On the night of February 16th, Spring, Year 5 of the Magical Calendar, it was destined to be a sleepless night for the entire imperial capital superstructure.
The setting sun slowly slides over the western horizon. Through the white clouds, the reddish afterglow exudes the last trace of heat between the white sky and the earth. The spring evening is the time when the warm south wind and the cold north wind alternate. The view outside the west gate of the empire can already be vaguely seen.
Hearing the howling wind in the northern mountainous area, the Royal Guards of the Imperial City, with the cooperation of mercenaries, loudly urged pedestrians to move as quickly as possible - according to the Imperial Capital's management regulations, the west gate must be closed at the moment the sun completely sets.
The whirlwind brought the residual snow and beat it on the faces of pedestrians and soldiers. Most of the people gathered at the city gate were those who wanted to enter the city. If you missed this last moment, you would have to walk a few more miles to pay silver coins from the south gate to enter the city.
If you don’t want to pay, you have to endure one more night and wait for the eight gates to open the next morning. It’s not spring yet in March, and the cold wind at night in the northern part of the Eminor continent is quite biting, even if you hide in the city gate.
It's hard, no one wants to suffer this. The travelers' faces are very anxious, and the few mercenary-like warriors on the outermost line have begun to unscrupulously accuse the pedestrians in front of passing too slowly. At this moment, the soldiers hope to stop the team as soon as possible.
At that time, the order began to become chaotic.
Suddenly, there were several clear bird calls from the western sky, and then the sound of wings flapping in the air was heard like thunder. The crowd quickly turned around to look, and saw five huge birds of prey shooting like arrows against the ground, with brown wings flapping among the snowflakes.
Flying all over the sky, the knight on the back of the bird can be faintly seen in the white snow.
"Who is it? Come down!" the officer in charge shouted loudly outside the city gate.
The knight in the sky did not slow down at all. The two-meter-long giant wings of the wild vulture continued to flap and accelerate. A wild vulture suddenly lowered its height and flew towards the west gate in a strong wind. Most of the pedestrians fell in panic.
On the ground, the soldiers also quickly raised their shields to cover their eyes.
"The Crazy Vulture Swordsman Battalion of the small mercenary group returns to the imperial capital to submit urgent military information!" Throwing out a vague sentence, the Crazy Vulture slightly turned its body and passed through the west gate lightly, while the other four Crazy Vultures
The eagle knight flew over the soldiers' heads on the city wall.
The world is probably like this. If anyone else dares to do this, it will undoubtedly be a challenge to the dignity of the Imperial Guards. It is equivalent to challenging the imperial capital and His Majesty the King that the Imperial Guards guard. The Imperial Guards can find any excuse to capture it immediately. At the very least,
He also wanted to greet his eight generations of ancestors at the Crazy Eagle Knight who was leaving. Now, upon hearing that it was the Crazy Eagle Swordsman of the small mercenary group, the corners of the Imperial Guard officer's already lowered mouth immediately turned up, and he followed closely with his insincere words.
He said: "Look, what a majestic knight, worthy of the team led by Chi Aotian, Amy, and Da Qingshan. This is the style of the noble family." The other guards around them shouted loudly while looking for teeth all over the ground.
Admiration, of course, is more about admiration - even as a member of the Imperial Guard, it is impossible to casually join an organization like the Little Mercenary Group, which is full of oil and water and "money" like Cheng Sijing.
News spread very quickly among the nobles of the imperial capital. That night, most of the noble families already knew that the small mercenary group had once again sent five mad eagle knights back to the imperial capital to report the urgent military situation.
The Imperial Duke, Marshal Chi Datong, was not in Beijing. The commander on duty at the military headquarters, Earl Ham, heard the news and the coffee cup in his hand made a crisp sound on the marble floor. The Earl immediately convened a meeting of the military giants, and several professional soldiers
Meeting (note, this is a real meeting - such a challenging difficulty is enough to make these soldiers bump their heads or hit the wall), the soldiers unanimously agreed that such bad news should be notified to His Majesty the King as soon as possible,
And I implore His Majesty the King to fulfill his duties.
