Mu Zian immediately ordered the camp’s commanders to gather.
Without hesitation, he revealed Jia Xu’s entire strategy.
Inside the tent, silence reigned. Indeed, Jia Xu’s plan was tempting, but it carried significant risk. After all, the exact situation in Luzhou was still unknown. Whether the rebels numbered fifty thousand or a hundred thousand, or even more, was unclear.
Sending a light cavalry force into Luzhou could certainly cause chaos, but if surrounded, the consequences would be disastrous.
As the commanders pondered, a tall, burly man stepped forward and said, “This gentleman’s strategy is indeed a rare plan, but the risk is too great. Pei Jianzhi’s defeat is a painful lesson.”
The speaker was Zhang Han, commander of the Vanguard Battalion.
Jia Xu smiled slightly. “Pei Jianzhi failed because he underestimated the enemy and grew complacent, falling into an ambush. The rebels rested and conserved their strength, gaining a natural advantage.”
“However, Luzhou’s rebels are formed by a mix of mountain strongholds. Their forces are complex and scattered, and they cannot be truly united. But once the imperial army arrives, facing life and death, they’ll be like grasshoppers on the same rope, fighting desperately, making suppression much harder.”
“But if a cavalry force can strike Luzhou first and seize a stronghold, the rebels will be caught unprepared. Their formations will be thrown into disarray, leading to mistakes, suspicion, and infighting. When the main army arrives, we can annihilate them effortlessly.”
Hearing Jia Xu’s explanation, the officers once again fell into deep thought.
At that moment, Mu Zian stepped forward and said firmly, “The matter is settled. I will personally lead this cavalry force.”
The entire tent gasped in shock. Mu Zian was the Emperor’s personally appointed General Who Conquers the Rebellious. If anything happened to him, none of them could bear the consequences.
Just as they were about to protest, Mu Zian spoke, “How can we let our splendid rivers and mountains fall into rebel hands? The sooner we arrive, the sooner the people of Luzhou can find peace. Though I am young, I understand the weight of family and country. All of you are veteran generals, far more experienced in battlefield command than I am. I am not as capable in leading troops.”
“Rather than sitting back and taking undeserved credit, I would rather show you what Mu Zian is capable of.”
At these words, everyone was stunned. Especially Zhang Han, whose eyes reddened, as if he saw the once-dominant figure of the past.
“The State-Stabilizing Duke’s legacy has a worthy successor!”
Jia Xu also praised with a clasp of his hands, “Young Master’s character does not fall short of your late father.”
With things said to this point, how could anyone object?
That night, Mu Zian personally led three thousand cavalry toward Luzhou.
Under the starlit night, the closer they got to Luzhou, the more desolate the surroundings became. Corpses lay scattered along the road, with wild dogs gnawing at them. The scene was bleak and desolate.
When they reached an abandoned village, Mu Zian ordered a halt to rest. After ten hours of forced march, they had entered Luzhou’s territory.
Mu Zian frowned at the scene before him. Luzhou’s situation was worse than he had imagined. The village still reeked of blood.
Mu Zian immediately dispatched scouts in all directions. Jia Xu pulled a map from his robe and pointed ahead, “According to the information from the Royal City Bureau, Pei Jianzhi’s force of three thousand elite soldiers was ambushed about thirty li from here.”
“The mountains around here stretch endlessly. There must be rebel vanguards stationed nearby. The lingering smell of blood indicates that this village was slaughtered not long ago. I suspect that within ten li, there must be a band of rebels.”
As Jia Xu finished speaking, a scout rushed in.
“Reporting to the State-Stabilizing Duke! Eight li ahead, a rebel force has been spotted, estimated at about twenty thousand.”
Without hesitation, Mu Zian ordered, “Prepare for battle! Advance!”
Thunder suddenly exploded across the sky, followed by a torrential downpour, as if trying to cleanse the filth of the world.
In a rice field, countless ragged civilians were herded like livestock, their already tattered clothes soaked by the rain. Around them echoed lewd laughter, mingled with the shrill cries of women.
The faces of these civilians were blank, as if their souls had been worn away by endless suffering.
Inside a crude tent, several rebels with vile smiles on their faces were carousing. Nearby, naked female corpses lay sprawled grotesquely, their broken bodies silently telling of their suffering.
A bald, burly man sat in the center, holding a greasy roasted lamb leg in one hand and groping a woman with the other. On either side, his trusted lieutenants reveled in drunkenness.
A one-eyed man raised his wine bowl and laughed loudly, “Big Brother! Today, we finally know what it feels like to live like real men! Eat what we want, kill who we want, and even those lofty noble ladies can be played with at will—it’s like being gods!” This chapter is updated first at novelping . com.
The others raised their cups in agreement.
The leader, Luo Daniu, laughed heartily, his face full of arrogance. “Follow me, Luo Daniu, and you’ll feast and enjoy pleasures every day! Women like these will be endless!”
As he spoke, Luo Daniu flung the woman in his arms away. Immediately, the lustful rebels pounced on her.
“Big Brother, I heard the court has sent troops again.”
Luo Daniu sneered, “What court? They’re just a bunch of useless fat pigs! Two shoulders carrying one head—what’s there to fear?”
“And wasn’t there a so-called General Who Conquers Rebels captured recently—what was his name…”
“Pei Jianzhi.”
“Yes, that’s him! A complete waste. We crushed them with a little trick before they even set foot in Luzhou! If that’s what the Emperor’s men are like, what’s there to be afraid of?”
“If not for that woman who escaped, we wouldn’t even be scouring the hills for people now.”
“But it’s fine! This way, we can plunder even more! It’s a windfall!”
Inside the tent, the debauchery and cruelty stood in stark contrast to the misery outside. In the tent, the tattered woman stared blankly into the pitch-black night beyond the tent.
“Will someone come to save me? Will someone save me?” she whispered.
A drunken rebel, seeing her, grabbed her hair and spat at her angrily, “What’s with that look? Are you not grateful for serving us? Shameless!”
Saying this, he drew the dagger at his waist and thrust it toward her smooth back.
But just as the blade was about to pierce her skin, a sharp sound cut through the night. An arrow shot through the air and nailed the rebel’s throat!
In the next instant, the rapid thunder of hooves echoed in the rain!
Atop his horse, Mu Zian gripped the Heaven-Quaking Bow, his face dark and stern. He roared, “Leave no rebel alive! Kill them all!”