Chapter 1370 - 335: Damn!_3

Chapter 1370: Chapter 335: Damn!_3

"Focus."

Liang Cheng raised his blade,

and shouted:

"Have you heard Lord Zheng’s military order, have you seen Lord Zheng’s commanding chariot, Lord Zheng is right behind us, Lord Zheng has arrived, for Lord Zheng, for the Snow Sea Pass;

Follow me,

kill!"

"Kill!!!!!!"

...

Under the banner of the Fire Phoenix,

was a war chariot with an ancient design.

The chariot seemed crafted from bronze, exuding an aura of antiquity, flowing with the marks of time.

It bore countless grooves and scratches, traces it left on the battlefield.

The chariot wasn’t large,

two held the reins, steering it; two stood by its sides holding halberds;

one, holding a bow, stood at the front;

one, sat firmly at the back.

This was an old man, his hair completely white.

Chu State’s four great Zhuguai: Qu Clan, Dugu Clan, Xie Family; these three are Chu’s top nobility, and then there is the Shi Family.

Among the nobility, the Shi Family could only be considered third class. It was an anomaly among Chu’s nobility, with ancestors serving as the Duke of Chu’s personal guards, later promoted by the Duke, following several generations fighting for the Chu State’s former monarchs, and though they were meant to receive a second-class rank, the Shi Family refused, remaining third class.

Thereafter, the Shi Family continued to produce generals, assisting the Xiong Clan in managing the royal family’s elite guards. Due to their adherence to ancestral teachings and refusal to elevate their family title, the royal court especially awarded them the position of Zhuguai.

Inside the bronze chariot under the Fire Phoenix banner was this elder, the current head of the Shi Family, Shi Yuantang.

Beside him, fiercely charging into battle were the imperial elite guards personally trained by him.

In past years,

when the former Chu Emperor passed and chaos erupted among the princes, it was quickly quelled partly because the regent had already gained the Shi Family’s recognition.

Therefore, during the princes’ turmoil, other princes could barely move the royal elite troops and had to seek out local nobility for support.

The regent, having the ability to deploy the royal elite guards, naturally achieved twice the results with half the effort.

During the late emperor’s reign, the signs of the princes’ contention for the throne had already emerged. It’s not that other princes didn’t try to win over the Shi Family, but the Shi Family remained unmoved.

Even when the Second Prince married a Shi Family woman as his consort, during his rebellion, the Shi Family and the forces they could influence remained completely silent.

After the princes’ turmoil was settled, the Shi Family continued to hold significant sway in the royal elite guard system, sparking much speculation throughout Chu as to why the Shi Family willingly stood behind the regent.

It’s important to know, if the Shi Family wished, if Shi Yuantang wished, his grandson might very well become the next Crown Prince of Chu!

"The world speculates why I, Shi Yuantang, have chosen to recognize the regent; there are countless theories, but in fact, I’ve stated clearly in the memorial inviting the king to ascend the throne.

In terms of temperament, magnanimity, skill, and vision, the king is the top choice for the ruler of Chu." 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

The bowman was a man, wearing simple leather armor, without a helmet, sporting the wide long hair favored by the Chu people, with a captivating aura between his brows.

The Chu people consider this beauty, a symbol of unruliness.

"Master Shi is loyal to the state. They won’t understand, and in their minds, what’s written in the memorial is merely official paper talk to be dissected and interpreted word by word, where is there room for straightforward, sincere truth on the surface?"

"Years ago, all the princes visited the Shi Family, the Second Prince even married my youngest daughter, yet only the Fourth Prince never set foot in my family’s door, not on festivals, nor in familial exchanges."

The bowman laughed, "The king is truly interesting."

"Not interesting, but the king understands the heart of an old man, understands the heart of the Shi Family; if the former emperor left a testament, the Shi Family would undoubtedly act according to it, making alliances unnecessary.

If the former emperor left no testament, then the Shi Family acts out of loyalty to the country, and among the princes, the Fourth Prince, who has already achieved a grand vision, has even less need to woo the Shi Family."

"If all matters in the world could be as simple and direct as this, wouldn’t it be wonderful?"

"Just like your arrow?" Shi Yuantang laughed.

The bowman nodded.

"It’s a pity about your excellent disciple."

"Falling in battle is typical, what is there to pity or not to pity."

"Indeed."

The bowman’s surname was Mu, given name Yang;

He was once a leader of the Chu royal elite troops, punished for publicly shooting a noble’s child during the late emperor’s reign, and imprisoned in the Phoenix Nest’s Zhao Prison.

The regent ascended, released him, reinstated him into the military, under Shi Yuantang’s command.

Yesterday, it was his disciple who, hidden among the wild people’s servant soldiers, shot that arrow at Lord Zheng.

Shi Yuantang remarked:

"Indeed, I hadn’t expected it; the Yan people, known for their prowess in field battles, have advanced so much in siege warfare.

If not for that day when the Yan took Yangshan Village and I insisted on staying behind to hold the fort, letting Dugu Ni lead our stationed forces under the guise of the elite guards to retreat,

if it were them defending this city today, it might really have fallen."

Mu Yang laughed and said, "Even with Master Shi defending, it is also almost fallen."

"Hahaha."

Shi Yuantang laughed heartily,

and said:

"Yes, yes, yes, but at least, this old man still has the strength for one last battle to flip the table.

However unfortunate, if I could endure for ten days to half a month and then break out, not only would it relieve the siege on East Mountain Fort, it could also shatter the Yan’s strategic positioning on the eastern front.

In a standoff, though it appears each side has hundreds of thousands of troops, vast and numerous, in practice, there’s often more trade-off than actual engagement. A small issue in any direction will inevitably stretch the resources thin.