Chapter 491 Civilian? Military officer?
"Songjiaji is the military supply base of Fengwu Army. Half of the military supplies of Fengwu Army are concentrated here. As long as we take Songjiaji, our trip will be worthwhile. Even if Fengwu Army does not stop, the attack on Yijing will be greatly affected, which is far better than attacking other targets..."

"What are you waiting for with such an opportunity? If you are worried, how about I do it for you?"

Under the gaze of everyone, Wang Lei became more and more excited as he spoke, and in the end he even forced Zhao Shuhao to abdicate.

Even if he wanted to tolerate Wang Lei temporarily, every word Wang Lei said pierced Zhao Shuhao's heart, making Zhao Shuhao very angry. Although he was still worried about the situation in Songjiaji, Zhao Shuhao had no evidence to prove to his men.

Under such circumstances, if Zhao Shuhao insisted on not attacking Songjiaji, then even though he was the commander who had the final say, he would inevitably be branded as a coward. And if that were the case, if Yijing was not defended in the end, then even though his surname was Zhao and he was a member of the Zhao family, he would inevitably become a scapegoat.

Thinking of this, although Zhao Shuhao felt a little helpless, he could only look at Wang Lei coldly and said in a deep voice:
“Since Captain Wang is so confident, there are 3,000 enemy troops in Songjiaji and I will give you 2,000 people to raid Songjiaji. Do you dare to issue a military order?”

Hearing the words "military order", Wang Lei, who was a little excited, calmed down a little. However, if he was scared at this critical juncture, he would not be able to survive in the army in the future. He could only bite the bullet and say:

"I am willing to die for you, my Lord Commander! I am willing to die for the Yan army! If we fail to capture Songjiaji, I will be subject to military law!"

"Okay! Since you are so brave, Sentinel Wang, I will help you. If you can capture Songjiaji and destroy the military supplies of the Fengwu Army, I will personally ask the general for credit for you!"

Hearing Zhao Shuhao's promise, Wang Lei's eyes flashed with light. Although he was forced to sign a military order, Zhao Shuhao now promised in front of so many people. If he really succeeded in this mission, Zhao Shuhao would definitely not dare to deny it.

After the meeting, Zhao Shuhao looked gloomy as he watched Wang Lei leave with great confidence. He asked the guard beside him:
"Send two brothers to accompany Wang Lei tomorrow. After he breaks through Songjiaji, we will shoot him with a bullet before dark!"

Hearing that Zhao Shuhao wanted to shoot Wang Lei himself, his subordinates hesitated when they thought of the strict military law. Seeing this, Zhao Shuhao patted his shoulder and said:

“You’ve been with me for so many years, and you know very well how I treat my brothers. Help me take Wang Lei’s place, and I’ll leave his position to you…”

As soon as these words came out, the subordinate's eyes instantly became firm. He nodded and said, meeting Zhao Shuhao's gaze:

"My Lord, I know what to do!"

"very good!"

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The next day, late at night, Songjiaji.

Ye Dong stood on the wall and stared at the darkness outside the city wall. Seeing Ye Dong's serious look, his captain Li Xueming hesitated for a moment and asked Ye Dong:
"My Lord, will they come tonight?"

Ye Dong shook his head and said:

"It just says the enemy is here and we should be prepared, but it doesn't say when they will arrive!"

Ye Dong paused for a moment and then changed the subject:

"But I have a feeling they'll be here tonight!"

As soon as Ye Dong finished speaking, he felt the ground begin to tremble slightly. Seeing this, the experienced Ye Dong immediately realized that there were a large number of cavalry outside the wall, charging towards Songjiaji. Realizing this, Ye Dong was not panicked at all. Instead, he showed an excited smile on his face, patted Li Xueming's shoulder heavily with his big hand and said:
"The enemy is coming, get ready brothers!"

"Yes!"

After receiving Ye Dong's order, Li Xueming was excited and hurried down to explain...

It happened in a flash. The shaking of the earth became stronger and stronger. Thousands of Youyan cavalrymen rushed to the city of Songjiaji. The Fengwu army guarding the city gate seemed to have not expected anyone to come out. They just resisted for a few times and then fled. Seeing this situation, Wang Lei, who came here with orders, was overjoyed. He rode on a tall horse and shouted loudly:
"Brothers, follow me and kill all those bastards of the Fengwu Army! Burn all their military supplies!"

