newbobooks Chapter 412 Shadow Sect bribes Xiaotang, Yi Bu meets Ji Ruofeng at night.
Chapter 412 Shadow Sect bribes Xiaotang, Yi Bu meets Ji Ruofeng at night.
“Zhao’er has indeed grown a lot, enough to make Uncle look at him with new eyes! What you just said about ‘regicide’ does have some merit, but you also said that Xiao Chongjing’s life is not long, so let God take him away, so that we won’t be left with the infamy of regicide!”
Baili Chengfeng clapped his hands and laughed, his eyes full of praise for his nephew.
Wen Yanzhao suddenly remembered the important matter he was going to Tianqi City for and asked:
"Uncle, why is Grandpa Baili not in the camp? Could it be that he is still in Snow Moon City with Dongjun? I have important matters to discuss with him."
Baili Chengfeng waved his hand and pointed northeast:
"No, that's not it. The old man organized the army and headed north at dawn on the second day after you left. He was certain that Zhao'er would succeed in Tianqi, so he instructed me to stay here to train the surrendered Yunzhou army while waiting for your return."
These words left Wen Yanzhao somewhat bewildered:
"Heading north? Is Grandpa Baili planning to attack the eastern or western part of Shannan? The problem is, he only brought a little over ten thousand men with him to Xueyue City to intercept Lu Ting'en. If he wants to head north, that's probably far from enough, isn't it?"
Baili Chengfeng, feigning profundity, patted his nephew on the shoulder and laughed:
“Your uncle just praised you for growing up a lot, but now you’ve guessed wrong on both fronts! He’s leading his army north not to attack Shannan East Road, nor is he heading for Shannan West Road, but here…”
As Baili Chengfeng spoke, he pointed to the marching map on the wall of the large tent. Wen Yanzhao looked closely and saw that it was clearly the place closest to Yunzhou—Qianzhou Road!
……
As night fell, the moon set and crows cried.
A mighty cavalry force galloped from about thirty miles southeast of Juzhou City, along the road to Qianzhou.
Leading the charge was an old general in blood-red armor and golden robes. By the moonlight, one could vaguely make out that he was none other than Marquis Zhenxi, Baili Luochen, who had set out from Snow Moon City two days prior!
As Juzhou City drew ever closer, Baili Luochen slowed his horse's pace and turned to give the order:
"Deputy General Chen, relay my order: all troops shall dismount and rest for half an hour on the flat ground ahead. Then, with men gagged and horses' hooves wrapped in cloth, you and Sheng Yanwei will each lead a thousand-man squad, positioned on the left and right respectively, to attack the east and west gates of Juzhou..."
Chen Dunru clasped his hands and replied, "Your Excellency obeys! But... Lord Marquis, our scouts have already investigated before we came. The south gate of Juzhou City is the most heavily fortified. If Sheng Yanwei and I attack the east and west gates, what about the south gate?"
Baili Luochen tightened the reins, and his warhorse reared up and snorted a few times. He looked at the somewhat blurred outline of the Juzhou city wall in the night and said confidently:
"Don't worry, I'll take care of the toughest part, the South Gate!"
……
Outside Snowmoon City, at the Broken Wind Army's main camp.
"So, Grandpa Baili had planned this all before he even set off for Snowmoon City?"
Wen Yanzhao and his uncle Baili Chengfeng sat facing each other. The military register and command tokens were torn off the command table in front of them. The army kitchen prepared some food and sent it to the central command tent.
"The old man has fought battles all his life. His ability to think three steps ahead for every step he takes is his specialty. You, on the other hand, are still very inexperienced. Even I, his own son, have been by his side for over twenty years and have only learned the basics!"
Baili Chengfeng poured Wen Yanzhao a full cup of wine, his tone extremely smug.
Indeed, being the eldest son of the Marquis of Zhenxi is a source of pride.
"I knew it! Why did we choose to tackle the tough nut of Qianzhou instead of attacking the two easy targets in the south and east? It turns out Grandpa Baili was after the silver mines and medicinal herbs in Qianzhou!"
"We currently have ample military provisions, and our territory completely occupies the northern and southwestern half of the land; the only things we lack are silver and medicinal herbs!"
Baili Chengfeng tilted his head back and drank a cup of wine, then nodded and said:
"That's right, we collected about 13 million taels of tax silver from the Southwest Circuit and Sichuan, but this silver is only enough to support an army of 200,000 for two or three years!"
"As the saying goes, an army marches on its stomach, and our Breaking Wind Army is known for its generous benefits, so those tax silvers are far from enough!"
"Furthermore, casualties are inevitable in military campaigns. The dead will be compensated, but what about the wounded? They will need medical officers and medicine to heal their wounds... Alas, Yunzhou and the Southwest Circuit are not places that produce medicinal herbs. Only Qianzhou and Anguo County in the north are the two major medicinal herb capitals. Therefore, Qianzhou Circuit must be taken as soon as possible!"
Upon hearing this, Wen Yanzhao felt as if he had been struck by lightning. Because his body was covered in poison, he dared not touch his chopsticks, but carefully took the wine pot and refilled his cup.
“Great! There are three great silver mines in the world, two of which are in the north, one in Jiuyuan County and the other in Hechi County!”
