Chapter 500 Strong Takeover

Chapter 500 Strong Takeover

Chapter 500 Strong Takeover (5k)

All the changes happened without warning.

This "peace talk" seemed to be irretrievably out of control from the moment Xu Zudi stepped into the tent.

According to many people's expectations, the visit of the Crown Prince in person will surely be a drama of both kindness and force, as well as intrigue.

But Xu Zudi chose the simplest and most brutal one from many negotiation options.

This made Zhao Duan lose the desire to watch the show, hint at it, or test it:
“…Take my move.”

A ray of glow wrapped around the folding fan. This shot seemed ordinary, but Zhao Duan secretly pressed the extremely rich energy after entering the worldly realm into the fan bones.

"Your Majesty, be careful!"

Not surprisingly, the gray-clothed old man standing behind Xu Zudi suddenly changed his expression and his body almost left an afterimage.

In a flash, he pushed the Crown Prince away with his right hand, raised his left arm which was hanging below his knee, and "clamped" the folding fan with two fingers as hard as iron bars.

Last autumn, Zhao Duan once used his Divine Chapter Realm to throw a flying knife at Xu Zudi in the capital, but it was easily blocked by the gray-robed old man.

Now, more than half a year has passed, and a similar scene happened again, but this time, the calm face of the gray-robed old man suddenly changed the moment he touched the folding fan.

As if he was electrocuted, the cuff of the old man's left arm suddenly tightened and fell on his flesh with a "snap". Then, the skin of his entire arm trembled violently, and drops of bright red blood oozed from his pores.

"not good--"

The gray-robed old man who had entered the divine realm for many years and served in Prince Heng's mansion suddenly turned pale and screamed. His entire arm was broken by the folding fan with a "crack". The folding fan was still powerful and pierced into the old man's shoulder like an arrow.

The next moment, in full view of everyone, the body of this palace guard with extraordinary martial arts skills was hit by the battering ram, and his feet plowed the ground. He flew backwards like a gust of wind and hit another person in the prince's entourage hard.

The two men fell to the ground, and the folding fan was like a steel nail, almost nailing the old man to the ground!
Blood oozed out, staining the shoulders red.

A silence.

Not only the Crown Prince's side, but even the generals of the five military camps headed by Yuan Feng, all had their pupils narrowed suddenly, and they looked at Zhao Duan in horror.

They knew that Zhao Duan had made great progress in martial arts, but they did not expect that the gap between the two sides would be so huge.

Zhao Duan just shook his head, feeling disappointed. Comparing his sword attack with the one that destroyed the Shenlong Temple, he thought: Not as good as Arhat.

"You... you dare to commit treason?!"

Xu Zudi was stunned for a moment, staring in disbelief at this "deputy general" whom he had never looked at directly from beginning to end. His eyes were filled with shock and anger at first, and then he became furious. Under the fierce appearance, he was weak inside, but there was a hint of fear hidden in his eyes:
"Yuan Feng! Do you want to die?"

He turned his gaze and locked onto Commander Yuan.

In his opinion, this arrangement was closely related to Yuan Feng. As for why his guards were so "weak" and vulnerable, he couldn't figure it out for a moment in his panic.

Yuan Feng felt his scalp tingling when being questioned. This was a little different from the "false surrender" he had expected. He couldn't help but turn his head to look over and search the catalog.

Zhao Duan walked out slowly and suddenly, without any warning, he kicked Xu Zudi to the ground.

He placed his right hand on the back of the chair on the ground, lifted it up, turned it 180 degrees, and sat down leisurely. His expression turned cold, and he looked down from above:

"It seems you haven't figured out the situation yet."

Xu Zudi was caught off guard and was kicked down like a wild dog, with a bruised face and nose. The last follower behind him tried to step forward but was knocked down by a general from the Fifth Army Camp with one punch.

"You... who are you? What are you going to do?" Xu Zudi knelt on the ground, looking nervous, and looked at Yuan Feng again:
"This prince is from the royal family, do you want to rebel?..."

"Slap!" Zhao Duan said in a cold tone.

Everyone hesitated, and the general who had thrown the punch earlier stepped forward first, swung his palm-leaf fan, and with a "snap" sound, he hit hard.

The soldier had great strength in his hands, and the tender-skinned prince was almost turned around on the spot after being hit, with his cheeks swollen and blood spurting out.

The general cursed, "Bah, I've always disliked you, you dog. How dare you talk to Lord Zhao like that?"

Xu Zudi's head was buzzing, but he still caught the key word "Lord Zhao". His heart was beating wildly, and he finally turned his gaze to the "mediocre deputy general" sitting in front of him.

At this moment, Zhao Duan wiped his face with his right hand, revealing his true appearance, and said with a smile:
"Xu Zudi, do you still recognize me?"

