After suffering a defeat in the sneak attack, the barbarians were finally ready to formally engage the Yanzhou army. It was also exactly what Xu Ran and the others desired because it would have a negative impact on their morale if it was delayed too long.
Vice General Luo had previously led the army, but they now suspect him of being a spy, therefore it couldn't be him. Lu Qi finally opted to lead the men to the fight personally, leaving the rest to Xu Ran, while Vice General Luo's role was to keep an eye on Tangtang, who was regarded to be odd.
Tangtang didn't mind if someone was watching him because he would still do what he wanted. He was on his way to the fight, but Xu Ran left him. "Tangtang, not everyone is suited to lead from the front. It is also crucial to command from the rear. Take you and Guoguo for example; he belongs to the former, but you are the latter. Do you get what I'm saying?"
How could Tangtang not understand what Xu Ran said? He didn't want to go to the battlefield since he was angry and unhappy by Guoguo's incident, but he did want to kill a few barbarians.
Tangtang noticed Vice General Luo staring at him, paused for a moment, then agreed to Xu Ran's request.
He accompanied him to keep an eye on him from behind. He was concerned that Vice General Luo would do something once he arrived on the battlefield, so he decided to wait until Vice General Luo was eliminated.
Vice General Luo did not take part in the operation's deployment, therefore he was unaware of the circumstances.
Only when Lu Qi declared he was going to the combat personally did he become concerned. He had talked to Lu Qi for a long time, but he was unable to persuade him to change his mind.
He knew Lu Qi well, and he knew that he was not only good at kung fu, but also highly smart and had amazing medical skills. Most significantly, he was an expert with poison. As a result, Vice General Luo had been anxious since the battle began.
Xu Ran and Tangtang saw why, but they feigned to ignore his performance and proceeded about their work. Though the barbarians were reported to have a fifty thousand-strong army, this was far from the case. Similarly, Lu Qi only brought 20,000 men.
Standing on the ledge, one could see the indescribable view below. There were roars, the clashing of knives and swords, and the beat of drums. Xu Ran recalled hearing a lot of drums in the military camp. He would not want his own people to suffer defeat.
The battle down below was fierce. Xu Ran had an epiphany and ordered his troops to bring out all the large drums in the military camp and begin beating them.
The drums began to ring louder and more frequently. It was transferred from the steep slope to the battlefield below one by one. The beat of the drums lifted everyone's spirits. Lu Qi yelled once more and dashed towards the crowd.
The rest would naturally be persuaded by the leader and then follow suit. Fighting force came with morale.
This struggle would be exceptionally severe as a result of what happened quite organically. In addition to keeping an eye on the battlefield below, Xu Ran had to keep an eye out for any sneak attacks. More significantly, he had to be careful of spies working from within with outside forces to fight them back.
At this point, Xu Ran felt that he had to worry about a lot of things. Also, seeing such a real battlefield for the first time, he found it hard to accept. After all, he was a person who liked peace in heart.
However, he couldn't delay other important things for this small matter.
After Xu Ran sent out twenty thousand warriors for the second time, the conflict was over. The destruction was extensive. Only 10 thousand persons remained alive out of a total population of twenty thousand.
Three thousand were critically injured, six thousand were slightly injured, and only one thousand were unharmed. It was a dreadful battle. However, in comparison, the barbarians were even worse off. Two of every three corpses on the ground were barbarians.
The only word that could be used to sum up this battle was that it is so destructive. This was true on both sides.
But it didn't stop there; the real spectacle was still to come. This was only the start.
Xu Ran ordered extra men to patrol, insisting that they not leave any place unguarded. The others had to be on the watch for a surprise attack.
After consulting with Lu Qi, Xu Ran agreed to get rid of Vice General Luo and his subordinates as quickly as possible in order to avoid any trouble. There was, however, no conclusive evidence. As a result, Xu Ran decided to launch a planned sneak strike.
But, just as they were getting ready, Tangtang caught Vice General Luo off guard with a letter addressed to the barbarians. The letter's contents detailed the earlier deployment of the Yanzhou government army, its current strength, and the losses suffered during this war.
It also referenced Xu Ran and Tangtang, and he requested that the barbarians keep an eye out for them. After reading it, Xu Ran grinned.
Keep an eye out for them?