Even as calm as the Red Stone Emperor, when he heard such bad news, the tea cup kissed the ground deeply. The king lowered his head and looked at the stained carpet and shook his head at the Wild Eagle Knight Captain and smiled bitterly: "As expected of Marquis Chi.
You and your Excellency Amy’s subordinates will never stop talking without surprising you. In the past six months, I have become a little afraid of you. Every time I send you bad news, this time the news is even worse."
The people of the Frozen Continent have always been famous for their honesty. When the soldiers of the small mercenary group heard the emperor's complaint, they really thought that Hongshi was angry, and quickly said: "Your Majesty the King, this... this cannot be blamed on us, we can't blame you.
The leader said that if we had known that these bad guys were coming to attack the port, we would have gone a few months later, which would have been safer."
Several people in charge of the Imperial Military Department didn't know what to say when they heard such rebellious words. The captain sent back by the small mercenary group is really good at directly contradicting His Majesty the King with words he doesn't like to hear. This is also necessary.
They are certainly brave. However, due to His Majesty's majesty, these soldiers still abide by the due etiquette.
When the young mercenary saw that no one was picking up his blame, he thought that his voice was too low. Driven by his sense of responsibility for the mercenary group, he raised his voice and continued: "Our leader also said that we always make losses.
If this continues, our group will have to sell our blood... Don't... don't pull my clothes. Our group is poor, and each of us is given one set of clothes. The quality is not good, and they will break when I put them on.
I don’t dare to wash it for fear of ruining it. I have to rely on clothes to find a wife.”
The small actions of the Vice-Chancellor of the Military Training Province were missed. He laughed awkwardly and quickly lowered his head. The clothes on the backs of the other officers immediately wetted their backs with sweat... They were also preparing to do some small actions just now.
, thanks to the slow movement, otherwise you will be the unlucky one.
The deputy minister of the military took a step forward and knelt down on one knee: "Your Majesty, most of the small mercenary groups are descendants of soldiers from the Ice and Snow Continent. They are famous for their simplicity. They have no training in the etiquette required in the palace. Please forgive me."
"Oh, it's okay, come here, give this mercenary an imperial soldier uniform." The Red Stone Emperor, who knew Amy's temper well, said with a smile.
"Oh, King, you are so kind. By the way, I have four brothers outside. They are fighting with me. We have promised to live and die together, eat together when we have food, and share good things together. You can't just
Give me one, otherwise they will tear my clothes into several parts and hang one piece each as soon as I go out."
"Okay, one for each person." Seeing the young man's hopeful (greedy to be precise) eyes, the Red Stone Emperor regretted what he had just said. It was obvious that this young man was definitely the direct disciple of the leader Amy. By the way,
If you climb the pole, you will see blood if you bite it. Unfortunately, His Majesty the King woke up too late, and he opened his mouth and said something even worse.
"Thank you, Emperor. On behalf of the more than 2,000 brothers in our group, I thank you. On behalf of their future wives, I thank you. You are so generous. You give each person one reward at a time..."
Hong Shi realized what was going on when his ears got hot. He was so excited that the tea cup in his hand immediately filled with water. His beard, face, and clothes were all washed by the hot tea. The trouble came from his mouth. Hong Shi
Your Majesty's intestines are about to turn green with regret. There is no regret medicine. The emperor has to admit what he said - the only good thing is that the best military uniform only costs a few gold coins. For Hong Shi who owns the entire empire
Still bearable.
Originally, I wanted to ask some specific questions about the enemies of Fanos Continent. After what happened just now, Hongshi became very cautious and wisely waved the captain of the mercenary group to leave until he confirmed that the mercenary had exited the hall.
, Hongshi officially asked the military generals about countermeasures.
As the dual overlord of the Eminor Continent and the Frozen Continent, we are now deeply aware of the inconvenience caused by the vast territory. Currently, there are 25,000 elite troops in the Northern Federation. In addition, there are 20,000 elite troops in the Northern Federation.
Regular troops, 20,000 swordsmen troops, 10,000 mercenaries, and more than 10,000 noble armed forces, but across the sea, these troops can hardly play any role; there is also a complete army near Jielin, but it is now in name only. Jielin
The area is covered with hills and dense forests. If there is no military deterrence, this area will definitely turn into desert thieves harvesting farmland. There are also 10,000 elite troops near Tongyunguan. They cannot move now, otherwise once the mercenary empire is captured, the southeastern part of the empire will be destroyed.