Zhao Duan!
Xu Zudi was struck by lightning, his face turned visibly pale, and he shouted:
"Impossible! How are you still alive and here?"

Zhao Duan smiled with no warmth:

"Are you surprised? Are you surprised? I wanted to play with you and get information, but since you came to me personally, there's no need to waste any effort."

Xu Zudi's eyes were filled with intense fear, and he used his hands and feet to step back:

"What do you want to do? I am a member of the royal family. Who dares to touch me..."

Yuan Feng stood up suddenly. The square-faced commander spoke in a low voice:

"Your Majesty has returned to the capital. Lord Zhao was ordered to suppress the rebellion today. Xu Zudi, do you still think that an identity can protect you?"

What? The Empress is back? When?!

Xu Zudi broke out in a cold sweat. He wanted to question, but when he met Zhao Duan's cold gaze, the words in his throat suddenly became speechless.

His expression changed and he finally realized that he was in danger.

"This prince... no, I... Brother Zhao, this is a misunderstanding..." Xu Zudi's face changed, he was able to bend and stretch, and even put on a smile.

"Oh? Is it a misunderstanding?" Zhao Duan sat in the chair with his legs crossed, groping for the scabbard of the sword inlaid with five-colored gems.

"Yes, yes, it's a misunderstanding. I can explain it." Xu Zudi said and tried to get up.

"Did I ask you to get up?" Zhao Duan was too lazy to look at him and just focused on stroking the scabbard.

Xu Zudi froze, but still lowered himself in front of everyone and forced a smile: "This matter, this matter..."

Zhao Duan interrupted him and said slowly:

"I am not a heartless person. As you said, I am a relative of Your Majesty after all. Even if I made a mistake, I should not be humiliated too much."

"Yes, yes, yes." Xu Zudi nodded quickly. He knew too well Zhao Duan's vengeful nature. Even though he cursed Zhao Gou in his heart, the situation was stronger than the person, and he did not dare to anger the other party.

"Besides," Zhao Duan's fingers suddenly stopped and he smiled:
"If Your Majesty knew that I was receiving my relatives in this way, it would be inappropriate."

Suddenly, he drew his sword from its sheath with a clang!

The sharp sword immediately reflected a white light in the tent, sweeping across the faces of the generals.

Xu Zudi shrank his neck in fear, his thighs trembled, and he lowered his head instinctively, but he did not wait for the knife to flash towards him.

"How about this, let's play a game," Zhao Duan waved his hand and ordered someone to take a steaming sweet potato from the stove and pierce it with the tip of a knife.

Zhao Duan leaned forward, holding the knife handle with his right hand, and handed the sweet potato with the tip of the knife to the prince:

"Lift your head and eat this with your mouth, and I will not punish you for your disrespect. How do you do that?"

Xu Zudi raised his head and stared blankly at the cold tip of the knife hanging in front of his lips and the hot sweet potato, his expression changing from gloomy to bright.

Revenge! This is naked revenge!
How similar was this scene to the one in the capital when he taught Madam Xiao how to bite an apple?
However, at that time he was only teaching Zhao Duan how to throw flying knives and performing juggling for him to enjoy.

Now, Zhao Duan used the same method he used to humiliate that bitch from the Xiao family on him.

This was beyond Xu Zudi's tolerance limit.

His face suddenly twisted, and he stared at Zhao Duan like a wolf, pretending to stand up:

"I'll fight you!"

"Pfft!"

As soon as he stood up, the general behind him kicked him hard on the knee. With a slight sound of bone fracture, the pampered Xu Zudi fell to the ground wailing.

Zhao Duan was bored, he thrust his sword into the ground, waved his hand and said:
"Please take His Royal Highness away and torture him severely. I want to know some valuable information about the Hengwang rebels."

At this point, Yuan Feng's expression changed slightly: "Master Zhao, this..."

He wanted to say, this was different from what was agreed upon, how could this be a false surrender?
What happened to the promised prudent approach? Using torture on the Crown Prince would be tantamount to forcing King Heng to go to war immediately. It would be far better to use the Crown Prince as a hostage to gain more room for negotiation... This is what the generals of the Five Military Camps thought.

"No need to say more, just do as I say. You guys are being too conservative. Oh, let one of this bastard prince's followers go, and report back to King Heng. I'll give him half an hour. If he doesn't surrender within half an hour, the Qingzhou rebels will be destroyed today."

Zhao Duan stood up, leaning on his sword, exuding an air of dominance.

At this time, Xu Zudi, who was dragged out of the tent, yelled and cursed wildly:
"Zhao Duan! You are just a dog of my Xu family! How dare you touch me? My Qingzhou army outside will kill you all today..."

Hey, how do you know I'm Zhenbao's licker? Zhao Duan is invincible when he is a lowly person. He doesn't mind at all. Instead of getting angry, he laughs:
"Two armies facing each other? I couldn't ask for more."

