, arrows on his back, and a crossbow at the side of his thigh behind his waist! All of them were covered from head to toe with armor, and even their faces were hidden by the armor!

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