Chapter 672: Prepare a Generous Gift

Behead him on the spot without pardon?

The corner of Zhang Hu’s mouth tightened.

He discovered that although this old marshal had aged, his temper had not changed in the slightest. Nor had the killing edge he carried on the battlefield dulled at all.

Nong Fengting, however, was rather dismissive.

Behead them because you say so?

You would first have to ask whether the people from the three major sects standing behind those four regional lords agreed.

The word “behead” also reminded him of fellow Xiaoyao Palace Elder Shi Sheng’s death. Now another man from Shang Chaozong’s side had arrived and was speaking of beheading people. It naturally left Nong Fengting somewhat uncomfortable.

Even so, the words that came from his mouth remained polite.

“Marshal Meng, Song has already broken through Iron Gate Pass. If the regional armies disengage from Song now, that will amount to letting Song drive straight inward without obstruction. I fear that will not do.”

There was naturally a reason for his courtesy.

Earlier, while suppressing the rebellion, he had wanted to preserve his own side’s strength.

Now he wanted to fight desperately.

He had no choice.

Yan was on the verge of collapse. If Yan fell, the three major sects were finished as well. Once they lost the territory beneath their feet, what strength would there even be left to preserve?

Now that Nong Fengting no longer wanted to conserve strength, the regional commanders below had begun thinking of preserving themselves instead.

He could see it happening.

Yet what could he do?

They lost every time they fought.

Even when he personally supervised the battles and watched them with his own eyes, it changed nothing. They simply could not defeat the enemy.

The signs that the greater tide had already turned against Yan were becoming impossible to ignore.

At this point, they needed to rely on the old man before them for one final attempt at salvation.

That was why Nong Fengting had no choice but to restrain himself and speak courteously despite his misgivings.

Otherwise, after Shang Chaozong had killed an Elder of Xiaoyao Palace, why would Xiaoyao Palace ever have allowed him to leave alive?

Meng Shanming had not known Iron Gate Pass had fallen. He was somewhat surprised.

“Iron Gate Pass is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The defensive force gathered there was not weak. How did it fall so easily?”

“Ah, there was a traitor inside. Nothing could be done,” Nong Fengting said.

“The commander at Iron Gate Pass, Lian Anshan, joined with the cultivation sect stationed there and secretly used despicable methods to murder the disciples of the three major sects supervising the position. After that, he opened the pass and surrendered to Song...”

He explained the fall of Iron Gate Pass again.

Meng Shanming was silent for a moment.

Even so, he remained determined to follow his own plan.

“I have my own arrangements. First send the four commanders here.”

Nong Fengting still refused to yield.

“Marshal Meng, you must understand clearly. Once Iron Gate Pass fell, almost no natural defenses remain along the road toward the capital. Everything now depends on the various armies stopping Song.”

“If you order the regional forces to abandon their attempts to block Song and disregard the safety of Great Yan’s center, those above may well erupt in thunderous fury afterward!”

Meng Shanming asked, “Given the present situation, do you believe they can stop Song?”

“The moment they make contact, they lose. What difference is there between blocking and not blocking?”

“There is no use fighting while muddleheaded. First straighten out the problem from its roots. That will accomplish more than rushing about blindly.”

Nong Fengting said, “If something happens, the pressure will not be something you can bear.”

Meng Shanming replied, “I cannot force you to follow my plan. If you will not, then follow your own plan instead. There is no reason for me to remain here making a fool of myself.”

“Da’an, let us go back.”

He spoke over his shoulder.

Luo Da’an immediately turned the wheelchair around.

He was leaving just like that?

Zhang Hu blinked several times, the corner of his eye drifting toward Nong Fengting.

Nong Fengting was speechless.

His expression shifted between dark and light. He plainly had a belly full of anger, but in the end he still hurried forward and blocked the way.

Then he began persuading Meng Shanming in a gentler voice.

“Marshal Meng, that is not what I meant. I was only reminding you. I spoke because I meant well and was thinking on your behalf.”

There was no helping it.

He genuinely believed Meng Shanming’s current behavior was reckless and unreliable.

But he needed the man’s help.

He had no choice but to lower himself.

In the end, this side still followed Meng Shanming’s wishes.

Urgent messages went out to the three major sects, asking their people to escort the four regional lords over.

“Escort” was perhaps too polite a word.

They were effectively brought over under guard.

The regional lords could play games on the battlefield, but there was nothing they could do when the three major sects came in force and compelled them physically to go.

