vrcanaries Chapter 189 The Trumpet Sounds
Chapter 189 The Trumpet Sounds
“Hahaha!” Zong Yanli was overjoyed. He immediately helped Sang Caijie up, looked sideways at Sha Haoqian and the others and said happily: “With your help, we can drive the enemy a thousand miles away!”
In early winter, help came from all directions.
As the number of troops increased, Zong Yanli also made more detailed deployments. At this point, Zong Yanli had 80,000 troops under his command, which was not much different from the enemy, so he was not without the ability to fight.
The winter brought a bit of chill. Zong Yanli had been repeatedly arranging his troops these days. After all, the soldiers and horses that had not been with Zong Yanli from the beginning to the end would be terrible if they could not be arranged properly and led to dissatisfaction and internal strife.
All the generals who came to support were capable of leading an army, but Sang Caijie came alone. After some thought, Zong Yanli decided to let Sang Caijie temporarily serve as his personal soldier and let him lead the army after he made military achievements.
Sang Caijie had no objection to this and readily agreed.
All the troops gathered together, and Zong Yanli held a banquet to welcome the generals.
"We have never seen this northern army before." The generals sitting at the banquet drank happily and talked about the northern countries, all of whom knew only a little about them.
"I do know a little bit." Sha Haoqian took a drink from the wine bowl and raised his eyebrows and said, "When Emperor Qing wanted to ask for help from the Northern Kingdom, he had already sent envoys, but in the end he failed to convince the Northern Kingdom to send troops to help. It seems that the talks did not reach an agreement."
"The envoy brought back some news. The northern countries are not as strong as they could be. Every country wants to be the number one overlord in the north."
"The Northern Kingdom and Wuhuan actually formed an alliance and invaded our south. They must have been oppressed in the north."
Sha Haoqian told as much information as he could, and everyone was very surprised to hear it. Zong Yanli and Zong Yanhongjing were sitting in the main seats. They were not surprised at all to hear the news that Qing Kingdom had asked for help from the Northern Kingdom.
Judging from this speculation, in the previous life, Qing Kingdom might have really reached an agreement with the Northern Kingdom, which is why the Northern Kingdom came to its aid.
There is really no point in helping the Qing Kingdom in this life...
"The climate in the north is cold, and the northern army is good at fighting in winter. I guess it won't be long before the northern army launches an offensive." Zong Yanli said in a deep voice, looking up at everyone and said, "We don't have much time left."
"General, rest assured. Our army has sufficient reserve military supplies, and winter clothes have already been distributed." Kuang Xingquan, who was standing beside him, said loudly, "Even if we fight in winter, our army will not necessarily lose."
"Yeah." Zong Yanli smiled and nodded in agreement.
The military banquet did not last long. The soldiers knew that drinking these two sips of wine was just for fun and no one would get drunk at this time.
The soldiers under Zong Yanli were particularly self-conscious and self-disciplined. When generals like Lei Jiliang and Peng Hai who came to support him saw that everyone was so self-conscious, they couldn't help but follow suit. After finishing a jar of wine, they all tacitly agreed not to drink any more.
After a brief celebration, everyone dispersed. Not long after Zong Yanli returned to his tent, Sang Caijie returned in the cold wind, still a little cold.
"General, I have found out almost everything." Sang Caijie was sent out by Zong Yanli on the first day he joined the army.
"Come in, tell me." Zong Yanli invited Sang Caijie into the tent, and sat around the charcoal brazier to warm himself. Then he looked at him and asked, "How is it?"
"As the general guessed, the leader of the Northern Army is Yi Tiangan." Sang Caijie took the hot tea handed to him by Zong Yanli, drank two sips and said quickly: "There is a man named Zhuang Chengbi in the Jin army, and he is now in the enemy's main tent."
Sang Caijie is the most suitable person to hide in the city. He has not received any military training and does not have the aura of a general.
Zong Yanli sent him out to investigate the details of the enemy troops, and it only took a few days for them to finish the investigation.
As Sang Caijie warmed himself by the fire, he continued, "I also learned that the commander of the Wuhuan army is called Duzhe, and he seems to be having a hard time with the Northern Army."
"Oh?" Zong Yanli sat up slightly and said to Sang Caijie, "Why not?"
"I don't know the details, but I heard it seemed to be because of a woman." Sang Caijie shook his head slightly, feeling a little regretful that he was unable to find out more information.
"There are quite a few Wuhuan troops coming this time. Duzhe is extremely handsome. The general will recognize him as soon as he sees him." Sang Caijie continued, and then he talked about the enemy's recent movements, which were mostly very ordinary and not very noisy.
However, it can be clearly seen that the Wuhuan soldiers obviously did not listen to Yi Tiangan's words.
