Climbing to the Top: A Reborn Queen's Journey-Chapter 740: Madness (4)
After nightfall, a few soldiers stood guard on the walls of Yu State City, while the rest returned to the military camp. The kitchen received orders during the day and slaughtered several fat pigs. Tonight’s dinner was exceptionally lavish, each soldier’s bowl filled with fragrant meat soup and palm-sized meat chunks. Those who showed exceptional bravery were rewarded with an extra piece of meat.
The high and mighty Mr. Zheng, specially came tonight to dine with the soldiers, rewarding those brave enough to defend the city and kill enemies in front of the soldiers. He promised to promote them in the future.
The soldiers shouted loudly, "Mr. Zheng, long live!"
Zheng Chen smiled contentedly amidst the cheers.
Zhao Wu was also extraordinarily excited. Previously, his position was somewhat awkward, as the soldiers followed Lu Cheng’s orders, and any task he dispatched had to be ordered through Lu Cheng. Now that Lu Cheng was dead, he naturally became the main general.
To gain favor and stabilize troop morale, Zhao Wu slept in the military camp that night.
Zheng Chen left the military camp and returned to his residence in the city. The smile he had been wearing vanished once he entered the study room, and he sat down at the desk to write, ink the brush.
Peng Sihai quietly accompanied him.
"Si Hai!"
Here we go again!
Peng Sihai sighed inwardly but showed a joyful expression on his face, "What orders does Mr. Zheng have?"
Zheng Chen lifted his head, his gaze amazingly bright, "When I lead the troops back to the Capital City, I want to annihilate the Zheng Family first!"
This shows the severe impact that farewell letter between father and son had on him!
Peng Sihai sighed inwardly again, and solemnly replied, "Mr. Zheng aims to create a new dynasty, establishing a great enterprise never seen before. Naturally, he must abandon all the evil customs and practices of the Da Liang Dynasty. These noble families must all be eliminated, starting with the Zheng Family. This is a historically significant justice. Mr. Zheng’s decisiveness is truly admirable!"
Zheng Chen was pleased to hear this and raised his eyebrows with a smile, "It’s a bit unfortunate to make you the Imperial Forest General. I’ll appoint you as Duke, so you can attend court daily and hear politics."
Last night he said he would appoint him as Earl, today he’s promoted to Duke.
Peng Sihai remained unfazed inwardly, but his face was filled with joy, "Thank you, Mr. Zheng. One person achieves success and everyone around him benefits. Following Mr. Zheng, I’m looking forward to a glorious future."
Zheng Chen laughed heartily. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
After laughing, he continued to bow his head and write.
Peng Sihai maintained the good discipline of a trusted aide, resolutely not peeking at what his master was writing. However, with only him by Mr. Zheng’s side now, he didn’t even need to ask, as Mr. Zheng automatically told him, "Si Hai, after I ascend the throne, I plan to reform the military system. The troops in the Capital City are right under our eyes, unable to stir up big waves. The stationed troops in various places are too far from the Capital City, inconvenient for inspection, leading to chaos in the military camps, almost like native emperors. This can’t continue! Reform is necessary!"
Then, he talked at length about the reform plans.
Peng Sihai nodded continuously in agreement, seemingly very interested and knowledgeable about such topics.
Until Mr. Zheng was satisfied with the discussion, he resumed writing.
Peng Sihai sighed inwardly again. Silently waiting for the next time Mr. Zheng opens his mouth.
During the day, Mr. Zheng appeared normal in front of others, but once he stepped into the study, he fell into the trance of speaking to himself. It’s been like this for consecutive nights. Moreover, each time, he would mention the Empress of the Da Liang Dynasty...
"Jiang Shaohua is also laughable, actually using Wang Jin." Zheng Chen suddenly stopped writing and coldly laughed several times, "The Prime Minister Faction occupies half of the court, Prime Minister Wang has held control over the court for years. They should uproot the Prime Minister Faction entirely, kill them and replace them with their people."
Peng Sihai actually didn’t understand court affairs, but he could hear the loopholes in Mr. Zheng’s words.
With the Prime Minister Faction occupying half of the court, uprooting them would leave half of the court vacant. Where would you find so many "people of your own" to fill the vacancies? Chaos in the court would surely lead to chaos among the people!
However, these words must never be spoken out loud.
Peng Sihai earnestly agreed, "Mr. Zheng’s words make sense."
Thus enduring until nearly the fourth period of night. Mr. Zheng finally managed to lie down, sleeping for less than two hours, then awakened abruptly by the commotion of an attack outside the city gates, and got out of bed in a flip.
Before heading out, he didn’t forget to wash up and change into bright, fresh attire. Standing at the city gate, he appeared calm and composed.
The situation of the attack today was intense right from the start. On the Cloud Ladder, a bunch of Divine Archers appeared out of nowhere, a shower of arrows flew, and seven or eight Yu State Rebel Army soldiers on the city gate were shot down, causing instant chaos.
Zheng Chen’s expression remained unchanged, and he shouted loudly, "Everyone, don’t panic! Hold your shields in front of you."
Zhao Wu also shouted loudly, "Prepare golden juice, hot oil, and hot water."
Golden juice refers to sewage used to increase the lethality of arrows by applying it before shooting. Hot oil and hot water can be poured directly onto the Cloud Ladder attacking the city. They are key tools for city defense.
The new soldiers were unfamiliar with these, and during transportation, they actually overturned two barrels of hot oil, scalding their own people. Very unfortunate.
This scene seemed to foreshadow today’s difficult city defense.
As expected, by noon, the soldiers of the Heroic Guard Camp had already occupied the city gate.
Yesterday, the morale of the Yu State Rebel Army was boosted by the tragic death of the main general, but today, the intense attack by the Heroic Guard Camp shattered their mental defense, quickly retreating like a tide.
Zhao Wu had to raise his long knife, personally joining the battle, shouting, "Everyone follow me, kill the enemies!"
Zhao Wu’s shout immediately caught the attention of the Heroic Guard Camp soldiers. One tall and powerful man suddenly shouted, "That’s the traitor Zhao Wu! The Great General said, kill Zhao Wu, reward a hundred gold, promote three ranks!"
Dozens of strong men stormed the city gate together.
Zhao Wu’s heart sank, retreating while shouting for the Yu State Rebel Army to move forward and resist. Unfortunately, having just taken over the Yu State Army, the soldiers were not very loyal to their newly appointed main general. These strong men were too fierce, even the rebel soldiers chose to dodge.
Zhao Wu was very anxious, couldn’t even spare time for angry curses, and frantically swung his knife to block. Fortunately, there were still a few loyal trusted aides by his side fighting hard to defend, barely keeping him alive. However, he suffered several varying degrees of injuries and couldn’t move anymore.
Zheng Chen had no choice but to step forward and personally lead the rebel army to defend the city.
...
This day was even more brutal than yesterday.
By nightfall, the Heroic Guard Camp blew the horn to withdraw troops again. The rebel army on the city gate was exhausted, lying all over the place. At first glance, it seemed as if the ground was filled with corpses. In fact, it wasn’t much different. There were too many casualties on the city gate today.
Someone whispered, "We definitely can’t hold on to Yu State City."
"Let’s run away!"
"Yes, let’s escape through the north gate, into the mountains. Wait for the court to retreat, then sneak out. At least we’ll save our lives."
"Are you running away? Anyway, I’m leaving tonight."
