Chapter 48: Peach Picking Pioneer, Governor Liu
300 miles east of Juhe County was Lu County.
This was one of the 13 counties of Fengzhou, and also the waterway hub of Fengzhou.
Not only was it adjacent to Hong River, but it was also located at the intersection of the three rivers. It could be used as a point of travel through the entire Lu County by water. Since ancient times, it had been a place that military factions fought over for.
King Yan chose to invade Lu County for the final goal of taking down this city.
There were canals on three sides of Lu County City. Many ports had been built here for passing merchant ships to anchor.
At this moment, there was a seemingly ordinary cargo ship moored in one of the ports of Hong River.
The cargo ship was filled with gold, silver, and jewelry. There were also more than ten women and a few boys hiding inside.
They sat in the cabin, a little restless.
Finally, when the sun was about to set, a middle-aged man with a big belly and dressed like a businessman arrived.
The people in the cabin heaved a sigh of relief when they saw him.
“Thank goodness, thank goodness. Old Master is finally here.”
This middle-aged man was none other than the governor of Lu County, Liu Litao. He was the highest-ranking official in charge of all military affairs in the county.
A few days ago, he received a report that King Yan’s vanguard army had already occupied Dachang County and was about to conquer Juhe County.
Governor Liu was so frightened that he decided to abandon the city and escape.
However, he had earned too much money in Lu County over the years and had taken in too many concubines. Just the preparation alone took him a few days.
Today, he was finally fully prepared. He even pretended to be going out to visit the commoners.
He also told his subordinates that he would be back in seven days at most.
But just as Liu Litao was about to board the ship, a servant suddenly rushed over.
“Old Master, an urgent military report!” The servant ran over, panting. He was still holding a letter. “There’s an urgent report from Captain.”
“Wretched thing, you’re delaying my escape.” Governor Liu cursed in his heart, but he still opened the military report calmly.
After all, the military intelligence could also be used as a reference for his escape route.
Moreover, although the county commandant was nominally assisting the governor in managing the military, he was actually on the same side as the governor and had an independent office. If the governor was not around, he could even replace him as the governor.
It was impossible for him to ignore the military report sent by the commandant.
“What?!”
When Governor Liu saw the contents, he immediately exclaimed. His eyes widened as he read it again and again in disbelief. “Oh my god!”
“Juhe County’s defense was a great victory. Wei Cun, the Left Minister, was killed. Yan Sheng, the Right Minister, and King Yan’s younger brother, General Anbei, Wang Shun, were captured alive. More than half of the 50,000 troops were killed or injured?!
“How is that possible? How can a small Juhe County City block an army of 50,000? They said that the enemy army suffered a storm and lost their combat strength when they attacked. It’s ridiculous. Do they think this is a play script?”
The contents of the military report left him in disbelief.
As the governor of Lu County, he knew the situation in Juhe County very well. It was impossible for them to resist King Yan’s cavalry that swept through half of Fengzhou.
However, the military report said that Juhe County had defeated King Yan’s army.
“Could it be that Chen Tong sensed that I was about to escape and lied with the military intelligence?” A guess flashed through Liu Litao’s mind, but then he shook his head.
Lying about military intelligence was a serious crime. It was much more serious than him bringing his family to avoid the situation.
“Could it be true? But how is that possible?” Liu Litao held the military report and looked left and right, hesitating. “If this battle result is true…”
He did not believe in the contents of the military report about the storm, but he was very moved by the results of Juhe County’s defense.
The rebel King Yan had been wreaking havoc in Fengzhou for five years. He had won consecutive battles and had never tasted defeat.
The Great Jin Imperial Court had ordered the Fengzhou Prefecture Overseers to send troops to encircle and annihilate them several times, but they had all been brushed off.
As long as the results of Juhe County were true, no matter how they achieved it, it would be an unprecedented victory.
Especially since they had captured King Yan’s younger brother alive. It was simply a great merit!
“Whether it’s true or not, I have to send someone to investigate.” Liu Litao’s eyes lit up as he read the military report.
He had already thought of what benefits this matter could bring him.
“As long as the results are true, I can order the county magistrate of Juhe County to escort Wang Shun to Lu County. After giving him some rewards, I can escort Wang Shun to the capital!
“The current Governor of Fengzhou is incompetent and allowed the Yan bandits to wreak havoc. The Imperial Court has long been dissatisfied. Furthermore, if I made such a great contribution, it’s very likely that I’ll be appointed as the Governor of Fengzhou.
At that time, I, Liu Litao, will also be the king of a state. In this chaotic world, only with enough territory and troops and enough power can I settle down!”
Although the world was in chaos and it was difficult for the Great Jin Imperial Court’s decree to leave the Central Continent, the various commanders still respected the Great Jin Imperial Court as the orthodox leader.
They would not easily disobey the Emperor’s orders.
Otherwise, it would be a public rebellion. It would be very easy for the neighboring forces to use this as leverage and join forces to declare war on him in the name of punishing rebels.
In the end, it was inevitable that they would be defeated and die, and their territory would be divided up.
These Prefecture Overseers did not have the intention to serve the Imperial Court at all. They were only bold enough to use the excuse of serving the Imperial Court to snatch territory!
“This is my great opportunity!”
Liu Litao was so excited that he couldn’t control himself. He thought to himself, “Quick, I have to send someone to Juhe County as soon as possible. I’ll be the one to pick this peach!!”
As for the thoughts of the county magistrate of Juhe County, who would care about the thoughts of a sesame seed?
This was a world of power after all. No matter how powerful one’s martial cultivation was, they could not overturn the sky. No one could really call the wind and summon the rain!
...
After Cui Heng gave the order to form an army, Juhe County became busy.
Zhao Guang was especially busy.
Cui Heng, on the other hand, became idle. He finally had the time to take a look at his cultivation progress.
After that battle to defend the city, the Seven Emotions Light of the Golden Core had increased by leaps and bounds.
The red color that represented joy and the white color that represented love had already exceeded three inches. The black color of evil and the green color that represented fear had also exceeded two inches and were about to reach three inches.
The gray color that symbolizes sorrow only increased slightly, reaching a height of slightly more than 70%, and there was still quite a bit of difference to one inch.
What gave Cui Heng the greatest headache was the yellow color that symbolizes desire.
How could he make the yellow color higher?
This was indeed a question worth thinking about.
However, it was difficult for him to figure out anything at the moment. He could only focus on figuring out how to use his Dharmic powers again.
While trying to see if he could play any new tricks, he also wanted to see if he could find some breakthroughs in the use of Dharmic powers.
As dusk approached, Cui Heng was still experimenting with some new techniques.
There was a sudden knock on the door.
“County Lord, a female priest is waiting outside. She said her name is Xu Bailu.” The messenger was a guard on duty.
“Xu Bailu?” Cui Heng was stunned. He didn’t know this person.
However, he immediately thought of the beautiful Daoist nun he had seen on the city wall.
Fang Min and Zhou Caiwei had introduced her before. She was their Sword Master.
“So it’s her.” Cui Heng nodded lightly. “Ask her to wait for me in the guest hall.”