The First Lackey Under The Empress

All the changes happened without warning.

This "peace talk" seemed to irrevocably spiral out of control from the moment Xu Zudi stepped into this tent.

According to many people's expectations, the arrival of the Heir Apparent would surely be a display of both kindness and might, a game of intrigue and power.

However, Xu Zudi chose the simplest and most brutal option from the many negotiation plans.

This made Zhao Du'an lose his desire to watch the show, to probe and test the waters:

"...Take one move from me."

A ray of light enveloped the folding fan. This seemingly ordinary shot contained Zhao Du'an's extremely pure Qi, which he had secretly compressed into the fan's ribs after entering the Seijin realm.

"Your Highness, be careful!"

Unsurprisingly, the gray-robed old man standing behind Xu Zudi's expression changed drastically, his body almost leaving afterimages.

In a flash, he pushed the Heir Apparent away with his right hand, and raised his left arm, which hung down past his knees, to "clamp" the folding fan with two fingers like iron bars.

Last autumn, Zhao Du'an had thrown a flying knife at Xu Zudi in the capital while in the Godseal realm, which was easily blocked by this gray-robed old man at that time.

Now, more than half a year later, a similar scene happened again, but this time, the gray-robed old man's calm face changed dramatically the moment he touched the folding fan.

As if struck by lightning, the cuff of the old man's left arm suddenly tightened, "slapping" against his flesh, and then, the flesh of his entire arm trembled violently, with drops of bright red blood seeping out of his pores.

"Not good—"

Having entered the Godseal realm for many years and serving in the Hengwang Manor, the gray-robed old man suddenly turned pale, and with a miserable cry, his entire arm was "snapped" and broken by the folding fan. The folding fan still had strength left, and pierced into the old man's shoulder like an arrow.

In the next moment, in full view of everyone, this martial arts expert from the Wang Manor was as if hit by a siege hammer, his feet plowing the ground, like a whirlwind sweeping fallen leaves, he crashed backward, hitting another member of the Heir Apparent's entourage.

The two of them fell on their backs, the folding fan pinning the old man to the ground like a steel nail!

Fresh blood seeped out, staining his shoulder red.

A silence fell.

Not only the Heir Apparent's side, but even the Five Army Camp generals led by Yuan Feng, all had their pupils suddenly constrict, looking at Zhao Du'an in shock.

They knew that Zhao Du'an's martial arts had improved further, but they did not expect the gap between them to be so huge.

Zhao Du'an just shook his head, a wave of disappointment washing over him. Compared to the blade strike that destroyed the Shenlong Temple, he thought: Not as good as a Luohan.

"You...How dare you commit insubordination?!"

Xu Zudi was stunned for a moment, staring in disbelief at this "Deputy General" whom he had never even glanced at, his eyes first filled with shock and anger, then he flew into a rage, his tough exterior hiding a trace of fear:

"Yuan Feng! Do you want to die?"

He turned his gaze and locked onto Commander Yuan.

In his opinion, this arrangement was inseparable from Yuan Feng. As for why his bodyguard was so "weak" and vulnerable, he couldn't figure it out in his panic.

Yuan Feng, being questioned, also felt his scalp tingle. This was a bit different from the "feigned surrender" he had envisioned, and he couldn't help but turn his head to look, his eyes searching.

Zhao Du'an slowly and leisurely walked out, and suddenly, without warning, kicked Xu Zudi to the ground.

He placed his right hand on the back of the chair on the ground, picked up the chair, turned it one hundred and eighty degrees, and sat down leisurely, his face turning cold as he looked down from above:

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

Xu Zudi was caught off guard and kicked to the ground like a stray dog, his nose and face swollen. The last follower behind him hurriedly stepped forward, but was knocked over by a Five Army Camp general with a punch.

"You...Who are you? What do you want to do?" Xu Zudi knelt on the ground, looking nervous, and looked at Yuan Feng again:

"This Heir Apparent is a member of the royal family. Are you rebelling..."

"Slap him!" Zhao Du'an's tone was indifferent.

Everyone hesitated, but the general who had punched earlier stepped forward first, raised his large fan-like hand, and slapped down hard with a "smack".

The soldier was extremely strong, and the Heir Apparent, with his delicate skin and tender flesh, was almost spun around in place, his cheeks swollen high, and blood spurting out.

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

Xu Zudi's mind was buzzing, but he still captured the key phrase "Lord Zhao", and his heart suddenly pounded wildly, finally willing to cast his gaze on the "mediocre Deputy General" sitting in front of him.

At this moment, Zhao Du'an wiped his face with his right hand, revealing his true appearance, and said with a smile:

"Xu Zudi, do you still recognize this official?"

Zhao Du'an!

Xu Zudi was struck by lightning, his face visibly turning pale, and he shouted:

"Impossible! How can you still be alive, and here?"

