EFB Chapter 171 A Triumphant Return
Chapter 171 A Triumphant Return
Lu Yuan's army is very distinctive, with speed being its most prominent feature.
On the first day they entered the pass, they headed straight for the cities of Yanzhou on the second day. In a short time, the Qin war flags were planted all over the county towns and prefectural cities of Yanzhou.
Because of Lu Yuan's orders, no one dared to plunder in the city; instead, they kindly comforted the people.
This time, Lu Yuan's plan was not to simply plunder and leave.
Instead, they wanted to carve out a large chunk of the northern part of the Great Yong Dynasty.
As for the people of the north, although most of them were soldiers stationed there, they did not resist since their superiors had all surrendered.
Moreover, the Qin dynasty did not mistreat the people after it arrived.
For people at the bottom of society, as long as they can have enough to eat, it doesn't matter who the emperor is.
The ones who suffer the most are actually the high-ranking officials, because of the change of government.
Those who could truly be influenced were the people, so some tried to defect to the Qin Dynasty, while others fled overnight. Lu Yuan ordered that those who wanted to leave should not be stopped.
On the third day, the entire Yanzhou was incorporated into the territory of the Great Qin.
On the fourth day, Lu Yuan's subordinates, Mangu Tun and Mangu Hun, joined forces and launched an attack on Ji Province. The Dayong army fled at the mere sight of them.
In just five days, the two provinces fell into the hands of the Qin Dynasty.
On this day, Manliang led his cavalry to the outskirts of Huangsha Pass.
Looking at the massive army, Xiao Heng's eyes showed a hint of seriousness. He and Wushuang Hou were both at the Dharma Aspect Realm, so they were definitely no match for a powerful Earth Immortal.
Moreover, the army under Wushuang Hou did not arrive, so the military formation could not be set up.
There are only 30,000 Imperial Guards and 50,000 Border Troops in the city now, which is no match for the Manliang army.
Wushuang Hou turned around and looked at Xiao Heng, saying, "The King of Beiyou has rebelled and has now occupied the entire territory of Youzhou. Moreover, he is leading a large army and taking a detour towards the imperial city. Many people have defected to him along the way."
Of the three prefectures in northern Xinjiang, only Huangsha Fortress remains in our hands.
We can only defend, not attack. Relying on our battle formation, we should be able to hold out for a month. Hopefully, the imperial guards will arrive by then, and we won't have to fear these Qin people anymore.
Wushuang Hou is feeling very frustrated. He has great skills, but he can't use them.
If it were his own Imperial Guards here, he would definitely dare to charge out directly, without fear even when facing a peerless general at the Earth Immortal Realm, but he has no such thought now.
Xiao Heng glanced at him and slowly said, "A month should be no problem. These formations have been reinforced in recent years, and even a terrestrial immortal would find them difficult to break."
"call!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Marquis Wushuang breathed a sigh of relief. He was quite confident in Xiao Heng's abilities. Then he glanced at the Crown Prince, who was still silent.
I knew in my heart that this guy had completely given up.
"kill!"
However, just as they were talking, a deafening battle cry suddenly rang out. A moment later, Marquis Mucheng ran over and said to Xiao Heng, "My lord, retreat quickly! The west gate has been opened by the Helian family, and 50,000 border troops have rebelled."
Manliang led his men into the city and is now marching towards us.
The voice was filled with despair.
There were too many people, coming from all directions. They only had a mere 30,000 Imperial Guards; how could they possibly hold them off?
Wushuang Hou glared at Xiao Heng and said angrily, "What exactly is going on in the Northern Frontier? Aren't you in charge of oversight? How come the entire Northern Frontier has become Lu Yuan's territory?"
The latter said in a trembling voice, "Lord Wushuang, don't complain now. If the court hadn't never cared about the border troops, they wouldn't be in this state. With the people's hearts turned against you, what can I do?"
"Let's break out quickly now. If we're too late, and the Manliang army comes, none of us will escape."
They had all heard of Man Liang's name. He was definitely a top-tier warrior in the world, with the strength of an early-stage Earth Immortal. Moreover, he possessed innate divine strength and was extremely fierce.
Such a figure is beyond their reach.
"Walk!"
Wushuang Hou could only say this with resentment.
Xiao Heng and Marquis Mu Cheng, meanwhile, pulled the Crown Prince along and headed towards the city's outskirts to break through.
The 30,000 Imperial Guards were also scattered, and now only about 10,000 remain with him.
They didn't dare to stay any longer.
Man Liang, of course, would not let them go. As soon as he entered the city, he led his army to search for Xiao Heng and his men.
However, by the time they realized what had happened, the other person had already run far away, leaving them only with a helpless expression.
If he could capture Wushuang Hou, Xiao Heng, and the Crown Prince, he would have accomplished a great feat.
Just then, Helian Shang, the head of the Helian family, and other high-ranking members of the clan came forward and immediately bowed down upon seeing Man Liang: "Greetings, General!"
Everyone was quite excited, but also very respectful.
After all, this was a powerful Earth Immortal, someone they wouldn't even have been qualified to meet in the past.