The area will be broken without attacking; more elite troops are still contained on the north bank of the Lion River, although everyone can see at a glance that the Fanos army is by no means a feint. Such a large-scale jumping attack must be the enemy's strategy
Sexual transfer, so what, there is a more terrifying enemy in front of the imperial troops, and it has already occupied several small towns in Lion River. If there is a loophole in the front line, it is estimated that the Lion River plain will face the dilemma of complete fall.
.
The foreign continental army that went on an expedition to Duanbing Port posed a problem to the empire. It was not only a lack of troops, but also a shortage of general resources. The four aspects mentioned above all require dedicated generals; several veterans of the empire
Marshal Jun has entered his sixtieth year and his energy is not as good as before. Marshal Chi Datong, who is the only fighter, is also the commander-in-chief of the military department and is responsible for overall mobilization. It is definitely impossible to specifically command one aspect of the battle; the general of the Gyeonggi Defense Area, Marquis Chi Hanfeng, has returned.
The leader is out there...
"Your Majesty, can you promote newcomers from the Gyeonggi Theater Command over the next level?" the Deputy Minister of Military Affairs asked cautiously.
"No!" Emperor Hongshi categorically objected: "None of the current captains in the Gyeonggi Theater were promoted because of their military merits. In the history of the empire, most of the leaders who were promoted in this way ended in failure."
"Then, Your Majesty, I have another suggestion. Can you ask Your Excellency Amy, the leader of the small mercenary group, to form a temporary war zone, and separate 2 to 3 brigades from the Colorful Dragon Knights and the Imperial Guard, plus the small mercenaries?
The regiment already has the strength, and the total number of regular troops has reached 25,000, which should be able to stabilize the war situation. Amy's excellent command in the previous battle of Xilin Island is obvious to all, and he is also the adopted son of General Chi of the Gyeonggi Defense Area. From the perspective of the father's role as a son,
Judging from it, it makes sense. Others who lead the Colorful Dragon Knights may still receive a cold reception, so Amy should have no problem." The deputy chief suggested again.
For the officers of the Imperial Military Department, the information of the entire empire's senior commanders, including the chiefs of the major mercenary groups, has long been familiar with. Due to many years of no war, the empire's theater-level commanders have been in a state of inactivity. This is why there were once in the Gyeonggi Theater.
There has been no top executive for more than five years. Under this situation, there are only a few solutions that can be thought of. What the deputy chief said just now is almost everyone’s idea. Considering His Majesty’s relationship with the Chi family and his concern for the Chi family,
Judging from the level of trust, this is probably the most likely plan to be implemented.
"No." After this denial, the Red Stone Emperor thought for dozens of breaths: "Leading the regular army of the empire as a mercenary, this rule cannot be broken."
All military commanders fell into thinking again.
…………
At the end of winter and the beginning of spring, the wind was extremely windy at night. You could hear the howling of the wind in any corner of the imperial capital. There was not a single cloud in the sky. The red crescent moon hung obliquely in the southern sky, and the cold moonlight shone all over the earth.
"Bang, stick, stick..." It was the third watch, and the sound of tapping golden circles was heard from all over the imperial capital at the same time, and the cold sound spread far and wide in the air.
Except for the large Qi Si Feng lantern near the palace, most of the official residences in the entire imperial capital were plunged into darkness.
Near the east gate of the empire, there is a light on in a very large house. Compared with the cold weather outside, the house is equally cold to the bone. There is a lone lamp on the table and a middle-aged man sitting cross-legged on the bed.
There was a sense of helplessness while thinking deeply. Listening to the wind outside the house getting stronger and stronger, the middle-aged man shouted outside: "Guard! Come in and warm up for a while."
The guard hesitated for a moment: "Thank you, I'm on official business."
"Ha..." the middle-aged man let out a long sigh, "If you want, you can go to the concierge to warm yourself up. You don't have to endure such hardship."
As one of the commanders of the highest defense zone in the empire, Fan Zijue could never have imagined that there would be a situation like this.