Zhao Du'an smiled without warmth:

"Surprise, surprise? I wanted to play with you and extract some information, but since you delivered yourself to my door, there's no need to bother."

Xu Zudi's eyes revealed intense fear, and he retreated backward on his hands and feet:

"What do you want to do? This Heir Apparent is a member of the royal family. Who dares to move..."

Yuan Feng suddenly stood up, the square-faced commander's voice was low:

"His Majesty has returned to the capital. Lord Zhao is here today to carry out the imperial decree to suppress the rebellion. Xu Zudi, do you still think that your status can protect you?"

What? The female emperor is back? When?!

Xu Zudi was dripping with cold sweat. He wanted to question it, but when he met Zhao Du'an's indifferent gaze, the words in his throat suddenly couldn't be uttered.

His expression changed, and he finally realized that he had fallen into a dangerous situation.

"This Heir Apparent...No, I...Brother Zhao, this is a misunderstanding..." Xu Zudi's face changed, he was able to bend and stretch, and actually put on a smile.

"Oh? Is it a misunderstanding?" Zhao Du'an sat casually, crossing his legs, in the chair, groping the knife sheath of the Zhendao inlaid with five-colored gemstones.

"Yes, yes, yes. It's a misunderstanding, I can explain." Xu Zudi said, wanting to get up.

"Did I let you get up?" Zhao Du'an was too lazy to look at him, just focusing on stroking the knife sheath.

Xu Zudi's movements froze, but he still shrunk down again in full view of everyone, squeezing out a smile: "This matter, this matter..."

Zhao Du'an interrupted him, speaking slowly and methodically:

"This official is not an unreasonable person. As you said, in the end, you are related to His Majesty, and even if you made a mistake, you shouldn't be humiliated too much."

"Yes, yes, yes." Xu Zudi nodded quickly. He knew too well Zhao Du'an's retaliatory nature. Even if he cursed Zhao, the situation was stronger than him, and he didn't dare to anger the other party.

"Moreover," Zhao Du'an's fingers suddenly stopped, and he raised a smile:

"If His Majesty knew that I treated relatives like this, it would be a bit inappropriate."

Suddenly, he drew his sword with a clang!

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

Xu Zudi was so frightened that he shrank his neck, his legs trembled, and he instinctively lowered his head, but he did not wait for the blade to strike.

"Let's play a game," Zhao Du'an waved his hand and ordered someone to take a steaming sweet potato from the stove and pierce it with the tip of his knife.

Zhao Du'an leaned forward, holding the handle of the knife with his right hand, and handed the sweet potato stuck on the tip of the knife to the Heir Apparent:

"Raise your head and eat this with your mouth, and this official will not punish you for your disrespect just now, how about it?"

Xu Zudi raised his head, staring blankly at the cold, gleaming tip of the knife and the hot sweet potato hanging in front of his lips, his face uncertain.

Revenge! This is naked revenge!

This scene in front of him was so similar to the scene in the capital when he taught Madam Xiao to bite an apple?

It's just that, at that time, he was just teaching Zhao Du'an to throw flying knives and perform acrobatics for him to enjoy.

Now, Zhao Du'an used the methods he used to humiliate that cheap Xiao family woman, unchanged, on him.

This exceeded Xu Zudi's limit of endurance.

His face suddenly twisted, staring fiercely at Zhao Du'an like a wolf, and made a gesture to get up:

"I'll fight you!"

"Plop!"

As soon as he stood up, he was kicked hard in the knee by the general behind him. In the slight sound of bone cracking, the pampered Xu Zudi wailed and fell to the ground.

Zhao Du'an was bored, stabbed the Zhendao into the ground with a puff, and waved his hand:

"Take the Heir Apparent down and torture him severely. I want to know some valuable information from the Hengwang rebel army."

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

He wanted to say that this was different from what they had agreed upon. How could there be such a feigned surrender?.

Using torture directly on the Heir Apparent was tantamount to forcing Hengwang to start a war immediately, and it was far better to use the Heir Apparent as a hostage to gain more room for negotiation... That's what the generals of the Five Army Camp thought.

"No need to say anything, do as I say. You guys are playing too conservatively. By the way, let one of this damn Heir Apparent's followers go, go back to report the news, and tell Hengwang that this official will give him half an hour. If he doesn't surrender within half an hour, the Qingzhou rebels will be destroyed today."

Zhao Du'an stood up with his knife, exuding domineering aura.

At this time, Xu Zudi, who was being dragged out of the tent, was shouting frantically and cursing:

"Zhao Du'an! You are just a dog of my Xu family! How dare you move me? My Qingzhou army outside will kill you all today..."

Eh, how do you know that I am Zhenbao's simp? Zhao Du'an was invincible because he was shameless, and he didn't care. Instead of being angry, he smiled:

"Two armies facing each other? I couldn't ask for more."

