Chapter 665 Duel of Life and Death
Chapter 665 Duel of Life and Death
Xu Shiji set up a chief hall, with him, Shan Xiongxin and Hao Xiaode as the chiefs, and the power of Wagang was shared by the three of them.
This result made Zhai Hong furious. In terms of troop numbers, his army was only a thousand less than Hao Xiaode and two thousand less than Shan Xiongxin.
His qualifications are two years later than Shan Xiongxin, but one year earlier than Hao Xiaode.
His son Zhai Mohou is the best fighter in Wagang, so he should be better than Hao Xiaode in terms of seniority and strength. Now Hao Xiaode has become one of the three giants of Wagang, but Zhai Hong has been eliminated. How can Zhai Hong possibly accept this?
What's more, his brother is the leader of Wagang. According to the traditional inheritance system, when his brother Zhai Rang dies, he, Zhai Hong, should succeed him as the leader of Wagang.
In the past few days, Zhai Hong made a lot of noise and threats in front of the main hall every day. If he was not allowed to be the leader, he would take away all the troops loyal to his brother Zhai Rang and set up his own faction.
Xu Shiji, Shan Xiongxin and Hao Xiaode discussed and decided to accept Zhai Hong as the chief, but the decision had to be made public for three days. If no one objected, they would accept him as the chief.
Zhai Hong agreed immediately, and a notice proposing Zhai Hong as the chief was posted on the bulletin board outside the main hall. This kind of announcement was usually just a formality, because most people were illiterate and did not care much about this written form.
But on the same day, a rebuttal notice written by Li Mi himself was posted next to the notice, opposing Zhai Hong's appointment as the person in charge.
The announcement listed four reasons why Zhai Hong was not qualified to be the chief. First, Zhai Hong had not made any achievements in the Wagang Army, so he was not qualified to win the support of the people. Second, Zhai Hong bullied the weak and oppressed the weak, so his moral character was not qualified to win the support of the people. Third, Zhai Hong was as stupid as a pig, so his intelligence was not qualified to win the support of the people. Fourth, Cui Hong was illiterate and had low martial arts skills, so his ability was not qualified to win the support of the people.
When his trusted aide Wang Ruxin told Zhai Hong the contents of Li Mi's rebuttal letter one by one, Zhai Hong became furious and roared like a bull. He sent people to tear up the notice, but was stopped by the soldiers guarding the notice.
His son Zhai Mohou was even more murderous and rushed to kill Li Mi with a knife. Hundreds of soldiers were guarding Li Mi's residence. The soldiers of both sides confronted each other. At this time, Xu Shiji arrived.
"This is Wagangzhai. No one is allowed to have internal strife, otherwise you will be subject to military law!"
Zhai Hong also came. He was extremely dissatisfied and said to Xu Shiji: "Li Mi the dog thief can humiliate me at will, but I am not allowed to resist. What kind of logic is this?"
Xu Shiji said coldly: "The leader had a rule back then. Everything must be done according to the rules. Even if there are conflicts, we must follow the rules. We are not allowed to seek revenge privately."
"What rules?"
"The Heavenly Dao Martial Certificate System, this is one of the three major rules of the Wagang Army set by the leader, don't you know it?"
Zhai Hong nodded, "I understand, so what should I do according to the rules?"
Xu Shiji asked calmly, "Are you sure you want to resolve the conflict with Li Mi?"
Zhai Hong narrowed his eyes and said, "That's right. This is a life-and-death feud. Either he dies or I die!"
Xu Shiji nodded, "In that case, let's follow the rules. Tomorrow morning, the main hall will hold a mediation meeting. You two will decide the terms. Whether it's a fight to the death or a fight to pay homage, it's up to you to decide."
Zhai Hong stared at the expressionless Li Mi with murderous intent, nodded and said: "Then follow the rules, I will make him die with a sense of satisfaction!" The next morning, more than 40 generals gathered in the main hall. Everyone was very interested. They were going to hold a Tiandao Martial Arts Competition, which was a martial arts competition to decide the winner. How could they miss such an interesting event?