Tangtang could be the one to watch out for, but he was merely a weak scholar who didn't appear to be strong at all. Why should they be on the lookout for him?
None of these, however, were significant. The most important thing was that the letter had been halted before it was even sent.
They not only had a motive to get rid of Vice General Luo, but they could also convey a false message and fool the barbarians. Xu Ran delegated the task of dealing with Vice General Luo to Lu Qi. He began composing the letter and posted it in the same manner that Vice General Luo had done previously.
Vice General Luo had not expected to be discovered. After all, he had already risen to the rank of vice general. Without Lu Qi, he would be the most powerful here. As a result, what he desired would not be discovered by others. He blamed Lu Qi for showing up halfway. Not to mention Xu Ran, who emerged out of nowhere and shattered his entire plan.
Vice General Luo hate Xu Ran and Lu Qi so much that they couldn't get anything out of him.
Lu Qi was worried that something would happen if he stayed alive, so he simply gave him a poison and put him to rest. As for King Yan, he could explain to him after he came back.
After Vice General Luo had been disposed of, they would have no fear of attacks from behind. Even if there were some spies in the people below, their influence was certainly not as great as Vice General Luo and they would not be able to get any useful news.
Xu Ran called Tangtang over and said to him, "You will be in charge of the upcoming war and Guoguo's revenge. In addition, I'll ask Lu Qi to take some people and launch a surprise attack on their stationed position, if possible all at once. If the fighting continues in this manner, the people will be aware."
Tangtang was a little hesitant when he heard Xu Ran ask him to command, "Dad, do you really want me to command? I've never done it before."
Xu Ran waved his hand and said to him, "Everything came from the first time. Besides, I have taught you a lot, some of which must could be used. You have to trust yourself."
Looking at Xu Ran's determined eyes, Tangtang nodded subconsciously.
Xu Ran nodded with satisfaction and went to find Lu Qi.
After arriving at the main tent, Xu Ran didn't have time to speak when someone rushed in from outside and said. "Military counsellor, abnormality was found in the meadow."
Lu Qi's face was cold and he asked, "What's abnormal?"
"To my military counsellor, the soldiers protecting the grass claimed that they have found more than a hundred dead bodies, dressed in barbarian garb, and their bodies are now starting to rot," the guy knelt on the ground and said quietly to Lu Qi.
Lu Qi looked at Xu Ran and remembered what Tangtang had told him at the time. There were roughly a hundred people he and Guoguo met at the time. There was no difference in the location or the number of people. Lu Qi suspected that they were the group of persons present at the moment.
It was just that he didn't know if Guoguo was in this group.
Lu Qi said to the person kneeling on the ground, "Get up first! Wait outside the tent. I'll go and take a look with you later."
"Yes!" After the man said this, he got up and left the tent.
Xu Ran asked Lu Qi, "What did you think of?"
Lu Qi said, "I assume these are the people who intercepted Tangtang and Guoguo at the moment. I've always had reservations about them because they vanished so quickly. If their bodies were discovered, it would make sense. You call Tangtang, let's go and see what's going on."
Xu Ran nodded, but he didn't feel anything wrong. He thought Guoguo should not be among these bodies.
Xu Ran called Tangtang over and followed Lu Qi to the grass.
They could detect a strong stench from a distance, and it was the stench of the dead.
In such hot heat, it's natural to smell. The guy who came to report was not mistaken. The bodies were indeed decaying, with maggots wriggling over them. It was nauseating to watch. They appeared to have been dead for a long time.
It had been quite a while since the day of Guoguo's accident. If they died that day, everything would make sense.
Although the bodies were rotting, their appearance and clothes could still be told. Xu Ran asked Tangtang to see it.
Tangtang made several circles around the rows of dead bodies, then he nodded and said, "Dad, Uncle Lu, these are the barbarians Guoguo and I met the other day. But how did they die?"
Lu Qi turned to ask the person beside him, "Where were these bodies found, and by whom?
The person was supposed to be a little captain or something. He pointed to the direction of the grass for Lu Qi, and said, "They were discovered in a trench in the middle of the meadow by a military counsellor. Recently, the odor has spread to the cows and sheep. We didn't mind because the flavor wasn't overpowering at first, but it gradually became more potent. We had a feeling something was awry, so we glanced around. We weren't expecting to find so many dead in a pit, so we removed them all."