Upon seeing the group, Man Liang's fierce expression vanished, and he grinned, saying, "Please don't stand on ceremony, gentlemen. I've heard the King of Qin mention you all; from now on, we're all family."
As he spoke, he ordered his men to help the members of the Helian family to their feet.
After all, Manliang had only recently joined the Qin Dynasty, and he knew Lu Yuan's position in the court.
Since these people in front of me are familiar with each other, even if they are not friends, their relationship must be closer than mine.
Although his cultivation level is weak, he might not dare to provoke him.
Because, whether it was the Helian family or the Zhou family, after they pledged allegiance to the Qin Dynasty, they were automatically labeled as Qin King's people.
Of course, this also includes Tianwangzhai.
The current King of Qin truly wields immense power and influence.
If the reason why the Qin Beast Cavalry were loyal to Lu Yuan was largely due to the imperial court.
The Helian family in front of them had only submitted to the Great Qin because of Lu Yuan.
It's definitely not ordinary.
Similarly, when the Helian family head heard Manliang trying to establish a friendly relationship with him, he knew in his heart that he had made the right gamble this time.
In the past, if I wanted to pay my respects to a celestial being, I probably wouldn't even be able to get through their gate.
Now, Manliang is actually telling him that they will be family from now on.
"It has to be Lu Yuan; he can make a name for himself anywhere," Helian Shang thought to himself.
However, despite Man Liang's politeness, they really didn't dare to treat the other party as an ordinary person.
In the time that followed, they were very cooperative.
Meanwhile, after so many days of mobilizing his army, Lu Yuan finally arrived in Yanzhou today, outside the Zhou family mansion.
Today, martial law has been completely imposed.
On both sides stood Zhou's most elite personal guards and beast riders.
Lu Yuan rode his warhorse slowly, accompanied by Zhou Ren and Zhou Hongling.
I still vividly remember the time he came here.
I never imagined that a few years later, I would come to the Zhou family again in such a high-profile manner.
At this moment, the Zhou family members all came out and were waiting outside the gate for the legendary King of Qin to arrive.
Zhou Hongling's fourth aunt had just returned with her daughter.
Just recently, Hongxiu married a military officer from Jizhou. Now, with Jizhou being occupied by the Qin Dynasty...
Hongxiu's husband dared not take up his post.
After hearing that the current King of Qin had some connection with the Zhou family, he urged his wife, who had just given birth, and his mother-in-law to come back and plead for him to continue serving in the army, even if it was impossible.
It would be acceptable to spare his life, even though the border troops scattered and fled back home upon seeing the Qin army.
But Hongxiu's husband was also genuinely afraid of being held accountable later.
After all, his family was considered a prominent clan in Jizhou.
As long as you find out the details, you won't have trouble finding them.
Zhou Hongling's fourth aunt, Wang, looked at her daughter Hongxiu and asked, "Have you found out? When will the Prince of Qin arrive? What is the relationship between our Zhou family and this Prince of Qin?"
Wang's husband died young, and now she relies on her daughter. If her son-in-law were to get into trouble, the mother and daughter would be truly doomed.
She never imagined that after all that effort, she still couldn't outsmart fate.
A perfectly good captain, but if things get out of hand, he might not be able to hold the position anymore.
It's absolutely heartbreaking.
The son-in-law's martial arts training costs a lot of money every month. If he can't go out to work, he'll soon be living off his savings.
"How would I know? It's been almost two years since I've been back to the family. Let's wait and see. Anyway, I'm definitely coming today. You should talk to your uncle nicely later. Don't throw a tantrum like you used to. Otherwise, if you anger your uncle, our family will be finished," Hongxiu said to her mother.
"What are you talking about? I threw a tantrum back then because I was afraid you'd marry Lu Yuan. Now that we're asking for your help, do you think I can just do whatever I want?" Wang said in a low voice.
Clearly, the two women, who had been living in seclusion in Jizhou with their daughter all these years, were unaware that Lu Yuan was the Prince of Qin; otherwise, they probably wouldn't be so calm now.
And just as the two were talking.
Then we saw a procession slowly approaching.
Leading the way was a young, robust man with a rugged face, wearing a python robe and exuding an air of nobility.
Both Zhou family heads and Zhou Hongling personally accompanied them.
A sound immediately rang in my ears.
"The King of Qin is here. Do you see him? He's the young man in the middle. I even poured him some wine when he came to visit us years ago. I could tell he was no ordinary man back then. You see, he's been made a king at such a young age. He'll be extraordinary in the future."
"I heard that the eldest young lady once tried to arrange a marriage for Hongxiu, the fourth wife, wanting her to marry the Prince of Qin, but Hongxiu refused. Her mother even went to the head of the family's courtyard to make a scene in order to refuse the marriage."
......
A chaotic noise arose from the surroundings.
Wang and Hongxiu felt a buzzing in their heads.
The former, in particular, even felt unsteady on its feet.
She never imagined that Lu Yuan would become the King of Qin.
This is worse than killing her.
Hongxiu was in a better position. After all, she was already married, and although her relationship with her husband wasn't great, it wasn't bad either.
Even at this point, they can still grit their teeth and persevere.