"Quiet!" Xu Shiji slapped the gavel, and the hall fell silent. Xu Shiji said slowly: "According to the third rule of the Wagang Army, General Zhai Hong requested to hold a Tiandao Wuzheng to resolve the conflict between him and military advisor Li Mi in a fair way. After discussion and decision by the chief hall, it is agreed to General Zhai Hong's request to hold a Tiandao Wuzheng to decide the winner at the martial arts arena tomorrow morning. According to the rules, you can participate in the competition yourself, or your generals can participate in the competition on your behalf. As for the bets of the competition, please think about it. You can bet on your life, military strength, or wealth. I wonder what you two want to bet on?"
Li Mi said calmly: "I don't have many troops, let alone much wealth. I can only gamble with my life. General Zhai, I heard that you never dare to go to the battlefield because you are afraid of losing your life. I suggest you don't gamble, lest people in the world laugh at you for not keeping your word!"
Zhai Hong snorted heavily, "I was worried that you didn't dare to gamble your life with me. Since you want to gamble your life, this general will play with you to the end. If you beat me, I will give you my life, my wealth and my army. If you lose, I will kill you with my own hands!"
There was an uproar in the lobby. Everything was at stake. Everyone was extremely excited and kept blowing whistles.
Xu Shiji had someone bring the life-gambling document, read it aloud, and said to the two men, "Raise your objections now if you have any. If you have no objections, please sign and seal!"
Li Mi walked up, signed his name and pressed his fingerprint. Zhai Hong was illiterate, so he drew his signature and also pressed his fingerprint. Next, the three persons in charge who served as supervisors also signed and sealed in turn. The last person to sign was Hao Xiaode.
Hao Xiaode vaguely saw that Xu Shiji and Shan Xiongxin were setting a trap for Zhai Hong. Although he had no grudge against Zhai Rang, he was a little unhappy that Zhai Hong's insistence on squeezing into the main hall would weaken his power. Secondly, he had long coveted Zhai Hong's concubines, so he said nothing from beginning to end.
Xu Shiji displayed the life-and-death bet signed by the two men in front of all the generals and said loudly: "This is the first life-and-death bet signed by the Wagang Army in the past five years. The result will be determined tomorrow morning on the martial arts stage. The two men or their representatives will compete in a duel to decide life and death!"
The forty generals were so excited that they slammed the tables and benches in joy. Zhai Hong suddenly felt a little uneasy, but when he looked at his son Zhai Mohou, the uneasiness in his heart disappeared immediately. His son was recognized as the best fighter in Wagang, and even Shan Xiongxin was not his opponent. Who should he be afraid of?
The next morning, two thousand people surrounded the open-air martial arts arena, which was a large wooden platform ten meters long and wide. Unofficial private duels often took place here, but there was never a limit. The loser would die, so the martial arts arena was more often called the life and death stage or the guillotine.
Zhai Mohou was about 1.9 meters tall, wearing armor and had an extremely strong physique. He held a pair of double halberds weighing 40 kilograms each. He had defeated Hao Xiaode, Shan Xiongxin, Xu Shiji and his uncle Zhai Rang successively, and was recognized as the best master in Wagang.
He jumped onto the martial arts stage. Xu Shiji said loudly, "Zhai Hong is replaced by his son Zhai Mohou. May I ask Li Mifang, who will fight?"
Li Mi nodded to Xiong Kuohai, and Xiong Kuohai walked down the martial arts stage with his sword in hand. Zhai Hong was stunned. Although he didn't know the details of Xiong Kuohai, he knew that Xiong Kuohai had always been Xu Shiji's man.
"Master Xu, isn't this General Xiong one of your men?"
Xu Shiji took out a transfer order and handed it to him, saying with a smile: "General Xiong was transferred to Military Advisor Li four days ago. He is now under Military Advisor Li's command."
"How could it be such a coincidence?" Zhai Hong was confused.
Xu Shiji said calmly: "According to the rules, as long as they are from the Wagang Army, Li Junshi can ask anyone to fight for him. Does General Zhai have any objection?"
Zhai Hong shook his head slowly, indicating that he had no objection and that there was no problem with the rules, but he always felt uncomfortable in his heart. Li Mi was originally a lonely man, but now he suddenly had an army and generals under his command, and he didn't even know about it?
"Dang!" A gong sounded and the competition began.
There was an immediate silence around the arena. Everyone held their breath and stared at the arena. It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
(End of this chapter)