Xu Zudi was taken away.

A strange atmosphere fell in the tent.

Yuan Feng couldn't help but speak:

"Lord Zhao, please reconsider! The Qingzhou rebels are far from the weaklings you imagine. They have 'Fiend Chariots' hidden in their army, which can ram through our formations and are extremely troublesome. Moreover, morale in the camp is currently low. Starting a war rashly will likely lead to a disastrous defeat."

The other generals, whether they previously advocated for retreating strategically or launching a preemptive strike, were now united in their front, earnestly pleading with Zhao Du'an to withdraw his command.

In their hearts, they cursed: An amateur is directing a professional!

They originally thought this King Yama Zhao was a powerful reinforcement, but now it seemed they had misjudged. He was clearly a court bureaucrat who had never fought a battle but was filled with inexplicable confidence and enjoyed blindly commanding from the front.

They had seen too many such bureaucrats and deeply loathed them.

They knew that these clueless teammates who gave reckless commands were often more deadly than the enemy.

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

"Lord Zhao, we are grateful for your assistance, but the Five Armies Camp is under my command. If you insist on this course of action, please forgive Yuan for being unable to cooperate!"

A general in the field may sometimes disobey orders!

As the commander, Yuan Feng's rank was the same as Zhao Du'an's. Considering that the Junior Protector title was merely honorary, Yuan Feng actually held more real power.

At this moment, he couldn't help but feel a surge of anger, his attitude becoming firm.

Zhao Du'an glanced at these comrades and said calmly:

"Commander Yuan may not have understood one thing. I am here on imperial order to suppress the rebels. This front line will naturally be entirely taken over by my Divine Mechanism Camp."

Whoosh—

Shi Meng, Chen Gui, Tang Ping, and other Divine Mechanism Camp generals hidden outside strode into the tent, cupping their fists in salute:

"Lord, the Divine Mechanism Camp is ready and can engage the enemy at any time!"

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

"Oh, right," Zhao Du'an said, not waiting for them to reply, his gaze fixed on them with a faint smile:

"The Five Armies Camp has suffered three defeats in three battles. I am here on imperial order to supervise the army at the front line. Although I sincerely trust you all, one cannot know what lies in another's heart. When it comes to the battle between the two armies, we cannot be careless. Who knows if any of you have already secretly colluded with the enemy?

Next, everyone in the tent will simply observe the battle by my side. If anyone tries to leave, don't blame me for showing no mercy!"

After a pause, Zhao Du'an leaned on his saber, his tone eerie: "Who agrees? Who opposes?"

Yuan Feng and the others' hearts sank, and no one dared to object again.

… …

… …

Inside the Qingzhou army's main tent.

"Bang!" Heng Wang, whose appearance was quite similar to Xu Zudi, despite being over fifty years old, but well-maintained, slammed the table with his jade thumb ring, his face gloomy.

Rage gathered between his brows, but if one looked closely, one would notice a hint of uncontrollable panic and fear deep within the furious prince's eyes!

"Zhao Du'an!"

Heng Wang's chest heaved violently, panting like a bull, as he raised his head and glared fiercely at the group of "ministers" in the tent.

Just now, a follower who had been deliberately released brought the news of the heir's capture and Zhao Du'an's words, verbatim, to the Qingzhou military camp.

Immediately, the Qingzhou faction generals, who had already relaxed and were preparing to celebrate their victory, were shocked and furious. They gathered in the main tent to discuss countermeasures.

"Attack! Attack! Launch a full-scale assault and crush them!" Heng Wang roared loudly.

A strategist braced himself and advised, "Your Highness, please calm your anger. We cannot act rashly now. We should think calmly and find a countermeasure."

Another general hurriedly said, "Yes, if what Zhao Du'an said is true, I'm afraid it will be difficult for us to capture the capital. Advancing recklessly at this time would be unwise."

Yet another person said:

"Your Highness, this matter may not be true. Let's not even mention whether the 'Zhao Du'an' in that tent is real or not. Even if he is, can we be sure that what he said is accurate? Everyone knows that the female emperor Luo Shan is seriously injured. Can she still sit firmly in the capital? This matter… in my opinion, we should investigate clearly before making any plans. But before that, we should focus on rescuing His Highness the Heir."

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

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

He watched coldly, his heart slightly chilled.

When it came to competing for merit, his words were rejected and ignored, but now that they needed someone to save the situation, they remembered him.

Ning Xianzong raised his head, suppressed the various emotions in his heart, and said calmly:

"Your Highness, we have no choice but to fight. If the Empress really returns to the court, attacking the capital will be extremely unlikely. We should retreat to Qingzhou and make further plans. But if we retreat hastily, I fear we will be pursued and severely defeated.