In the previous 20 years of Fan Zijue's military career, one word needs to be used to describe his outstanding military achievements. He fought in several major war zones and performed well in all previous positions. He broke through his citizenship and became a nobleman, and even became an imperial general.
In the Battle of Lion River, both sides suffered losses with the Fanos army. It was an unprecedented defeat for the Viscount's previous record. What's more, the pressure was even greater. Alcatraz's army occupied many small towns along the Lion River overnight. This was unprecedented in the empire's nearly 100-year history.
It's rare.
When retreating to Lionheart City, some subordinates asked cautiously with a look of worry: Can the Imperial Military Headquarters know that the Fire Lion Legion was attacked by two armies of Alcatraz and Fanos at the same time?
The injury? Can His Majesty the King understand?
In front of many subordinates, Fan Zijue lost his previous self-confidence for the first time: "Well... His Majesty comes from a military family and is much more familiar with the army than I am. Therefore... I think... we can retake the city to repay the emperor."
Well." The uncertainty in his words undoubtedly left a shadow in the hearts of the Fire Lion Army soldiers.
In the following more than a month, Fan Zijue tried his best to send out a mixed brigade in the hope of recovering even a small town of 3,000 people. Unfortunately, even an elite unit like the Fire Lion could not defeat the powerful combat power of the Alcatraz soldiers.
Victory. Especially the ace unit of Alcatraz Island - the Demon Centurion. Such powerful soldiers only need 100 people to independently undertake an offensive and defensive task. What's even more chilling to the Fire Lion Legion is that the Demon's stretch is as wide as 4
Mi's wings can fly at low altitude and at high speed, and the speed can reach more than twice that of the Light Knight. In previous conflicts, the Fire Lion Legion discovered that Alcatraz Island has 5 such Centurion flags, and these 5 Devil Centurions are almost on guard.
All towns.
Subsequently, with a transfer order, the Fire Lion Legion left the north bank of the Lion River where they had been stationed for more than 300 years, and the Viscount himself was directly recalled to the Imperial Military Headquarters.
Fan Zijue saw expressions of pity, sadness, and gloating in the eyes of the officers who were seeing him off. Coupled with his previous actions of not rescuing the direct mercenary group of the largest noble family in the empire, the former defense area general seemed to be able to guess what he would do after returning to the imperial capital.
Ending - What will the imperial military headed by Chi Datong, the three imperial theaters headed by brothers Chi Hantong and Chi Hanfeng, and many disciples do? The answer is already clear. As a civilian who has just entered the aristocracy,
As a soldier, Fan Zijue really lacked proper understanding of the many famous nobles in the imperial capital, let alone which distinguished guest he could visit to exonerate himself.
As soon as he arrived at the imperial capital, Fan Zijue was taken by soldiers outside the south gate of the imperial capital to a post house specially provided for foreign officials entering the capital. Unfortunately, he was placed in the innermost courtyard, and there were two posts at the door. He was even told that,
Without a permission order, you are not allowed to leave this small black courtyard with a radius of no more than 20 meters.
There was no more naked imprisonment than this, and Fan Zijue was not optimistic about his prospects. The only thing that surprised him was that the department the soldiers at the door belonged to was not from the Imperial Military Affairs Department, but from the Imperial Civil Service which had nothing to do with the military.
department.
At the internal hearing on the fourth day, the first thing Fan Zijue saw after entering the hall was a stack of files that was two meters high. At that time, Fan Zijue felt like he was lacking oxygen: Fan Zijue had also participated in such a meeting before.
Of course, the roles are completely different. According to previous experience, even for extremely large issues, the thickness of the file is only about 50 centimeters. Such thick information is probably more than enough to review all the officers of the Lion River Corps.
So much so that Fan Zijue asked rudely at that time: "Are these... all related to me?"
Immediately afterwards, Fan Zijue discovered that those sitting in the middle of the hall were really the undersecretary of the Imperial Ministry of Civil Affairs and two assistants, while the military representative, Duke Chi Datong, was just sitting aside and listening.