Xu Zudi was taken away. The tent was plunged into a strange atmosphere.

Yuan Feng couldn't help but speak:

"Lord Zhao, please think twice. The Qingzhou rebels are far from being as weak as expected. They have hidden 'evil chariots' that can ram into the army formation. They are extremely difficult to deal with. Moreover, the morale of the camp is low now. If we start a war rashly, I'm afraid it will be disastrous."

The rest of the generals, whether they had previously advocated retreat in order to advance or those who had initiated a surprise attack, all united at this moment and urged Zhao Duan to revoke his order.

I cursed in my heart: an amateur guiding experts!
I had thought that this Zhao Yanwang was a powerful reinforcement, but now it seems that my previous judgment was wrong. He was clearly a court bureaucrat who had never fought a war but was mysteriously confident and liked to give blind orders on the battlefield.

They have seen too many bureaucrats like this and hate them deeply.

I know that teammates who give reckless orders are often more deadly than the enemies.

Yuan Feng took a deep breath, and a look of determination appeared on his square face:

"Master Zhao, we thank you for coming to our aid, but the Fifth Army Battalion is Yuan's subordinate. If you insist on doing this, please forgive me for not being able to cooperate!"

The general is outside, and military orders are not obeyed!

As the commander, Yuan Feng has the same rank as Zhao Duan. Considering that Shao Bao is an honorary title, Yuan Feng has more actual power.

At this moment, he couldn't help but feel a little angry and took a tough attitude.

Zhao Duan glanced at his comrades and said calmly:
"Commander Yuan may not understand one thing. I am here to fight the enemy under orders. Naturally, this front will be fully taken over by my Shenji Battalion."

hula-

Shi Meng, Chen Gui, Tang Ping and other generals of the Shenji Camp who were hiding outside stepped into the tent and clasped their hands:

"Sir, the Divine Machine Battalion is ready and can fight at any time!"

Yuan Feng and others' faces changed, realizing that they were being sidelined.

"By the way," Zhao Duan didn't wait for them to reply, staring at everyone with a faint smile:
"The five camps have been defeated in three battles. I have been ordered to lead the army to the front line. Although I trust you all, people's hearts are different. This is a battle between two armies, so we must not be careless. Who knows if any of you have secretly colluded with the enemy?

Next, everyone in the tent just follows me and watches the battle. If anyone tries to leave, don’t blame me for being ruthless! "

After a pause, Zhao Duan leaned on his knife and said in a gloomy tone: "Who agrees? Who opposes?"

Yuan Feng and the others felt a sinking feeling in their hearts, and no one dared to refute.

……

……

Qingzhou Army, inside the big tent.

"Bang!" Prince Heng, who looked quite similar to Xu Zudi and looked quite young despite being over fifty years old, slammed the table with his hand wearing a jade ring, his face gloomy.

There was a flash of rage between his brows, but if one looked closely, one would detect a hint of uncontrollable panic and fear deep in the furious prince's pupils!
"Zhao Duan!"

King Heng's chest heaved violently, he was panting like an ox, and he raised his head and glanced fiercely at the group of "ministers" in the tent.

Just now, an attendant who was deliberately released delivered the news that the Crown Prince was captured and Zhao Duan was brought here to the Qingzhou military camp intactly.

Immediately, the Qingzhou generals, who had relaxed and were preparing to celebrate, became angry and gathered in the big tent to discuss countermeasures.

"Start the war! Start the war! Attack with all your might and crush them to the ground!" King Heng roared.

One of the counselors tried to dissuade him: "Your Majesty, please calm down. We should not act rashly now. We should think calmly and find a solution."

Another general also said hurriedly: "Yes, if what Zhao Duan said is true, I am afraid it will be difficult for us to capture the capital. It is unwise to advance rashly at this time."

Another person said:

"Your Highness, this may not be true. Not to mention, the authenticity of the 'Zhao Duan' in the tent has not been confirmed. Even if it is true, can what he said be true? Everyone knows that the female emperor Luo Shan is seriously injured. Can she still sit firmly in the capital now? This matter... In my opinion, we should find out the truth before making plans. But before that, we should first focus on rescuing His Royal Highness the Crown Prince."

Prince Heng's expression was uncertain, and he suddenly looked at Wei Xianzong: "Xianzong, what do you think?"

The commander of the Qingzhou army, who had tried hard to persuade everyone that there was a trap in the peace talks, but was besieged and questioned by everyone, stood silently in the corner of the tent.

He watched coldly, feeling a little chill in his heart.

His words were excluded and ignored when they were competing for credit, but now they are remembered again when they need to save the situation.

Wei Xianzong raised his head, suppressed all the emotions in his heart, and said calmly:
"Your Highness, we have no choice but to fight. If the empress really returns to the court, it will be very unlikely to attack the capital. We should retreat to Qingzhou and make plans. But if we retreat hastily, we may be pursued and beaten.