Just as the two were at a loss, Lu Yuan's warhorse slowly arrived.
He didn't have much of an impression of Hongxiu and the other two.
As soon as they dismounted, the Zhou family members bowed down and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Lu Yuan was not polite to the others and accepted their greetings without hesitation.
As soon as they dismounted, the Zhou family members bowed down and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Lu Yuan was not polite to the others and accepted their greetings without hesitation.
Then he said, "Get up, all of you."
After saying that, he turned to Xiao Xiong beside him and said, "I used to come to this Zhou family's old house quite often. The cook here makes pretty good food. Let's have a few more drinks at noon."
"Hehe, since His Highness has said so, it must be good."
After speaking, she followed Lu Yuan into the mansion.
Besides Xiao Xiong, there was also Xiao Ku, eight Vajra Venerables, and many members of the Qin royal family.
It can be said that the Zhou family's status in the Qin Dynasty was established simply by the arrival of this group of people.
From now on, I'm afraid no one will dare to mess with us.
Zhou Ren could not hide the excitement in his eyes at this moment.
Such a display was something he wouldn't even dare to imagine in the Great Yong Dynasty.
It could be said that everyone who enters the mansion today was someone he could not reach in the past.
But now, these people are all very polite to him, so polite that he feels afraid.
A banquet had been set up in the main hall of the mansion, and members of the Zhou family from all branches of the family had taken their seats.
This was Lu Yuan's intention; he clearly wanted to introduce the Zhou family to the higher-ups of the Qin Dynasty.
The signal is clear: they want to elevate the Zhou family to power.
If it weren't for the Zhou family back then, he wouldn't be where he is today.
Now the rewards are coming, not only quickly but also fiercely.
Sitting at the table, Zhou Ming realized just how wise his older brother's decision had been.
Compared to the other person, I am really much worse.
Just as everyone was seated, Xiao Xiong stood up and took out an imperial edict, which had been drafted and sent over by the Xiao family a couple of days ago.
After taking their seats, they took out the imperial edict.
"Splash!"
During the banquet, everyone except Lu Yuan, who simply stood up, knelt on the ground.
"Zhou Hongling is a woman of exceptional talent and has won my favor. Now that she has rendered meritorious service in surrendering the city, she is hereby conferred the title of Princess Yanyun and is granted a princess's residence within the imperial city, ten estates, five pastures, and ten chests of precious pearls."
"The head of the Zhou family, Zhou Ren, the general of Yanzhou, was granted the title of Duke of Yan and was further promoted to the rank of General Zhennan, a third-grade general, in charge of all the troops in Yanzhou."
"Zhou Ming of the Zhou family was granted the title of Marquis of Huqiu, and was further granted the rank of Fourth Grade General of Yanzhou."
......
After a series of investitures, the Zhou family officially entered the upper echelons of the Qin Dynasty, not only because of their merit in surrendering the city, but more importantly because of Lu Yuan's presence.
The Xiao family is now clearly taking advantage of Lu Yuan's meritorious service to increase his leverage and pave the way for his future.
After all, although Lu Yuan has now been included in the royal family genealogy, he is not Xiao.
There is no Xiao family bloodline either.
To take the next step, only enough power can silence everyone.
The imperial court has never lacked corrupt and stubborn officials.
Upon receiving the imperial decree, the Zhou family members immediately said, "Thank you for your divine grace, Your Majesty!"
Zhou Ren was thrilled; he had become a Duke in the blink of an eye, though he couldn't compare to someone like Wu Han.
But he was already very content; he had never dared to even dream of such a thing before.
Most importantly, the daughter was made a princess.
After that, the Zhou family truly stood up again.
Lu Yuan, standing to the side, was moved, knowing what Xiao was thinking.
She knew that the other party was aware of Zhou Hongling's existence, but Xiao Shi did not hold it against them.
To go to such lengths for him means that she truly treated him as her heir.
After expressing gratitude.
Zhou Ren ordered an incense table to be set up, the imperial edict to be framed, and the banquet to begin.
Sitting below, Wang hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth and pulled her daughter toward Zhou Ren.
After all, this matter concerned her son-in-law's life and death, and she wanted to tell Lu Yuan about it.
Once the other party speaks, there's no problem.
Meanwhile, far away in Yunzhou, the Zhang family was shrouded in gloom and despair.
Because he supported the Crown Prince and chose the wrong side, Prince Polu is now impeached every day. Even the usually arrogant Pig Girl is hiding at home and dares not go out.
Zhang Zhe simply fled back to Yunzhou.
Zhang Hong and Zhang He are in an even worse situation because of Zhang Zhe; they are labeled as "Iron Clique" of the Crown Prince.
He has now been completely removed from his post and is under investigation at home.
The embroidered-robed messenger comes eight times a day, and Zhang Hong hasn't been able to leave his residence these days.
It's a terrible situation now.
In the living room, Zhang Hong licked his dry, cracked lips and looked at his disciple who had just returned from gathering information outside, saying, "Have you found out the specific situation in the Northern Frontier? Tell me quickly."
The voice rang out, carrying a hint of urgency, and Zhang He and the others turned their gazes in that direction at the same time.