What was slightly different from the cold hall was that Duke Chi Datong had a trace of concern on his face. After seeing Fan Zijue enter, he did not wait for him to come over and salute, but took the initiative to stand up and shake hands with Fan Zijue: "Such a big thing has come out of Southern Xinjiang."
The Fire Lion Legion was attacked by twice as many enemies. On behalf of the military headquarters, I would like to express my concern for the dead and wounded soldiers. After the matter here is over, Your Excellency the Viscount will report to the military headquarters as soon as possible. Other military officials are very much hoping to see you.
"
During the interrogation that followed for more than two months, Fan Zijue realized that this prison sentence was very different from what he had previously thought. The accuser was the 73 imperial noble families in the Lion River territory, and the acceptor was the nobleman of the Imperial Ministry of Civil Affairs.
To manage the province, there were three charges: 1. Murder of 159 imperial nobles; 2. Murder of 6,723 imperial noble fiefdom soldiers; 3. Escape from battle, resulting in the fall of 45 noble fiefdoms and 21 nobles being imprisoned by the enemy.
The aristocratic titles included in the files include all titles except prince, county prince, and duke. Among them, at least two people with high titles such as marquis and seven earls died due to Viscount Fan’s subjective or objective fault. Among the imperial officials
The ministry's footnote to this incident was: the largest murder of a nobleman in the history of the empire.
During the trial, the Imperial Military Department continued to exonerate Fan Zijue from his crimes. In every trial, no matter when or where, there must be officers from the Military Department who have joined the army or above to listen. Moreover, the Military Department made it clear that Fan Zijue as a
One of the highest-ranking people in the army cannot impose any punishment during the trial. This also surprised Fan Zijue. In private, he also asked an official of the Imperial Military Department who was slightly familiar with him why the Ministry of Military Affairs was involved in this dispute.
By doing your best for him, shouldn't you care about some past grudges? He even directly asked about the lack of reinforcements for the small mercenary group.
The face of Viscount Birmingham, the training officer of the Ministry of Military Affairs, was full of surprise. For the Imperial Military Department, especially the group of old generals and marshals headed by Chi Datong, the generals of the major military regions were undoubtedly promoted by them to join the army.
―Maybe we haven’t had direct contact with each other before. Therefore, the Imperial Military Department basically treats all generals equally. Important generals like Fan Zijue are indispensable or right-hand men for the military department. They have gotten along with each other for so many years.
Why do you still mind some of his minor problems? As for the reinforcement of the small mercenary group, in fact, the Redstone Emperor has asked about this matter many times and even asked to send troops to provide support. Among the military, Duke Chi is the staunchest opponent.
One of the supporters, Count Chi Hanfeng, the commander of the Gyeonggi War Zone, also held objections to this matter.
"Will the military tolerate the loss of territory?"
"Well... as a soldier, it is necessary to defend the country, but under the circumstances at that time, each commander and each army had their own limits. Afterwards, we specially analyzed that war and the strength of the troops at that time
This is already one of the best endings we can predict.”
Finally, Viscount Birmingham patted Viscount Fan on the shoulder: "Brother, after this battle is over, I really recommend that you serve in the military department for a period of time, so that you can have a better understanding of the imperial army."
Facing the sincere eyes, Fan Zijue tried his best to control his face and eyes so as not to lose his composure.
Under the strong intervention of the Imperial Military Department, Fan Zijue has not suffered any major grievances in the past two months. However, the pain of completely losing freedom of movement is intolerable to ordinary people.
Looking at the swirling oil lamp fireworks and feeling the cold spring outside, the former general has no confidence in his future. Perhaps he will be forced to retire or even be stripped of his title.
Outside the house, the sound of violent horse hooves suddenly came from the moonlit night, breaking the Viscount's thoughts: Oh, it's so late at night, and horses can still run wild in the imperial capital that has already entered curfew. There must be an emergency military situation. I don't know if it's possible.
It's the war situation in southern Xinjiang. It can't be bad news. Thinking of this, the Viscount shook his head helplessly. If he is not in his position and does not plan his affairs, why bother.
The horse's hooves suddenly disappeared nearby, and then there was a faint sound of heavy banging on the door. Soon, several guards officers opened the door of the hut: "Your Majesty has given an order, Viscount Fan enters the palace quickly!"