Before he finished speaking, Wang Lei led a dozen of his personal soldiers and rushed into the city gate at the head of the charge, charging into the depths of the gathering place. Seeing that their commander was so brave, these Youyan cavalry, who were already the elite of the Yan army, followed Wang Lei closely and rushed in.

However, at this moment, a cannon shot suddenly rang out in the center of Songjiaji, and then brilliant fireworks appeared in the sky. The fireworks in the sky were so dazzling and beautiful!
Seeing the appearance of the fireworks, Wang Lei suddenly had a bad premonition in his heart, but it was too late. Countless torches were lit in all directions, and where these torches were lit, there were large numbers of Fengwu Army soldiers armed with live ammunition······················

With the sound of firing, the muskets, tiger squat cannons and grenades in the hands of the Fengwu Army soldiers roared one after another. Although as the most elite troops in the Yan Army, every Youyan Iron Cavalry wore cotton armor or even iron armor, but at such a short distance, the armor on their bodies was no different from ordinary clothes. It was like cutting wheat. The first few hundred Youyan Iron Cavalry who rushed in fell in a pool of blood amid screams and wails.

Although there were personal soldiers willing to block bullets for him, Wang Lei, who was in charge of leading the troops, still could not escape the disaster. A grenade fell right at his feet and blew him to the ground, knocking him unconscious.

Not only inside Songjiaji, as the fireworks rose, tens of thousands of Fengwu Army soldiers who were ambushed outside Songjiaji immediately surrounded it, forming a huge encirclement, trapping all the 2,000 Youyan cavalry who attacked Songjiaji.

Zhao Shuhao, who was thirty miles away from Songjiaji, looked at the flames and the deafening shouts of killing at Songjiaji. He didn't understand what was happening. His expression suddenly became very ugly. He beat his chest and cursed bitterly:
"Wang Lei misled me!"

After saying this, although he was unwilling to rescue his two thousand men, Zhao Shuhao knew very well that this was a trap carefully designed by the other party. They mobilized tens of thousands of troops to wait and see, and the two thousand Youyan cavalry were doomed to fail...
If we rescue them now, I am afraid that the remaining 3,000 men will also be killed. Thinking of this, Zhao Shuhao did not hesitate and ordered decisively:

"withdraw!"

An incense stick later, the battle of Songjiaji ended. Yuan Song, who was in charge of commanding this battle, walked into Ye Mingsheng's tent and reported to Ye Mingsheng, who was resting with his eyes closed and waiting for news:

"Reporting to the Lord, we won a great victory at Songjiaji. Our army killed 1,532 enemies and captured 503 people, including the enemy sentry leader Wang Lei!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng opened his eyes, frowned slightly and said:

"Why did you only annihilate so many people?"

Listening to Ye Mingsheng's words, Yuan Song felt a little pressure and said helplessly: "The enemy only sent 2,000 people to attack Songjiaji. Our troops have annihilated them all and captured them..."

Because the area around Yijing is a plain terrain and the cavalry is highly mobile, it is difficult for the Fengwu Army, which is mainly composed of infantry, to encircle the cavalry under such terrain conditions. So Yuan Song proposed an idea, that is, instead of seeking to encircle and annihilate the enemy, it is better to lure the enemy deep into the territory, making Songjiaji a bait to lure the enemy into the trap.

From a tactical point of view, Yuan Song's tactics were undoubtedly successful, and he annihilated a full two thousand Youyan cavalry. The only pity was that the enemy took the bait but not completely. As long as the enemy's generals are not stupid, they will definitely not fall into the same trap twice.

Although he felt a little regretful, Ye Mingsheng did not say much. After all, Yuan Song had already tried his best. He then said:

"You have worked hard during this period. Let Guo Zhiping lead the cavalry to hunt down the remaining remnants. The entire army is ready to move to Guangzong County and fight a decisive battle with Zhao Yong!"

"Understood. I'll go back and prepare now!" Yuan Song nodded and replied:
After Yuan Song left, Qi Dechao thought for a while and suggested to Ye Mingsheng:
"Sir, although we failed to completely wipe out the Youyan cavalry this time, with this lesson, I believe they will not dare to act rashly. In addition, with the Flying Tiger Battalion tracking us, their harassment will not pose much threat to our siege!"