Both silver mines are currently firmly controlled by the Northern Li, and only Qianzhou Daoju Prefecture is closest to us! Ah, I truly didn't expect this… the old Marquis's foresight is indeed shrewd; this isn't just about thinking three steps ahead, it's about recognizing that he had his eye on Qianzhou from the very beginning of his rebellion!
Baili Chengfeng chuckled noncommittally and tapped on the desk:
"So, you're still a novice! Drink up!"
……
The moonlight, like water, reflected in Tianqi City.
In the north of Tianqi City, a figure suddenly descended from the sky in front of a dilapidated temple.
The cuckoos in the nearby trees were startled and began to cry out, their voices somewhat eerie.
The figure was dressed in a black, close-fitting outfit, with a light beard on his chin, and looked to be in his forties. He had several wrinkles of varying depths at the corners of his eyes, tight lips, and a serious expression on his face.
The dark figure raised his hand and smashed open the dilapidated temple door with a single palm strike. Inside, the golden statue of Buddha was already in a state of disrepair, covered in dust and cobwebs.
"I am Yi Bu of the Shadow Sect. May I ask if Master Ji of the Hundred Knowledge Hall is here?"
These words revealed the identity of the visitor: it was none other than Yi Bu, the sect leader of the Shadow Sect.
This dilapidated temple is the disguise of the world-famous Baixiaotang; beneath the dilapidated temple lies the true location of Baixiaotang!
Ibli stood in the dilapidated temple for a good quarter of an hour. When no one responded, he took a deep breath and slapped the Buddha statue in front of him, which had lost a piece of mud!
"boom!"
The palm strike was fierce; half of the Buddha statue was smashed, revealing straw mixed with mud inside.
Ib looked around and, finding no one responding, grew furious. With a flick of his wrist, a black sword was drawn!
"Qiang!"
The sword light had just appeared when it was blocked by a flying bronze staff!
"clang!"
The clanging of metal against metal was deafening, making Yi Buhukou feel a little numb.
"Such powerful internal energy, Ji Ruofeng, you've got quite the airs, haven't you? You're not even willing to give me face?"
Upon seeing the stick, Yi Bu already knew that Ji Ruofeng had appeared.
"The Shadow Sect Master is honored to have you here. May I ask what brings you to my Hundred Knowledge Hall?"
Ji Ruofeng's voice came from behind Yi Bu, and Ji Ruofeng suddenly appeared at the entrance of the dilapidated temple, which had been deserted just moments before.
He stood behind Yi Bu, dressed in red robes with white sleeves, wearing a Prajna mask, and holding a Wuji staff.
Yi Bu suddenly turned around, pointing his sword directly at Ji Ruofeng, and said:
"Stop playing tricks on me. Although your Hundred Knowledge Hall is a Jianghu organization, all land under heaven belongs to the king. Even if you, Ji Ruofeng, have some skills, you are still under the rule of my Great Li!"
Ji Ruofeng sneered, put away his Wuji Staff, and gave a perfunctory fist salute:
"Sect Leader Yi is right. I do run a Jianghu organization, but as the saying goes, 'A word can make people laugh, and a word can make people jump.' Asking for favors is all about words."
"Your cold words suggest you might be seeking something from my Hundred Knowledge Hall, don't you?"
Yi Bu's face flushed red, speechless at Ji Ruofeng's words. He realized he had indeed come here to ask Ji Ruofeng for a favor, so he sheathed his sword and softened his tone, saying:
"Master Ji is right. I have come to the Hundred Knowledge Hall on imperial orders to inquire about something!"
Ji Ruofeng looked at Yi Bu with great interest through the mask. Bai Xiaotang and Yingzong had always kept to themselves, but they occasionally had business conflicts in gathering information and intelligence, so they were not very harmonious with each other.
In addition, since the Shadow Sect belongs to the Xiao imperial family, the Hundred Knowledge Hall often suffers losses at the hands of the Shadow Sect and there is nothing they can do about it.
"Sect Leader Yi, please speak. Whatever it is, as long as I, Ji Ruofeng, know it, I will tell you frankly!"
Yi Bu raised his hand and channeled his inner strength, slamming the door of the dilapidated temple behind Ji Ruofeng shut with a loud bang.
Ji Ruofeng turned around, looked at it, and shook his head:
"Sect Leader Yi, are you afraid of being overheard? You underestimate my Hundred Knowledge Hall. Without my permission, not even a sparrow could fly over here. There are only the two of us here, no third pair of ears!"
Ib was unmoved and reached into his robes to pull out a yellow piece of paper:
"By imperial decree, with spring in full bloom, the liver fire is easily agitated. Having heard of the extraordinary skills of the legendary physician Xin Baicao, in order to heal the Emperor's body, the Shadow Sect is hereby ordered to lead a group to search for Medicine King Valley and the whereabouts of the tenth generation Medicine King, Xin Baicao. So be it!"
"Master Ji, I know that your Hundred Knowledge Hall knows everything under the heavens. Here is 50,000 taels of silver. After finding Xin Baicao, there will be another 50,000 taels as a reward. Without further ado, you are a smart man. I will take my leave!"
After saying that, Yi Bu flashed past Ji Ruofeng, burst through the dilapidated temple gate, and disappeared into the night.
Ji Ruofeng stood motionless, five silver notes appearing in his hand without his knowledge. He rubbed the notes and mocked:
"Bullshit! You damned Shadow Sect! Is the Emperor's life only worth 100,000 taels of silver? You old bastard, how much kickback have you taken? You're really corrupt!"
……
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