A pit? Tangtang remembered the pit he saw at the moment. He was still perplexed as to why there was a pit in the grass, but the depression was quite deep and he didn't examine closely. So he had no idea what was within. Tangtang examined all of the bodies and determined that there was no Guoguo. He then sighed. He wasn't sure whether he should be happy or sad. He couldn't even find Guoguo's body.
The corpse still had to be buried, because it might cause some problems due to the hot weather. It was better to bury it. They just needed to dig a big hole.
Lu Qi asked his men to do it, then he went to see the big pit with Xu Ran and Tangtang.
Tangtang pointed to the pit and said, "I've seen this pit before, but I didn't look at what was inside. And I find it strange that this pit doesn't look big, why can it accommodate so many people's bodies? The other thing is why did these people fall into the pit for no reason?"
When Tangtang finished speaking, there was silence. Xu Ran and Lu Qi both peered down towards the pit. It was still rather stinky, and their options for seeing were restricted.
They could see several scattered weapons below, and the weapons themselves were present, but these folks did not appear to have been slain. They might literally fall into it at that point.
Did they just fall down and not climb up? There were still so many people. Tangtang and the others came back very soon and did not hear anything.
The more he thought about it, the more strange this question seemed.
Tangtang touched his chin and tried hard to think about the suspicious part of that time, but he didn't find anything wrong.
The three of them looked at it for a long time and didn't see anything. Xu Ran shook his head and said, "This is a good thing. At least Guoguo is not in this place. That means Guoguo probably escaped on his own. Didn't Tangtang say he was injured? He will go home after he's healed."
Lu Qi nodded in agreement, "You're right, but I'll still have people watch around here and see if we will find anything strange."
Xu Ran said that he had no objections, and he just stared at the pit with a thoughtful expression.
However, these corpses were only a minor incident in their current position. The most important thing was to keep the barbarians from returning to their homeland. Xu Ran reasoned that they should take the initiative and launch an attack. After all, the more they waited, the better it was for the barbarians.
Lu Qi thought about it carefully and agreed.
In addition to Tangtang, the three of them studied the combat plan in the tent for the whole night. The next day, they asked all the soldiers to rest for a day to prepare for the war.
On the third day, in front of thousands of people, Lu Qi ordered Tangtang to command the war, which drew a lot of criticism. The reason was straightforward.
Why should they be led by a fifteen-year-old boy who had never fought before? Let alone when it came to life and death.
Xu ran had already pondered these issues and was prepared to say what he needed to say, but he didn't. Instead, he focused his attention on Tangtang.
Lu Qi also understood Xu Ran's thoughts and did not mean to help him. He just looked at Tangtang like Xu Ran.
Tangtang looked at the two of them helplessly. They were always unreliable at a critical moment and threw him out as a child.
But there was nothing he could do. It would not work out if he did not say anything. After all, he really wanted to go to the battlefield. He still remembered what Guoguo told him.
One day, he would become the most famous general in Great Xia.
However, no one knew he was still alive now.
And he was Guoguo's brother, which was enough for him.
Tangtang took two steps forward and greeted everyone first, then he said, "Hello all my soldiers, my name is Xu Qing. Last year, I came to the military camp for a year of training with my brother, and we are twins."
"I know that you don't agree with the words of the military counsellor. I can understand your feelings, because when you're in battle, a word from me can kill all of you.
"But I'm not sure whether you recall how you felt your first time on the battlefield. Do you believe your legs are soft and that you would pass out if you see blood? Then some people died, while others are still alive. Everyone who returned felt fortunate to have survived."
"But after so many times, you've grown accustomed to it. Because your duties are still fresh in your memory, you don't even worry about life or death."
"But I'm not the same as you. You are accountable for the lives of millions of people behind you, but I am accountable for yours. I don't have any experience, and I don't have any qualifications to say so. Because I haven't even stepped foot on the battlefield. In comparison to you, I am much behind."
"And as I stand here, the only assurance I have is what my father has taught me over the years: even if I haven't fully grasped it, I will do all in my power to bring you back. The true measure of a war's success is not how many people are killed to win it, but how many people return afterward. Nothing is more important than life."
Tangtang didn't say anything further after that. Although he had much more to say, he didn't want to say it because he knew it was all he could promise. And all these people cared about was perhaps running away from the enemy, surviving, and returning home.
There was silence and no one said a word, and Xu Ran couldn't bear it and said helplessly.