The biggest characteristic of these Northern Army soldiers is that they are extremely disrespectful to the people of Jin. Although they came to provide assistance, once they entered the city of Jin, they would forcibly drag any woman they liked into the army.
Or asking for it from the State of Jin, such behavior would make the people of Jin very disgusted.
Now there are almost no women coming out of the city of Jin State. They are all hiding in their homes in panic. And those soldiers, relying on their power, rush around recklessly and rob treasures and food are commonplace.
The time that the Northern Army was stationed there was like letting bandits live in their homes for the people of Jin.
After listening to Sang Caijie's words, Zong Yanli nodded slowly. He did not make any major comments on the Northern Army's actions. Since the State of Jin had invited a wolf into the house, it would definitely have to pay the price.
"You've worked hard these past few days." Zong Yanli said to Sang Caijie, "You don't have to go to Jin State for the time being."
"If nothing unexpected happens, the two armies will start fighting soon." Zong Yanli thought in his heart, lowered his eyes and said in a cold voice: "You should go back and rest."
"Yes." Sang Caijie quickly stood up and agreed.
Zong Yanli's guess turned out to be correct. When Zong Yanli was seeking help from all directions, the Northern Army was also collecting information about the soldiers under Zong Yanli's command. Among them, a lot of information about the White Eagle Army, the Sky Thunder Army, and the world-famous Ghost Camp and Yin Soldiers had already been presented to the Northern Army.
Monkie, Lu Hao and others who had followed Zong Yanli in battles and fought in battles several times were all nominated.
Gongsun Pu, Pei Liang and others who served as think tanks were also listed as key targets for observation.
Now, almost all of you who are coming to help have been mentioned, and the Northern Army is not a group of reckless men. Since they can be praised as soldiers of the royal army, how could they go to war without understanding their opponents?
On the day of Frost's Descent, the clarion call for troops to march out finally sounded.
"General." Zong Yanli put on his armor, turned sideways to look at Wen Nian, lowered his eyes to the black gloves he handed to him, raised his eyebrows slightly, took them and put them on neatly.
"Organize the army and meet the enemy." She reached out and covered her face with the cold bronze ghost mask, turned around, holding the long sword at her waist, and strode out of the camp.
The two armies faced each other in front of the battlefield. Looking down from above, it was like two lions meeting each other. The densely packed crowd was shocking and frightening.
The armies fought against each other in neat and tidy formations. Sitting on the enemy's chariot was Yi Tiangan. In front of the army, a man sitting on horseback had an extremely handsome face, deep facial features and a pair of peach blossom eyes that were incredibly beautiful.
This is the leader of the Wuhuan Kingdom mentioned by Sang Caijie, Duzhe.
On the other hand, on Zong Yanli's side, Zong Yanhongjing sat upright on the generals' platform, Zong Yanli sat high on his warhorse and stood in front of the formation, with the generals lined up on both sides behind him.
"Who will go to the first battle in front of the battlefield?" Zong Yanhongjing narrowed his eyes and looked at the enemy's raised battle flag. For a moment, no one on either side moved.
Yi Tiangan on the other side asked the same question.
But while he was speaking, he had already looked at Du Zhe, and said with a hint of smile in his tone: "This is our first battle in the south, and it's time to let them see what we can do."
Yi Tiangan looked at Du Zhe and said, "If General Du doesn't go into battle, I'm afraid it will be difficult to deter the enemy."
Du Zhe snorted coldly: "If you want me to fight, then tell Zong Yanli to come out and fight with me!"
Yi Tiangan narrowed his eyes, turned his head and said: "If General Du can call out Zong Yanli in the challenge, no matter you win or lose, I will remember you as the first meritorious service."
Du Zhe felt humiliated when he heard Yi Tiangan's words, as if he could not defeat Zong Yanli. He angrily spurred his horse and rushed out of the army formation, challenging the Wu army and boasting that he wanted to compete with Zong Yanli.
"Who is this dog barking about? Is it worthy enough to ask our general to go to fight?" Monkey was furious and turned around to ask for permission to meet this person.
"Not appropriate." Zong Yanli raised his hand slightly, suppressed Meng Qi's request for a fight and said, "This battle is a great opportunity to boost the morale of our army."
"Since the Northern Army sent the Wuhuan general to challenge us, it's clear that they want to win and show off." Zong Yanli pondered for a moment and said, "We can't lose this battle, otherwise we will not only lose the face of Wu State, but also the face of the southern countries."
Zong Yanli gripped the hilt of the knife at his side, raised his eyes to look at Monkie and the others, thought for a moment and said, "I'll go."
Monchi and the others were shocked. The commander had to go to the first battle in person. Wasn't that a bit...
