Chapter 1331 – Defeating Huang Song, Uniting Dongqing (72)
[Lan Shui Youyou]: Wow, my streamer is amazing! So it turns out that in ancient battles, there really were formal challenges!
[Xingyue Tianyun]: That’s not the main point! The real focus is that my mind is filled with “Zhuge Liang has sent a challenge for a duel tomorrow, how should we face our enemies?” Am I overthinking or have I been too absorbed in Bilibili’s meme culture? Can’t wait to see the streamer and Huang Song exchange insults on the battlefield!
The nights are long and the days are short in this season, and though it’s not time to end the stream yet, it has already grown dark outside.
Tomorrow we’re going to war, and yet Jiang Pengji is taking her sweet time, her slender fingers teasing the tiny candle flame, lost in thought.
Little do they know, while outsiders think she’s daydreaming, she’s actually surveying her surroundings.
Jiang Pengji takes this battle against Huang Song very seriously and does not dare to slack off.
She does not give Huang Song the chance to launch a surprise attack, spreading her spiritual energy to scout the enemy situation within a hundred miles nearly every day.
There hadn’t been much progress until today when she discovered something different.
With a furrowed brow, she pondered while retracting her spiritual energy, trying to deduce the origins of a certain troop.
Tomorrow is the decisive battle, and she doesn’t want to be caught off-guard by an unknown enemy at a crucial moment.
Jiang Pengji shouted, “Quick, summon the generals! Tell them it’s urgent!”
Her sudden call had Qin Gong and others rushing over without even having the time to remove their armor.
“Tomorrow’s decisive battle—” Jiang Pengji scanned the group, selecting two newly promoted newcomers. The role of a military general is a tough one earned through achievements, requiring both luck and a stage to shine, and Jiang Pengji is quite generous in this regard. This is also one of the reasons for internal unity. Then she turned to Xie Ze and said, “Yuan Gui, you will defend the rear tomorrow.”
Xie Ze was taken aback at first.
Why him?
Why was he sent to defend the rear?
As the vanguard general, he was supposed to lead the charge. Being switched to the back line at the last minute deserved an explanation.
Summoning his courage, he asked, and Jiang Pengji provided a reason.
With a serious tone, she replied, “I just received an urgent report; there will be changes on the battlefield tomorrow, and having you guard the rear is a matter of overall strategy.”
Xie Ze nodded, stepping forward to accept his command, regaining his former imposing demeanor as if he could charge at the enemy right now.
Qin Gong, younger than Xie Ze, had far more combat experience, his instincts sharper.
“Changes on the battlefield tomorrow? Could it be that Huang Song has some tricks up his sleeve?”
“This is still uncertain; we will only know tomorrow,” Jiang Pengji stated. “Yuan Gui, you must guard the rear well and not be careless.”
Though the militaries under her command seldom acted impulsively or took matters into their own hands, young rising stars were often a bit rash, eager to achieve merit. They could easily drop the ball at critical moments… Jiang Pengji had to occasionally remind them to keep their cool.
The role of a military general requires one to keep their head on straight. If they can’t, how much longer can they last?
After the discussion, Jiang Pengji closed the stream, washed up, and went to bed, needing to conserve her energy for tomorrow’s great battle.
Meanwhile, Feng Jue was resting his troops several dozen miles away, the scouts he sent out having gathered all the intel regarding the battlefield. Knowing that the main battle between the Lord and Jiang Pengji had yet to begin, Feng Jue finally sighed in relief—
One of the generals hesitated to ask Feng Jue, “Military Adviser, should we hurry through the night to join the Lord or…?”
Feng Jue shook his head, pondering, “Rushing through the night will leave us fatigued, with little fighting power left. How can we help the Lord tomorrow then? It would be better to allow the army to rest for a while. Tomorrow, when the two armies confront each other, we can take advantage of Liu Xi’s laxness and launch a surprise attack from the rear. If we catch her off-guard, it will surely throw her troops into chaos… This will lessen the pressure on the Lord’s side…”
Feng Jue had redirected his troops to mislead Qi Guanrang, making sure to take a longer route to give him the impression that he didn’t hurry to the frontlines but instead sent troops to aid Haozhou. In other words, Jiang Pengji had no idea that Feng Jue’s forces had already arrived.
As such, when Feng Jue ambushed Jiang Pengji’s rear, the latter would be unprepared.
Little did they know, Jiang Pengji was not like them; she had already noticed Feng Jue’s moves.
The next day, the sky was dim and the dawn light barely broke.
The two armies stood off against each other in the cold wind, banners flapping, the battlefield filled with a deadly atmosphere. Flags emblazoned with the characters “Liu” or “Huang” fluttered in the wind, rippling ominously. The knives and spears gleamed coldly, reflecting the resolute faces of their owners. The morale of the soldiers surged as they formed into ranks, the air thick with the scent of impending battle. Under such circumstances, even the idlers in the stream refrained from joking around.
Dressed in red and silver armor, Jiang Pengji’s helmet, adorned with a red tassel, obscured much of her face but could not hide the undercurrents swirling in her eyes.
Behind her, the soldiers stood tall and well-armed, their spirits flying high, ready for battle.
Given such a display, it was impossible for Huang Song to claim he felt no pressure.
But—
He had no way out!
Huang Song closed his eyes and opened them anew, a tranquil resolve settling in their depths.
In the past, wars followed a protocol, but now it had become increasingly casual; battles were simply battles, and it was time to fight. Huang Song wasn’t foolish enough to suggest a duel; he knew that Jiang Pengji’s martial prowess alone could take down anyone, whether in one-on-one combat, wheel battles, or in a chaotic melee.
Under such circumstances, there was little left for the two armies to do other than prepare for battle.
Surely, they couldn’t have over twenty thousand people simply watching their Lord chat and reminisce on the battlefield?!
“Sound the drums!”
With a command given, hundreds of chariots rolled out carrying large drums made of cowhide.
Boom—
Boom boom—
The war drums echoed, lifting the army’s morale. Jiang Pengji raised her hand to signal that the drums could begin.
The military formation extended for miles, with over two hundred thousand troops combined, relying on such means to convey various messages.
The drumbeats served not only to inspire the morale but also to signal the soldiers—
Wake up, those who were daydreaming, shake off the drowsiness of those who were dozing! A major battle is about to commence!
In this fight, Jiang Pengji was the commander. Luo Yue, though capable, had spent most of his time back at headquarters managing security and border protection, thus lacking practical commanding experience. As for this, Luo Yue was in no way unwilling. The Lord leading the troops meant she couldn’t just idle around!
Qin Gong and the others were eager, bursting with fighting spirit.
Before Jiang Pengji could even issue her orders, the enemy forces could no longer hold back, shouts of battle cries resonating through the skies, ringing painfully in the ears.
The flag bearers waved their banners as if dark clouds floated in the air, while the drummers intensified their efforts, muscles taut, arms as thick as the legs of common men. Sweat glistened on their skins, making them shine.
Jiang Pengji smiled, unsheathing her sword and issuing the command.
“Troop of cavalry, heed my orders—”
