Indestructible Body Of Vajra Of The Village Leader-Chapter 1053 - 830: Beginning with Admiration, Ending with the Heart!
Although they had won a victory, it inevitably disturbed the citizens inside the city. Therefore, rather than making a grand entrance into Lin’an, the Song Army only dispatched a small group to take over the city, choosing to celebrate the victory outside in the camp.
At this time, on the open space surrounding the commander tent, a large area was cleared. Four bonfires were set up to roast lamb and slaughter pigs.
The soldiers, along with the Players, sang and danced around the bonfire, in high spirits.
More than thirty tents were arranged in a row, looking like steamed buns bursting forth, orderly and methodical.
At the entrance of each tent, wind lanterns hung. Looking from a distance, the scene was flickering with silhouettes. Despite the singing and dancing, there were still people standing guard vigilantly.
Inside the commander tent, the lights were bright, and the two figures that Players saw as big shots were meeting amidst much speculation from the Players.
No Player could witness this legendary event firsthand.
Even the elite players from Black Wind Village did not have such qualifications; their status was far from sufficient.
Therefore, outside of the commander tent, many Players occasionally glanced at it, curious and speculating about the scene of the two heroic men’s meeting, discussing eagerly.
Clap!
Two powerful hands, under the bright eyes inside the commander tent, clasped together with such force that a "crack" sound was heard.
Surrounding generals watched the rising muscles of those mighty arms, filled with amazement.
"Good!"
Jiang Dali’s tiger-like eyes gleamed as he stared at Yue Fei before him, tall and strong, clad in armor, with a face full of whiskers, particularly noting the thick blood bar above his head, and laughed heartily, "Rumor has it that General Yue possesses divine power, pulling a 300-jin bow and an eight-stone crossbow before the coming of age, admired by the people. Later, he studied under Chen Guang, learning the arts of sword and spear, becoming unrivaled in his county. It seems now that the General exceeds those tales."
"To receive your praise, Prince, is indeed the fortune of my lifetime!"
Yue Fei also stared intensely at Jiang Dali, laughed heartily, "To see you today, Prince, already fills me with joy beyond measure. The victory at Lin’an City, surrendering eighty thousand Liao soldiers, adds to the triumph. Prince, please accept a bow from me, Yue Fei!"
Upon saying this, Yue Fei stepped back, clasped his fists, and bowed deeply towards Jiang Dali.
"General needn’t perform such a grand ceremony!"
Jiang Dali grabbed Yue Fei’s arms with both hands, gently stopping Yue Fei’s bow weighing over ten thousand jin.
The dust beneath Yue Fei’s feet sank, yet Jiang Dali remained unmoved.
All the martial generals present watched with awe, exclaiming at the power.
Yue Fei’s bow could only be halted so effortlessly by Jiang Dali in the field, while anyone else by sheer strength would find it difficult to stop such a greeting from Yue Fei.
"Prince!"
Yue Fei looked at Jiang Dali, moved.
"Prince!"
Beside Yue Fei, Xiao Qiushui was also touched, saluting Jiang Dali with clasped fists.
With Jiang Dali’s current status, receiving a bow from Yue Fei was justified, and none would object.
However, anyone who respects Yue Fei would not accept such a deep bow from him, as it signifies respect and profound acknowledgment.
Jiang Dali released his grip, placing his hands behind his back, and laughed aloud, "General Yue’s illustrious exploits are known throughout the land. How could I accept such a bow?"
Yue Fei humbly smiled and clasped his fists, "Compared to Prince’s achievements, retreating the army to Ying Country and defeating the Liao Army to capture Lin’an, my years in the battlefield seem to pale in comparison."
"Hahaha."
Jiang Dali shook his head with a smile, speaking earnestly, "Let’s not talk of exploits; it is because all the heroes of the world were once moved by General Yue that the Sixteen Great Sects and the Thirty-two Strange Sects pledged with oath and presented the ’Heroic Order of the World’ to you, willing to follow your command and instructions, showcasing your benevolence towards heroes.
And you, General, have throughout never used the ’Heroic Order,’ entrusting it to your adoptive mother as a safeguard. This shows your loyalty and filial piety.
With such loyalty, filial piety, and benevolence, I can only feel inadequate in comparison, so you also need not bow to me."
Yue Fei looked at Jiang Dali, stunned, his heart stirring with a feeling of soldiers who would die for the confidant.
The heroes of the world all respected him, yet he could remain unmoved.
But the Champion King, who always supported and helped him back to the battlefield, continued to honor him, making him feel honored and grateful.
"This exchange of praises with this historical figure, revered even in records of the family as a great man since ancient times, feels quite good. Unfortunately, no Player inside the commander tent is present to capture all this. Otherwise, when the Records of the Grand Historian are opened again in the future, Players would be amazed once more."
Jiang Dali pondered, yet first, assuming the role of the highest status protagonist amongst those present, invited the numerous generals to sit together, drink, and celebrate, engaging in cheerful exchanges.
It can be said now that whether Song Country continues to attack or makes peace with the Jin and Liao countries after declaring defeat and signing compensation agreements largely hinges upon his decision.
Perhaps the Emperor of Song is restless, greedy, wishing to push further into the heartlands of Jin and Liao countries.