Meng Shanming had no choice but to use this method.

He was worried his own orders would carry no weight and that commanders far from the center would refuse instructions from above.

So he borrowed the hands of the three major sects.

Speaking of it, this was also the one advantage available at present.

Only at a moment like this would the three major sects cooperate with Nanzhou’s side so thoroughly.

For now, there was quite a bit of strength they could borrow from those sects.

...

News that Yan had once again activated Shang Chaozong and appointed him Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign spread outward, once more shaking powers throughout the realm.

Within Yan’s court and countryside, many people could not help feeling moved.

They discovered that Shang Chaozong truly did seem willing to bear toil and resentment without complaint.

After the imperial court had treated him like that, he could still put old grievances aside.

That was rare indeed.

This latest affair made many people throughout Yan see one thing clearly.

With Great Yan reduced to its current state, if there was still anyone willing to disregard his own safety for the sake of protecting the state, then Prince Yong Shang Chaozong truly counted as one.

Few said it openly.

But inwardly, many felt admiration and respect.

Compared against the imperial court’s own conduct, quite a few people felt the treatment had gone far beyond excessive.

When they needed him, they sent Shang Chaozong out to risk his life.

When they did not, they threw him into the imperial prison and tortured him.

What kind of treatment was that?

Great Yan’s mortal crisis had allowed many people to see reality more clearly.

Even some hearts within the court began to waver to a certain degree.

Faced with reality, admiration was one thing.

Some people still sighed privately that Shang Chaozong was a fool.

The situation had already reached this point.

Even the cleverest housewife could not cook without rice.

Yan’s national strength had been battered again and again until almost nothing remained. Military grain truly could no longer keep up.

The armies were on the verge of running out of provisions. The soldiers would soon go hungry.

Millions of mouths needed food.

How was this war supposed to be fought?

He knew perfectly well it could not be done, yet insisted on doing it anyway.

Nanzhou had another road available, yet he refused to take it and chose instead to walk toward a dead end.

What use was a chest full of hot blood?

Was that not foolish?

...

In the State of Wei, at Tianwei Residence, Grand Commandant Nan Renyu and Censor-in-Chief Jin Lingzan arrived together to pay their respects to Chancellor Xuan Wei.

Xuan Wei received the two immediately.

Once the guests were seated in an elegant pavilion, Xuan Wei asked why they had come.

Jin Lingzan produced a letter and presented it.

“Yan has made another urgent request for aid. They hope we can lend them another shipment of grain.”

Xuan Wei accepted the letter and read it.

Her expression grew solemn.

Then she raised her head, bright eyes moving across the two men.

“What do you both think?”

Jin Lingzan considered his words. “Yan’s position is that they have already followed our advice and placed Shang Chaozong in charge of the war. Their argument is that the war may still be won, and on that basis they are asking to borrow grain.”

Nan Renyu shook his head.

“Pressuring Yan to let Shang Chaozong direct the war was merely treating a dead horse as though it were still alive.”

“Lending Yan more grain no longer has much meaning. Any grain we send is unlikely ever to be repaid.”

Xuan Wei asked, “Grand Commandant means Yan is certain to lose?”

Tang Yi, who was listening nearby, felt a faint shock in her heart.

She had, after all, come from Yan.

It was only natural that watching Yan perish would leave her unable to remain indifferent.

“Shang Jianxiong is muddleheaded enough to change commanders before battle,” Nan Renyu said.

“If Shang Chaozong had been allowed to gather military morale and hold back Song from the beginning, then lending grain would still be worth considering.”

“But Song’s momentum now is like splitting bamboo. The war has already reached this point. It is too late.”

“I fear even Shang Chaozong can no longer turn back Heaven.”

“Without grain, no matter how capable he is, there is no way to fight.”

“And even if we lend grain now, by the time it reaches Yan, will there still be time?”

“With the war in its present state and Song’s army already ranging through Yan’s territory, do you think Song will lightly allow our grain to reach Yan’s forces?”

Xuan Wei remained silent for a time.

At last she sighed deeply.

“It appears Yan has finally reached the end.”

“Shang Jianxiong... Shang Jianxiong, the sinner of Yan through the ages!”

“I only hope our Wei learns from this and never follows the same road.”

Tang Yi felt sorrow rise in her heart.

...

Inside the imperial palace of Jin, a group of generals gathered with Emperor Taishu Xiong around a map, likewise discussing the war in Yan.