Zong Yanli turned to Zong Yanhongjing and said, "Father, before this, Gaoguo was defeated and our army fled, which has caused the morale of the army to be slightly low."
“Although we have the support of the generals, our numbers are only about the same.” Zong Yanli’s idea was very simple. She looked up at Zong Yanhongjing and said, “Father, I dare not say I will chop off his head, but…”
"It's not a bad idea to cut off one of his arms and enhance the prestige of our army!" Zong Yanli said in a resounding voice, and those words shocked everyone.
Zong Yanhongjing clenched his hands slightly. They were not familiar with the enemy general, and this battle was simply like throwing a stone to test the waters.
He looked at Zong Yanli and paused before saying, "Are you sure?"
Zong Yanli raised his eyes and smiled: "Father, if I am not sure, who else in this army would dare to fight?"
Zong Yanhongjing smiled when he heard her words, nodded and said, "Okay."
"It's been a long time since I've seen you fight a general. Let's take a good look today." Zong Yanhongjing looked at Zong Yanli and said with a smile, "Teach the other countries the rules of the Northern Army. Let them know that the southern countries are not easy to bully!"
"Yes!" Zong Yanli responded loudly and turned to fight.
Kuang Xingquan, Meng Qi and others were all in high spirits. Since Zong Yanli had led the army to fight for so many years, there was no need to fight with generals anymore.
They are now also very curious about how powerful their general has become.
Countless pairs of eyes stared at Zong Yanli, watching her drive her horse out of the military formation, come to the front of the two armies, and stand opposite Du Zhe.
Du Zhe saw Zong Yanli riding his horse to the battle, and his eyes flashed. He stared at the bronze ghost mask on Zong Yanli's face and frowned, "Are you Zong Yanli?"
"Who are you?" Zong Yanli looked disdainful as he glanced Duzhe up and down. It must be said that this man was indeed very handsome. At least in all these years, Zong Yanli had never seen a handsome man as handsome as Duzhe.
He is not only handsome, but also gentle yet strong, with a wild beauty.
With his profound facial features, he is a handsome man who can charm thousands of girls. It's a pity that he is facing military generals, so he has no place to display his handsome face.
Du Zhe frowned and glared at Zong Yanli, then sneered and said, "This general has long wanted to experience the Langque Knife in your hand. Let me see how capable you are!"
As soon as Du Zhe finished speaking, he drew his sword and rushed over to kill him.
The sword in his hand was a big sword, which was lighter than a heavy sword and heavier than a light sword. The big sword was a bit like the blade of a samurai cavalryman, and it even had a bit of beauty when he used it. Zong Yanli thought for no reason that if he captured this man, he would perform a sword dance at the military celebration banquet in the future, which would definitely be pleasing to the eye.
Clang——! ! !
As the swords clashed, Du Zhe's face was filled with anger: "How dare you be distracted when fighting me!?"
"So what?" Zong Yanli sneered, holding his long sword across his body to block Du Zhe's slashing sword, staring at him coldly and saying, "If you can hurt me even a little, I'll count you as the winner."
"Arrogant!" Du Zhe was very angry after hearing what Zong Yanli said. He stood up angrily and rushed towards Zong Yanli again.
Zong Yanli took a half step back, then took a deep breath and rushed forward to fight back.
The purpose of this battle was to test the waters by throwing stones, so Zong Yanli naturally had nothing to hold back. He swung his long sword, which was filled with a thousand pounds of force, towards Du Zhe with extremely ferocious force.
Langque has fought with Zong Yanli for many years and has already drunk enough blood. There is murderous aura mixed in his sword energy. Zong Yanli's momentum with the sword is simply terrifying. The two parties watching the battle from afar couldn't help but hold their breath when watching the two people fighting.
"Zong Yanli..." Yi Tiangan looked at Du Zhe who couldn't get any benefit from Zong Yanli, and couldn't help but narrowed his eyes. His eyes darkened slightly, as if he was weighing how much fighting power he would have if he took action against him.
"I haven't seen Zong Yanli for a few years. It seems that his martial arts skills have increased again?" Yu Jinghui's eyes almost popped out, thinking to himself that he had underestimated it.
"I'm afraid General Duzhe will be defeated." Zhuang Chengbi frowned silently and said softly.
As soon as Zhuang Chengbi finished speaking, he saw that the sword in Duzhe's hand was almost dropped from his hand after being hit by Zong Yanli. Seeing the sharp long sword slashing towards Duzhe's throat, Yi Tiangan could not help but sit up suddenly, his heart beating fast.
Du Zhe felt the approach of death at this moment. The blade that was passing by his neck only needed to move a little closer to easily cut his throat. He leaned back to barely avoid it.