"And here I am. Your legs must have been trembling when you initially arrived at the battlefield. However, when you do it more and more, you will naturally feel differently. I believe him because he is the child I educated personally. It's impossible for my son to know nothing after ten years of education. More importantly, I still don't know whether my other son is alive or dead."
At the end of the sentence, Xu Ran's tone became cold, as if he was extremely dissatisfied.
Lu Qi followed and offered a few nice things about Tangtang. They truly decided to hand up command to Tangtang this time. Tangtang"s brain was faster than Xu Ran's, despite the fact that he wasn't very strong at Kung Fu.
It was only that he disliked fighting. Tangtang's face lit up with a long-lost smile once the troops nodded. Xu Ran had never seen Guoguo smile again since the accident.
According to the plan that had been set up long ago, Tangtang led his troops out, and Lu Qi led his men to give the enemy a sneak attack, and Xu Ran stayed in the station to cooperate with them.
Tangtang changed his armor and rode his horse to the front, as Xu Ran watched. He didn't bring many people with him. Tangtang stated that the strategy he would employ this time was named "lure the adversary away from his base."
Most people were with Lu Qi, and he was still the main force this time. Although Tangtang was the commander.
Xu Ran didn't look at the battle below like the last time. He just walked around the military camp with his hands behind his back.
He trusted Tangtang, but he was worried about him at the same time. It was his son, whom he had raised for ten years.
He couldn't, however, express his worries. He was the one who released him and asked him to persuade others in public.
He began to worry again now that he was on the battlefield, which was a little absurd. There was nothing and it was really peaceful in the military camp.
Xu Ran went about his regular duties, and when he had time, he would go for a walk. He waited from daylight to dark for his son to return. At the same time, a bright light emanated from the enemy's camp on the other side.
And there was the man Tangtang had taken out behind him. When they departed, there were around a hundred of them, and there were still more than ninety of them presently. Some of them had wounds on their faces, some on their bodies, but they all had one thing in common: they were all wounded. They were all resurrected.
Xu Ran didn't know what Tangtang had done but he could clearly see the admiration of the people behind him. At that moment, Xu Ran knew that he was right. He made the right bet on his son.
Not long after, Lu Qi came back with a large force. The first thing he said when he saw Xu Ran was to let him lay out a feast to celebrate.
Everyone was smiling but Xu Ran didn't agree to Lu Qi's request.
He said, "Let's not celebrate yet. We can wait until you are certain that the barbarians are truly leaving. Although the fire has destroyed their tent, there is no guarantee that no fish will escape from the net; thus, we must exercise caution."
Lu Qi calmed down after hearing Xu Ran's words. He was quite excited right now. Xu Ran's words were not absurd. Despite the fact that the fire was still burning, they had no idea how many people were inside. Not to mention the fact that it was unknown whether or not there were any spies in the military camp. They couldn't be hatched at the last minute.
When they heard that they couldn't celebrate, the soldiers were disappointed and sighed.
Xu Ran laughed and said, "Although there is no wine, there are definitely plenty of good dishes and good meat. You soldiers have worked hard, so you can go back and have a rest. Later, when the food is ready, I will call you out."
Although there was no alcohol, it was not bad to have meat and vegetables. The men were not dissatisfied, so they went back.
After everyone left, Xu Ran went into the tent with Tangtang and Lu Qi. Xu Ran started to look at Tangtang seriously.
Tangtang shook his head at Xu Ran. "Dad, I'm fine. Don't worry!"
After Xu Ran confirmed that he was really fine, he let out a long sigh.
Lu Qi was looking at them bitterly, wondering why he didn't have such a good son? Well, he also didn't have a nice father like Xu Ran.
"You're the one who said you wanted your son to go to war. Why are you worried now?" Lu Qi held his arms and looked jealous.
Xu Ran rolled his eyes at him. "People like you who don't have a son will not understand."
These words made Lu Qi feel like he was seriously injured.
Tangtang instinctively smiled as he watched them squabble. This was the sort of life he wanted. His family was safe and peaceful, and they could talk whenever they wanted. There was no need to be concerned about making a living. Everything was fine.
Tangtang said silently to himself, "Guoguo, come back! I miss you. If... I would feel guilty for the rest of my life, and you wouldn't want me to feel so, would you?"
10.12.21