"At present, Yijing City can be conquered in another three or four days. Why should our army go to Guangzong County for a decisive battle with Zhao Yong? If we leave now, won't Yijing be able to relax..."

Ye Mingsheng smiled when he heard this, picked up the memorial sent by the Coordination Office an hour ago, handed it to Qi Dechao and said:

"Look at this!"

Picking up the memorial, Qi Dechao glanced at it, and a hint of joy immediately emerged in his eyes. He congratulated Ye Mingsheng:

"I see, sir, you have other plans!"

Ye Mingsheng said slowly after hearing this

"I have been thinking about a problem these days. Zhao Fuqu brought back more than 40,000 people from Jinzhong. When he returns, together with Zhao Yong's troops, there will be almost 80,000 people. Our army will also have about this number when entering the pass this time. But the problem is that the 20,000 people I brought from Liaoyang are our last fresh troops. If we withdraw more from Liaoyang, Liaoyang may be unstable!"

“This is Youyan, the territory that Zhao Fuqu has managed for decades. Zhao Fuqu has accumulated great prestige here. As long as he is alive, he can get a steady stream of fresh troops. So as long as our army can’t defeat this old guy in one blow and he drags the war on, our hope of victory will become smaller and smaller. In the end, even if our army can win this battlefield, it will be exhausted…”

"So I can't let Zhao Fuqu and Zhao Yong meet. I want to kill Zhao Yong before he comes back. Killing Zhao Yong is like cutting off one of Zhao Fuqu's arms. It will be difficult for Zhao Fuqu to make any waves. His final fate is nothing more than hiding in Zhuo County and other places, waiting to be slowly eaten away by me!"

"Your Excellency has a far-sighted vision, which is truly admirable!" Qi Dechao expressed his praise at the right time.

Listening to Qi Dechao's flattery, Ye Mingsheng smiled and then looked at Qi Dechao and said:
"You've been with me for so long, have you ever thought about where to be sent out?"

Seeing Ye Mingsheng talking about this, Qi Dechao was startled at first, then a hint of expectation appeared in his expression, but he still said honestly:
"I'll go wherever the adults tell me to go!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng patted his shoulder and said:

"I feel relieved that you can handle things well and have me by your side, but I can't let you stay by my side as an attendant forever. This would be a waste of your abilities..."

"It is my honor to be your aide, Your Excellency. I am willing to be your aide for the rest of my life!" Qi Dechao replied sincerely:

Seeing this, Ye Mingsheng laughed and scolded:

"You sycophant!"

"I'll give you a choice. You need to think it over carefully. Do you want to be a civil servant or a military officer?"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, Qi Dechao hesitated for a moment and asked cautiously:

"Can't your Excellency be both a civil and military officer?"

"Qi Dechao, you are quite greedy!"

Ye Mingsheng smiled, shook his head and said:

"Power breeds ambition. The greater your power, the greater your ambition. So under my rule, civil officials are civil officials, and military officials are military officials. It is absolutely not allowed for someone to govern local affairs and monopolize military power..."

Feeling the unquestionable tone in Ye Mingsheng's voice, Qi Dechao hesitated for a moment, then bowed to Ye Mingsheng and said:

"I am willing to be a civil servant!"

After hearing Qi Dechao's choice, Ye Mingsheng became curious and asked:
"You were born a military commander, why did you choose to be a civil servant?"

Qi Dechao organized his words and said:
"Although I am a military officer, my army is filled with talented and brave generals. There is no shortage of Qi Dechao in the army!"

"During the time I have been with you, I have deeply felt the hardships of the people's lives. Just as you have always taught me, when prosperity comes, the people suffer, when decline comes, too. I am not a talented person, but I am willing to take the people of the world as my responsibility, and use what I have learned throughout my life to improve people's livelihood and government administration, so that the people can live and work in peace and give them a bright and peaceful world!"

(I've been having some writer's block lately, so I may have to think about it again tomorrow. The next step should be a decisive battle, and then more forces will be involved. I'll give you a hint that in a dozen chapters, there should be an anti-Feng alliance. What do you think?)

(End of this chapter)