On the contrary, with our current peak morale, we can advance or retreat, placing us in an invincible position.

Moreover, in my opinion, Zhao Du'an is likely bluffing, deliberately scaring us back to make us hesitate. Otherwise… why would he put on this 'peace talk' charade? Why not face us directly in a grand, open battle?

Therefore, I believe that even if he really brought some reinforcements, they must not be enough to threaten us, which is why he can only scare us to buy time. This tactic is also consistent with his past style of being scheming and manipulating people's hearts."

Ning Xianzong's words were clear and forceful, and everyone in the tent nodded in agreement, their panicked hearts soothed.

Many people even had bright eyes, and the more they thought about it, the more they felt that the possibility of a 'empty city ploy' was extremely high.

Heng Wang also seemed to have grasped a life-saving straw, his eyes lit up, and he walked out excitedly, grabbing Ning Xianzong's hand:

"So, that 'Zhao Du'an' might be bluffing? Perhaps, this 'Zhao Du'an' doesn't even exist? Could it be that the Five Armies Camp, in desperation, sent someone to disguise themselves?"

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

"This matter still needs to be verified. This general is willing to lead troops to capture the Five Armies Camp immediately. By then, the truth will naturally come to light."

Heng Wang was overjoyed: "Good, I will trouble General to rescue Zudi."

The others also praised him one after another. The Qingzhou soldiers were not strong, but the reason they were able to win three consecutive battles, in addition to the Heng Wang's secret weapons, was also due to Ning Xianzong's battle formation command.

This commander, who was originally unknown, performed extremely brilliantly in the recent battles, even suppressing Yuan Feng.

… …

… …

With an order, the two military camps on the Qingzhou border were like huge machines, rumbling to life.

Although the Divine Mechanism Camp had been traveling all the way, because the journey was not far, the soldiers were still able to engage in battle, especially since their morale was high.

With Zhao Du'an's order, Shi Meng, Chen Gui, Tang Ping, and others led the Divine Mechanism Camp, aggressively seizing the battlefield.

The Five Armies Camp soldiers, whose morale had already plummeted, were highly cooperative when they learned that reinforcements had arrived and requested to retreat to the camp.

In the blink of an eye, the Divine Mechanism Camp moved into the battlefield.

At the same time, Zhao Du'an led a group of high-ranking generals from the Five Armies Camp on foot to a hilltop behind the military camp.

In the height of summer, the mountains were lush with vegetation, the sky was covered with dark clouds, and a cold wind brushed their faces.

Zhao Du'an changed back into his official robe—with his cultivation, wearing armor would restrict his movements.

At this moment, he stood at the front of the crowd, holding the hilt of the town saber in his right hand, looking out over the front.

On a flat open space, the two armies' camps faced each other from a distance. At this moment, accompanied by the rumbling of war drums in the camp, the low drumbeats seemed to be hammering on everyone's hearts.

The battlefield below was like a chessboard.

At this moment, the Divine Mechanism Camp's cavalry and infantry were arrayed out of the camp. Leading the charge was none other than the Young Lord Tang Ping, wearing silver helmet and armor, carrying a bow and arrows on his back, and holding a long spear.

And behind the camp, on another hill perfectly hidden by trees, Chen Gui stroked his beard, directing a Divine Mechanism Camp artilleryman to unload the latest generation of Divine Might Cannons, wrapped in rainproof cloths, from the carts, bury them in the ground, and quickly adjust them according to the "Artillery Manual."

However, this scene was unknown to both the Qingzhou soldiers and the Five Armies Camp generals on the hilltop.

"The battlefield is like a chessboard. I have never commanded a battle before. Today is like a maiden being carried in a sedan chair for the first time."

Looking out over the mountains, a surge of boldness rose in Zhao Du'an's heart. He held his saber in one hand and pointed to the front with the other:

"Is that where Heng Wang's main tent is located?"

What he was pointing at was a "watchtower" built of wood behind the Qingzhou military camp.

Commander Yuan Feng, whose military power had been forcibly taken away by Zhao Du'an, was filled with worry. Hearing this, he was even more frightened, even preparing for a complete defeat and escape.

However, the scene of Zhao Du'an instantly killing the gray-robed old man in the tent made Yuan Feng realize that their martial arts were definitely no match for Zhao Du'an.

At this time, he belatedly realized:

The reason why Zhao Du'an made a big move in the tent was perhaps not aimed at the heir at all, but to "kill the chicken to scare the monkeys," to intimidate them and pave the way for a forceful takeover of the military camp.

With mixed thoughts in his mind, Yuan Feng said in a muffled voice: "Yes. Heng Wang's side will also be watching the battle from there."

"Is that so," Zhao Du'an silently estimated the distance and muttered softly:

"I wonder if I can shoot down a prince with one cannon."