Chapter 1097: The Li Clan appears, chaos spreads (1/2)
On the third day of Ning Cheng’s assault against Skyriver City, internal strife broke out within the army!
“Deputy General Xue?” Han Yunxi’s first reaction was him, but the reality proved far worse!
“Princess, the turncoat was a deputy general named Chen. He took 10,000 cavalrymen away with him to side with Skyriver City’s Yuwen Guang!” the shadow guard reported.
“What?!” Han Yunxi couldn’t believe it.
The Ning Clan Head only had a portion of crack troops that were members of the Di Clan. Most of the soldiers were recruited from other sources, but how could they betray Ning Cheng after following him for so many years? Moreover, they hadn’t turned traitor when Ning Cheng wasn’t here, so why did they start now? Even a mere foot soldier could tell that this northern expedition was a sure win for Ning Cheng’s side. As long as he gained victory, all of the Ning Clan troops would enjoy endless glory and riches in the future!
“Could it be that this Deputy General Chen was a spy to begin with?” Long Feiye asked doubtfully.
“Your Highness, Yuwen Guang opened his city gates to let the soldiers now. Currently he and the 10,000 cavalry forces are attacking the Ning Clan troops in a pincer formation! It’s uncertain whether Great General Ning will win this battle!” the shadow guard added.
It didn’t matter whether Ning Cheng had a record of undefeated wins anymore. Under these circumstances, the entire Ning Clan army was in mortal danger. If they lost Skyriver City, then the battles for Northern Li’s southern regions would definitely extend into the winter months.
“Your Highness, if he was a spy, then what kind of miracle agent is he? How could he wait this long?” Gu Beiyue knitted his brows. “As this subordinate sees it, the Northern Li emperor doesn’t have such aspirations.”
Immediately, a thought flashed into Long Feiye’s mind, but he quickly dismissed it. Instead he ordered, “Tell Baili Yuanlong to hurry up with reinforcements! If they can’t take Skyriver City by the end of this month, this crown prince will hold him accountable!”
Baili Yuanlong had 100,000 soldiers of his own made of up Ning and Baili forces. Ning Cheng was in charge of the premptive attack against the north while he brought up the rear. While Ning Cheng was taking the south and Skyriver City, he was supposed to lead the troops north. Currently, the 100,000 soldiers under his command had just passed through Three-Way Battlefield. 50,000 were meant to head west and support Ning Cheng while 30,000 went north. The remaining 20,000 were to turn east and meet up with the naval forces. Even though Ning Cheng’s 30,000 troops were split apart by the traitorous faction, they wouldn’t affect the big picture as long as help arrived in time.
Long Feiye’s group were only shocked that spies had remained hidden in the army for so long. If this was the case, then what about the other military units?
The shadow guard hadn’t left long before a familiar face arrived--none other than Chu Xifeng. As soon as he recovered from his injuries, he and Baili Mingxiang had made their way to Three-Way Black Market with another piece of bad news.
“When did you come back?” Han Yunxi was surprised.
“Your Highness, princess, this subordinate has just arrived! Something’s happened on the western front. Half of the Chu Clan troops have turned traitor and sided with Western Zhou’s two factions. Three days ago, they started fighting with Chu Tianyin at the border!”
As soon as Chu Xifeng finished, another shadow guard arrived with an urgent missive. “Your Highness, this is the Chu Clan’s emergency report!”
Long Feiye and Han Yunxi exchanged looks. Gu Beiyue couldn’t sit still and finally stood up as well. Long Feiye opened the letter, which was written by Chu Tianyin, and read exactly what Chu Xifeng had just reported. Chu Tianyin didn’t have enough soldiers to fend off the traitors and Western Zhou alike. He retreated to a boundary beyond Tianning and Western Zhou in hopes of seeking reinforcements, but the Tianning garrison troops stationed there turned against him too to ally with Western Zhou, leaving him attacked on both sides!
Chu Tianyin’s letter detailed the following:
By the time Your Highness and princess sees this letter, my Chu Clan troops should have already fallen into enemy hands. This one vows that I was loyal to the end and only ask Your Highness to abide by your word to protect my father and uncle’s lives! The Chu Clan and Tianning garrison troops harbored traitors. This subordinate makes bold to declare that the princess must be on guard against Tianan’s Mu Clan!
“The Mu Clan?”[1] Now Han Yunxi was beyond belief. What did Chu Tianyin mean? He guessed that all the traitors hailed from the Mu Clan? How could that be possible? If General Mu had such skills, Tianan wouldn’t be stuck in its present state today!
To plant spies in the Chu Clan, Ning Clan, and Tianning garrison troops with the ability to turn large numbers of soldiers to their side was some skill! Enough to send them to the top! That was equal to controlling massive factions on both the East and West Qin sides!
Long Feiye had never been more taken aback in his life, much less Gu Beiyue. He looked back just in time to meet the doctor’s eyes.
“The Li Clan…” (离族) Long Feiye muttered.
“It could only have been them!” Gu Beiyue was certain.
Besides the Li Clan, no one else had such skills! They were experts in the art of war and deployed troops in similar miraculous fashions as the Wind Clan and their command of of the Qimen Dunjia arts.[2] However, it was simply well-planned military tactics. Anyone who wanted to learn had the chance.
Thus, the Li Clan had many “clan heads.” It didn’t accept tuition fees from its students, but required them to swear a military pledge to help out the Li Clan wherever they were if it was in trouble. Way back in the Great Qin Empire, the Li Clan’s disciples had spread far and wide in each and every one of the military factions. All of them held important positions. Thus, both East and West Qin factions had vied for the chance to win over the noble family. Fortunately, the Li Clan had always maintained a neutral stance, allowing the internal conflicts within Great Qin to remain at a stalemate.
Even when internal unrest broke out within Great Qin, the Li CLan maintained its middle ground. In the end, it even dissolved its biggest army. If they hadn’t bothered to move, Cloud Realm Continent would never have developed into the three big nations it had today. Both nobles and royals alike wanted to pull the Li Clan to their sides even as they dreaded its power. Thus, the nobles and royals of East and West Qin made sure to hold the command tablets for their generals firmly in their own hands. Once the Great Qin Empire was thoroughly destroyed, the Li Clan vanished without a trace. Everyone’s guard lowered as a result. Moreover, the populations of the royal and noble clans had decreased as well, so there was no choice but to return the military command tokens back to the generals and remind them to be careful.