But Jiang Dali does not intend to continue accompanying the Emperor of Song’s game.
The principle of "a tree towering in the forest will be destroyed by the wind" was something he was well aware of.
As the Three Kingdoms War progressed to this point, it was largely due to his dominant role.
In fact, in terms of publicity and benefits, not only him, but many players in his Black Wind Village had already enjoyed plentiful perks from this war.
Continuing the battle might instead provoke the intervention of the Holy Dynasty.
Although the Holy Dynasty had rarely interfered in the wars of the vassal states over the years, if someone like him controlled Ming Country and swayed the Jin, Liao, and Song states, whether the Holy Dynasty would still remain indifferent was debatable. If done stealthily, the Holy Dynasty might not notice, but such a large-scale event as the Three Kingdoms War is hard to ignore.
Moreover, if the war continued, the benefits he could gather were few, and on the contrary, he would bear significant risks and hidden dangers.
After all, he had now reached a position in Song Country second only to one person under ten thousand others.
No matter how the war progressed, his status could not be elevated further.
As for gaining more fiefdoms or gold and silver wealth plundered through war, without harvesting more management talent, the significance to his personal power was not great.
On the contrary, it might force the still-neutral and friendly players of Jin and Liao countries to become hostile, thus resulting in great losses.
Don’t be fooled by the current enthusiastic players of Jin and Liao countries; some even claim not to have much allegiance to their nation, thereby selling intelligence to undermine their teammates.
All this was based entirely on the war being still on the Three Kingdoms Battlefield, even within Song territory, without infringing on the interests of Jin and Liao countries.
Once Song Country invades Jin and Liao, the policies, taxations, and others of those two countries would tighten, and one’s master crashes, no egg can remain intact under a toppled nest. The players and sects of these two countries would inevitably be heavily impacted, no longer able to take it as lightly and relaxed as now.
Therefore, in the upcoming banquet, amidst the clinking of glasses, Jiang Dali let others test him with high spirits in battle, remaining indifferent, pulling Yue Fei to drink and eat, indulging heartily, laughing and chatting, without discussing the future of the war.
The many generals, including Yue Fei, seeing this attitude, vaguely guessed his intentions and were secretly shocked, each having their own guesses and thoughts, opting not to discuss the future to avoid displeasing the Champion King, only talking about interesting stories from various places to accompany the wine.
Jiang Dali picked up a fragrant pear and took a large bite.
Seeing many generals no longer speaking of it, he inwardly chuckled lightly, his gaze landing on a general previously noticed emitting a red glow, which now was gradually fading, he smiled meaningfully.
The general felt a chill all over, seeing Jiang Dali’s significant smile, his mind was a mess, thoughts rapidly changing, feeling as if sitting on a soccer ball, neither standing nor sitting, extremely uneasy in his heart.
After three rounds of wine, Jiang Dali stood up, waved his hand to dismiss everyone, leaving only Yue Fei and Xiao Qiushui, in the tent for reminiscing, discussing only with these two the direction of future warfare, clearly stating his plan.
He was well aware that Yue Fei had the ambition to establish meritorious service and bring glory to the nation. He was even a main member of the anti-peace faction, fighting magnanimously to defend the country when Song was in dire straits, and not a war maniac.
But now, as Song Country was about to escape from its dire straits, breaking free from the suffering of war.
It even had the capability to directly attack into either Jin or Liao, pressing the advantage.
Moreover, as long as the Champion King, who Song Country considered a hero, made a statement, with both countries being fought together, a slap on the left, a smack on the right, this was not impossible to achieve.
Yet crucially, he did not want to fight, and he wanted to see how the more rightful hero of Song, Yue Fei, would decide after the chaos in Song had been resolved, whether to continue advancing or to stop at the borders of Song Country.
No matter what choice Yue Fei made, he would respect and understand it.
However, he would abide by his own inner choice, even if it opposed Yue Fei, he would not let admiration choose to betray his original intent.
Having risen from admiration, he would naturally stop at his inner self.
Otherwise, even admiration would change its flavor, rendering it utterly meaningless.
...
Meanwhile.
A place several miles away known as Ten-Mile Creek.
The rushing river cascaded like a waterfall from the upstream canyon, crashing onto the smooth rocks below, splashing waves over a yard high, deafeningly loud.
Suddenly, a dark shadow swept through the rapid river and fell downward. Just before hitting the rocks, the shadow moved through the water like a fish, managed to free itself from the restraints of the water, narrowly avoiding the rocks, plunging into the deep pool.
After a while, the shadow emerged from the water like a ghost, hair wet and dripping, shaking off the water, revealing a face that was somewhat pale and scorched in places, like suffering burn injuries, unmistakably it was Po Jun.
At the moment of his appearance, his eyes turned white, spitting a mouthful of black blood, easing the blocked meridians within, preparing to crawl onto the shore.
A nimble sword intent suddenly transmitted from the forest nearby.
"Who!?"
Po Jun’s face changed.
A laughing voice accompanied the sound of fluttering clothes leisurely said, "Greedy for wine, wealth, and beauty, the world is greedy, but I am not; I laugh at those who can’t see through. Po Jun, oh Po Jun, the son of the illustrious Jian Hui, what have you become now? Ha ha ha!"
...
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