Yang Feng opened his eyes and took a few deep breaths. He felt the bloody smell in his chest and abdomen fade a little before he slowly supported himself with his arms and sat up on the straw couch.
She has overdrawn too much of her physical potential during this period of time, which has damaged her foundation. She is afraid that she has shortened her lifespan.
Yang Feng suspected that one day he would fall asleep and never wake up again.
Now, her body is in severe pain all the time. If she had not been supported by the belief of inheriting Huang Tian's ambition and finding a way for all people in the world, I am afraid that her spirit would have collapsed before her body.
But even so, she understood that belief alone could not change reality.
The day of the Black Mountain Army's demise is near.
She took out a piece of hard bread from her bag, put it in her mouth and chewed it for a few times. The rough crumbs rolled and rubbed in her dry mouth, causing severe pain.
Yang Feng took the wooden bowl filled with spring water from beside him and swallowed it down with the biscuit crumbs. The burning hunger in his empty stomach finally subsided.
Ever since she could remember when she was a child, eating has never been a good memory for her, because after all, there are only a few days when she can happily have a full meal.
She crossed her legs, her chest rising and falling, and the breath she exhaled was dispersed to every part of her body. Her originally weak body was filled with some strength again, but she knew in her heart that she might never be able to return to her peak again.
She cannot fall down now, otherwise the morale of the Black Mountain Taiping Dao will be dispersed.
Yang Feng walked out of the tent and looked at the guards outside the tent, who were leaning against trees to rest. They were all injured, pale and thin, and it was obvious that they had not had a full meal for a long time.
Seeing Yang Feng stand up, everyone hurriedly stood up. Yang Feng waved his hand and asked them to continue sitting down. Everyone had to do as he said.
Two guards had already come over. Yang Feng asked, "What's going on ahead?"
The guards looked at each other and whispered, "Not very good."
"Jizhou has sent more troops, and Youzhou has also begun to mobilize troops to assist the Jizhou army in attacking the camp."
"The front line is under attack from both sides and is in a precarious situation."
Youzhou Army, Yang Feng silently repeated the name and clenched his fists.
She whispered, "Tell me, was the decision to attack Youzhou wrong?"
"Too many people died because of the revenge of the Youzhou Army."
"I sometimes wonder, is it really worth it?"
The guard looked around and whispered, "Saint, what are you talking about? We all know that the fierce tiger is just spreading rumors. This is really disrespectful to the deceased Heavenly Master."
"If we don't kill the evil tiger, it will not be enough to correct the problem. Wouldn't our Taiping Dao be tarnished?"
After hearing this, Yang Feng sighed, "But we have tried our best, but we still can't do anything to him."
"If the fighting continues like this, all the people of Black Mountain Taiping Dao will be wiped out."
The guard whispered, "It doesn't matter if we die, but the Saint Lady is following the will of the Heavenly Master, so nothing can happen to her."
"We were a burden to the Saint before, causing her to get hurt several times. We are extremely ashamed."
"I heard that Xiong Hu will lead his army here soon. Please allow us to launch a surprise attack and kill him when the time comes!"
"What!" Yang Feng was surprised and delighted, "Xionghu is here again?"
She immediately thought to herself that this might be her last chance!
Killing the evil tiger has now become the belief that supports her to live, not only for the revenge of her sworn brother, but also for the Black Mountain Army and for the world, to eliminate this cancer of the aristocracy that is poisoning all living beings!
Her body was already riddled with wounds, and with each passing day, her chances of killing Yuan Xi became slimmer and slimmer. Now the other party had come to her door!
She said to her guards decisively: "Follow me to see the General!"
Inside Zhang Yan's tent, after hearing Zhong Yao's words, Zhang Yan's face turned extremely ugly, and he shouted in a low voice: "I can't let the Heavenly Master down!"
"How can I live with my conscience after doing something like this?"
Zhong Yao sneered, "So for her, the entire Black Mountain should be buried with her?"
"Sacrifice one man to save hundreds of thousands of people, how will General Zhonglang choose?"
Zhang Yan stammered, "That's not how it's calculated!"
"The Taiping Dao saves the common people, and she is an important figure among them. If I harm them, the Taiping Dao will definitely..."
Zhong Yao sneered, "Isn't she the daughter of Zhang Jue, the remnant of the Yellow Turbans? The envoy has already found out her background!"
Zhang Yan was so shocked when she heard this that she almost knocked over the tea bowl beside her and her body began to tremble involuntarily.
He lost his voice and asked, "How did you know?" He then realized, "Yang Chou?"
Zhong Yao sneered: "If I reveal her identity, there will be many people in the world who want to kill her!"
"The General should understand that the Black Mountain Army should have severed ties with the remnants of the Yellow Turbans long ago!"
"After the Yellow Turban Rebellion, the Taiping Dao had long since severed ties with the Yellow Turban Army. This is also the condition for the Taiping Dao to continue to exist!"
"The Yellow Turbans are the Yellow Turbans, and Zhang Jue is Zhang Jue. Neither of them can represent the Taiping Dao now, let alone a daughter of Zhang Jue?"
"Today, the Han court still respects Huang Lao. Whoever masters the Way of Taiping and becomes a true man will be able to control the heart of the emperor!"
"Does the Zhonglang Jiang think that Yang Feng is more qualified than the envoy?"
"The position she occupies in Taiping Dao blocks the way of the envoy, so it's time for her to give way!"
"Excuse me for being blunt, but what the envoy can give to the General of the Central Army, Yang Feng can't give at all!"
"What's more, if the truth is exposed, the General will be charged with harboring rebels!"
"At this point, what are you still hesitating about, General Zhonglang?"