Their conclusion was much the same.

Yan had reached the end of its road and was no longer likely to be a match for Song’s army.

And that did not even account for Han, watching like a tiger and certain to enter the war sooner or later.

Once the generals dispersed, Shao Pingbo, who had been listening from the side, showed no intention of leaving.

Taishu Xiong noticed and smiled.

“Does Lord Shao still have some opinion left unspoken?”

Shao Pingbo answered evenly, “Now that Shang Chaozong has come out again to direct the war, it means Niu Youdao allowed it. If Niu Youdao allowed it, then he will not simply stand by and watch.”

Taishu Xiong burst into laughter.

“With the situation already reduced to this, how could one Niu Youdao possibly control it? Lord Shao worries too much.”

Shao Pingbo bowed slightly.

“That man’s methods are as unpredictable as ghosts and gods. Your Majesty cannot be careless. We have no choice but to guard against him.”

The words wiped the laughter from Taishu Xiong’s face.

He gave a slight nod.

“We would hear your view.”

“The current situation is moving according to our forecast,” Shao Pingbo said.

“Han should be the next to act. After that, Zhao will be unable to remain idle.”

“But if Niu Youdao produces some method none of us anticipated and somehow turns the collapsing tide, our entire plan will be broken. That is certainly not something Your Majesty wishes to see.”

“Moreover, Your Majesty already intends to recruit Niu Youdao. Unless he is driven into a dead end, he will not easily submit.”

“Therefore Yan’s war absolutely cannot be allowed to reverse.”

“If a situation we do not wish to see truly appears, the people Jin left among Yan’s forces can finally be put to use.”

Taishu Xiong immediately asked, “How?”

Shao Pingbo answered with perfect calm.

“Wait for an opportunity and assassinate Shang Chaozong and Meng Shanming.”

Taishu Xiong narrowed his eyes slightly.

As he stroked his beard, he slowly nodded.

...

After the defenders of Iron Gate Pass surrendered, Song’s army poured through like floodwater released from a gate, surging violently across Yan’s land.

Yan’s armies tried to surround, pursue, and block them.

One after another, they were driven back.

No one could halt Song’s offensive.

Even though word had already arrived that the Yan court had restored Shang Chaozong to command, it was still not enough to stop Song’s momentum or Yan’s string of defeats.

A great army advanced along the road.

At its head rode Song Grand Commander-in-Chief Luo Zhao on a white horse, silver spear in hand, his bearing high and triumphant.

If this campaign succeeded and became the war that destroyed Yan, his name would blaze through the ages.

A rider came racing toward him.

“Urgent report!”

“Grand Commander-in-Chief, a battle report from ahead. The regional armies of Gongzhou, Tuzhou, Haozhou, Fuzhou, and Changzhou have stopped harassing our forces and withdrawn.”

“According to reliable intelligence, Shang Chaozong has appointed Meng Shanming Grand General of the Eastern Campaign. Meng Shanming has already reached the camp of the Changzhou forces and urgently summoned all five regional lords to meet him.”

“We estimate he intends to redeploy their forces for the next stage of operations against us.”

“Meng Shanming came to the front personally?” Luo Zhao raised the silver spear in his hand.

The army immediately stopped advancing.

The scout replied, “Grand Commander-in-Chief, that is correct. He accepted appointment as Grand General of the Eastern Campaign and is now responsible for directing the war against our army.”

The moment the gathered generals heard that Meng Shanming had come, they looked at one another.

A man’s name, a tree’s shadow.

Who among them had never heard of Meng Shanming?

Back in those years, how much humiliation had that man inflicted upon Song?

He had forced Song to send out several princesses in marriage alliances.

It could even be said that most senior Song officers had once lived for years beneath Meng Shanming’s shadow.

The moment they heard his name, nerves tightened almost instinctively.

“Yan has Shanming; Qi has Wuhen!”

Luo Zhao pronounced the old saying with measured emphasis.

Then he raised his head toward the sky and said leisurely, “Meng Shanming. I have long admired that man from afar. My only regret was that he retired too early, leaving me forever unable to test myself against him.”

“Now I finally have the chance to fulfill that wish. Truly, this is one of life’s great fortunes. How could I fail to congratulate him?”

“Someone, prepare a generous gift. Send it to him on my behalf as a token of my regard.”

There was a hint of mockery in his tone.

[End of Chapter 672]