On the contrary, with the current peak morale, we can attack when we advance and defend when we retreat, and we will be invincible.

Moreover, in my opinion, Zhao Duan is most likely bluffing, deliberately trying to scare us off and make us hesitate. Otherwise...why would he bother with this "peace talk"? Why not just fight openly and honestly?
Therefore, I think that even if he really brought some reinforcements, it would not be enough to threaten us, so he could only intimidate us to buy time. This method is also in line with his past style of being scheming and playing with people's hearts."

Wei Xianzong's words were clear and powerful. Everyone in the tent nodded, and their panicked hearts were calmed.

Many people's eyes even lit up. The more they thought about it, the more they felt that the possibility of the "empty city plan" was very high.

Prince Heng also seemed to have grasped a life-saving straw, his eyes lit up, and he walked out excitedly and held Wei Xianzong's hand:
"So, that 'Zhao Duan' might be bluffing? Or even that 'Zhao Duan' might not even exist? Maybe the Fifth Army Camp was in dire straits and sent someone to disguise themselves?"

Wei Xianzong frowned, resisted the urge to pull his hand back, and said hesitantly:

"This matter still needs to be verified. I am willing to lead the troops to capture the five military camps immediately. Then the truth will naturally come to light."

King Heng was delighted and said, "Okay, thank you for helping me rescue Zu Di."

The others also praised him, saying that the reason why Qingzhou’s army was not strong but they were able to win three battles in a row was not only due to the secret weapons of Prince Heng’s Palace, but also due to the battle command of Emperor Wei Xianzong.

This commander, who was originally unknown, performed extremely well in the battle not long ago, and even Yuan Feng was suppressed.

……

……

At the command, at the border of Qingzhou, the two military camps started up like huge machines.

Although the Shenji Battalion had been traveling a long way, the journey was not far so the soldiers were still able to engage in battle, especially because their morale was high.

At Zhao Duan's command, Shi Meng, Chen Gui, Tang Ping and others led the Shenji Camp and aggressively seized the battlefield.

The soldiers of the Fifth Army Camp, whose morale had already hit rock bottom, naturally cooperated highly when they learned that reinforcements had arrived and were asked to retreat to the camp.

In the blink of an eye, the Shenji Battalion entered the battlefield.

At the same time, Zhao Duan led a group of senior generals from the five military camps and climbed up on foot to a hill behind the military camp.

In midsummer, the mountains are covered with lush vegetation, the sky is overcast, and a cool breeze blows on your face.

Zhao Duan changed back into his official robes - with his level of cultivation, wearing armor would restrict his movements.

At this moment, he held the handle of the sword with his right hand, stood in front of the crowd, and looked ahead.

On a flat open space, the two army camps were facing each other from afar. At this moment, accompanied by the rumbling sound of war drums in the camp, the low drumbeats almost struck everyone's heart.

The battlefield below is like a chessboard.

At this moment, the cavalry and infantry of the Shenji Camp lined up outside the camp. Leading the charge was the young master Tang Ping, wearing a silver helmet and armor, carrying a bow and arrow, and holding a spear.

Behind the camp, on another hill perfectly hidden by trees, Chen Gui, stroking his beard, commanded the artillerymen of the Shenji Battalion to unload the latest generation of Shenwei cannons wrapped in rainproof cloth from the vehicles, bury them in the ground, and quickly adjust them according to the "Artillery Manual".

However, neither the Qingzhou soldiers nor the generals of the five military camps on the hill knew what was happening here.

"The battlefield is like a chessboard. I have never commanded a battle before. Today is the first time for a young lady to get into a bridal sedan."

Zhao Duan looked at the top of the mountain, a sense of heroism rising in his heart. He held the sword with one hand and pointed forward with the other:

"Is that where King Heng's tent is?"

What he pointed at was a wooden "watchtower" behind the Qingzhou army camp.

Commander Yuan Feng, whose military power was snatched away by Zhao Duan, was full of worry. He was even more frightened when he heard this, and even prepared to flee in the event of defeat.

However, the scene in which Zhao Duan instantly killed the grey-robed old man in the tent made Yuan Feng realize that his and others’ martial arts were no match for Zhao Duan’s.

At this time, he finally realized and reacted:
The reason why Zhao Duan fought in the tent might not be to target the prince, but to "kill the chicken to scare the monkeys" in order to intimidate them and pave the way for taking over the military camp forcefully.

With mixed thoughts in his mind, Yuan Feng said in a muffled voice: "Yes. When the war started, King Heng's party was also here to watch the battle."

"Is that so?" Zhao Duan estimated the distance silently and muttered softly:
"I wonder if I can take down a prince with one shot."

(End of this chapter)