Zhang Yan's mind went blank.
On one side is Yang Feng, and on the other side are hundreds of thousands of Black Mountain troops.
On one side was the official position and title promised by Cao Cao, and on the other side was the risk of protecting Yang Feng.
His expression changed several times, and he gritted his teeth and said, "If I do it openly, I will have no face left in the future..."
Zhong Yao was delighted to see that Zhang Yan had been persuaded, and said with a smile, "What difficulty is there at this moment?"
"I heard that she had a personal vendetta against that fierce tiger, and she just used a knife to kill him."
"If you're lucky, you can kill two birds with one stone."
Yuan Xi and Zhao Yun set out from Yecheng with hundreds of cavalrymen. After marching for several days, they arrived at the junction of Weijun and Heishan. Seeing that they were still a hundred miles away from the central pass, they heard a sharp whistle from a scout ahead to warn them.
Everyone heard the sound of approaching horse hooves on the road in the distance, and as if they were facing a powerful enemy, they lined up to protect them. But soon they saw an army rushing out first, and on the flag leading the army was the emblem of the Youzhou Army.
Yuan Xi looked through the telescope and felt relieved. He said to Zhao Yun, "It's Yan Rou."
Not long after, Yan Rou led dozens of cavalrymen to the front. Yan Rou led his men to dismount and bowed to Yuan Xi, saying, "I am Yan Rou, the last general, and I greet you, Your Excellency."
Yuan Xi dismounted and helped Yan Rou up, saying, "General, you have worked hard these past few months."
He meant what he said. Yan Rou was independently responsible for protecting the grain route and blocking the harassment of the Black Mountain cavalry. In the past few months, he had fought dozens of battles, large and small, and effectively guaranteed the transportation of grain and supplies for the Youzhou army.
Yan Rou clasped his fists and said, "This is my duty, but the Black Mountain Army is not weak. I have suffered many casualties, especially in the past half month. The Black Mountain Army is like crazy. I have barely been able to hold them off several times. Fortunately, the envoy is here."
Yuan Xi patted Yan Rou on the shoulder and said, "They are just trapped beasts that still fight. However, the Wuhuan brothers have suffered heavy casualties. After I return, I will ask Youzhou to provide them with adequate compensation."
Just as Yan Rou was about to thank him, Yuan Xi winked at Zhao Yun, who untied the bundle beside the saddle, took out a seal and an imperial edict from it, and handed them to Yan Rou.
Yan Rou took it with a confused look, and Zhao Yun said in a deep voice: "The prince ordered me to obey the imperial edict and become the governor of Youzhou, so I asked for the emperor's edict on behalf of the general."
"Now the general is a legitimate Wuhuan commander."
Yan Rou unfolded the imperial edict and saw that it was indeed written by the emperor himself. He was overjoyed and bowed to Zhao Yun, saying, "Thank you for your high regard!"
Seeing the look in Zhao Yun's eyes, he finally came to his senses and quickly turned around to kneel down and thank Yuan Xi. Yuan Xi helped him up and said with a smile: "Zilong is the person I trust the most. I hope that the general will assist Zilong well in the future so that the Han and Hu people in Youzhou can live a peaceful life."
Yan Rou heard that Yuan Xi seemed to be hinting at something, and hesitated for a while before speaking: "My lord, you know that I am known as the Wuhuan Iron Cavalry, but in fact, there are both Hu and Han people, and there is no distinction between noble and humble. But in the eyes of the Central Plains people, we are all pariahs."
"So for the past two hundred years, we border dwellers have been somewhat out of tune with the people of the Central Plains."
"We respect you, sir, and Envoy Zhao, but if we want to make the Han and Hu people live in peace, it's not something that a rough guy like me who only knows how to fight can do."
After hearing this, Yuan Xi laughed and said, "Brother Yan obviously saw it very clearly and said it very clearly, why are you pretending to be stupid again!"
"The post of a lieutenant is responsible for supervision and inspection, not just for leading troops to fight!"
"From conscription to farming and herding, from internal affairs to lawsuits and miscellaneous tasks, you have to do all of this. Don't even think about being lazy!"
"I have already delegated my authority to you!"
"If you do well, keep doing it. You can go one step further in the future. If you can't do it, then I can only find someone else to do it!"
Yan Rou, the Great Khan, hurriedly said, "I will obey your orders, sir."
He thought that Yuan Xi was testing him, so he said that he would only focus on fighting. But when Yuan Xi made it clear, he felt relieved. Otherwise, he, the captain of Wuhuan, would be just a figurehead.
Yuan Xi patted Yan Rou's shoulder and said, "In the border of Youzhou, the Hu and Han people live together, but it has been hundreds of years since the household registration. Since we are all registered, we are all Han people, without distinction."
"There are hundreds of thousands of Shanyue people in Jiangdong, but they have not yet been registered."
"You and Zilong should discuss the future matters together. I believe you will do a better job than when I was here."
Yan Rou agreed immediately, thinking to herself, judging from the tone of the young master's voice, is he really willing to hand over Youzhou?
This is the territory of an entire state, what a bold move!
Yuan Xi asked Yan Rou to continue to protect the grain route and asked him to send people back to Youzhou Wuhuan tribes to gather troops for support. Now that Yan Rou had the name of the Han court, it would be much easier for him to recruit border residents.
Yuan Xi took Zhao Yun and marched all the way into the central pass of Heishan, and then after a few dozen miles, they encountered the main force of the Youzhou army stationed in the south.
Seeing that Guo Jia, Ju Su, Tian Yu and Gao Shun all came out to meet him, Yuan Xi thought that it would be unjust if he couldn't defeat the Black Mountain Army this time!